Forest, Day…

"Are you alright, Jason?" Garnet inquired. "You look pale."

"Sorry." Jason stated. "First time with that many humans in such a confined space."

"Thanks again for your help." The maroon gem stated.

"No problem." Jason replied.

The soldier had ended up going with Garnet on one of her missions because she needed to access some cave to find out where the next set of gems were. The very night she decided to go, there was a rave happening next door.

Jason's job was to be in the thick of a large crowd of people while subtly clearing a way for Garnet to enter the cave. Then, he had to make sure no one disturbed her. That kind of involved discreetly knocking a few people out.

It wasn't that bad a mission, but it was the first one he'd been on since coming back from the strawberry fields. It was not a mission he'd have personally picked, but he did agree to help when the gems wanted him to.

"So, we got the location?" Jason asked as they walked to the warp pad.

"Yes. The Heaven and Earth Geode Beetles are located at the Sky Spire and at the bottom of a lava lake." Garnet explained. "You'll be going to the Sky Spire for the heaven beetle."

"Makes sense." Jason stated as they stepped onto the warp pad. "Humans aren't resistant to lava."

"Exactly." Garnet activated the pad, sending them home.

Beach City: Temple

Jason took in the temple for a good moment. "I didn't get to enjoy being back since Garnet practically had this mission for me upon my return."

After the strawberry fields, Jason had decided he needed to take off to gain back some of the time he lost settling in. It was his fault since he should have built-in proper time for his own training. In the end, he'd gone camping, meaning he'd missed a few adventures.

Apparently, Amethyst kept sneaking out when the others weren't looking but Steven spotted her. When he followed her, the boy found out she was participating in some sort of underground wrestling ring. Steven naturally joined in under the guise of 'Tiger Millionaire'.

Garnet and Pearl eventually found out and weren't happy with Amethyst's disregard for their, as far as they knew, secret existence. In the end, they became good sports for Amethyst and Steven. Next, Steven got a new pet, and Jason could remember when he met him.

Flashback

Jason had returned that evening and fell asleep just as soon as he greeted the gems and Steven. When he awoke in the morning, he was not expecting to see a very large ball of pink fur staring right at him. Considering the lion hadn't eaten him, they stared at each other.

The soldier sat up and looked at his fellow Crystal Gems. "Is someone going to tell me why there is a pink lion here, or am I just supposed to assume this is normal now?"

"Lion's here!" Steven seemed to notice this for the first time, so he ran on over before giving the animal a big hug. "What were you doing watching Jason?"

"Steven found him in the desert." Pearl decided to answer his earlier question.

"He wants to keep it." Garnet finished.

Present

Considering everything Jason's dealt with in his life, a pink lion wasn't that surprising. Apparently, it was quite useful since Steven was able to use him to stop a land-manipulating gem from taking over all of Beach City. The last adventure he missed was the arcade at Funland.

Amethyst naturally cheated her way on one of the machines, Pearl didn't understand how to play, and Garnet went overboard. According to Steven, the maroon gem stayed up all night playing rhythm game non-stop.

The gems had to deal with a monster attack while Garnet was indisposed, so Steven had to try to snap her out of it to get her help. To do that, he smashed the arcade machine which angered the owner, Mr. Smiley. While the gems fought the monster, Steven worked at the arcade.

He'd have to work there even longer to pay for all the damage. While Jason was all for consequences, he figured the boy really didn't have a choice, so he ended up paying instead. The last thing to come from it was that Garnet has three eyes.

Again, not that surprising all things considered. Then, he ended up returning, meeting that lion, and being brought on the mission which they'd just returned from. He clearly wouldn't be staying long considering they had some beetles to find.

Steven ran into the house. "Ooh! Ooh! Did you bring me anything?" Garnet pulled out a rock and gave it to him. "Whoa, a rock! Thanks, Garnet!"

Pearl walked up to them. "So, was your mission a success?"

"We located the geode beetles of Heaven and Earth." Garnet replied. "We should split up to retrieve them."

"Well, I'm going with not Pearl." Amethyst declared angrily.

"That's perfect because I don't want to go with grammatically incorrect people." Pearl retorted, frustrated.

"What happened between them while we were gone?" Jason pondered.

"Is she talking about me?" Steven asked with the rock in his mouth.

"I don't think they are." Jason patted his back. "Also, get that rock out of your mouth."

"You four go together, I go alone." Garnet decided.

"What? Why?" Amethyst/Pearl ask in a slightly surprised tone.

