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.

"Keep speaking like that about our leader and I'll slice you into nothingness!!" Pearl shouts, pointing her sabers at me furiously.

Garnet, Bismuth, and the other Crystal Gems echo in agreement. I sigh in disappointment and shake my head, turning to my left and right while murmuring the same thing to both Peridot and Lapis.

"Get ready"

I then straighten back up and cross my arms over each other. Let it be said that I tried to play nice and give Rose/Pink Diamond a chance to reconsider her actions. Won't really amount to anything, I bet, but at least I can't say I only resorted to violence. Lifting my head, I make eye contact with Jasper, who's leading the right flank of the Homeworld Army. I give her the predetermined signal to 'get ready', i.e. winking at her, and she nods in a hardly noticeable fashion. I then feel slightly better on the inside, but then turn my head back towards the waiting Rose Quartz.

"Tell me, Rose Quartz.." I say, almost mocking her while I clench my fists together, "Have you ever picked a fight that you had no chance of winning?".

She frowns, as well as the large majority of the other nameless Crystal Gems, and that's when the moment presents itself to strike. I gather my breath and call out to my ace.

"JASPER!!" I shout into the air.

Then, like a storm out of hell, the very gem herself barrels over the side of the arena wall with her entire flank in tow. Together, the entire posse charges at the confused Crystal Gems, catching them off guard. Their response time fails them because as they're just realizing the situation that's just befallen them, Jasper tackles Rose like any professional football player I've seen on TV, sending them both tumbling to the arena floor while the others look shocked. The right flank of the Homeworld Army then makes contact, causing the Crystal Gems to tighten their grips on their weapons and meet the challenge head on. The only problem though, is that they're only facing the right flank, leaving them completely exposed from behind, where the left flank is positioned.

With a shrill whistle, I signal the left flank to move in and catch the C.G's by surprise and by golly are they fast! As if being ordered by the Diamonds themselves, the some 300 gems jump over the side as if it's nothing and hit the ground in a roll while quickly picking themselves up to run full speed at the oblivious enemy. Right now, the Crystal Gems are crossing blades and exchanging blows with fast intensity, but when they hear another sound like a rampaging herd of buffalo coming their way, some towards the rear of the fight turn and gaze back in horror at the stampede barreling at them with such fierce speed.

In an attempt to counter this new and sudden attack, a portion of 100 gems turn away from the right flank of the Homeworld Army and do their best to hold their own against a force three times their size. Unbelievably, they actually handle themselves pretty well, being mostly Amethysts and Jaspers beating down other Amethysts and Jaspers. Meanwhile, Rose and Jasper are battling it out, Jasper attempting to sock Rose in the face while the false Quartz tries to strike at her with her sword. I can tell Jasper's trying her best to dodge, block, and strike where Rose least expects it but Rose still holds a distinct advantage over the orange Quartz. You see, Jasper's fighting style is much like a bull. She's mainly strength based and all about the bashes she throws against her opponents. When she's faced with a sword though, Jasper can't quite what she's normally accustomed to in order to win.

Soon enough, my theory proves right and Rose slashes Jasper across the chest, but fortunately her armor takes it more than her skin. Nevertheless, Jasper grits her teeth and grunts, swinging a punch in anger only to be met with another slash across the face. The tables have quickly turned against her and if I don't act soon, Jasper will most certainly be shattered! In quick succession, I motion for Lapis and Peridot to follow me. I summon twin shields on both my arms and charge toward the battle. Lapis glides alongside me, her arms spread and orbs of water hovering in her palms ready to be used, and Peridot takes up the other side, one hand spinning like a saw blade while the other is constructed into a sort of mini blaster.

As the final surprise for the Crystal Gems, the three of us jump into the air, our weapons gleaming, and rain down on them like multicolored hail. Our little trio is immediately sucked into the fray as we land, having to dodge weapons and instantly counter others that swing near our vital limbs. I'm forced to duck from a spear, block two enemy swords with each of my shields, and trip up a Crystal Gem with one shield while knocking them further into the battle with the other. It's just constant, fast, and raging motion all around me. I can never stop moving for second, for if I do, it might be the last thing I do. Too many weapons are flying around right now and I can't let Jasper be killed. So, after throwing my right shield and knocking a Bismuth down before having the shield return to my arm, I focus on where Jasper is and begin to push my way through the tightly-knit crowd of opposing armies.

