Steven Alternativerse

Tricked From Trust (Earthlings)

Out in the abandoned Beta Kindergarten, a Jasper lays in the sandstone beneath a corrupted version of her own kin. She grimaces, panting facedown as the beast turns itself over and it leaps off of her. Jasper lifts her head up from the ground.

She watches with drooping eyes as the beast rushes down the path ahead of her and out of sight. She sighs as she narrows her eyes. "Nobody I fuse with--ever wants to stay." She chuckles at the irony of her statement as she turns around to face her victors.

She quits her chuckling as she feels something creep up her left hand. She pants as Smoky Quartz stops shaking hands with herself in glee. Smoky grimaces from the sudden realization of the consequences of her triumph.
Jasper casts her eyes down on her arm as blur splotches spread with spikes popping out of them.

Peridot cries out in disgust as her face scrunches a few feet away from the scene unfolding ahead of her. "Ew! That's disgusting!" Steven speaks out from Smoky as he pieces everything together. "It's--corruption." Smoky glows and convulses as Steven and Amethyst split apart from each other.

They grunt as Steven lands on his back with Amethyst stumbling a foot away from him. Steven starts to get up as Amethyst puts a hand on his shoulder. "Steven, be careful." Steven turns his head back to face Amethyst with a counter to her warning. "But this just happened! Maybe I can do something!"

Amethyst gradually let's go of him as her eyes bulge in anguish. Steven puts on a smile as he extends his hands out in front of him. "Jasper, it's okay. I'm here." Steven approaches her as Jasper clutches her infected arm through clenched teeth. "Rose!"

Steven stops for a moment as he attempts to convince Jasper that he's not her nemesis. "I'm not Rose. I'm Steven." He listens to Jasper pant and groan as Amethyst and Peridot watch with caution.

"Look, I don't know what went on between you and my mom, but you need to know that I don't want to hurt you anymore than she already did." Jasper squints her eyes shut as she thrusts her head down, shaking it. "I want to heal you." Jasper growls. "Why didn't you do it before?!"

Steven lowers his arms as he raises his eyebrow. "I--huh?" Jasper grits her teeth. "You only help Gems when they are at their most vulnerable! That's how you do it! Because when you're at the bottom, you'll follow anyone that will make feel like less--of a failure!"

Steven's eyes droop. "Jasper, you're not a failure. You're the strongest Gem I ever faced--you never give up. It's okay to ask for help." He bends his head down as he brings his arms back to his sides. "Listen, I--I want to end this rivalry between us. Please. At least let me heal you."

Steven steps closer as Jasper contemplates his intentions. Steven licks his hand and he extends his saliva out towards Jasper's infected arm. Jasper smirks, realizing that she could trick Steven into saving her so she get her ultimate revenge later. She allows Steven to press his saliva against the arm.

Jasper squints her eyes and grits her teeth as she feels the cool, sticky substance penetrate her pores. After a few moments--nothing changes. Steven widens his eyes as he slaps his hand on the gem only to crack it. Steven grimaces as his eyes well up.

"Uh--why isn't thus working?!" Jasper heaves as she prepares to scrape Steven, realizing that now is her only chance to get even with her nemesis once and for all before she meets her corruption. Steven scrambles to find a way to heal Jasper as her shoulders convulses with blue splotches and spikes creeping up towards her neck.

Amethyst takes a step forward for she knows that time is starting to run out. Peridot keeps trying to break the iron bar off from the handmade cage in front of her, grunting with sweat pouring down her forehead behind her visor.

Jasper immediately strikes as Steven bends his head down to examine the arm again. Amethyst gasps, taking am abrupt step back as she shrieks. "STEVEN!" Steven crashes down on his back, clutching her chest as blood seeps through his hands.

He coughs and wheezes as Amethyst rushes up to him. Jasper starts to laugh--scream as the back of her head starts to sting from the spikes popping out of her long hair. She presses her hands against her cheeks as she howls in anguish.

Amethyst starts dragging Steven as Jasper's body starts to grow, overshadowing her and the victim. Amethyst gawks as she grips Steven armpits covered by his torn shirt. She grunts as she pulls Steven's limp, bleeding body away from Jasper.

After dragging a few feet to safety, Amethyst immediately pulls out her upgraded whip from her glowing gem. "Oh! That's so it!" She lashes out as Jasper's face starts to morph. The ends of the whip smack Jasper's left cheek as she her growling turns monstrous.

Her corrupted form charges towards Amethyst as the iron bar finally breaks off of the sandstone. Peridot gasps and she beams from her accomplishment as she turns to face the onslaught a few feet away from where she stands.

"I--I did it! Guys, I finally-!" Her expression contrasts as she process the nightmare unfolding before her. She picks up the iron bar and she rushes down to aid her allies. She pants along with Amethyst who has just been bashed into the wall to her right.

She grunts as she rebounds back into the ground. Peridot stops in front of her, banding her head down in alarm. "What happened?! Where's Steven?!" Amethyst groans in response as Peridot whips her body around just in time to meet a charging corrupted Jasper.

She gasps as she launches her bar with her ferrokinetic powers. She turns her head away with gritted teeth as the bar strikes Jasper directly in the chest. Jasper reels back a few feet--stalls--poofs and her gem crashes down into the sandstone next to Steven's fallen body.

Peridot gawks and she rushes up to him. "Steven? STEVEN!" She stops in front of him and she collapses on her knees. She blinks her eyes as reaches down to grab ahold of Steven's left arm. She closes her mouth as she narrows her eyes. "Hmm..."

She presses two fingers to her wrist and she waits a few seconds before letting go of his arm. She gets back up and she shakes her head. "He's--gone." She stares down at Steven as she gazes at the puddle of blood seeping through his shirt.

She turns to the gemstone in the sandstone and she waits a few moments before picking it up. She brushes a finger against it and she lifts her head up as Amethyst joins her. "Did we--win?" Peridot nodded. "Yes." She turns back to the corpse behind her. "But at a cost."