Chapter Five: Under Attack
Pearl wasn't sure which one of them moved first: both Goshenite and the fusion seemed to charge at one another at the same time. Goshenite pointed her staff at her opponent, who blocked the tip with one of her gauntlets, grabbing it with the other. Both of them grappled over the weapon, glaring at the other.
"I've fought Goshenites before," said Garnet. "And won."
"You haven't fought this Goshenite." The white Beryl swung her weapon around, the fusion still grabbing it, as she threw them several meters behind her. Her foe out of the way for now, she turned her attention to Pearl. "You have to get out of here! Get Topaz while you're at it!"
"Isn't there some way we can talk this out!?" said Pearl.
"You're hilarious. Go get Topaz!"
The battle was escalating. It was clear that talking things out wasn't an option. The four Pearls retreated to safety.
Hearing footsteps behind her, Goshenite turned around to see the fusion returning. "Not content to leave good enough alone, are you?"
"We just need repairs," said Garnet. "And we're getting them one way or another."
"Not on your life." Goshenite's physical form began to glow. Brighter and brighter, until a burst of white light enveloped the area. While this would have blinded most Gems, Goshenite was surprised to find that Garnet was unaffected. "What!? How!?"
She adjusted her dark visor. "A little fashion advice I picked up on Earth," she said.
Frustrated, Goshenite threw her staff like a javelin, only for the fusion to catch it. The white Gem growled, summoning another one and charging. She leapt into the air and brought it down on what would have been her target's head, if she hadn't blocked it with the other staff. "Where does a fusion like you get off being so strong!?" she snarled.
"Because I'm made of love!" She shoved Goshenite back and dropped the staff to throw a punch at her. Goshenite blocked the blow with her weapon, but was still sent flying by the impact-only to collide with seemingly nothing. A grunt of pain confirmed that she had indeed struck someone.
Goshenite picked herself up off the ground and examined her surroundings. Another Gem was right beside her, becoming visible again. "And what exactly are you doing here?" she asked, livid.
"I snuck onboard your ship!" said Cairngorm. "I didn't think there'd be any sort of action here!"
"And look where we are." Goshenite picked up her weapon as Garnet approached. "I'll deal with you later," she said to Cairngorm, before charging at the fusion.
Meanwhile the troop of Pearls were making their way away from the fighting, back inside of the base. "Okay, what are we supposed to do now?" asked the red one. "Should we call for help?"
"Goshenite told me to go get Topaz, but…" Pearl trailed off.
"But what?" asked the green Pearl.
"It's just...I don't want to escalate this fight any more than it already is!" she said as they ran. "Why can't we just let them leave?"
"Hey, they came to us," said the blue Pearl. "We can't be blamed if a bunch of off-colors suddenly shows up out of nowhere and-"
The Pearls stopped in their tracks as they came across two of the newly-arrived travellers. There was the organic, and the pink one that wasn't a Gem, but didn't quite seem to be an organic, either. Both parties froze. Pearl instinctively drew a small handheld blaster from within her gem, levelling it at the pair.
"Woah, hey, there's no need for that!" said the taller one of the two, holding his hands up.
"Lars, get back!" said the smaller one, holding out his arm.
"What do you mean, me get back, you get back!" the taller of the two, evidently named Lars, said.
"How about both of you get back?" said the green Pearl. She and the others were huddled together, mostly behind their blaster-wielding friend. "You go get...somewhere else, or our girl here'll shoot!"
"Please, we just need some parts for repairs!" said Lars. "Once we get some, we'll move on, I promise!"
"Since when could you trust an off-color's promise?" said the red Pearl. "How do we know you won't just shatter us as soon as we turn our backs?"
"What!? I'm not an off-color, I'm a human!" said Lars.
"And now you're just making up words!" the blue Pearl said.
"Hang on…" Pearl lowered her blaster slightly. "I think they're telling the truth."
"You're crazy!" said the red Pearl. "Don't put that thing down!"
A brief struggle ensued in which the red Pearl tried to grab Pearl's weapon, while Pearl tried to keep it. As a result, a bolt of green energy was hurled at the two organics. But before it reached them, a pink glow emanated from the smaller one. The blast collided harmlessly with a shield that had appeared from nowhere. A very familiar shield.
"That...that's impossible," said the green Pearl.
"S-she's Rose Quartz!" the blue Pearl exclaimed. "That isn't just an off-color, that's...like the queen of off-colors!"
Pearl, on the other hand, didn't react in the slightest. Her focus was more on the blaster that had just discharged. As the red Pearl's hand was still on it, Pearl yanked it away from her.
"So...uh...what do we do now?" said Lars.
"I think...we talk things out," said Pearl. She lowered her blaster, depositing it back within her gemstone.
