9. Thankfully Alone

As time went on, Steven became less hopeful of ever seeing his family again, but time was a difficult thing to measure anymore. He was sure he had been gone at least three days, probably longer, but his sleep was irregular and the hours stretched into eternity. He had nothing to do here but sit and stare, waiting for his next meal to be dropped through a strange tube into his cell.

Off-planet, the Homeworld Gems had little they could provide in way of food and water, but they did have some minimum rations that they must have had originally intended for Steven and his Dad before things had gotten so messed up.

The first time Steven ate was the first day he was moved to a more standard holding cell, similar to the one he had first been confined in on the Hand Ship, but this one did not have the an electric barrier. It was a bit smaller, outfitted entirely in seamless blue metal with a diamond pattern interlaced with the varying shades of blue. Thankfully, this room was well lit.

It was cold here too, but not as insufferable as the solitary confinement he had first been trapped in. When Steven had been transported here, he had been struggling to remain conscious, being dragged back and forth between collapsing from exhaustion, hunger and dehydration, only to be painfully pulled back to reality by the tenderness of his body.

Time stretched endlessly, with no visitors and no company but a lone mural on the North wall (or, what Steven had decided was North). He couldn't really tell what was going on or it might have been more interesting to him, but he was at least sure it had something to do with Blue Diamond; he recognized her geometric shaping from the mural on the moon base. It looked like she was pointing down at an envoy of triangles, but that was all Steven could make of the alien image.

On the rare occasions where the latch would appear in the ceiling, a transparent blue tube would shoot down to the ground almost instantly. Steven thought the eeriest thing about this ritual was the fact that it did not produce a single noise. No change in air pressure when the hatch opened, no clink of metal on metal as the tube hit the ground, no sound as the strange food (very similar to the symmetrical fruit he had eaten at the Zoo) and water were deposited neatly on the floor.

Most of the time, Steven would just lean against a wall and stare at the ceiling, waiting for the tube to appear. Meal time here had quickly become his favorite time, as it was the only time he had free range of his hands. About a minute after his sustenance was delivered and the tube disappeared, his futuristic handcuffs would clink and slightly loosen. They really weren't much of handcuffs in the traditional sense, but Steven really didn't know what else to call them – they kind of looked like those fuzzy poofs that women wear in the winter that cover their entire hands, like a huge Chinese finger trap.

Though the cuffs only slackened a bit, it was enough. It was exhilarating the first time he had his hands back since being moved to his holding cell, so much so that he didn't even care of the agonizing pain that flared from his wrist. That time, Steven had rushed to his food and ate and drank so quickly he nearly vomited. Smiling anyways, so relieved to finally have something in his system, he walked around the room and tried to feel for any sign of an exit, any inconsistency in the metal, the slightest nudge of a panel here or there…

But, he had learned that this was a mistake. After aimlessly running his good hand along the flawless cage for ten minutes or so, his bad wrist began to sting painfully. This pain was different than the aching and stabbing that he had been nursing since Holly Blue Agate crushed his wrist – no, this was a sting, almost like a burn, that flared up through his skin. When Steven turned his arm over to inspect the area, thinking he might have somehow broken his wrist further, he was shocked to see a diamond flaring under his skin. It was the same electric yellow of barriers from the Hand Ship, and it started to hurt unbearably as it flared brighter. Frantically, Steven yelled upwards, hoping someone would answer.

"What –stop! Stop! Please!" Steven was crying now, kneeling and clutching his wrist in agony as the mark simply continued to burn, increasing in intensity as the seconds dragged on. No one answered from beyond his prison.

This pain was simply too much, Steven realized, thinking that if he was going to be tortured every time he was teased with freedom and with the pleasure of food and drink, he would rather starve to death.

Face contorted with pain and his heart racing from the intense sensation, Steven heard a wild buzzing nearby. His discarded hand cuffs were rattling along the floor, the inside of the strange device glowing the same yellow as his arm.

Desperate, Steven flew forward and tried to put his hands back into the cuffs, hoping, praying the pain would stop… And, with a delicate click, the cuffs tightened again and the pain vanished. Steven's muscles relaxed and he staggered backwards into a wall, panting horribly, sweating and shivering violently.

Now, several days later (he was pretty sure), he had gotten used to the routine. When food would come, his cuffs would become undone, he would eat steadily and then would immediately put his cuffs back on. He hadn't experienced that pain since the first day, and he hoped he would never again.

In some ways, Steven didn't even mind the cuffs. His hands and wrist were totally immobilized within the tiny chamber, which did more good than anything – his fingers remained warm and his wrist was stable, a dull background pain as the bone slowly mended.

The only haunting thing about his meals was the insignia that was now pressed on his wrist. Studying the marking while he ate, Steven found the thing disturbing – it was just a simple outline of a diamond, with none of the points quite meeting. Steven's skin was raised in the shape but there was no color. It kind of reminded him of a faded scar, like the one Sadie had under her eye, except her mark skin that had healed flat against her cheek. He was vaguely able to recall a story Lars was telling him and Sadie about tattoos and how they were bumpy at first – was this what he meant?

