Fic: Atop the Crystal Universe - Part 1
Title: Atop the Crystal Universe
Author: lizynob
Summary: After the Rebellion, Tiger's Eye and his small team of Crystal Gems stayed on Earth to protect the planet and its inhabitants. Everything has been relatively peaceful for them, but one day an old foe suddenly shows up and they all must work to stop this new threat before it reaches the planet.
Pairings: None
Warnings: A few references to past Homeworld experimentation upon one of the characters
Word Count: 5,623
Author’s note: All characters are referred to by Gem name only. If I've done my job right, it shouldn't be hard to follow who is who throughout the fic. But I've included a list of all Gems and Fusions and the corresponding characters just in case anyone gets lost.
Gems
Tiger’s Eye - Linkara
Hematite - Spoony
Morganite - Margaret
Chrysocolla - Wayne
Turquoise - Oscar
Cat’s Eye - Mechakara
Amber - Allen
Emerald - Lord Vyce
Fusions
Sodalite - Wayne and Oscar
Labradorite - Wayne and Spoony (Insano)
Seraphinite - Oscar and LInkara (Linksano)
Heliotrope/Bloodstone - Spoony and Mechakara (Black Lantern Spoony)
Tiger’s Eye had come to love comic books, Superman especially. There was something relatable and nice about the picture stories of a non-human from a distant planet who protected the Earth and its inhabitants, and Tiger’s Eye was nose-deep in his newest comic acquisition.
He was so busy looking down, in fact, that he didn’t realize Hematite was there until he walked right into him.
“Hey, watch it,” the charcoal-grey toned Gem remarked.
“Hematite, you’re back.” Tiger’s Eye blinked in slight surprise. “I was wondering when you were going to regenerate.”
“Yeah, well, it’s not my fault Morganite got carried away during our sparring match,” Hematite shrugged, obviously trying to sound indifferent to the whole thing. “How long have I been out anyway?”
Hematite’s tough attitude never did fool Tiger’s Eye and he couldn’t help but smirk as he recalled the event. “You brought it on yourself, and you know it. And it’s been a week.”
“Shut up!” Hematite exclaimed, huffing even more. “Go read your stupid comic books or something.”
“You’re the one who told her not to hold back,” Tiger’s Eye reminded him with a persisting grin.
“That was not permission for her to nearly crack my gem in half!” Hematite reached up a hand and clasped it around his throat where his gem rested, as if to make sure it was still intact.
“I’m sorry for that,” a small voice said.
Hematite and Tiger’s Eye turned to see a rather dejected-looking Morganite standing in the doorway, neither knowing exactly how long she had been standing there but knowing by the way her arms were hugging around herself, that it had been long enough.
“I shouldn’t have let loose like that,” she apologized. “You just were putting up such a good fight that I… I thought you could handle it.”
Hematite’s hand fell down. Morganite was always so hard on herself and he suddenly felt bad for having said anything. “Aw, come one, it wasn’t really that bad. I was just being a wimp about it,” he tried to say. “Morganite, you know that-”
“-that I’m always just going to be a weapon,” she cut off. “I was made to be a weapon, and my only use is as a weapon, and weapons aren’t supposed to be played with.” Her voice shrank more and more with every word. “Gems like me… we don’t belong when there isn’t a war anymore.”
“You’re not just a weapon,” Tiger’s Eye objected.
He took a deep breath and steadied himself before setting the comic book aside and going over to the younger Gem. “You know that what Homeworld did in Kindergarten wasn’t your fault,” he began gently.
“I know,” she said. “But I’m still the way I am. The way I was… designed to be.”
“Hey…” Tiger’s Eye put a hand on her shoulder. “Remember what I told you? Weapons are tools, and you are not a tool. You know what you are?” he probed, wanting her to say the answer on her own.
Morganite looked downward and hesitated but finally answered back softly. “Partner…”
“That’s right. You are my partner, and my friend.” Tiger’s Eye whipped his head around to Hematite with a quick glare and motioned with his hand for him to chime in.