"The Earth Beetle is at the bottom of a boiling lava lake, and only I can swim in lava." Garnet proceeded to conjure up a pair of goggles over her visor. "You'll find the Heaven Beetle at the top of the Sky Spire. It's safer."

"You mean boring-er." Amethyst retorted annoyed.

"You mean more boring." Pearl corrected.

"So, you agree with me." Amethyst retorted with a slight smile.

"Ugh! Let's just go." Pearl declared in annoyance at her compatriot's attitude.

Steven put down his rock before he and Amethyst met Pearl on the pad.

"Hold up." Jason stated. "I need to get some gear."

Jason walked out to his SUV and began looking at his arsenal. For climbing, he had an ice pickaxe and some rope. As for weapons, he needed something that wouldn't weigh him down while climbing. He decided on twin pistols which had been modified to fire shotgun shells.

Sky Spire

"Woah, is this where the Heaven Beetle lives?" Steven asked.

"Apparently." Pearl replied.

"All the way at the top." Amethyst added.

"So, when you fuse, do you turn into a giant, giant woman, or just a regular-sized giant woman?" Steven asked, which confused Jason. "Does one of you control the right arm and the other control the left arm?"

"Steven, what are you talking about?" Jason asked.

"Pearl and Amethyst can fuse into a giant woman!" Steven exclaimed.

"What Steven means to say is that when gems fuse, they become a more powerful warrior. More specifically, Amethyst and I can fuse to become a giant gem warrior by the name of Opal." Pearl explained before looking at Amethyst. "At least, we would if someone could fuse properly."

Amethyst only scoffed in response.

"Sounds like fusion has its benefits." Jason commented as he looked at the pair who were slightly glaring at one another. "Although I'm sure you have to be somewhat willing to fuse to make it work." He walked on. "Come on, we're burning daylight."

He pushed forward towards some stairs with Pearl and Amethyst following.

"Wait, these are extremely important questions." Steven stated as he jogged to catch up.

The group moved along the base of the spire, trying to find some stairs to climb. All the while, Steven continued to ask the others to fuse and made excuses to try and get them to. He even went as far as to ask for a piggyback ride.

"What about if you eat a hotdog?" Steven asked. "Whose stomach does it go into, or do you share the same stomach? That would be gross."

Suddenly, a nearby bush rustled causing Jason to draw one of his guns while the gems summon their weapons. Rather than an enemy, a goat ended up jumping out and proceeded to eat a cricket. It was completely oblivious to the three heavily armed people behind him.

"Look out! It's a magical goat guardian!" Steven tried. "Quick, you must form Opal! It's the only way to defeat it! Hurry before it kills us all!"

"Steven, you're trying too hard." Jason commented.

Pearl walked over to the goat. "We only fuse for deadly situations. Does this look like a deadly situation?" The goat bit her hand. "Ow! Hey, bad mountain goat!"

Amethyst completely lost it as she laughed.

Steven was disappointed. "Darn it. Aw, I'm never going to get to see Opal."

Steven proceeded to sing a song about a giant woman as they made their way further up the spire. As they moved, Pearl and Amethyst were constantly at each other's throats. Whether it's scaring the other with a shark or 'accidentally' knocking some rocks into the other.

Both times, Jason was caught in the crossfire. He was drenched by Amethyst and almost fell a couple of times when his foot caught on some of the lose rocks. Fortunately, he had his pickaxe to latch onto the steps. After that, the soldier took to leading the group.

He had Steven right behind him for their safety. Interestingly, Steven took to calling the goat that's been tagging along Steven Jr. Said goat also decided to show his proficiency at scaling mountainous areas by jumping across a bunch of floating pieces of land with ease.

"Wait up Steven Jr.!" Steven yelled as he tried to jump across.

"Whoa, think a little their buddy." Jason stopped him. "Your goat is a goat, but the same cannot be said for you. You aren't jumping that distance alone."

"Oh, you should fuse into Opal and lay across the rocks like a bridge!" Steven exclaimed.

"We don't need Opal to get across." Pearl retorted.

"Can you do it anyway?" Steven begged. "It would be easier, wouldn't it?"

"No." Jason finished tying one end of his rope to the pick. "This is."

He threw the makeshift grapple over to one of the floating islands. With it secured on one of its outcropping rocks, he tugged on it to find that the small islands were easy to move. He brought it close before retrieving his pickaxe, summoning a sword, and tying it all together.

The soldier then launched it to the end, and the group stepped onto the floating island before Jason tugged them over to the other side. They made it to the base of the spire and proceeded to walk up the stairs to the top.