All six of them were quiet now, each staring at the other group. "That-I mean, I'm fine with that, negotiating," said Lars.
"Pearl, what are you…" Green Pearl started admonishing Pearl, but stopped once she met her gaze. Pearl really, truly believed that these two meant no harm, and was willing to put herself in harm's way to prove it. "Alright. We'll talk."
The small organic sighed in relief, the shield disappearing from sight. "That's such a relief," he said. "I can't tell you how many Gems I meet who just want to-hey, what's that?" He pointed behind the Pearls.
"See? They don't want to talk!" said the red Pearl. "Do you really think we're just gonna fall for some stupid trick?" Pearl, however, had immediately looked. "Oh. Well, I stand corrected."
"I don't know," said Pearl. "It looks like a ship, but I can't tell the model from this far away. Unless…" She gasped in surprise. "No. Not now."
"Maybe getting Topaz is the right move after all," said the green Pearl.
Meanwhile, Garnet and Goshenite continued their battle. Although she didn't look it, Goshenite was quite sturdy, and was able to weather most of the punches Garnet threw her way. Of course, Garnet was no slouch either, dodging Goshenite's attacks or deflecting them with her gauntlets.
"Hang on, buddy, I'm-a comin'!" Cairngorm wanted to assist as well. She summed her weapon, a small curved sickle, and rushed to Goshenite's aid. She was able to get one slice in on Garnet, who, unaffected by the blow, threw Cairngorm off into the distance.
"You can't win this!" said Goshenite. "Even if you beat me, which we both know won't happen, you'll never be able to leave this station in time! My forces will decimate your crew, and you'll be-" She was cut off by Garnet slamming a fist directly into her face.
"I may not be able to win, but I'm not trying to!" said Garnet. "It's only a matter of keeping you busy long enough for the others to grab the parts they need."
"And what makes you so sure they'll be able to escape?" asked Goshenite, returning fire with a swing from her staff. Garnet ducked under the blow. "Your gang of off-colors will be caught and tried, just like all the others."
"Uh, Goshenite?" said Cairngorm, sounding nervous. "I think we've got bigger things to worry about right now!"
"Quiet, Cairngorm!" snapped Goshenite. "You aren't even supposed to be here! Don't think you can tell me what to…" As Goshenite looked towards Cairngorm, she trailed off. The brownish Gem was staring towards the sky, as were several others behind her. Even her opponent had turned her gaze upward. Following their example, Goshenite turned around and looked up.
A dark shape hung low in the air, slowly descending through the thin atmosphere of the asteroid. Goshenite soon realized why everyone was so panicked: the dark grey ship, red lights glowing along the sides, bore an appearance she knew all too well.
It was an Interloper gunship.
"You're joking!" said Goshenite. What were the Interlopers doing here, of all places? And why now, of all times? What business could they possibly have?
Gems on both sides of the current conflict took shelter as the gunship's twin cannons engaged. Two barrages of lasers rained down on anything that moved down below. Goshenite bolted for cover within the nearby mines, and much to her chagrin, the fusion had joined her as well.
"What kind of trick is this!?" asked Garnet.
"'Trick'!?" said Goshenite irritably. Where had this Gem been the past five thousand years!? "You really think that I'm faking an Interloper attack just to deal with you!?" The fusion seemed to not know what she was talking about. "Seriously? I know you live underground, but come on!"
"Who are you to talk to me that way!?" Garnet snapped.
"I'm the Supreme General of Homeworld!" Goshenite yelled back. "And I-"
Explosions from up above cut her off. Both of them peered out from their hiding place: the gunship continued to fire, and the mines didn't have the weaponry to take it down. Gems were being destabilized left and right. The two organics the ship had brought in were hiding behind a pink barrier that deflected the shots, but the smaller one was struggling to hold it.
"Steven!" Before Goshenite could wonder what 'Steven' meant, or why the pink shield seemed so familiar, the fusion sprinted towards them. It would be more accurate to describe her movement as a lunge, as she barely had to move her legs. She stopped only briefly, to fire her gauntlets like rockets at the ship. This didn't do much damage, but it did knock the ship briefly off course, giving her just enough time to snatch the two of them up and rush them to safety.
"Okay, what the heck is going on here!?" asked Lars, once Garnet had gotten them to safety. "Here we are, just minding our own business, and that thing just starts shooting at us!"
"It doesn't look like any sort of Gem ship I've seen before," said Steven. "Garnet, do you know what it is?"
"No idea," Garnet answered. "I saw in a few futures this base would be attacked, but...I've never seen anything like that before."
"Oh, hey!" All three of them turned towards this voice. Cairngorm was hiding beside them; none of them had noticed her in their scramble for safety. "Looks like we're in the same ship now, huh?"
Garnet stepped forward. "What is that thing?" she asked in her best authoritative voice. "Why is it attacking?"
