C1
The morning sun rose up on a beautiful seaside town called Beach City as its residents started to wake up from either the morning sunlight or from their alarm clocks. A decent beach house, which is located away from the town itself, stood tall and proud up against the massive mountain hill that is bolted to a carved woman statue. Inside the home, a digital alarm clock went off and made the individual awake from his sleep. Quickly turning it off before taking the moment to wake up, a black teen hybrid gem, whose name is JJ, scratched his head before yawning.
"Mmmm, forgot to turn the alarm off last night. Forgot I have the weekend off." JJ said before removing his covers.
JJ stretched his arms before sitting to the side of his bed. He looked at the other bed to see his little baby brother still asleep. He smiled when seeing him move around a bit before getting up to wake him up.
"Alright, Steven, time to rise and shine." said JJ, moving the boy on his shoulder.
Steven slowly woke up before getting out of the bed with a sleepy gaze. He rubbed his eye and looked at JJ and tiredly smiled. "Morning JJ. Sleep well?."
"Indeed I have, Steven." JJ took the moment to look at the other side of their home and see there is not any activity from the warp pad or the gem door to the temple being opened. "Hmmm, it looks like our aunts are either in their personal rooms doing who knows what or out on another mission without me."
"Don't you mean us?." Steven made his bed up when asking.
JJ chuckled while making his bed up as well. "Well, I really want to say us and not me, Steven, I do. Just that until we figured out how you can learn to manage in controlling the powers within your dream, you had to stay home. Now, I would really love for us to be together on missions. You and I are a dynamic duo."
Steven chuckled funlly in response as he walked down the steps. "True. And we are brothers as well. We are a team!."
JJ nodded and followed his twelve year old baby brother. "Facts."
As both JJ and Steven are brothers. Not by blood or conceived by the same parents. No, those two brothers were born different. For Steven, he is born from his alien mom whose name is Rose Quartz. His mom is the sole leader of the rebellion group named the Crystal Gems, who had led the fight against Homeworld and won. Later on in her life she had met and fell in love with a human male named Greg. Greg Universe. The two were lovers and had great chemistry regardless of their race and culture.
When Rose was pregnant with Steven she had to give up her own life and form in order for him to be born. You see, national born children of hybrid gems can work with a male gem and a human female without any sacrifices of the parent. That counts with a male and female gem who wants to have a family. But if a female gem gets impregnated by a non male gem, then she has to give up her life and form in order for the child to be born. Meaning that she has spent her nine months wisely. Now as for JJ on the other hand. The seventeen year old black teen is a different case.
Instead of being conceived the old fashion way he was conceived in a lab. A lab that once belonged to his deceased black gem father. Speaking about his father. JJ's father is completely the opposite of Steven's mom. His father is the sole leader, master and lord of all gems of Homeworld and the gem race itself. His name is Black Diamond. The most powerful and most feared gem over the four diamonds. Heck, he is in charge of them. To make a long story short, JJ's father infused his sperm into an assumed random woman's egg and thus he was born.
After the two brothers were done washing up and getting into their clothes. Steven, wearing his usual star t-shirt with long jean pants and sandals. JJ, wearing a black t-shirt with a flying blue comet image with a matching pair of black shorts and a pair of blue Air Jordan 1 mid-top edition shoes. And finally, he also wears his masculine gold cuban curb thick 5mm stainless steel necklace chain. The boy has a taste in bling.
"So, what are we eating for breakfast, JJ?." asked Steven, grabbing a seat at the table.
"Well, I was thinking." JJ grabbed his wallet. "Instead of us eating my homemade breakfast, we can go down to the Big Donut and have our breakfast there. Cool?."
Steven's eyes lit up like stars. "Cool!."
JJ just loved Steven's hyped excitement. It reminded him of their mother, Rose. She gets super excited at the little things that others deemed little to no exciting. Once closing the door and going down the steps the two walked their way into town. It took at least about twelve minutes for the two to reach the Big Donut, as JJ opened the door to let Steven inside before letting himself in. Upon entering the classic and only donut shop in town, the two Universe brothers encountered two of their favorite people that work here.
"Morning you two." Sadie smiled at her two friends.
"Morning, Sadie." Steven spoke with energy.
"Morning, Sadie. Has business been booming for you guys?." asked JJ, when laying on the register countertop.
Sadie smiled at her best friend since childhood. "Nah, it is less busy in the morning. What can I get you boys?."
JJ looked at the menu for a quick second before looking back at Sadie. "Give us two dozen. Random, please."
Sadie gave JJ the price for the order before being given the money and big generous tip. Then Lars went to work in fixing the order before handing it to JJ. The two brothers sat at the table near the window and ate their breakfast. The two talked amongst themselves while eating their yummy treat since there is nothing big of an importance going on. Steven munched his equal split share of his donuts in utter happiness as JJ drank his free coffee while dunking his donut in it.
