Gem of War

by Cowboy Alchemist

For as long as he could remember, he's always wondered about his mother. The only thing he was ever told was that she gave him her gemstone. That's why he's traveled to the small beach town of Beach City: to find answers. This is no longer just Steven's story. This is the story of Isaac Infinite, son of Onyx—the Gem of War. What will change and what will stay the same? R&R PLEASE!

15. Act One: Chapter 15

AN: What do I have to do to get some Reviews, people!?

Also, this is a combination of Mirror Gem and Ocean Gem

---

Chapter 15: Ocean Gem in the Mirror

It's been a while since Isaac came to Beach City to find the Crystal Gems and it's been an interesting experience for him to say the least. He was all but excepting to just find out about his mother and then leave. However, as fate would have it, with the death of his father, and nowhere else to go he became a permanent member of the Crystal Gems and he couldn't be happier. Each day was something new and exciting, so when Isaac woke up, he was expecting another awesome experience.

Isaac woke up on his bed after sleeping in, resting on his air-mattress that was gifted to him on his birthday. He moved up to the second floor with Steven and now slept on the floor in front of the young boy's bed.

"Hey, Isaac," he heard the voice of his friend and looked down to see Steven sitting in front of the air mattress. "Are you awake?"

Isaac smirked. "No, I'm fast asleep, kid," he said, getting Steven to laugh. Isaac chuckled and sat up. "What's going on?"

"Have you ever been to something call a...school?" Steven asked.

It took a moment for Isaac to figure out whether to laugh, thinking it was a joke, or to be shocked if the boy was serious. "You've...never been to a school before," he asked.

"Well, yeah. The Gems and my dad homeschooled me. Pearl kept saying that it had something to do with her being able to provide a better learning environment than any public school can."

"Well, she's not wrong there," Isaac said. While he thought it was best for kids to learn from someone that's a professional and can teach them properly, he's not the biggest fan of the academic environment. Not to mention he didn't have the best experience growing up in public school being a half-Gem whose powers were starting to bloom. If anyone was capable of teaching the young boy, it was definitely Pearl, as she was the most intelligent member of the team. "So, what brought this on?"

"Well, Connie said that she wasn't going to be able to hang out with me because she has tennis practice, but she'll be out of school with summer vacation," Steven explained as Isaac started getting dressed for the day. "I asked her what a school was and she told me every detail about the things at a school and so I asked Pearl if she'd want to turn the home into a school for when she teaches me."

Isaac slipped on his star and crack shirt and though for a moment. Things between him and Pearl have gotten a bit awkward ever since he said she was beautiful at the fountain. The two haven't looked at the other the same since. However, he was willing to put aside his dilemma if it meant helping Steven.

"Alright, let me get cleaned up and we'll start," he told the boy, who grinned happily.

---

"Alright, let's set it right here," Isaac told Pearl, as the two moved a desk into the living room and set it in front of a blackboard that Pearl acquired from an old schoolhouse. All around the house, there were school items that the two brought out for Steven.

"So, how do we begin our 'school'," Pearl asked the young man as Steven rushed over and sat at the desk.

"Well, now the teacher of the class starts teaching," Isaac said, leaning against the counter. "But I'm not sure what you teach him."

The moment Pearl heard the word 'teach', Pearl gasped happily at the idea. "Teach him?! Steven! If only I had known that's what you really wanted!" She moved away from the blackboard and stood in an open space. Then the white Gem struck a strange pose. "Twooooh!" She then begins doing a brief dance that Isaac saw her do only once. Ending it by having her hands around her gemstone. "Haaaaaah!" Pearl's gem begins to glow, as she summoned a growling orb that floated over to the boys.

That orb took on a new form. A simple, average-sized hand mirror. It had an ornate design of silver-blue metallic material that comprised the backing and handle of the mirror. The glass was a round piece of reflective blue glass with a faint contour of an octagonal gemstone etched on its surface. However, the most interesting part about it was a strange, blue gemstone that was embedded on the back, which took the form of a water droplet, and had a rather deep crack etched into its otherwise smooth surface.

The mirror twirled in mid-air before Isaac reached out and grabbed it."We found this Gem-powered mirror at the Galaxy Warp hundreds of years ago. It can capture and display any event it's witnessed in all of Gem history," Pearl explained as Isaac held in front of his face. Steven stood up to look in the mirror while the white Gem walked around them and placed her hands on both of the boys' shoulders. "It'll offer you everything you've ever wanted to know about your fellow Gems and our culture."

Steven and Isaac looked at their reflections in the mirror as the young Gem said, "I must be incredibly important to Gem culture."

"That's just you, buddy. I'm not even sure if it's even on," Isaac said with a frown.

Well, why don't we activate it and give it a little test run," Pearl said before clearing her throat and then speaking in an authoritative tone. "Show us the Galaxy Warp." The mirror does nothing. It just remained still and silent as any normal mirror would be. "Show. Us. The Galaxy Warp." Pearl tried again, more firmly this time. But again, it does nothing, getting the Gem frustrated. "Oh, come on! I know you've seen it." She grabbed the mirror while Isaac was still holding it and tugged on it. Glaring at the device while examining it. Sighing in disappointment, she turned it over to look at the gemstone. "It is in pretty rough shape. It must finally be broken." She shook her head before letting it go for Isaac. "What a shame."

Isaac looked at the fancy mirror, looking at the scar of his mother on his face for a moment. There was something about it that gave the young man this feeling. Like it had a heartbeat. Shaking his head to clear it, he then handed it off to Steven so that he could see it.

Steven held up the mirror and admires himself in it. "Doesn't seem broken to me!"

"Other than the cracked gem, it's not in bad shape," Isaac said, tapping on the blue gemstone.

"Oh well. I guess that's the end of our school," Pearl said, walking past the boys.

This made Steven's expression change to a look of excitement as his body shook a bit. "Whoa. Wha... So you could say... School's out for summer?" he asked, with big eyes.

Not really paying attention to him, Pearl chuckled and replied, "Yes. Good, Steven. There are many ways to say the same thing."

Not wasting another moment, Steven grabbed Isaac's arm and pulled him along after him as they rushed out the door. "School's out!"

Pearl looked at the room filled with classroom items for a moment. "Hmm. This does appear to be an adequate learning environment," she said to herself.

---

Steven started running down the beach with Isaac not that far behind. The blonde sped up to catch up with his friend, and was now running alongside him. "School's out!" Steven shouted happily, turning to Isaac. "Happy summer vacation, Isaac!"

"You sure are excited for a guy that doesn't even go to school," Isaac remarked with a bemused grin.

Steven broke out into laughter as he started slowing down and walking backwards. "Oh come on, Isaac. It's the summer. Happy summer vacation, Beach City!" He yelled with his hands up.

Isaac saw the mirror in the boy's hands and raised an eyebrow. "Why do you still have that mirror? It doesn't work," he said.

"I don't know." Steven looked at himself in the mirror. "It's hard to explain, but I just..."

"Feel it," Isaac asked. Still walking backwards, Steven moved in front of his friend with wide eyes. "I felt it too. It's almost as if-" Before the blonde Gem could finish, and because he wasn't looking where he was going, Steven bumped into Lars and Sadie. The two employees were setting up tables outside the Big Donut. Causing them to knock over the table they were carrying out.

"Ugh, watch where you're going, you little f..." Lars began before harshly hiss, stopping himself when he glanced at Sadie, then saw Isaac with Steven. The young man shot the teenager a glare, daring him to finish that sentence. "Ssssteven!" he said bitterly.

"Sorry! I'm just so excited for summer. Are you excited for summer? I'm so excited for summer!" Steven exclaimed happily.

"It's not going to be any different from any other day," Isaac said.

Sadie laughed a little at the enthusiasm that the boy showed. "Uh, I think I'm as excited as I can get about setting up extra seating for the summer rush," she said with a casual grin, gesturing to the extra tables and seats placed all around the front of the store. "But Lars has big plans."

Lars was picking at his teeth before noticing that the others were looking at him. "You bet I do!" He exclaimed with a smile. "All those out-of-town summer babes traveling away from home without their boyfriends, if you know what I mean." Lars jittered his eyebrows.

Steven looked cluelessly at Lars before innocently shaking his head. "Nope."

"He's gonna be hitting on girls," Isaac explained dryly, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Oh...I still don't get it."

"I tell you about it when you're older."

"Maybe I'll get a few numbers," Lars said with a wistful sigh, getting caught up in his own fantasy. Must to Sadie's amusement. "Maybe I'll even... call one."

Not helping herself, Sadie let out a laugh before correcting herself and retorted, "Well, yeah, maybe I'll meet a new friend," she said, awkwardly.

"That's a great idea!" Steven said with a smile. "A special new friend to have fun on the beach with in the summer. Maybe if I keep using the mirror to guide me, I'll walk backwards into my own beach-summer-fun buddy!" He held the mirror out and started walking backwards. The young boy then waved at Isaac. "Come on, Isaac! Follow me!"

Isaac smiled at his actions and turned to Sadie and Lars. "Catch you two later. And good luck, Lars," he said with a teasing smirk. "You're gonna need it!" He then started walking away after his friend, who was already heading off into town.

"You'll see! Next time you see me, I'll be on the arm of a hot woman!" Lars angrily called out to Isaac.

"You can stop talking about it now," Sadie said with a frown.

---

With their newfound hunt for friends on, Isaac and Steven continued walking down the boardwalk. Steven started running backwards ahead of his blonde friend while laughing. "Come on, Isaac, you should join me!" Steven encouraged. He then began imitating Michael Jackson and moonwalking. "Wo, Wo, Wo, Wo! Wo, Wo, Wo, Wo! Wo, Wo, Hee-Hee!"

Isaac laughed at the boy as Steven continued to moonwalk into the boardwalk. There was never a day when his fun-loving teammate didn't make him smile. Isaac turned his head to admire the many sights, but then he heard the sound of Mayor Dewey's Van coming as its siren chanted "May-or Dew-ey" repeatedly. And it sounded like it was getting closer.

