It took over an hour for Dewey's evacuation alarm to finally fade into silence. By then, everyone had gotten the message, and many were already on their way out of town. Some, however, weren't as ready to leave so soon–or at all, if they could help it. As Steven and the Gems headed back to the temple to prepare, Dipper and Mabel made their way to the shack with a plan of their own in mind. A plan that they quickly realized would be much harder to convince Stan of than they thought when they found him, already waiting for them in the den.
"There you two are! At this rate, I thought you'd already made good on this evacuation mess and hitched a ride with somebody outta town."
"Wait, you thought we left?" Mabel exchanged a confused glance with Dipper.
"Uh, yeah?" Stan shrugged. "And to be honest, I kinda wish you had; it would have made things way easier for me."
"Well, uh… actually, Grunkle Stan," Dipper apprehensively began. "We're not-"
"Eh, I know you're probably not ready to leave, so I figured I'd take care of that for you," Stan picked up the pair of suitcases on the ground beside him. "Since you were taking your sweet time, I went to the trouble of packing your bags for you. You can thank me later, or better yet, tip me. I'd appreciate that even more."
"Grunkle Stan-" Mabel tried again, only to be cut off.
"Now, come on," Stan said, heading for the door. "That creepy alien hand thing is getting closer and closer by the second. Soos will be here any minute now to-"
"Grunkle Stan!" Dipper finally broke through. "Um… Mabel and I were talking and we're, uh… we're actually thinking of skipping out on the whole evacuation thing…"
Stan looked between the pair as he let out a flat, "…What?"
"What Dipper means is… we're actually just gonna... stay here..." Mabel smiled as she anxiously wrung her hands. "Just like we always do whenever anything super dangerous like this shows up."
A tense beat of silence passed, one that was only filled in by the sharp scoff Stan let out. "Oh, you're not staying."
"Uh… yes, we are," Dipper countered, but Stan was having none of it.
"No, you're not," he firmly reiterated. "I know you kids think I'm irresponsible, which is probably true, but I'm not crazy . This is a full-on alien invasion we're talking about here, not some weird magic spell or monster of the week. I've let you two get caught up in all this wacko Gem business so far this summer, but I'm not about to let you get yourselves killed over it!"
"But Grunkle Stan!" Mabel protested. "We have to stay and help Steven and the Gems fight Peridot off!"
"I don't care about who you think you have to fight off," Stan argued just as fiercely. "Someday you kids need to learn that not every tiny little thing that comes your way is your problem."
"But this is our problem!" Dipper stressed, frustrated. "It's our problem, every bit as much as it is the Gems' problem! We've fought Peridot and beaten her–more than once, and we can do it again! When are you and the Gems finally gonna realize that we can actually handle this stuff and let us help?!"
"When are you gonna realize that you're in way over your head?!" Stan shot back. "If you kids knew even half of how dangerous all this Gem stuff really was, then you'd-"
"Mr. Pines! I'm here!" Soos announced as he stepped the shack. He quickly stopped short as soon as he sensed the thick tension filling the den. "Uh… Am I interrupting something?"
"No, Soos," Stan simmered down a bit. "You made it just in time." He shoved the twins' suitcases into their arms before he corralled them toward the door. "We're done arguing about this. Stop whining and go with Soos. I'll see you when I see you."
As disappointed as both of them were, Dipper and Mabel quickly stopped short as soon as they realized exactly what Stan had just implied. "Wait… Grunkle Stan, you're not coming with us?" Mabel frowned back at him.
"Er—uh…" Stan avoided the curious looks they were sending his way. He didn't have any concrete answers for them, nothing he could explain in full. So instead, he simply told as much of the truth as he was able to, even if he knew it wouldn't go over well. "Not right now, no."
"You can't be serious!" Dipper angrily exclaimed. "How can you make such a big deal about us leaving if you're not even gonna leave yourself!? If you get to stay here, Grunkle Stan, then so do we!"
"I'm not staying!" Stan snapped. It was a lie, but a necessary one; just like all the others he'd ever told them. "I just… I'm just gonna be a little bit behind you kids is all. I gotta make sure the shack's all locked up and secure, you know? Just 'cause the Gems have some weird giant hand coming down to beat the stuffing outta them doesn't mean my business should have to suffer for it."
"But Mr. Pines," Soos cut in, confused. "I thought you said you weren't-"
"T-that I wasn't going to tell you to wait up for me or anything!" Stan quickly cut him off. "So… yeah, there ya have it. You kids are leaving, and so am I. End of story. Now get goin' already, will ya?"
With that, Stan gave the twins one final shove out of the shack, without even so much as saying goodbye as he slammed the door shut behind them. He leaned against the other side of that door as his facade finally crumbled, as he let out a long sigh and brushed his hand against his face. "You did what you had to do," he told himself, struggling to believe it. "You can't let anything happen to those kids." He stood a bit taller, squaring his shoulders as he began to head for the vending machine in the gift shop. "You can't let anything happen to that either."
Back outside, Soos helped the twins load their luggage into the back of his truck. Neither of them had much to say; what could be said, really, when they were about to leave their friends to face the burden they shouldered all on their own? Still, what else could they really do? Stan had put his foot down, and as much as neither of them wanted to, they both knew they had no choice but to go.
