Days passed, and I, Steven, lived a quiet life. I trained, ate, spent time with my awesome dad, and studied on my phone. Yes, I know, technically I'd already gone through college in my other life, but I still kept reviewing things so I wouldn't become a complete idiot. My father, like in the original story, let me do whatever I wanted, and I took advantage of that freedom to create my own strategies.
Of course, all the talking was starting to affect me more than I thought. Sometimes I was a teacher, sometimes a student, all in one mind. But putting those ramblings aside, that morning I was training on the beach. The sun had barely risen over the horizon, and I'd been working out for a while, focused on my pull-ups, when suddenly I heard the familiar sound of the front door activating.
I glanced at him, without stopping. I continued with my rhythm, up and down, until I reached the hundredth rep. That's when I heard the front door open. I turned my head curiously, and there they were: Amethyst, Pearl, and Garnet.
The three of them were staring at me. Garnet, with her serious expression, yet charged with a different energy, as if something important was about to happen. Pearl, on the other hand, showed that familiar mix of disapproval and fear on her face. And Amethyst... well, she was Amethyst, with that relaxed look and playful smile that characterized her.
The atmosphere became dense in an instant.
Hey, girls, I said with a smile as I let the sweat drip from my forehead. How are you?
Garnet raised her hand in a brief greeting, Amethyst immediately got down next to me, and Pearl simply said,
Good morning.
Is there anything you need? I asked, raising an eyebrow.
I'd like some breakfast, Amethyst said without a second thought.
Amethyst! Pearl retorted with that disapproving look of hers.
"What?" Amethyst replied angrily, crossing her arms.
The two of them instantly began arguing, as usual. I turned my head to Garnet with a look that practically said, "Will you please stop them?"
She got the message. She stepped between the two of them and, placing a hand on each of their faces, said calmly but firmly, "Enough fighting. Let's get to what we came for."
All three of them turned to look at me at the same time.
"What? Is there something on my face?" I brought my hand to my cheek as I finished wiping away the sweat.
"It's time," Garnet said, her voice serious and charged with energy.
I glanced at her.
"Time for what?"
Pearl, in a deeper tone, chimed in, "To prove yourself. You need to train more if you want to follow your mother's legacy."
Her words hit me hard. I glanced at her again, but then fixed my eyes on Garnet.
So... am I going on a mission with you?
Yes, Garnet replied. Are you ready?
I looked down for a moment, took a deep breath, and then looked at the three of them.
Well... I don't know if I'm really ready. I looked straight into Pearl's eyes. And I also don't know if I'm on par with my mother. But I hope this mission makes me stronger.
Pearl looked at him with her typical air of disdain, although this time, deep down, there was also some fear in her gaze.
"Okay," I said with a slight gesture of defiance, "Shall we go or what?"
"Come on, old man," Amethyst said.
She quickly headed for the portal, and I followed with a smile. I didn't bother changing; I'd get dirty anyway. Garnet glanced at Pearl and walked calmly toward Amethyst and me. Pearl stayed behind, whispering to herself: You look so much like her, but at the same time I know you're not her. She looked back at the house and continued walking. Don't look like her, she murmured.
The four of us stood at the gate, and immediately it lit up. As we traveled through the vortex, Pearl and Garnet noticed that I was moving slowly. I wasn't spinning like they thought I would; they had to adjust it, and that led to a little lecture, although the surprise was pleasant for both of them. Amethyst looked away to hold back her laughter; she knew I'd been through it before, just not with them.
"Where are we going?" I asked.
A few seconds passed before Garnet answered.
"Let's go to the Moonsea Tower."
I raised an eyebrow.
"Goal?" I asked.
Restore it," Garnet replied.
Rescue it. Remembering the few memories I had of the series, that matched what I remembered as the objective. "What's changed?" I thought, uneasy. In a few moments, we reached a rock where the portal rested, abandoning the feeling of travel and preparing for what was to come.
The four of us approached the edge, and I was surprised. In front of us rose a tower that looked like Pisa, leaning, partially sunken, and surrounded by walls of water.
"It's beautiful," I said, amazed.
"Isn't it?" Pearl replied, letting her scientific side come out. It was an oasis for the Gems on Earth, but over time, it deteriorated until it was in ruins.
She paused and stared at me.
Something great for us... and you. We're going to rebuild it.
I followed her words with some enthusiasm.
If we're going to repair it, I figure we have the resources.
Pearl nodded and, from her gem, took out a statue of a woman.
We should place this on top to prevent the tower from deteriorating further.
Okay, I replied, still somewhat incredulous.
You'll carry it, she said, handing me the statue.
