CHAPTER 29: LIKE SISTERS

"No!" Black Pearl screamed jumping towards the machine, unfortunately for her, Pearl jumped and pushed her aside before she could hit the machine and when she got up, it was already gone, into the dark abysses of the Earth.

Meanwhile:

"You can't keep dodging forever!" Yellow Diamond shouted trying to hit Jasper.

"Want to bet?" Jasper answered dodging her sword and punching her in the jaw.

But even if Jasper was smaller and quicker, she knew that sooner or later Yellow Diamond would have had the upper hand. When Garnet managed to take her by surprise, Jasper took this occasion and headed towards Lapis.

"Lapis!" Jasper yelled to the flying gem.

"What?!" Lapis shouted back reaching the former ally.

"Listen, I know you won't like this but-" Jasper was cut off by Lapis.

"No! Absolutely not! I know what you're going to ask and my answer is no!" Lapis already knew what Jasper wanted, she wouldn't have committed the same error again.

"Do you see another way to beat her?! She's a diamond!" Jasper screamed as Lapis pulled at her hair nervously.

"I-I-" Lapis couldn't think straight, and this is why she didn't have the time to react when Jasper was kicked away and Yellow Diamond stood in front of her.

"Well, I thought that fusion would have been more of a challenge, guess I was wrong…" Yellow Diamond said as Lapis noticed Garnet's gems lying to the ground.

"Y-you're not going to hurt her!" Lapis yelled clenching her fists.

"Her? She's a fusion Lapis open your eyes, she's two different gems and what they do together is an abomination… plus, I'm not going to hurt her, the Cluster will…" Yellow Diamond kept getting closer.

"You're wrong! The Cluster will be stopped! By now Steven, Pearl and Peridot will already be using our machine!" Lapis yelled stepping back.

"Oh is those poor idiots you're only hope to destroy my creation? What a shame… did you notice I came here alone?" Yellow Diamond sneered evilly, Lapis's eyes becoming wide with a terrible realization.

"N-no…" Lapis murmured summoning her wings and trying to fly away, but the Homeworld's leader was too quick and grabbed her.

"You know, after all, I don't think I'll need another mirror, these traitors will die because of the Cluster, this will be for my… personal satisfaction." Yellow Diamond laughed as she held Lapis by her arms and pointed her sword to her gem, ready to strike.

"Get off her!" Jasper yelled jumping and hitting Yellow Diamond, who lost grip on Lapis, making her fall to the ground.

"J-Jasper…" Lapis murmured, eyes wide with surprise.

"Lapis... listen, I'm really sorry for what I've done to you, there is no excuse and I know it, so don't see it as something you do for me, do this for Steven..." Jasper said offering her hand to Lapis.

"For Steven." Lapis murmured as she grasped Jasper's hand, who pulled her up and made her do a spin before a bright light engulfed the duo.

"You cowards! Face destruction as yourselves" Yellow Diamond cried as the gargantuan fusion appeared.

"You won't see another day!" Malachite yelled charging towards the Homeworld's leader.

"Turning into an abomination won't stop me!" Yellow Diamond raised her sword and jumped towards the fusion.

Yellow Diamond tried to hit the fusion but it quickly dodged her sword and punched the Homeworld's leader, making her fly towards the barn, crushing into it. She slowly got up from the ground, thinking about a way she could have defeated Malachite, but even for a diamond, a fusion like Malachite was too strong to defeat on their own. Yellow Diamond tried to slash again the opponent but was immediately caught in the fusion's iron grip. Malachite's grip tightened as Yellow Diamond cried in pain.

"Y-you'll regret this!" Yellow Diamond cried trying to get free.

"Shut up! I'm going to crush your gem and no one will remember you! I'm going to make sure you won't hurt anyone anymore!" Malachite raised her fist on Yellow Diamond's head ready to strike, but something made her stop, a loud noise from above, and when she raised her gaze, she saw something enormous rip the clouds and descended towards them… a white, Homeworld spaceship, there wasn't time to react, a bright beam flooded the mighty fusion and in a blink, Lapis and Jasper were on the ground.

"That, was a great inconvenient…" Yellow Diamond sighed moving towards the two of them.

"You're a monster! Even if you defeat us, even if you stop us you'll be destroyed by your own creation!" Lapis yelled crawling back.