Still, that didn't mean they had to be happy about it.
Just as they were about to get in the truck, however, Dipper stopped short when he noticed someone landing at the edge of the lawn. "Lapis!" he hurried over to her, hoping that she'd hear him out. Just like she had before, just like so few others ever seemed to.
"Dipper, what's going on?" Lapis looked between him and the truck. "Where are you going?"
"Lapis, you're never gonna believe this," Dipper began, disgruntled. "Grunkle Stan is making me and Mabel evacuate along with everyone else, which is just… just crazy after all the stuff we've been through this summer, and-"
"Wait, you're leaving?" Lapis asked, her eyes wide. "Oh, that's such a relief! If I knew that 'Grunkle Stan' person could actually convince you to escape when I couldn't, then I would have asked him to do it from the start!"
"Wait… what?"
"Dipper, listen," Lapis lowered herself to his level as she rested a hand on his shoulder. "I know you don't want to leave, but… you really should. Whatever's coming… It's… Peridot could…" She steadied herself as she shook her head. "I don't want you to be around for this. I want you to be safe, more than anything else. You know that, right?"
"Y-yeah…" Dipper hesitantly agreed. "But… I just want to-"
"Help, I know," Lapis finished with a small, sad smile. "But you already did help. Dipper, if you've shown me anything these past few days, it's that you're brave and that you're stubborn, probably more than any human really has the right to be…" She laughed, and even Dipper couldn't help but crack a smile when he heard it. Still, Lapis turned a touch more serious as her hold on his shoulder tightened just the smallest bit. "But bravery and stubbornness aren't going to get Peridot and whoever else is with her to turn around now. Which is why you need to go, Dipper. Please. For me… and for yourself…"
Dipper couldn't very well say no to that. He sighed as he met her earnest, pleading gaze, knowing that he owed her this much after everything he'd asked of her. He couldn't let her courageous decision to stay be in vain. He couldn't let her bravery be all for nothing. "Ok…" he finally relented. "I… I'll go. But… What about you, Lapis? What are you going to do?"
Lapis stood, looking up to the hand ship with fear and resolve alike as she said, "I'm going to stay."
"R-really?" Dipper asked, surprised.
"Really," Lapis confirmed. "I already told you I was. I can't keep running from this. I have to face it head on. Besides," she smiled as she playfully ruffled his hair. "Somebody once told me that it's important to fight for what's worth protecting. And how could I ever let that 'somebody' down?"
This time, Dipper genuinely laughed as he caught Lapis in an unexpected hug, one that she was more than happy to return. She kept her hand on his head as she beamed down at him, longing for the day when all of this was finally over. When they'd both be safe and free and together , without any danger left to hang over their heads and keep them apart.
"I don't know what I'd do if… if something were to happen to you…" she whispered, worry creeping into her voice as she struggled to keep her smile up. "So… stay safe…"
"Of course," Dipper assured as they parted ways. "But only if you do too."
Lapis hesitated, but she still nodded all the same. "Right," she agreed to a promise she wasn't sure she could really keep.
"Well, I guess I should get going then," Dipper nodded back to the truck, where Soos and Mabel were waiting for him. "I'll see you soon, ok, Lapis?"
"Ok…" Lapis waved him off. It was only when she was sure that he wasn't looking that she finally let her smile fall. She finally let her fear fully show as she stared up at the hand ship and all of the devastation it was so close to bringing. "S-see you soon…"
By now, most of the town had evacuated, leaving an eerie silence stretching across the entire valley behind. That silence reached as far as the temple as the Gems raced to come up with a last-ditch plan. They kept Steven out of most of it–the last thing any of them wanted was for him to know just how ill-prepared they really were. They masked their terror as best they could for the sake of reassuring him that they could handle this, that they could stop this, that they'd save the day.
Even if they knew they couldn't, not this time, not against something like this.
As for Steven, he shuddered as he stole another look at the hand ship through his telescope. From the way it was pointing, it was clear it was headed straight for the temple–and all of them. He turned to tell the Gems as much–only to find them in the middle of helping Greg pack his van up for the trip.
"Hey! That's a great idea, Dad!" he called over to them. They all stopped dead in their tracks as he hurried over to help. "You should leave with the rest of…" Steven trailed off, confusion filling his face as he spotted his own cheeseburger backpack and hot dog duffle bag in Pearl's arms. "Is that… my luggage?"
The Gems exchanged an uneasy glance with Greg as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. "…Who wants to tell him?"
Pearl shook her head as she desperately looked over at Amethyst. "Hey, you know I'm not good with this stuff!" she exclaimed, crossing her arms.
"W-what do you need to tell me?" Steven asked, even though he already had a strong hunch.
The others stayed silent and uncertain as Garnet stepped up to the daunting task in their stead. "Steven," she knelt down to his level as she placed a steady hand on his shoulder. Her voice was a welcome sort of calm amidst this storm, against the worry he couldn't hide no matter how hard he tried. "I know you don't think we trust you. I know more often than not we treat you like a human child. But the truth is… we rely on you. Your voice inspires us, binds us, reminds us of why we promised to protect the planet. You must be that voice now, for them."
