The battle was going poorly: Sugalite was angered by her lack of effectiveness, Blue and Yellow were tangled up with White, and Pearl was unable to bring herself to hurt the boy she loved.

Sugilite's whip wrapped around the beast, but he simply squared himself and puffed out his chest to break the line.

"Alright," the fusion growled as Steven looked at her with an amused expression. "I've had enough of you."

She ran forward, but Steven's gem glowed. She slammed into a pink barrier as diamond-shaped panels enclosed her into a dome.

"You think this can hold me?!" Sugilite yelled as she slammed her fists against the glitching wall. Pearl watched the fusion struggle; she watched the shadow of cracks appear in panels behind her, like thorny vines stretching across the pink light and reinforcing it, while at the same time, breaking it.

Steven turned away from the fusion to focus on White as the dome began to slowly shrink. It grew smaller as the walls closed in on the monumental fusion. She pushed and struggled, but she couldn't stop it. The more she struggled, the faster it closed in on her.

Pearl summoned her spear and ran forward. She tossed it like a javelin and it embedded in the heart of one of the vine-like cracks. The panel dissolved in a burst of light. Garnet and Amethyst unfused and tossed themselves through.

"Thanks, P," Amethyst said as she brushed herself off. "Another minute there and we would have been done for."

A huff from Steven drew their attention back to the beast. He just stared at them from over his shoulder. The pink dome behind them poofed from existence.

"Oh, now you can control it," Pearl said dryly.

He just continued watching them at the diamonds fought, his face unreadable. The longer they looked back at him, the worse they felt. Those eyes; off-colored and distant, so unlike the boy they knew.

"What are we going to do?" Amethyst asked no one in particular as she finally turned away from Steven's unrelenting gaze.

"The Little Homeworld gems are nearly here," Garnet said. "Connie is a minute away. Together, we can take him."

"Can we?" Amethyst asked as Steven roared and rammed his horned head into Blue's chest. "Without hurting him, I mean?"

All of their eyes fell to his bloodied tail and to the scratches and bruises that were forming on his skin as the fight went on.

"We don't have a choice," Garnet said, her jaw clenched.

"And with him controlling White, how do we deal with that?" Pearl asked as her eyes drifted to the Diamond.

Garnet shook her head. "Steven used her power against her by corrupting the blast meant for him. When it hit White, he connected her mind with his. It's just like when he connected with us when the Diamonds first came to Earth. We take him out and she goes down too."

"Right," Pearl said with a nod.

Steven growled lowly as if he heard Garnet's plan. His eyes narrowed and the air around them suddenly seemed to tingle. They all gasped and shielded their eyes as a bright pink glow overtook Steven's form.

At his roar, the sand around Steven's feet flew into the air and pelted the Crystal Gems. The scream that cracked walls sent fissures into the ground; it split concrete and buildings imploded upon impact. The mountain behind them cracked in two.

The Diamonds were thrown back; Yellow landed in the ocean, Blue crushed the Funland pier, and White fell to her knees and was pushed back.

With the aura still over his skin, Steven got down on all four legs once again and turned to face the three gems. His eyes skated over their gemstones and his eyes narrowed. They felt the very air sizzling as it threatened to destroy their bodies.

His claws dug into the sand as he braced himself and his eyes started to glow bright pink.

Before he could unleash his next destructive wave, a portal opened near his head. With an almighty roar, Lion used his power on Steven's temple as he came through the portal. Steven stumbled sideways from the surprise attack and the pink glow left his skin.

Connie jumped from Lion's back and used the distraction to slash her sword through the horn on Steven's left cheek. The beast took a step away as he instinctively pawed at the sore spot.

The teen kicked off Steven's chin and Lion zoomed back under her to catch her before she hit the ground. The cat took her over to the three gems and turned to growl at the beast, who was still winded from the sudden blow.

"What is that?!" Connie yelled, her sword ready to fight. "Where's Steven?"

Pearl put her hand on Connie's shoulder and gestured to the monster. "That is Steven," she told the teen. "He corrupted himself."

"WHAT?"

Connie's scream seemed to jolt the monster back to its senses. It turned and looked at them with wider than normal eyes. The pain in them wasn't physical, but as if Steven knew that it was Connie who hurt him. His face darkened before any of the gems had a moment to process what they had just seen and he growled lowly. His gem glowed again.