"I was thinking about buying us a brand new tv. A nice flat screen." said JJ, after wiping his mouth.
"That sounds like an excellent idea. The old TV is getting kinda boring." said Steven, taking another bite of his pumpkin donut.
JJ nodded. "True. I'm tired of watching anything on that fat small tv. I wonder what our aunts are up to today?."
Steven gave it a thought before grinning. "Probably doing something cool like a magical adventure!."
"Yeah, that sounds about right." said JJ, looking into his cup and seeing he is out of creamed coffee.
In response he got up and then went over to the otherside of the room where the coffee section is located. Taking his time he poured the freshly hot joe into his cup before putting the pot back in its warmer. Then he went to grab the sugar and his favorite creamer before stirring them together in his cup. After the coffee in his cup went from black to brownish white, JJ put the straw in the trash can before lifting his cup up to drink.
"Nooooo!."
JJ almost spilled his coffee on himself when hearing his baby brother scream in fright. Recovering quickly, he looked to where his brother was and see him looking at a Cookie Cat themed mini refrigerator.
"Baby Bro you good?." JJ went over to Steven with concern.
Steven looked up at his big brother in emotional pain. "It's the Cookie Cat ice cream sandwiches, JJ. They ran out!."
JJ looked at the visible door of the mini fridge and saw the racks were all the way empty. "I see. I'm sure that either Lars or Sadie do not mind going into the back and giving you one of them."
"I wish." Sadie responded while resting her left cheek with her left fist. "The Cookie Cat company has officially gone out of business. They stopped making them."
"Stop making them?." Steven had that look of shock. "Stop making them!?. Who would stop making the most delicious type of ice cream treat in the world?."
JJ shrugged his shoulders. "Who knows."
"I do." Lars sat down a box and then opened it to pull out the shipped product for restock. "The Cookie Cat ice cream company can not compete with Lion Licks."
"Lion Licks?." JJ and Steven said together in disgust.
The two hated Lion Licks popsicles. The taste is awful, its appearance is so rundown, unprofessional, and its commercial ad is so crappy.
"Ah, man, that is stupid. Out of all the frozen treats in the world, Lion Licks out income Cookie Cake. Ain't no way." said JJ, before looking at the frozen item in the freezer.
Lars shrugged. "Sorry, bud, but it is true. If possible you two can try bringing Cookie Cat back with your magic so-called gems."
Steven frowned for a brief moment. "That is not how our gem works, Lars." He paused to lift his shirt up and looked at his pink gem that is located in his belly button. "Does it?. How about your gem, JJ?."
"Pfft, I can do a lot of things with my gem, but bringing back ice cream is not one of them." said JJ, before pulling his top shirt down to show his black gem in the center of his chest.
"Hey, I'm just suggesting." Lars finished stocking and began breaking the box down. "And since the Cookie Cat company went out of business, the Big Donut's food contract with them is over as well."
"Meaning that the Cookie Cat fridge is free to take. You wanna take it Steven?." said Sadie, looking at Steven worryingly.
Steven was hugging the mini fridge like it was his final time seeing it. Having a sad teary eyed facial expression. JJ sighed at his baby brother's sensitivity.
"If it means a lot to you, Steven, then we will take it home." JJ pulled his wallet out and put a fifty buck on the counter. "You know how I feel about the idea of free stuff or free things, Sadie."
Sadie chuckled when sliding the fifty dollar buck. "Yeah, I know, JJ. You don't believe in free things or free stuff. You are a prime example of a hard dedicated worker. Better than me, no cap."
"No cap indeed. See you guys later." said JJ, exiting the Big Donut after letting Steven out first since he has the fridge in his hands.
Yes, it is true. JJ does not believe in free items and such. He believed in working for it and not getting things handed to him. He believed that everything is earned or bought and not given. No one taught him that life lesson. It was in his genes. More like father genes. His mom told him one of the things about his father, 'Black Diamond', is that he is a true worker. A gem that sees that getting the things you want or enjoying what the Universe offers requires working and not giving. He said that the aftermath is more enjoyable and valued much more if you earned it through labor or any kind of work itself.
"Well, since we have ourselves a rare collectors item, we can keep it safe in the storage. That fridge is going to be worth money someday. Hopefully." said JJ, making sure that the mini fridge is tied down on Steven's back.
"I was hoping we could use it. We may have lost Cookie Cat ice cream forever but we can lose its memories." said Steven, holding onto the cords on his shoulder.
"Good point. Well, let us do just that then." said JJ, before doing light jogging.