She nodded over to the road leading out of town, jammed with the noisy traffic of the evacuees. Steven followed her gaze, caught between a tide of conflict as Garnet solemnly continued. "If anything happens, you need to be there to protect them, just like your mother once did. It's your destiny."
Steven almost argued, almost begged and pleaded with her to let him stay, to stand alongside his team and fight with them. But as he looked back to the road again, to all of the people who were being forced away for their own safety, he knew what he had to do. He couldn't leave them without a defender, without a Crystal Gem to guide them back home. It was a job only he could do, and no matter what might happen, he was going to do it as best as he could.
"I won't disappoint you," he vowed, resolved. "I promise."
"I know." Garnet caught him off guard as she pulled him into a sudden, tight hug. Pearl and Amethyst were quick to join in, and Steven couldn't help but notice there was a strange sense of finality to it all. That if they all let go of each other, they might never come together like this again.
But that couldn't happen, he knew it wouldn't. They'd all be together again soon… wouldn't they?
With weak smiles and heavy hearts, they finally parted ways. Steven sat in the front seat of his dad's van, waving back at the Gems through the rear-view mirror. The Gems returned his silent farewell, one that they shared with Dipper and Mabel too when they spotted them in the back seat of Soos' truck. Two less problems to worry about, they figured, relieved. Two less people to watch them all to pieces once everyone was gone.
Garnet only let her team wallow in despair for a moment though. They couldn't lose themselves to their fear, not now, when there was still so much at stake. "We did everything we could," she assured them, her usually calm voice wavering with dread. "Alright. Let's pull it together!"
Pearl and Amethyst agreed as they all moved to ready themselves for the battle ahead. High on the cliff above the temple, Lapis landed to watch, shaking her head at their futile efforts. She couldn't care less about what happened to the Crystal Gems. The only thing that mattered to her now was on his way safely out of town, safe and sound. All she could do now was fight to make sure he stayed that way–
Even though she knew that this fight was one she was going to lose.
Steven could scarcely keep his sights off the hand ship as they passed it by on the road out of town. The night skies were engulfed in its green, otherworldly glow, casting everything below it in a similar eerie shade. Gravity Falls was already far behind them now, but Steven still yearned for it, and for the Gems more and more with each passing mile.
Still, he could take solace in the fact that he wasn't evacuating on his own. He had his father by his side, and in the rear view window, he could see Soos' truck, carrying Dipper and Mabel in tow. At least some of his friends were safe, even if he knew the ones he left behind weren't.
Even so, Steven did what he could to stay on the bright side. "Maybe when Peridot gets to Earth," he turned to his dad with a small, hopeful smile. "She'll see how nice all the people are and she won't wanna hurt anyone."
Greg offered up a bittersweet, wistful grin of his own as he mused, "Just like your mother…"
"Yeah?" Steven asked, his smile brightening.
"Yeah..." Greg let out a sigh as a worried frown took over his face. "But these other Gems aren't like her. They aren't like Garnet, Amethyst, or Pearl. They aren't gonna start caring about people now. They didn't the first time they-" He quickly stopped himself before he could say too much, too soon. Still, that hardly stopped Steven from asking.
"T-the first time they what?"
Greg swallowed hard. There was no dancing around it, not this time, as cornered as he was without any of the Gems to lean on. He had no choice but to face his son and tell him what they all had always struggled to give him: the truth.
"I-I mean… it was thousands of years ago! It's—it's not like I was there!" he let out an uneasy laugh. "Look, the Gems should be telling you all this stuff, but I get it. They… they don't want you thinking of them like that."
"Like w-what?" Steven pressed, his brow furrowing as Greg anxiously hesitated. "Dad, like what?!"
"Like aliens , Steven! Aliens who invaded Earth!"
"W-what?" Steven asked, his eyes wide. He knew the Gems were aliens, of course, but to find out they had come to earth, uninvited and unwelcome so many years ago… It was startling, to say the least.
"All they do is try to make up for it," Greg continued. "But they just can't forgive themselves. Gems were doing something awful to the planet a-and your mother couldn't stand it anymore."
Steven gripped the side of his door, overtaken with alarm as he remembered the Kindergarten.. The way Amethyst called herself a parasite, how she'd said other Gems had been made there, how Pearl had claimed it harmed the planet… Was that all a part of this somehow?
"She told me that's why she had to turn on her own kind. She gave up everything just to stop what they started here and drive the invading Gems off of Earth."
"I'm going to stay and fight for this planet," Rose had said in the memory Pearl had showed him in the strawberry battlefield. "The things that live here… they're all so precious and special… They deserve to live and thrive and be free. And so… I'm going to do all I can to give them that freedom."
All she could… even wage a war against her very own kind. "S-so she saved the world!" Steven tried to let himself be comforted by that fact. "That's good!"