Cairngorm glanced out at the gunship. "That appears to be some sort of Interloper ship." Neither Garnet, Steven, nor Lars replied. "What? You really don't know the Interlopers? They've been at war with Homeworld for millenia now!"
With its cannons still scanning for movement, the gunship lowered closer to the ground. Two doors opened on its sides, out of which poured several mechanical soldiers: Scavengers, the backbone of the Interlopers' army.
"So, if they hate Homeworld, does that mean they'd like us?" asked Lars.
Steven, as if to test this theory, walked out from cover while Garnet looked away. Several of the Scavengers focused on him. "Hello," Steven said, holding up his hands. "We're against Homeworld, just like you are. "We can-" The Scavengers trained their blaster arms at him, and opened fire. Steven summoned his shield just in time, and backed behind cover again. "Nope, they hate us too!"
"Like I said, we have to work together if we want to get out of here alive!" said Cairngorm. "You distract 'em, I'll finish 'em off!" Both her physical form and her weapon faded from view, and quiet footsteps could be heard leaving the scene.
Several of the Scavengers were making their way into the buildings and hiding spots to flush out the remaining Gems. It wasn't long before the three of them were found out as well. All it took was one of them aiming its blaster at Steven and Lars for Garnet to rush into action.
The machines never knew what hit them. Their heads were busted into pieces by her blows, their lasers colliding with her body to no effect. Despite how outmatched they were, they continued fighting: what Scavengers lacked in combat ability, they made up in fearlessness. And numbers. No matter how many she destroyed, more of them seemed to emerge from the gunship, which was a force to be reckoned with on its own.
Speaking of which, the ship had turned its attention towards Garnet. Rightfully recognizing her as a threat, it aimed its twin guns at the rampaging fusion. The blasters warmed up, preparing to fire.
"Garnet, look out!" yelled Steven, unable to get to her in time.
Just before the ship could unleash photonic death from above, a red object collided head-on with its hull, knocking it off-center. Garnet got out of there as the source of this object revealed herself. Topaz had entered the fray, Pearl close behind her. The former held a spiked ball, which was connected by a chain to her gemstone on her chest. The latter held her blaster. "Somebody call for the wrecking crew?" said Topaz. However, her tone changed slightly upon seeing who she had saved. "What the? What's goin' on, here? You some kinda off-color?"
"Topaz, cool it," said Cairngorm, reappearing next to the larger Gem. "We're gonna need their help to take that gunship down!"
Said gunship had regained composure, and had continued its barrage, unlikely to stop anytime soon. Interlopers continued to pour from inside of it.
Tearing her way through more Scavengers, Goshenite had made her way over to the congregation. "As much as I hate to admit it, you're right," she said. "Chiron Beta Prime isn't equipped with any meaningful defenses, and calling for backup would take too long."
"Alright, sounds good!" said Cairngorm. She turned to Garnet: "How does this sound? You guys help us, and we'll let you repair your ship and take off!"
"NO!" Evidently, both Goshenite and Garnet were opposed to this.
"I'm not just letting these fugitives leave, even if they do help us!" said Goshenite.
"And I'm half-tempted to leave, and let those machines take care of you all!" Garnet said.
"Garnet!" Steven chided.
"That's not going to work!" Everyone turned to see Rhodonite, carrying Padparadscha in her arms. "Tell them what you saw!"
"Interlopers are coming!" said the Sapphire. "And they won't stop until every Gem on this asteroid is shattered, Crystal or Homeworld!"
"Welp, that sounds like a good enough reason to work together!" said Lars.
"Bah! And why should I trust some off-color!?" growled Goshenite.
"Well, I trust them," said Pearl. Goshenite turned to glare at her...but couldn't bring herself to. "And you can trust me, right?"
Goshenite took a second to answer. "...Fine," she eventually said. "If you help us destroy the gunship, you have my word that you'll make it out of here alive."
Garnet wasn't yet convinced. "Can we trust your word."
"I swear on My Diamond." Goshenite's voice was grave.
Although her allegiance was firmly with Rose Quartz, Garnet remembered quite well how devoted some Gems could be to the Diamonds. "Good enough for me." She paused, holding onto her glasses.
Pearl leaned in closer to Steven. "What's she doing?" she asked.
"Future vision," Steven explained. "Since she's part Sapphire, Garnet can see into the future!"
"Okay, I think I see something," Garnet said. "We'll need to distract it somehow."
Goshenite nodded. "Cairngorm, you know what you need to do."
"On it!" Cairngorm turned invisible, walking off. Meanwhile, more Scavengers were converging on their location.
"Topaz, give us cover!" said Goshenite.
"Will do!" Topaz went out flail-first, tearing through their ranks. "Come on, you tin cans! Give me a challenge! I've fought Zircons tougher than you; literally!" Although she had the Scavengers under control, the gunship had taken notice of her.
