Consequences

19 - Interstellar Satellite

Everything seemed normal.

A few days had passed since the Crystal Gems had returned home with Steven. Peridot had dropped by twice, but Lapis hadn't. Steven would've been concerned, but he was still sensitive about Chalcedony. He honestly didn't know what to feel to about her.

He had a pretty good idea what Lapis Lazuli felt, though. He decided not to ponder about it for too long, but the thought would still arise every once in awhile.

The day was sunny out.

The Crystal Gems were in their temple rooms, probably making themselves comfortable at home again after the weeks spent on Blue Diamond's ship.

Steven was in his own room. He didn't feel like watching TV. Every time he tried to, he became distracted. It was as if Steven just couldn't sit still and pay attention to the screen.

Instead, the young gem drew pictures with a pencil and some markers that were running out of ink.

Steven was bored, not really paying attention to what he was drawing. Eventually, pages and pages of pictures of gems were created and colored.

The gems Steven had drawn were those he had remembered seeing back on the Homeworld base. There were blue, green, purple, a few pink, orange, and a few yellow gems.

Steven picked up one specific drawing he had made, not caring that it was drawn with a lack of effort and skill.

It was a picture of Azurite.

Steven stared at the picture long and hard, emotions boiling inside him. He vowed to himself that he would never trust a Homeworld gem again. Then he thought of Peridot, and Lapis.

Well... Lapis had forced him into a fusion. But she wasn't evil...

Steven moved on to the next picture, setting down the picture of Azurite. It was Larimar. Her expression was plain. Not happy or sad. Sort of bored looking, honestly, just like Steven felt.

Steven couldn't understand why looking at the picture made him sort of sad. Larimar hadn't been exactly nice... but she wasn't like Azurite. Larimar didn't deceive or trick him.

Steven quickly reminded himself of his new vow of not trusting a Homeworld gem.

Snapping out of his thoughts, Steven stared at the paper in his hands, as it slowly began to glow red. He dropped the paper in shock, and it floated slowly to the floor.

Steven looked around him, then down at his hands. The entire room was glowing red, and the illuminating light was seeping in through the windows in rays of crimson.

Steven stood up quickly, paying no mind to the markers and papers he knocked to the ground in doing so.

He ran out of the house, the screen door slamming behind him.

Everything was colored red, the shade becoming more intense as seconds passed.

Steven looked at the glowing landscape around him, before his eyes settled on the sky... and his stomach settled on the floor. His stomach dropped as if he were going down the hill of a roller coaster at Funland.

In the sky was a huge red sphere. A red eye, resting in the higher atmosphere like a second sun.

It was slowly moving through the sky, turning as if looking for something.

Steven squinted his eyes, and leaned backwards, as the eye settled its blinding blood gaze on him. Or, more specifically, on the entire Crystal Temple.