"TAKE THAT!"

A large metal dumpster slammed Steven in the side of the head before he could attack. Peridot, cackling, flew around the monster on her trashcan lid as she lifted the dumpster again and dropped it on his already injured tail. Steven roared out in agony and snapped at her, but the green gem was too quick.

Water erupted from the ocean. It slammed into Steven and knocked his legs out from under him before it raised again to douse the flames of Beach City. Lapis Lazuli and Freckles worked together, arms raised as they split the task.

Bismuth shouted instructions as Crystal Gem warriors ran to the beach. They all brandished weapons. Connie readied herself on Lion's back.

"What's the plan?" she asked Garnet, who still looked grim.

"We subdue him without causing permanent damage," Garnet said. "Any physical damage we do, the Diamonds can heal."

Connie nodded, though her confidence was obviously wavering as she stared at the monster. The question of "how" was on her face as Steven faced the oncoming army. But it was undoubtedly him. The pink gemstone. The diamond irises. The face shape and nose. The pink glow that engulfed his form.

"Move!" Garnet yelled.

Lion took off and Connie could only watch from his back as Steven yelled out. The ground opened around him and swallowed gems and buildings whole. But Peridot, Lapis, Freckles, herself and Lion, all raced over and grabbed those that couldn't save themselves.

A pink wall formed around Steven, glitching more than ever as over half of the panels struggled to stay in existence. It burst away from him and forced the army further away. But it fazed out of existence before it could do more than push them back.

Behind them, Blue and Yellow slammed White into the ground and she tumbled out of sight, into one of the fissures Steven made. She didn't resurface.

"Connie!"

The girl looked over as Greg ran to her and Lion's side. She got off the cat and hugged the man, who was pale and shaken.

"Are you okay?" Connie asked him, though she knew the answer.

"My son is corrupted. What do you think?" Greg asked sarcastically, though his tone was gentle.

Connie looked over to the fight and watched as the gems slowly began to overtake Steven. He was huge and strong, but there were just too many of them. He would slam his feet down, but they would protect each other. If one poofed, two more stood over the gem and forced Steven back before he could do more damage.

Even Beach City was calming down as the glow of the fires died.

"He'll be okay," Connie finally answered. "He's Steven."

They both watched as Steven seemed to stop fighting for a moment. The monster shook his head violently as gems pummeled and smashed his fingers, but he didn't seem focused on them.

Then, all too quickly, the monster reemerged and he slammed his feet down, swatted at gems and knocked them away with pink walls and unseen forces.

"He's fighting it," Connie breathed.

Greg pursed his lips and forced a nod. "We tried to help him, but it led to this," Greg told her, his voice broken. "He wouldn't listen to us." He looked over to the girl and smiled. "If anyone can get through to him, maybe you can?"

Connie eyed the beast, who seemed to be holding back as more and more recognizable gems came into his field of view. She nodded and hopped back on Lion.

"I'll try," she said.

The cat raced off and brought her as close to the monster as she could be.

"Stand down," Connie yelled to the Little Homeworld Gems. "Let me try something."

They looked uneasy but complied as a reformed Alexandrite stepped behind the human and nodded.

Connie slid off Lion's back and slowly walked over to Steven, who stopped fighting too and was just staring at her. She couldn't tell if his face showed confusion because of her audacity to walk up to him, or because he knew her.

She dropped her sword in the sand and raised her hands in a gesture of peace. Steven's eyes narrowed, unconvinced. But he didn't move.

"Steven?" Connie called. The beast lowered his head slightly to listen. "This isn't you."

A low huff was her answer.

"You've always been the person to talk us down from fights and to help us understand our emotions," Connie continued. She stopped when she was looking straight up into the monster's face, just feet from his front leg. "Please, let us do the same to help you."

He lowered his head so he was staring down at the girl. Nothing changed in his face.

"Let me help you," Connie said. She reached her arm out to touch him.

Steven's eyes flashed at the movement and she barely had time to cover her face before he snapped down at her. But she watched him snap at the air just above where her head was; it was almost like he held himself back.

Lion grabbed her collar and yanked her away as Alexandrite knocked his head aside. She roared in his face and he jabbed his head up. His horn barely missed impaling her as it scratched against the side of her face. His skin glowed pink and she was forced back. Her heels dug into the sand and she charged again.