“And you’re my friend too,” Hematite added quickly. “And you should be proud of how strong you are.” He threw on a grin and more his tone even more nonchalant. “I’ll match you one of these days, you know. Just give me a little more time.”
The likelihood that Hematite would ever beat her in a match was slim to none and Morganite knew it. But her teammates had succeeded in diffusing the situation, and Morganite found it was hard to still be upset when they were putting so much effort into cheering her up. She gave them both a small but earnest smile.
“Well, for right now, I’m going to try to go a little easier on you,” she said to Hematite.
“Eh, I guess for right now I’ll let you,” Hematite shrugged.
A genuine snicker escaped Morganite, but it only made Hematite grin wider. “Okay, well, I’m gonna leave you two be,” he said, throwing up a hand and heading off before the conversation got too deep for him.
“And I think I’m going to sit right here on the couch and get back to this,” Tiger’s Eye added, picking his comic book back up again.
“You might not sit down just yet,” Morganite said.
“Why?” Tiger’s Eye asked, raising one eyebrow questioningly.
“Turquoise wanted to talk to you.”
Tiger’s Eye let out a soft groan and looked back down at the issue and then back up again. “Was it important?” he asked, clearly hoping it was something he could brush off for now.
“Sorry, but Turquoise said it was absolutely important.” Morganite gave Tiger’s Eye a weak shrug.
So much for his comic book. “Alright, thanks, partner,” he said, taking his leave to go see what the situation was. Superman was just going to have to wait.
***
“Alright, what’s the issue?” Tiger’s Eye asked his team’s two smallest Gems.
Turquoise briefly looked up, which was more than Chrysocolla did, instead letting out a vague noise to show he heard while his hands flew over the main control board that he and Turquoise had created with all the leftover Gem technology they had along with a complex system of modified human technology to complete any missing pieces.
It wasn’t pretty for sure, but it was functional.
“Finally, you got here,” Turquoise said somewhat impatiently, motioning Tiger’s Eye over to where the two blue-and-brown mixed Gems were standing. “This is serious.”
“I gathered that,” Tiger’s Eye remarked. “Is it about P.O.L.L.O.?”
“If only it was just P.O.L.L.O.” Chrysocolla lamented in a nervous voice.
“Well did it work?” Tiger’s Eye asked.
Turquoise nodded. “Yes, yes, the Preliminary Orbital Lightproof Locator Object was a complete success and is now currently within the outer perimeter of Earth’s gravitational pull.” Despite barely being half of Tiger’s Eye’s height, the smaller Gem gripped the edge of their leader’s vest and tugged him closer to the monitor while Chrysocolla swiveled it to face him.
“And this is what P.O.L.L.O. found,” Chrysocolla said.
Tiger’s Eye looked at the screen, almost not sure what he was seeing at first, but then his eyes widened.
“Homeworld.”
“A scouter vessel,” Turquoise confirmed.
“Not just any scouter vessel,” Tiger’s Eye muttered.
“That came off of a war ship,” Chrysocolla nodded.
“So where is the war ship?” Tiger’s Eye asked.
“We haven’t located the main war ship, but you can bet it’s not far behind.” Chrysocolla said. “We’ve started going through what databanks we have to see if there is any match. If it was anyone who fought in the Rebellion, we’ll know. Hopefully before whoever it is decides to make their appearance.”
”How long do we have?” Tiger’s Eye demanded.
“According to P.O.L.L.O., we have about eight hours or so,” Turquoise answered.
“That’s not much time.”
“We know.”
A tense silence hung over their heads before suddenly being broken by a series of blares and beeping, which caused Tiger’s Eye to startle back and the two shorted Gems to start scrambling around the machinery.
Tiger’s Eye knew what was going to happen as soon as they started moving. Chrysocolla and Turquoise were virtually always in sync with each other. They wove around tables and crisscrossed paths as they worked, like a frenzied, never-ending dance with each other, and they would blend and split on the slightest of whims.
