Well, here we are. The penultimate chapter to Act II of "Power". When I was coming up with the idea for this story, I had a bit of trouble trying to piece everything together all at once. It was difficult to think about which characters meshed well enough with the story as a whole.

Unlike other stories where I've put a lot of characters from different series together, I wanted to tone it down for this one. Not just to make it simple, but to give more development to characters who really need it. Atsuko Kagari is one of those characters.

She's probably one of my favorite anime girls, aside from my obvious, all-time favorite. Aside from her personality meshing well with everyone around her, she just seems like the kind of person who would reach out to anyone who needs help.

And that includes Spinel. So without further delay, here's the latest chapter of "Power". Enjoy.

POWER

Change is difficult for many people. Sometimes, it's hard to accept. Gems change after their experiences, taking on new forms and becoming better versions of themselves. But it's not always for the best…

When we last left our heroes, we discovered why Spinel had become the way she was. Pink Diamond, in the distant past, had abandoned her. And for millennia, she was forgotten. The only thing that saved her… was Steven's declaration of peace to the entire universe.

With those issues, it's difficult for her to be left alone. Even as Steven and Atsuko promised her a chance to start again, she couldn't help but think she would end up abandoned once more. And so, she's decided to use her ultimatum.

Our heroes are stranded in Universe-673 for the time being. So what is the rest of the Omni Force up to at the moment?

UNIVERSE-57

OMNI FORCE TOWER

"We have confirmation of five MPGs considered offline as of the Reality Break in Six-Seven-Three!" one operator yelled from the command center.

"Still unable to reach Professor Paradox!" another confirmed loudly. Watching the chaos unfold from afar were Sunset and Ben Tennyson, who both grimaced.

"It's bad enough that Izuku and the others are trapped in that universe for now…" the former noted, "but so is the Power Stone…" she mentioned, "With Kronos being behind this…" she continued.

"Yeah, there's no telling what's happening over there…" her best friend finished for her, clenching his fists tightly.

"Hey!" a familiar voice shouted, getting their attentions as they saw Katsuki running over alongside Diana, "Is Deku still trapped in there?!" he immediately questioned.

"So are Akko, Pearl, Amethyst, and Garnet," Ben listed off as confirmation as the two came to a stop in front of him, "And in all likelihood, so is Steven and the Power Stone…" he mentioned grimly.

"Is there anything we can do?" the witch of the group asked.

"We can't break in or out of a universe that's under a Reality Break," Sunset told her as an answer, "That is, not without a little help and some specifics…" she added.

"Well, get the damn help already!" Katsuki insisted, "What, is there something wrong?!" he inquired of the pair before him.

"Sunset, even if it's to help save the Power Stone, I don't think it's a good idea to bring that into play," Ben advised of his best friend, "It could be exactly what Kronos wants us to do…" he pointed out, much to her frustration.

"So we just wait…?" she assumed, turning away and lowering her head, "Who knows what's going on in that universe right now…" she mentioned, trembling in frustration, "If something happens to those guys or the Power Stone and we can't stop it…" she kept going, gritting her teeth.

"…We'll just have to hold onto hope for now…" Ben concluded, taking a deep breath, "That's all anyone can do," he stated. Katsuki and Diana turned to the command center as their expressions grew grim.

"Deku…" the former uttered.

"Akko…" the latter said.

UNIVERSE-673

BEACH CITY

Looking up at the emptied Injector, Atsuko let the wind breeze by her hair as she clutched her wand tightly. Steven had made it to the top. But that was the easy part. What he would have to do now would be next to impossible, especially without powers.

"Steven…" she uttered worriedly, "Spinel…" she said, trembling a little. She knew that she could help. Yet something was telling her that the human/Gem hybrid needed to try and talk her down first.

Up atop the machine, Steven was exhausted. He looked ahead to see the rubbery Gem standing not too far from him, facing away. Picking himself up in a grunt, the human/Gem hybrid weakly approached her.

"Huh…" he exhaled, putting his hands onto his knees, "Spinel… come on…" he pleaded to her, "We can talk this out…" he promised.

"I don't wanna play anymore…" the rubbery Gem muttered out under her breath.

