Chapter 3: Getting Used to Things
"You know I'll be honest...I did not plan any further than this." Jade admitted with a nervous smile.
"WHAT!?"
Jade quickly held their conjoined hand out before continuing with "But...But...we should do as we originally planned and figure out where we are."
They nodded while Agate forced a frown onto their face.
"Whatever." She mumbled to herself.
As they tried to get up it became noticeable that their body seemed to be moving at two different speeds. The left side tried to slowly rise by first bending it's leg and using that support to push itself up. The right side, on the other hand, held the intention of getting up quickly by springing itself up. That all added up to the left side unable to react in time to catch their body, leaving them to luckily fall hands first into the dirt.
"Well that was graceful." Jade said as an offering of humor.
Agate growled and pounded her knuckle into the dirt.
"Why can't I feel our leg!?"
Awkwardly, they pushed themselves off of their stomach and back into a sitting position. Once properly planted there was a pause before they gained a worried look.
"I can't feel either of our legs." Sunstone realized.
Jade held out their left arm while the right remained on the ground to keep them balanced.
"And I can't feel our right arm."
"What's going on?" Agate demanded, her harsh tone breaking slightly from her confusion.
Jade stared hard at their right arm, trying with all her might to force it to move. Slowly her eyes widened as a fact, previously forgotten, once more was brought into light.
"We can't feel it...because we don't have it anymore." She said in a monotone revelation.
"What do you mean Jade?" Sunstone asked, her and Agate's eyes looking to Jade's.
Their head went down to their hands, where only the green one out of the three flexed itself.
"In our base forms we...we were missing some of our limbs. And that carried over to our fusion."
Partly in shock, Sunstone looked down at their legs and focused with all her might. When their legs remained still they dawned a heartbroken look as tears ran down from Sunstone's eye.
"So even though we're whole, we're still not complete?"
"Sunny don't cry." Jade urged, wiping away the tears.
Sunstone smiled a bit at the gesture before giggling and leaning into Jade's palm. Her moment of joy was then cut short by Agate growling and throwing her hand up.
"Well isn't this just great? Not only are we a complete abomination. It's likely that we'll never get anywhere as well."
"Now don't say that Aga-"
"How are we supposed to walk when we both control a single leg?!"
Jade once more held out their hand in her temporary method to calm Agate down.
"We just need to work together on this. All we have to do is figure out the extent of who controls what, and work off of that."
Agate glared at Jade's hand and slapped it down.
"Okay, so who controls what?"
For several minutes neither of them spoke while each gem made an experimental attempt to move each limb. Lifting arms, flexing hands, wiggling fingers, and stretching legs. All at different points in the time span.
"Looks like I got right arm and leg."
"I've got the left leg and extra hand."
Jade lifted up their left arm and shook it around before Sunstone forced it out straight.
"And it looks like me and Sunny have a co-dominance on the left arm."
"While I have soul claim of the other left hand." Sunstone added, waving her hand as a demonstration.
Agate smirked. "Talk about getting the short end of the stick."
Their left arm shrugged and Sunstone replied with "I don't mind. As long as we're able to make a physical form."
Agate's smirk fell. "Why are you so positive?"
In response Sunstone brought a smile back to their face.
"To balance out your negativity."
"Okay that's enough." Jade said, chucking a bit before getting serious.
"Alright Agate, since you're quick to get up, I want you to let me go first. When we're up I want you to keep us balanced. Okay?"
When Agate's only response was a small growl Jade continued. "I'll take that as an 'Okay'."
Once more, at her own pace, Jade lifted them up slightly as she bent their leg under them. Just as they started going up into a standing position their right leg shot them upward. Jade was quicker to react this time and her leg rushed out and caught them. Their arms swung wildly while their upper half went back and forth to keep them balanced. After several moments of flailing both feet planted onto the ground and they were standing straight.
Instantly Jade's eye looked to Agate's with her words already formed and ready to say.
"Agate I said-"
"I don't take orders from a traitor." Agate replied before Jade could finish.
Jade looked up, not to look at Agate, but to briefly express the vexation she felt along with her exhale.
"Fair enough. So how do you want us to walk?"
Agate put her hand over their mouth as her eyes squinted from deep thought. It didn't take long for a strategy to come to her and she spoke again.
"Sunstone, since you're not doing anything you're going to make a rhythm for us follow. I'll start us off. Do you think you can keep in time traitor?"
Jade's eye went wide in a faux fear as she replied. "I-I don't know Agate. That seems so complicated. But I'll sure try!"
"Don't. Start."
"One...Two...One...Two...One..." Sunstone counted off.
