Chapter Twenty-Three: Giganova

The skies above Mieren-VII lit up with hundreds of explosions as warships from either side tore each other apart. Even though the Gems boasted superior tech, the Interlopers had their defenses outnumbered ten to one. Not to mention, the Oculus hovered above the planet, its three metallic arms reaching down to crack the world open in order to manually extract the weapon. As gradual as it was, the Gems were fighting a losing battle, and they knew it.

From the bridge of the Soul Evaporator, Tanzanite had contacted Heliodor to ask about what Goshenite had said. "Is it true that...that you are planning to detonate Project: Giganova?" she asked.

Heliodor nodded. "Goshenite and I decided it was the only option. This is our only chance to use the weapon, because the Oculus will destroy it otherwise."

Zoisite appeared behind Tanzanite. "And you are committed to this, despite the fact that you will destroy yourselves as well?"

"If it comes to that, yes," Heliodor said nervously. "There might be some time to evacuate, though. There's just under twenty minutes until the payload goes critical. If we can hold the Interlopers off until then, we might have some time to escape."

"But until then, we fight. Understood," said Tanzanite. "We will do all that we can."

"I hope we all do," said Heliodor. "Diamondspeed to you all." The video feed cut out, leaving the bridge in silence once again.

Tanzanite scanned the skies before them, filled with flaming wreckage, and ships that were soon to become the same. She stepped up to the communicator, sending out a message to all Gem vessels in the battle. "All ships, this is Tanzanite Facet YR9 Cut G88, current acting commander of the Soul Evaporator. I am relaying a message from the Science Minister and Supreme General: Project: Giganova has been activated. In less than twenty minutes, Mieren-VII will detonate, destroying everything within a three kiloklik range. Continue to halt the Interlopers' advance, but standby for orders to retreat to a safe distance. Adamantem in Eternum." She ended the communication.

"Now, do we join the fight?" asked Zoisite.

Nodding, Tanzanite stepped forward to address the bridge crew. "Begin charging the Decimator. Full speed ahead into battle."

Goshenite sent her staff flying towards Teptromina like a javelin, narrowly missing his eye. Hovering out of her reach, he fired a cluster of beams down towards her. Goshenite dodged and weaved through the crimson streams of energy, running up and along the side of a wall to reach him. Her newly-drawn staff collided with Teptromina's middle, knocking him out of the air.

Landing back on the ground, both combatants got to their feet, facing off against the other. Goshenite saw that despite her efforts, Teptromina was still undamaged, aside from a few scratches. Goshenite herself was looking a bit ragged, but was still in fighting shape. "It won't be long now," said the machine. "Soon, I will tear this planet apart, piece by piece, and claim your weapon for myself. Your fighting will accomplish nothing-I hope you realize that."

Goshenite prepared to throw her staff again. "I'd like to think otherwise." She hurled it towards Teptromina, and it pierced through his shoulder as he staggered backwards. "Call me an optimist."

"I'll call you dust!" yelled Teptromina, tearing out the staff. He flung it at Goshenite, but she un-summoned it before it reached her. All six of his wings pointed towards her, each one firing a beam. Goshenite dove to the side, sprinting towards her enemy. She leapt into the air as she prepared another staff, preparing to bring it down on him.

Teptromina caught Goshenite by the wrist, lifting her into the air. She tore at his hand, but before she could escape, he slammed her into the ground hard enough to crack the foundation. Before she could struggle to her feet, he planted a foot on her back, forcing her back down to the ground.

He stared down at her with disdain. "I hope you realize that you mean nothing to me. All the centuries I have led the Koh'i'Noor, all the countless Gems I have seen shattered...you are just one of many. In spite of your status, your notoriety among your kind, you are just another stepping stone on my path to reclaim what is mine." He raised his arm towards her gemstone, and it began to glow red. Goshenite was too exhausted to fight back.

Just before Teptromina's beam could fire, he was thrown aside by a massive impact. Goshenite looked up to see Onyx standing over her, her hammer slung over her shoulder. "Looks like we got here just in time, eh?"

"Miss Goshenite! Are you alright?" Pearl hurried over to the fallen Gem, offering her hand.

"Better now," she said, as Pearl helped her up. "What's the situation?"

"Not great," groaned Onyx. "The troops are holding off the Interlopers as best they can, but more of 'em just keep coming!"

"I expected as much," Goshenite said. "We just need to hold them off a bit longer, and then you can escape."

"Right," Pearl said. "Wait, 'we?' What about you?"