"Huh… Spinel…" Steven sighed out, putting his hands upon his face in exasperation, "this… ISN'T A GAME!" he shouted angrily. And without warning, he took a strong right hook to his face from Spinel. "Huh?!" he yelped in surprise as he held his hurting cheek, looking over to see the rage building upon his foe's face.

She gritted her teeth as she wound up with her right arm like a windmill, shooting her fist out to strike the human/Gem hybrid squarely in the face. The attack sent him flying as he bounced along the surface of the Injector, sliding towards the edge. He grimaced as he realized he was close to falling, managing to bring himself to a stop as he teetered at the edge of the machine.

"Steven!" Atsuko screamed upon noticing. The human/Gem hybrid yelped as he fell onto his read end, managing to save himself from falling. However, blood was dripping out from his nose. He wiped it with his thumb, only for more to trickle out. At this point, he had become severely weakened at the worst time possible. Just then, Spinel stretched her right arm over, grabbing him by his left and hoisting him up, letting him dangle over the edge. Below, the student witch gasped.

"Ah!" Steven yelled, looking down to see just how high up he was.

"Spinel, stop it!" Atsuko shouted from below. Unfortunately, the rubbery Gem wasn't willing to listen to her. She had an expression of pure hatred upon her face.

"You know, I came here to take my anger out on a bunch of strangers…" she pointed out to Steven, "but now that I know you…" she continued bitterly, "I wanna kill you even MORE…" she growled out, starting to let go of the human/Gem hybrid one finger at a time. He panicked, looking down towards the ruined city below and his friends trying to save those in it.

"SPINEL!" the student witch yelled loudly from below, causing her to blink in surprise, "Is this really what you want?!" she questioned of her, "What about wanting to make people happy?!" she inquired on, "Do you really think killing Steven's gonna make you feel any better?!" she asked emphatically. The rubbery Gem appeared to hesitate for a moment. But then…

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAAHA!" she cackled out to the shock of both Steven and Atsuko, "And so what if it does?!" she questioned of the student witch below, "Maybe that's what I need!" she inferred, "Some closure after everything I've suffered for SIX THOUSAND YEARS!" she bellowed out.

"Spinel…" Steven whimpered with tears pricking his eyes. His gemstone flickered as he tried to bring forth any semblance of his power. He gritted his teeth. And at that moment, the rubbery Gem dropped him.

"STEVEN!" Atsuko screamed, seeing him plummet. He was so confused. Why weren't his powers coming back?

He was reliving every horrible thing that had ever happened to him. A Gem he barely knew was trying to kill him, he was paying for stuff that his Mom did, which had nothing to do with him, he was struggling with his powers, and the world was about to end. What was he missing? What was that elusive final piece?

It seemed like he would never get to know, because he was about to die. Below, Atsuko was desperately trying to think of a way to save him. She wouldn't have time to get close enough to catch him with a levitation spell. Even if she did, there was no guarantee that it would work. She had to do something.

And then she remembered her talk with Spinel about how she wanted to fly as good as the other witches she had seen. That feeling of when she was in the air during the concert, free from the Earth's gravity as she got closer to the stars had been ingrained in her mind. She looked at her wand. Could she fly? Even without a broom?

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Steven's scream echoed out, causing her to snap away from her thoughts. There was no time to hesitate. She gripped her wand with both hands as a green light emitted from its tip.

"TIA FREYRE!" she loudly chanted, enveloping herself in a burst of green, magical light. Atop the Injector, Spinel walked back to the center, letting out a shaky breath. The feelings of her foes had gotten to her somewhat, enough to almost make her abandon her goals. She wiped the tears from her eyes with her left arm, taking a deep breath to recompose herself. This was what she wanted. And she finally got it. So why did it feel so wrong?

All of a sudden, a shadow was cast over her. She blinked in surprise, looking up. Her eyes widened as she saw Atsuko floating down with Steven holding onto her right arm. She set him onto the machine gently before landing herself, opening her eyes as she looked out at the rubbery Gem.

"I… thought you said you couldn't fly…" she noted in disbelief.

"I said I couldn't fly without a broom," the student witch corrected, gripping her wand in her left hand, "Even with it, I'm not very good," she admitted, "But that's the thing," she added, "I'm always trying to improve, to change and be better," she told Spinel, "So is Steven, and so is everyone else…" she mentioned, gesturing toward the human/Gem hybrid widened his eyes with realization, "Even you can change, Spinel," she affirmed, "You just have to see that…" she insisted.

