Author's note: Welcome to the next chapter of THoR ( : Dark World) XD I love the acronym. Those of you who have read "Infinite Skies" will probably know what's happening.

The Hub Glass

Steven moved his head up and down, watching as his distorted reflection did the same in the large hourglass before him. He chuckled, moving on to the next. Behind him, Sapphire hovered, joining in.

"Guys, come one, we have to take this seriously." Connie said, a sheathed sword on her back.

"Ah, come on Connie; quit being such a killjoy." Steven chirped with a grin, knowing all too well as to what his sister was trying to do: impress Opal.

It had been a month since the incident with Ruby and, a week after the initial incident, Connie had decided she wanted to be trained as well. Though, she wasn't about to desecrate the time Steven shared with his master, so she decided to take a different one. She had remembered the tales that Opal had remembered from long ago, which was impressive on Opal's part given how the tall gem had completely forgotten about Rose's death until well after Steven and Connie's seventh birthday. She remembered how Opal and Rose fought side by side in battle, but there was something much more important in the details to Connie. Connie had decided that, if she wasn't going to be able to summon her shield anytime soon, she should probably learn how to use a different weapon. And since there was only one other weapon her mother used, she decided to learn how to use it, the sword.

Opal had at first been reluctant on the subject, but, after overhearing Ruby say she was willing to help her if Opal didn't, the periwinkle gem quickly agreed to teaching Connie about the sword. Besides, Connie had proven herself to be very capable thus far, the idea wasn't so bad. In fact, it had proven to not be a bad one at all. Connie had learned quickly and soon became so skilled she was a match for some of the higher level clones. Though, Opal refused to show how impressed she truly was. If she did, Connie could get lazy. Plus, Connie would only improve to impress her master.

"Now, now, Connie's right." Sapphire said, still smiling. "We wouldn't want to accidentally move the wrong one. This entire place will flood and we'll have to wait a long time to find the hub glass if that happens."

"What's a "hub glass" again?" Ruby asked.

"It's an hourglass that can transport you to another time." Opal stated proudly.

"Actually, it's an hour glass that can transport you to another timeline." Sapphire corrected.

"What?" Steven, Connie, and Ruby asked.

Sapphire gave a look of thought for a moment, trying to think of the best way to describe this to the children and gem. "Well, a long time ago, during the war, Homeworld saw it was loosing and decided to make a device that could take them to a time before the war and kill your mother." Sapphire smiled as their eyes lit up. in interest. "However, the gems working on it realized that what they were doing was impossible, and that the device could only take them to different timelines, or different universes so to speak."

"Wow." Steven said in amazement, unable to keep himself from seeing similarities to some comic books he had. read.

"So, instead of changing the outcome on some other Earth, Homeworld designed it to be a system to easily navigate through these systems and acquire assistance from them." Sapphire continued. "Thankfully, we were able to stop them in time, but not before Homeworld sealed it away so that we couldn't use it either."

"So…why do we need to get it if it's safe down here?" Steven asked.

"Please, even I can answer that one...now that I know what we're talking about." Ruby said. "If someone ended up finding that thing, it could be disastrous."

"So…which one do you think it is?" Steven asked.

Opal took a look around, her eyes falling on a gigantic hour glass. "That one." She said, pointing forward.

"I agree with Opal!" Connie declared.

As Ruby and Sapphire were about to help the two pick it up, Steven spoke.

"Wait." He said. "Isn't that just a little bit obvious?" Steven asked.

"…Yea, so?" Opal asked.

"Well, if they were going to go through all the trouble to booby trap this place, why make it the most obvious one? I mean, come on; in the movies it's never the first one you see."

Opal suddenly looked flustered, Sapphire smiling pridefully towards Steven.

"W- Well, which one do you think it is?" Opal asked childishly.

"Oo, what about that one?" Ruby asked, pointing to a very twisted one.

Steven cocked a brow. "How is that one better?"

Ruby shrugged. "It looks cool."

"Well, given what happened last time you made a decision about a magical item," Opal began. "I agree with Steven on this one."

"So…then which one is it?" Connie asked.

It took a moment for Steven to realize she was talking to him. "Wait, me?"