"Well, well, well!" Before Goshenite could reply, Teptromina returned, hovering above the three of them. "Lucky you! Your posse arrived to save the day!" He touched down, glaring at the trio as all of his weapons began to ignite. "A one-time occurrence, I assure you."

"I wouldn't be so sure." Goshenite drew her staff again, and Teptromina fired. She quickly spun the weapon in front of her, where it acted as a shield, blocking the lasers. "Now, go!" Onyx charged, while Pearl summoned her blaster and fired some shots his way. Although the shots were enough to distract him, he still dodged Onyx's hammer strike. He followed up with another beam attack, pushing her back.

Goshenite charged, drawing a second staff. She threw one at Teptromina, which he deflected with one of his wings. She leapt into the air, bringing her weapon down on him. When it hit its mark, she followed up with several more strikes. Teptromina staggered backwards against the thrashing, until Goshenite had pinned him up against a wall.

Goshenite then thrust the edge of her staff forward; Teptromina caught it moments before it could pierce into his optic. Their eyes met: both stared with fury at each other, but Goshenite's gaze was filled with steel. The two of them struggled, pushing against the other as they tried to force the staff away. Teptromina had lifted off the ground, and not of his own power. The wall behind him began to crack as Goshenite forced her staff forward with all her strength.

All of a sudden, the ground beneath them shook. Goshenite stumbled, and was distracted just enough for Teptromina to free himself. He shoved Goshenite to the ground, flying up to stare down at the Gems beneath him.

So great was the quake that the barrier protecting the facility was momentarily disabled. It flickered for only a mere moment, but it was enough that several Interlopers were able to make their way inside. Ignoring the guards, they made their way over to their master.

"What the void was that!?" asked Onyx, bracing herself on her hammer. "Feels like the whole planet's being...torn apart…" her face went grave as she realized that was exactly what was happening.

The Oculus' arms had reached Mieren-VII's surface. Massive metal claws, each one the size of a small country, dug deep into the crust, creating giant crevasses hundreds of miles across, and just as deep. When it had established its grip, it began to pull the world itself apart at the seams. Rocks and debris were pulled into the massive station's orbit as they were dislodged from the ground.

"Has it finally sunk in yet?" asked Teptromina. "There is no force in your entire arsenal that can stop the Oculus now." Interlopers began to appear behind him, standing off against the trio of Gems. "You can fight as much as you want, but at the end of it all, we will emerge the victors. We always do."

While Teptromina was giving his speech, Goshenite ducked behind the others to contact Heliodor. "Heliodor, how much longer do we have?" she asked.

"For Giganova to be ready? Less than ten minutes," she replied. "For the Oculus to crack this planet open like a geode? Maybe less than that. We might have to just cut our losses."

"We can't afford to," Goshenite said. "Without Giganova, the Interlopers will eat us alive. If we stop now-"

"If we don't stop now, we're all cracked!" shouted Heliodor. "I don't know about you, but I'm calling it now! Stay and fight if you want, but I'm getting out while I still can!" The feed cut out.

"Heliodor? Heliodor!?" No response-she was gone. "Damn." Goshenite turned back to face Teptromina. His force had been bolstered with a large force of Interlopers, bearing down on the trio.

"So, we've got the Primax himself, an absolute shardload of battleships and just as many if not more troops headed our way, and another planet's tearing ours up," said Onyx. She sighed, holding up her hammer, a jet of flame shooting from the afterburner. "I don't know about you guys, but today feels like a good day to die."

"Agreed." Goshenite prepared her staff as the Interlopers prepared to charge.

"Hold on," said Pearl, stepping forward. "Maybe it doesn't have to come to that."

Pearl reached for her gem, which began to glow. A bubble materialized in her hands, containing a familiar green gemstone. She set it free, causing a glowing light to appear-this light shaped into a form familiar to Goshenite, before it was warped into a much larger shape. Emerald's form, monstrous and imposing, stood before them, looking down towards Pearl.

"Okay, My Emerald," Pearl said. "Time to show them who we are."

Tanzanite could only stare, mortified, as the Oculus bore down on Mieren-VII. Even at this distance, she had never seen destruction of this scale, and it would only get worse. With its metal arms, the Interloper stronghold was tearing through the planet to get to the core. All she knew was that she couldn't allow that to happen. She steeled herself. "Identify weak points."

"On...on that thing!?" asked a Peridot. "Tanzanite, we don't have a chance!"

"We will only not have a chance if we do not halt the Oculus' attack," she said. "Scan for any vulnerabilities."