Sure enough, the two blue-and-brown Gems seamlessly twisted around and clasped their hands together in perfect tandem. There was a bright glow for a moment as their fusion took shape, and then the emerging Sodalite took steady form. The deep blue Gem stood as tall as Tiger’s Eye, though it had no trouble adjusting the height of the monitor to continue working. Two sets of eyes rapidly flickered over the information while an extra jointed pair of hands punched the keypad.
The beeping suddenly stopped.
“Do you have a reading?” Tiger’s Eye pushed his way over closer.
“Yes,” Sodalite stated. “Now we know who we’re up against. ….And it’s not good.”
Tiger’s Eye looked unflinchingly at the screen and his eyes hardened at the profile staring back, a face that was like a twisted reflection. His hands curled into fists. “Cat’s Eye,” he hissed.
***
“So we only have a matter of hours before Cat’s Eye shows up and does who knows what?” Hematite threw his hands up. His first day back after a week within his Gem and things were already a mess.
“How should we act on this?” Morganite questioned, looking to Tiger’s Eye.
“I’m… not entirely sure,” their leader confessed. “We don’t know what Cat’s Eye’s directive is.”
“Whatever his purpose here is, it’s not good. I doubt either he or Homeworld is sending over a belated apology,” Sodalite remarked dryly. “And it’s probably not a coincidence that the vessel is in our direct path.”
“We don’t have enough resources here to properly take down a war scouter ship,” Tiger’s Eye said. “And even if our strongest attacks had a half-decent shot, that ship still has a powerful blaster on it. There’s no telling what damage it would cause down here. It’s a Homeworld ship, and we can’t let it get into close contact to the Earth.”
“You do realize what you’re saying, don’t you?” Hematite asked. “If we can’t let it come here, then we have to go to it, right? That’s suicide, Tiger’s Eye.”
“We have no idea what other Gems might be on board either,” Morganite pointed out.
“That’s a risk we’re just going to have to take,” Tiger’s Eye stated.
“Sticking us directly on an enemy ship still seems like a really bad idea,” Hematite snorted.
“Sitting and waiting for it to show up at our door and launch an attack on the human race seems like a worse idea,” Sodalite retorted.
“Okay, fine, we do this,” Hematite relented. “But how exactly do you plan for us to beam to the ship? Preferably undetected, I might add?”
Sodalite faltered. “Ah, well, that is going to be tricky I will admit,” he confessed, wringing his hands momentarily. “But it is doable. Although… we’re going to need more than just two arms to do this. As fast as I can work, it won’t be enough to pull together what we need in time. So…” Sodalite helplessly spread his hands out to Tiger’s Eye and Hematite.
“That’s you plan?” Hematite smacked a hand to his forehead. “Labradorite and Seraphinite?”
“It’s our best shot. You know they can get things done,” Sodalite asserted.
“Yeah, and I also remember the last time we let either of them loose, never mind both of them together.”
“I’ll keep them in line,” Morganite suddenly said.
All three Gems stopped talking and turned to look at her. The pale-colored Gem straightened up, a very serious expression set on her quiet features. “You know I can, if it comes to it.”
Tiger’s Eye hesitated. “Either of them on their own, I know you could. But the two of them against one of you-“
“-I’d still win,” Morganite cut him off, and held his gaze with her own.
They started at each other intensely for several long seconds, but Tiger’s Eye eventually sighed. “Okay, Morganite. You’re in charge til we all un-fuse again.” He turned his head back to Hematite. “Labradorite and Seraphinite are our best option right now, even if there’s a risk involved. I’m not saying that this is a great idea, but it’s better than the alternative. I’d rather deal with any hostilities away from where innocent people could get hurt, but time is not on our side for this. And when it comes to scrapping together something on short notice, you know who’s best for that…”
The grey Gem finally nodded and stretched his arms up, accepting the explanation. “Guess it’s time to get things going then.”