"Huh?" I froze, a drop of sweat running down my forehead. "Wouldn't it be safer inside your gem?"
"It would be," she replied firmly, "but this is a test for you."
Garnet nodded silently, approving of the decision. Amethyst, meanwhile, stood with her arms behind her back, watching with a mischievous smile.
The four of us jumped inside. Garnet and Pearl were surprised by the power of my jump, although they tried to hide it. Amethyst, on the other hand, was on the verge of laughter.
We entered the tower's corridors, moving through worn passageways until we reached an area covered in worms. Pearl, with her usual meticulous tone, began to draw up an improvised plan. She created a hologram to explain how I should follow her.
I looked at her in disbelief.
Wouldn't it be better to observe their behavior firsthand?
Without waiting for a response, I walked steadily through the worms. Garnet watched me silently, without reproaching me. Amethyst followed me with an amused smile, while Pearl continued talking, completely absorbed in her explanation.
The problem was that her words echoed too loudly in that place. I knew that any sound could upset those creatures, so I decided to ignore her. The worms, annoyed by the chatter, began to stir, and Pearl finally realized she was talking to herself. Turning, she noticed we'd already gone ahead and had to hurriedly dodge the worms to catch up.
Something wasn't right. Although they'd seemed restless, they didn't really seem interested in us. They didn't even bother to attack us. That strange calm made my skin crawl.
We moved forward until we reached the room where the statue of the woman who would hold the monument upright was to be placed. We walked cautiously, avoiding the worms, who remained too still, as if waiting for something.
"It's very easy," Amethyst murmured, though her voice held a certain tension.
"Yes," Garnet replied, shifting her gaze to a corner of the room.
I noticed it. I followed the direction of her eyes, and there it was: an arm, twisted, covered in various colors that glowed unnaturally.
I froze.
"An arm?" I thought. My breath quickened. "No... that's not just an arm. It has... several colors."
The truth hit me all at once.
A corrupted gem...
A cold sweat broke out on my forehead.
"Uh... girls," I said quietly, with a hint of nervousness.
"What's up, man?" Amethyst replied, still watching.
I took a step back, swallowing hard.
I didn't know there were... more of you around here.
They immediately tensed, following the direction of my gaze. There it was: a corrupted gem. Its body was that of a four-legged beast, with a wild mane that gave it a savage air. On its back glittered a strange gem, shaped like a lapis lazuli, but rounder, almost deformed. I couldn't identify with certainty what kind of gem it was, but what I did know was that the situation was serious. Its size commanded respect.
The girls didn't hesitate. In a synchronized movement, they drew their weapons, and Garnet ordered me in a firm voice:
Stand back, Steven!
I didn't have time to argue. I leaped back, the statue firmly held in my hands.
The creature roared loudly and lunged at them. Pearl was the first to react, throwing her spear in an attempt to impale it, convinced it was just an uncontrolled beast. But I was wrong.
The corrupted gem blocked the attack and, with a brutal swing, struck Pearl, throwing her off the monument.
"Pearl!" I screamed in despair.
Amethyst reacted immediately. She launched herself at the beast, enveloping it in a ball of speed that rolled across the ground at full power until it crashed to the ground. The impact kicked up dust and stones, but the creature barely flinched.
Garnet didn't hesitate and leaped forward, her fists charged with energy. She was about to deliver the finishing blow when the corrupted gem opened its mouth and let out a deafening sonic roar. The walls of the room cracked and the ground shook. Garnet was violently thrown through the air, in the exact same direction from which Pearl had fallen.
"I'm going to..." Pearl managed to exclaim, now recovered, just before she saw Garnet fall on top of her.
The two crashed to the ground with a loud bang, kicking up dust and debris.
From where I stood, I heard Pearl's piercing scream.
"STEVEN!"
Cold sweat ran down my forehead. My gaze fell on Amethyst, who was currently giving it her all against the creature. But it was useless. The corrupted gem, with devastating force, had already completely freed itself from Amethyst's restraints.
"Do you want help?" I shouted, snapping out of my daze.
Amethyst shot me a quick glance as she dodged the creature's swipes. For a second, she hesitated, then snorted impatiently.
"Fuck it, come help me!"
I placed the statue in a safe area and stretched out, moving my arms and neck.
"What are you doing?" Amethyst protested, dodging another blow.
"Stretching out. Can't you see I'm human? I don't want to get hurt from that."
She, hanging from a height after propelling herself with her whip, looked at me with a dry expression.
...Well, well, here we go!
I smiled and, with a decisive movement, summoned my shield. I ran straight toward the beast, which, upon seeing me, roared with such power that the air vibrated. I placed the shield in front of me, absorbing the impact of the sound that pushed me several meters back.