"Er, watch where you're going, you little!"

"Huh?" Isaac questioned, though Steven heard it quite clearly as well. They looked towards the source and saw it was the mirror that said it, showing Lars in its glass. Isaac turned around and his heart sank when he saw the van heading straight for Steven. "Nooo!" He screamed in fear and rushed over.

The child braced himself for a painful impact, before Isaac jumped in front of Steven and held out his hands. Stopping the van with his hands. He pushed against the van and his strength stopped the van immediately, coming to a screeching halt, even though the impact made him slide back a little.

Isaac panted a little when Steven rushed over to make sure he's okay. "Isaac! Are you alright!?" He quickly asked.

"I'm fine, buddy," Isaac reassured him, panting him on the head.

Mayor Dewey leaned out of the van, glaring at them with an annoyed scowl and started to scold them through a megaphone. "Car wash kid, what's your problem?!" he shouted, only to scream in fear when Isaac slammed his fists on the top of the vehicle's hood, denting it.

"I should be asking you the same thing! Are you out of your fucking mind!?" Isaac yelled back at him with a glare "You could've killed him! Why are you even driving down the boardwalk?! This isn't a road, idiot!"

"I'm the mayor!" Dewey protested sourly like it's obvious. "I'm not going to walk anywhere. Now, go get run over somewhere else. I'm late for a speech." The mayor turned his nose up at the two and maneuvered the van around them and began to drive off again. Isaac lightly growled as the politician left the two Demigems - something that he called himself and Steven as a play on the word Demigod.

"Spoken like a true politician," Isaac commented, already deciding that he didn't like him. "An egotistical, self-absorbed, and an asshole." He then heard Steven laugh, making Isaac smirk. "Thanks."

"Uh, I didn't laugh," Steven said, looking down at the mirror. At first, it was just a normal mirror, until it suddenly rippled like water and whirled into what could only be described as a recording of Steven laughing. The two hybrids stared in complete astonishment seeing this, unable to believe their eyes. It whirled again to show Isaac.

"Like a true politician," the mirror replayed, before whirling back to Steven laughing.

Steven gasped in awe. "You work! This is so cool!" He exclaimed happily.

Isaac took the mirror and looked at it. "This is incredible!" He remarked with a huge grin. "Can you say anything else?"

The mirror whirled and replayed Isaac. "Anything else?"

Steven and Isaac laughed at this. The young boy then cleared his throat, so Isaac pointed the mirror at him. "What's it like being a mirror," Steven asked.

The image in the mirror whirled to show Steven when he said, "You work!"

Isaac then kneeled down to be at Steven's heigh and they both looked at the mirror. It was kind of weird how freely the mirror was acting right now, but he just jogged it up to it still being thousands of "So you can repeat stuff," he asked the mirror itself. "Like some kind of self-conscious recorder, right?"

"Yeah!" The mirror exclaimed in Steven's voice.

"Hello, Beach City, my friends!" The two Gems shifted their attention from the mirror and glanced over to the beach to see the mayor was giving a speech on the beach. He was speaking into a microphone while standing on top of his van, which was surrounded by a crowd of the townsfolk. Isaac and Steven shared a mischievous smile and ran over to the crowd with the mirror. "It's great to be here to celebrate the coming season. A warm summer breeze wafts through the air," Dewey said with bravado.

Isaac smirked and handed Steven the mirror, having him pointed towards him. Inhaling a deep breath of air, Isaac placed his palms to his mouth and let out a very loud, fake fart noises. "PBHT!" The crowd around them snickered softly at this.

Mayor Dewey continued on with his speech, having not heard the fart noise. "We all look forward to the sounds of the summer season..."

Immediately understanding that joke the boys were going for, the mirror replayed Isaac's fart noise, "PBHT!"

"... the smells of the busy boardwalk..."

"PBHT!"

"... the hot, wet ocean wind..."

"PBHT!"

"... the time to take that pressure that's built up all year and just let it out."

"PBHT!"

After that last fake fart, the crowd and Isaac finally lost it and broke out into full-fledged laugher. Dewey finally realized that he was being mocked and ended the speech. "Ok, that's enough!" He shouted, getting down off the van and driving off.

As the crowd dispersed, Isaac and Steven high-fived, successfully gotten even with the mayor. "Wow, you picked that up fast," Steven said to the mirror.

---

Time passes by and now the sun was setting over the horizon. Isaac and Steven remained on the beach, with the mirror. The mirror seemed to really like the fart noise because it continued to replay it. Both Demigems continued laughing whenever it did it, due to the prank back at the speech being pure gold. Thankfully the mirror stopped and the boys were able to calm down. "Man that never gets old," Isaac remarked with a grin as he laid on his back and Steven was laying on his stomach with the mirror in hand. "Nice work back there, mirror."

"Thanks." The mirror repeated what he said before. But then it suddenly did something entirely different. "Nice work back there- " it suddenly cut from Isaac to an image of Steven after the blonde stopped Dewey's van. "Isaac!"

Needless to say, Isaac and Steven were quite surprised by this. "Holy shit!" Isaac said, amazed that it was capable of something like that on its own. "Can you do it again? Say something else!"

"Something else!- there- you- go!"

Steven let out a short laugh before looking at the mirror. "You got a lot of mileage out of that joke. You're pretty funny for a mirror," he said.

"You're pretty funny for a mirror."

Steven chuckled. "I'm not a mirror."

"You're pretty funny for a- Ssssteven- and Isaac!"

Isaac chuckled and sat up on the sand, looking at the mirror with a smile. "Well, we can't take all the credit," he said, rubbing the back of his head. It was a lot of fun playing with the device, and what's strange was that it was as if they were talking to a real person. "So, mirror, got anything else for us?"

"Ssssteven—and- Isaac- are—my- new friend." The mirror repeated, constructing the rather complex sentence from all the people it had heard from today. This made Isaac and Steven exchange bashful smiles when hearing the heartfelt sentence from the mirror.

Steven looked back at the mirror, blushing. "Really?"

"Yeah!"

"You're my friend, too!" Steven proclaimed and the mirror repeated when Steven laughed. Isaac smiled and patted his friend on the back. It continued to impress him that the boy could make friends with anyone. Even a mirror.

"Definitely," he said. "You know. It's almost strange. It's as if you're a real person."

"I-am-a real person," the mirror said, bewildering the son of Onyx with the message it just relayed to him.

Steven suddenly got to his feet and turned to Isaac after gasping as if he realized something. "You know what? We've got to show the Gems."

"Yeah, you're right!" Isaac exclaimed and rose to his feet, busting off his clothes of sand. "They're definitely going to love this."

"Nooooo!" The mirror suddenly exclaimed, repeating when Isaac yelled in panic when seeing Steven about to get run over.

This startled Isaac, who recognized the voice and scene. He looked at Steven, but the young Gem just as surprised as him. "What the hell was that about," he asked, frowning. Unsure as to why the mirror would suddenly have a panicked reaction.

Don't be shy, they'll love you," Steven said, trying to calm the worried mirror about meeting the Gems.

"I don't know," Isaac said, still frowning. "Maybe it's not a good idea to show the Gems. What if it was pretending to be broken for all this time to hide from them."

"Yeah!" The mirror repeated Steven.

"Oh, come on, Isaac," Steven protested earnestly. "It'll be fine. The Gems will see that it's working and we can all be friends."

"Nooooo!" The mirror screamed again, only this time it echoed.

Oblivious to the mirror's worried, Steven chuckled warmly and was quick to reassure it. "Don't worry, they're a good audience."

He then ran off towards the temple with Isaac right behind him. As he followed behind Steven, he stared at the mirror and then looked at his gemstone. It wasn't glowing, so why was it so worried about seeing the Gems?

---

By the time they made it back to the temple, the sun had gone down. However, before they entered the house, the Gems were having a conversation of their own as Pearl was stacking the classroom items into a rather tall, yet very neat pile. One that concerned the newest member of their team.

"Whoa..." Amethyst said as she say upside down on the couch next to Garnet. Her two teammates had finally told her everything they know about Onyx, and needless to say, she was shocked, amazed, and a little troubled by what she was told. "That's...That's heavy. And he really doesn't know about her true nature"

"And out of respect to Onyx's wishes, I would keep it that way," Garnet firmly told her with her arms crossed and legs kicked up on the couch.

Pearl placed a model of the earth on top of the tower and sighed sadly. "I just wished that Rose was here," she said somberly. "Then she could tell him and we wouldn't have to be lying to him. Especially now."

"What do you mean, P?" Amethyst asked, sitting upright. "Didn't Rose tell you? She basically tells you everything." The purple Gem rolled her eyes.

"That is none of your concern," Pearl snapped angrily at her. "And remember what I said- when I was still in my gem? About those visions he had?" Right after that day when Isaac brought Pearl out of her gemstone, she informed the others about what he'd said to her about seeing the Diamonds, Rose, and the baby. "If he keeps having these flashbacks, then he will want answers."

"That will be my problem," Garnet stated firmly.

"Uh, why? We don't keep secrets from each other, right?" Amethyst said.

"We don't tell Steven about certain things," Pearl said. "And it's for his own good, and because Rose wouldn't have wanted him to know."

"Just like Isaac. It's why she trusted Rose with certain things," Garnet said. "But with Rose gone, those secrets are gone, and Isaac may only have her memories to learn the truth. A truth I'm not even sure will be easy to learn."

Pearl knew that Garnet was right, but little did the fusion and Amethyst know was that the white Gem did know everything about Onyx. There was much the Gem of War wouldn't have Isaac know. And it was the same way with Rose. It's why Rose ordered her to never speak to them about the truth, so she'd be unable to tell any of them. "If you say so, Garnet, but I just wanted to say something," Pearl said nervously. Insecure about speaking her mind, but she had to tell them. "It's something Rose told me..."

This got Garnet and Amethyst's attention and they listened closely.