Sodalite gleamed for a moment, body rippling, shrinking, and pulling apart, and then Chrysocolla and Turquoise were standing there. They shared a look and then parted ways, Chrysocolla moving towards Hematite and Turquoise over to Tiger’s Eye.
Unbidden, the dances began. Hematite and Chrysocolla moved in a fast rhythm, the electrical energy from the gem on the upper part Chrysocolla’s left arm growing ever more palpable with each twist and turn, until Hematite spun them into an even closer proximity and the two began to meld.
Simultaneously, Tiger’s Eye was matching Turquoise’s movements, giving the shorter Gem a twirl before Turquoise rolled his shoulders back and pressed closer into the fusion dance, and in seconds they were bathed in a glow.
Morganite stood and watched as the two fusions took form, emerging with sharp cackles of glee and excitement, both standing nearly twice her height. Labradorite let out a shrill giggle, electrical sparks dancing down his long, thin fingers like Earth lightning. Seraphinite was similar, laughing while four outstretched hands twitched and flexed.
“It’s been too long,” Labradorite remarked.
“Indeed,” Seraphinite agreed.
***
Alright, that’s enough now.
No, we’re not done! This is far too much fun to stop!
Turquoise…
Oh come on, Tiger’s Eye. You love it too. P.O.L.L.O .was your design in the first place, I’ll remind you. What else can we build? What else can we experiment with?
We need to deal with Cat’s Eye.
So let’s deal with him. All we have to do is fuse our weapons. How long has it been since we’ve gotten to use those wonderful robotic grabby things?
Those have a name you know.
I’ve never been bothered enough to care.
No. We’re done now. So stop struggling and let’s just…go!
A burst of energy split between them and Tiger’s Eye had to take a moment to orient himself again, realizing that he was on the floor along with Turquoise, who found himself flat on his back and staring straight up.
Long hair flowed down into his face. “You two can be the most stubborn Gems,” Morganite said, looking down from over him but wearing a smile on her face.
“I take it Chrysocolla didn’t want to stop either?” Turquoise murmured in a slightly dazed voice.
“You two are such little shits,” Hematite’s voice groaned from somewhere. “Brilliant, but jeez, it’s like that one time we wound up in that weird park with the spinning thing.
“That was called a ‘carnival’ and the spinning thing was called a ‘Tilt-A-Whirl.’” Chrysocolla interjected.
“I don’t care what it was called, I’m just glad it’s over. How much time did that take?”
“Almost five hours,” Morganite supplied. “I kept checking the monitor. Cat’s Eye is still a good distance away from Earth’s atmosphere. If anything… bad happens, everything will still be out of range of harming any humans here.”
“Well, that’s good.”
“But we don’t have any more time to waste,” Tiger’s Eye said, straightening up.
“That was not a waste,” Turquoise grumbled, standing up as well.
“…No, you’re right. It wasn’t a waste,” Tiger’s Eye corrected himself. “But we still need to go now. Before Cat’s Eye gets that ship close enough to fire off any blasts.”
The four gathered together and over to the makeshift warp station. The coordinates and logarithms had already been double checked in their fused state and now the only thing left to so was step through it.
“Alright, Crystal Gems,” Tiger’s Eye said, using the name they hadn’t needed in a long time. “Let’s go
.”
Tiger’s Eye reached his right hand up to touch the gem on his hat, and his signature gauntlets wrapped around his hands.
Hematite gripped at the gem at his neck and pulled forth a long, silver blade. His eyes and sword gleamed dangerously.
Turquoise swiped at the gem that rested on the back of his hand, brushing one palm and then the other over his fingers which began to emit a bright, multi-colored glow.
Chrysocolla’s gem glowed on its own, coming alive with reactions to any electromagnetic field.
Morganite took a breath, though breathing not needed of course, and reached for the gem embedded in her sternum. Her body shifted, breaking apart rapidly and refiguring, losing the pretense of skin along her arms and chest in favor of blunt muzzles that her gem would power.
She knew that under her holographic projections, she was perhaps the ugliest Gem there ever was but reminded herself, as they all stepped into the transport beam, that Kindergarten had made her efficient at least.