The whole time it was like trying to fight my way through a swarm of angry bees. Attacks from whichever side I looked, so not for one second did I ever feel like I'd catch a break. Somehow though, I made it past everyone and was just in time to watch Rose standing over a glitching Jasper, meaning that her gem got cracked. Rose is bringing her sword down for the killing blow, but I'm not about to let that happen. Moving so fast that it almost feels like slow motion, I dive face first towards the space in between the two, dip into a roll and come up at a kneel just in time to stop Rose's sword with clasping both shields now on my palms together on the blade to halt it. Rose is completely shocked and I grin mischievously before pulling out the tricks.

With both shields keeping her sword in place, I yank it forward, making both shields disappear while pulling it out of her hands and sending it flying behind me to embed itself into the far wall of the arena. Next, I kick Rose in the knee with one leg that gets her nearly tumbling to the floor and while she's off balance, I do an underhanded sweeping gesture with my right arm, forming a new but much larger shield underneath her. I raise my hand up in a very Magneto type fashion and send Rose into the air, but only just enough to summon that same shield on my right fist so I can jump up and hit her so hard that she's sent flying to the other side of the arena. I land back on my feet with ease, then look down at Jasper, who's glitching even worse than before.

"I-I'm sorry, Steven" She manages while gritting her teeth in pain.

"Don't give me that" I scold, forming my bubble around the two of us, "The fight has just begun, Jasper, and I knew you at your best".

She holds the sides of her head in pain, experiencing a headache that's worse than a hangover of ten beers.

"I'll give it my all, but I don't know how much longer I can last" The orange quartz grimaces.

Biting my lip, I then run my tongue quickly over my palm and step toward Jasper, the healing spit sparkling like a freshwater lake.

"I can fix that gem of yours, just hold still and bear with me" I instruct, ignoring the bashes against the outside of my bubble.

Jasper forces her hands away from her temples and place them firmly on the ground, waiting as I place my wet palm against her nose. I hold it there for a few seconds and then see her gem glow, telling me to pull my hand away. As I do, I see the fruits of my labor doing its magic, sealing up the cracks in her gem in mere seconds. Jasper's form stops glitching instantly and her face eases up, causing her to test her fists to see how she feels. It's enough because she gets on her feet in no time, smiling gratefully at me.

"I'm in your debt, Steven" Jasper comments.

"Don't mention it. Now, let's get back to winning" I say, dropping the bubble and plunging the two of us back into the chaos.

Feeling her pride and energy restored, Jasper bursts forth with newfound strength and immediately starts pummeling an enemy Jasper pretty mercilessly. I nod in satisfaction to myself then begin to look around for where Rose might've landed. I have to dodge and block a couple more attacks, but I eventually see her pick herself up off the ground, an indentation in the arena wall showing a clear collision. The only problem is that I literally have two full armies standing between me and her, both hacking at each other like there's no tomorrow. Still though, I could probably try to go around the side and avoid all the major conflict if I'm carefully and fast enough. Stealth ain't an option anymore since I'm clearly getting beat on from multiple angles. Then, a small tunnel through the vast amount of clashing gems opens up and seeing my window, I race through it. However, before I make it through to the other end, a new gem steps in front of me, cutting my path off.

I've never seen a gem like her before. Built as sturdy and strong as a Bismuth and as tall as an Amethyst, this gem towers over me with grayish skin, two small eyes with the same color, a dark red uniform, and small tan colored horns growing out both sides of her head. She looks down at me with fire in her eyes, reminding me very much of Ruby when she got mad. Yet still, I can't help but think that this gem is kinda cute looking, her red uniform reminding me of a cherry. So I guess I'll call her Cherry Quartz.

"This is for Rose, Homeworld scum" She growls, delivering a roundhouse kick so fast that I'm unable to react in time.