"No such thing as a good war, kiddo," Greg shook his head sadly. "A lot of Gems were destroyed, people too… In the end, your mother could only save a handful of her closest friends. If it weren't for her shield… man, I don't know…"
Greg quickly caught himself when he glanced over at his son. Steven was shaken, to say the least, with a hand held tightly over his stomach–or more specifically, his gem. Greg could tell he'd gone too far, which was why he did all he could to try and change the subject. To try and save his son from the sort of stress he and Rose never wanted him to shoulder. "B-but hey! Let's look on the bright side! We're gonna drive past that waffle place in a couple miles! M-maybe we could see if Dipper, Mabel, and Soos are up for-"
"We gotta go back," Steven suddenly said, panic rising on every word. "Dad, we gotta go back! Turn the van around!"
"W-what?!" Greg gaped, alarmed. "No way! The Gems don't want you going back!"
"I know they're just trying to protect me," Steven urged, distressed. "But I have to protect them! I have Mom's shield!" He pulled his jacket up to show his gemstone. "They need me!"
"I need you too!" Greg argued just as intently.
"Please, Dad, what if they get hurt?!" Steven cried, tears welling up in his eyes. Greg, however, didn't say a word, didn't show a single sign of caving as he kept the van going straight ahead. Straight away from what Steven knew he had to go back to.
"Dad, turn around!" he begged again, choking on a sob. His father's silence only upset him even more. Couldn't he see that he had to do this? That he had to help them? That no one else could? "Dad! Turn the van around, please !"
Fueled by fear and grief alike, Steven slammed his fist into the dashboard. Not only was that enough to break it, it also sent the airbag bursting out into his face. Startled, Greg slammed on the brakes, swerving to the side of the road and watching in horror as the airbag launched Steven out of the van through the roof. Fortunately, he summoned a bubble just in time to protect himself, and to cushion his fall into a ditch just off the road. Still, it was a rough landing when the bubble burst, leaving him disoriented until he heard his father calling for him nearby.
"Steven!" Greg hopped out of the van. He hardly cared about the traffic that had been forced to stop behind him; his only concerns rested with his son and the tears still streaking down his face.
"D-Dad…" Steven whimpered, leaning into his father's embrace. There wasn't time to say much else, however, before someone else rushed in to check on him.
"Steven!" Dipper and Mabel hurried down into the ditch. Soos stood nearby; his truck had been parked almost as soon as the twins' saw the pink bubble sailing through the air and begged him to stop.
"That was totally crazy!" Mabel exclaimed as Greg helped Steven to his feet. "You were all like 'crash!' and then 'whoosh!' and finally 'boom!' Are you ok?"
"Yeah," Steven weakly nodded. "I… I'm ok…"
"Are you sure?" Dipper asked, noticing his still very-apparent tears. "You're crying. What's the matter?"
"I-it's the Gems!" Steven got right to the point. "They need my help! I gotta go back to Gravity Falls and help them! Or else they-"
"Yo, Greg!" He stopped short as the group in the ditch noticed the townsfolk gathering around to check on Steven. It was the least they could do for the one who had rallied them to evacuate in the first place. "Are you and your kid ok?!"
"Yeah, yeah!" Greg assured as he rested his hands on Steven's shoulders. "We're fine!"
"But it's not fine!" Steven countered as he turned back to his father. "Dad, please. I-I have to go back. I have to! They don't have my shield. They need it! You… you understand?"
Greg sighed sadly. He couldn't hold his son back from this; even if he tried, it wouldn't be right to stop him from doing something he believed so strongly in. Even still, his heart was heavy as he wiped one of Steven's tears away and said, "Yeah, ok, just… be careful, or I'm gonna run fresh out of family."
Steven nodded as he put on a thin smile to match his father's. "Stay with everyone and keep them safe. I'll figure out some way back to Gravity Falls-" He froze when he felt something soft plop down on his head. It only took a glance back to find that Lion had somehow managed to find him when he needed him most, even all the way out here. "Oh, this'll work!"
"Steven, wait," Dipper caught him off guard by grabbing his arm. He smiled, resolved and unshaken as he said, "We're coming with you."
"Yeah!" Mabel cheered, pumping her fist. "Let's go take that freaky alien hand ship out!"
Steven froze, alarm flashing over his face as he looked between the two of them. Two of his best friends, so eager and ready to help him, and yet… "You guys…" he sighed, shaking his head. "You… you can't, not this time. This isn't like Lapis and her water clones, or Gideon and his robot. This is something huge, something really bad , and-"
"So?" Mabel countered, smirking. "We've faced huge, really bad things before and made it out ok every time, haven't we?"
"Besides," Dipper added. "Peridot wouldn't have had any reason to come here if it wasn't for us. So it's only fair that we all fix this mess before it can get any worse than it already is."
"B-but-" Steven drew in an anxious breath. "You don't understand. Dad told me a lot of people– humans –they…" He trailed off, unsure of how to tell them something so grave, so heavy. So he decided to try a different tactic instead, one that he could only hope would convince them to let him do this alone like he knew he needed to. Even if he desperately didn't want to. "I-I'm supposed to protect you. It's my job, my destiny . So… y-you can't–you need to-"
"Steven," Dipper cut him off as he rested a steadying hand on his shoulder. "So far this summer, we've been up against Gem monsters and giant robots–"
Mabel chimed in with plenty of examples of her own. "Brain-eating zombies, a creepy shapeshifter, an even creepier child psychic-"
"An army of living watermelons, a crazy dream demon," Dipper continued, his smile only widening as he finished, "Heck, both of us have even fused with you. And you know what all of those things have in common?"