Author: lizynob
Summary: After the Rebellion, Tiger's Eye and his small team of Crystal Gems stayed on Earth to protect the planet and its inhabitants. Everything has been relatively peaceful for them, but one day an old foe suddenly shows up and they all must work to stop this new threat before it reaches the planet.
Pairings: None
Warnings: A few references to past Homeworld experimentation upon one of the characters
Word Count: 5,623
Author’s note: All characters are referred to by Gem name only. If I've done my job right, it shouldn't be hard to follow who is who throughout the fic. But I've included a list of all Gems and Fusions and the corresponding characters just in case anyone gets lost.
Gems
Tiger’s Eye - Linkara
Hematite - Spoony
Morganite - Margaret
Chrysocolla - Wayne
Turquoise - Oscar
Cat’s Eye - Mechakara
Amber - Allen
Emerald - Lord Vyce
Fusions
Sodalite - Wayne and Oscar
Labradorite - Wayne and Spoony (Insano)
Seraphinite - Oscar and LInkara (Linksano)
Heliotrope/Bloodstone - Spoony and Mechakara (Black Lantern Spoony)
Tiger’s Eye had come to love comic books, Superman especially. There was something relatable and nice about the picture stories of a non-human from a distant planet who protected the Earth and its inhabitants, and Tiger’s Eye was nose-deep in his newest comic acquisition.
He was so busy looking down, in fact, that he didn’t realize Hematite was there until he walked right into him.
“Hey, watch it,” the charcoal-grey toned Gem remarked.
“Hematite, you’re back.” Tiger’s Eye blinked in slight surprise. “I was wondering when you were going to regenerate.”
“Yeah, well, it’s not my fault Morganite got carried away during our sparring match,” Hematite shrugged, obviously trying to sound indifferent to the whole thing. “How long have I been out anyway?”
Hematite’s tough attitude never did fool Tiger’s Eye and he couldn’t help but smirk as he recalled the event. “You brought it on yourself, and you know it. And it’s been a week.”
“Shut up!” Hematite exclaimed, huffing even more. “Go read your stupid comic books or something.”
“You’re the one who told her not to hold back,” Tiger’s Eye reminded him with a persisting grin.
“That was not permission for her to nearly crack my gem in half!” Hematite reached up a hand and clasped it around his throat where his gem rested, as if to make sure it was still intact.
“I’m sorry for that,” a small voice said.
Hematite and Tiger’s Eye turned to see a rather dejected-looking Morganite standing in the doorway, neither knowing exactly how long she had been standing there but knowing by the way her arms were hugging around herself, that it had been long enough.
“I shouldn’t have let loose like that,” she apologized. “You just were putting up such a good fight that I… I thought you could handle it.”
Hematite’s hand fell down. Morganite was always so hard on herself and he suddenly felt bad for having said anything. “Aw, come one, it wasn’t really that bad. I was just being a wimp about it,” he tried to say. “Morganite, you know that-”
“-that I’m always just going to be a weapon,” she cut off. “I was made to be a weapon, and my only use is as a weapon, and weapons aren’t supposed to be played with.” Her voice shrank more and more with every word. “Gems like me… we don’t belong when there isn’t a war anymore.”
“You’re not just a weapon,” Tiger’s Eye objected.
He took a deep breath and steadied himself before setting the comic book aside and going over to the younger Gem. “You know that what Homeworld did in Kindergarten wasn’t your fault,” he began gently.
“I know,” she said. “But I’m still the way I am. The way I was… designed to be.”
“Hey…” Tiger’s Eye put a hand on her shoulder. “Remember what I told you? Weapons are tools, and you are not a tool. You know what you are?” he probed, wanting her to say the answer on her own.
Morganite looked downward and hesitated but finally answered back softly. “Partner…”
“That’s right. You are my partner, and my friend.” Tiger’s Eye whipped his head around to Hematite with a quick glare and motioned with his hand for him to chime in.