Steven did the same while humming a random tune to pass the time until they reached back home. Taking their time stepping on the sturdy wooden steps, JJ and Steven entered their house and were welcomed by a human sized corrupted black and green centipede gem. Before JJ had time to react and protect Steven, a purple whip wrapped itself around the centipede's face. The person responsible for it is nonother than Amethyst herself.
Amethyst had a good grip on her whip before looking at JJ and Steven. Giving them a peace sign. "Sup, boys."
Without hesitation she pulled the centipede over to where she is and stumped its head, resulting in having the corrupted gem to be poofed. JJ did not hesitate to summon his weapon as his black gem began to glow. Having his hand out for the weapon to appear as it glowed from thin air. Once it fully appeared, JJ's black double blade sword is a thing of beauty. With no hesitation, JJ started striking centipedes from every direction that was approaching not only at him but also Steven.
"Any explanations as to why we have these things in our home?." JJ asked before cutting one in half and watching it poof.
Pearl grabbed one and had it by the head. "We're assuming that these little pests were trying to make the attempt in getting into the temple. But do not worry, we will get them out of your room."
"Well, they do look kinda cute. They don't seem that harmful." said Steven, liking them too soon.
The centipede in Pearl's arms instantly spat out on the wooden floor. Causing a big hole in its place to Steven and Pearl's dismay.
"Oh, that is just great." JJ said in sarcasm while frowning at the damage that the centipede had created. "Now, I had to buy brand new slab wood at the hardware store."
With excellent timing, JJ impaled a centipede from behind without even looking to ensure that he stabbed the corrupted gem. Amethyst stumped another one in the head in hopes of finding what she is looking for. Unfortunately, she did not find one with the other centipedes.
"Oh, boy, uh, guys?. We have a problem." Amethyst looked at her family before digging in her nose with her right index finger. "None of these things have a gem."
"It looks like there is a mother somewhere nearby." said Garnet, before snapping a centipede in half.
"Hey, can I come with?." asked Steven, sounding excited.
"Steven." Pearl looked at the boy and smiled sweetly. "Until you are able to master the power in your gem, you just let us fight corrupted gems and keep both earth and humanity in one piece to us and your older brother. Okay?."
Steven sighs in defeat. "Oh, alright." He looked over and saw what he did not like to see. "Hey!."
Steven went over to the kitchen and shooed away a centipede who found itself in the refrigerator and making a mess. Steven examines the insides of the fridge and see all the food is either eaten or half eaten.
"Bro, you might want to add grocery shopping to the list, because these centipedes have gotten into everything in our fridge." informed Steven.
JJ unsummoned his double blade sword and let Garnet handle the final one. "When I see the centipede's mother, I am going to be the one to poof her. Is all the sodas gone too?."
"Yeah, and even drink my strawberry sodas." Steven closed the main door before opening the top where the freezer is and was surprised to see what was inside. "No way!."
JJ went over to his baby brother in worry. "What is wrong?."
Steven responded when pulling out a cat shaped item and spoke with excitement. "Cookie Cat ice cream!. And we have a full freezer of it!."
"No way, really?." JJ looked to see for himself. "Well, dang, they are in there. Did you guys visit the factory to get these?."
"Well…" Pearl unsummoned her spear before approaching the boys. "We have overheard that the building is shutting down for good and also we know that this is your brother's favorite…."
Amethyst jumped on the countertop and spoke over Pearl. "And went and stole a bunch and brought it all here!."
"Yeah, stole?." JJ felt himself upset about it. "Amethyst, you know how I feel about stealing."
"Actually, JJ." Pearl crossed her arms and gave Amethyst a pointed look. "I went back to pay for them."
"The whole thing was my idea." said Garnet, pulling herself a chair.
"I thought we agreed that it was all of our idea?." pointing out Amethyst.
Garnet shook her head. "Mmm, no."
Pearl shook her head. "Look, the point is that we did it for Steven and he is happy."
"Exactly." JJ looked at Steven. "Ain't that right baby bro?. Bro?."
Steven took a short pause before responding to the four. And his response is a jingle song. A commercial song of the Cookie Cat theme. Garnet, Pearl, Amethyst, and JJ listen to the well detailed song from Steven as he did a little dance to go with it. It was amusing and quite enjoyable to JJ and the others especially when Steven did a brief grocery store intercom imitation. That was indeed enjoyable to hear as they gave him a standing ovation. After Steven was done praising his favorite ice cream, he unwrapped the ears of the sandwich and ate them, saying that he always eats the ears first to JJ's knowledge.
At that very moment something unexpected happened. His gem started to glow to everyone's surprise.
"Steven, your gem….it's glowing!." said Pearl.
"Huh, really?." Steven looked down and saw that his gem was glowing to his excitement. "Oh, my gosh it is!. What do I do!?."