Within the first few dozen feet their motions were choppy and uneven. Whether it be from one foot taking too wide of a step or one foot not giving the other enough time in each beat to move. They stumbled a lot and, in many cases, had to save themselves from completely falling over. But as they kept going their movement started to become more fluid. Soon enough they were able to break away from the counting and move at a normal speed. Though when walking no longer became an issue, Agate quickly found another problem.
"Why are we limping?" She suddenly asked.
They looked down and immediately noticed how Jade's foot took longer to touch the ground than Agate's did.
"Well it was something I noticed when we first woke up. And that I think that it's because you're taller than Jade, Agate." Sunstone explained.
But that answer didn't seem to, at all, soothe Agate. "We'll figure something out because we look ridiculous doing this."
They leg was enveloped in a bright light as it grew just a bit longer. While doing so Jade's eye went into a look of irritation as she remarked.
"Yes it's totally the limping that makes us look ridiculous...and nothing else."
Agate opened their mouth to yell again. But Sunstone, after taking a brief look around, beat her in speaking.
"So where are we?"
At that time they each finally got around to actually looking at their surroundings. The seemingly endless mountains, each filled with their own set of a thousand holes. And the hundreds of Injectors looking to lose their grips and fall even under the most gentle touch. In an instant each of them where able to place exactly where they had woken up.
"It appears to be the kindergarten."
Even from afar. Jade could see the age that had fallen over a once mighty birthplace of strong gems. Already she spotted, at least, several dozen Injectors broken in several places or demolished beyond repair. And, from as best as she could remember, it looked as if weathering had already started taking effect on some of the holes.
"It's looks abandoned."
They nodded. "Indeed." Agate said as she turned their head to get a better look at an Injector that laid close to them on the ground.
The glass that protected whatever lied inside was badly cracked. Looking to shatter if even the slightest bit of pressure was applied. Lightly, Agate ran the tip of her finger over the glass. Transferring a layer of dust that blanketed itself over to her finger, to which she wiped away with her thumb.
"And if the Injectors are anything to go by, then I'd say that this was shut down a long time ago."
"Guess that means we won the war." Jade said with an unsure smile.
"Tragically." Muttered Agate.
"Aw, is someone being a sore loser?" Jade asked playfully.
But, as Jade had slightly expected, Agate took it as if someone had just insulted her Diamond right in front of her.
"Listen here traitor!"
While Agate yelled at Jade once more, Sunstone took the time to let her eye wander. There wasn't much to look at beside rocks and holes, so her stare didn't stay in one place for too long. That was until she looked again at what first glance perceived as a rock.
But rocks don't move.
Any argument Jade and Agate were getting deep into was halted by Sunstone's shriek. Neither gem could get a word out, whether it be to ask what's wrong or get her to stop, as Sunstone continued screaming. Forcing the top half of their body backwards with such force that they fell onto their back. During the needed moment of recovery, Jade quickly jumped at the chance to speak up.
"Sunny what's wro-OH MY STARS!"
With their head already in the direction of Sunstone's fear, it didn't take long for Jade to spot what put her in such distress.
They walked in a large horde. Gems, or the remains of gems fused together randomly, relying on either sight or sound to make their way over to the three. Most of them had no choice but to rely on their hearing as their bodies were only a mass with hands and feet sticking out of them. Those that had anything else stared blankly at their target while pointed teeth spewed out incomprehensible screeches. Some did have clothing on. But if it wasn't completely torn to shreds, it was a long cloth that sloppily wrapped around what could be called their bodies. But whatever they had, it was all enough to send Jade into the same state of panic as Sunstone.
"What are those things!?" Jade hollered.
Agate didn't seem the least bit phased as she glared at the approaching gems.
"Cluster Prototypes." She said fiercely.
"L-Like us?" Sunstone asked.
Agate shook their head. "Unlike us, it's likely that they're too lost to know who they are anymore."
The swarm was starting to get closer as their hands were reaching out to the three. Realizing that Agate pushed them back onto their feet. An action that Jade was forced to comply to in order to keep them from falling over.
"Then, why do they look ready to attack?"
Looking closely at their own gem before looking at what the others had gave Agate a clear comparison.
"Because they're looking for their missing pieces."
As the distance between them grew shorter, their panic only grew faster.
"W-What do we do?!" Sunstone asked frantically.
"We Fight!"
"We Run!"
Was what Jade and Agate both tried to say at the same time. But their combined speech fumbled their words, reducing it to gibberish.
Agate shook their head. "I am an Agate! I do not run from a fight!"
"Well I'm a Jade, and I know when we can't win a fight!" Jade retorted.
"I'm a Sunstone, and I second that!" Sunstone added quietly.
"Great! Two out of three! Now let's go!" Jade said, and her leg turned to run.