“And you’re my friend too,” Hematite added quickly. “And you should be proud of how strong you are.” He threw on a grin and more his tone even more nonchalant. “I’ll match you one of these days, you know. Just give me a little more time.”
The likelihood that Hematite would ever beat her in a match was slim to none and Morganite knew it. But her teammates had succeeded in diffusing the situation, and Morganite found it was hard to still be upset when they were putting so much effort into cheering her up. She gave them both a small but earnest smile.
“Well, for right now, I’m going to try to go a little easier on you,” she said to Hematite.
“Eh, I guess for right now I’ll let you,” Hematite shrugged.
A genuine snicker escaped Morganite, but it only made Hematite grin wider. “Okay, well, I’m gonna leave you two be,” he said, throwing up a hand and heading off before the conversation got too deep for him.
“And I think I’m going to sit right here on the couch and get back to this,” Tiger’s Eye added, picking his comic book back up again.
“You might not sit down just yet,” Morganite said.
“Why?” Tiger’s Eye asked, raising one eyebrow questioningly.
“Turquoise wanted to talk to you.”
Tiger’s Eye let out a soft groan and looked back down at the issue and then back up again. “Was it important?” he asked, clearly hoping it was something he could brush off for now.
“Sorry, but Turquoise said it was absolutely important.” Morganite gave Tiger’s Eye a weak shrug.
So much for his comic book. “Alright, thanks, partner,” he said, taking his leave to go see what the situation was. Superman was just going to have to wait.
***
“Alright, what’s the issue?” Tiger’s Eye asked his team’s two smallest Gems.
Turquoise briefly looked up, which was more than Chrysocolla did, instead letting out a vague noise to show he heard while his hands flew over the main control board that he and Turquoise had created with all the leftover Gem technology they had along with a complex system of modified human technology to complete any missing pieces.
It wasn’t pretty for sure, but it was functional.
“Finally, you got here,” Turquoise said somewhat impatiently, motioning Tiger’s Eye over to where the two blue-and-brown mixed Gems were standing. “This is serious.”
“I gathered that,” Tiger’s Eye remarked. “Is it about P.O.L.L.O.?”
“If only it was just P.O.L.L.O.” Chrysocolla lamented in a nervous voice.
“Well did it work?” Tiger’s Eye asked.
Turquoise nodded. “Yes, yes, the Preliminary Orbital Lightproof Locator Object was a complete success and is now currently within the outer perimeter of Earth’s gravitational pull.” Despite barely being half of Tiger’s Eye’s height, the smaller Gem gripped the edge of their leader’s vest and tugged him closer to the monitor while Chrysocolla swiveled it to face him.
“And this is what P.O.L.L.O. found,” Chrysocolla said.
Tiger’s Eye looked at the screen, almost not sure what he was seeing at first, but then his eyes widened.
“Homeworld.”
“A scouter vessel,” Turquoise confirmed.
“Not just any scouter vessel,” Tiger’s Eye muttered.
“That came off of a war ship,” Chrysocolla nodded.
“So where is the war ship?” Tiger’s Eye asked.
“We haven’t located the main war ship, but you can bet it’s not far behind.” Chrysocolla said. “We’ve started going through what databanks we have to see if there is any match. If it was anyone who fought in the Rebellion, we’ll know. Hopefully before whoever it is decides to make their appearance.”
”How long do we have?” Tiger’s Eye demanded.
“According to P.O.L.L.O., we have about eight hours or so,” Turquoise answered.
“That’s not much time.”
“We know.”
A tense silence hung over their heads before suddenly being broken by a series of blares and beeping, which caused Tiger’s Eye to startle back and the two shorted Gems to start scrambling around the machinery.
Tiger’s Eye knew what was going to happen as soon as they started moving. Chrysocolla and Turquoise were virtually always in sync with each other. They wove around tables and crisscrossed paths as they worked, like a frenzied, never-ending dance with each other, and they would blend and split on the slightest of whims.