Unfortunately, there were a lot of stairs and about halfway up Steven was already starting to feel the effects of fatigue set in. They were about halfway to the top when Jason decided to take a shortcut. He took out his makeshift grappling hook and threw it to the top.

"What are you doing?" Amethyst asked.

"Scouting ahead." Jason replied simply.

The soldier tugged on the rope a few times to test its hold. Feeling satisfied with it, he planted his feet along the wall and began to climb.

"Jason, are you sure?" Pearl asked worriedly.

"I'm sure." Jason replied as he continued to move up. "I don't want this beetle to move, so the sooner we get there, the better."

"Yeah! Let's go!" Steven declared.

He managed to jump and hang from the end of the rope; however, he didn't know the proper way to climb, nor did he have the arm strength for it. The boy slowly slid back down until he was on the ground again.

"Sorry Steven, but I'm flying solo." Jason readied himself for the climb. "Just keep moving along the stairs. Amethyst and Pearl, take care of Steven." They nodded in confirmation. "Steven, take care of them."

The gems gave him a slight glare while Steven saluted. "Yes, sir."

"Good man." Jason declared before continuing the climb.

"Be careful." Pearl warned.

"I will." Jason replied.

The soldier then trekked up the mountain along the spire's wall. As he climbed, Jason noticed a massive shadow in the sky. He took out his gun and immediately looked up for any threats. The skies were clear. Then, he heard what sounded like combat.

"Did the other's make it to the top already?" Jason contemplated. "No, that can't be the explanation. I need to get up there."

Jason doubled his efforts and reached the top quickly. There was a larger pool of water that formed a crescent around the walkway and what he assumed to be the Heaven Beetle's home. The large shadow turned out to be a colossal bird which ended up crashing into the home.

A figure landed before the downed form as ten red swords orbited around them. Unlike Jason's five swords, which seemed more ethereal, these looked mechanical in nature. Now, his attention focused on the figure who he could see clearly.

It was another man that seemed just as physically fit as Jason. From what he could see, just looking at his back, he had long, fire red hair in a pony tail. His right arm and left leg were cybernetic prosthetics derived from gem tech. He wore a red trench coat with matching pants.

Where the monster should have poofed, it dissolved into a sky filled with mini versions of that monster. Before they could even make a move, the man directed his blades, with the same ease Jason did his, and had them slice through the horde to dispel them.

When the final one dissipated, the heaven beetle fell out, and the man caught it as he turned to face Jason, revealing he wore a white formfitting shirt and had brown eyes. Embedded within the prosthetic arm, the soldier saw a cracked ruby making him wonder what was in the leg.

Despite that, only one question came to Jason's mind in the moment. "Who are you?"

"It's rather rude to ask someone their name without introducing yourself first." The man shrugged. "Then again, it's not like I don't know who you are. Jason West, the World Government's super soldier."

"How does he know that?" Jason tensed up. "Only those within the government know that."

"Before you jump to conclusions, I don't serve the government." The man spoke up. "Oh, I'm certain they have their secrets, but you can rest assured I'm not one of them. As for your earlier question, the name's Frank Castle."

"Okay Frank, if you don't work for the government, what are you doing here?" Jason asked. "What do you intend to do with the Heaven Beetle?"

"As if it weren't obvious." Frank replied. "Firstly, this beetle means nothing to me." He bubbled it in a red sphere before tossing it into the air where it stayed. You can have it after we settle why I'm here. I want to test just how I stack up to you."

"Why do you want that?" Jason asked.

"You don't really need to know that at this time." Frank retorted. "Here, I'll put it simply. You fight me, or I crush what you want before leaving, your choice."

"He'd crush a gem with no remorse just as I did before I knew the truth." Jason thought.

"I can tell what you're thinking; however, I already know the truth." Frank declared. "To me, that beetle is a bargaining chip. I could care less what happens to it."

"Fine." Jason hardened his expression. "If you want to face the super solider…" He summoned his five blades, and they started to orbit around him like his opponent's ten. "…I'll give you that fight; however, the Heaven Beetle is mine no matter the result."

"Like I said, I don't really care about it, so you can have it at this battle's conclusion." Frank smiled. "Just come at me with everything you got."

Jason charged as Frank stood stationary. The soldier commanded his swords to move ahead only for his opponent to send five of his own to block them. Jason got close and moved to throw a punch only to receive a prosthetic palm to the stomach, knocking him back.

He crashed into the side of the doorway. "What…"

"This is the strength of the super soldier?" Frank calmly walked towards him. "Despite the data I have on you, I was expecting more."

Jason got back to feet and drew his pistols. "You'll have to forgive me." He aimed them at his adversary. "That was rather sloppy, all things considered."