"Oh-ho…" the rubbery Gem chuckled, "Don't think you're gonna get in my head…" she proclaimed, "I'm not that sniveling, stupid wimp you all fell in love with back there…" she pointed out as she fluttered her eyes, "You think you can stop me?" she inquired of her foes, "You, and the legend, Steven Universe?" she wondered on, laughing all the while, "You gotta be kidding me…" she chuckled out.

"No… she's not…" the human/Gem hybrid retorted, standing up and taking on a determined expression.

"Steven…" Atsuko uttered out.

"Oh please…" Spinel grumbled, dismissively waving her right hand, "You probably don't even have a shred of power left," she noted aloud.

"You're right…" Steven replied with a heavy breath, causing her to blink in surprise, "I always struggled with my powers as a kid…" he pointed out, looking at his hands, "This… was the story of my life…" he added. In reaction, the rubbery Gem let out an almost mocking cackle.

"Wow!" she exclaimed, "I know that I was gonna set you back but… that's how you started?" she inquired of her foe, "How did a powerless loser like you become savior of the GALAXY?!" she questioned on mockingly. At that moment, the human/Gem hybrid clenched his fists determinedly.

"I changed," he answered to her confusion, "That was the final piece," he pointed out, "All those struggles, I learned from them, and I grew," he remembered, "It wasn't just my Gem powers I forgot…" he mentioned, "All of this 'happily ever after' stuff made me forget the first power I ever had," he affirmed, "the power to CHANGE!" he finished, letting off a smile. At that moment, his gemstone started glowing under his shirt, having a magenta light emitting from it. Gritting her teeth, Spinel shot her right fist out at him. However, he reflexively threw his left arm out, summoning forth an energy shield that blocked her extremity as it careened back.

He widened his eyes, looking down at his glowing gemstone. Smiling with realization, he started cycling through the various forms of shields he could create. Atsuko smiled, while the rubbery Gem grimaced. After surrounding himself in a barrier that was crystalline, the human/Gem hybrid let it burst, resulting in a shockwave that knocked his opponent down, sending her sliding back along the Injector. As she came to a stop, she looked out to see Steven step forward.

"And I'm not the only one that changed," he added, looking over to Atsuko and smiling. She grinned back. The two of them took ready stances together.

We can make a promise~…

We can make a plan~…

We can make a difference~…

We can take a stand~…

We can make an effort~…

If we only understand~…

That we~…

We can make a change~!

After wiping the blood away from his nose and kissing it to heal his injury, Steven stood before Spinel alongside Atsuko. Hesitant for a moment, the rubbery Gem then gritted her teeth and clenched her fists, ready to fight. As she attempted to punch and kick the human/Gem hybrid, he blocked her attacks with his shield.

What followed was the student leaping over him with her legs cloaked in a greenish light, kicking their foe back. She slid to a stop, growling with frustration. She then started spinning her body around rapidly, heading for Atsuko. Steven jumped out in front of her, taking the blows with ease thanks to his shield, even as sparks flew.

She tried to overwhelm him, but wound up blasted back by a fireball launched from the student witch's wand, making her tumble back. She shook her head as she brought herself to a stop. Her eyes were narrowed into a fierce glare onto her foes, who donned serious expressions.

"Listen to us, Spinel!" Steven insisted, "We understand!" he affirmed, dispelling his shield, "After everything you've been through, you must be in a lot of pain!" she pointed out.

"No…" the rubbery Gem uttered, "NO!" she bellowed, grabbing her pigtails before punching herself in the head with her left fist, trying to keep those thoughts her foes were instilling into her out, "You don't understand!" she proclaimed as she enlarged her fists, "You can't change the way I feel!" she yelled on. As she made her charge, the human/Gem hybrid materialized two miniature bubbles around his fists like boxing gloves. Using them, he managed to parry Spinel's wild blows, while also dodging her attacks as sparks flew between them. Atsuko then rushed her with a green blade of energy drawn over her wand, using it to block of her opponent's enlarged fists.

"That's right!" she exclaimed, causing the rubbery Gem to blink in surprise, "Only you can!" she affirmed, making her widen her eyes. However, she then growled with annoyance, punching the student witch as she dropped her wand, sliding to a stop with it near the edge of the Injector.