Amethyst seized the moment. She swung her whip with all her might, striking the corrupted gem and slamming it into the ground, which cracked beneath its weight. I regained my balance and, seeing the opportunity, threw my shield like Captain America.
Amethyst instantly understood what I was going for. With a precise movement of her whip, she redirected the shield's trajectory. It spun violently and embedded itself into the beast, which barely had time to react before the impact exploded in a flash. The deformed body fell, and the gem rolled until it lay naked on the ground, trembling.
Amethyst landed beside me, breathing heavily.
Not bad for your first mortal battle... you almost shattered my eardrums with that roar.
I nodded, panting.
Absolutely.
I reached out to summon my shield again, which tried to vibrate back toward me. At that moment, Garnet and Pearl ran in.
"STEVEN!" Pearl exclaimed anxiously, looking around, unable to process that I was standing right there.
Garnet, calmer, watched me silently. Then she gave a firm thumbs-up. However, when her eyes fell on my mother's shield, she paused for a moment. The tension on her face was almost imperceptible, but then she raised her other hand as well, repeating the gesture of affirmation.
"She's congratulating you," Amethyst murmured with a tired smile.
I just scratched my head, trying to hide the pride that was flaring in my chest.
Pearl looked desperately in every direction, searching for any sign of danger. It was then that her eyes fell on my shield. She went pale, motionless. I, noticing her fixed gaze, decided to pull the shield toward me. The trajectory of the weapon forced her to follow it with her eyes, and as soon as she realized it was mine, she ran toward me without hesitation.
"Oh, my little baby!" he exclaimed, wrapping his arms around me in a suffocating hug. "Don't you have any scratches? Don't you have any bruises? What did that monster do to you? Where is that monster?"
Amethyst, holding the bubble in which the corrupted gem rested, looked at it with a look of disbelief.
"Are you serious?" she murmured, raising an eyebrow.
Pearl was examining me from head to toe, looking for a wound that didn't exist. When she finished her inspection, she looked back at the shield, still trembling.
"That... that... that..."
"My tool," I said with a proud smile.
"That... that..." he continued stuttering, as if his thoughts weren't enough to process what he was seeing.
"Pearl needed time," Garnet would say. It was clear she still couldn't come to terms with the situation.
"Do you have the statue?" she asked suddenly, her voice faint.
Amethyst and I looked at each other at the same time. My heart skipped a beat. We looked up: the moon was almost at its highest point.
"Damn!" Amethyst shouted, hastily searching for the statue.
I ran to where I'd left it, picked it up, and placed it on the pedestal just in time. A soft glow spread across the monument, steadying it. The moon reached its zenith, and for a moment, the world held its breath. Then, the danger passed.
We all breathed a sigh of relief.
Perla, however, continued to mutter incoherently about how babies grow and human fragility. She wasn't quite on this plane.
The four of us walked back to the house in silence, each of us lost in our own thoughts. I went straight to take a shower, leaving the girls in front of the door.
It's moving pretty fast, don't you think? Amethyst said with a tired smile, breaking the silence.
Perla, calmer now, had tears in her eyes.
And I thought that... that we would protect him... and, and, and...
Before finishing, she threw herself at Amethyst, hugging her desperately and crying even harder.
"Oh my God!" Amethyst murmured uncomfortably, trying to push her away. "Let me go, Pearl!"
But she didn't. Pearl was crying as if she'd lost something irreplaceable again.
"He has potential," Garnet said, adjusting her glasses as she watched the scene.
The once stern and angry Pearl was now bawling her eyes out in Amethyst's arms, unable to contain herself. Steven, meanwhile, was enjoying the most relaxing moment of his life under the shower.
Tomorrow is another day, she murmured calmly.
But suddenly, a bit of shampoo slid into her eye.
"Aaaah!" She screamed loudly, as the mixture was too strong and stung terribly.
Pearl, who was still sobbing, reacted immediately upon hearing the scream. She bolted upright, her face pale and her eyes full of worry.
"My baby needs help!" she exclaimed with renewed energy, her crying instantly forgotten.
"Hey, wait... what if you're naked?" Amethyst asked as she saw Pearl running into the bathroom.
"What does it matter!" she replied determinedly. "I'm coming for you, my boy!"
"Steven, close the door!" Amethyst shouted from the hallway, although it was already too late.
Garnet watched everything, a drop of sweat running down her face. Of all the possible futures she had seen, this one was destined to happen.
And from the distance, another scream from Steven was heard, this time in despair, as he watched his bathroom door being smashed down.
End of Chapter 5.