Lapis remembers a conversation after a Book Club Session.
Lapis couldn't have been the only one who felt it. She kept staring at Dori who felt the same way.
Thanks to the construct, they were able to gain access to the Western Entrance down into the Delta Strut. All the gems were on edge and when she looked at Garnet, she could feel her paranoia as she continued to attempt to peer into the future, but as mentioned by Amethyst, all she could see was the darkness every single time.
She could feel it all around her. The shadowy presence of evil. Part of her was unaffected it by it, but the way it affected the others was worse than Blue Diamonds Aura. No. It was the Aura of the Lillim.
All Diamonds had their own special Aura. Snow Quartz said all gems have such a thing, but they're meant to emit it alongside their light forged mass, so one could still detect a gem if they weren't able to see it and if they had the right ability to do so. Steven had his own Aura, befitting a diamond such as himself. She could differentiate the different emotions the Diamonds gave off. Yellow's was an electric anger, Blue's was watery sadness and Steven's was flowery joy. White's was supposedly something that could suppress it all. Wouldn't that be nice?
She recalled discussing this topic with Steven a while ago, after a Book Club Session. They'd discussed a book about psychic powers...a young girl who had become a chosen Prophet and could sense the energies in people. It fascinated Steven if anything else.
"The Diamonds have Auras too." Steven told her.
Another informative session had been completed with Lapis, Peridot, Connie and Steven himself who stayed behind to discuss one of the books they had read together. Lapis enjoyed it for the amount of angst it had provided. In fact, she was a fan of a lot of angsty stories that she shared with Peridot. Though Peridot would always point out the logical fallacies and plot holes and why every liked to scream at each other and cry. If only she knew.
"I guess that's the reason why I can jump around in peoples heads, like Amy does in the book."
It forced Lapis to recall her time with Jasper as Malachite and her reaction to Steven being there, of all people. He just had to interfere. It had to be him and only him.
"Amy's power is to see into the future like a Sapphire can." Peridot noted.
"But so far it's all just a jumbled mess with the other character who shouldn't even have an Aura. I mean, a Gems projections of light aren't classified as special otherwise."
The book detailed her male friend who'd been taking it hard with numerous visions of his own, by none of his own doing. They'd hadn't gone far into the series, but Lapis was curious if at some point he'd turn insane. That amount of torture Lapis understood. So far, his resolve was strong. He cared for Amy greatly, but he didn't know or understand what he was seeing half the time.
"Heh...I can vouch for his side. It happens." Steven said, a bit too casually with the side of awkward laughter.
Which made Lapis wonder how much Steven had seen on his end so far. His power as a Diamond, mixed in with his human side, is...complex. Peridot explained to her about his jumbled genetics and that his magical prowess had some unforeseen complications.
"How do you cope with it all?" Lapis queried.
"I mean, if you see stuff like...he sees..."
Steven blinked twice before he turned back to the book, his face void of any known emotion.
"He's a hero." He answered, though the way he said it, tone that drifted, indicated much more hidden underneath the surface.
Being a hero couldn't be the only part of it. The more books Lapis went through, the more she understood. Heroism is a choice to challenge fate for the better where you can. Upon deconstruction For common sense to be ripped out of you and challenging your own memory, your own sense of self and the lies that the false reality crafted before you...being a hero wouldn't be the solution.
"He's got a great hold on his will power." Said Connie.
"Chell recommended this book to me a while back. She said she admired the characters tenacity."
Peridot rose an eyebrow.
"What? Chell actually spoke to you? I thought she had her voice modulator ripped out of her neck orifice." The green gem said.
Chell was one of the Library staff. Lapis liked her because she was so quiet all of the time and grew equally exasperated when ever Peridot was roaming around, looking for new books.
"No, she's just mute." Connie corrected.
"Sometimes she's hard to understand. But I'm currently learning sign language from her so we can talk properly."
Steven grinned.
"Yeah some of the gems I've been working with are like that too. We're both learning it so we can communicate better." He told them.
"WE'RE GETTING OFF TOPIC!" Peridot roared as she waved her hands about.
"Anyway, so Steven. You've confirmed something that yes, the Diamonds do have abilities unique to them and why most of Homeworld would be foolish to have to deal with the amount of power they wield to maintain their rule over them. Might means right."
Lapis grinned devilishly.
"You mean, you were foolish when you got poofed by Yellow Diamond and taunted White Diamond only to get smacked?" She pointed out.
Peridot then blushed profusely.
