Hello to you all. My name is TOkun92, and I bring to you my Steven Universe fanfic, Steven Universe: Shattered Future (I couldn't think of a better name). As a warning, let me just say that this story is not finished. I have the prologue finished, as well as eighteen chapters. I've been stuck on chapter twenty for months, making very little headway with it. I didn't want to post this story until it was finished, but I've been working on it for over two years and want to see it published, even if it isn't finished. I'm hoping that by getting some reviews it will inspire me to write and get the creative juices flowing. I will be posting new chapters every two weeks.
I would really appreciate some feedback. Thank you.
Steven Universe: Shattered Future
Prologue
Steven Universe exited room 101 of the motel, wearing a pair of grey swimming trunks, a pink towel over his shoulder. He specifically requested this room so he could have close access to the motels pool, as well as an area with an ice machine, a vending machine, and other such appliances. He walked over to the fenced-in pool, hopping over the fence rather than going around the long way to the gate, jumping several meters into the air.
He threw his towel onto a lounge chair as he slowly descended straight into the pool. Ever since his first experience with the Keystone Motel, he had enjoyed the feeling of being in hotels. He always imagined the hundreds of different people that had stayed in these motels, from the boring and listless, to the exciting and fun. It was all so exciting.
Steven stayed under water for as long as he could, then rose for air. He enjoyed the cool water running down his face, soaking in his hair. It was late, so no one else was there. He swam around the pool, doing so until he did fifty laps. When finished, he went to the center and simply floated in the water, looking up at the night sky. The smell of chlorine surrounded him, blocking any fresh air from reaching his lungs.
Stars littered the sky, many more than there used to be four years ago. Since Homeworld had established peace with Earth, they were given access to cleaner technology, lessening the planet's carbon footprint, and reducing the amount of pollution humans caused. Even Jersey had a beautiful night sky now!
Steven breathed in the crisp night air, his chest sinking into the water and rising back out. It'd been almost a year since he left Beach City to look for his own place in the world. He still talked to the other Crystal Gems, of course. He would video chat them at the end of every month, telling them everything he did. Pearl started off calling him every day.
Of course, he still talked to Connie, too. Either over the phone or on the laptop, he made a point to see or hear her. She'd meet him on the road by riding on Lion and teleporting (or 'teleroaring', as Amethyst punned) to his location, and they'd spend the weekend together, or even a whole week, depending on her schedule. In fact, she was going to visit him a week from now.
Steven wanted to find a place where they could live together. He knew she didn't want to marry him yet; they were too young. But finding a place to live together wasn't entirely out of the question. He'd seen a few places; small apartments, a quaint little house on a dead-end block, even a huge manor. Her commute to school wouldn't be a problem with Lion, and they could also visit their families whenever they wanted. Money wasn't an issue, either; aside from the money his father had, Steven also had access to the money Pearl had accumulated over the years.
He didn't realize just how much money the Gems actually had until he needed some cash while on the road. His credit card got damaged, and he'd run out of cash. Fortunately, Pearl always carried some in her Gem. When she and the others visited him a few months back, she asked how much he needed to be on the road comfortably, and he joked that a cool million would be perfect.
She took him seriously, then just summoned a million dollars in cold hard cash right on the hotel floor from her Gem! Turns out Pearl liked to play the stock market when she was younger, and just kept all the cash she earned in her Gem. According to her, she had over $10,000,000 in her Gem! Funny thing was, she didn't realize it was a fortune.
When he asked her why she worked on stocks in the first place, she simply said, "It was exciting for a while. Kind of like a really difficult puzzle. Then I mastered it after a couple months and it became boring. I kept doing it for a while, but it started feeling like a chore, not even a fun one, so I stopped."
His father had supported them and the beach house with his car wash, so she never thought about the money. The beach house ran on magic, completely off the grid, so all he ever had to buy was food and clothing. Pearl only ever used the money when Steven or Amethyst wanted something, and Steven didn't have any money. He recalled her summoning a huge stack of cash when she lost her cell phone in her Gem, a few thousand at least, but hadn't thought anything of it at the time.
Steven swam to the edge of the pool and climbed out, dried himself off, and went back to his room. He went to the bathroom to take a shower; he reeked of chlorine. While showering, he made sure to clean his Gem thoroughly with a jewel cleaner, to keep its shine. He did this every six month, starting when he turned twelve. Pearl had ingrained it into him when she saw how dirty his Gem got when he played outside one day, telling him to do so twice a year.
