"Um, what is this?"

"It's a human! And it seems to have been dead."

"Then what should we do with it? The human will attract gem soldiers who are still trying to find us."

"Well, get rid of it!"

"Where?"

"You were the one who brought it in, return it to where you found it!"

I slowly open my eyes to find that I can't move my arms or legs. "Uh, hello?" I ask, my voice raspier than normal.

A blue gem and a green gem both spin around and stare at me with shocked expressions.

"You're alive?" The green one asks, puzzled.

"Of course it is, Peridot. Stop being so stupid." The blue gem tells the green gem, hitting her gently on the shoulder. She has teal hair that goes down her back and a short dark blue dress. She's one of the only gems that I've seen with no diamond pattern on her clothing.

"Sheesh, like I would know," the green gem has yellow hair that goes down to her shoulders in a strange triangular pattern. Her outfit is somewhat simple: a tank top and leggings. There are two diamonds on her legs.

"Who are you and why can't I move?" I demand.

"I'm the former royal scientist for Yellow Diamond, Peridot-2F5L Cut-5XG." The green gem answers with a smug smile.

"How much do you know about gem history?" The blue gem asks briskly.

"I didn't know that gems had history," I mutter.

"Lier!" She points an accusing finger at me.

"What?" I exclaim.

"Just ignore Lapis, she's been going insane for years," Peridot says, rolling her eyes.

I glance at Lapis, who's glaring at me from the back wall of the one-room log cabin.

"But you can move, I just made it very difficult for you to. I strapped your ankles, wrists, and waist  into metal bars that give you a light burn if you struggle against the wall." Peridot explains with a grin.

"Uh, you might not know this but your invention could cause harm to a human." I tell her.

"Oh, of course I know, I'm not stupid. I know your weaknesses, human." Peridot waves a flyswatter in my face. "That's why I set it to the 'burn' setting. It would frighten you just enough to keep you in place but still obey me."

"Compared to what?" I ask carefully. Lapis is still staring me down in the corner.

"Oh, you don't need to know. But you do need to know something. Something that's extremely important to me."

"Why do you want to tell me this?" I ask. I don't trust anyone anymore, and I'm not sure why this random gem would. 

Peridot glances back at Lapis, then walks up to me. "Listen, human. Ever since I had to go into hiding with this beast of a gem, I've been more desperate than I've ever been in my short life. Lapis is slowly killing me with her madness. She was alright when I first joined her in hiding, but she started losing her sanity. It started with her randomly leaving the cabin and going off into the forest. She would return with these items that she thought were useful but were incredibly unpractical. When I told her this, she got mad and threw a fit. Soon, she started having temper tantrums commonly. From there on, it's been torture living with her."

"And I ask again: why do you need me?" I reply. Just now am I realizing that gems aren't the terrible beings that everyone describes them as.

"I want to find the Crystal Gems."