It was late at night, and Homeworld was mostly silent. Ever since the first battle the Crystal Gems Homeworld Division and the Militia of Flames had, the streets have been empty at night, only a few Gems lurking in the shadows and hiding. Despite the Diamonds' orders to keep working, the citizens felt much safer working on their own devices in the safety of their homes. It was common for soldiers on both sides to be restless, and tonight seemed to be Moonstone's night. Rhodonite told her once that her fear of sneak attacks reminded her of Howlite, and those words often lingered in her mind during nights like these. What was Moonstone doing, exactly? At around 11:00, Moonstone left for a run. She sprinted through the streets despite the looming threat of attack. All there was in the silent town where her echoing footsteps and her heavy breathing until...
Moonstone slid to a stop at the sound of heavy breathing and shaky sobs. She looked around the street and squinted at the shadowy areas...No one there.
A loud wail echoed through the empty streets again. Moonstone jumped at the startling sound and kept scanning the area. It sounded close by. She finally received some interesting information through the many sounds the other person was making. Grunting noises, as though struggling. Moonstone looked over and up to an elevated train track, which acted as a bridge for the trains to go over the streets where Gems would walk or drive speeders. She looked up at one of the pillars erecting the bridge and saw a burly shadow climbing it.
A Quartz? That's odd...
Moonstone ran towards the pillar opposite the one the Quartz-like figure was climbing. She had always been agile and strong, even as Blue Diamond, so she was able to climb quickly. After finishing the short climb, Moonstone ended up next to a train track, just as she expected. Bridges such as these always had small standing areas on the sides, just in case the train had to be stopped. The figure reached the top as well and stared at Moonstone from across the tracks.
It was definitely a Quartz.
The funny thing about the empty streets, since the Diamonds expected all of the Gems to still be working, everything was still kept on by the technicians that handled the entire's planet's electricity. The street lights were still on, the trains still ran, which made it look like the city was still up and running from afar. The Quartz looked typical, broad-shouldered, tall, muscular, with long, bushy hair that was like white chocolate. Her skin was a powder blue light in hue with a slight iridescence, but not much. Much like a Jasper, her skin was two toned, most of it blue with markings which were a whitish-gray-silver color. The glittering blue Gem of hers was placed just below the side of her shoulder. Even from far away, Moonstone could see the fear and anticipation in her silverish- blue eyes. Her face, covered in tears, seemed to glisten in the street lights, but she quickly turned it away as she peered down the track, as though waiting for something. As she turned, Moonstone could see a White Diamond emblem on her sleeve, even though most Gems like the one standing before her would've belonged to Blue Diamond.
Moonstone followed the Quartz's gaze down the track. Suddenly, bright yellow lights seemed to be coming around the corner. Just like she expected, a train was coming their way at incredibly fast speeds, the purple paint on the thing almost blending in with the dark night.
The Quartz seemed to flinch, more tears coming out of her eyes almost uncontrollably. She took a few steps closer to the track so that she was right next to it. The train's horn blared in both of their ears, and it was then that Moonstone knew exactly what the Quartz was doing.
It was a suicide.
During her days as Blue Diamond, or as Moonstone for that matter, she never knew how to handle suicides, and yes, she had seen lots of them. She had lost Pearls and slaves that way, and she cried almost every time, but of course, her sisters shrugged it off like they had it coming. Not this time, no, Moonstone wasn't going to sit and watch it happen. She approached the train tracks as well. The Quartz looked at her with surprise, assuming it had become a double suicide.
At least I have somebody with me. She thought as a smile came across her face. We can be saved from this awful world together.
The train honked its horn once more, almost as a way to say, "Move over!". It inched closer, no, sped closer. The Quartz nodded at Moonstone, like some sort of cue, before stepping onto the train tracks. She stood proudly, her arms out. The speed at which the train was approaching blew the flowing tears and her bushy hair out of her face. She then turned so that her Gem faced the pointed front of the train. Moonstone's eyes widened at the sight of the Quartz, and after another horn blare, almost like a last warning, Moonstone made up her mind on whether or not to save the stranger or leave her be. Moonstone leaped onto the Quartz, clobbering her off the train tracks.
The train whizzed by and soon disappeared down the tracks. Moonstone was still holding on to the Quartz, who came to a few seconds later.
"Huh? What?" The Quartz asked, looking at Moonstone. She pushed her away. "You! Look what you did! I missed my chance, now I'm gonna have to-" She paused. "Wait for the next train! All because of you!" The Quartz stood up and was getting ready to stomp away, but Moonstone grabbed her muscular arm.
"Please don't," Moonstone said.