"Isaac..." Pearl said, letting out a breath as she continued. "The longer we wait to tell him his nature, the more damage we'll do. He will resent us and...and we may lose him forever."

There was silence in the room as those words sank in. Only to be broken from their throughs when the door burst open and the two boys of discussions entered the house. "Guys! Wait 'till you see-" Steven stopped when he and Isaac saw the pile of school equipment from before that Pearl arranged into a tower, while Garnet and Amethyst watch on.

Quick to change the subject, Amethyst greeted the two. "Yo! Ste-man! Ice-ax!"

"Hello, Steven...Isaac," Pearl said much more politely, but said the son of Onyx's name a little more quietly as she looked away. Isaac's shoulders slumped as he rubbed the back of his head from the still awkwardness.

"Howdy," Garnet greeted with a cool smile and pointed a finger gun at the duo. "Bang."

"Do I want to know what's with the pile?" Isaac asked.

"Pearl's was in a cleaning mood today, so she made...that," Amethyst said with a bemused smirk. So glad to finally talk about something that wasn't so heavy and just lighten the mood. "You guys wanna see something hilarious?" The purple Gem grinned mischievously and grabbed one of Steven's stuffed animal, M.C. Bear Bear, and attempted to place it on the tower. The moment it touched the edged of the pile, Pearl quickly impaled it with her spear, making Amethyst start to laugh.

"You don't understand!" The white Gem scolded the shorter one as she brought her spear back, with the bear still impaled on her weapon. "Symmetrical means both sides have to be the same!" Pearl grunted angrily, yanking M.C. Bear-Bear off her spear, and then tossed it into a pile of other various items she's stabbed.

"M.C. Bear-Bear!" Steven gasped in horror, as Isaac giggled. Finding it a little funny. "Okay, that's great. Anyway, we fixed the mirror!"

"Excellent work, you two!" Pearl praised the two, making her spear disappear.

"Yeah, it's kind of hard to explain, but it's been talking to us like an actual person," Isaac pointed out. The Gems react in shock when they heard that. "Did you guys know about that?

"Wait. What?" Pearl asked, confused and taken aback

"Say 'hey.'" Steven said with a big grin, pointing the mirror at the Gems."... Lil' buddy..." He urged the mirror, but it did nothing and remained silent. Isaac looked to the Gems and saw they were still looking at the two hybrids in shocked. Noticing their disturbed expressions.

"Uh... excuse us," Isaac said, before turning himself and Steven around so they could talk in private. "Steven, I'm telling it may not have been a good idea to show the Gems." He anxiously looked back to see them still staring at them. "I've got a bad feeling about this."

"It'll be fine," Steven said, before turning back to the mirror to try and coax to reveal itself. "Come on. You want to come out, don't you? You have so much to say and funny noises to share from across the ages. Are we not beach-summer-fun buddies?"

Isaac placed his hand on top of the mirror and had it turned towards him. "Mirror, are you still there? Can you hear us?"

There was a long silence from the mirror, before it suddenly gave in and whirled to show Isaac making the farting noise. "PBHT!"

Isaac and Steven laughed despited the tenseness. "Just couldn't help yourself, huh?"

The mirror then constructed another original sentence from what it'd recorded. "Just- for- you! Ssssteven- and- Isaac!"

Isaac laughed with Steven, as the mirror recorded them and repeated their laugh. Shifting from one to the other. The blonde Gem then turned to the others and saw the Gems now staring wide-eyed at the mirror as it repeated the half-humans' laugher. Isaac's smile dropped and he started to get anxious. "It's...talking to them?" Pearl whispered incredulously as the others stood up. Terrified looks on their faces. "It shouldn't be able to do that. I-it should just be following orders..."

"Garnet, do something..." Amethyst muttered, scared.

Garnet walked towards the two Demigems. "Steven, Isaac," she said, her voice sounding much colder than it usually was.

The mirror kept laughing until upon seeing Garnet approaching. It stopped and let out a panicked cry. "Nooooo!" This alerted the boys quite a bit. This, along with seeing how the Gem leader was towering over him and Steven, made Isaac started to get warry of her as she kneeled down.

"You should just give us back the mirror," Garnet said, practically ordering Steven as he still had it. "It will be safer where we can watch it."

"Yeah, let's bubble it!" Amethyst proclaimed, growling.

"Nooooo!" The mirror wailed and continued to cry by echoing itself repeatedly. "Nooooo!"

Isaac looked at the frightened mirror, having no idea what the hell was going on and why the Gems were afraid of it. The dark turn of events made him anxious, confused, and on edge, but more importantly, it made him apprehensive to let them get the mirror. He looked back at Garnet "Garnet, what the hell is going on?" He asked her sternly. "How will it be safer in a bubble?"

"It just will be," Garnet replied vaguely, as the low light of the room made her face seem mysterious and unnerving. "Now don't make me have to take it from you two."

Steven gasped and hugged the mirror close to him, as it continued to cry in fear. "It doesn't want to go with you," he fearfully said, backing up into Isaac's legs as they were backed against the door. "Don't you hear it screaming?" Steven looked at his guardian in fear.

"Steven, it's just a mirror, a tool. It can't want anything," Garnet said dismissively and tried reaching her hand towards the mirror.

But then, Isaac surprisingly moved Steven around and placed himself front. Standing boldly in between his friend and the surprised Gems, shocked by his act of defiance. He was done playing helpless. He wasn't going to let the Gems absconded the mirror and let rot away inside a bubble. "You're wrong." He said sternly. Garnet stood up to her full height, staring down at Isaac as he glared up at her. "Garnet, you once told me that being a Crystal Gem meaning protecting life on this planet! That mirror's alive! I don't know how, but it is! It has a personality and everything! You can't just lock it away."

"I can, and I will," Garnet asserted. "Now step aside and give me the mirror. Now."

"Not until you tell me what the fuck is going on. What is that mirror really? Why don't you want Steven to have it?"

Garnet gritted her teeth, getting impatience with Isaac. "You don't need to know that," she growled and tried to push him out of the way with her left hand. But Isaac stopped her by blocking with his right hand. Showing her that his gemstone was glowing. Pearl and Amethyst gasped seeing it.

"You want to answer that again?" Isaac asked, threateningly. "It didn't start glowing until a second ago."

"Isaac, step aside, or I'll make you," Garnet ordered in her own threatening voice. Isaac narrowed his eyes as Steven, Pearl, and Amethyst stared in panic and fear.

...

...

...

...

"No."

"I said, MOVE!" Garnet grabbed for Isaac's should to push him away. More memories flashed into Isaac's head, faster than any other time. As if on autopilot, Isaac grabbed her arm and twisted her wrist, then kicked her right knee out from under her with his super strength. Garnet grunted in pain, kneeling slightly to his height, giving Isaac a chance to shove his arm against her neck will pulling on her arm. Choking her slightly while pushing her head back.

Knocking her shades off her face. Steven, Pearl, and Amethyst gasped loudly in extreme surprise. Garnet's eyes glared hostilely at Isaac, and he met her glare with his own, as steam started coming off his arms and shoulders.

"Wha-Wha!" Steven stared at Isaac in shock and fear.

"Isaac!" Pearl gasped.

"What the fuck are you doing?!" Amethyst yelled, grabbing her hair.

"It's called self-defense!" Isaac retorted, even though he was surprised by how fast he was able to counter Garnet. Guess the memories do come in handy. Garnet tried to punch Isaac with her free hand, but he swung the arm against her neck away, hitting her chin when his fist passed under it. He blocked the punch and palmed her in the face.

Garnet stubbed back, before Isaac delivered a kick to her stomach, sending her flying a few feet away and sliding on the floor. Pearl and Amethyst looked at the blonde with shock and concern, as their leader got up and glared at Isaac.

"If you're not going to tell us what's going on, then I know someone that will," Isaac said, grabbing Steven's arm. He then bolted out the door, dragging Steven along with him.

"I-I'm sorry!" Steven yelled back in distraught.

Pearl and Amethyst turned towards Garnet and slowly approached her. The Gem leader was still seething with barely controlled rage as she stood up, walked over to her shades and picked them up. After putting them back on, she clenched her fists.

"Those boys...are in big trouble. Especially Isaac!" Garnet growled before storming out to hunt down the duo.

"Garnet, wait!" Pearl called fearfully as Amethyst and her followed after the Gem leader. "I'm sure he didn't understand what he was doing!"

---

"On my God! Oh my God! Oh my God!" Isaac panted as he ran for his life from the Gems while dragging Steven along with him. Both of them aptly terrified. Isaac couldn't believe he actually did that! Not only was his trust in the Crystal Gems straining, if not already broken completely, but now he was scared for the safety of Steven, the mirror, and himself. He knew that Steven would probably get a slap on the wrist, but there was no telling what they'll do to him, and the Gems will force them to turn over the mirror.

They ran around the side of the cliff the Temple was built into, and only when they were far enough away did he hide them behind a large rock. The two Demigems took a moment to catch their breath and mitigate some of their fear, but it was no good. That's when the anxiety kicked in.

"That's it, man! Game over, man! Game over!" Isaac exclaimed, grabbing his hair. "What the fuck are we gonna do now? What are we gonna do?!"

"I don't know!" Steven said, his face expressing dread, glancing down at the mirror in total loss. Isaac saw this and snatched it from Steven.

"What's their problem with you?!" He shouted at it quietly, shaking it in anger as he sweated bullets with Steven. "Why are they so scared of you!? WHO ARE YOU?!" Isaac was then taken aback when it it started to change, trying to say something to them. He kneeled down so that Steven could see with him.

The glass then started to glow brightly as the mirror started whirring a distorted and disjointed message. Showing several whirled and abstracted faces and images. "Away from home- Let- Me- OUT!" It cried out for help.

"Let you out?" Isaac asked, shaking his head in confusion. "What are you talking about!"

"We don't understand!" Steven exclaimed.