"I uhhh...well, yeah I guess I am a fool." She choked out.
Connie laughed.
"A brave fool." She commented.
No doubt about that.
"Sometimes you gotta do foolish things in order to protect the people you care about." Said Steven as he looked fondly at Connie.
"Make sure it's not too foolish. Or else you could hurt more than you help."
That's true too, however some lines needed to be drawn.
"There's a difference between being brave and being an outright idiot." Said Lapis.
Connie nodded in agreement.
"Lapis is right. However, I do agree that stepping into the unknown is hard. As Amy is going through the same thing as the main character is, they need to work together so they don't lose sight of whats important." She said.
Lapis' eyes were drawn to Steven once more.
"They do get marginally close though." He said, his voice low in somber.
His own Aura was important to those around him however. As little as Lapis had understood at the time, the attack Blue made on them prior made her a tad curious on the subject, to which Peridot was more than happy to divulge what she knew and tag along in their little investigation. Steven would have been of a help, if he hadn't been so busy as of late.
Going from his vibe alone, his visuals and his stance that joined up with her own personal experiences, Lapis could tell Steven had been battling his inner turmoil. He'll smile, laugh and join in on the fun like he normally would, but she suspected that this was nothing more than a shield over his truer feelings. Connie, his closest associate, must have known. Lapis knew better than to pry, knowing how painful recollecting the past could be.
Their little game to get them to pair up, as per the little game Peridot, Amethyst and herself had played, was merely an attempt to get Steven to feel...or at they very least, manage his life better. Emotional suppression was hard. Lapis knew that all too well. Private conversations with Connie had the girl mention that Steven had grown a lot, as humans need to develop physically and mentally over time...but she also expressed concern that Steven's own ambitions to deal with the gem migrants made him forget about the humans who needed him too.
Including his own humanity.
Despite the two getting off on the wrong foot, Connie became a wealth of knowledge in regards to the humans themselves and Lapis came to respect her on the whole. Even Greg helped out on occasion...and Amethyst introduced her to Vidalia, another creative human. So many that had their own unique personalities and that their growth was nothing short of amazing. It was through them she knew of the sadness and the joy that they too could feel. Through enough investigation and study, she knew.
Steven held his own vial of depression.
Lapis began not caring...only worrying about herself. Then it became the pain that came along with someone who had saved her life when they got hurt too. For Lapis, it became too much on the most stressful of situations. But Stevens words opened her eyes.
You could hurt more than you help.
Maybe not in the same context, but in a similar way. She fled, Peridot got hurt. It took her a while until Lapis even apologized for the incident.
Lapis was not a hero. She was someone who held the heroes bargain of love and trust and utilized them for good and bad. Even before she understood what fell into what category.
She was selfish. She made selfish decisions. They hurt more than they helped in the end, after months of self-reflection forced her to change her tune.
"That's whats interesting about humans though." Lapis said.
"There is a lot of room to breath and think. To think of your actions. To be considered a hero, would be the actions that would be considered good. Am I right?"
Steven then smiled warmly, reaching her gem in a similar way to make her feel good too.
"Yes. You can know the difference of doing the right thing or the wrong thing when it comes down to it."
To Steven that could have been that simple. The reality that washed around them was more complex than that. A talk with Greg at his car wash a few days later adjusted that view to be less black and white. Saying not all decisions like that are always clear cut. The lines could be blurred and the amount of thinking that would have to go with an incredibly difficult choice would be taxing.
In this awful place, where darkness ruled over the minds of others, the decisions of heart over head (in Gregs terms) would weigh heavily to the metaphorical hearts of gemkind. A lot of Lapis' choices were more emotional than logical. Peridot would love to believe she'd be the savior in that department. She's a mess still. Lapis still appreciated her all the while.
She followed the others out of the elevator. The hallway they found themselves had a blue floor and green walls. It felt peaceful enough for an area meant to project seriousness within it. Dori sniffed the ground and ran towards the north. She'd tracked a scent somewhere as the group followed down the hallways.
They'd come across a door that Dori wanted to go into. Until a separate figure appeared, donned in purple, black and white and had the form of a pearl.
"Oh thank goodness I found someone...or some people." She cried.
The group was left confused by her.
"My name is Black Pearl. I serve Milky Quartz. You're the Crystal Gems right?"
