A New Era Three

Chapter 14: Homeworld's Arrival

"What do you mean the plan's changed?" Yellow asked, her voice clearly agitated but trying to cover it as she paced in White's chambers.

"White, none of this makes sense," Blue pleaded with her. "Pink? Corrupted?"

"The human part of her said it himself," White snapped down at her. "Pink shielded herself, her pearl, and the fusion. Something must have gone wrong."

Yellow and Blue glanced at one another, but said nothing. They didn't have a choice but to stay silent or to agree with White. Not when she was like this.

"I saw her change," White told them, her voice quieter. "I saw her morph into a monster. We need to fix her."

"And you couldn't lead the hybrid back here? Or fix her when you were in control?" Yellow dared to ask. She immediately stopped moving and cowered under the glare that White sent her way. "I'm sorry," she quickly stuttered out. "I should have assumed you tried."

White sighed after a moment and lifted her gaze to stare at the ceiling. "I tried," she admitted. "The little brat got the upper hand when I saw what she had become."

White tried everything she could to suppress the swell of fear as the image of whatever Pink was flashed in her head. It wasn't humanoid; it wasn't a Diamond; it was hardly even a gem. The patches of scale-like skin, the shift in her features from soft to angular and harsh, and the sudden appearance of an aura that White could only describe as pure hatred and a desire to harm her.

But what startled her the most is that Steven, Pink's human parasite, didn't react to it at all. She wasn't even sure he noticed the shift. It would make sense that he didn't see it. He didn't see Pink was still with him, after all. But it still didn't feel right. Throughout everything, White felt more of the human than she ever did of Pink. Sure, it was her aura, her power, and her gem that pulsed life through the boy's veins, but White never once felt a flash of recognition.

She only felt fear — the boy's fear of her.

But if Pink was corrupted, that would make sense. Her mind would be shattered, even if her gem was still flawless. She would be as one-minded as Yellow's gem fusion experiments, but with the destructive force of the Cluster. It didn't mean the boy was right; it didn't mean Pink was gone.

And the thought of bringing such a thing back to Homeworld? No, White couldn't risk it. It was better to keep Pink on Earth for now. Better to come to her.

"Would corruption interfere with your power?" Yellow asked quietly.

White nodded once, her eyes still fixed on the ceiling. "It would seem that corruption makes gems forget who they are. It turns them into monsters without coherent thought."

"And you're certain we can fix her?" Blue asked, her voice low with worry.

White nodded again, but said nothing. It was true that a Diamond's ability to heal was unparalleled, but this type of healing had never been tested before.

"But why go to Earth?" Yellow asked, her bravado barely back. "Why not send an army to collect her?"

White looked back down at them and smiled her signature emotionless smile. She couldn't let them know the truth; she needed them to approach Pink with confidence, not as a weaponized monster. "To show the rebellion that Pink isn't gone; they haven't won."

Yellow nodded once, a militant gleam in her eye at the plan, but Blue turned her head away.

"Good, good," White said at their lack of response. "Yellow, call your warships. Blue, summon your injectors. It's time we reclaimed the Earth."