"Um… we almost died a bunch of times?" Steven guessed, frowning.
"...Well, yeah, but even more importantly, we faced it all together ," Dipper soundly concluded. "So, what makes you think that some dumb old hand in the sky is going to change that?"
Steven didn't know how to argue with that–he wasn't so sure he wanted to either. Because at the end of the day, he knew they were both right. Even if he'd only known Dipper and Mabel for a few short weeks, they'd already been through so much together, both good and bad. Which was why there was no one else he'd rather have by his side right now, when he needed someone to lean on the most.
There was no one else he'd rather go with to meet the greatest threat they've ever faced.
"You're right," he finally agreed, smiling warmly. "Let's do this–together. Mystery Kids?"
Dipper and Mabel didn't hesitate to pile their hands on top of Steven's as they all proudly, bravely cheered together, "Mystery Kids!"
It took a bit of doing for the twins to convince Soos to let them go with Steven. But with enough begging and bribing, he finally caved and cleared them to go, under the condition that Stan wouldn't find out. And so, with little time left to lose, Lion began the journey back to Gravity Falls with all three of the kids in tow. Along the way, Steven filled Dipper and Mabel in on as much as he could, about what Greg had told him, about why they were going back in the first place. A haunting tale that only made their mission even more momentous than it already was.
"So… let me get this straight…" Dipper began as soon as Steven was finished explaining it all. "Homeworld Gems were trying to destroy the Earth thousands of years ago, but your mom started a rebellion to stop them and won, but only after most of her friends died. Did… did I get all that right?"
"Yeah, that's pretty much the gist of it," Steven nodded tersely as he pulled out his phone. "And we're gonna make sure it doesn't happen again."
"Uh, how?" Mabel asked, frowning.
"Um… with my shield, I guess," Steven shrugged as he scrolled through his contacts. "To be honest, I don't really have much of a… plan."
"...Well, that's reassuring," Dipper deadpanned.
"We'll figure something out" Steven turned his attention back to his phone. "Come on… pick up…"
"Who ya calling?" Mabel tried leaning past her brother to see. Before Steven could answer, however, his call went straight to voicemail.
"You've reached the Maheswaran residence," Dr. Maheswaran's voice sounded over the speaker "Please leave a message after the beep. And keep it short."
"H-hey, Connie," Steven began as casually as he could. "It's Steven. Dipper and Mabel are here too-"
"Hiiii, Connie!" Mabel cheerily called.
"Mabel, shh!" Dipper was just as quick to quiet her so Steven could continue.
"Uh… we were just… seeing what you were up to… Don't know if you knew, but, uh, there's some crazy stuff going on with a giant space hand and we all might die, so, uh… I guess, call me back when you get this and talk to you soon! Bye!"
He abruptly hung up, without really explaining much at all. He caught the incredulous look both of the twins were sending his way as he offered them an awkward shrug. "I panicked." There wasn't much more to say as he put his phone away and focused on the path ahead.
After all, there was no more looking back now.
Stan shuddered as he heard the shack shake above him, glass shattering and shingles snapping from whatever was going on outside. The power had long since gone out, but the backup generators in the basement kept his work going steady. He was grateful for the distraction–anything to keep him from thinking about the looks on Dipper and Mabel's faces when he sent them away without even giving them a proper goodbye.
"Doesn't matter," he muttered as he flipped through the first journal. "They'll be back in a few days. You can make it up to 'em then."
He glanced up at the machine on the other side of the glass, aglow in the darkness surrounding him. He couldn't bear to leave it behind, not like how he had when Gideon had taken over the shack. Stan knew his clueless rival never would have stumbled upon it, but these "Homeworld Gems", a bunch of literal aliens with who knows what kind of technology on his side? They were much more likely to find it, to ruin everything he'd spent the past 30 years working so hard for.
Which was why he was going to do whatever it took to keep that from happening.
"Don't worry, poindexter," Stan shut the journal, gently resting his hand over the one on its cover. "I won't let them find it. Not now, when we're so damn close…"
He simply sneered when the earth above him rattled again. "If those Homeworld freaks want this thing so badly, then just let 'em try to get to it," he grabbed the bat lying next to his chair, deciding to keep it close on hand. Just in case. "I'll be ready for them."
Stan finally managed a confident smile as he spared a glance at the photo on the desk ahead of him. At the twins, somewhere safe and sound and so far away from all of this–exactly where he wanted them to be. "I'll be ready."
The hand ship loomed large, only a few hundred feet away from landing by the time the kids arrived back in Gravity Falls. The entire town was bathed in its sinister green glow, though no one was around to really see it, much less to feel the rapid winds its approach was stirring up. Lion's pace didn't slow as he raced past the Mystery Shack and up the hill toward the temple. Steven quickly brought him to a stop as soon as he and the twins found what awaited them just beyond the tree line.
The Gems had pulled out all the stops to try and slow the ship's approach. Pearl and Amethyst came together to form Opal, who fired a barrage of energized arrows at Garnet's command. And yet, just like the Light Canons, they had no effect on its apparently impenetrable hull. The kids exchanged a worried glance as they watched from the sidelines; if nothing the Gems had done so far could stop this, then what could ?