The Peridot did so. "Scans show that the armor is thinnest at the joints," she reported. "Destroying the servo located at the elbows should completely inhibit the arms' abilities."

"Understood," said Tanzanite. "Divert course for this weak point. Paint the target and order other ships to follow. We will need to focus all firepower there."

The Soul Evaporator diverted its course, heading towards the elbow joint of one of the Oculus' arms. Tanzanite sent out a message to other nearby ships, informing them of this weakness. Soon, a small fleet had converged, following behind them. The Interlopers had evidently sensed that an attack was imminent, as another fleet arrived to block the Gems' advance.

"Tanzanite, should we fire the Decimator?" asked a Nephrite.

"We cannot afford to," said Tanzanite. "We require it to destroy the weak point. It will not charge up in time if it is fired now."

Both fleets engaged as thousands of blasts filled the space between them. Several Gem vessels, including the Soul, took evasive maneuvers. Several more were beset by the Interlopers, and torn apart by their weapons. An Interloper dreadnought, seeming to recognize Emerald's flagship, headed straight for it, sending a battalion of fighters its way.

"We will never break through their defenses at this rate," said Zoisite. "Do we have any other weapons?"

"Of a sort," said Tanzanite. "Scramble all fighters!"

Before the Interlopers could reach the Soul, the Gem ship released fighters of its own. The ships flew to meet their opponents, clashing as they met. The fighters that avoided this wave raced towards the dreadnought, dodging and weaving through its volleys of shots as they returned fire.

Zoisite stared through the glass, a hint of impatience beneath her stoic exterior. "Our approach is too disorganized," she said. "We need something else, a focal point to draw or forces."

"What did you have in mind?" asked Tanzanite.

Zoisite's gaze fell on the captain's chair. "Emerald had a starfighter of her own, did she not?"

Emerald's jaws clamped down on a Predator, crushing it to scrap. Several Scavengers opened fire on her, which was only enough to irritate her. She ran towards them, Pearl close behind, her blaster firing at any Interloper that Emerald happened to miss.

Teptromina fired beam after beam at Onyx, who managed to shrug most of them off. Her hammer swung wildly in his direction, but he proved too agile to catch. A Raptor hovered behind her, preparing to fire, only for Goshenite to spear it through with a thrown staff. "Nice one!" she said.

"Focus," Goshenite said. "We can't let any of them near the-" She stopped herself before she could reveal the location of the entrance. "Keep fighting!"

"Ha, what's it look like I'm doing?" said Onyx. She smashed a couple of Scavengers apart with her hammer, before turning her attention to a trio of Raptors firing on her allies from above. "Oh, no you don't!" She ran off, leaving Goshenite to deal with Teptromina.

"Three Gems or three hundred, it makes no difference," said the Interlopers' master. "You can't stop that which must be."

"Neither can you." Goshenite swung her weapon, only to find it deflected by Teptromina's arm. He grabbed her by the throat with the other, lifting her into the air, and hurling her a short distance away. Goshenite crashed to the ground, and rolled to a stop. Before she could get back up, Teptromina rose above her. His body shifted, becoming the same cannon shape it had taken back on Gozyos-IV. All nine of his beams began charging up, preparing to fire on Goshenite.

With a terrible droning noise, Teptromina let loose his attack. The crimson beam streaked through towards the Beryl, who braced for impact. But it never hit. A large shape threw itself in front of her, taking the brunt of the impact. She looked up at the familiar red figure.

"Topaz!" she shouted, scrambling to her feet. Despite taking the beam head-on, Topaz was still standing, but was looking quite worse for wear. She had been forced down on one knee, and smoke was rising from her chest.

"Don't worry about me, My Goshenite!" she groaned, struggling to stand. She turned to glare at Teptromina. "Worry on him!"

Teptromina hovered lower to the ground. "How noble," he growled. "But when you throw yourselves in front of my attacks, all you're doing is accelerating your demise. Now, how many of you are there? Just two?"

"There's a lot more than that!" Everyone turned towards the shout. Nines stood behind Teptromina, blaster leveled at him. Tenrit stood just beside her, clutching one of her khopesh. Onyx leapt down from a rooftop, raising her hammer. Emerald rounded a corner and growled, Pearl holding her blaster beside her.

Teptromina looked around at the fighters that surrounded him. "Hmm. There are more," he said. "But not enough." He began charging up his beams. "Why don't we thin those numbers?"