"And why should I not? You don't know me, you don't care about me, you don't understand! You probably just came to save me to look good, just because White Diamond didn't want me to get away that easily! Go home, just forget it." The Quartz shouted, she tried to struggle out of Moonstone's grip, but it just tightened. "JUST LET ME GO, PLEASE!" She pleaded.
"No! That's not why, you know that's not why. Just, please don't do this." Moonstone said quietly, pulling the Quartz down to her level.
The Quartz scoffed and looked away.
Moonstone wrapped her arm around the Quartz. "What's your name? I'm Moonstone, in case you wanted to know."
"Aura Quartz. Aura, for short." The Quartz mumbled under her breath, still avoiding Moonstone's gaze.
"That's a pretty name. So, what are you doing out here, Aura?" Moonstone tried to take a simple approach instead of instantly picking her apart.
"What's it look like I'm doing?" Aura continued to mumble sullenly.
"It looks like you don't know how to board a train." Moonstone wasn't sure if jokes helped in this sort of situation, but it was worth a shot. Besides, different people react in different ways, it was a shot in the dark.
Aura Quartz smiled and let out a chuckle. "Hmph. I wasn't boarding just any train. I was boarding a train out of here."
"You need a spaceship for that," Moonstone said quietly.
"Don't play dumb!" Aura suddenly shouted. "I was taking a train to the land of Gods if such a thing exists. You wouldn't understand, you haven't had your world rip apart at the seams like mine!"
"Try me." Moonstone nudged Aura and lightly smiled, although she hated talking about her past.
Aura Quartz perked up and finally looked at Moonstone. "If you're so experienced, then what is your advice?" She looked down again. "It's okay if you don't have any, I know how complicated this stuff is. Sorry." Her voice quieted.
"Well first, I need to know why you want to board this train in the first place," Moonstone said.
"Do I have to?" Aura whined.
"No, whatever's comfortable." Moonstone gave a patient smile.
Aura Quartz couldn't turn down help, as much as she wanted to run from everything. She wanted to board the train so that she could run, so that she could go the farthest away from all of her problems. Just thoughts about why she wanted to shatter made her cry. "Okay, here goes...After the death of my Diamond, I was transferred to White Diamond's faction. During my time in Blue faction, I heard rumors of a subculture of Gems...runaways, if you will. There was a small guild of runaway or cast out Gems on Naboo, near Gungan City. I did some research on my free time and their guild...I can't describe it...I had the same beliefs as them. I even talked to some through my screen, and I befriended a young member."
"Wait, there is a guild of Gems on Naboo?"
"Supposedly, I knew I couldn't be sure, but they seemed to know what they were talking about, and their stories felt valid, like I was talking to other Gems. Besides, who else would think to wire their devices to hack into Homeworld screens? Anyway, I knew I couldn't join the runaways since I had my identity as a Quartz to look forward to. Well, that's not entirely true, as much as I wanted to fulfill my purpose, I couldn't. I was too squeamish, too nice to be a real Quartz. I told a few of my closest friends about my feelings, and the runaways, and I trusted them too...they told me it was wrong, so I decided to try to suppress it. I felt like they would never mention it to my superiors...and I disconnected with the runaway member almost suddenly."
Moonstone tilted her head. "They betrayed you, didn't they?"
"A few weeks later, things felt different. I know I don't have future vision, but I had a feeling in my gut that I had to be on guard. Maybe it was the stress of my first real job, working with Citrine in the corruption lab. After I screwed that job up, my manager saw it as one screw-up, but after that corrupted Gem ended up helping in the murder of Blue Diamond, White Diamond saw it as my fault."
"And it wasn't," Moonstone added.
"Could you quit interrupting me? Of course, it wasn't my fault! I mean, at least I think so...Then she searched through my screen, my friends ratted me out, I was yelled at and tortured...then I was thrown out. I would have tried to get to Naboo, but I lost interest. I didn't want to be wrong, but being right didn't feel like me. It just came so suddenly, and now I don't see the point in doing anything. I can't be right, I can't be wrong, I can't be anyone. If I can't be anyone, then I can't exist."
"All I'm hearing is 'I can't', even though the Diamonds nor the other Gems have no say in who you are or who you're supposed to be," Moonstone said.
"I knew of the hardships of being defective, but I thought it would be worth it. After talking to others, I had hope...I was going to be happy," More tears flowed from Aura's eyes. "I was going to meet a pretty Gem...and we were going to fuse for love. I've always wanted to do that. Back before White Diamond hurt me, I knew it would all be worth it. I lived knowing there was light at the end of the tunnel...but now, I'm not so sure. I'm afraid to be wrong...I'm trapped in a corner, and the only way to escape is to die."
The more Aura Quartz talked, the more she felt empowered to go at it again. Moonstone was taking a while to process...maybe she would let her go now that she knows the story. At least, that's what Aura hoped.