"Stay here," Steven ordered Lion as he and the twins hopped off. "If something happens, Dad will need a new son."
"So, do we have a plan now ?" Mabel nervously eyed the hand ship.
"No, and it's safe to say the Gems don't either," Dipper watched as Garnet and Opal looked to each other, completely at a loss.
"That's why they need our help," Steven said, already leading the way forward. "Come on!"
At the same time, Opal lowered her bow. Neither she nor Garnet needed to say it. There wasn't much they could do now. "At least Steven is safe…" Garnet muttered, barely relieved. Until–
"Hey, guys!"
The Gems spun around, shocked at the sound of his voice and even more shocked to see not just him, but the twins too. That shock was enough to split Opal apart, throwing Amethyst and Pearl to the ground as they followed Garnet's gaze over to the kids. "Steven! Dipper! Mabel!" she snapped, her hands in tight, trembling fists at her sides.
"You came back!" Amethyst cried, narrowly masking a smile.
"What are you doing?!" Pearl wailed as she scrambled to stand. "Get out of here, all three of you, now!"
The kids were more than prepared to protest, but they didn't have a chance. The hand ship was almost here, finally slowing its descent as it came in for a landing. "It's too late! Stay behind us!" Garnet ordered as she summoned her gauntlets. The kids did that much, especially as several trees toppled over under the weight of the massive hand pressing down upon it. Its fingers flattened out, slamming into the ground and rattling the surrounding forest. The Gems and the kids could only watch as a smooth green orb emerged from its open palm, rolling down to the very tip of the ship's index finger.
The orb opened to reveal a peculiar pair. First, there was Peridot, already thoroughly annoyed as she glared down at the Crystal Gems. "That's them alright," she said to her much larger companion. "They're the ones who keep breaking my machines!"
The other Gem let out a dismissive sneer. "This is it?"
"Jasper!" Peridot huffed. "They keep interfering with my work!"
Jasper stepped forward, finally allowing the group below to see her clearly. She was massive, to say the least, a full head taller than Garnet, with muscles to spare. The orange tint of her striped skin and wild hair were masked by the ship's green glow, but even that couldn't hide the color in the gemstone that sat where her nose would have been. Her sharp features settled into a cold scowl as she grumbled, "Looks like another waste of my time. You sure this is their base?"
"Affirmative," Peridot nodded as her fingers formed into a screen. "These are the exact coordinates that Yellow Diamond's 'informant' wanted to pass along to us…"
"Hmph," Jasper boredly regarded the group on the ground once more. "I thought you said there was one more of them."
"T-there was!" Peridot insisted. "It was some kind of four armed abomination–it used a human information dispenser to generate projectiles that took out my attack robinoids! It referred to itself as a 'Stepper', whatever that is!"
Steven and Dipper exchanged a startled glance when they heard this. There was no denying it now; Stepper's triumph over Peridot had been the very push she'd needed into coming here. Which meant that all of this, from the ship, to the evacuation and everything in between… It was all their fault.
Still, now wasn't time to wallow in guilt. If there'd even be time for that later at all.
"A 'Stepper', sure…" Jasper deadpanned, rolling her eyes. However, before she could say another word, the Crystal Gems finally stepped forward and drew their weapons. It was all they could do to stand firm before their foes, as frightening as they might be.
"You need to leave immediately!" Garnet fiercely demanded.
"Yeah, step off!" Amethyst growled, raising her whip high.
"This is not a Gem-controlled planet!" Pearl cried, clinging to her spear like a vice.
Jasper and Peridot simply ignored them as they jumped from the ship to land in the grass beneath it. "And you didn't see Rose Quartz?" Jasper asked, feigning disappointment. "What a shame. I'd hoped to meet her. I was looking forward to beating her into the ground!"
Steven cringed, shocked at how gleefully violent Jasper was about such a vicious threat. It almost made him glad his mother wasn't here to be on the receiving end of her wrath–even if the rest of them weren't so lucky.
" This is all that's left of her army?" Jasper raised an unimpressed eyebrow at the Crystal Gems. "Some lost, defective Pearl? A puny, overcooked runt? And this shameless display?" She stopped short, narrowing her eyes when she caught sight of the trio of kids cowering behind them. "What are they ?"
Peridot didn't get a chance to answer before someone new suddenly swooped straight into the middle of this confrontation. In a flash, Lapis landed from high above, her arms and wings all spread wide as she put herself squarely between the kids and their foes. "Don't touch them!" she viciously warned. "They're only humans! They aren't threats at all! They aren't part of them, so leave them alone!"
"Well, well, well…" Jasper cracked a dark smile. "Look who it is. Our little runaway Lapis Lazuli..."
"Lapis!" Dipper called, surprised.
"Dipper!" Lapis glanced back at him with wide, worried eyes. "Steven! Mabel! You three need to-"
She cut herself off with a yelp as Jasper suddenly grabbed her by the wrist, easily pulling her up into the air. "You made a mistake coming back to this worthless planet," she taunted with an icy smirk. "You could have kept on running, and we might've never found you. So why didn't you? Because of them?" She nodded over to the kids, scoffing as she dropped Lapis to the ground at her feet. "What a waste…"
Lapis said nothing, struggling to pick herself up as she sent the kids another desperate look. She was practically pleading with them to leave, but they had no intentions of going anywhere now. Not that they were so sure a brute like Jasper would even let them leave alive anyway.