"No! We stay and fight!" Agate ordered, stamping her foot firmly into the ground.
When Jade's foot went out they were forced down into the splits. This time, it was Jade who growled before shouting.
"Shard of an Emerald's Pearl, we don't have time for this Agate!. How are we even supposed to fight?!"
"The way gems do!" Agate yelled back.
Their gem glowed and thick chain started growing out of it. Agate reached her hand over and pulled the rest out, only to be surprised when seeing a spiked ball on a very short chain emerge from the light.
"My weapon!" Agate cried.
Seeing that something was off, Jade experimentally focused on forming her battle axe. When she uncomfortably reached up to grab it she was met with half of a handle and a widened blade that broke off the moment it left their gem.
"What?" Jade asked before looking to Sunstone.
"Sunny, try your dagger."
Sunstone did just as told only to let out a small yelp of pain. Having grabbed the handle-less blade of her dagger that was left to fall to the ground.
"You okay Sunny?"
"Yeah I'm-" She was cut off when a shadow fell over them.
Looking up they gasped when they saw one of the gem mutants reaching down at them. Agate's reaction was the quickest and she gave a hard kick to the cluster's midsection. Sending it flying backward into the wall while knocking anything in it's way over like bowling pins. This time there was no objection and the three scrambled to their feet and took off. Their coordination was still wobbly, but the desire to flee was more than enough to give them the unison needed to run. Those capable of running gave chase, but were not quick enough to keep up. When the mutants were mere dots in their vision they slowed. Cautiously ducking down behind a large rock while they tried to steady their thoughts.
"This is so humiliating! Imagine if my Diamond had seen such a cowardly action."
"Well what else could we have done? We're outnumbered, and our weapons are just as broken as we are!" Jade argued.
Sunstone's eye then widened at Jade's words.
"Jade, that's it!"
Jade's eye widened as well, but not for the same reason.
"What is?"
"We're a fusion, right? So that means that we have a fusion weapon! And if we combine our weapons..."
"We can make one!" Jade finished, her eye now shining with the same spirit as Sunstone's.
"Exactly!"
The two then realized the elephant still present in the room. The one that Jade volunteered to approach gently.
"Agate, I know you hate-"
Agate calmly interrupted her. "For once, I don't care. As long as we can take those freaks down."
Jade and Sunstone looked surprised for a moment before gaining a serious face and nodding.
"Okay, one at a time on three."
Agate's hand hovered over their gem while it began to glow. Closing their eyes a small blade slowly pushed out from their gem.
"One…"
The blade curved inward as it continued to grow longer. Just as it went beyond a half circle the blade bent outward to form its handle.
"Two…"
Agate's eye popped open and she grabbed the handle.
"Three!"
Yanking it out of their gem revealed a long chain attached to it with a ball at the end. The ball sprouted spikes and the light faded to reveal a sickle with the ball in chain appearing to be lazily wrapped and welded to the handle. They all contributed to the confused face they currently held as they looked over their weapon.
"I get the sickle part, but what's with the chain?"
They were brought out of their puzzlement by a stampeding sound of footsteps from behind the rock. Peaking over, they saw the many clustered gems still in pursuit of their target. Seeing them, Agate gripped the handle of their sickle harder as a malicious grin crossed their face.
"Doesn't matter. It's time for round two."
Agate's foot went out and Jade obliged in letting them be revealed.
"Remember, we're a fusion and we have to fight like one!"
"Right!"
"Whatever!"
Both sides charged right at each other. Agate getting the first hit as she swung the ball in a circle, cleanly taking out the first wave of clusters. Smoke from the poofed gems filled the area and blinded all that had relied on sight. Through the fading fog a sickle was launched out and wrapped around the torso of a cluster gem. The sickle was then yanked back, slicing the cluster in two before it poofed as well. The smoke had fully cleared at that point to reveal the three smiling smugly at their work. Their smile dropped, however, when Sunstone spotted another mutant about to grab them from the side. Without a warning Sunstone forced their top half back to dodge. Surprising Jade and Agate, who were quick to realize the reason for the motion and how to act accordingly. Jade's hand went to the ground and Agate's foot went up. Kicking the mutant back as they flipped themselves backwards into a three point landing.
Looking back they surveyed the situation and saw that it looked as if they had barely made a dent in the horde. Scanning for another option, Jade looked toward the side of one of the mountains. Taking note of where the mutants were positioned and how they could maybe...
"Agate let's make some distance!"
Agate glared. "No! We are not running away again!"
"We're not!" Jade yelled back. "But if we make some distance we can take them out in one shot!"
"How?"