"Everyone! Go!" shouted Goshenite, pointing her staff forward. All of them ran at the Interloper. Tenrit was the first to reach him, swinging with his blade, which was dodged. Before Teptromina could attack him, Nines unleashed a barrage. He held up his arm to block, which was when he was hit by Onyx's hammer.

Stopping himself in midair, Teptromina got his bearings. "Nnngh! Do something!" He thrust his hand forward, and a small army of Interlopers rushed at the defenders. As they charged in turn, Goshenite thought she saw a brief flicker of a brownish-orange gemstone, but it was soon gone.

Topaz summoned her flail, bashing aside a handful of Scavengers. Under a barrage of blasts, Goshenite sprinted through the opening and speared a Predator through the chest. The ground continued to shake beneath them as the planet came apart. Goshenite's eyes scanned for Pearl, relieved to find her safe next to Nines. Teptromina hovered a good distance away, watching the battle from above.

The battle momentarily turned in the Interlopers' favor as a Carnivore appeared, breaking a pair of buildings apart to fit between them. "Hey, Goshenite, we've got company!" said Tenrit.

"I see it!" Goshenite said. "Where's your ship? We could use some air support right about now?"

"Tanzanite's a bit busy," said Onyx. She spun around, sending her hammer flying at the Carnivore. All it did was harmlessly bounce off one of its legs. "This, uh, might be bad."

As Goshenite watched the giant Interloper approach, she felt a nudge at her side. She turned, and was surprised to see Emerald standing there, looking at her. "Emerald?" she asked, wondering if the Gem could still understand her.

And then, looking into her eyes, Goshenite saw a glint of the same Gem she had known all this time. Corrupted or not, Emerald was still Emerald, willing to fight to the last for her home. Just like her.

Goshenite nodded. "Let's go." She ran forward, Emerald at her side. Claws and teeth accompanied staff as the two made short work of any Interloper in their way. The Carnivore noticed their approach, and fired two shots in their direction. Emerald grabbed Goshenite in her mouth, leaping up to a rooftop as the ground beneath them exploded.

Emerald tossed Goshenite into the air, catching her on her back. The white Gem held onto her mane as she hurled herself at the Carnivore. Goshenite threw her staff, which pierced itself into one of its eyes; distracting it enough for Emerald to latch onto its form.

As the Carnivore struggled to shake them off, a scarlet beam cut through the air, just missing them. Goshenite looked up to see that Teptromina was nearby, firing at the pair. "Emerald!" she said. "Throw me!"

Emerald climbed from her spot on the Carnivore's front, rounding its shoulder as Goshenite slid down her form. She gripped onto the spines at the tip of her tail. Using the momentum as she swung back around, Emerald whipped her tail towards Teptromina, sending not only a flurry of spines, but Goshenite flying at him.

A few of the spines pierced through Teptromina's armor, which was the least of his problems as Goshenite rammed into him, sending the both of them to the ground. Goshenite drew her staff, raising it above her head to spear into her foe. Before she could, Teptromina let loose with a beam from his eye, striking her in the chest and throwing her off of him.

Teptromina got back up, as did Goshenite. "You are far more difficult to kill than I had anticipated, I'll give you that," he said, charging up his beams. "But you can only hold on so much longer. Once your body gives out, you'll be helpless."

Once he brought that up, Goshenite realized that she was beginning to reach her limit. Cuts ran all across her form, light pouring from each. One of these was almost all the way through her left leg, making it painful to stand. Still, she held tightly to her staff, raising it at Teptromina.

"Though I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Supreme General: second in authority only to the Diamonds themselves. Perhaps you are more than just a simple-"

He was cut off when something-the head of the Carnivore-landed between them, rolling over to beside a building. Teptromina looked over in the direction it had come from, only to be snatched up in Emerald's jaws. Metal tore and energy sparked as she gnashed her fangs, attempting to crush him for good. She shook him for good measure, throwing him up against a wall, where he crumpled in a heap.

Pearl hurried over. "My Emerald, you did it!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms around one of her forelegs.

"I wouldn't celebrate just yet," said Goshenite, readying her staff. Indeed, Teptromina wasn't ready to give up the ghost. Despite the heavy damage he had sustained, he rose once again, sparks flying from his wounds. Emerald lowered her head and growled as he readied his weapons.

"This...grows tiresome," he said with barely-restrained rage. He staggered forward a few steps before rising into the air. All of his wings spread out, glowing. "You will not win. You cannot win! Even if you destroy this body, my Oculus will render your victory meaningless!"