She explained her situation on how there was an outbreak of the Lillim monsters on this floor and that she had been running away from them and trying to find a way to contain the outbreak. Milky's project was the only key to solve this. She knew of the gems due to Milky's outposts observing their activities but never interfering. Garnet looked like she wanted to beat her but kept her cool, while the others were apprehensive to it all.
"I'm desperate to get access to the Delta Kindergarten but I don't even know how to get there."
A Pearl would have a lot of invaluable knowledge. But her wanting the same access as them did send a few flags their way. They ganged up on her as they subtly had Black Pearls back to the wall, as Amethyst leaned on side and Peridot on the other. Lapis and Pearl stood on each side of Garnet, who had been watching Dori who had her tail up, as she eyed Black Pearl with suspicion, who then caught on to their little game.
"Hey! I haven't done anything!" She called out.
"I'm just a poor, innocent Pearl trying to find her master."
Their Pearl had her hand on her hips as she rolled her eyes. It would take a Pearl to know a Pearl and this one just looked like she was up to no good.
"Far from it." Pearl said.
"You'd have to be at Milky's beck and call and that means having eyes and information about Milky herself."
Pearl then brought out her spear. Lapis didn't believe Pearl would take it that seriously however.
"So talk, before we make you!"
Black Pearl panicked as she felt herself shrink. Lapis was amused at their Pearls browbeating.
"Not to mention having a full view of her spectrum. Plus the Labradorite already doesn't like you." Peridot noted in her usual analytical tone.
Black Pearl then grunted. Good. Relenting meant less time having to force it out of her.
"Alright fine. I don't know where Milky has gone to. I'd been trying to get into her Private Chambers, but her doors won't open and she's not responding." She said.
Milky's fled before she knew how far her idiocy has gone. But some of it just didn't add up.
"We know that you had your eye on Steven and Connie." Peridot told her.
"What was she planning to do with them?"
Black Pearl blinked twice and failed to answer.
"Wouldn't your first goal be in trying to attempt some kind of Quarantine? A warning for no one to enter?"
She gulped as Peridot continued to needle her down for anything to come out of her mouth.
"Were you given strict orders not to say anything about it?" Pearl questioned.
"ENOUGH!"
Vibrations rocked the hallway as everyone struggled to continue standing, as hellish roars and growls pilfered through open channels.
"Oh...she's done it..." Black Pearl muttered.
Garnet lost her patience as she picked Black Pearl up by her neck and summoned a gauntlet with her spare hand.
"Tell us everything. Now." Garnet said with calm venom.
Lapis was prepared to be her back up. But the sense of dread was thick in the air. The darkness lingered nearby. Black Pearl then laughed, as her eyes turned jet black. She withdrew herself into a ball and forced out dark energy as a force of wind that knocked all of them over, including Garnet who had lost her grip. When everyone came to, Black Pearl floated in the air as her laughing went from zero to maniac in a few seconds. Her dark power crackled like electricity, as purple glowing veins appeared on her face.
"Black Star believed they could counter it. But it's too late. My true master has awakened. They spent all this time planning too. But...they failed...and now...the purpose of my existence is clear!" Black Pearl announced with pride as she raised her hand into the air.
"Your...true master?" Lapis said with disbelief.
Lapis then noticed their Pearl falling over as her gem pulsed with light repeatedly. She writhed in agony as cried out and struggled against the sudden onset of pain. Amethyst's first reaction was to bring out her whip in an attempt to flay Black Pearl, who only summoned a black bubble around her and disappeared into the ground.
"Pearl what's wrong?" Garnet pleaded.
Lapis couldn't do much as is she stood there. She couldn't move...but just stared as the other gems took to Pearls side in their concern. The darkness remained. Maybe they were all heroic fools to come down here in the first place. But the amount of love the other gems had for her. Even Peridot was tending to them. What use would Lapis be anyway in this situation. She'd hurt more than she'd help.
"Garnet what do we do? Don't tell me that other Pearl infected her!" Amethyst queried.
No...it wasn't an infection. Or else they'd all be infected.
"I don't know. But the way we did it with you was we gave our light to you to pull it out. We can do the sam-"
"No..."
Lapis was taken aback as Pearl stopped moving, like the pain just disappeared. Pearl pushed the others away from her as she sat up. She opened up her eyes, revealing their pure lilac colour. Lapis could see deeper into them, as she looked at Lapis. It was like they held the surface of the ocean with their clarity. But no way the infection acted that quickly. But her eyes weren't like Black Pearls. Garnet adjusted her visor as all other eyes were on her. Dori approached Pearl, like she recognized the tone.