Either way, when Steven studied the symmetric lines that rose beneath the surface of his swollen wrist, he felt a deep pit in his stomach; he must have been unconscious long enough at some point for them to do something to his body, whatever this was. It was unsettling. He felt like he had been branded, violated, targeted…

Just as these thoughts buzzed around his head, Steven felt tears starting to form in the corner of his eyes.

Just how long will I have to live like this? I wonder what the Gems did after they came home from their mission… Garnet must have already known I'd be gone, that must have been a tough conversation for Pearl and Amethyst. And Connie and I were supposed to train the next day, I hope she wasn't too disappointed. I'm glad I left her with Mom's sword, though, it really wouldn't be helpful sitting in Lion. Maybe the Gems will take her out on missions instead? I hope so, she's so strong and so smart… I just wish I could have said goodbye. What ever happened to Lion, anyways? He would be able to take care of himself, but I hoped he would keep the Gems and his Dad company.

He sat there, calm despite his deep sadness, thinking of the one's he left behind, happy that they were still on Earth. No matter how grim his own circumstances, at least everyone else was safe, far away from this nightmarish place.

The whole alone-and-abducted thing had become easier to deal with since he found out it was just him on the ship. Of course, Steven didn't want to be a prisoner, but it was comforting to know he was alone in his misery. In fact, the conversation in which Steven found out he was alone had been his last form of interaction with anyone, gem or human. The pinkish Gem that had interrogated Steven before he faced Holly Blue Agate had indeed turned out to be a Pearl. However, his vision had failed him with the rush of sensory information, as this Pearl was not pink. She resembled his own Pearl in so many ways – tall, graceful, and intelligent – but in so many other ways, the two were nothing alike.

First of all, this Pearl was more of a lilac color, almost like Opal, and her gem was on her palm. She had light blue hair about as long as his Pearl, but it was flat whereas his Pearl styled hers upwards. But the real differences between Homeworld Pearl and his Pearl, however, were largely in behavior. Lilac Pearl was meek, always looking frantic and fearful. Her eyes were always wide and darting in every direction, and even though both Pearl's had perfect posture, there was something special about the way his Pearl stood. His Pearl wasn't just poised, but confident. This Homeworld Pearl had none of Pearl's agency.

Still, Steven couldn't help but want to be kind to her. She was a Pearl, a gem with thoughts and feelings, and she didn't deserve to be made to feel weak. Their conversation was brief, but he remembered it clearly…

"Here will do. Secure him, Pearl, and come." It was the orange gem that had caused him all of his problems in the first place. He scowled at the sign of her voice, but didn't protest. He wasn't really in much of a position to bargain.

"Right away." Lilac Pearl replied with a delicate curtsey.

The orange gem, whose name had still somehow alluded Steven at this point, walked down the corridor, her footfalls echoing as she disappeared from view.

The Homeworld Pearl got down on one knee, so she was eye-level with Steven. She touched his upper arm gently, and then drew back her hand when he flinched.

"I must," was all she said.

"I- I know. Sorry." Steven lifted his arms carefully in front of him, gritting his teeth against the pain in his wrist. Without hesitating, the Pearl retrieved a strange set of handcuffs, white with some hi-tech patterns all around and very smoothly secured them on Steven's wrist. At first, nothing happened, but the cuffs shined to life a moment later and compressed downwards to fit his tiny human hands.

Steven was surprised that the process hurt very little, and he looked up gratefully at the Pearl. She might have been rough with him when they first met, but it did not seem like she wanted to hurt him.

"Thank you."

The Pearl just looked at him, confused. "I- I do not deserve your thanks. I am following orders."

"Well, then thank you for being a Pearl." Steven gave her a small smile.

The Pearl stood from her kneeling position and said nothing, but she had a strange expression on her face. Confusion, fear, and something else…?

"In here." She raised her hand and gestured towards an opening in the wall. Steven stepped forward to see a beautiful, small blue room. It was about the size of his bathroom at home, he'd wager.

Not sure what else to do, the Pearl just staring at him, he tried to think of something to say.

"Bye. Maybe I'll see you again?"

"That is… unlikely." And just like that, the Pearl began to walk away, only to stop again. She turned towards Steven, that same ambiguous facial expression.

"You're alone, you know. We did not recover any other beings from your planet." Steven looked at her, absolutely stunned, his mouth agape. Before he could think of something to say, Lilac Pearl turned briskly and walked away, closing the door behind her.

Day four would be coming soon and food would not be for a little while, Steven guessed. Having nothing else to do, Steven thought he might reserve his energy and try to sleep. Though the floor of his holding cell was not especially comfortable, Steven Universe had no trouble falling into a peaceful sleep, thankful to be alone.