"By all means." Frank held out his arms. "Take your shot."

Jason charged his opponent once more and only changed where he was aiming at the last second before firing at the five remaining blades, knocking them away. That seemed to invoke some delight in his opponent which the soldier used to kick him off his feet.

As Jason moved to follow up, Frank bent back just enough to catch the ground with his hand and back flip to his feet. Jason went for debilitating shots, but his opponent brought all ten blades back in a way that blocked them. Jason manipulated his blades to come at him from behind.

Frank saw it and used five of his blades to block them before sending the remaining five at Jason. The soldier weaved through them only for Frank to rush in past his guard. He grabbed the super soldier by his throat and threw him in such a way that he skid along the ground.

"I think I've gotten what I want." Frank declared before sending the sphere over to Jason. "Since I'm a man of my word, you can claim that."

"Jason!" Pearl worriedly shouted.

She, Amethyst, and Steven entered the domed part of the top of the spire and immediately took in the scene. The white gem went to check on the soldier with Steven while Amethyst rushed forward, drawing her whip.

"What's the big idea attacking one of us, huh?" Amethyst asked.

"Maybe one day I'll come to take you all on." Frank took out a switch and activated it as he walked over to the edge of the spire. "For now, you can have fun with what I'll leave you."

Frank lept over the water and jumped down that side. Before Amethyst could chase him, the water began to bubble. A mechanical version of the bird the enemy had just vanquished appeared from the water and charged at her, forcing the gem back to the domed section.

"What is all this?" Pearl questioned as she looked at the mechanical jaws. "Humans aren't supposed to have technology like this."

"You can deny that fact if you choose." Jason groaned as he sat up. "In the end, that won't change the fact it's staring you in the face."

"Jason, what happened to you?" Steven asked concerned. "Who was that guy?"

"I don't personally know him, but he sure knew me." Jason replied. "Guy was strong too. He's gone now, so we should focus on what he's left us. Once we're out of this, I'll tell you all what little else I know about him."

"Well, if we really want out of this, then it's time for Opal!" Steven declared.

"He's right." Jason nodded to the metal monster. "I get the feeling we need whatever power Opal brings to make it out of this."

Pearl and Amethyst look at each other with a slight grimace before nodding. They got into their respective dance forms. Pearl moved with the grace of a renowned ballerina while Amethyst… Well, it made Jason ignore the pain he was in to cover Steven's eyes, much to his displeasure.

While he doesn't get to see how a fusion is done, he also doesn't get to see that the two are completely out of synch with each other. Their forms brighten and begin to fuse; however, they fell apart at the last second.

"You want to try that again with less hitting me in the face?" Amethyst questioned sarcastically.

"It would have worked if your movements weren't erratic and formless." Pearl countered.

"You know what?" Jason walked towards the door. "We never tried to take on the metal bird without fusion, and it beats arguing."

"But…" Pearl/Amethyst began.

"Don't care." Jason interrupted. "Let's put the fact that I got beaten soundly mere minutes ago behind us and focus on the fact you two have been at each other's throats this whole time. You want to know what's been happening when you guys were messing with each other?

I was caught in the crossfire. The falling rocks, Pearl? I almost fell too! The shark scare, Amethyst? You drenched me with water." They looked away in shame that their bickering almost caused him to get hurt.

"I can handle it with my training but think of Steven. If he were in those positions, he could have been hurt. Now, I don't know what problem you two have with each other, but you must knock it off. Until you do, I'll see what I can do to handle…"

Pain suddenly spiked through Jason preventing him from continuing. The soldier looked down in shock as the metal bird's beak was wrapped around him, the sharp metal cut through his clothing and skin like tissue paper.

The bird had shot its narrow beak through the entrance, and the soldier hadn't kept track of his placement. In short, he ended up getting too close. Jason saw the horrified looks the others had as they were unsure how to respond.

Before anyone could do anything, Jason was suddenly sucked out of the building and sent hurtling through the air. Flipping through it did slow him down until the soldier saw was high above the spire. He then entered free fall and saw the bird was coming right for him.

"If this is where it ends, I'll go down fighting!" Jason thought as he drew his guns.

Jason kept pulling the trigger, nailing the bird, but besides a slight difference in its intended flight path, it flew straight for him. When his ammo ran out, he summoned all five of his blades and sent them hurtling into the metal bird at top speed.

It just opens its mouth, taking the swords and soldier in. Jason was sent tumbling through darkness. He eventually came to a stop in what seemed like the stomach of the metal monster. Honestly, the whole thing was dark.

