Tammo found it hard to tell just how long he had been in his prison cell. It could have been days or merely hours. But he did know one thing: he was getting hungry. He wished he was like Joshy and could summon food automatically.
"I say!" he called out. "Is there any chance you could bring me some vittles to eat? Chap's gotta have his blinkin' scoff and whatnot."
There was no answer. "I don't think anyone's listening to you," Lapis said from the cell across the hall.
Tammo raised his voice. "Jasper? Peridot? Anybody there? Can I have a bite to eat? You want me to be in fit condition to stand trial, right? You Gems might not need to eat, but us organic life forms do, wot!"
This time there was a response, but it wasn't what he was expecting. "Tamm?" he heard Pasque's voice call from a distance. "Is that you?"
"Pasque!" Tammo cried. "You're alive! Are you okay? They didn't hurt you, did they?"
"No, but they've got me locked up in a cell. There's some kind of force field trapping me in here."
"I'm stuck in one of those cells, too," Tammo said excitedly. "We must be just down the hall from each other! And Lapis Lazuli is here too! Maybe we can work together to escape!"
"Got any plans?" Pasque asked.
"Haven't thought of any yet," Tammo admitted. "I suppose I can start by seeing just how strong this force field is."
He reached his paw out in front of him and actually tried to touch the force field for the first time. It gave his paw a mild electric shock, but it didn't really hurt him. So, he just stepped forward and pushed right through the barrier, passing to the other side unscathed. Now he was standing in the hallway. "Woohoo! I'm out!" he cheered.
Lapis jumped up in surprise. "How did you get past the field?"
"I don't know," he said. "I just kinda…" He reached toward the force field that held Lapis in her cell.
"Wait! No!" Lapis cried in alarm. But there was no reason for her to be afraid. Tammo's paw passed through that force field perfectly unharmed as well.
"How is this possible?" Lapis wondered.
"Maybe it's defective or something," Tammo said.
Lapis tried to step through herself, but the force field shocked her so bad that it sent her flying back into her cell wall. She cried out in pain.
"Definitely not defective, then," Tammo mused. "Maybe it only works on Gems. And it doesn't affect me as much because I'm only half Gem. That makes sense. Here, let me try something."
He stepped into the force field that held Lapis in her cell and held out his arm, creating a hole in the barrier. Lapis slid under his arm and out into the hallway. She was free! "Thank you!" she said.
"Okay, let's find Pasque," said Tammo.
They walked down the hall until they reached Pasque's cell. Pasque was overjoyed to see Tammo again. "How'd you get out?" she asked.
"I think the force field only works on Gems," Tammo said. "Try stepping through it."
She did, and she didn't even get the mild shock that Tammo had received. She was able to slip through with no problems whatsoever. Tammo gave her a hug and a kiss.
"What do we do now?" Lapis asked.
"Let's see if we can locate the jolly old control room," Tammo suggested. "Maybe we can turn this ship around and head back to Earth, wot wot."
They set off through the hallways of the ship, looking for the control bridge. "Guess it'd be too much to hope that this ship has an A.I. too?" Pasque said.
"What's an A.I.?" Lapis asked. "I've never heard of that."
"So, this ship just operates manually, then?" Tammo said. "Do you know how to fly it?"
"I don't know," Lapis said. "I've never tried to steer a ship this size. If I were you, I'd try to fly out of here in an escape pod instead. But the escape pods will be in the control room too."
Eventually, they reached the control room. But when they entered it, they came face to face with Jasper and Peridot!
"Oh great," said Jasper. "The prisoners have escaped."
"'Go to Earth,' they said," Peridot grumbled. "'It'll be easy,' they said."
Tammo and Pasque quickly joined paws and fused into Tasque again.
"Quit embarrassing yourselves," Jasper said. "Fusion is just a cheap tactic to make weak Gems stronger. I've seen what you really are."
"No, you haven't," Tasque said, and they sprang forward at Jasper. They managed to land a few punches on Jasper's face, but then Jasper grabbed their arm and pulled them over, sending them crashing to the floor.
Taking advantage of the confusion, Lapis Lazuli darted over to the control panel and pressed a button that opened up a hole in the wall, revealing a tiny spaceship that was just barely big enough for three people to sit in.
"Hey, don't touch that!" Peridot shouted.
But Lapis wasn't listening. She dived into the escape pod. "Hurry, Tammo!" she cried.
Tasque got back up to their feet and tried to make a run for the escape pod, but Jasper was too quick for them. She jumped in front of them, barring their way. Then she pulled out a device that looked like a tuning fork and jabbed Tasque with it, making them separate back into Tammo and Pasque. Quickly Jasper grabbed hold of Tammo, and Peridot ran over and grabbed Pasque.
"Save yourself, Lapis!" Tammo yelled. "Don't worry about us!"
Lapis didn't need telling twice. She revved up the escape pod and blasted off, away from the warship.
"She's getting away!" Peridot said.
"Never mind her," said Jasper. "At least we've still got these two."
"Should we put them back in their cells?" Peridot asked.
Jasper shook her head. "It seems the force field isn't strong enough for them. We'll just tie them up with ropes, and keep them in here where we can keep our eyes on 'em."