"Isaac! Steven!" The two boys gasped when hearing Pearl calling from afar. They were running out of time. Isaac quickly pushed himself and Steven against the rock.

"Come on!" Steven pleaded with the mirror. "We want to help you! What can we do?"

The mirror whirled again and projected something completely different. Instead of using recorded scenes and responses, it relayed its own images. Isaac and Steven watched as it showed their silhouettes on the surface of the mirror. The simplistic scene showed them pulling a gemstone out of the back of the mirror. Freeing it.

Isaac's eyes widened before his eyes narrowed into a look of determination. Now he understood, and when he looked at Steven, the boy nodded. Isaac turned the mirror to its back and grabbed the lovely blue gemstone. He then began tugging on it, trying to pull it out of its prison. But normal force wasn't going to do it. As he pulled hard the gem, Steven noticed the water from the sea began creeping up onto the beach towards them. Forming the pattern of the mirror around Isaac under his feet. After deciding enough was enough, Isaac roared and used his super strength and successfully pulled it out.

The mirror shattered instantly the moment the gemstone was freed from it and the water under his feet flowed back into the ocean. Isaac looked at the gemstone and then to Steven. The friends smiled. Suddenly the gem started glowing in Isaac's hand, making them gasp in shock, before it levitated out of his hand and into mid-air.

It floated towards the shore, stopping just inches from it. It hovered above the sand for a moment as it glowed. The gemstone then glowed a bright light that illuminated the nightly beach. Isaac and Steven watched in silent awe as a physical, feminine body formed from the gem, before hair and a dress appeared out from it. The light faded, and the person hovered in the air for only a brief moment, before collapsing onto the sand on all fours.

To say that Isaac and Steven were bewildered would be an understatement. But when they saw her on the ground, they ran towards her. Steven stopped a few feet from her while Isaac cautiously approached the woman. Kneeling down next to her and placing a hand on her shoulder. This made her gasp and glance up at him and Steven. Both boys gasped.

The woman had a slim figure and was considerably tall, but not as tall as Isaac. About the same height as Pearl. She had cyan skin, cobalt blue chin-length hair with long bangs and fringe that covers her entire forehead. The blue gemstone in the mirror was now embedded in her back. She wore a backless blue halter crop top with an upward-facing navy triangle, which tied into a blue sash ribbon on the back of her shoulders. She also wore a flowing cobalt blue skirt, which was calf-length with a downward-facing navy triangle around the waist, and wore no shoes. She was very pretty and gracefully looking in her features, but what really startled the boys was that she had reflective eyes without pupils and appeared with a blue navy tone.

Isaac stared at his reflection in the eyes as she looked at him and Steven. That's when Isaac came to a realization that made him gasp. "...You're a Gem...?"

Even though her expression was weak and weary, she had a sense of overwhelming gratitude. "Yes...Thank you..." she said with soft sincerity. "You didn't—" Slowly, she tried to stand up, but struggled to keep herself up and started to collapse. But Isaac quickly caught her before she hit the ground, feeling how cold her skin was. He helped her stand up again as Steven walked next to him. The woman gave the two a small, warm smile. "You two...actually talked to me. You helped me! It's Steven...and Isaac, right?"

While still in awe at the Gem, the two boys smiled and nodded their heads. "Yeah, that's us," Isaac confirmed. "Who are you?

"I'm Lapis - Lapis Lazuli," the Gem, Lapis, said to them. "Are you really Crystal Gems?"

"Yeah!" Steven nodded with a bright smile.

"But you set me free," Lapis said in disbelief, much to the two Demigems confusions.

"But— Wha..." Steven question, not understanding what she was talking about.

"What do you mean?" Isaac warily asked her.

"STEVEN! ISAAC!" They flinched at the loud voice and turned around to see Gems rushing over to them. Upon seeing the frightened Lapis, they quickly summoned their weapons. Upon seeing his gemstone glow again, Isaac pushed Steven and Lapis behind him and placed himself in front of them. Glaring at the Gems.

"Back away from her, girls," He ordered them and summoned his sword. They stopped in their tracks, surprised by his action.

Knowing that he wouldn't have been able to summon his sword if there was no danger, and realizing that he believed them to be the threat, Garnet walked towards Isaac. "Isaac...stand down. We're not your enemies," she said sternly, while trying to defuse the situation and make him understand.

"That's not what the gem says," Isaac said, showing it glowing. Making her stop advancing as he glared at her, making it clear that he wasn't backing down. "I don't know what's going on, but what's going to happen now is that we're all going to drop our weapons, sit down, have a nice conversation, and play nice!"

"Isaac, it's not glowing for us."

Isaac's glare faded, as Steven walked next to him and the two looked at the Crystal Gems in confusion. "What? Then why was it..."

"You..." Isaac's eyes widened and his pupils shrank in horror. He and Steven turned around by the sound of crashing waves and water rushing as gasped when seeing Lapis glaring hatefully at the Gems, hands clenched into fists at her sides. They all then watched in awe as ocean water behind raised up and formed into a huge water-arm with a hand that shadowed over the Crystal Gems. The boys realized that it was Lapis, consumed by rage. "You three knew I was in there, and you didn't do anything. Did you even wonder who I USED TO BE!"

Lapis slammed the water-arm she created down onto the Gems. Pearl and Amethyst managed to dodge by jumping out of the way, but Garnet was trapped underneath it. The force of the impact knocked Pearl and Amethyst aside.

"Steven! Isaac! Run!" Pearl cried out to the boys with concern.

But they had no intention of leaving and turned to the blue Gem. "Lapis, what are you doing?!" Isaac exclaimed, clenching his sword, alarmed by her incredible power.

"I'm Lapis Lazuli, and you can't keep me trapped here anymore!" Lapis declared fiercely, her voice dripping with power, pain, and rage.

Isaac's eyes widened as he looked back at the Gems. Did they really know about Lapis being trapped in that Gem? Why would they trap her here? Did they put her in the mirror? So many questions filled his head that he couldn't really move. Lapis raised her hand, commanding the water to lift once more. But this time, as if she was Moses parting the Red Sea to lead the Israelites to escape Egypt, Lapis leaving the parted the ocean in half, creating a path through it.

Isaac and Steven looked at her display of power in amazement, before Lapis said with a scowl, "They're not going to let us leave..."

"Leave?" Steven asked, confused.

Pearl and Amethyst then jumped towards them, weapons ready to attack Lapis. However, Lapis was quick to lash some of the ocean at them and push them to the ground. Buying herself some time. But, there was something she needed to ask. "Steven, Isaac, come with me," she offered.

"Where are you going?" Isaac asked with wide eyes.

Lapis turned her head to the night sky with a wistful expression. "Home."

"B-b-but... B-but I... Uh..." Steven stumbled over his words, sharing an anxious glance with Isaac. Neither of them knew what she was referring to, but even so, they didn't have to the heart say no. But they could go with her either. Wherever it was that Lapis was heading.

Seeing this, Lapis understood what their silence meant, and her expression fell. "Fine," she said crossly, dispelling the ocean path. Garnet managed to break free of the water-arm and punched it away. She then charged towards Isaac, Steven, and Lapis. The water Gem looked at the half-Gems with an expression that was split between anger and despair. "Don't trust them. Goodbye."

Without another word, Lapis turned and walked into the ocean, and created a huge wave that knocked Isaac, Steven, and Garnet back away. Completely drenching them. By they've finished couching out the water in their mouths and regained their breath and bearing, Isaac quickly sat up and glanced around to see that Lapis had disappeared. The Ocean was once again normal.

The three of them stood up as Pearl and Amethyst rushed to their side. Concerned for them, Pearl pulled the two boys into a tight, protective embrace. "Steven! Isaac! Are you two okay?"

"Yeah. we're fine," Steven said, but the reality was that they were still trying to both physically and mentally recover from what had just happened.

"So...that was another Gem?" Isaac asked, looking worried with Steven out across the ocean.

Pearl let out a long, remorseful sigh. "Yes, Isaac. It was..."

---

"...I'm grounded?!" Steven asked in total dismay. The next morning after the incident with Lapis, the Gems held a priority meeting in the beach house. In deep trouble, Isaac and Steven were standing in front of the Gems. Pearl and Amethyst looked angry at them, while Garnet likely was scolding them.

Pearl folded her arms and exclaimed, "Yes, you're grounded!"

"You disobeyed an order," Garney said.

"And now we're gonna bury you 'til you've learned your lesson," Amethyst exclaimed, holding up a shovel.

"That's not even how grounding works!" Isaac exclaimed.

"Don't think you're not in trouble too, Isaac!" Pearl retorted crossly. "You not only disobey direct orders, but also attack Garnet and..."

"Whoa! Whoa! She attacked me! It's called self-defense and it was after YOU what to take the mirror that you gave us in the first place!" Isaac said bitterly. "And besides, why are you so mad about this? Lapis was trapped in that mirror. Who knows how she's been stuck in that thing, but it sounded like it was for a long time. We only did what we believed was the right thing by freeing her."

"Sure, freeing her was the right," Amethyst said sarcastically.

"Need we remind you that she attacked us with water," Pearl added caustically.

"Right, like you guys wouldn't fight back against someone attacking you!" Isaac countered. "How would you feel about someone trying to beat you up?!"

"That doesn't matter now," Garnet coldly said.

"Oh, I believe it does," Isaac said, glaring critically at the Gems. "You said that you found that mirror hundreds of years ago. Why didn't you even try and set Lapis free if you knew she was in there all this time?"

"It's not that simple, Isaac," Pearl said with a sigh, pinching the bridge of her nose. "It's true that we knew that the mirror was powered by a Gem, but we didn't know whether or not she'd be dangerous if we let her out. It could have put us and possibly the world at risk."

"Isaac's right," Steven poke up, completely earnest in what he and his friend did was right. "If you guys had freed Lapis back then, then maybe you all could've been friends!"

"Yeah, no, Steven, like that would happen," Amethyst said with a frown.

