His Mother's Son

Face Off in the Sky Arena

Steven's P.O.V

The look on all their faces is priceless! I sincerely wish I had a camera on me right now but alas, not everything works out a hundred percent. Everything worked out just according to plan. After some stray Amethysts came running past our camp in the Beta Kindergarten, telling everyone about how they saw 'Pink Diamond' get shattered and how horrible it was, I knew exactly how to proceed. I had predicted that she'd do it at some point or other, so that left me with doing what she would try to pull on the Homeworld Gems. An ambush. Now, here we are. Rose and her Crystal Gems are right where I want em. And they're not walking away from this unscathed.

"Steven? What is all this?" Rose asks, sounding more confused and scared than angry.

I smile and gesture to the hundreds upon thousands of gems surrounding her.

"Isn't it obvious, Rose? You fell right into my trap" I smirk, "Besides, where do you think the knowledge of this place having 'lost Homeworld gems' came from?".

Her face morphs into an expression of shock and from that, my smile only further deepens.

"It's like I said, Rose, I'm not alone. In fact, I'm never alone" I state matter-of-factually.

Just then, as planned, Peridot and Lapis fly down and land on both sides of me, Peridot with her limb enhancers and Lapis with her water wings. The two gems then develop stern and stone cold faces upon looking at the Crystal Gems and their leader. Before I brought everyone here, and after the Amethysts came by with the 'sudden news', I told the both of them Rose Quartz' secret identity. Needless to say, Peridot and Lapis were each very surprised. However, after I explained what she would do in the timeline of events that I had previously known to happen, the green and blue gems still agreed to stick by me and fight it out, even if it meant battling a Diamond in disguise. I left Jasper out of the loop, though, cause she'd be out if I ever told her that we were fighting her Diamond. Peridot and Lapis are more fine with this because they don't serve Pink. Jasper does, and from my past encounters with the wild and crazy Quartz soldier, I know for a fact that her loyalty extends pretty dang far for her Diamond. There'll come a time when I must tell her, or that it'll come out in some other way too, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

"I want you to meet my friends, Lapis Lazuli and Peridot Facet-2F5L Cut-5XG" I say, introducing them, "To you, they might seem like any other gem that'll be shattered if they stand in your way of rebelling against the Diamonds. Not to me, though. To me, Lapis and Peridot possess kindness, honesty, and gratitude, things you have very few of".

After I say that, I see out of the corner of my eye that both gems are blushing from my words. Praise is a powerful thing, that much I'll admit.

"But, they're Homeworld gems, Steven!" Rose protests, "They serve them. They serve the Diamonds, rulers that would sooner shatter someone than give them praise or listen to their thoughts. The Crystal Gems exist to be better than them and to make this planet a safe haven for all those that can't live like that. I thought you knew this".

"Trust me, I do. But what you're failing to realize is that you're proving yourself to be no better than the enemy you're picking a fight with. You say you and your gem allies are better than Yellow, Blue, and White Diamond, but yet you still shatter anyone whom you think poses a threat to your cause. It seems to me like you don't know what you really stand for. But I do. You stand only for yourself. You might try to convince all your allies of it, like Pearl, Garnet, and Bismuth, but deep down, you're only wanting to do this for your sown selfish reasons. Only as long as you don't have to be told what to by the Diamonds are you willing to fight against them, and by extension, me" I counter, looking her dead in the eyes as I lay out the facts.