"I've seen enough," she concluded as she turned to leave. "You don't need me for this. Just blast them with the ship."
"Ugh, fine…" Peridot scowled as she recalibrated her screen. The ship followed her inputs to point at the kids and the Gems again, though this time, its finger sparked with a bright, dangerous sort of glow. It only continued charging with more and more energy with each passing second, building up to what would no doubt be a devastating attack.
"Kids! Get out of here!" Garnet shouted over the near-defening din of it all.
"W-we can't!" Dipper shouted back as he glanced over at Lapis. "We won't ."
"Yeah! We have to help you guys!" Mabel added just as intently.
"I won't let any of you risk your lives!" Garnet sternly argued back.
"But this is our home!" Steven protested, tears welling up in his eyes. "And you're all my family!" The Gems could only stare at him, just as distraught as they all realized they couldn't stop what was coming. They couldn't save the kids–they couldn't even save themselves.
Still, Steven pressed forward, not even noticing the pale glow building just underneath his shirt, just as the ship fired its brutal blast. "I… I'm a Crystal Gem too!" With that, Steven charged forward, thinking of nothing other than the friends–the family he was so desperate to protect.
And protect them he did.
The explosion rattled the woods, uprooting even more trees in its wake. Jasper glanced back to make sure the job was done–only to find something shocking instead. Not only were the kids and the Gems all safe and sound. They were safe and sound behind the massive pink shield Steven had summoned to save them all, just in time.
"That shield!" Jasper gasped, fully turning to face it. "That symbol!"
Despite his best efforts, Steven couldn't uphold the shield for long. It vanished the second he fell to his knees, exhausted by the energy it took to make it. He barely had time to catch his breath before Jasper stepped into his field of view. "You!" she barked in angry disbelief. "You have the power of Rose Quartz!"
" Now do you believe I needed an escort?!" Peridot interrupted.
"Fire a barrage!" Jasper sharply ordered. "Widespread! Now!"
Peridot hurried to do just that as she slid a finger across her screen. The ship followed suit, blasting a clear line into the ground that would have struck Steven, if Garnet hadn't pushed him out of the way just in time. Amethyst and Pearl weren't so lucky as the resounding explosion knocked them back, and Dipper and Mabel only narrowly avoided it by jumping away. Still, Steven wasn't out of harm's way yet as Jasper stood over him, powerful and menacing.
"Rose, why do you look like that?" she asked, glaring down at him relentlessly. "Why are you so weak ?"
"Don't hurt him!" Lapis hurried to her feet and rushed over. She didn't get far before Jasper stopped her, long before she could even hope to make it to Steven's side.
"You knew about this!" Jasper accused as she shoved her back. "And you didn't say anything about it when we interrogated you?!"
"I-it wasn't relevant to the mission!" Lapis shook her head, frightened.
"Forget about the mission!"
"What?!" Peridot exclaimed, appalled.
"I said, forget it !" Jasper growled as she scowled back down at Steven. "Yellow Diamond needs to see this… thing… "
By now, Steven had started crawling away from Jasper, far too petrified to pick himself up and outright run. His heart hammered in his chest as he locked eyes with her, finding nothing but sheer hatred for him and his mother alike shining in her golden gaze. But just before she could get her hands on him, Garnet came to his rescue once again.
She rose up from the ground behind him, gauntlets ready to attack. Jasper was just as prepared as she eagerly summoned her own weapon: a study battle helmet. Garnet's fists slammed squarely into it, knocking both Gems back. Still, Garnet stayed steady as she offered Steven one final, desperate warning, "Steven, run !"
Steven only just managed to pick himself up off the ground when the twins made it back over to him. They hovered close, especially when they noticed he was still trembling with untold fear. "Steven, are you ok?" Mabel asked as she quickly checked him over.
"Y-yeah," Steven lied as he weakly nodded. "I-I-" He cut himself off with a gasp when he watched Garnet rushing for Jasper once more. She simply smirked as something bright flashed into his hand–though none of the kids could really make out what it was. Still, based on the way both Lapis and Peridot fearfully backed away the moment they saw it, they could tell it wasn't anything good.
Garnet barely paid it any mind, however, as she pounced at Jasper, her fists raised to meet her rapid approach, But in the end, they never hit her. Instead, Jasper struck her with a blow so sudden that not even her future vision could have ever seen it coming.
It hit her squarely in the chest, spreading electrifying lines across her entire body as she froze stiff in shock. Just a few feet behind her, the kids could only watch, shaken, as those lines thickened, until they began to slice her limbs clean off. Somewhere in the distance, Pearl and Amethyst cried out in horrified alarm, but they barely heard them. All they could hear instead was the sickening buzz of the deadly energy all too quickly tearing Garnet apart. She fell back toward them, her shades sliding off as anguish filled all three of her eyes. But in the end, she didn't even have time to tell them she was sorry before–
Before she fell to pieces before their very eyes.