"Why not?" Isaac asked, still looking harshly at them. "Why can't you get along with her?"

"There's no point in thinking about what could have been," Garnet said, quickly changing the subject and crossed her arms. "Right now we have a Gem has powerful as Lapis Lazuli out in the wild. The entire town could be in danger."

"But Lapis doesn't what to hurt anyone," Steven protested with an expression of concern. "All she wants is to go home. Why's that so bad?"

Pearl's expression turned to one of guilt and looked away. "Oh, Steven...it's not that simple...you see, boys, 'Home' for Gem...it-"

The white Gem was fortunately saved from providing answers when the door of the house suddenly burst opened. The Crystal Gems turned to look and saw a very exasperated and flustered Greg standing at the doorway, panting heavily.

"Dad?" Steven looked at his father in confusion with everyone else.

When the former rockstar caught his breath, covered in sweat, Greg addressed the team between heavy breaths. "Uh, you guys better come check this out," he said nervously. The Crystal Gems looked at one another before following Greg outside. However, the moment they walked out of the house, it only took them a second to see what was wrong.

The entire ocean was gone. The glistering water that made up the vast ocean that made up most of the earth had vanished completely. Leaving nothing but a vast desert ocean floor that was littered with various boats and ships stranded.

The Gems and Greg rushed down from the house and ran over to where the citizens of Beach City were gathered and murmuring worriedly. All of them gazing out at the waterless ocean desert in disbelief, growing more concern. The Gems were just as stunned by what they saw. "Holy shit," Isaac whispered, completely bewildered. "What happened?"

"That's what we're all trying to figure out," said Connie as she walked over to the team.

"Connie!" Steven exclaimed.

"HEY, IT'S THOSE MAGICAL LADIES!" Mayor Dewey yelled into a megaphone after spotting the Gem. He looked to have been panicking with his hair disheveled and sweating bullets, drenching his armpits. He marched over to them and yelled hotly at Garnet. "WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?!"

"The ocean is gone, obviously," Garnet said, seemingly unfazed that the mayor was in her personal space yelling at her.

"THAT'S RIGHT. NOW IT'S JUST A DEREST. NO ONE WANTS TO TAKE A VACATION TO... DESERT CITY! AWW, WE'RE GONNA LOSE ALL OUR SUMMER BUSINESS!" Dewey dropped to his knees in distraught. Isaac started to get annoyed with the mayor. Dewey was like that sleazy mayor from Jaws that would have ignored all warning about a dangerous shark and keep the beach open unit it's too late.

Now that he thought about it, Isaac was more than certain that's what Dewey would've been.

"And all the beach babes!" Lars wailed as Sadie rolled her eyes at him.

"Who's gonna buy my fries?" Fryman asked worriedly

"And my pizza!" Yell an angry man named Kofi Pizza, the father of Jenny, one of the teenagers Steven befriended.

"Who's gonna have fun at Funland?" yelled the owner of Funland, Mr. Smiley, who wasn't smiling.

Mayor Dewey got up again and began rigidly shouting Garnet again through the megaphone. "AS MAYOR, I DEMAND YOU EXPLAIN THIS IMMEDIATE-!" Isaac quickly cut him off by grabbing the megaphone and crushed it between his hands, causing Dewey to shrink away from him fearfully.

"Thank," Garnet said to him.

"No problem, but seriously, how did this happen," Isaac asked, much more politely to the leader.

"It was Lapis Lazuli," Garnet explained.

"Wait, Lapis really did all of this?" Isaac asked, gesturing to the ocean desert.

"I'm afraid it's the only logical probability," Pearl mused, projecting a hologram of Lapis with her gemstone. Beach City's citizens murmured in silent amazement when seeing this. "Given her powers to manipulate water, and how she acted, it could only have been her."

"But why?" Steven asked. "She's a Gem, just like us."

Pearl exchanged a hesitant glance with her fellow Gems when hearing this. However, they didn't have the heart to tell him or Isaac the complete truth. "There's a lot you don't know about Gems, Steven," she said sourly, looking away while continuing to show the projection of Lapis.

---

After leaving the beach and returning back to the beach house, the Gems were back inside with Greg and Connie so that they could figure out what was their next plan of action. However, outside on the patio, Isaac and Steven leaned over the rail as they stared out into the distance of the ocean desert. There was no more trying to reason with the stubborn Gems that Lapis wasn't the monster they believed her to be, as they were the ones that interacted with her and not them. All they could do was watch as Mayor Dewey pathetically pulled out a gardening hose and sprayed water on the sand in a desperate attempt to refill the empty ocean.

Isaac let out a sigh and rubbed his face. "What a mess," he said with a worried frown. "And I'm responsible for it."

"Hey, don't think like that," Steven said, to which his friend looked down at him. "I mean, we're the ones that let Lapis out. We didn't know she would take the ocean, but there must be a reason for it, right?"

It sounded more as if Steven was trying to convince himself, but not even he was so sure. Isaac felt the same way and shook his head. "I don't know, kid, but what I do know is what needs to be done." He pushed away from the rail and kneeled down in front of Steven. "Listen, there's no way the Gems are going to try and resolve this peacefully, some I'm going to head out there and try and reason with Lapis."

"What!?" Steven looked at him in disbelief. "But you can do it on your own!"

"We don't have any other opinions. If I can just talk to her and calm her down, then maybe I can get her to bring back the ocean."

Steven looked apprehensive, before looking at Isaac in the eyes. "Then I'm coming with you."

"No, Steven, I can't ask you to do that. Just stay here with your family," Isaac tried to reassure him and stood up.

"That's why I have to go with you, Isaac. If I let you go on your own, then I am leaving family. You're family!" Steven suddenly exclaimed. Isaac gasped and looked at the young Gem with a surprised expression on his face. "Isaac, you're more than just my best friend. You're like my brother. I didn't say it before because I knew that we aren't related. But that was wrong of me. We are brothers. You're not alone anymore. You're apart of the Crystal Gems family."

Isaac looked down at Steven with a shocked expression as he stared at him in shock. The reason his family name was named Infinite was because his father was orphaned when he was a baby. His parents then ran off and seemingly disappeared off the face of the earth. Isaac's father said that their last name said that there was an infinite amount of possibilities for where they came from and who they could become.

After his dad died, he was all alone, until he met the Gems. Met Steven. Isaac felt his eyes start to tear up a bit, before he closed his eyes and reigned his emotions. He chuckled, wiped his eyes, and smiled at Steven. "Then let's do it."

The two walked into the house and as the adults in the room were too engrossed in their own debate about what to do with, they didn't notice the boys as they started packing for the long trip across the dried-up ocean. Steven packed his cheeseburger backpack and Isaac packed his taco backpack.

"How could I have known the Gem contained in that mirror would be so powerful?" Pearl said fretfully as the boy finished their packing and walked towards the door. But while the Gems didn't notice them, Connie and Greg did, as the Demigems passed by them.

"Where are you guys going?" Connie asked, gaining the attention of Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl. Hesitantly, Isaac and Steven turned around and faced the others as they looked at them curiously.

"Look, I know we've screwed up by letting Lapis out of that mirror, but believe us when we say that it's not something that we regret," Isaac said with firm resolve. "But it's because we set her free that it's our fault the ocean is gone. That's why we're going out there and fix what we've done to Beach City- the world possibly."

"We're gonna bring the ocean back or get really thirsty trying," Steven proclaimed with just as much determination.

For a moment, the duo was met with silence from the others as they stared at them. Thinking that they weren't going to stop them and that they weren't going to help them, Isaac turned to the door to open it with Steven following him. "Wait up, boys," said a certain former rock star that placed his hand on Steven's shoulder. The two Demigems turned around to see Greg looking at them with a sincere smile. "I'm coming with you."

"I want to help, too!" Connie eagerly said, walking over to the hybrids. "Also, I feel weird being in your house if you're not here."

Lion then appeared from behind and placing his paw on Steven's head. Growling in agreement, which surprised Greg, who never actually met the giant pink feline.

They then heard Pearl clear her throat and turned to her to see her broadly grinning with her arms crossed. "Clearly, we're coming too."

"You're un-grounded, by the way," Garnet said, impressed with the boys' determination and commitment.

Amethyst jumped on the kitchen counter. "WHOO-HOO! Road trip!" She cheered with excitement. Isaac looked at the Gems with wide eyes for a moment, surprised by how quickly they were willing to trust them and aid them was quite reassuring. Especially after how sour things had gone between them the previous night. This was a showing that they trusted him and Steven, but believe in not only the young Gem, but also Isaac, whose still very new to them. This showed him that they really did consider him one of them.

"Alright then. The plan is to go to wherever Lapis is taking the water and ask her to return it," Isaac told them as the others all listened. "She'll listen to us. She trusts me and Steven."

"But what if she wouldn't listen?" Connie asked.

Isaac and Steven exchanged an uneasy glance. They couldn't rule out the possibility that Lapis would attack them on sight. They didn't know why she was taking the ocean, and even though they were friends with her, there's no telling if she'll still consider them to be hostile and treat them as such. "Then we'll do what we must," Isaac hesitantly said.

---

Unshaven and distressed Mayor Dewey who was still spraying water on the sand with the hose and had broken down and started crying his eyes out. Sobbing about how the town was going to lose their summer dollars when tourist season comes along. So he didn't see the group passing him. Heading off into the deserted ocean, with the Gems riding in Greg's Van, and Isaac, Steven, and Connie riding on Lion's back.

Lion ran in front of the van with Steven and Connie sitting in front of Isaac. Greg, of course, was driving his van and Garnet was sitting in the passenger's seat. Leaving Pearl and Amethyst to ride in the cramped back with most of the former rock star's things.

"How about some tunes?" Greg asked, pulling out a CD and putting it into the music player. "This was one of Rose's favorites." You'd think that Rose Quartz would have liked something more to what she'd been played up to be like, but instead loud rock music began to play, jamming out of the stereo throughout the vehicle. Amethyst chuckled while Pearl chuckled uncomfortably, neither of them a fan of the music. Greg turned his head and glanced over at the leader of the Gems. "So what do you think, Garnet?"