"Hey, a meaningless victory is still better than no victory at all!" said Onyx. "It shows Gems that we can beat the Interlopers. If we do it this time, we can do it again!" She raised her hammer. "So let's show 'em!"

Teptromina unleashed nine beams in all directions, sweeping across the battlefield. Goshenite ducked under and leapt over the attacks as she made her way over to him, halting his beams with a strike from her staff. The Interloper fell to the ground, where he threw a punch at her. Goshenite dodged, and Emerald blasted him with a lightning strike. He turned towards the corrupted Gem, preparing to unleash a barrage, only to be blindsided by Topaz's flail.

His already-flayed patience wearing thin, Teptromina began firing his beams at random, aiming for anything that moved when he was aiming at all. A few of his troops were destroyed by his fury. Onyx tried to get closer to him, but was pushed back by the assault. Tenrit, being smaller, rushed through the openings towards him.

Teptromina seemed to sense Tenrit getting closer, and turned to fire at him. Before he could, both Pearl and Nines opened fire, momentarily disorienting him. Tenrit delivered a slash to his midsection, rushing away before he could retaliate. Emerald charged, as did Goshenite, Topaz, and Onyx, aiming to finish the fight.

"ENOUGH!" Teptromina's fists crackled with blood-red energy as he raised them above his head, before bringing them to the ground. The impact created a shockwave that threw the charging Gems away, demolished the walls of the nearby buildings, and formed a large crater underneath Teptromina. It did seem to take a bit of energy to perform, as he remained still after releasing the wave.

Goshenite struggled to her feet; she couldn't take much more of this, and she knew it. She staggered towards Teptromina's still form, hoping to finish him off before he recovered. Before she reached him, a buzz of static from her communicator alerted her to an incoming message. She brought a hand to her ear. "What? What is it?"

"...enite...anov...read...to...out of…"

She tapped on it a few times. "Hello? Hello, who is this?"

The voice came in once more. "Goshenite, you need to go, now!"

"Heliodor?"

"Listen to me, the core has gone critical! Giganova is set to explode in less than five minutes! You need to get out of there!"

A deep green starfighter streaked past the Interloper ships, headed straight for the dreadnaught. It seemed to draw the other Gem fighters towards it, avoiding the dreadnought's cannons and aiming for its weak spots.

"Zoisite," Tanzanite asked from the Soul Evaporator's bridge, "how is the handling?"

"Nominal," Zoisite answered from the cockpit of Emerald's fighter ship. Her hair tendrils allowed her to adjust the subsystems while keeping her focus on what was ahead of her. "All fighters, aim for the fuel cells!"

Focusing fire on the dreadnought's vulnerable points managed to draw the ire of the Interloper fighters. Zoisite rounded the larger ship, sending a barrage into the mass of smaller ones. Several of the fighters were destroyed, one crashing into the dreadnought's hull.

Planetside, things were not looking well. Although defenses held up for the installation proper, the Oculus continued to tear chunks out of the world. It wouldn't be long before it reached the core, and once it did, Giganova would be useless. "We are running out of time!" said Tanzanite. "Full speed, now! Bypass that Dreadnought!"

The Soul Evaporator's engines ignited to their maximum, pushing it towards the Oculus' arm. The dreadnought was not about to let them pass by that easily, and moved to block the ship's path. The two vessels traded fire, with the Soul's shields and the dreadnought's armor preventing any critical damage from being done. At this rate, they would be unable to pass.

"Keep your speed!" said Zoisite. Sustained fire from her and the other Gem fighters had done some damage to the dreadnought's fuel cell. With another bombing run, the armor had been almost completely burned through. Flying in for one last run with two fighters on her tail, Zoisite launched two missiles into the opening. The fuel erupted just as she passed over it, incinerating the two fighters behind her.

The detonated fuel started a chain reaction that spelled doom for the dreadnought, which began to drift down towards the planet below. With nothing blocking it, the Soul Evaporator continued onto its destination. "Target approaching," said Tanzanite. "Prepare to fire the Decimator."

Seemingly unaware of their presence, the Oculus merely continued tearing into Mieren-VII. The Soul's crew targeted the thinnest point in its armor. Even a weapon as powerful as the Decimator would not be able to destroy this target with one shot, but it could hopefully open up a path for the fighters to do so. "Target locked, Tanzanite."

"Fire."

A blinding blue beam shot forth from the front of the Soul. Up close, it would certainly seem to have lived up to its name, but given the sheer size of the Oculus, the resulting damage amounted to little more than a scratch. However, this scratch was just what they needed to do some real damage.