Sure enough, the two blue-and-brown Gems seamlessly twisted around and clasped their hands together in perfect tandem. There was a bright glow for a moment as their fusion took shape, and then the emerging Sodalite took steady form. The deep blue Gem stood as tall as Tiger’s Eye, though it had no trouble adjusting the height of the monitor to continue working. Two sets of eyes rapidly flickered over the information while an extra jointed pair of hands punched the keypad.
The beeping suddenly stopped.
“Do you have a reading?” Tiger’s Eye pushed his way over closer.
“Yes,” Sodalite stated. “Now we know who we’re up against. ….And it’s not good.”
Tiger’s Eye looked unflinchingly at the screen and his eyes hardened at the profile staring back, a face that was like a twisted reflection. His hands curled into fists. “Cat’s Eye,” he hissed.
***
“So we only have a matter of hours before Cat’s Eye shows up and does who knows what?” Hematite threw his hands up. His first day back after a week within his Gem and things were already a mess.
“How should we act on this?” Morganite questioned, looking to Tiger’s Eye.
“I’m… not entirely sure,” their leader confessed. “We don’t know what Cat’s Eye’s directive is.”
“Whatever his purpose here is, it’s not good. I doubt either he or Homeworld is sending over a belated apology,” Sodalite remarked dryly. “And it’s probably not a coincidence that the vessel is in our direct path.”
“We don’t have enough resources here to properly take down a war scouter ship,” Tiger’s Eye said. “And even if our strongest attacks had a half-decent shot, that ship still has a powerful blaster on it. There’s no telling what damage it would cause down here. It’s a Homeworld ship, and we can’t let it get into close contact to the Earth.”
“You do realize what you’re saying, don’t you?” Hematite asked. “If we can’t let it come here, then we have to go to it, right? That’s suicide, Tiger’s Eye.”
“We have no idea what other Gems might be on board either,” Morganite pointed out.
“That’s a risk we’re just going to have to take,” Tiger’s Eye stated.
“Sticking us directly on an enemy ship still seems like a really bad idea,” Hematite snorted.
“Sitting and waiting for it to show up at our door and launch an attack on the human race seems like a worse idea,” Sodalite retorted.
“Okay, fine, we do this,” Hematite relented. “But how exactly do you plan for us to beam to the ship? Preferably undetected, I might add?”
Sodalite faltered. “Ah, well, that is going to be tricky I will admit,” he confessed, wringing his hands momentarily. “But it is doable. Although… we’re going to need more than just two arms to do this. As fast as I can work, it won’t be enough to pull together what we need in time. So…” Sodalite helplessly spread his hands out to Tiger’s Eye and Hematite.
“That’s you plan?” Hematite smacked a hand to his forehead. “Labradorite and Seraphinite?”
“It’s our best shot. You know they can get things done,” Sodalite asserted.
“Yeah, and I also remember the last time we let either of them loose, never mind both of them together.”
“I’ll keep them in line,” Morganite suddenly said.
All three Gems stopped talking and turned to look at her. The pale-colored Gem straightened up, a very serious expression set on her quiet features. “You know I can, if it comes to it.”
Tiger’s Eye hesitated. “Either of them on their own, I know you could. But the two of them against one of you-“
“-I’d still win,” Morganite cut him off, and held his gaze with her own.
They started at each other intensely for several long seconds, but Tiger’s Eye eventually sighed. “Okay, Morganite. You’re in charge til we all un-fuse again.” He turned his head back to Hematite. “Labradorite and Seraphinite are our best option right now, even if there’s a risk involved. I’m not saying that this is a great idea, but it’s better than the alternative. I’d rather deal with any hostilities away from where innocent people could get hurt, but time is not on our side for this. And when it comes to scrapping together something on short notice, you know who’s best for that…”
The grey Gem finally nodded and stretched his arms up, accepting the explanation. “Guess it’s time to get things going then.”
Sodalite gleamed for a moment, body rippling, shrinking, and pulling apart, and then Chrysocolla and Turquoise were standing there. They shared a look and then parted ways, Chrysocolla moving towards Hematite and Turquoise over to Tiger’s Eye.