Suddenly, things became a lot brighter as a giant hand busted through the machinery. It was quickly followed by more hands with one of them grabbing him. The metal monstrosity fell out of the sky as the wind rushed past the soldier. Eventually, he was on the ground with Steven.

"Opal…" Steven marveled.

Jason looked at his savoir. She was a four-armed, tall woman with light purple skin, white hair, and a gem on her head and chest. The metal bird suddenly rose.

Opal stepped forward. "Stay low."

Her voice was low, yet it radiated authority with gentleness. The boys sat. Opal pulled out Pearl's spear and Amethyst's whip before combining the two into a bow. She took aim at the monster and fired sending an arrow straight into the center of it.

It exploded in a flashbang effect, destroying the bird. Steven and Jason could only stare in amazement at the amount of power she exhibited. The fusion turned and extended a hand to each of them. Steven took one and pulled himself up. Jason's sides were agitated, but he managed.

"Uh…do you…know who we are?" Steven asked.

Opal chuckled. "All you want to do, is see me turn into…"

Steven gasped. "…a giant woman!"

Opal then turned her attention to the soldier. "Are you alright?"

Jason looked himself over and noticed the rivers of blood had reached his boots. "I've been better." He admitted. "Still, I'll be fine until we get home."

Beach City: Beach House, Night…

Garnet was drying her hair as the group reappeared on the warp.

"We're back!" Steven yelled happily, with his arms spread, as Opal stood behind them in a pose.

"The Heaven Beetle?" Garnet questioned.

Opal gasped. "I don't have it."

The sudden revelation was enough to screw with the gems, making Opal unfuse.

"Amethyst, you got distracted!" Pearl immediately accused.

"Hey, you were the one getting carried away!" Amethyst retaliated.

"Wait a sec!" Steven pulled out the beetle which wasn't in its bubble anymore. "I got the beetle!"

"Well done, Steven." Garnet walked up with a plastic container, which has the other beetle, and placed the Heaven beetle inside. "I also see you helped your teammates fuse."

"That one was actually Jason." Steven declared joyfully. "All he had to do was get eaten by a giant, metal bird."

"If that's the prerequisite for helping you guy's fuse, count me out." Jason grumbled as he sat back against the stone, not wanting to track his blood into the house.

"Nice work." Garnet declared. "You two will be great at fusing one day."

"We can do that too!?" Steven exclaimed in surprise.

"Let's worry about this later." Jason looked at the gems. "Any of you got a first aid kit? I'm pretty sure I'll need stitches."

"We have one for Steven." Pearl went and grabbed the kit from a kitchen cabinet. "You know this means you're not going anywhere or training for a while, right?"

"No worries." Jason pulled off his vest and shirt. "I'm familiar with bed rest." He then looked at Garnet. "By the way, since we're all here, someone else was there today…"

The maroon gem looked at him as did the other Crystal Gems. Jason recounted his full encounter with Frank while leaving out any reference to what he was. He did not need them to ask what being a super soldier meant right now.

"He had a reassembled Ruby in his prosthetic arm?" Steven asked in shock.

"Yeah." Jason nodded. "I don't know if another was in his leg or not. I'm not even sure what purpose they served since his blades were one hundred percent mechanical."

"I say it's impossible." Pearl retorted. "Earth shouldn't…"

"Pearl, we literally faced a metal bird that acted as a bird would." Jason looked at his now bandaged injuries. "Thing is, I don't think the bird he took down would have done this to me. Whether you want to accept it or not, Earth isn't as devoid of technology as you think."

"This is troubling news." Garnet informed. "From now on, I want all of you to be on the lookout for this human on all future missions."

Everyone nodded in understanding.

?

Frank was walking through a field when his phone rang, prompting him to pick it up. "Frank here."

"Why didn't you grab him or the other hybrid?" A female voice asked from the other end.

"It's not in my code of conduct." Frank commented. "I told you, if you want either of them, get them yourself."

"You and your blasted code." The female retorted. "I'd strip you of everything if you weren't effective the times you actually brought in what I asked for."

"Anyways, I shouldn't be talking right now." Frank stated. "Other jobs to complete and all."

"Frank, don't you…" Her voice cut off as he ended the call.

The guy then took out the battery and pocketed it, with his phone, before walking on.


dindagangleader14: After your review, I did go back and at least add a line addressing that. I didn't really see a good place to have the full flashback though considering that happens when Steven is with Garnet. At least as far as what I make the end of my season 2, I tend to stick with Jason's perspective while only addressing other perspectives if they do change. What Steven and Garnet go through, in itself, doesn't change. Onlhy the flashback itself would have.