The ground shook as Lion brought Connie back to Greg.

"I'm sorry!" he told her as he pulled her off the cat and hugged her. "I shouldn't have put you in danger like that."

Connie shook her head. "He wasn't going to hurt me," Connie told him. She explained how the top of his nose had brushed her hair, but his mouth was still a good six inches from her.

Greg looked back at his son, a small amount of pride in his eyes. Even in this state, his son was still in there. Together, they watched the fight unfold and Steven get overwhelmed. But his fighting was more violent now. More gems poofed or were immobile. The destructive screams were more targeted; they blasted through gem's physical forms like an invisible blade.

He formed walls and shields, but they all seemed to fail as more vine-like shadows appeared on their surface.

Finally, Alexandrite, with the help of Yellow and Blue, forced his head down and slammed him into the ground. The glow of his gem was muted against the sand, but the pink aura still coated his skin. But his outburst wasn't enough to toss the two diamonds and fusion off him. All it did was blast back their hair and cause them to dig their heels into the ground.

He finally stopped struggling and huffed out in defeat. His head fell to the ground.

Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl unfused and the Diamonds stood behind them, arms crossed.

Steven stayed down, his legs tight against his body as he watched the five gems closely. His tail whipped angrily behind him, but that was the only part of him that moved.

"Stop this, Steven!" Garnet yelled, her fists clenched. "You can't beat us!"

He stared at her as if he actually understood her. Something flashed behind his eyes, but Garnet couldn't tell if it was recognition or not. It was like the look on his face before he stopped himself from biting Connie. No, this was different. Almost like fear.

He lifted his head, his neck pulling away as Garnet stepped forward.

"That's it," Garnet said, her posture still rigid. "Just stand down."

Blue and Yellow looked at one another, uneasy as Steven shifted his panicked gaze toward them.

"Hey!" Garnet yelled to capture Steven's attention again. She felt like she was close to getting through to him. If this was the right timeline, this could work. She took off her visor as Steven looked back to her, his face unreadable.

"Remember when you learned I was a fusion?" Garnet asked the monster. "We were on Jasper's ship and you saved Ruby. She felt hopeless and lost and needed to find her other half."

Steven lowered his head toward Garnet as if entranced by the story. His eyes, however, flicked back to the diamonds again before looking back to the fusion.

"Yes, they caused all that," Garnet said offhandedly, taking a wild guess to interpret Steven's look. "But do you remember how Ruby found her other half? Sapphire sang to her to call her. Ruby ran off, not wanting to listen to follow the song, but you did! You followed it and found Sapphire and reunited her with Ruby."

Steven's eyes glinted and darted between her three eyes and Garnet could see him thinking, but the emotions in his face were still unreadable. His breathing seemed to steady and his body relaxed slightly.

"Thanks to you, we all escaped that night. You followed your heart and listened to the song to guide you. You need to stop doing that now and listen to me. To someone who loves you."

Steven lowered his head more so he was within Garnet's reach. All the fusion had to do was reach out and touch him. She lifted her arm and everyone held their breath as she leaned forward.

"That's it," Garnet told him, encouragingly. "Come back to us, Steven."

Behind them all, White slowly got up from the hole in the ground, unnoticed by any of the gems. The faint glow of Steven's gem as he called upon her aid was hidden by his massive body. Now with the fighting stalled, he could focus on controlling her.

When Garnet's hand was just an inch from his face, Steven lifted his head away from her. They all saw a sick grin form on his lips as he sucked in air, raised himself on his front legs and tensed.

His gem glowed brightly and pink light shot from White's eyes. It struck Blue first, then Yellow, as everyone turned to see what was happening.

"He tricked us!" Garnet yelled as she watched the chaos unfold.

Pearl and Amethyst jumped and dodged away as the Diamonds yelled out in agony. Their usual hue was replaced by a pale pink glow and they froze, becoming statues among the rubble.

"What happened to them?" Pearl yelled. Steven looked down at her next, then to all the gems on the battlefield. He shifted his head so he faced White and his brow furrowed.

"Move!" Garnet yelled. She grabbed Amethyst and began to run, but it was far too late. White yelled out, her gem glowing brighter than ever before. A moment later, a pink aura shot out in all directions and painted the landscape.