Garnet glared uncomfortably for a moment, before making her option clear.

By kicking the van door open and jumping out of the van, rolling on the ground.

---

The journey to find Lapis took all day and well into the night as the group continued traveling through the deserted ocean. The journey took them past the abyssal zone of the ocean. Places that would never have been able to have been reached by humans. As they went further out into the desert that was once the Atlantic ocean and as the sun started to set, they began to see a blue tower that reached high above the land and broke through the clouds surrounding it. They used this as a beacon, a waypoint for the destination they sought.

As the tower started to grow taller and more intimidating, the closer they were getting and started to slow down. Lion was now walking alongside the van as it was going slower. On top of the vehicle's roof lied Garnet, while Pearl took to the driver seat and drove, while Greg and Amethyst slept and snored in the back of the van. Isaac and Steven were still awake, riding on Lion, but Connie was fast asleep on Steven's back, with her arms wrapped around him. Isaac had his arms on both sides of the kids, securing them as he gripped Lion's mane.

The Demigems were quiet through the journey as they drew closer to the tower. The weight of the situation grew heavier. They still felt rather guilty over the ocean being taken, but they started to question whether or not their decision to set Lapis free was really the right thing to have done. Their compassion and desire to help their newfound friend caused a butterfly effect that the world was now suffering because of it.

Still anxious, Steven broke the silence and voiced his concerns to Isaac. "Isaac...do you really think it was the right thing to let Lapis out?"

Isaac was silent for a moment. "I don't know," he admitted, shaking his. "My head was telling me that there's something wrong, but in my heart, I couldn't let the mirror- Lapis, suffer anymore."

"You boys did what you believed was the right thing." Steven and Isaac looked up to see Garnet looking down at them from the roof of the van, with Pearl rolling down the window. The Gem leader's expression was unreadable, but it looked as though she was a little ashamed over how she and the others handled things with the two Demigems. "We're sorry. We should have told you what we knew."

"I can't believe Lapis would do this," Steven said. "Gems shouldn't fight each other."

Pearl glanced over at the two hybrids and closed her eyes. It was finally time to start providing them with some much-needed answers. She opened her eyes and said, "We're always fighting Gems, actually."

Steven and Isaac gasped in shock. "What?!"

"What're you talking about?" Isaac asked with alarming concern. "When? I thought you guys and my mother were the only Gems on the planet. Why would you be fighting them?"

"It's...more complicated than you think..." Pearl said.

"I could try and understand if you explain it," he said.

Pearl frowning uncomfortably. "Oh, how do I put this? Just like humans, all Gems aren't necessarily... good."

Amethyst suddenly leaned forward from the back, having been awakened from her nap by their conversation. "All those monsters we fight used to be just like us!" She explained, before turning to Pearl. "Right, Pearl?"

Pearl sighed in remorse. "Yes. But they've become corrupted and broken," she said

"Corrupted? What does that even mean?" Isaac asked shaking his head.

"It's almost impossible to describe, but think of it like this: It's as if they're minds have been damaged beyond repair. The fabric of their minds being tore. The bodies of Gems are mental projections, the bodies of corrupted Gems are a reflection of how damaged their minds are. Turning them into monsters. That's why we have to take care of them, subdue them, contain them. It's the best we can do for them, for now."

Isaac took a moment to process this. All this time, ever since he was able to summon his mother's weapon and fight, he thought that the monsters that came after him were just monsters. But now that he knew that they were Gems they were mentally unwell really hit him.

"Okay, I get why you wouldn't tell Steven or me." Isaac nodded, understanding why they wouldn't tell them. "But if every monster we've fought was a Gem, how did they get corrupted?"

There was silence from Pearl and Amethyst, as they glanced uneasily at each other. "It's a long story," Garnet said, answering vaguely.

Isaac sighed in annoyance. It was just another way of saying that the Gems were going to keep it a secret from him. All the time that he's spent with them he was sure that they were truthful with him on anything he asked about them. That he'd learn all there was to know about them, but it seems he was wrong. "Just what else are you guys keeping from us?" He asked disgruntledly.

There was no answer from the Gems. Isaac looked away and forward. It was clear to him that they didn't want to tell him or Steven what they were hiding, and he could respect that. They each had personal moments in their lives that they didn't want to talk about and keep secret. However, the whole reason he came to Beach City was to find answers.

"What about my mother?" Isaac asked, but he didn't get the chance to see them flinch when there was bright glowing light in front of them. They looked and saw that they've arrived.

The giant glowing blue structure, made entirely out of the ocean, that stood before them was even more magnificent and imposing up close. The glow came from the water glistening in the moonlight as it reached high into the sky. Dark clouds swirled around it, giving it an ominous appearance. As they looked at it, they saw the water moving upwards.

Having been awakened Connie looked up at the tower in equal amazement. "That's some... magical destiny stuff right there," she said, taking off her glasses.

"Guys, I just had the best idea for an album cover," Greg said, looking up at the tower in equal amazement.

The group approached closer to the structure before stopping. Garnet then got off the roof, then the Gems and Greg got out of the van to stand before the tower. Isaac and the kids unmounted Lion, and they all cautiously approached the tower. "This is it. Lapis Lazuli is here," Garnet said.

"I don't understand," Pearl said, shaking her head. "What does she want with the ocean?"

The kids stood with Isaac and the three of them were astonished to see various marine life swimming inside the water tower. From whales, to various fish, to stingrays, and turtles. Everything from the biggest mammal to the smallest crustation. "Whoa. Look at all this. It's- it's just like a giant aquarium," Connie exclaimed, stepping a bit closer.

"So, how do we get Lapis' attention," Isaac asked.

"You shouldn't be here!" Thundered the voice of the blue Gem in question. Coming from high atop the tower, having sensed them.

Glaring up at the tower, Isaac approached it and took in a deep breath. "LAPIS LAZULI!" He yelled at the top of his lungs, assuming she could hear him. "IT'S US, ISAAC, AND STEVEN!"

"Lapis, please! We've come to talk to you!" Steven added, stepping next to his brother.

For a moment, there was silence, until the water near the base of the tower sloshed and rippled, before forming a giant, aquatic version of Lapis Lazuli's face on its wall. "Go away!" she ordered the Demigems, glaring down at them. "Before I make you."

"Not until you tell us what you're doing with the ocean," Isaac said.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm stretching it far enough to get me back home! You can't stop me!"

"But we're beach-summer-fun buddies!" Steven exclaimed

Lapis' face suddenly shifted and reverted back to Isaac's face that the mirror recorded and screamed in his voice. "NOOOOO!"

Steven & Connie gasped as Isaac tried again. "Lapis, what about us setting you free? Doesn't that mean anything you?"

Lapis formed her own face again and got closer to Isaac, startling him a bit. "No, it doesn't! Not after being trapped in that mirror for centuries! The fact I was used by everyone! All of you Crystal Gems...you're all just the same! You don't care about anyone or anything but this worthless rock of a planet!"

Amethyst and Pearl growled angrily when hearing this and were ready to attack when Garnet put a hand on each of their shoulders. "Easy," she said, wanting the boys to handle this.

"What do you mean? We're all Gems, right? Just let us help you," Steven begged, confused by what Lapis was saying.

"You don't understand. Just leave me alone..." Lapis' anxious face then disappeared into the water tower.

"We're not leaving, Lapis. Not until you give us back our ocean!" Isaac slammed his fist on the wall of the water tower. His strength made the structure rumble as large ripples formed with each hit on the water.

There was silence for a moment, and everyone watched and waited.

"Isaac..." Lapis said, sounding sad.

But the ocean Gem lashed out, and out of nowhere, an arm extended from the water tower and grabbed Isaac roughly by his neck. Taking the son of Onyx off guard and he grabbed the arm to get it to let go as his gemstone started glowing. Then, emerging from the tower, came the owner of the arm: a water clone of Isaac.

"I SAID..." Lapis said, speaking through the clone as it reared back its fist. "LEAVE ME ALONE!

The clone punched Isaac in the stomach, pushing him back with a water-arm attack that was was a heavy stream of water. Fortunately for him, Garnet safely caught the blonde Gem as he was flung towards her.

However, it wasn't over and stepping out from the water structure came water clones of the Gems. All of them glaring at the Crystal Gems.

"Okay, now I'm, pissed," Isaac said, standing up. He got to his feet and took a fighting stance with Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl.

"Greg, kids, you stay behind us. We'll handle this," Pearl ordered, as her gemstone glowed

"Sounds good to me!" Greg fretfully exclaimed, hiding behind a nearby rock. Steven, Connie, and Lion retreated and stood behind the Gems.

With bold gracefulness, the Gems summoned each of their weapons. Isaac did the same, and summoned two katanas. Their water clones did the same, and proceed to mirror their real counterparts and summoned their liquid weapons. They were prepared for battle against the originals, and they weren't going down so easily.

"Ruh-oh," Amethyst said.

"Stand together. Don't let them separate us," Garnet commanded, only to get punched by Water Garnet. Sent flying backwards into the ground. She quickly got up as Water Garnet chased after her. She cracked her neck twice, and engaged in a fistfight with Water Garnet, creating a giant crater. Each fighter sending out a barrage of punches that landed evenly against each other. It was a stalemate until Garnet saw an opening and took it. Punching Water Garnet in the head, splattering it. But just as she believed that the battle was over, the head quickly reforms though, and Water Garnet punched Garnet into a large rock.