"All fighters, on me!" commanded Zoisite. Her ship sped towards the tiny scratch in the Oculus, which was large enough to fit a battleship. As it was not expected that anyone would try to breach the station's elbow, they found the interior thankfully undefended. "Do as much damage as you can!"

The small fleet opened fire, destroying anything that looked even remotely important. As lasers and missiles flew, the joint gradually began to come undone. Outside, Tanzanite noticed the Oculus' arm begin to seize up. "It is working!" she exclaimed. "Continue your assault!"

They did, and before any Interlopers could arrive to stop them, a tremendous force rocked the entire area: the connectors had been severed. From the elbow up, the arm went limp, resting (relatively) harmlessly on the planet's surface. "Success!" shouted Zoisite. "All fighters, egress!"

The Gem fighters returned to their respective motherships, and not a moment too soon, as a fleet of Interloper battleships were approaching. "Excellent work, everyone," said Tanzanite. "Zoisite, return to the Soul Evaporator. Everyone else, prepare for-"

A sudden sound prevented her from finishing: an urgent communication. It automatically opened, playing an audio-only message. "All ships, this is Supreme General Goshenite, Giganova has reached critical mass! Evacuate immediately, I repeat, evacuate immediately! That is an order!"

Tanzanite's face went pale. "All hands, prepare for warp jump."

"Cease any and all engagements immediately, and retreat to a safe distance!" Goshenite all but shouted into her communicator. "We have less than five minutes until detonation!"

All around her, the installation's defenses were beginning to fall. The shield keeping the Interlopers out was on its last legs. Warships approached from above, and more Apexes than Goshenite had ever seen surrounded them. Something had happened with one of the Oculus' three arms, but it would only slow it down so much. Even if it wasn't for Giganova, they would likely have to evacuate anyway.

Topaz staggered over to her. "My Goshenite, we don't have long," she said. "We have to go, now!"

"I know," Goshenite replied. "Take Nines and Tenrit, and get to the Xenocide. The flight crew should have it ready to fly, but you'll have to hurry."

"But...My Goshenite, I can't leave you here!" Topaz said.

Goshenite looked over to Teptromina, who had begun to move again. He slowly hovered over to the wreckage of the elevator, which was now just a straight chute to the planet's core. "You have to," she said. "Someone has to stop him."

She hurried over towards him, only for someone to grab onto her arm. "Miss Goshenite, don't worry about him!" said Pearl, her eyes pleading. "You'll never make it out of there!"

The planet shook as the Oculus tore out another chunk. The shields flickered, almost letting in an Apex. Teptromina grew closer to the precipice. Goshenite turned back to Pearl, and the others. "I have to," she said. "If he destroys the core, he stops Giganova, and everything we did here would have been for nothing. Besides, there's a warp pad down there, I might be able to-"

"Then let us all go!" said Nines. "We can stop him easier if there's more of us, and then we'll just warp back to our ships!"

"No, I can't take that chance!" said Goshenite. "Go, now, that's an order from the Supreme General!" In spite of her many wounds, she still commanded authority.

Reluctantly, Topaz turned away, setting off towards safety. Onyx followed, and Nines had to pull Tenrit away. Emerald gently nudged Pearl from behind, urging her to climb on her back. "Diamondspeed, Miss Goshenite," Pearl said sadly.

Goshenite helped Pearl up, and Emerald met her gaze again. She placed a hand on her old rival's snout. "There you go. I took care of her. Just like I promised I would."

Letting out a low growl, Emerald gave one last look to Goshenite before running off after the others. Pearl looked over her shoulder, silently urging the white Beryl to join them. Of course, both knew that she couldn't. Goshenite had a duty to Homeworld, and if that duty meant giving her life to protect it…

...then that was exactly what she would do.

Goshenite turned around just in time to see Teptromina disappear down the elevator shaft. Mustering up every last remaining bit of energy she could, she ran after him. "No you don't!" She dove down after him.

Wind whipped across her face as she fell, speeding through the air like an arrow. She wasn't sure if she would be able to slow down in time once she reached the bottom. She didn't care; all that meant was that she would have to destroy Teptromina before they reached the bottom.

Soon enough, she caught sight of his shape down below. Doing her best to aim for him, she reached one hand back towards her gemstone. Just moments before the two met, she summoned her staff, and they collided. Teptromina spun out of control for a moment, Goshenite holding on tight. Once he regained enough control to stop spinning, Goshenite began striking him repeatedly.

