(sorry, sometimes I accidently but the publish button and I'm not done. So then I have to unpublish it and finish)
It was late morning as Will arrived back at beach city. He was able to push the Warthog to it's limits since the highway was empty. Making the roughly 600 mile journey in about 8 hours.
He still wore his battle scarred armor from the previous night minus helmet as he pulled up on the beach.
Pearl walked down the stairs to greet him.
"Good to see yo....what happened!" She said as she saw the damage done to him.
"I'll show you what did it." Will said as he walked toward the Warthog with Pearl in tow.
"Didn't you just bubble the corrupted gem?" Pearl asked.
"That wasn't an option." Quasar piped up.
"What do you mean wasn't an option?" She asked quizzically.
Will proceeded to pull the cover off the back with his good arm. The pieces of the Windego both undecayed and unmoving.
"Oh my stars!" Pearl gasped.
"We found it feasting on a body in the woods. I tried to take it out from a safe distance, but it dodged the bullet in midair. There was a skirmish between us resulting in some damage and him becoming sliced and diced."
Pearl got a good look at the head, she saw the gem inside that was split in two.
"You....you shattered it." She said.
"T
He shrugged.
"It was a heat of the moment decision. And after we decided it was best both for the sorrounding people and the gem." Will said.
"It's Gem was combined somehow with tissue and bone of some other animal, most likely a deer or a human." Quasar said.
"The flesh was to interconnected to the gem. Any attempt to remove it would shatter it anyway." Will said.
"I suppose it was unavoidable. But the question is do we just put it in a normal bubble." Pearl pondered out loud.
"I wanted to wait until we got back to bubble it, just in case it affected it and somehow ends up on the far side of the moon." Will chuckled as he made a dark green bubble appear around the arms, legs, torso and head of the Windego. He then tapped the bubbles and sent them to the Burning room. He then dematerialized the head into his gem.
"What's Stevie been up to." Quasar said with a smile.
Pearl sighed. "Well he came to me to teach him like the human 'school' after talking about it with Connie. When I realized what he actually talking about I gave him a gem artifact that was supposed to show him ancient gem locations to learn about. But the Mirror didn't do anything, so he asked me if he could take it around the city and I said yes." Pearl explained.
Will then walked toward the boardwalk. "Thanks Pearl, don't let amyhtest near it. I can only imagine the pranks she would do." He said as pearls face went pale imagining an Amythest version of that abomination.
__________
Will walked along the boardwalk in his armor chatting with Quasar on his shoulder.
"What happened while we were gone." Will asked the AI.
"Well I've gotten texts from Steven. Apparently he found a time machine and nearly caused a paradox, he and Connie found a sword in lions mane that he and Connie fought a robot with, had a party with the Pizza's and fought a corrupted gem with them, found out how to access Rose's room and Sugilite almost killed him and Pearl after destroying a gem communication beacon. Just to name a few."
Will stopped abruptly and looked at the AI with a dark look in his eyes." Sugilite almost killed Steven!" He said as he slowly raised his voice.
Quasar actually being a bit afraid tried to call him down
"Hey Pearl and Steven stopped him, and they promised not to fuse into her unless under dire circumstances." He said quickly.
Will sighed." I'm still going to be having a talk with them when they get back." He said with a hint of anger as he continued down the boardwalk. People staring at the scorched imprints of his boots.
A few minutes later he spotted the familiar pink shirt and black hair of Steven. He walked up to him but heard a voice yell.
"Look out!" Something from in front of Steven yelled.
Steven then turned around. He smiled and ran at the armored supersoldier.
"Your back." He said.
"Yeah I am, and it seems you've been busy while I was gone." He said with a grin while he ruffle this hair.
He backed up and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Yeah, trouble always seems to find me."
He then gasped as he started taking again." Oh yeah I made a new friend." He then showed him the mirror he had been holding.
"What happened to you." Steven finally took notice of his missing left forearm and scratches and dented metal.
"Let's just say the Gem was a little more than I bargained for, but it was no match for me." He said with a cheeky grin.
"Your new friend is a mirror?" Quasar asked.
"Yeah I've been showing them around beach city for the past half hour." Steven said as he changed his worried look to happy in an instant.
"Wanna come with." He asked, startling Will out of his thoughts.
"You...know." the mirror asked..
"Yeah, he's kinda like my uncle. He's super strong and smart with his cool armor." Steven said to the broken glass.
"Flatterer." Will said with a smile.
"Beach summer fun buddy?" It asked.
"What's that." Quasar asked.
"It means we'll all be buddies." Steven beamed.
"Well then, I guess we're all beach summer fun buddies." Will said.
"Yay." Steven said.
They proceeded to head down to the beach and ask the mirror questions. Steven had to go to the bathroom.
"What exactly are you." Will said with a Stern expression since Steven was gone.
"I'm..." It didn't finish.
"Don't try to lie to me." He said.
But neither got to say more before Steven came running back down the beach.
"I think it's time we head home bud." Will said to Steven.