After his shower, he inspected himself in the mirror. It was a little difficult to believe that he was a short pudgy kid only four years ago. Now he was lean, fit and muscular. He wasn't gonna lie, he felt good about himself. Gems barely had any concept of body image, positive or negative, so he hadn't thought much about his appearance when he was younger, only his health and hygiene.
Ever since his Gem was removed by White Diamond, he made it a point to keep his body healthy and fit. He remembered how weak he was without his Gem, and he never wanted to feel like that again. He took only a single step before collapsing to the ground! His Gem provided him with the strength and powers he had; he didn't know if he'd be better off now that his physical body was in better shape, or if his life was connected to it entirely, but either way, he felt better about himself. He thought of testing it out, removing his Gem for a few minutes, but that feeling really was the worst.
After drying off again, Steven got dressed in his pajamas. He exited the bathroom and went to the foot of his bed. He stretched out his arms, and let himself fall back, bouncing on the mattress.
Steven turned to his side, grabbing his phone off the side table. He checked his messages. He had texts from Pearl and Connie. He read Pearl's first.
'We all miss you so much! Things are so dull without you! And don't forget to wax your Gem! It's been six months since I last reminded you!' Steven chuckled a little.
Six months. Plus, the four months he was on the road when she last reminded him, that meant he was gone for ten months. It was hard to believe that he'd been gone from Beach City for almost a year. Heck, he turned seventeen on the road! The Gems, Connie, and his dad had all met up with him using Lion to celebrate. They did the same when Connie turned sixteen.
'I miss you guys, too,' Steven texted. 'And don't worry, I waxed my Gem just a few minutes ago.' He sent the text, then went to Connie's.
'Can't wait for this weekend! My friends helped me pick out a new swimsuit, said the ones I had were too plain. Can't WAIT for you to see it! ;)'
Steven wondered what she meant by plain. He thought back to Connie's other swimsuits, and they were anything but. Each one had meaning behind it. One had a beautiful floral pattern, with roses and thorns, reminiscent of his mother. Another had bubbles which glowed in the dark, for the time the two of them had first met, and ended up becoming 'Bubble Buddies', as well as the return of her glow in the dark bracelet. But his favorite had stars all over it, just like the Crystal Gems had on their clothes.
'Can't wait to see it,' Steven texted. 'I'll pick up a new pair of trunks. Maybe we'll end up matching!'
Steven sent the text and put his phone down on the end table, plugging it into the charger/clock combination. The clock read 9:34 pm. He pulled the blankets from under him and covered himself, dropping his head onto the soft pillow with a satisfying PLOP! He wanted to stay on a good schedule, and falling asleep early was a requirement.
A loud pinging sound woke Steven from his comfortable sleep. He slowly opened his eyes to look around for his phone. When he saw it, he reached over and pulled it off the charger, almost pulling the clock/charger, which now read 2:53 a.m., off the end table. He turned around to lie on his back, opening his phone to see who texted him. It was Lars.
"Lars?" Steven groggily said to himself.
Steven sat up to read the texts. He hadn't seen Lars in almost a month. He and Connie would visit him every so often through Lion's mane. They used to surprise him but stopped when they visited him while he was in the shower. After that, they always made a point to tell him ahead of time.
'We found a Shattered Gem,' it said.
"A Gem?" Steven repeated aloud.
'Where?' Steven texted back.
'Gem Homeworld,' Lars replied. 'It was in one of the old caves. It's broken pretty bad.'
Two pictures came up on the screen. Steven tapped the first one, enlarging it. A massive Pearl, bigger than Pearl's back in Beach City, rested in Lars's hand. A large piece was missing. It was covered in dirt and grime. Steven swiped the phone to look at the next one. It was a piece of the Pearl. The grime was smeared, as if Lars had tried to wipe it off. The Gem wasn't just broken; it was Shattered!
'We thought you could fix it,' Lars told him. 'We figured if anyone could do it, it was Steven Universe!'
'Come back to Beach City,' Steven texted. 'I'll try and heal her there.'
A minute passed when Lars replied.
'We're still refueling the ship; we'll leave once it's done. The Twins say we can be there in five days.'
Steven stood up and stretched. He could be in Beach City around the same time if he drove non-stop, maybe a little earlier than Lars, so he could catch up with the others before he arrived.
Steven packed his bags and went to his car. He thought of texting the Crystal Gems, Connie, or his dad that he was coming back to Beach City. But surprising them would probably be better.
Not to mention funnier.