"Get...OFF!" Teptromina threw her further down the shaft, following up with a flurry of beams. Goshenite held up her weapon to block them, but it did little good. They burned through her form, forcing her down further still. Her already-damaged left leg was shorn off completely, the severed appendage vanishing into light.

Not wanting to waste a single moment, Teptromina sped up towards her, grabbing her by the throat. He slammed her against the wall, scraping her against it as they raced downwards. She punched and kicked, but she was in no position to do any damage as her body tore through the metal. With what little of her mind she could reach, she summoned her weapon again.

Her staff shot out of her gemstone and speared through the wall, tearing her out of Teptromina's grip. She grabbed hold of it, taking a moment as she hung there to get her bearings. Pain shot through her entire body, more than she thought the damage should have caused. She reached down to her gem, and that was when she felt it.

A crack. A small crack, running from the top-left corner down to the center. She immediately felt a chill run through her form. Although it wasn't too big, it was more than enough to grow larger with more stress. If she should shatter before she stopped him…

Before she could contemplate the thought, she was snapped back into reality as Teprtomina fired several beams her way. Using her staff as a launchpad, she threw herself towards him and past the beams. The wall behind her exploded as she raced towards him.

The two met, tumbling through the air again, trading blow after blow. Goshenite grit her teeth and fought through the pain. If Teptromina knew she was cracked, he would follow up for sure. She couldn't afford to show weakness.

Unable to form words, Teptromina simply growled and sputtered as he and Goshenite grappled. Beneath him, Goshenite saw something she had been dreading: the ground approaching. The worry on her face was apparent, as Teptromina picked up on it. Grabbing her again, he spun the two around, so that she would take the impact.

"You can't imagine how glad I'll be to finally be rid of you!" he snarled, forcing her downward.

Goshenite fought against his grip as the ground grew closer and closer. "Actually…" She grabbed hold of his shoulders. "I think I can!" She pulled the two of them closer, slamming her head into his. Teptromina was disoriented for a moment, giving Goshenite just enough time to spin them around just as they landed.

Everything went black. No, white. Everything was white. No sound, no sights, no feelings. Was...was I shattered? wondered Goshenite. She had hit the ground pretty hard, after all, even if Teptromina had taken the brunt of the impact. Is this the great beyond? She quickly decided that no, it wasn't, as her pain returned. And with it, her other senses as well.

Wincing, Goshenite got to her feet-or rather, foot. She quickly fell back down again. She looked up and saw Teptromina, looking just as battered as her, limping towards the Giganova core. He lifted his arms, firing a pair of beams into the sphere. The glass surrounding it began to crack.

Goshenite summoned her staff, using it as a brace, and staggered over to him. The core looked much more unstable that when she had last been down here, spinning rapidly and pulsing with energy. A low droning sound it emitted masked her approach. She braced herself, before leaping at him, latching one of her arms around his neck. The other lifted her staff, repeatedly driving the tip down into his armor, piercing through the metal.

Teptromina simply reached over her shoulder, grabbing Goshenite and throwing her to the ground. He aimed his hand at her, only for her to bash it aside with her staff. She thrust it into his midsection, pulling him down to the floor with her, where she attempted to get up once more.

Before she could, Teptromina tackled her back down. He pulled himself on top of her, throwing punch after punch into her face, giving her not a moment to retaliate. Unable to reach her staff, or her gem to summon another, all she could do was futilely bat at his arms. Goshenite fell back on her one last trick, as her body began to glow. Upon emitting her blinding flash, however, Teptromina kept on pummelling, not needing to see to do so, and too enraged to mind the pain.

Teptromina grabbed Goshenite's head, lifting it off the ground before slamming it back down into the floor. Goshenite let out a groan of pain, feeling it not only on her head but on her gem as well; she was certain the crack had grown wider still.

Panting-or maybe growling in anger-Teptromina stared down at her. "If I die," he said, "then you die with me."

As much as she wanted to, Goshenite couldn't think of any way to achieve anything else. "I can live with that," she said, aware of the irony. Teptromina's eye began to glow, and Goshenite braced for the beam to cut through her physical form. At least this way, she thought, I won't feel it when Giganova detonates.

Before he could fire, however, Goshenite caught the slightest glimpse of something brownish-orange out of the corner of her vision. And then that same something came right in front of her: a curved blade dug itself into Teptromina's optic, tearing through the metal and wires, and forcing him off of Goshenite. Flickering, the formerly invisible owner of the sickle became visible.

"C...Cairngorm?" said Goshenite, barely audible.