Jade move their head in the direction she was previously looking, enabling Agate to see what Jade had in mind. Without verbally agreeing, they took off behind them, with the mutants giving chase. When Jade felt that they were far enough she dug her heel into the ground. Allowing Agate to spin until they faced the pursuing clusters. Pulling her arm back, and with all their might, Agate flung the spiked ball toward the side of the mountain. It collided and an explosion of rock and dirt showered the clusters. Each getting crushed whether it be from many smaller rock or one big one. And through the falling rubble they were able to see their weapon falling as well. The same thought must have crossed their minds as they took several steps backwards. Never losing sight of their intended target.
"Okay...Jump!"
After running a few steps, Jade's foot sprung up. Agate's doing the same, but with a delay, giving them an extra leap for more height. Straightening their body, they were able to weave through the rubble and over to their weapon. Agate's hand swiped for it, but only her fingertips were able to graze it. Just as they started to descend Sunstone's hand went, wincing slightly as the only thing in her reach was the curved blade of the sickle.
They would have, for once, landed on their feet. But the spiked ball attached to their weapon jerked them forward and forced them to the ground. As they pulled themselves from the dirt their eyes went wide as a giant explosion sounded off behind them. Turning their body, they were just in time to see the ginormous cloud of multicolored smoke that rocks of different sizes rained from. They watched with a stunned expression as the smoke cleared and the rocks settled. When all was still a smile came upon their face.
"We did it!"
"Impressive." Agate commented.
Jade and Sunstone's eyes widened and looked to Agate's. When Agate noticed the two staring her eye quickly darted off in a different direction. Their cheeks slightly warming up from Agate's embarrassment.
"For-For traitorous clods that is!"
Jade and Sunstone looked to each other before a sly smile came to their face.
"Right...Anyway let's get these gems bubbled before they reform."
Getting up and walking back to the settled avalanche they spotted the first of many gems glimmering from in between the rocks. Picking it up and examining it, they found the shards closely resembling a Topaz and a Moonstone forced into the side of half a Jasper.
"Poor gems." Jade whispered as Sunstone closed her hand around the gem before opening it and encasing the gem in a bubble.
But right away they noticed how different the bubble was. The bubble had the colors of light green, tan, and pale yellow. It had captivating effect as each color pushed and split another in an endless cycle of swirls.
"Is there anything about us that's normal?" Agate muttered.
Sighing Jade replied. "I highly doubt it."
She shook their head to escape the unwanted thoughts before continuing. "But for now we need to send them some place safe."
"I know!" Sunstone exclaimed.
Before they could object Sunstone had already placed her hand on top of the bubble. Leaving Jade and Agate to be forced to watch it leave into the unknown.
"Where did you send it?" Jade asked.
"The Sky Arena." Sunstone replied proudly.
"Why there?"
"Because it's in the air and can't be reached without a warp pad. So no potential threat should be able to reach it."
"Good thinking Sunny!" Jade praised.
Agate placed her hand on their hip.
"And what if, by chance, the Sky Arena isn't there anymore?"
A moment of silence passed between them before they shrugged.
"Well the bubble can float so I guess that I'll just sit in the air until we find a way to get it down. Either way it's safe."
"Let's do this!" Connie yelled enthusiastically as she hopped off the warp pad and ran over to the arena.
Steven ran along side her, laughing while also letting out his own cheers of excitement.
Pearl smiled as she watched the two being so eager to train in the ways of sword fighting. Failing to notice that, when she caught up to them in her walking speed, their mouths were agape as they stared at the arena.
"Well, since you two are so excited, I think that today we should..."
Pearl trailed off and her expression matched Steven and Connie's. What floated before them was several dozen bubbled gems littered about the arena. Some floated high above while others were barely an inch away from the ground. All sporting the same amalgamation of green, tan, and yellow.
"Bubbled gems?" Pearl said aloud.
When the initial shock subsided the three broke off into different directions. Steven went toward the middle, Connie explored the edges, while Pearl didn't move far as she grabbed the closest bubble to her. Steven held up the bubbled gem and looked it over. It was a clustered gem, that was easy to tell by the small shards lodged into the crack of another gem. But what he couldn't tell was who had actually bubbled said gems. As far as he knew, bubbles only had one color instead of three.
"Who sent them?" Steven asked, looking over to Pearl who was still examining the bubble she had.
"I don't know. The color is all over the place." Pearl replied, turning the bubble to view every angle.
"There's more over here!" Connie called as she leaned over to look under the arena.
Frowning at her lack of answers Pearl placed her hand on top of the bubble before lifting it up to send it away.
"Well whoever did, we still need to get all these bubbles back to the temple. We can discuss this with Garnet and Amethyst later."
Steven nodded and quickly began running around, sending each bubble off to the temple along with Pearl.