"Those hopes are still there, you know. They never disappeared, they just went out of view for a little while, like, a boulder covered the exit to the tunnel for a bit. What hope really is is braving the darkness in order to get to the end of the tunnel and move the boulder out of the way." Moonstone grinned.
Aura was instantly stunned by her response.
"If you need some time to think about who you are, if you think you need a change, go right ahead. What I've learned, is that you don't necessarily have to die in order to be happy. Sometimes you just need to change it up, you know? Shed your skin, like a snake. Maybe what you need isn't death, but maybe you need those traumatic thoughts to die, so then you can go back to being hopeful again. The transition is scary, yeah, like heck it is, but it's worth it, even if the recovery is slow." Moonstone explained. I hope I'm doing this right. She thought.
Moonstone suddenly felt a weight on her shoulder, a wet, exhausted weight.
"You really must be experienced." Aura Quartz said quietly.
"I'm going to take you home with me, okay?" Moonstone said, her voice quiet as well. Aura Quartz was way heavier than Moonstone, but Aura wrapped her arms around Moonstone tightly as she gave her a piggyback ride off the bridge and back to base.
"Heh...I don't want to let go..." Aura Quartz whispered breathlessly before falling into a deep sleep on Moonstone's shoulders. It was the first time Aura had ever hugged someone in a very long time.
Aura Quartz blinked her eyes open, only to realize she was in a strange room made of stone, like a prison cell. She sat up in panic.
"You imprisoned me?" She asked loudly.
"Non, non, non. Calm down, this is where ol' Moonie lives...well, I guess we live here too..." Black Pearl was leaned against the doorway in grey harem pants and a sleeveless navy blue top. She pulled a black flask with a rat skull imprinted on it and pressed it against her lips.
"Who're you? Where's Moonstone?" Aura Quartz asked.
"I'm Jet, pleasure to meet ya. I'm one of Moonstone's friends. I'm supposed to keep watch and stop you in case you get up and try to go at the train track again." Black Pearl was still rather uncomfortable using her real name around new people, she was surprised she had given it away to Moonstone and her outfit so easily.
"Oh. Is she going to be back anytime soon?" Aura asked.
"Yeah, she's at the market with Fire Opal." Black Pearl looked away from Aura and down the hallway. "Hmph, everyone wants to see Moonstone...I guess I've fallen into her trap too. She even gave you your own room, isn't that sweet? Oh, and look at that, I get to hear your hysterical sobs right across from my room."
"What? I don't hysterically sob! Quartzes don't cry, you should know that...whatever the heck you are!" Aura Quartz shouted defensively.
"Right...Moonstone told me you cried your eyes out last night, Aura Quartz." Black Pearl chuckled.
Aura crossed her arms in an upset huff. "What exactly are you guys, anyway?"
"I'm not sure what Rho calls us, I guess we're just...us? The Just Us League? I'm sure Rho'll give us a swanky name eventually." Black Pearl said.
Aura Quartz's eyes widened as she remembered the name Rho...she remembered it like it was yesterday. "Enough with this beast business, just call me Rho,"
"Rho..." Aura said breathlessly. "Where is she?" Aura Quartz jumped out of bed.
"Whoa, she's in the main room playing Tic Tac Toe with Gaspeite. Moonstone said that fighting wasn't allowed, so they're having a Tic Tac Toe to the death...It sounds hilarious, too bad I'm missing it." Black Pearl explained before chuckling.
"Out of my way!" Aura Quartz shoved Black Pearl against the wall as she ran down the hallway to the main room.
Black Pearl hated her small, easily pushed around form, but knew it was part of being a Pearl. She ran after Aura Quartz. "Hey, wait up! I'm supposed to watch you!"
Rhodonite and Gaspeite were in the middle of an intense game of Tic Tac Toe, as Blackie explained. Both Gems' faces had weird expression mixes of concentration and a glare since they were too busy trying to do both looks to their opponents at once.
"I summon... an X!" Gaspeite shouted as though her move were a magical attack. She drew an X in the sand.
"I'm pretty sure that's not how it works, Gaspeite," Rhodonite said.
"What do you know, Cluster?" Gaspeite growled.
"Many things, especially since this is an Earth game." Rhodonite crossed her arms smugly.
"Why you little-"
"Rho!" Aura Quartz called as she sprinted towards Rhodonite.
Rhodonite perked up but was tackled to the ground by Aura Quartz before she could say anything.
Gaspeite cackled. "Looks like someone likes you! Either that or you have a bone to pick with this one too!"
"Aura Quartz?" Rhodonite asked as Aura stared into her eyes, heavily breathing on top of her.
Aura Quartz forced her eyes closed and shook her head. "I'm not sure whether I should kill you or thank you!" She shouted.