"Yup," Cairngorm said, reaching out a hand. "What, you didn't forget about me, did you?"

Goshenite chuckled in spite of the pain, taking her hand. "Get me out of this deathtrap," she said.

"Will do," said Cairngorm, placing Goshenite's arm over her shoulders, and helping her over to the warp pad. "You saved my life, it's only natural I return the favor."

The core pulsed more violently than ever as the pair of Gems reached the pad. Teptromina pulled himself up, still functioning, but unable to stand. His nearly-destroyed eye met with Goshenite's one last time. She had only one thing to say to him: "Adamantem in Eternum." The warp pad activated, pulling her and Cairngorm to safety, as Teptromina stared up at the core as the glass around it gave way.

The next thing Goshenite knew, she was on board the Soul Evaporator. Gems surrounded her as Cairngorm helped her forwards, saying something she couldn't hear about giving her space. She nearly dropped her once she saw the state of her gemstone, which is when Onyx took over. "Take it easy, Goshie, we've got you," she said. Onyx carried her to the bridge, where Tanzanite, Zoisite, Pearl, and Emerald were waiting.

"Th...th' window," Goshenite mumbled, gesturing in whatever direction she thought Mieren-VII was. Pearl seemed to understand, motioning for Onyx to bring her over to the right side of the bridge, where many of the other Gems were gathered, waiting patiently and anxiously for the exact same thing.

At first, nobody could make out the planet that they had been on just minutes before. And then all at once, Project: Giganova unleashed its might. A red flash almost as bright as Mieren's star, followed by an enormous wave of energy that seemed to eclipse every star in the sky. Even from here, Goshenite could feel the residual shockwaves reaching out from the blast. And then, just like that, a new gas giant sat where Mieren-VII, and the Oculus, had been.

Cheers erupted around Goshenite, but she herself could only muster a sigh of relief. Onyx whooped and hollered along with Cairngorm, lifting Goshenite up on her shoulder. Pearl was almost brought to tears as she watched the proverbial fireworks, hugging Emerald.

Zoisite eventually lowered Goshenite into a chair, and Tanzanite brought in some robonoids to tend to her cracks. The nanogel that filled them didn't eliminate her pain and soreness, but it was cool to the touch and soothing nonetheless. Even though her communicator was lighting up with messages, she ignored them at first-she figured she had earned at least a little break.

Eventually, she answered the first message. "Goshenite? Goshenite!?" came Heliodor's frantic voice. "I just received word of the detonation-were you clear!? Was anyone caught in the-"

"Relax, Heliodor," Goshenite said. "Everyone made it out just fine."

"And...and the Oculus?"

"Point-blank," she replied. "Along with a couple hundred Interloper ships, troops, and the Primax himself." Heliodor made a noise that sounded to Goshenite like one of relief. "So, does that mean we won?"

"Even if that blast didn't destroy the Oculus, the resulting magneto-storm should keep it trapped, and cut off from the rest of the Interlopers," Heliodor said. "Even if we didn't win, we just guaranteed our victory."

Goshenite sighed again, leaning back. "That's the best news I've gotten since I heard Pink Diamond was still alive," she said. "Possibly even better."

She heard a strange hissing noise from Heliodor's end. "Actually, about that, I received the strangest message while I was trying to contact you. I think it involves the Diamonds."

Goshenite sat up again, concerned. "What kind of message?"

"Here, I'll let her explain," said Heliodor, before patching Goshenite over to the sender.

"Uh, hello?" the Gem said. "This is Amethyst Facet BR19 Cut 23R. I've been asked to contact every Homeworld colony, station, and ship to order a complete return to Homeworld, if possible. We've got a bit of a situation…"

"Is it the Interlopers!?" asked Goshenite, nearly jumping out of her seat. "What's wrong!? Are we under attack!?"

"N-no, no, nothing like that," answered the Amethyst. "It's just that...well, you'll have to come see for yourself. You probably wouldn't believe me if I told you." And with that, the communication ended.

"And there you go," Heliodor said. "Apparently, the Diamonds want everyone back on Homeworld, for whatever this unbelievable situation is."

Goshenite chuckled. "We just dealt the killing blow against the Interlopers," she said. "I doubt there's anything that can surprise me at this point."

The Soul Evaporator, the Xenocide, and countless other Gem ships made their way back to their home, unaware of exactly what they were in for.

AN: Whoo boy, this one took a while! I worked hard on this one, so y'all better enjoy it! Oh, and uh, happy holidays.