"Oh Lapis, so naïve, do you think in all this time I didn't attack you because I was scared? Or hurt? When I ran away from that facility, I knew I couldn't beat all of you, in a way or another, you would have destroyed me, so, I did something about it." Yellow Diamond said as Lapis froze, hearing

Meanwhile:

"We are near Steven!" Peridot said guiding the drill towards their objective.

"It's sooo hot!" Steven complained wiping his sweat.

"Being a gem the concept of temperature doesn't conceal me, in your case, well, just stay focused, we are arriving at destination!" Peridot said noticing on the drill's radar the Cluster was becoming nearer and nearer.

"You…" Black Pearl had only hatred in her eyes as she summoned her sword and moved towards Pearl.

"Black please, you don't have to do this!" Pearl shouted summoning her spear and blocking and incoming attack.

"Stop talking! I hate you!" Black released all of her rage in her hits, making it hard for Pearl to dodge all of them.

"You don't know what you're talking about! Yellow Diamond lied to you! I'm not what she told you I am!" Pearl said as tears started to form in the corners of her eyes.

"Shut up!" Black cried becoming faster and faster.

"Steven we're here!" Peridot yelled, he could hear terror in her voice, he noticed it too, they reached something the drill couldn't pass through, something enormous and ancient.

"Now we just have to-" The green gem was interrupted by a strong jolt which made both her and Steven fall back.

"It's awakening!" Steven said noticing a white, bright light outside the drill machine.

"We have to do it now!" Peridot screamed moving towards the control panel.

"Peridot quick!" Steven pleaded coming at her side.

"I'm doing it I'm doing it!" Peridot touched the panel one last time, the drill head began to part revealing a bright shard.

"Now!" She yelled as Steven grasped the red knob Peridot used before to start the machine and moved it forward… so did the machine, moving towards the Cluster and piercing it with the shard, bright white veins of light spreading through the enormous mass in front of them.

"You're the one who made me this!" Black yelled slashing through Pearl's chest, cutting through her vest.

"Agh!" Pearl cried stumbling backwards and falling to the ground.

"Y-you're going to pay for what you did!" Black said jumping on Pearl and pinning her to the ground, Pearl shutting her eyes.

"Look at me!" Black screamed, Pearl did as she was told.

"Black… please…" Pearl begged, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"S-shut up! Now you'll tell me how you abandoned me there in that horrible place and you'll beg me to spare your life!" Black yelled, Pearl could notice her eyes were also watering, they both stared into each other's eyes until Pearl spoke.

"I can't, Black, I can't tell you that I hurt you because I never did that, I would never do that… we were like sisters…" Pearl told her, Black slowly released her wrists.

"You're lying… you're lying!" Black began to hold her head with both her hands, her face twisted in pain.

"Black… it's me…" Pearl said softly laying her hand on her cheek. Black laid her own hand on Pearl's one, did she remember?

"I know who you are…" Black hissed, that horrible, yellow glow coming back to her eyes. Pearl couldn't do anything, she just stared mouth agape as Black took her sword and pierced her chest.

"Pearl!" Steven yelled, Black only managed to turn around before a shield hit her right in the head.

"Steven don't go near to her!" Peridot called, too late, Steven rushed towards her and quickly too Pearl's gem in her hand, and put his hands in front of Black.

"She's mine! Give her back to-" Black became silent as a pink bubble appeared around her.

"Let me free!" She yelled pounding the bubble.

"No! You have to stop behaving like this! Pearl is your friend!" Steven said as Black covered her ears.

"Shut up! Shut up shut up! S-she's n-not my friend!" Black fell to her knees.

"You were friends! You both escaped from Homeworld and fought alongside my mom! Pearl didn't abandon you! You chose to stay behind to save her! Yellow Diamond lied to you!" Steven explained, it hurt him to see her like this, even if she hurt Pearl.

"Please… stop… t-this… isn't true…" Black began to sob quietly.

"You always told each other, freedom is what is really worth fighting for…" Steven said with a smile, Black's eyes widening, that horrible yellow light disappearing from them.

"How moving…" A voice called from behind him.

"Steven no!" Peridot screamed in despair.

Steven didn't have time, he just turned around and found himself with blade in his chest. His eyes fell on the large gem in front of him, Yellow Diamond, and behind her, a taller, white gem, with pointy hair and a rhomboidal gem embedded in her forehead and a black cloak, which covered her silver armor.

"Peridot… run…" Steven whispered as everything went black.