"Temporary acquisition of Crystal Gem's Pearl complete. Current gem platform stable. Apophyllite active." She said in a robotic way.
The whole group were prepared to fight her off, until Dori sat before her, unabated by the form she could see.
"What have you done with our Pearl?" Amethyst cried out.
That Blackbox? How could it...Pearl had it stored in her gem.
"Impossible." Said Peridot in her amazement.
"That Blackbox hijacked her gem?'
Lapis could feel the tension rising between Garnet and the Apophyllite as it they stared at one another. She stood up and not once took her eyes off of her. She flashed back to her memories of Malachite and wondered if Pearl was in there fighting...or she had given up. No...she had to be fighting.
"Pearl is subdued and inactive." Apophyllite continued.
All Lapis could think of is the Labradorites familiarity with her.
"What is your goal here?" Lapis asked among those who'd prefer to fight her instead.
Pearl's emotionless eyes were drawn to her now. Kind of creepy, even for Lapis.
"Temporary acquisition necessary." She said.
"Apophyllite: Gem Intelligence Software. Mobile platform required."
Lapis looked at Peridot who had her arms folded. A sign of her skepticism.
"GIS programs don't normally take over gems. I've only seen a few on Homeworld and I highly doubt they'd design one to run with a gem component." She claimed.
Lapis left all the technological jargon to Peridot for her worry about. As did the others if Pearl didn't do it already.
"Let it continue sheesh." Said Amethyst.
Of course.
"Access to Delta Kindergarten is via Milky Quartzes domain. Please follow this platform."
In all matters of seriousness and bizarre happenings, Lapis had this vibe about it all. She'd trust the GIS Program not to steer them off course. Answers would have been nice, but luckily for them, they had someone who knows where they were going. Even if it took a case of...what this was to get to this point.
Dori certainly trusted her more than she trusted Black Pearl. And look what happened with that. If anything else, Dori was the only one who could sense the minor nuances with everything down here. Black Star Sapphires prophecy, Luna the Labradorite. Signs were there laid for them.
Lapis wasn't all about destiny or magical journeys. She was content on doing the simple things, but now more so willing to defend if that lifestyle was being threatened. She wasn't built as a gem warrior but she had already learned so much on her own and with the others that it came naturally to her over time. But if there was anything she knew, was holding hyper caution. Seeing the aforementioned signs and being wary of what could come next. If she knew before hand, she could learn to placate her fears and be ready to fight.
She knew the others were on edge due to Black Pearl. Her words troubled them as they took to discussing the scenario that just occurred. Black Pearl obviously was infected. That much was obvious. Who she truly served? Her new master? No one knew. But putting the pieces together would have them believe that it was something within the Lillim themselves.
She trailed behind the main trio as she walked with Peridot, who still seemed very disturbed by the whole thing.
"I don't get it. I've seen gem shards being used to empower tools. Raw gems with no main driver behind them except just being used as a source of light. Lillim possessing gems and consuming their light. Now this?" Peridot grumbled.
Apophyllite did lead them this far. Lapis could tell Amethyst and Garnet didn't like it either and she didn't blame them.
"What if it's a trap? Another one?"
Lapis gave it some thought. Peridot did have a point, but...
"The Labradorite didn't like Black Pearl. It liked Apophyllite." Lapis pointed out.
Peridot appeared to be sussing it out in her as she rubbed her chin.
"Yes. An infected gem could be detected that way thanks to her senses. But that doesn't mean she has the power to stop the Lillim." Peridot continued.
"No...that would be the Curse of Hope and the Sight of Stone. Hope is located in Delta. Medusa holds the Sight of Stone." Garnet repeated.
Apophyllite lead them to a dead end of the hallway, which lead to Amethyst complaining that she was broken. Garnet urged patience as Lapis watched Pearl raise her hand against the wall and touched three places. Three panels lit up in a triangle formation, which lead to a fourth triangle in between to light up as Pearl rested her gem against it. It scanned it up and down, then boom. Hidden door.
It slid upwards as the gems entered the room. It was filled to the brim with pictures and schematics. Lapis noted a lot of photos...some with well known individuals. Otherwise the floor was white with pearlescent sparkles and each of the four walls were of a different colour. The farside wall was white, left was yellow, right was blue and the wall behind them was pink. Pearl pushed them all in and closed the door.
There was a singular chair at the back with a console in front of it. Peridot immediately ran over as Apophyllite as Pearl slowly made her way beside her as the green gem sat on the chair and began to type away Garnet and Amethyst were more taken aback by everything else.