"Well, you do seem to be the expert on this, so you should choose." Sapphire said.

"B- But how should I know?" He asked.

Sapphire walked up to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You'll know." She assured him.

Steven smiled. "Alright," He looked to the hourglasses. "Let's get to business." He walked up to them, observing and scanning each carefully. "Too big, too fat…too weird." Steven groaned. "They're all so interesting."

Steven continued on his search, still finding nothing, until his eyes finally fell on something so small, so insignificant, he almost didn't think that what he had seen was actually there. It was when he realized that, that he realized that this was the one.

"This one!" He called, pointing to it.

"That one?" Opal asked. "But it's so puny, so insignificant. No sane gem would have ever even noticed…oh."

"Smart thinking." Sapphire told him.

Steven bashfully rubbed the back of his head. "Well thanks."

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Ruby asked. "Let's get this thing and get out of here." She said, moving forward, only for Sapphire to stop her.

"Steven's decision, Steven's keep." Sapphire said.

"Really?" Steven asked. "Are you sure you wouldn't like to get it yourself? Besides, I could be wrong."

Sapphire smiled. "If you pick it up, that means you had enough faith that your decision was right that you were willing to make it even with the knowledge that, if you're wrong it'll mean this mission's failure. And if you have faith in yourself, then I will have faith in you."

Steven stared for a moment before nodding in understanding, looking to the ball-shaped hourglass before him. He thought this was right, he could feel it in his bones, but he didn't want to jeopardize the mission. Yet, as he looked around for room full of interesting and attention grabbing glasses, the one before him was the only one that felt right.

Steven shut his eyes, reaching forward quickly before he could change his mind on the matter. He snatched the hourglass from its spot and held it close, waiting for some trap to go off, for something to signal he had gotten it wrong. Yet, as he stood there, all he could hear was his own rapid breathing.

"Woo hoo!" Ruby cheered. "You did it…I think."

"Yes, he did it. No traps went off." Sapphire stated. "Excellent work Steven."

"Good job bro!" Connie called.

"Whew, I was worried that wasn't going to work." Opal admitted.

"Ah, come on, have a little faith in the kid." Ruby said with a grin.

"Well, the point is that he did it and nothing bad happened." Connie said.

"Yea, imagine what would've happened if we had actually listened to you, Opal." Ruby jeered.

Steven chuckled. "Yea, I want to see that." He joked.

The group shared a laugh, only for it to die down as the hourglass in Steven's hands began to glow.

Steven stared at his teammates as the looked at him. "What?" He asked. He looked down, eyes widening as they fell on the sphere in his hands. "Um, guys!" Steven exclaimed.

"Steven, get away from it!" Sapphire commanded urgently.

Steven was about to, but before the orb could leave his skin, the light engulfed him, taking him and hourglass away. The last thing he heard was his family calling his name before darkness surrounded him.

Steven groaned, eyes slowly opening. "Ugh, what happened?" He asked. His eyes widened as they fell on a glowing orb. "What?" Steven reached forward, grabbing it. He looked at it, finding an image inside. His eyes widened as he found that what was playing before him in the glowing sphere was actually what was the last thing he remembered, only slightly different.

"One, two, three!" He could hear as the trio lifted up the largest of the hourglasses, not finding himself stopping them as he had before.

As they did, the area shook, all the gems looking around them. Then, water began pouring in.

"Guess I chose poorly." Opal said, the trio dropping the large hourglass as more water began to come in.

Steven then saw the trio grab the twins and leave just as the area they were in was beginning to be filled.

"Huh?" Steven asked. "What was that?"

Steven saw some light out of the corner of his eyes. When he turned, he was unable to keep himself from gasping in wonder. Before him were hundreds, maybe even thousands, of the glowing orbs, each showing what he had just seen, but with slight variations.

"Wow…what's going on?" Steven asked.

He looked at the small hourglass he held in his hands, watching it give off a faint glow.

"Wait, so," Steven looked back to floating bubbles. "this is the multiverse?" He asked. "So, why did I come here?" He asked.

Suddenly, the bubbles around spun, disappearing into the darkness, new ones coming in their place. In them was the same image, him holding the hourglass.