"Akko!" Steven cried out. Before he could even think to go and help her, Spinel enlarged her hands to grab him as he yelped in surprise. She then spun him rapidly and tossed him high up into the sky with a grunt, while he yelled all the while. Morphing her legs into a spring, she launched after him. Sitting up with a grimace, Atsuko quickly grabbed her wand. Up in the sky, the rubbery Gem reached the height that Steven was at. He wasn't deterred though, still willing to make things right.

You can make it different~…

You can make it right~…

You can make it better~…!

We don't have to fight~!

Singing through the clouds, the human/Gem hybrid's voice was starting to get to Spinel. All that she could think of was starting over and making new friends, while disregarding everything about Pink.

You can make an effort~…!

Starting with tonight~!

'Cuz you~…

Unfortunately, the rubbery Gem wasn't completely swayed. She gritted her teeth, enlarging her right hand up into the sky before coiling her arm around into a giant, spring-mounted fist. Steven's eyes widened.

You can make a change~…

"JUST CAN IT, WON'T YA?!" Spinel yelled, cocking her fist as it compressed, "You can't just make everything better by SINGING SOME... STUPID SONG!" she bellowed while aiming her enlarged extremity down at her foe. She launched it down at him as he gasped. But all of a sudden, a green streak of light shot up and met the fist before it could strike the human/Gem hybrid, holding it back. Steven widened his eyes to see Atsuko there, gritting her teeth as she pushed back on the rubbery Gem's fist, much to her shock.

"It's better… than doing nothing…!" she grunted out fiercely, "Pink threw you away, but we won't!" she promised, "We're your friends!" she affirmed, looking down at an airborne Steven.

"That's right!" he agreed, flying up as he summoned forth his shield to push back against Spinel alongside the student witch, "We're not just doing this to save the world!" he mentioned on, "We're doing this to save you!" he declared. The rubbery Gem widened her eyes, lightly gasping.

"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" her foes roared out, pushing back even harder against her enlarged fist. She tried to force them back, clenching her teeth tightly as she coiled her arm even more to add extra force. Steven and Atsuko grimaced, unsure if they could hold out for long.

But that was when the former realized something. He reached his right hand over to the student witch, making her blink in surprise. He gave her a determined visage as he nodded with approval. Widening her eyes slightly, she nodded back, grabbing his hand with her left. A bright magenta light engulfed the pair.

Noticing the glow below her fist, Spinel gathered all the strength she could muster to send her foes careening down onto the top of the Injector. The impact of the blow was strong enough to shake the earth and damage the machine, as its glass cracked. Noticing from afar, Izuku and the others gasped.

"Steven…" Connie uttered.

"Akko…" the One For All inheritor said. Descending from the sky, Spinel stood at the edge of a crater made from her fist's impact. She shrunk her arm as the smoke had yet to settle, breathing heavily with anger.

"All that stuff's easy for you two to say!" she snarled out, "When you change, you change for the better…" she noted in a mocking tone while narrowing her eyes, "When I change…" she continued as she lunged into the smoke, "I CHANGE FOR THE WOR—!" Her shout was interrupted as whomever lurked inside the veil grabbed her arm.

"That's enough," a voice that sounded like a mix of Steven and Atsuko's insisted, making the rubbery Gem widen her eyes. The smoke cleared, revealing a fusion of the two that consisted of the student witch's slim features and an athletic build, while also having curly brownish-black hair that reached to their back. They wore ripped jeans and sandals, with Atsuko's plaid shirt still tied around their waist. The gemstone lied at their belly button as well. Steven's shirt and Atsuko's crop top had combined into a dark blue crop top with yellow star at the center. The former's jacket was still upon them. Backing away as she retracted her fist, Spinel's eyes sparkled.

"You… fused…" she uttered out in amazement.

X

"I…I don't get it…" Spinel stuttered out, quite shocked by the sudden sight of the fusion before her, "You two…" she began, "You were arguing about all that stuff over helping me before…" she recalled, "H-How did you fuse?" she stammered in question.

"Spinel, I don't want to fight anymore," they stated firmly, "Whether it's me, Steven, or Akko," they continued, "none of us want to hurt you," they declared, "But even more than that…" they kept going, "I don't want you to hurt yourself," they said. The rubbery Gem blinked in surprise before shaking her head to regain her composure, clenching her fists.

