Deadly Situations

The discussion taking place in Greg's tent was loud enough to be heard across the beach. Earlier, Amethyst and Pearl had decided to hold a strategy session to decide whether or not to begin searching for the evil gem. The two gems came to a disagreement regarding how to proceed given their current situation. As a result, the meeting had quickly devolved into a shouting match between Amethyst and Pearl.

"Why can't we go fight? I can handle myself, and the gem is probably off doing who-knows-what! We need to catch it by surprise!" Amethyst shouted, her anger reaching a boiling point.

"It won't work, Amethyst," Pearl retorted sharply. "The gem is way stronger than us. Besides, we don't have Garnet, and Steven is hurt. I say we stay here and protect the humans."

"And I say we go!" Amethyst responded. Pearl let out a frustrated sigh at her comrade's obstinacy. The white gem was about to retort when Connie burst into the tent, panting, a wild look in her eyes.

"Guys," she began, "there's something wrong with Steven!" Without hesitation, the two gems jumped up and began to follow Connie back to where Steven had collapsed.

As the trio ran up the beach, Amethyst and Pearl exchanged concerned looks. They were both frightened by the sudden turn of events. Pearl hoped that the issue wasn't serious. Maybe Steven had merely overexerted himself. However, when the group reached the injured boy, any hopeful thoughts that had been running through her mind vanished. Pearl knew something was horribly wrong.

Steven was unconscious, curled up on the sand. He shifted slightly and let out a pained groan, causing his friends' worry to deepen. Connie knelt down beside him and looked him over. The boy had a pained look on his face, and was shivering and sweating. Connie looked up at the gems, who had temporarily forgotten their dispute. Pearl looked at Amethyst, and then down at Connie and Steven.

"Amethyst, get Steven back to the tent. I'm going to go see if I can find something to help him." Amethyst nodded. Though she didn't like taking orders from Pearl, Steven's safety came first. The purple gem scooped up the unconscious boy before taking off back down the beach.

"I'm going to go find Greg," Connie stated, a determined look in her eyes. She wasn't sure what was wrong with Steven, but it seemed serious. Pearl looked down at the girl and nodded in acknowledgement. The two set about completing their self-assigned objectives.

Fortunately for Connie, Greg was already on his way towards the beach. He had left an important tool in his van, and had left the car wash to go retrieve it. He was sauntering towards the waterfront, whistling a happy tune when Connie barreled into him.

"Whoa, kiddo" Greg said, helping Connie off of the ground. "Where are you off to in such a hurry?"

"I was looking for you," Connie replied. "Something happened to Steven!"

Greg felt his heart stop.

"What's wrong with him?" he queried, fear evident in his tone.

"I-I don't know!" Connie responded, looking up at Greg. "He just collapsed. Come on!"

The pair turned and began sprinting towards the tent.

Back at the tent, Amethyst had laid Steven on the mattress and covered him with the blanket. He was shifting around fitfully, almost as if he was having a nightmare. Amethyst was really worried about her young charge. The uncertainty of the situation unnerved her. Steven had been doing so well earlier; just a few hours ago, he had been walking around and acting like his usual, energetic self. Amethyst just didn't understand what could have caused the sudden degeneration of the young gem's health. What could have happened?

The purple gem's train of thought was interrupted when Connie entered the tent, followed by Greg. Greg looked down at his son and winced. He didn't understand how this could be. Greg moved over to Steven and put a hand on his forehead. Much to his dismay, Steven's fever had returned much worse than before. Greg had a feeling that his son's condition would only get worse. Greg took his hand off of Steven's forehead and turned to look at Amethyst, who was staring at Steven with a look of concern and confusion on her face. Greg guessed that she was wondering the same thing he was.

"What could be causing this?" Greg asked Amethyst, motioning to his son. "Have you ever seen this before? Is this a gem thing?"

"Nope. That's what's worrying me." Amethyst let out a heavy sigh. "If only Garnet was here. She'd know what to do."

Connie knew that they needed help. No one in the tent knew much about medicine, and Steven looked awful. She quickly pulled out her cell phone and searched for her mom's number in her contacts.

"I'm gonna go call my mom," Connie stated. "She'll know what to do.. When no one responded, she walked outside the tent to place the call.

Her phone rang for a few seconds, her mom picked up. Connie quickly explained the situation to her mom. Though she couldn't make it to Beach City, Dr. Maheswaran wanted to make sure Steven was alright. She gave Connie some advice and instructions to help his condition before she was forced to hang up due to poor reception. Connie put her phone away and went back inside the tent. Inside, she found Amethyst and Greg silently sitting beside Steven.

"My mom says we should get a cold washcloth or an ice pack for his forehead. We need to try to keep his fever down."

At that moment, Pearl entered the tent. She looked somewhat tired, as if she had been running.

"Geez, where ya been?" Amethyst asked.

Pearl looked down at the group sitting on the floor of the tent for a few moments before taking a seat beside Steven. She sighed before responding to Amethyst's question.

"I was trying to find a way inside the temple again. I thought that if I could find a way inside, we might be able to take Steven to Rose's fountain to heal him. However, I couldn't find a way in. I can't reach the warp pad through the rubble." Pearl stopped and took a shuddering breath before putting her head in her hands.