"Yea, I would love to see that." He heard himself say.

The bubbles dispersed back into the dark, leaving Steven alone with the item that brought him here.

"Oh, so I'm here because I'd wished to see what would happen." Steven concluded. "Well, I didn't really mean it, but oh well." Steven gave a thoughtful look to the little ball he held. "So, I can see everything that could have, or might happen, if it exists in one of these universes?" Steven smiled. "What do I want to see?... How about…is Cookie Cat still around somewhere?"

Many bubbles came forth, showing him happily eating one of the cat-shaped treats…minus a few which had what looked to be real life Cookie Cats.

"Cool." Steven exclaimed. "Alright, let me see…if Lars will be my friend- no wait, don't tell me, I want to be surprised. What about…will I be able to summon my shield?"

Bubbles came forth showing himself struggling to bring forth his magical, pink shield, while others showed him doing it as easily as the other gems.

"Yes." Steven said. "Alright, let's get…romantic here. Who will Connie marry?"

A couple dozen bubbles showed up, depicting an adult version of his sister dancing with Pee Dee Fryman.

"Ah yea, I knew it." Steven sang. "Oh, wait till I tell Connie-" Steven turned, finding an equal amount showing Connie doing the same with Peridot and some other gem he didn't recognize. Steven chuckled. "Ha ha, very funnyyyyyyy."

Steven trailed off, sweat coming from his forehead, as he saw that behind him were hundreds upon hundreds of bubbles showing him and Connie getting married.

"Okay, I'm done with that." Steven said, turning around, the bubbles leaving. Steven gave a nervous chuckle. "Geez, that was weird. What would Dad say?…" Steven's expression saddened. "…Are there…universes where…my dad was alive?"

The bubbles shifted, swirling around Steven. Then, the images played. There were a few empty one, but the rest brought tears to Steven's eyes. He was watching as he played with his father, as he taught him how to play an instrument, helped him.

Steven reached towards one of the bubbles showing the man laughing alongside his child. "Dad…" Steven touched it and, for a moment, felt the warmth enter him, he could feel his father wrap his arms around him. After that moment though, it all stopped. The warmth reeled back into the bubble before it left into the darkness, it left Steven with the hole in his heart, it reminded him of the last time he got to hug his father.

Then, an idea came to him. What if he went to one of those universes and lived there? Then he could have his father back…Steven immediately knew the flaws. There was already a Steven there…besides, he couldn't leave his family behind. But still…

He held his stomach. He didn't like these thoughts. He didn't want to, he wanted to keep watching, but doing so would just give him the opportunity to do something he would regret. So, he wished the bubbles away, and like that they left.

Steven stayed in silence for a moment, not wanting to move. But, eventually, time did its trick and the pain slowly faded.

Steven sniffled. "Alright…I guess I should see something else before I go… How's…Lapis doing?"

The moment he asked the question, he wished he hadn't. His eyes widened as he watched the thousands of bubbles crowd around him, and not one showed her happy. Every one held her being thrown into a cell before a green barrier trapped her.

"What? What's going on, who's doing that?"

The image changed to the unfeeling green gem he had met weeks ago.

"P- P- Peridot? What does she want?" Steven asked.

The bubbles provided the answer, showing a monstrous beast bursting from the Earth's crust.

Steven's eyes widened as he backed up in fear. "What? No! What does Peridot have to do with the end of the world?!"

Then, all the bubbles went white, staying still, perfectly, eerily still. Then, they spun. They spun around him, turning into a tornado of white light. Steven looked around as images appeared. Images of the beast bursting through, images of spaceship armadas wiping out the planet, entire planets wiped out overnight by a single, shadowy creature.

"No, this can't be real!" Steven said, covering his ears and closing his eyes. "This can't be all there is!"

Despite his best efforts, he couldn't block it out, the sound of so much suffering coming through.

Steven growled. "Stooooop!" He cried.

Then, there was silence, and Steven felt himself fall to the ground.

When Steven first felt the solid matter against his feet, he had begun to think he had been taken back home, but no more than a second later, he knew it wasn't. Something was wrong here. He could feel smoke choking his lungs, he could smell something akin to rusting iron, he could feel…pain.