"She was watching us alright." Garnet commented as she examined a picture of her wedding.
"Everything would have unfolded before Black Star Sapphire. She was indeed a powerful seer."
That was coming out of powerful seer herself which surprised Lapis. She'd come from Blue Diamonds court and had only seen her a few times and she'd guided Blue Diamond for eons.
"Can you see what Apophyllite will do?" Lapis questioned.
Garnet remained still for the moment as he touched her forehead with two fingers.
"Hmm...from what I can see, she isn't going to betray us. She will relinquish Pearl. That's all I can tell you." She replied.
Will or won't? She heard Peridot murmur as she typed away on the console. Then Pearl put her hand on a nearby panel. Then Peridot let off a loud groan.
"Oh stars, more roadblocks!" She complained.
"What is it?" Amethyst asked.
"Request for activation to Delta Kindergarten declined." Apophyllite announced.
Peridot bit her own finger in frustration.
"No need to shout it out to the cosmos!" She whined.
In a weird way, Lapis knew it wasn't going to be that easy.
"What do we need?" She asked. Yelling would get them no where.
"Quarantine in effect. Diamond level authority required." She responded.
Diamond level? Was the project that serious and necessary that only a Diamond could get access to it?
"Where is Steven when you need him?" Amethyst stated.
Lapis turned to see Garnet had started to look at another collection of images on the Pink wall behind them. Lapis wandered over, seeing pictures of Steven, Connie and Stevonnie of all fusions. Pictures of them playing, fighting or hanging around. Seeing Stevonnie in those images triggered words in her memory from what Pyrope was telling Jasper.
"Pyrope Garnet was under the belief Connie was...under a type of mutation from repeated fusions with Steven." Lapis explained.
Their Garnet pointed to a picture of Connie with repeated blue circles around her and then with Steven with pink circles, then Stevonnie with purple.
"Stevonnie was already an unknown by the point we met them." Garnet told her.
"Steven's makeup proved it was possible to do so, lending to opportunities, that if he so desired and built connections with others, he could fuse with them as well. But not once did we consider its effects on organic life forms."
Then there were two other photos. One of Steven's friend Lars and one of Lion. If Lapis recalled the story correctly, Lion was turned that way by Rose/Pink and Lars by Steven.
"Milky must have believed it too. I mean, this room is detailing not just Steven, but everyone he or Rose or Pink ever came in contact with while on Earth." Amethyst noted
Steven...Connie...Stevonnie...Lapis knew fusion well with Jasper and the amount of pressure it had on her...they were two separate gems but Malachite changed them both on a mental scale as opposed to a physical one. Her form or shape didn't change. She couldn't connect to the humans well enough to get her own grip on it. Although, Steven helped them make Pumpkin. Alongside Lars and Lion's states for different reasons, it could be the case where fusion or part Steven's powers or existence could be powerful to change. It did drop into Lapis' mind on the rare occasion, especially after seeing Steven fuse with the other Crystal Gems and especially after seeing Obsidian, made her curious enough as to what her own fusion with Steven would be like. It must have been nice, given the power of his fusions with the others...but the fact the bond they shared held more happiness than anything.
It was what Peridot had said. His Aura brought flowery joy...for the better.
"Apophyllite. Can do you another scan on Delta Strut? I need to know who and what is down here. I need numbers and I need status updates, pronto!" Peridot ordered.
Pearl had her hands on the console as she absorbed information on it. She closed her eyes as her gem pulsed several times, then a wave of harmless energy pushed out of it.
"Milky's Private Chambers. Contains registered Crystal Gems Peridot, Lapis, Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl and White Diamond Court registered Labradorite. Scanning outer perimeters. Detecting three organics and one Gem in the Southeastern Wards. Scanning. Organic One, unregistered non-humanoid, active Organic Two, unregistered human, active."
Must have been Greg and Lion. They were okay at least from the sounds of it.
"Organic Three. Unregistered Gem/Humanoid Hybrid. Gem One, Registered user Jasper."
It had to be Stevonnie for sure, or else...Lapis didn't want to think about it. One gem though. What happened to Snow Quartz?
Don't be a heroic fool, please. Lapis thought to herself.
"Nothing else? No idea where the Pyrope Garnet or the Black Pearl are?" Peridot asked once more.
"Scanning." Apophyllite replied.
"Scanning...error, data not found."