There was nothing left in the flash that took her form along with it. Nothing other than the pair of gemstones that usually rested in her palms as they fell flat into the dirt, one red, the other blue. For one silent, sorrowful moment, the kids simply stared at them as the realization sunk in that Garnet was gone .
And if Garnet was gone, it would only be a matter of time before the rest of them followed.
Dipper was the first to find his voice again, tight and terrified as it was when he said, "O-ok, that… that was seriously messed up!"
"S-Steven, is… is Garnet going to be…" Mabel trailed off, unable to even finish asking the question.
Steven had no answer for it anyway. Instead, he kept on staring at Garnet's gemstones, desperate for her comforting presence and steadfast protection more than anything else in the world right now. What he got instead was the very Gem who had so viciously taken her out.
"I was there, you know," Jasper all but ignored the twins as she bridged the gap towards Steven. "At the first war for this garbage planet. I fought against your armies, respected your tactics. But this?!" She grabbed Steven by the shirt, roughly lifting him up to her level. "This is sick !"
"Unhand him!" Pearl demanded, rushing forward with Amethyst at her side.
"Steven!" Likewise, Dipper and Mabel reached for him, even as Jasper kept him high out their reach.
"I don't get what you're planning, Rose," Jasper hissed as Steven weakly struggled against her unyielding hold. "But look! Your base is taken. Your armies are ruined! You have failed!"
With this, Jasper let her helmet disappear. She didn't need it as she rammed her head straight into Steven's, knocking him out cold. "And now…" she smugly smirked as Steven fell, limp and unconscious, in her grasp. "You're my prisoner."
"No!" Jasper glanced up to find Pearl and Amethyst launching themselves at her. And yet, before they could land a single hit, they froze midair, held aloft by the pale green tractor beam Peridot was projecting.
"Ugh, Crystal Nuisances," she growled up at them.
"Make sure you pick these two up too," Jasper nodded back to Garnet's gemstones. "Looks like we'll be going home with a whole ship full of traitors."
With that, she slung Steven over her shoulder, showing little care for her helpless captive as she began to head back to the ship. Only to stop short when a rock, of all things, struck her squarely in the back of the head. " What-"
"Let him go!" Dipper demanded as he raised another rock high. Mabel held up a similar handful of stones, prepared to let her ammunition fly–whatever it took to save Steven before it was too late.
Jasper let out a disgusted groan as she turned around to face them. "Tch, humans …"
"N-no!" Lapis flung herself forward. She might not have been able to save Steven, but she wasn't about to let Dipper–or Mabel for that matter–meet the safe fate. "No! Leave them alone! They're not-"
She didn't get far before Peridot's tractor beam stopped her, just as it had with Pearl and Amethyst. "Can you hurry it up already? I'm running out of limb enhancers here!"
Jasper ignored her as she approached the twins, letting out a haughty scoff as she looked between the two of them. "Figures Rose would keep a bunch of pathetic organics like you around. But the fact that you two would defend her, even after everything she's done? Hmph, I guess you humans really are as dumb as you look."
"H-his name is Steven ," Mabel corrected. Her hand shook as she readied another stone, though she didn't dare throw it, not when Jasper was this dangerously close. "And he didn't do anything! So put him down!"
"Oh, really?" Jasper let Steven slip off her shoulder. As he fell into the grass behind her, the twins tried to lunge for him, only for Jasper to stop them in their tracks. She grabbed Dipper by the arm and Mabel by the leg, yanking them high into the air as her crushing grip bruised them both. "You two really think Rose Quartz did nothing ? Maybe I ought to remind you that she 'saved' this measly hunk of rock you call home. Oh, but of course , you humans wouldn't be able to forget about that, would you? But what you don't know is that Rose didn't save the Earth; she doomed it. She doomed you !"
"W-what do you-" Dipper didn't get a chance to finish asking. Without warning, Jasper flung them both away, straight into the rocks surrounding the temple. They hit the stones hard, enough to knock the wind out of them as they fell to the ground, dazed and disoriented.
Jasper simply scoffed as she watched them struggle so much as pick themselves up off the ground. "You know what?" She grabbed Steven again, to take him even further out of their reach–and there wasn't a thing they could do to stop her. "If you still care so much about defending her, then you both deserve to die along with this ruined waste of a planet. Just like Rose here will the minute the Diamonds get their hands on her…"
With that, she turned her back on the injured twins, heading back to the ship with Steven in tow. Peridot followed, carrying Pearl, Amethyst, and even Lapis along after her. Mabel only barely saw it before her swimming head finally overwhelmed her as she slipped out of it completely. But Dipper was still just awake enough to watch as Lapis was dragged into the ship first.
"N-no…" he groaned, holding a shaking hand out in protest. "L-Lapis… S-Steven… Mabel, we… w-we have to-" He tried to push himself up, to do something, anything to stop this. But in the end, Dipper found he could do nothing as his body punished him for the effort by painfully pulling him right back down into the dirt. Tears were only beginning to fill his eyes as he looked up and caught one final glimpse of Steven as Jasper threw him onto the ship. The last glimpse of Steven he'd ever get to see before it all went black.
The hand came down far too fast for anyone to hope to stop it.
And it took far too much with it when it left.