As Garnet lept away from the rock, Amethyst used her whip to grab the rock and sling it at Water Amethyst, who effortlessly dodged it. The short Gem kept slinging nearby rocks at the water clone, who continuously dodges them by bending out of shape. "Aw, come on!" Amethyst complained, stomping her foot. Water Amethyst then grabbed her with her whip and flailed her away. She screamed before being slammed into the ground. She groaned before shapeshifting. "Well, as long as we're playing fair..." she said, turning into her Purple Puma persona and charged at Water Amethyst. Leaping into the air to land a heavy body slam down on the clone

Meanwhile, Pearl spared off with her water clone. Blocking an attack from Water Pearl. She then swung at the clone, to which it dodged. The white Gem then spun her spear around and managed to slice Water Peal in half. She laughed victoriously, until the two halves quickly reformed into two Water Pearls. Pearl sighed and summoned another spear. "I hate fighting me."

At the same time, Isaac stood in front of his water clone with his two swords ready. "Lapis, I don't wanna do this," he said, pleading to her one last time.

"I'm sorry, but no!" Lapis said through Water Isaac before the clone charged at the Demigem. It jumped at him, swiping both swords, but Isaac jumped out of the way to the right. The two then started exchanging slashes and parrying each other's attacks. The clone then jumped back and changed the katana into a large, double-bladed sword and threw it at Isaac. Isaac did the same and threw his double-bladed sword. The weapons hit each other in the air and bounced off one another, before disappearing.

With one sword in their hands, both Isaacs charged and started attacking and blocking each other. Sometimes one attacking and blocking before the roles were reversed, making it a very even match.

Isaac swung down to slice the clone in haft, but Water Isaac grabbed his tattooed wrist and stopped him. It then swung at his head, until Isaac duck down, and yanked his hand out of the watery grip. He ran from Lapis' clone before it jumped into the air and came down to land a heavy attack on him. But Isaac rolled out of the way, stopping to look back at Water Isaac, who was kneeling with its sword's edge on the ground. Water Isaac then stood up and glared at the real one.

It then charged at him, before Isaac jumped out of the way. Water Isaac slashed across a large blunder he was previously standing behind. The boulder exploded into a hundred pieces, knocking Isaac away flying through the air, before violently rolling along the ground. As he came to a stop, he grunted in pain to stand up again, only for Water Isaac to appear before him and slash at his chest.

Isaac grunted in pain when its water blade cut through his shirt and across his chest. He retaliated by slicing Water Isaac diagonally and jumped away. The water clone wasn't injured for too long, and put itself back together.

"You don't have to do this, Isaac!" Lapis said through the clone. Isaac took a moment to look at his chest as it bled. However, the cut itself wasn't very deep at all. Just broke through the skin. It healed quickly before Isaac looked up at Water Isaac with wide eyes "Please, just walk away and go home."

"No," Isaac said, gripping his sword harder with both hands and widening his stance.

"Then you're not gonna like how this turns out."

"I don't want to hurt you, Lapis," Isaac said, before placing his hand on the cut in the shirt she left. The clone started advancing towards him. "And I know you don't want to hurt me."

Water Isaac stopped. Steven, Connie, Greg, and Lion were behind the blonde Gem with his back facing them as he tried one more time to talk with Lapis.

"Lapis, please. I know that you want to leave and go home, but it doesn't have to be like this. Just like you have a home, Earth is our home, so think of all the damage you'll be doing to it. We can't just sit back a let you do this." He said, firmly but also sympathetically. "Maybe we can help you. We could give you something that'll get you off the planet. You don't need to do this. Please, let us help us."

Lapis was silent for a moment. "I'm sorry...but I can't wait any longer."

Water Isaac rushed at him again and the two started trading attacks again. This time, Lapis was much more violent and faster. Isaac blocked another attack before Water Isaac grabbed his arm. Isaac couldn't stop the clone as it swung him around, before he was thrown away.

Steven and Connie watched in horror as Isaac was sent flying towards them. Going over their heads, before slamming hard into the side of Greg's van.

"Oh no, not the van!" Greg exclaimed in dismay, running towards his mobile home.

Then Lion rushed towards Water Isaac and started emitting several magical roars at it. But the clone effortlessly slitter out of the way every time. After seeing his brother being hurt and his pet fighting for him, Steven raised his water gun he'd brought along. "Revenge!" He shouted

"Revenge!" Connie yelled with him and two charged towards Water Isaac. As Lion continued shouting at the clone, Steven shot at it with the water gun while Connie hurled a small rock at the clone. These attacks did nothing to it, and Water Isaac transformed it katana into a war hammer. With lightning-fast speed, it swung up into Lion's chin, sending him flying into the air before landing on the roof of the van. Much to Greg's dismay.

Water Isaac then turned his attention back to Steven and Connie, and the two kids looked at it in fear. It was about to take both of their lives with a swing to their heads when Isaac suddenly jumped in front and grabbed the handle of the hammer. Using his super strength, he pushed against Lapis as her clone of him pushed against him with increasing force. Isaac growled and grunted through his teeth as he struggled to hold it together. Steam was no coming off his arms, and there were small flames starting to ignite. His hands started to turn black and the large black veins started to sprout from his mother's gem. Isaac tried to control the Hellfire and make it stop, but as he struggled against his clone, it was becoming or difficult.

Luckily, he didn't struggle for long, Greg's came out of nowhere and ran Water Isaac over with his van.

Isaac fell on his hands and knees, panting heavily as the steam and flames disappeared and the black on his hands retreated. "Isaac!" Steven and Connie yelled, rushing over to see if he was still okay.

"I'm fine," Isaac said, standing up again.

Greg popped his hand out from the driver's door window and looked at the young and two kids. "Is this a NORMAL magical mission for you?!" He asked his son with anxiousness. "'Cause I'm not so sure how comfortable I am with you going on these any-" He got interrupted when Greg's van was suddenly blasted upwards and away by Water Steven underneath, along with the former rock star still inside.

"Dad!" Steven cried out as the three of them watched the van soar into the air, before crashing a distance away from them. They ran to the van, and Isaac grabbed the handle of the driver's side door and opened it, letting Greg crawl out of it, coughing and groaning. "Dad! Dad! Are you okay?"

Isaac pulled Greg out of the van and looked him, before noticing his leg was starting to turn purple and was bent out of shape. "Ugh, I think my leg's broken," Greg groaned. "See, this is why we wear seatbelts, kids.

Steven turned around and noticed that Water Isaac was approaching them. Isaac saw this and was about to get up. He was about to attack again, but he was stopped when Steven held out his hand. Isaac looked down to see the young Gem glaring at Water Isaac. Steven looked up at Isaac with a determined expression. After just sitting back and letting everyone else fight this battle, he was done just sitting back and letting everyone get hurt. And he was going to put an end to the battle.

Isaac was hesitant at first, but nodded and let Steven do what he had to. Steven turned back to Water Isaac. "Lapis, we don't want to fight anymore," he said resolutely and exasperated.

Lapis didn't care and Water Isaac rushed towards him. Isaac was about to jump in an block the attack from reaching Steven, until he noticed that the young Gem's gemstone started to glow.

"I said..." Steven instinctively held out his left arm as his gem glowed brighter. "I DON'T WANNA FIGHT!"

And then it happened. In a brilliant flash of light, Steven successfully summoned Rose's shield on his arm and blocks the attacked from the clone's sword. Disbanding the water that made up the blade. The impact caused a massive sound wave, resulting in all the water clones to dispel in the reverberation. Everyone around him stared at the young boy in astonishment as Steven dispelled his shield. Metallic clanging noises were made form folding in on itself before disappearing.

"He did it," Isaac whispered in astonishment before Steven started walking towards the tower. Isaac wasn't far behind. The two Demigems walked together as the others watched them. They both stopped in front of the structure and nodded to each other.

"Lapis!" Steven called up, looking up at the unseeable top of the tower. "We're coming up to see you. ...So please don't drown us."

"Wait, Steven!" Connie gasped.

"Isaac!" Pearl exclaimed without thinking.

But neither of the two paid attention as they grabbed hands, took in deep breaths, and boldly jumped into the water tower. Moment, all they did was float freely in the water. However, perhaps showing she was finally going to do things their way, Lapis made a large solid water hand inside the ocean tower and placed it under them. When their feets touched it, Isaac and Steven were lifted quickly up through the water towards the top of the tower. They traveled for miles and miles upwards, passing the clouds and still going up. Ascending to the outer atmosphere of Earth where the clear, star-filled night sky was waiting for them. They looked out of the tower and saw the curve of the planet.

When they arrived at the top, they broke through the water, but Lapis kept the boy encased in a water bubble. Trapping them and immobilizing them. But she did let only their heads free to allow them to breathe. The air was thinner, making it difficult to breathe, but they were focused on one thing.

In front of them stood Lapis Lazuli, glaring firmly and fiercely at them as each of their faces reflected in one of her two. "What are you two doing here?" She demanded from her two former friends in a threateningly, cold tone.

"Us? What about what you? You stole in the entire ocean and then attacked us!" Isaac retorted. "Lapis is INSANE! You have to know this is wrong, right?"

Lapis looked away with a slight bit of guilt in her expression. "You don't understand..."

"Then help us understand!"

"Can't we work this out?" Steven asked earnestly. "We Gems should be friends. Whoa!"

Lapis abruptly pulled Steven and Isaac's bubble forward, bringing them closer to her. "Don't you know anything?" She asked harshly. "Your friends, they don't really care about other Gems. All they care about is the Earth. But I never believed in this place..."

She turned around and gazed up into space. Looking towards a single bright, brilliantly shining star far off in some other solar system in likely another galaxy. Lapis walked away from the boys, continuing to stare at that one star, before letting her control the bubble holding them go, freeing them and dropping them down onto the surface. Isaac and Steven looked at her in confusion, but they walked over and joined the lonely blue Gem as she sat down. Steven sat down next her on her left, and Isaac sat down on her right.

"I just..." Lapis's voice became more gentle and mournful as she closed her eyes and looked down."...want to go home..."

Isaac looked sadly at her. Gem were aliens, so it was likely that she came to earth a really long time ago and then got trapped in the mirror. But now that she was free, like a Gem E.T. all she wanted was to go home. "Lapis..." he said, his voice soft and understanding. "In a way, I know what it's like to have no home. After dad died, I was lost with no real home. But then I came to Beach City, met Steven and the Crystal Gems, and I had a home again. A family. That's why we're here. You took the ocean away, and without it, our home will die."