He gained a big smile on his face. "We can show her to the rest of the Crystal Gems." He said.
"Noooo." The mirror said from Will's hand.
Steven took the mirror from his hand." Don't worry they'll love you." He reassured it.
"Noooo." It yelled again. But Steven was already making his way toward the temple.
"Something about this doesn't sit well with me." Quasar said to his Spartan.
"I'm starting to get the same feeling." Will said as he started after him.
Steven made his way up the stairs and into the beach house. Where Garnet and Amythest were sitting on the couch and Pearl was organizing a stack of items.
"Sup." Garnet said.
"Hey Steman check this out." Amythest said as she messed with a teddy bear on the pile.
It was quickly stabbed by Pearl's spear and thrown into a pile of speared objects.
"Amythest, stop messing with my organization." Pearl said to the annoying gem.
Amythest started laughing.
"You guys didn't tell me the mirror was like a person." He said.
The gems faces went white.
"It shouldn't be able to do that." Pearl said.
Garnet walked toward Steven." I'm going to need you to give me the mirror." She held out her hand for it.
"Noooo." It yelled.
"It doesn't want to go with you." Steven said.
"It can't want anything, it's just a mirror." Garnet said, getting angry.
Steven was torn. On one hand the gems just wanted to protect him. But on the other hand he wanted to save his new friend.
He made up his mind.
"It doesn't want to go with you." Steven said as he accidently slapped Garnet. Her glasses fell to the floor when he did. She turned to look at him with all three of her eyes angry. A terrifying sight for most.
"I'm sorry." Steven said as he ran out the door.
"That little man is in trouble when I get him." Garnet said as she summoned new shades.
"Not if I get you first." Will said from the doorway.
"Move out of the way." She said.
"Why should I." He said
"Because he's in danger with that mirror."
"The only danger I see around her I you Garnet."
She looked taken aback by this.
"I've been gone for only 2 weeks. And in that time Steven's been nearly blown up, burned, crushed, trapped inside a room he couldn't control and nearly broke apart the GodDamn spacetime continuam! And you guys either caused it or didn't do a damn thing to stop it and to top it off the biggest offender is your and Amythest's abomination of a Fusion!" He yelled.
He just stood there breathing heavily. Pearl and Amythest just looked down because they knew he was right. But Garent just sat there with gritted teeth.
In the blink of an eye she summoned her gauntlets and punched him through a wall.
"Garnet, what do you think your doing!" Pearl yelled.
"Garnet you need to calm down right now." Amythest said as she wrapped her whip around her arm.
"No, he insulted our care of Steven, what we stand for, and Fusion." Garnet said through gritted teeth. She just yanked had arm and made Amythest go flying.
"Garnet , stop this right now. You know he was mostly right." Pearl said trying to talk some sense into her.
But to Garnet it was as if he insulted her very being.Ruby and Sapphire's relationship, her Fusion. But what hurtthe most was him insulting their care of Steven.
She walked out of the hole in the wall and jumped down toward the beach.
She saw Will getting back up. She sent the half ton Spartan flying into.a rock.
"So, that's how you want to play this." He said as he summined his helmet.
(Play Blood by breaking Benjamin)
"Fine by me." He said.
Will engulfed himself in flames and rocketed himself toward Garnet. They both punched with their right hands and created a shockwave that sounded down the beach. They then, faster then the eye can see launched quick blows at each other. They were all either parried or blocked by each other.
Then they both punched at each other's head. Garnets blow was blocked by his shields, but Will's sent Garnet flying a dozen feet away.
He then dashed over to her and sent a lunch directly to her gut. Making her gasp and buckle.
She fell to the ground. Will walked over and knelt down by her head.
"Had enough yet."
Garnet then grabbed his leg and sent him flying into the melted remains of the statue hand on the beach. It and his shields shattered on impact while the hydrostatic gel hardened to take the impact.
"Gonna be feeling that in the morning." He said.
"Garnet stop." Pearl said as she pointed her spear at Garnets neck while Amythest wrapped two whips around her arms and turned into her Tiger Millionaire form.
Will got up. There was a small dent in his chestplate. He quickly got to his feet. The green flames around his body growing hotter and brighter. He had begun to burn and melt by his feet.
"She's not the one you need to hold back." He said darkly.
'power at 300%, shields at 400%' his HUD said.
He dashed toward the Crystal gems with jets of green fire. He weaved around Pearl and used a jet of flame to rocket uppercut Garent in the chin. Sending her flying into the air. But she was stuck on Amythest's whips, which brought her back down to the ground.
He then roundhiuse kicked her into a rock. Which made Amythest fall down and Garnet to hit with a sickening crack.
A wall of water then rushed at them and swept them up the beach. It kept them trapped in place.
It felt like an eternity to Will. Even though his superheated fire almost instantly turned it into steam. There was just so much water. It eventually sorrounded him and quenched his flames.
When the water finally referred Will, Pearl and Amythest looked down by the water. Where they saw Steven next to another gem. She had her hand flat out in the air.
"I'm Lapis Lazuli, and I want to talk."