(Narrator's POV)
"It's impossible to know what they're thinking. Dark Aura Onyx has never been a Gem I could read. None of them are." Garnet said as she and the others were on the beach, staring out at the water while surrounded by the charred remains of Greg's van as well.
The Pantheon had not just attacked: They sent a message.
"They can threaten all they want: We will beat them back." Pearl said with determination in her voice.
"This...this is my fault. Dark Aura Onyx is my problem. He's been my problem for thousands of years. I thought he would leave me alone...but he came after me here. I've brought that problem here to our home...our family...and look what's happened because of it." The fusion said sadly.
"Don't talk like that, Garnet. You couldn't have known this was going to happen......" Steven began to say until a voice chuckled.
"Except she always did. No matter how much she tried to act like we were gone, she always knew we were still around." Fire Agate said as everyone was in shock.
"Fire Agate! What are you doing here? I thought we had a year to prepare!!!!" Pearl exclaimed as Fire Agate chuckled.
"Calm yourself. I'm not here for a full blown fight. Call it a test, if you will, for you, Steven Universe. I finally get to meet you face to face." He said as Steven felt himself getting angry until.....
(Flash!!!)
Everyone gasped as Steven went into his Pink/Fragmented form, a look of pure anger on his face.
"What kind of test, Fire Agate?" The angered hybrid asked as Fire Agate chuckled and got into a fighting stance.
"Let's see that power....that made Jasper kneel to you." Fire Agate said as Steven charged at the Gem Commander as The Gems and Connie watched.
*POW!*
*BAM!*
A pair of devastating blows felled Fire Agate as Steven summoned a massive Pink chain that he wrapped around the Gem Commander before swinging him into a nearby boulder!
"Alright, Steven!" Amethyst cheered but soon went silent as Fire Agate soon arose from the rubble seemingly unharmed!
"Heh. Gotta say: I ALMOST felt that. You've got a lot of power, Steven...but you'll find that I'm leagues above the "Perfect Quartz"." Fire Agate said with a smirk as the battle raged on.
"Come on. Show me that power, Steven!" Fire Agate exclaimed as Steven charged at him with a spiked bubble fist but the Gem Commander dodged each strike before counterattacking with a takedown so hard that it caused Steven to cough up some of his own blood!
"STEVEN!!" Connie screamed as she and the Gems looked on in pure fear and worry as the hybrid they all loved was now bleeding from his mouth.
"That red liquid again. Well so much for a "clean" win, eh?" Fire Agate laughed as Steven then lost his temper. No other adversary had ever made him THIS angry!
"GRRR! THIS ENDS NOW!" Steven yelled as he charged at Fire Agate...only to be caught by the throat and slammed into the ground, much to the worry of the Gems and Connie!
"STEVEN!!" Connie screamed in fear as the smoke cleared and Steven was unconscious in a massive crater left from the impact and knocked out of his Fragmented form.
"I see what the problem is: You have immense power. But you hold it back! Or rather your love for these defects and organics hold it back. If you expect to have any hope of victory, then you'd best get your priorities in order, Steven Universe. Farewell." Fire Agate said as he teleported away as Connie and the Gems rushed to check on Steven.
Somehow, Steven managed to shakily pull himself out of the crater as Garnet and Connie were by his side in an instant, the former having removed her visor and revealing three very concerned eyes as she unfused into Ruby and Sapphire.
"Ruby…. Sapphire." Steven began to say as the two of them hugged him as the others watched on. But this wasn't just then hugging him out of concern. Rather this was a hug that happens when you come close to losing someone you love dearly and you don't want to let them go because you feel as if the moment you do, they'll disappear forever. That's what Ruby and Sapphire were feeling right now.
"Steven…..promise us you'll never rush into a fight like that against any of the Pantheon like that ever again. If we are to have any chance of coming out of this alive, we need to not allow our emotions to dictate our actions. I could sense your anger and hatred for Fire Agate. Please do not let that be what guides you against him." Sapphire said.
"The Pantheon are monsters. But we can only beat them by being smart about it, Steven. We need to do it together." Ruby said as Steven nodded.
"OK. I understand. I'll do whatever you guys tell me to do. You know more about the Pantheon than I do to begin with. So I'll follow your lead." The hybrid said as Ruby and Sapphire fused back into Garnet.
"Then you and I must go to Homeworld and seek out a pair of old friends of mine who have experience against the Pantheon. I'll be honest and say I really don't want to go back to Homeworld regardless of Era 3, but desperate times call for desperate measures." The fusion said as Pearl chuckled.
"I'm assuming you mean Jadeite and Hiddenite? I'd love to see them again even if they are on Homeworld." Pearl said as Garnet shook her head.
"No Pearl. You must stay here and train Connie. I'll be personally overseeing Steven's training along with Jadeite and Hiddenite." The fusion replied as Connie looked at Steven with a small smile on her face.
"This is pretty crazy, isn't it? One minute things are peaceful and the next minute we've got all this happening." She said as Steven smiled at her.
"Yeah. That's the story of my life, I guess. At least it's never boring. But Connie….you still have your parents. You have people to come back to who worry about you. And you have a life ahead of you after this. I don't want you to get hurt just because you got caught up in one of my messes." The hybrid said as Connie placed a hand on his face before kissing him on the cheek.
"Have you ever considered that I stay by your side because I LIKE getting caught up in your messes? At least this gives me an excuse to get out of studying." Connie said as Steven smiled.
"I'll train hard. And we'll beat the Pantheon. Together." The hybrid said as he and Connie shared a kiss before Garnet put a hand on his shoulder, signaling it was time to head to Homeworld.
"Let's go. It'll be good to see Jadeite and Hiddenite again. I think you'll like them, Steven." Garnet said as the two of them headed to the Warp Pad that lead to Homeworld, soon warping away as the others saw them off.
"Well. Shall we head to the arena, Connie?" Pearl asked as Connie nodded and headed to the Sky Arena with the Pale Gem.
Steven and Garnet are heading to Homeworld to train while Connie and Pearl train in the arena. See ya next chapter!
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The Pantheon
FanfictionAfter Steven's Departure from Beach City, Garnet is acting strange: She's far more reserved and quiet but unbeknownst to the others has also been having nightmares. When confronted by the others, she reveals her knowledge of 4 of the most powerful G...