Unbidden, the dances began. Hematite and Chrysocolla moved in a fast rhythm, the electrical energy from the gem on the upper part Chrysocolla’s left arm growing ever more palpable with each twist and turn, until Hematite spun them into an even closer proximity and the two began to meld.
Simultaneously, Tiger’s Eye was matching Turquoise’s movements, giving the shorter Gem a twirl before Turquoise rolled his shoulders back and pressed closer into the fusion dance, and in seconds they were bathed in a glow.
Morganite stood and watched as the two fusions took form, emerging with sharp cackles of glee and excitement, both standing nearly twice her height. Labradorite let out a shrill giggle, electrical sparks dancing down his long, thin fingers like Earth lightning. Seraphinite was similar, laughing while four outstretched hands twitched and flexed.
“It’s been too long,” Labradorite remarked.
“Indeed,” Seraphinite agreed.
***
Alright, that’s enough now.
No, we’re not done! This is far too much fun to stop!
Turquoise…
Oh come on, Tiger’s Eye. You love it too. P.O.L.L.O .was your design in the first place, I’ll remind you. What else can we build? What else can we experiment with?
We need to deal with Cat’s Eye.
So let’s deal with him. All we have to do is fuse our weapons. How long has it been since we’ve gotten to use those wonderful robotic grabby things?
Those have a name you know.
I’ve never been bothered enough to care.
No. We’re done now. So stop struggling and let’s just…go!
A burst of energy split between them and Tiger’s Eye had to take a moment to orient himself again, realizing that he was on the floor along with Turquoise, who found himself flat on his back and staring straight up.
Long hair flowed down into his face. “You two can be the most stubborn Gems,” Morganite said, looking down from over him but wearing a smile on her face.
“I take it Chrysocolla didn’t want to stop either?” Turquoise murmured in a slightly dazed voice.
“You two are such little shits,” Hematite’s voice groaned from somewhere. “Brilliant, but jeez, it’s like that one time we wound up in that weird park with the spinning thing.
“That was called a ‘carnival’ and the spinning thing was called a ‘Tilt-A-Whirl.’” Chrysocolla interjected.
“I don’t care what it was called, I’m just glad it’s over. How much time did that take?”
“Almost five hours,” Morganite supplied. “I kept checking the monitor. Cat’s Eye is still a good distance away from Earth’s atmosphere. If anything… bad happens, everything will still be out of range of harming any humans here.”
“Well, that’s good.”
“But we don’t have any more time to waste,” Tiger’s Eye said, straightening up.
“That was not a waste,” Turquoise grumbled, standing up as well.
“…No, you’re right. It wasn’t a waste,” Tiger’s Eye corrected himself. “But we still need to go now. Before Cat’s Eye gets that ship close enough to fire off any blasts.”
The four gathered together and over to the makeshift warp station. The coordinates and logarithms had already been double checked in their fused state and now the only thing left to so was step through it.
“Alright, Crystal Gems,” Tiger’s Eye said, using the name they hadn’t needed in a long time. “Let’s go
.”
Tiger’s Eye reached his right hand up to touch the gem on his hat, and his signature gauntlets wrapped around his hands.
Hematite gripped at the gem at his neck and pulled forth a long, silver blade. His eyes and sword gleamed dangerously.
Turquoise swiped at the gem that rested on the back of his hand, brushing one palm and then the other over his fingers which began to emit a bright, multi-colored glow.
Chrysocolla’s gem glowed on its own, coming alive with reactions to any electromagnetic field.
Morganite took a breath, though breathing not needed of course, and reached for the gem embedded in her sternum. Her body shifted, breaking apart rapidly and refiguring, losing the pretense of skin along her arms and chest in favor of blunt muzzles that her gem would power.
She knew that under her holographic projections, she was perhaps the ugliest Gem there ever was but reminded herself, as they all stepped into the transport beam, that Kindergarten had made her efficient at least.