"You don't want me to get hurt?" she inquired in a mocking voice, "Oh, that's cute…" she muttered, hopping back, "Far as I can tell, you're the only ones about to get hurt here!" she proclaimed, thrusting her fists out at her foe. However, they conjured forth a shield over their left hand in an instant, causing the extremities to deflect as Spinel gasped.

"My name… is Stakko," the fusion introduced, drawing forth for their wand as a green light emitted from its tip, "And I'm going to save you, since that's what both Steven and Akko want!" they added in declaration.

"Save me?" the rubbery Gem repeated as she trembled, enlarging her fists as she lunged out at her opponent, "How exactly?!" she shouted in question, "You gonna find a way to make me act all goody-two-shoes like before?! You gonna shatter me because I've got nothing left?!" she questioned, with her attacks being easily evaded by Stakko as they flipped back, "COME ON, TELL ME!" she screamed insistently, tearing up, "You wanna save me…" she whimpered out, "but am I really worth saving…?" she inquired through her sobs.

"Of course you are," the fusion answered, "You were just trying to be a good friend, but got selfishly left behind," they pointed out to Spinel's surprise.

"No…" she uttered, gritting her teeth, "No, I won't!" she yelled out, "I won't get fooled again!" she proclaimed, lunging out at her opponent and swinging her fists around wildly. Drawing their shield again and enlarging it, Stakko blocked off her flurry of random blows. "Pink thought I wasn't good enough, huh?" she presumed, slamming her fists ferociously against the shield, not thinking of trying anything else as tears brimmed her eyes. The fusion narrowed their eyes, readying their wand.

"Belga Vida!" they chanted, making a greenish light shroud them as Spinel struck again, only to wind up blown back as she tumbled along the Injector, coming to a stop. She pushed herself up onto her hands and knees, whimpering again. Stakko approached her.

"You two get to have your dreams come true…" she sniffled out, standing back up, "You can fly and prance around in your happily ever after…" she noted on in a mocking tone, "But me…" she continued, lunging toward her lone foe, enlarging her right fist, "I CAN'T HAVE THAT!" she bellowed. The fusion readied another shield, defending themselves from her blows as she bashed at them with her large fists without relenting. "I used to be just not good enough!" she yelled out, "Just! Not! Good enough for Pink!" she shouted on, "But now…" she kept going, enlarging her fists to a ridiculously massive size as she brought them up over her head and put them together, "NOW… I'M NOT GOOD AT ALL!" she bellowed, bringing her extremities down onto Stakko's shield fiercely. The Injector's surface cracked further from the impact.

The fusion had shut their eyes upon taking the attack, but opened them as they heard the frantic laughter coming from their foe. She brought her fists down gently onto their shield as they had shrunk, having tears pricking the corners of her eyes. She collapsed onto her knees.

"That's funny, r-right?" she stammered out through her tears, "A-At least you found me entertaining…" she pointed out, "You actually... liked me, didn't you?" she assumed as tears streaked down her cheeks, "What am I doing?" she asked of her herself, looking at her hands, "Why do I wanna hurt you so bad?" she inquired on as she whimpered into her extremities, all while Stakko looked on at her sadly, "I'm supposed to be a friend…" she sobbed out, "I just wanna be a friend…" she cried. With that, the fusion dispelled their shield slowly and withdrew their wand. Spinel blinked in surprise, wondering what they were doing. She sat down, a bit startled.

"Spinel…" Stakko started to say. All of a sudden though, a glow emitted from beneath them, getting their attentions as they saw lights shooting up from the damaged Injector. The two aboard looked to each other in realization. They then found themselves engulfed in a powerful, pink explosion, as its force made the earth shake and the ocean water wave wildly. Everyone in Little Homeworld watched on in shock and horror.

"Steven?!" Greg yelped out.

"STEVEN!" Amethyst, Pearl and Garnet screamed.

"AKKO!" Izuku yelled in panic. None of them had any idea if they were okay from such a blast. And they wouldn't know just what would come of it…

END

And so brings an end to the first short chapter of the story. This was all I really wanted to have touched upon for the moment, as the fight against Spinel deserved its own chapter. I know it might be a little jarring for some of you, but I think it's for the best.

Thanks for reading, everyone! Hope you enjoyed!