Chapter Nineteen: Return of the Princess

Once the news was made public, all of Homeworld was practically in an uproar. The knowledge that one of their leaders, long presumed dead, had been alive this whole time would have been enough to drive most societies into chaos. Luckily for Goshenite and the others, White Diamond's presence was more than enough to keep the entire populace from devolving into rioting. Her voice broadcast across every channel across the empire shortly after the Milky Quartz had delivered the news:

"Gems across the universe, hear the voice of Your Diamond! Yellow and Blue, who have just ventured to Earth, have sent me the most wonderful news! Pink Diamond, long thought shattered, has been found alive! She has survived all these years, inhabiting the body of an organic host. She will return alongside Yellow and Blue later this very day. Rejoice, for this is a grand occasion! The highest-ranking members of every court will be required to attend her return. This is truly a glorious day for our empire!"

Her message was heard on every Gem colony and outpost throughout the universe. Tacitus-4. Alpus Beta. Rulax-14. Volrekk. Auragh-18. Moridius. Gozyos-IV. Even Mieren-VII. But it was Homeworld itself where much of the unrest was located.

Pearl stood near the window of the top floor of the Capital Spire, staring down at the streets below. They bustled with activity even more than usual, in a state of nothing short of pandemonium. If Pearl didn't know any better, she would have sworn that White Diamond had just announced that the world was ending. Of course, given the nature of White's announcement, she figured that the throngs were jubilant rather than riotous.

Goshenite paced the floor a short distance away. "None of this makes sense," she muttered. "She was shattered-there were witnesses! How did she survive for all these millennia?"

Seated nearby were Maxixe and Bixbite. "You heard Her Brilliance," said the latter. "She is using an organic body as a host. This must be how she survived the other Diamonds' attack on Earth."

"That isn't what I meant," said Goshenite. "How does someone, even a Diamond, survive being shattered!?"

Maxixe, unlike Goshenite, didn't seem to be too bothered by this revelation. "The power of the Diamonds is well known, but very little of the actual details are understood. For all we know, shattering is nothing more than a minor inconvenience for a Diamond! In any case, I have read Yellow Diamond's report, and Pink seemingly has no memory of her time during or directly after the war."

"It must be that organic body," said Bixbite. "Organics are notoriously fragile. It must be slowly decaying."

"Bixbite, I hardly think it has anything to do with-" Maxixe tried to say.

"Think on this: have you ever known an organic to live for over five thousand years?" asked Bixbite. She was met with silence. "I rest my case."

"That's all fine and good, but...what are we supposed to do now?" said Goshenite. "Don't get me wrong, Pink Diamond's return is a great thing, a wonderful thing, but has it really come at the best time? The Interlopers are becoming more and more aggressive. Between Teptromina personally getting involved, and the recent assault on the Capital District…" She didn't need to say more.

"It may seem a bit odd, but I see this as only a good thing," said Maxixe. "Before the Earth War, Homeworld was at its strongest. Once Pink was lost, our empire became fractured. The only reason the Interlopers attacked us was because they knew we were weakened. Not that she is returning, I have no doubt Homeworld will become stronger than ever."

"I hope you're right," Goshenite said. She sat down beside the other two Beryls. "Otherwise, this whole thing reeks of coincidence."

Something about Goshenite's comment caught Pearl's attention. She slowly walked over as the trio continued their conversation.

"What do you mean by that?" asked Bixbite.

"Pink Diamond returns not long after the Interlopers launch a direct attack on Homeworld? It's most likely nothing...but I can't shake the feeling that-"

"M-miss Goshenite?" Pearl said quietly.

"Hmm?" Goshenite turned towards the smaller Gem, as did Bixbite and Maxixe. "What is it, Pearl?"

"It's just...I had a thought," Pearl said. "Ever since those giant machines attacked, I haven't been able to shake the feeling that Onyx, Cairngorm, Tanzanite and I are responsible. Remember that Interloper incident we had at the surveillance headquarters?"

"All too well," said Maxixe, hiding her annoyance. "But Homeworld's location isn't a secret. Why would that cause them to attack us?"

"That's what I was thinking," Pearl said. "But then, when White Diamond made her announcement, I thought of something else. What if...what if Teptromina knew that Pink Diamond was alive? I-I know that sounds crazy, but...what if he wanted something like this to happen?"

Everyone thought about this for a moment. "Why would Teptromina want Pink Diamond to return?" said Bixbite. "Like Maxixe said, only good can come of her return. How could this benefit the Interlopers?"

Pearl only shrugged. "It's crazy, I know."

"I wouldn't put it past him," Goshenite said. "I wouldn't be surprised if Teptromina knows more than we think he does. He must have a reason to only be revealing himself now."

"Yes. And that reason is, he and his Interloper cronies are growing desperate," said Bixbite. "If they do know of Pink Diamond's return, I imagine they are beginning to panic. That would explain how bold they're becoming."