JJ got excited. "Try summoning a weapon."
Steven tried and concentrated in bringing forth a weapon. Everyone eagerly waited for the long awaited moment of Steven channeling his gem powers and summoning a weapon. With luck he did just that. He summoned a pink rose shield to everyone's astonishment, since that is the same exact shield that Rose once had. It put big smiles on their faces when seeing that shield.
"Hey, I did." Steven was overjoyed about this. "Yes!."
With no warning the shield was unleashed and was bouncing all over the place. JJ ducked when the shield was heading towards him and wished that he should have caught it since now the shield had made contact with the tv. Thus, going through and getting stuck inside the now broken tv before vanishing into thin air.
"Huh, tv too?." JJ shrugged his shoulders. "Well, it was time for a new one anyway."
"Oops." Steven chuckled nervously. "At least we know what triggers my gem."
"Steven, that is not how our gems work. Eating ice cream does not encourage our gems to come active." said Pearl, trying not to put Steven down.
"It somehow did it." pointed out Amethyst, before getting off the countertop.
Before anyone could utter another word, they began to feel the house shaking to their surprise.
"Ah, earthquake!." cried Steven.
JJ with good steady balance ran over towards the window to see what was going on outside. When doing so he has found the source of the so-called earthquaking.
"Fortunately it is not. It's the centipede's mother. Looks like we do not have to go looking for her. Works for me." said JJ, exiting the house.
He looked at the huge wilde centipede as it roared and made its way towards the house in the attempt to try getting into the temple. With no hesitation he put his hands up and summoned his two black blasters. When feeling the handles of his guns, JJ jumped up off the balcony and started blasting the thing. The centipede mother roared in anger as it stepped back from the impact of JJ's blasters that had infinite rounds before shooting out multiple acids. JJ jumped away from being hit while continuing shooting.
He held his ground long enough till Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst jumped into the fight. Garnet jumped and sucker punched the monster with one of her battle fists, causing the mother centipede to hit the sand hard.
"Excellent timing, Aunt Garnet." said JJ, still holding onto his blasters.
"Don't praise me just yet, JJ." said Garnet, eyeing their target.
The mother centipede jumped back to its legs and spitted another round of multiple acids. The Crystal Gems avoided the impact without having to get a single fluid to touch them. Amethyst tried to pull the thing down with her whip so that Pearl could jump up and then stabbed it in the head, but luckily for the mother centipede she broke its hold and used her tail to wake Pearl away from her.
"Ah, geez, this is going to be a real challenge. Any ideas?." JJ looked at Garnet.
"Not at the moment, no." Garnet responded calmly.
"I do!."
JJ and the others looked over to see Steven running down towards them along with having the Cookie Cat mini fridge filled with its ice cream sandwiches with him.
"It's me!." Steven spoke in enthusiasm.
"Steven, what are you doing here?." responded back JJ.
"I'm here to help, JJ!." Steven took one ice cream sandwich. "Cookie Cat ice cream sandwiches…activate!."
Steven took a bite of his ice cream. He waited for his gem to glow like it did in the beach house. Unfortunately, nothing is happening. This made Steven worry as he started eating more ice cream.
"Steven, that is not working." JJ started shooting at the mother centipede.
"Why is this not working!?." Steven spoke in frustration.
"Steven eating ice cream does not activate our gem powers." said Pearl, throwing another spear.
"Alright, let's end this." JJ vanished his blasters and brought back his double blade sword. "Throw me, Garnet."
Garnet nodded and picked up her nephew. "Gotcha."
Garnet spun and then threw JJ forward towards the mother centipede. JJ swung his sharp sword like a baseball bat as soon as the mother centipede opened its mouth. The blade made contact with its eye and poofed the corrupted gem. Once the poof dust was cleared, JJ walked over to pick up the green gem before bubbling it.
"That was a chore." JJ said when sending his black bubble with the gem inside up and sending it into the temple where the other corrupted bubbled gems are located.
"I do not get it. Why did it not work?." Steven spoke in utter sadness.
"Don't worry Steven, we will find the right way for getting your gem to get active on your will." said JJ, given his baby brother a hug and a smile.
"And you will do it in your own Steven way." said Garnet, with a smile.
This made Steven smile at the love and comfort of his family. Then an idea came to him.
"Is it possible for you guys to teach and show me how to make your gem work?." Steven asked.
"Ooooo, I will go first!." Pearl sang in pure enjoyment of volunteering.
(A/N): Well, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter.
So about JJ's weapons. His double blade sword is the same exact sword a Thanos from Avengers Endgame and his blasters are Starlord's element blasters. See ya in the next chapter. Yowie Wowie!.