"What about Snow Quartz, Milky Quartz, Black Star Sapphire and another Labradorite?" Peridot continued.
"Scanning. Data not available."
Not available? Peridot grew furious.
"Oh come on-"
Lapis wandered over as she rested her hands on Peridots shoulders to calm. Lapis knew Peridot hated when things didn't listen to her, especially with technology she didn't know or trust.
"It said Data not available and data not found. Two different things." Lapis pointed out.
It definitely knew something. More than what she was letting on. There was an strange sensation Lapis felt, especially since seeing the Apophyllite for the first in its original housing station.
"Its terminology for it not being to see something or know, the other means its...locked away..." Peridot continued...as she trailed off in realization. She then stared at Pearl.
"It's got locked information inside of it. I'm thinking if we have a Diamond with us, then we can access its root source. Imagine the amount of data we could find."
Well she did say Diamond level authority.
"Where's the Gem/Humanoid Hybrid?"
Silence...then.
"Unregistered Gem/Humanoid hybrid is located in Southeastern Section. Unlocking primary route doors. Caution, Delta Strut now in lockdown due to Quarantine protocols. Communications disabled. Sixty five percent of Southeastern Section has been breached. Warning: Lillim detected in Southeastern Section."
This did not bode well with them at all. They all turned to Garnet for a plan. She stood up and nodded her role in acknowledgement.
"We mustn't panic further." She said, her voice geared for radiating confidence.
"Our goal is to secure Steven and Connie, as well as getting a hold of Greg and Lion. Amethyst, Lapis I need you both with me. Dori and Peridot, remain here with Pearl..."
Peridot shook her head.
"No. You need me with you. You need a brilliant Peridot in order to get through some of the more difficult sections. I might be able to get the comms back online easier that way." Peridot pleaded.
Then who was...
"Someone has to look after Pearl...not doubting Dori's abilities. I actually need someone I can speak to on the other side if matters get troubling." Garnet said, taking the words out of Lapis' thoughts.
Oh boy.
"Suggestion. Relinquish Blackbox from current platform. Insert Blackbox into Peridot Platform." Apophyllite suggestion.
Lapis froze at the suggestion. Peridot was...going to let herself...
"Or that'll work too.' Peridot said upon the sudden, random statement.
She wanted to object to the idea, worried that Peridot could fall into the problem. Lapis grew even more suspicious of the programs motives. She'd have to keep an eye or else someone was gonna get it.
"Peridot..." Lapis muttered as she stood next to her and towered over in disapproval. She was met with a smile from the green gem, who more looked like she was going to have the time of her life.
"It'll be fine Lazuli." She said.
"Besides, It'll give me some time to think. Pearl needs to be with Amethyst and Garnet. You, me and Dori will be on the verge of a fantastic discovery as we delve deeper into the unknown."
More foolish heroism...Lapis thought.
If this was what Peridot really wanted, then Lapis had no right to object to the idea. She seemed entirely enthralled by the notion of absorbing knowledge, while losing all sense of self at the same time. It'd be like fusing, but worse.
"Apophyllite. Use my gem as you wish." Peridot said as straightforward as she could.
It was still a terrible idea. It meant risking her for some machine she had not long ago not exactly trusted. But the glint in her smile indicated she was not just looking forward to it, but she was entirely engulfed in the ordeal.
"Affirmative." Apophyllite responded.
"Disengaging."
They watched on as Pearl removed the Blackbox from her head and placed the box in Peridots hands, before Pearl fell over, only to be caught by Amethyst. Lapis noticed that Peridot was looking at it for a long while, like a present that she desperately desired to open. Lapis held her hand over her chest. She wanted to believe both Garnet and Peridot. Amethyst tended to Pearl as Garnet looked on with crossed arms and waited. Her face was its usual expression with Lapis waiting for her to say anything about this.
"Here goes..." Peridot announced as she raised the Blackbox against her glowing gem. She shoved it in there with a bit of a struggle, until her gem absorbed it completely. Standing ready, she had her fists in clasps, as if waiting for the moment to click on through. Peridot closed her eyes and remained still. A grunt escaped her, as Lapis could nothing but watch her be reprogrammed on the spot.
"Reallocation successful."
Pearl on the other hand returned back to normal, as Amethyst explained what just happened to her. Garnet then turned to Lapis, who was wary of her stance.
"I'll look after her. Please be careful while you're out there." Lapis assured her.
Garnet gave a brief nod.
"You too. Let's go."