Gems scattered and scrambled to escape, but no one can outrun light. As soon as it hit a gem, they would freeze in place, encased in pale pink stone.

Humans ran too. Sadie and Shep, who were watching the battle from what they thought was a safe distance, pulled each other to the hillside. They didn't make it. The light hit them and, despite being human, they froze solid. Kiki tried to block the light by ducking behind rubble, but her shield was ineffective. She turned rigid as she cowered.

Lion ran onto the battlefield as he tried to rescue the gems, but even his portals couldn't save him. He froze with his front paws in the air as he tried to escape into a vanished portal.

Pearl was the first of the Crystal Gems to get hit. She yelled out in shock, her face morphed in a mixture of pain and fear before it solidified. Amethyst grabbed Garnet's hand and they entered the light together.

Greg and Connie were the last ones able to move. They stood in the distance, unable to process the landscape in front of them. Everyone was just frozen there, exactly as they were when the pink aura hit them. Unseeing. Unmoving.

White Diamond let go of her head and the pink light faded, feet from where Connie and Greg stood. The gems on the battlefield remained stony, the rosy hue still prominent on their skin.

"What did he do to them?" Greg whispered.

Steven was moving again. He slowly lowered his head and looked at his handiwork as he gingerly stood on all fours. His eyes glinted maliciously. Both Greg and Connie took a step back at the look of utter satisfaction on the monster's face. He knew he won. He knew there was nothing that could do to stop him now.

He took one step over to White, but his front arm, which was heavily bruised at his wrist from where Shep and Sadie hit him with a car, collapsed under his weight. He growled lowly before lifting it up and roaring into the sky.

Connie fell to her knees as she looked at the lizard-like beast. His iridescent horns sparkled in the glow as Beach City continued to burn. She watched blood drip down his skin, unnoticed by the beast. None of his wounds healed; they all bled freely and stained his pink skin.

She realized all of his defensive powers were gone; the walls, the shields, his healing power were all tainted by corruption. It was all offensive now. All built to fight. To destroy.

"Connie, we need to go," Greg said as he put his hand on her shoulder. "We'll find help."

"No," Connie said as she forced herself back to her feet. "I won't leave him like this."

Greg sighed and looked to the monster. "Connie, I don't know how much we can do without their help. We need to go."

"NO!" Connie yelled again.

Steven's head whipped toward them and his eyes narrowed into slits.

"Steven is still in there, I know he is!" Connie insisted, not caring that she drew his attention. "We have to help him!"

Greg grabbed the girl and tried to pull her into cover, but she didn't budge. Connie instead turned to Steven.

"STEVEN!" she yelled, her eyes full of tears. "I'm not giving up on you!"

White Diamond slowly turned to face Connie. Greg pulled on the girl's jacket again, but she refused to budge.

"Go find help," Connie told him. "I'll distract him."

She bolted down the field and dodged White's first blast. Greg watched, horrified, but he snapped out of it as Connie yelled once more for him to go. He turned and ran, back to the car. He didn't know where he would go. Maybe Little Homeworld still had gems?

Although it broke his heart to leave his only family as a monster, he knew there was very little he could do. Not when his son was like this. But he would still try. He couldn't give up on him. He wouldn't.

Connie was alone on the sandy battlefield. She ran between the unmoving gem figures. She dodged, rolled, hid behind frozen gems, and ran; doing all she could to get close to her friend.

"STOP!" she yelled at him as she narrowly avoided White's next blast. To her surprise, White did stop.

Steven lowered his head and huffed at her. Connie slowly walked up to him, suddenly very aware of how small she was compared to him.

"Steven," she said softly. Her hand trembled as she stopped just feet from him. He lowered his head further so they could stare at one another. He blinked slowly, his eyes narrowed and angry.

"It's me," she tried. Her voice shook slightly as she spoke. "It's Connie."

Nothing changed in his face. To Steven, she was no more than a bug asking to be squashed. She was the last one of his attackers standing.

"Please," Connie said. She reached out her hand to him.

Then White hit her from behind. She felt coldness racing up her spine and she was unable to yell out before everything faded to black.

… … … … … … … … … …

Author's note: I see so many fan arts of Connie and Corrupted Steven, that I had to give them a moment in the fight. I can't even imagine Greg's reaction when/if he ever sees his son in a corrupted state. It's going to be so heartbreaking if/when it happens.