Her foot catches me upside the chin and it sends me airborne before gravity pulls me back down to collide with the arena floor. Upon hitting my head rather roughly, I feel the scene around me spinning a little bit. Luckily though, my focus comes back in time to see Cherry Quartz running at me like Jasper does. I summon a shield on my left fist and prepare to strike, but she then summons her weapon too, a whip a bit larger than the one my Amethyst at home has. She lashes it around my right arm and pulls me in for a quick blow to the head, but I'm ready this time and catch her fist with my shield, putting us both at a standpoint. Me and her press our separate forces against each other, the pressure and intensity only growing, and I know that the only way out of this is to yank on her whip and throw her off her game.

So, I do just that, clenching the whip with an underhanded right hand and yanking it forward to play on the small amount of slack she's given me. True to my thinking, she's pulled forward toward where I yanked on the whip and as she's leaning in, I gather a bit more of my Diamond strength and deliver a hard uppercut with my shield, getting her right where she hit me. It's enough to get both her and her whip off me, the former falling on her side for a couple seconds. Cherry's clearly able to handle pain because before long, she's right back up and going for another swing at me. She's unable to make ends meet though because, out of nowhere, a water fist punches her to the side. Whizzing my head to the sky, I see Lapis hovering there with an orb of water hovering in her hand, a small smile printed on her face.

"Looked like you needed some help" Lapis says, floating down next to me and making her wings disappear.

"Yeah, heh, I guess I did" I admit, cracking my neck, "Thanks".

"Anytime" She faintly blushes.

I then hear growls emerge and the two of us look over to see that Cherry Quartz has once again recovered and is moving towards us at a dangerous speed. I glance over at Lapis and in almost perfect synchronization, we nod. The two of us bend our knees, ready to charge, and Lapis summons more water orbs. Then, then two of us run full speed at the raging red quartz, ready to tag team her until she's down.

When we collide, Lapis morphs one of her water orbs into a whip similar to one reminiscent of Cherry's and wraps it around her leg, pulling it fast and firm to trip up the rampaging quartz. Cherry twirls sideways in midair and that gives me the chance to deliver a hard jab to the side of her face, putting her to the ground. Almost immediately as she's floored though, Cherry grabs my ankle and pulls me forward so that I land flat on my back, simultaneously knocking the wind out of me. It feels like I can't breathe and I feel panic rushing through my bloodstream, but then I remember what Amethyst once told me. I simply try to calm down and suck in fresh air, which is a strange feeling due me not usually having to do this.

With my oxygen restored, I sit up and stand to go help Lapis, who's still fending off Cherry Quartz with some water tentacles on either side of the angry gem. I feel like it's time that this fight was brought to a close because lots of other gems are still in combat and I need to get to Rose before she shatters Peridot, Jasper, or any of the Homeworld gems. I approach Lapis, making sure I'm easily heard so that she won't turn around and attack me too, then whisper in her ear how we take Cherry down.

She nods, dissolving the water tentacles for a second before making another form right in front of the quartz, punching her so hard and quick I thought she'd get whiplash. It doesn't though, only stunning her for a second before Lapis initiates the second portion of the plan and grabs both my legs with the water tentacle and lifts me up in the air. She then swings me around and around in circles like a hybrid wrecking ball, letting go at the last second when I'm aimed directly for Cherry. At the speed of light, I zoom towards her, forming a shield on my right fist and bashing it against her face when I make contact. Her head, along with her whole body, is smashed against the arena wall, but I'm not done yet. I call out for Lapis to do her thing and she stabs forward with her tentacle and pierces through Cherry's body. The quartz goes completely still, then reverts back into her gem, both the stone and myself dropping to the arena ground afterwards.