Before the ship could fire on the red Gem, something caused it to turn in the air. Cairngorm materialized shortly after, clinging to its side and hacking away at its armor with her sickle. She wasn't doing much damage, but it still felt it necessary to try and shake her off.
"Steven! Launch me, quick!" shouted Garnet, running over to him.
"You got it!" The shield materialized in his hands, which he held above his head. Garnet leapt onto this makeshift springboard, Steven flinging her into the air with surprising strength.
Garnet was aimed right towards the ship; one of her gauntlets increased dramatically in size growing even larger than herself. Once she was in position, she brought it down with tremendous force, cracking open the gunship's tough armor. A small hole was made, revealing the inner workings of the vessel. Cairngorm leapt off before Garnet made the hit, gliding safely down by catching her sickle on the side of a building.
Goshenite eyed this newly-formed weak spot, gripping her staff tightly in hand. "Now you're mine!" She threw the staff with all her might: it soared through the air like a spear, piercing directly through the hole Garnet had made.
The staff seemed to have hit a vital component, as the gunship bobbed and swerved in the air as though trying hard to stay aloft. Soon enough, its gravity stabilizers gave out, sending it crashing towards the ground. Sparks flew as its outer hull grinded against the floor of the asteroid, tearing its armor to shreds. And with one final crash, all that remained of the ship was a smouldering husk. The remaining Scavengers, with now central processing core to sustain them, shut down.
Goshenite looked up to where the fusion had landed. Garnet did the same, meeting her gaze. While both were initially basking in their shared triumph, seeing the other caused some animosity to bubble up. That is, until Goshenite grudgingly admitted the newcomers' part in their victory.
"As much as I hate to admit it...a promise is a promise."
Not long after, the Sun Incinerator was given its much-needed repairs. Goshenite wasn't the only one who was hesitant to help off-colors, but the mines' workers did so without complaint. Even if they made their displeasure clear through non-verbal means.
"You're free to leave this place," Goshenite explained to the ship's crew, "but be warned: I won't hesitate to bring you in if I should run into you again."
"Oh, you don't need to worry about us!" said Lars. "Once we get to Earth, we'll be out of your hair!"
Goshenite raised an eyebrow. "Earth, hmm?"
"Er, maybe you've said too much, Captain," said one of the Rutile twins. "Why don't we take them up on their offer, before they change their mind?" said the other.
"And believe me, I'm tempted to," said Goshenite. She turned away, and walked away from them without another word. Pearl, who had been standing beside her, attempted to clear the air.
"I'm sorry about her," Pearl said. "She can be really abrasive, but she really does mean well."
"Does she?" asked Garnet, clearly skeptical.
"I'm sure of it!" said Pearl. "She and My Emerald used to hate each other, but they've made up, more or less. Goshenite really does want what's best for Homeworld."
"But not for the defective or off-colored," Garnet said coldly.
"Well...I…" Pearl was unable to respond.
"Uh, thanks for letting us go!" said Steven. "And good luck with...those robot guys!"
"Why, you're welcome!" said Pearl. "You know, My Emerald was a big advocate for off-colors. You would have liked her!"
"I'd love to meet her sometime!" said Steven, waving goodbye to Pearl as he and the others boarded the Sun Incinerator. The ship rose up into the air, and blasted off towards the stars. Where they were headed, Pearl could only guess.
Meanwhile, Goshenite walked over to the wreckage of the Interloper gunship. Several Peridots were already over there, taking readings of the crashed vessel. "Anything I should know about?" she asked the nearest one.
"Nothing out of the ordinary, if that's what you mean," said the Peridot. "We're picking up a faint energy signature, so its core is probably still intact. We'll want to harvest it soon before it dissipates."
"Do as you will," Goshenite said. "This isn't my jurisdiction."
Just as Goshenite was preparing to turn away, a sudden bang from the crashed ship caused her to halt. The Peridots were startled by the sudden sound, but more so by the readings that came with it.
"We;ve got a sudden spike in energy!" said one of them. "Something in there's waking up!"
Another bang, this one more forceful. A sizable divot appeared in the hull.
"It won't stop increasing!" said another Peridot. "It's...it's higher than any Interloper we've ever seen!"
Steeling herself, Goshenite drew her weapon once more. "All of you, get to cover!" she shouted. The Peridots did so. "Whatever's in there, you don't want to be nearby once it comes out!"
The mystery presence continued pounding away at its prison, bending the metal further and further. Eventually, it stopped. Goshenite was about to lean in to get a closer look, when a beam of red light tore through the ship. Followed by another, and another, and yet another still. Eventually, a hole large enough for Goshenite herself to fit though had been burned through the hull.
And something that exact size rose into the air.