"I'm only using the ocean because my gem is cracked," Lapis said defensively, trying to reason with them."If I just stretch it far enough..." She trailed off, looking back up at the star before sighing in defeat. "What am I doing? This is never going to work..."

There was a long silent pause between the four of them. Isaac and Steven felt the unmistakable grief that Lapis emanated as she sat there in silence. None of them knew what the do. This one last-ditch effort to escape the planet and go home as failed, and all of her malice was gone. And with it her hope. She was now just a lost Gem, released after thousands of years from a prison, and now was homesick to the point she was willing to do anything to return to.

Isaac reached out his hand to place it on her shoulder when he spotted her gemstone. He leaned back and looked at it. Clear as day, it still had that same crack from when she was in the mirror. "Wait, that's it! Why didn't I think of this before!" Isaac shouted with happiness. "There is a way to fix your cracked Gem!"

"There is?" Lapis asked, looking up at him with hope in her eyes.

Steven gasped as he smiled widely. "I can fix your gem! I have healing powers!" He proclaimed

"Wait, you have healing powers?" Lapis incredulously asked the young Gem.

"I know, right?" Steven replied with a big grin.

"Oh, what should I..." Lapis turned around to have her gemstone face him.

"Oh, uh, sorry. This might be a little weird," Steven said awkwardly.

"What?"

"Look, just, hold still, and..." Isaac trailed off as Steven licked his hand, covering it in saliva. With his healing saliva sparkling on his palm, Steven held it up for a moment, before patting it on Lapis' gem. This caused the blue Gem to shudder from the strange sensation. Isaac walked around her to stand with Steven as the two stared at the cracked gem.

A brief moment passes, and nothing happened.

But then the gemstone started to glow in a luminous blue light. The boys watched in awe as Lapis' gem began to restore itself to its former glory. And then it was completely healed and the cracks closed, a pair of water-wings sprouted from her back. Like watching an angel, they were wide, graceful, and beautiful to behold.

Overwhelmed with joy, she turned to the boys and smiled in bliss. Opening her eyes to show her royal blue pupils and irises had returned back to normal. "Thank you, Steven!" She exclaimed happily. "Thank you both..."

Isaac was speechless as Steven wiped his hand on his pants. "No prob, Bob," he said quietly.

Lapis stared at him for a moment, not getting what he meant. "It's Lapis."

"It's a figure of speech," Isaac explained to stop another awkward moment.

"Oh," the blue Gem said, but she still didn't get it. Lapis turned towards space once more, taking another glance over her shoulder at the boys. "Okay. Bye."

And without saying any more, Lapis took off with a single flap of her wings. Flies off into space as Isaac and Steven watched from her tower as she grew smaller and smaller, until finally disappearing into the infinite blackness of space. A bittersweet ending, but one that they were happy with. The mission was a success; they've helped their friend, and in doing so saved their home. They had saved the earth.

"Wait, if Lapis isn't here, how's the tower still standing?" Steven suddenly asked. Isaac's eyes widened for a moment. Suddenly the water tower started to rumble violently and shifted beneath their feet. As it turned out, it was freed of Lapis' control, and the water tower started to crumble and collapse.

---

Down below at the foot of the tower, the Gems, Greg, Connie and Lion watched as the water tower collapse around them. Cubes of waters splashing down all around them.

"The whole tower's coming down!" Garnet exclaimed as she and Pearl help up Greg.

"What about the boys?!" Greg exclaimed with concern. Upon hearing this, Lion and Connie looked at each other with determination and nodded at each other.

---

As the tower completely fell apart, Isaac and Steven began to fall down towards the earth, alongside the crumbling pieces of the structure. They screamed in terror while falling, and Isaac grabbed Steven and the two clung onto each other. Isaac then turned them around so that he was on the bottom. It was futile, but it was the only thing that he could do to protect the boy he's come to call a brother.

However, luck would be on there side, as well as their friends. Emerge from a portal came Connie and Lion to the rescue. Oh yeah, it turns that the beast is able to create temporal portals. They appeared alongside descending duo, surprising them.

"Grab my hand!" Connie shouted, stretching out her hand out to them.

While still holding each other, Isaac and Steven looked at one another. As if psychically linked and knowing what they were thinking without even explaining it, Isaac grabbed Steven's hand and then swung the boy out at Connie. With the extra arm length, Steven and Connie's hand grabbed each other, and the girl pulled them to safety onto Lion with her.

A second later, Isaac, Steven, Connie, and Lion emerged back on safe ground through another portal. The Gems and Greg were relieved to see them safe, but then the water tower splashed collapsed all around on the group, seemingly burying them underwater.

---

As dawn appeared over Beach City, and Mayor Dewey was still crying and trying in vain to fill the entire ocean by spraying water onto the sand. His desperation was so great that he had actually stayed the entire night on the beach. He barely noticed the water began flooding back and a wave washed over him in the shallows.

The ocean began to flow back to Beach City, restoring to its former self all around the world. And the people of Beach City came out of their homes and shops to see it in amazement. In front of the Temple, Greg's damaged van then emerged from the sea. Rolling out of the water while encased in Steven's bubble shield as they drove it through beneath the waves. Once they were on dry land, Steven released the bubble and let out a long sigh of relief.

"That's how you do it!" Amethyst said, giving the young Gem a playful punch.

The kids, Isaac, and the purple Gem began laughing in rejoice, until Greg's already damaged van finally called it quits and fell apart even more. The wheels gave way, the hood popped open, and smoke billowed out from it.

Pearl looked down at the broken steering wheel came out. She chuckled nervously and looked at a distressed Greg. "Well, what's that thing you always say about the pork chops and the hot dogs?" Greg just looked at her horror.

"Look!" Connie exclaimed after Garnet helped everyone get down off the roof. Isaac and Steven turned around and saw the citizens of Beach City all run towards the group cheering and laughing. Ecstatic that the ocean returned. Right before they could greet them Mayor Dewey tackled Steven and embraced him, as the citizens cheer them on. Connie laughed in joy and Amethyst hugged Lion. Greg is crying in front of his broken van and Yellowtail hands him a handkerchief to comfort him.

Isaac managed to break away from the crowd, chuckling a little at how happy they all were. But it was Steven that saved the town, so he deserved most of the credit. He was then suddenly hugged by Pearl, who ran over to him. Isaac hesitated at first, but smiled and hugged her back wholeheartedly.

"I'm happy you're safe, Isaac," she said through closed eyes, smiling happily. After a few seconds, they let go of each other and stared happily at him. Just like his mother, Onyx's son had made a big impact on all of the Crystal Gems, including her. However, Isaac was pulled away from her by the Cool Kids to rejoin the celebration. Isaac didn't resist and laughed as the crowd cheered for him too.

Pearl giggled a little as she watched him being dragged away. "So, you two seem to be getting along," said Garnet as she walked up to stand beside her.

"I-It's nothing," Pearl said, studdering a bit in her denial. However, this made Garnet chuckle a bit in amusement. Pearl looked at her with a confused frown. "What's so funny?"

"You'll find out eventually," Garnet smirked, adjusting her shades. However, as the people of Beach City cheered for the Demigems, calling them heroes, Garnet's smirk dropped. "So, Lapis made it off-planet."

Pearl's expression turned to one of worry. "She'll be heading for Homeworld...What does this mean for us?"

Garnet simply looked up at the sky. There was only one thing that could be done now. "We wait and see," she said calmly.

The citizens continue cheering, carrying Isaac, Steven, and Connie above them on their shoulders, parading them around. As they did this, the hybrids took a moment to look up at the sky above the Temple. At the single distant star that she called home.

"See you, Lapis," Steven sais with a warm smile on his face.

Isaac did the same as he gazed up at the star, as night became day. "See you around, Ocean Gem," he said, as the star disappeared in the sunlight. "Wherever you are..."

---

AN: And that ends the chapter, and also the ends Act One of "Gem of War" and I do have to say that I'm definitely ready to get into the real plot of Steven Universe. First off, I just want to say thank you to everyone who's not only followed the story up to this point, but also say thank to those of you that have been reviewing the chapters.

Seriously guys, I really want feedback on this story. What do I have to do to get some reviews?

It's been a really rough few days for me as the whole coronavirus thing has put everyone on edge. I'm not sick, luckily, but everything is changing so quickly and drastically. School's on lockdown, toilet papers' in high diamond apparently, and I'm forced to do my school work at home and have to move everything out of my dorm back home. Basically it means that while I can focus on fanfics, it also means I can get easily distracted by fanfics.

I hope all of you are in good health and doing everything to keep yourselves from getting sick.

So, for the final chapter of the first Act, I decided to have the two episodes be combined into one action-packed adventure.

So when I said in my last update that "The Reason: A Gem of War story" was going to be taken down, admiral809 recommended that I don't take it down, as there are people who like it. So, what I'm going to do is keep "The Reason" and as kind of a Star Wars Legends story. It's its own story, and will not be canon with "Gem of War". But what I'll also do is go in and make adjustments in "The Reason" so that it fits with the flashback chapters of the main story. These flashback chapters will be known as Act Zero and are out of order.

Let me ask you guys something. Do you think the Crystal Gems are doing the right thing by not telling Isaac what they know about Onyx? If you were in their shoes, would you honor Rose's wishes and not tell him?

I am going to be putting this story on hiatus and start working on "Godzilla: the Titan Slayer of Fairy Tail." But I will be coming back to this story every once in a while as I work on other stories. The next will be the first chapter of Act 0, so sit tight for that.

Thank you very much for reading. "Gem of War" will return. Please be sure to Favorite and Follow if you like the story, and also Review it. If you any questions or discussions you'd have for me, then please in a Review or a PM me.

Thank you for reading, may God bless you, and have a wonderful day.