"I just…don't know what to do. I don't know anything about human medicine. We don't know what caused his condition." And it seems to be getting worse."

All eyes in the room turned to Steven. He had stopped moving around, and his sleep appeared to be somewhat peaceful. Still, Pearl didn't know how long he would remain that way. After a few moments, Greg decided to speak up.

"Does anyone know what's wrong with him?" he asked. Pearl exchanged a concerned look with Amethyst before letting out an exasperated sigh.

"Unfortunately, no. I've never seen anything like it. Maybe it's a human disease of some sort."

"My mom said that she couldn't tell what it was from what I told her," Connie added.

The group fell silent for a few minutes. Though everyone wanted to help Steven, they didn't know what to do. This time, Steven broke the silence. He let out a small groan and turned over in his sleep. Connie moved to Steven's bedside and took his hand. She sat with him for a few minutes, before turning around and looking towards the entrance of the tent. It was beginning to get dark outside, and Connie knew she needed to get home.

"I think I need to get going," Connie stated. She looked at Steven one more time before getting up and walking to the entrance of the tent. She turned around and waved at Greg and the gems.

"Bye, Connie," Pearl said, worry still in her voice. Amethyst and Greg simultaneously gave the girl a thumbs-up. Connie flashed the pair a smile before turning and exiting the tent. After she left, no one in the tent moved for a few minutes. Finally, Amethyst looked around the tent before addressing Greg.

"How'd you get such a big tent, anyway?" Amethyst asked in an attempt to lighten the mood.

Greg gave the purple gem a halfhearted smile. "The others built it for me. I guess they were trying to be nice because they thought I had just lost my son. I thought I did, too." Greg looked down at Steven, who shifted in his sleep.

"Well," Amethyst began, "it's getting late. If you want, I can stay and keep an eye on Steven tonight."

"Nah," Greg replied, "I think I'd rather stay here tonight. He's my son, and I'm responsible for his safety."

As she watched this exchange, Pearl couldn't help but admire Greg's determination. The white gem cleared her throat.

"Still, I think it would be best if Amethyst and I stayed nearby. If the Homeworld gem comes back, or if Steven's condition worsens, it would be better to have us nearby. Greg looked at the purple gem before nodding in agreement. After taking a minute to make sure Steven was stable, the trio got up and left the tent.

Due to her concern over the sudden degeneration of Steven's health, Connie didn't sleep well that night. She decided to return to Beach City early the following morning. As she walked along the road towards the beach, Connie stared at the bag of medical supplies in her hand. Though her mom wasn't able to go to Beach City with her, she had given Connie some supplies to help care for Steven, and had taken the time to explain some basic medical techniques to Connie, such as how to create a splint.

As Connie walked through the city, she noticed that several stores had been restored to their former glory. The roads had been entirely cleared, and the residents were walking about and working on restorations. However, they all seemed unnaturally quiet, just as they had been when they first discovered Steven on the beach. Connie guessed that news of his condition had reached the other residents.

"Hey!"

Connie turned to see a blonde-haired woman walk up to her.

"Um, hello. You're…"

"Call me Sadie. You're Steven's friend, right? I worked at the donut shop. We met when you and he were trapped in some magic bubble."

Connie suddenly recognized the young woman in front of her, and blushed as memories of her first encounter with Steven surfaced. "Yeah, that was…interesting."

Sadie smiled at Connie's reaction.

"So, I just wanted to say thanks for all your help. You've been bringing us food and making sure that Steven gets better. I know this must be rough, and just wanted to let you know that everyone in town really appreciates what you've done."

Connie smiled and replied with a small "thanks."

"Also, I heard that something happened to Steven. When he wakes up, tell him I hope he feels better."

"I will," Connie replied, giving Sadie a nod. The two parted ways, and Connie quickened her pace, wanting to reach Steven as soon as possible. After a few more minutes of walking, she finally reached her destination. Connie took a deep breathe before entering the jury-rigged dwelling.

Inside the tent Greg, Amethyst, and Pearl were sitting around Steven's bedside silently. All three of them had concerned looks on their faces. They didn't even acknowledge Connie as she entered the tent. She could tell that something was really wrong. Connie looked down at Steven, and gasped.

Steven's condition had deteriorated further overnight. The color had drained from his cheeks, and he was sleeping fitfully. Even from a distance, Connie could tell that he was shivering profusely.

"What's wrong with him?" Connie asked fearfully.

"I don't know," Pearl replied, struggling to remain calm. "He just keeps getting worse. He's been sick before, but not like this! If we don't do something soon, he'll…" Pearl put her head in her hands.

Connie looked over at Greg, who was wringing his hands nervously, and then at Amethyst. The purple gem was staring at Steven, obviously lost in thought. The purple gem was just as confounded by the mysterious ailment afflicting Steven as Pearl. She hadn't been able to sleep the night before. Suddenly, a thought came to Amethyst. She looked over at Steven, and her eyes widened.

"Hey guys, what if it's his gem?"

Pearl looked over at Amethyst, and realized that she hadn't considered that his gem could have been damaged. Pearl moved over to Steven and lifted his shirt to get a better view of his gem. Her breathe hitched in her throat.