Landing with knees bent, I let out and exhausted sigh and make my shield disappear, walking over to where Cherry's gemstone lies. I pick it up and hold it in my interlaced palms, Lapis watching curiously as she walks up behind me. I then do what Rose Quartz would never do and form a bubble around Cherry's gem, sending it up to the arena sky where it hangs in stasis just like the burning room back at the Temple. I glance over at Lapis and she nods, proud of the choice I made. I then lean into a warm hug, clenching the Ocean Gem tightly and breathing steadily to calm myself. She hugs back, the both of us tuning out the loud and raging chaos happening everywhere. I then pull back when I feel better, not wanting Lapis to feel uncomfortable, then gaze fondly into her dark blue eyes. Lapis blushes and surprisingly, so do I. She's been beside me for so long now, it almost feels like she's apart of me. My face heats up even more, now overcome with this feeling of wanting to kiss her. I lean in just a bit to see if she'll follow, and when she smiles and gets closer, I close the distance to press our lips together. However, just as our lips brush each other, something happens.

Out of the blue, these two Crystal Gem Amethysts charge at us and knock us away from each other smashing Lapis into the wall while putting me on my butt. The Amethysts then start beating down on Lapis and I feel my anger rising, my desire to protect/save her kicking in as well. However, Lapis is quick to respond to this newfound danger and starts fending them off with ease with different shaped water weapons. I still begin to move towards her with intentions of helping, but she calls to me to insist otherwise.

"I can handle this! You go and stop Rose!" Lapis says.

I nod and fist pump the air as a sign that I'm routing for her, then turn back and run back towards the fray of battle. Something I notice almost right off the bat is that the Homeworld Army is actually making some good headway against the Crystal Gems and more so, that they're keeping to my direct orders to poof instead of shatter them. Mind you, they don't know how to bubble, but I'll teach them about it when everything's said and done. But, now that I know we're actually showing progress, it's time to end this and track down Rose. Only once the leader is defeated do the Crystal Gems really see that their continued fighting is futile. Thing is though, I can't see Rose with the whole hurricane of swords, spears, and fists going around. But, I quickly think of a way to solve that and jump into the air, using my Diamond powers to hover. I go a good enough distance up to see over the frenzy and as I squint, I see Rose and her little trio of protectors fighting in a circle formation on the clear other end of the arena, directly opposite from where I am. Harnessing the strength I still don't fully understand, I launch myself forward through the air and fly towards the four of them. I get closer and closer every second and just as I'm about to rain down on these fools, I bring my arms back, form shields on each of my fists, then thrust my arms forward as I make contact.

I hit the group of four with the force of a bullet, knocking many of them to the ground and off their feet. Rose gets pushed onto her butt and also drops her sword, making me wondering how she got it back but then thinking it was probably Pearl. The attacking Homeworld gems then move in, kicking and hitting the downed gems. Pearl and Garnet struggle to get up, but Rose an Bismuth prove to be more pain resistant and get up quite easily. However, despite the fact that Rose looks ready to keep fighting, her eyes show that she wants to retreat and pull the Crystal Gems back in hopes of regrouping and forming a new strategy. She looks to Bismuth and they share a nod, coming to non-verbal terms and move to grab Pearl and Garnet from off the floor. Then, with then all huddled together, Rose makes a break for the way she came in. I already see what she's doing though and as they make it to the overhead archway, I plant a nice hard punch in Rose's back with my shield, sending the four tumbling end over end down the stairs.

The four are rolling so fast that all of them are unable to stop as the edge of the platform approaches. Bismuth is the first to slide over, desperately reaching for something to grab on to, but goes over the edge quickly followed by Garnet and Pearl. Rose is able to steady herself more, but before she can fully stop, I hit her once more with my shield and complete her tumble off the platform and down through the sky. Looking down at the clouds, I know that those four will land in no time and will try to escape if I don't stop them. I then hear footsteps and turn around to see a beaten Jasper, Peridot, and Lapis running up to me. They look to me and then the cloud-covered sky just below us, having obviously seen Rose's posse go over.

"I gotta hunt those four down before they regroup and try to assemble another army. I need you guys to stay here and finish what's left of this army. Then wait here, I shouldn't be long" I instruct.

"Of course" Jasper nods.

"You be careful, Steven" Lapis says with worry.

"Yes, do take care of yourself, will you?" Peridot replies.

I nod and then jump over the side of the platform, descending my way to the final battlefield. Rose and her company thought they could get away, but not while I'm still breathing. It's up to me to end this war and I've known that ever since I arrived in the past. Now it's time to live up to that.

It's time to finish this, once and for all!