"How about...thank me? I don't know, this is all very confusing." Rhodonite said.
"Fight! Fight! Fight!" Gaspeite chanted. "Fight her for me so we don't have to play this infernal Earth game!"
Black Pearl ran into the room a few seconds later. "Ting!" She shouted sternly. Rhodonite didn't understand what it meant and assumed it was ancient Gem language.
Aura Quartz looked back at Black Pearl, then got off of Rhodonite, who sighed in relief.
"If we're not allowed to fight, neither are you, Aura Quartz." Black Pearl said, approaching the three Gems calmly, her voice still stern.
"You're so pretty when you enforce the rules, Blackie!" Gaspeite shouted, instantly lovesick.
"Wait, does that mean you'd fight me if the rule wasn't there?" Rhodonite asked. Black Pearl flashed a devilish smile at her. "Great..." Rhodonite muttered.
Aura calmed down and turned to Rhodonite. "Sorry about that...Look at me, resorting to scapegoats just like White Diamond..."
Rhodonite was confused by it all, but then remembered her meeting with her in the corruption lab.
"I didn't expect to see you here." Aura Quartz said.
"I didn't expect to see you here either...I didn't expect you to attempt suicide, too." Rhodonite replied.
"Mind if I ask? What exactly are you guys?" Aura Quartz asked, trying to change the subject.
"We're Diamond Stamp of Disapproval Defects! Heh, wanna join us?" Gaspeite shouted before Rhodonite could speak.
Black Pearl nudged Gaspeite, almost knocking her over.
"Oh come on! I even fall to the touch of a-" Black Pearl covered Gaspeite's mouth before she could finish.
"We're..." Rhodonite took a minute to think of Rose Quartz, the Gem she idolized for two lives...she thought of her movement for Earth, to protect every living creature and to stop ruthless Diamond colonization. She decided to adopt her name, the name she had given for those who served in the last Gem War. "We are the Crystal Gems!" Rhodonite shouted, pumping her fist triumphantly into the air.
"Crystal Gems? Great...those guys. Sure, whatever you say." Black Pearl said.
"C-Crystal Gems? Meaning, you aren't of the Diamonds?" Aura Quartz asked.
"Does it look like we're of the Diamonds?" Gaspeite said before getting nudged again by Black Pearl.
"No, does that mean, you guys are like...runaways?" Aura asked, looking at the three Gems with starry eyes.
"Yeah, I guess!" Rhodonite gave Aura a patient smile.
"Ah! I have so many questions!" Aura Quartz shouted excitedly.
"Great, we don't have a lot of answers," Gaspeite said. Before Black Pearl could elbow the little green Gem, the whirring of a speeder slowing to a stop outside. Fire Opal and Moonstone entered the temple carrying paper bags while both wearing long, black, hooded cloaks to hide.
"We're back!" Moonstone sang, holding up the bag she was carrying in her right hand.
"And we're ready to train." Fire Opal set down her bags just to slam her fist into her palm. Gaspeite swallowed her own saliva nervously. Fire Opal noticed this and reached into one of the bags. "Ah, Gaspeite. Don't think we forgot you." She tossed a glass bottle of dark green liquid to her, and she fumbled with it for a few seconds before getting a good grip on it.
"Liquor? Thanks!" Gaspeite smiled.
"No, not that. Healing tonic, so then you and I can have a real fight." Fire Opal said.
"Oh."
"I see Aura is up. How are you feeling?" Moonstone asked.
"Better." Aura Quartz replied. "But I know it'll take a while to truly be...better. You know?"
Moonstone smiled and nodded. "Yes, but we'll help you every step of the way."
"And maybe you'll prove useful to us as well." Black Pearl muttered to herself.
Not all Pearls are weak and not all Quartzes are strong.
Two new characters to explore at once, whoopee. Also, this is about as large as their army is gonna get, so thank goodness. I always wanted to have Aura Quartz be a part of this army, and I always wanted her to be saved by Moonstone. Not only does this story explore Rhodonite and everyone else, but I also feel like it highlights how Moonstone goes from a villain to a maternal figure who saves everyone.
This seems like the perfect timing to post this as well, especially because of my last update. I got the nicest review from someone today regarding that update...but it was anonymous. Apparently you are an avid reader of this story, so I'm going to ask personally...Who are you? Because that was one of the best if not the best review I have received so far. I never thought people saw my work that way...I really don't know what to say but...Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
I guess you could also say this is my way of announcing...I'M NOT GIVING UP! I'm going to write to the end like I'm supposed to. If it sucks, well, there's always next time. I'm going to confront my angst through this, and hopefully, I'll come out stronger...as a person and as a writer. Thank you all for your patience.
This story is made of more than just love.
REVIEWS ARE ENCOURAGED AS ALWAYS!