Default Settings // Sequel to "Factory Reset"

Chapter 24: An Offer You Can't Refuse

Chapter 24: An Offer You Can't Refuse

"Let me go!" Bismuth demanded as Jasper dragged her back to the interrogation room. "Why did you bring me here?!"

Jasper glared at the thrashing blacksmith and shoved her into the room, locking the door behind her. Bismuth was alone with nothing but a table, two chairs, and some cluttered boxes. At least, she thought she was alone until she noticed someone else standing in the shadows of the room.

"Is that...Ruby?" Bismuth squinted at the figure.

Red stepped out of the shadows with a panicked expression on her face. "Bismuth...is-is that really you?"

Bismuth grinned, happy to see a familiar face. "Ruby! Where are we? Where are the others? Where's Sapphire?"

Red rushed out her words, "That's not important. Right now I'm more focused on...whatever this place is. Did you get a look around?"

Bismuth narrowed her eyes, finding herself suddenly cautious. Since when did Ruby not think Sapphire was important? "No, I...didn't get the chance. Are you feeling alright?"

"Of course I am," Red said quickly. "They knocked me up a bit before throwing me in here. Look I don't know when they're coming back but we need...we need..." Red looked around, her gaze landing on a pile of boxes. She rushed over and found various metal scrapes from old injectors. "Can you make something out of these?"

"I...maybe but Ruby, hold on for a second," Bismuth felt like she was missing something. Things felt too rehearsed, too forced. She decided to test something out. "Maybe I could make something like when we were fighting on that Onyx ship. The one when we captured those Aquamarines."

"Oh, uh, yeah," Red nodded, "Something like that could work. It did last time."

"Ha, yeah," Bismuth laughed, "Except, now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure I was never on that mission. That was just Garnet and Pearl, wasn't it?"

Red frowned but didn't try to correct herself.

"You aren't Ruby," Bismuth crossed her arms, "Are you?"

Red sighed and found herself laughing a bit, confirming Bismuth's suspicions. Red's panicked expression was replaced with a smug grin.

"I wasn't even close to fooling you was I? Where did I screw up?" Red eyed Bismuth carefully. "And so you know, I prefer to go by Red nowadays."

"Right..." Bismuth felt uneasy about the sudden shift of attitude. "So why are you posing as my Ruby?"

"I am your Ruby. Because of that, I thought you might of been more willing to help but..." Red motioned for her to take a seat, "Since you ruined the fun, I'll have to use other methods."

"Do whatever you want short stack," Bismuth grinned, feeling underwhelmed. "You aren't getting anything from me."

"See," Ruby chuckled darkly, "I had a feeling you would say that. That's why I have an offer for you. Do you know what's been going on lately?"

Bismuth glared and responded bitterly, "No. I was a little out of the loop. I guess you could say I was stuck in my own personal bubble."

Red laughed, "A sense of humor, I like that. See, I think we can really work well togeth-"

"What's been happening lately?" Bismuth cut off impatiently.

Red smiled and folded her hands together, "The War is still very much going on and I'm afraid your Crystal Gems are severely outnumbered."

"Ha! What else is new?" Bismuth laughed. "We'll still beat you Homeworld scum."

Red smiled and stood up, walking behind Bismuth. "I really don't think you understand. You see, you may of fought a war but you never fought a war against me."

"Oh yeah? What makes you so special?" Bismuth laughed, obviously not impressed.

Red's eyes flashed dangerously. "I'm not just a Ruby. I'm an...experience. Or should I say experiment? See I was made for an unfair fight. Every fighting technique known to gemkind is programmed into my very being."

Bismuth didn't understand. "That's not possible."

"It is when you were hijacked," Red explained knowing full-well Bismuth didn't know what that meant. "You can thank your little Crystal Gem friend for that.

"The point I'm trying to make here," Red sighed, "Is no matter how this war goes, not all of your friends will get out of this in one piece. Literally."

Bismuth looked at the Ruby who had a mock look of sympathy on her face.

"Unless," Red held up a hand, "You agree to help me with a few...projects, and I promise not to hurt any of your little friends, so long as I don't have to. You may not win the war but I assure you, you won't have any casualties either."

Bismuth didn't trust this one bit. "How do I know you aren't just saying that?"

"I'm a Ruby of my word." Red took Bismuth's lack of reply as her reluctant agreement to help.

"As for what I need from you," Red continued, "There's two things. We need to get working injectors."

"Working..." Bismuth trailed off until she suddenly understood the task at hand. She shook her head, standing up and pushing the chair away in denial. "Kindergarten injectors?! You can't possibly mean to tell me you're starting the Kindergarten back up again?"

"That's exactly what I'm telling you," Red said flatly.

"I won't do it," Bismuth growled. "I'd rather be shattered."

"I hope you can say the same about your friends." Red raised an eyebrow at the enraged gem.

Bismuth wanted nothing more than to squash Red into pieces but she needed to make this deal. It would give the Crystal Gems their best chance if Red promised to restrain her army (does she even have an army? Bismuth wondered) from killing them. She had lost so many people in the first war...was it possible to save the rest? Bismuth trusted her friends. If she gave the Crystal Gems their best chance, they'd be unstoppable. They'd win even without the breaking point.

"What else do you want?" Bismuth asked through gritted teeth.

Red leaned close to Bismuth, "Just so we understand, what I want stays between just us. Alright? Tell anyone about what we're doing, even my soldiers, I'll know, our entire deal is called off, and I'll make it my personal mission to shatter each and every one of your friends starting with you."

The room felt hotter than it first did. The floor around Red was smoking.

"What is it you want?"

Red grinned, walking over to the door. Her eyes landed on one of the cameras in the room. "Let's discuss this somewhere more private, shall we?"