The telltale sound of the elevator reaching the top floor sounded out. The door opened, and out strolled Morganite, a look of barely-restrained glee on her face. "Dahlings, you're already here!" she exclaimed. "Have you heard the news?"

"News, eh?" said Bixbite. "Why, no, we were just discussing the latest model of Roaming Eye. What is this news you speak of?"

Morganite shot her a dirty look, before joining the Beryls in their seats. "Hello, Pearl," she said, affectionately stroking the Gem's hair. "Surely you must be excited, yes?"

"Oh, very, Miss Morganite," Pearl said. "I never got the chance to see Pink Diamond in person, so I'm glad I can finally get the chance. You must be really happy-weren't you in her court?"

"That I was, dahling," said Morganite, staring off fondly into space. "That reminds me-you were originally supposed to be for her, weren't you?"

"Mhmm," Pearl nodded. "Blue Diamond had me custom made, a gift to replace White Diamond's hand-me-down. Things...may not have turned out like they were planned, but I'm glad I ended up with Emerald!"

"Yes, I'm sure she is as well," said Morganite. "She was very fond of you."

"Is," said Goshenite. "Emerald is very fond of you."

Goshenite looked around. "Speaking of Emeralds, has she arrived yet? Of Heliodor?"

Bixbite shook her head. "Not yet. Emerald is busy chasing down those pirates, and Heliodor is...busy with you-know-what. I don't believe either of them will make it."

After a brief silence, Maxixe got to her feet-or rather, her wings. "It's almost evening," she said. "Shall we get ready?"

Goshenite stood up as well. "Yes, I think we should. We definitely don't want to be late for this."

A mere few hours later, some of the highest ranking Gems in the empire, at least those that were on-world, were sorted according to color in the Diamond pavilion. Each one of them eagerly awaited the arrival of Pink Diamond, Era-1 and Era-2 alike. The former were overjoyed that their beloved Pink was still alive, and the latter, who had only heard stories about her, if even that, were excited to finally meet her.

Goshenite was grouped with the handful of other Goshenites that had been able to leave their colonies. Pearl stood by her side, staring up into the sky. "Will she be here soon?" she asked.

"Any moment," said Goshenite. "Keep looking."

Pearl anxiously squirmed in place, looking up at the sky for any sign of Pink's ship. She wasn't really sure what to look for, but she was sure she'd know it when she saw it.

Pearl wasn't sure how long she had been waiting for when she heard a shout over from Yellow Diamond's court. A Heliodor, not the one she was familiar with, was excitedly pointing up into the sky. She followed her arm, and found a small speck breaking through the planet's atmosphere. Commotion sprouted up all around the pavilion as more and more Gems saw the approaching ship as well. Pearl grabbed onto Goshenite's arm in her excitement. A hushed silence fell over the crowd.

The ship, an enormous pair of legs, approached the landing dock. Pearl stared in awe as it streaked through the air, landing down on the platform. The silence turned to a roar as every Gem burst began cheering for the returned Diamond.

And then, the Diamonds made their appearance. Blue and Yellow were the most noticeable, and down by their feet there were a handful of Gems, as well as a pair of organics. "Is that her?" Pearl asked.

"It must be," said Goshenite, squinting to get a better view. "But...something about that organic looks...familiar…"

The crowd's enthusiastic cheering was instantly cut short when a droning sound cut through the air. The entire pavilion fell silent as an eerie figure made its appearance, floating through the air from White Diamond's ship. Her Pearl, long since made a puppet of her own will, approached Pink Diamond.

Pearl and Goshenite were too far away to hear what was being said. "What's going on?" asked the former.

"I don't know," said Goshenite. "White must want to see Pink after all this time, surely."

A white sphere suddenly enveloped both Pink and the Pearl, carrying them both back towards White's ship. Some of the smaller Gems nearby ran after it, and the Diamonds stared on with a look of what could almost be described as fearful pity. The Gems in the pavilion stared at the bubble, but Pearl's attention was still on Pink's ship.

As the two Diamonds conversed with the Gems beside them, the Gems in the crowd slowly began to disperse. Pink had arrived, and there was no reason to stay any longer than was needed. Surely White would give them updates as needed. "Come along, Pearl," said Goshenite, sounding all too eager to leave.

"Goshenite," said Pearl, pointing to the ship, "someone else was there. Someone else got out of Pink Diamond's ship."

"What?" said Goshenite, looking down at her with confusion. "What sort of someone?"

"I don't know," Pearl said. "They were all white. Maybe they were another Gem."

"Maybe," Goshenite said, ushering Pearl towards the exit. "Right now, we have more important things to worry about than Pink Diamond's ragtag entourage."

"Like what?" asked Pearl.

"Like the Interlopers. They're up to something, and I get the feeling that it's going to be something major." The two of them stepped out of the pavilion, joining the throngs of Gems returning to their work.