Then, Steven opened his eyes, only to wish he hadn't.

He was standing on top of a skyscraper, looking at a burning city. There was fire everywhere, buildings crumbling, yet despite it all, there was no sound, as if the entire city was dead…

Steven felt the building he stood upon shake violently.

Steven almost tripped but soon regained his balance, standing firm as the earth shook. He thought this was as bad as it could possibly be…oh how little he knew.

An enormous hand reached up and grabbed onto the edge of the building, Steven looking at it, eyes filled with fear. Another followed it, followed by two more. Slowly, a head began to rise. The beast's face was horrifying, even in the shadows. Despite it being so close to Steven, all he could make our were its cold, cruel eyes, and the gem on its nose. Its eyes fell on the boy, no sound of anger, joy, or even shock coming from the beast.

Steven was frozen, wanting to move but unable to make himself. He wanted to tear his feet away and run, he wanted to scream at the top of his lungs, to cry for hours, but nothing came, nothing happened, he couldn't move.

The creature slowly reared its head back, a low, animalistic moan coming from it as its mouth opened wide, its pearly white teeth shining in fire's light.

Steven shook his head. What was happening? What was this? It couldn't be real. Everything he had just seen, it had to have been a dream.

The beast's head began to approach Steven, the boy only watching as it came closer.

This wasn't real.

He could feel the heat of the fires against his face.

This wasn't real.

He could feel the breath of the beast blow against him.

Steven shut his eyes. "I don't want to see this anymore! I just want to go home!" He cried.

Just as the beast's jaws reached around him, it burst into a wave of light, the world swirling around him as it too turned into light.

Steven felt his face burn as tears poured down his face. Why did the hourglass show him that?

Steven opened his eyes, seeing the endless orbs showing lifeless planets.

This couldn't be it.

Steven shut his eyes tightly.

Was this really all there was? Was everything he knew going to fall?

"Steven? Steven?!" He could hear.

Steven opened his eyes, finding his sister, the rest of his family behind her as she called his name.

"C- Connie?" Steven called.

Steven looked around him, only to find that the images of the broken worlds had changed to shifting images of his family.

"All you want to do is see me turn into a giant women." He heard Opal sing.

"It's you Steven!" He heard someone else say.

"Who knows? Maybe you'll be able to help these creatures in ways even your mother couldn't." A soft voice said.

"Just let me do this for you!" He heard Lapis say.

Steven didn't know why, but these voices, the ones encouraging him, counting on him, caring for him, protecting him, they made Steven feel something he hadn't felt since his Dad died: hope. Hope for a better day, hope that he would become stronger, hope that he could protect those that he loved. He felt it, invited it, let it warm his body.

"eeeeeeen!"

"Huh?" Steven looked in the direction of the sound, only to feel his face collide with something hard.

"And Steven…I love you…" Was the last thing he heard.

Sapphire sat in the beach house, quietly watching Steven rest peacefully.

"Good to see he's finally asleep."

Sapphire looked to find Opal sit next to her.

"I wasn't sure if we would be able to after whatever he saw… You find out anything?" Opal asked.

Sapphire shook her head. "All he says he remembers is a terrifying monster and someone saying they loved him."

Opal stared at Steven. "Poor kid. It's almost like he's destined to be put in danger."

Sapphire sighed. "Steven's been through so much… At this point, I'm not even sure if I want him to be a Crystal Gem anymore. It's not that I don't he could; it's just that...we couldn't even get through this one mission without scarring him. I just want to keep him away from it all, just let him finally have a normal, happy life."

Opal shook her head. "No such luck…"

Author's note: It cometh.

Now, for those of you who have read my "Infinite Skies", you'll know what just happened. For those of you who didn't, Steven essentially saw what was occurring in other universes that were very different from his own (hence why he saw him and his sister get married; they aren't siblings in canon or in almost any other stories and are often depicted as having romantic feelings for each other in both). Sorry for poking a little fun at Stonnie. I love it a lot, but I couldn't just pass up an opportunity to address that this story is simply a rare anomaly in space-time…does this count as shameless story promotion?