Steven found himself in a cloudy room, pink, soft ground beneath his feet. He muttered to himself, "What..."

He looked around, lost, confused, afraid.

"Buck..." he wept, falling to his knees.

As Steven wept, footsteps echoed on the clouds, and a man in a red jacket emerged from beyond the horizon and comforted him.

"Yo little bro," he greeted.

"Buck?" Steven asked.

Buck nodded, "Yeah. What can I do for you?"

"You..." Steven explained, "You died... I saw you..."

"What do you want from me?" Buck inquired with a smile.

"I want you to live," Steven replied.

Buck sat next to Steven and explained, "Steven, everyone has to die someday."

"But I could've saved you!" Steven exclaimed, "If I was faster, or smarter, or stronger or..."

Buck shrugged, "Or maybe you have some sort of complex where you feel the need to save everyone yourself?

"So what if I do?" Steven demanded, "I'm the one who had to handle ten Cluster with Peridot! I'm the one who had to fight Pearl and stop Sugilite! I'm the one who has had to fight Corrupted Gem after the Corrupted Gem so the others wouldn't shatter them! I have to protect everyone and myself! What happens if I don't?"

"Like it made a difference in the end," Buck chuckled, his flesh decayed, falling off his body as he grabbed Steven and began to strangle him. Steven gasped for air as Buck elaborated, "You let me die, Steven. You were my little bro, and you let me die."

The body began to fall apart, first the fingers, then his left arm, before he collapsed completly and a lone skull fell onto the ground and sank into the clouds.

Steven caught his breath and muttered, "That... that wasn't the real Buck?"

Steven thought for a moment and then exclaimed with painfully bad acting, "Boy! I sure could use a doughnut!"

A doughnut appeared in his hand, which he tried to eat only for it to turn into clouds.

"This room makes whatever I want out of clouds..." Steven muttered to himself.

Steven sat and began to think,"Hey room... can you make mom?"

Jasper appeared and turned with an estatcic enthusiasm, "Steven!"

"Not my real mom!" Steven sighed, "I assume you know what I mean..."

Jasper turned into clouds and Rose emerged, her eyes hidden by her hair, and her expression dark and malicious as she lifted her blade.

"Do you know the truth?" Steven demanded, "What more are you hiding?"

Rose replied, "I do what you think I would do. This room is your subconscious manifested at your command."

"Then I have a feeling..." Steven glared summoning his shield.

Rose smirked, "Yeah..."

Rose charged at Steven with her sword, which Steven blocked, pushed back by the apparataion as he dug his feet into the clouds below to stop himself and prepared for countered. Rose charged with her own shield covering her as she extended her blade. Steven surroduned his fists with bubbles and sidestepped her downward slash before decking her in the face which knocked her back.

The apparataion of Rose smirked, and lunged once more, two handing her sword. Steven blocked with a bubble that she beat down on, it slowing cracking with each blow as Steven looked upon her, fear in his eyes. Rose demanded, "Your Gem is my Gem! You cannot escape my legacy! I am your mother! My blood taints your viens!"

Steven turned pink and screames, "Shut up! Shut up!"

Steven dropped the bubble and charged with spiked bubbles on his hands. Rose summoned her shield which he broke clean through as she tackled her and began to brutally beat her as he screamed, "My mom is Jasper! You? You're just an evil person with genetic relation to me! You're nothing to me! Blood ties? That's just a lie used by evil people like you to keep people like me from finding real family! Family is the people you love! Not these blood lies! I may have your Gem, but my Gem is irrelevant! I disown you Rose! Peridot told me about my mom's past and she was born in the Beta Kindergarten! That's my name! I denounce the false name of blood family and take my true name of real family! My name is not Steven Quartz Universe! I am Steven..."

Steven grabbed Rose and threw her into the air as he screamed, "Beta..."

Steven leapt into the air and kicked Rose into the ground as he cried, "Universe!"

Rose was slammed into the cloudy ground where she turned back into cloud as Steven wept, "I am Steven Beta Universe. Named after the place where my real mom Jasper was born. Not after the lie of blood ties. But... I miss mom... I miss her. I don't know what else Rose is hiding. I can't trust the others but... Spinel seemed to know..."

A way down to the Bubble Room was revealed.

"Hmmm..." Steven thought to himself before he leapt down looking around the room. He took note of some of the Corrupted Gems he had bubbled and thought to himself, "Oh! So that's where they went! Guess I subconsciously remembered Beach City! Well I was like two or three at the time. I'm fourteen now so... makes sense."

Steven found the bubble with Spinel and leapt back up to Rose's room where he unbubbled Spinel. Spinel reformed, confused, "I'm... back?"

Spinel turned to see Steven, "Oh... uhhh... this is awkward. Ummmm... I don't know if you're like... your mom or your own person or just her Gem reformed?"

"Rose is dead," Steven glared, "and Jasper is my mom."

"Alright," Spinel shrugged, "Um... I'm sorry, first of all, but um... how do I say this? You're not Rose's son."

"What?" Steven asked.

"Your Pink Glow," Spinel explained, "You see, that's a power that belonged to Pink Diamond. Who... left me... alone..."

"What?" Steven asked, "Rose and Pink... were... were they the same person?"

"Where's Amethyst?" Spinel demanded, "Where's Sadie? Do they hate me? Did they abandon me too? Are they gonna leave me alone again?"

Steven approached Spinel, "No! No! Spinel... it's OK. I hate Rose too but... Spinel... I need you to help me. OK? Breath."

Steven hugged her. "I'm here for you."

Spinel wrapped her arms around Steven several times, stretching them out and explained, "I... I can't lose another friend. Pink Diamond, Rose, whatever, she left me alone for thousands of years. Standing alone in a Garden and..."

"I'm not gonna leave you," Steven replied, "You're just hurt. I am too. It's OK."

"She told me it was a game," Spinel chuckled, "To stay very very still and... left. Never came back. Rose... Rose didn't shatter her if you're Rose's son."

"So I am right her and Rose are the same person," Steven replied.

"I'm sorry," Spinel wept, "I'm sorry. I was gonna hurt you..."

Steven replied, "It's OK. I'm OK."

Steven squirmed, signaling Spinel to let go as Steven explained, "Jasper is my mom. Born in the Beta Kindergarten. As such my name is not Steven Quartz Universe, but Steven Beta Universe," Steven elaborated with a grin. "I am Steven Beta Universe! Son of Jasper, and I have Pink Diamond's Gem!"

"So what does that mean?" Spinel asked.

"One," Steven began to laugh hysterically, "Pearl lied! Just like everyone else! Ha. Ha! Hahaha! I can't do it! I can't do it! I-"

Spinel grabbed Steven's shoulder assured him, "I won't lie to you."

Steven sighed, "I know I just... Ugh. I have to go I'll be back-"

"No!" Spinel screamed, grabbing Steven's hand.

"Easy easy!" Steven requested, "Look if it really bothers you just shapeshift really small and get into my pocket OK?"

"As long as you don't leave me alone," Spinel replied shapeshifting down to only her Gem, small enough to fit in Steven's palm and getting in Steven's hand as he put her in her pocket. She stuck her head out and asked, "So I gotta lay low don't I?"

Steven nodded, "Yeah. Just keep quiet and don't get spotted. We'll figure out what to do soon."

With that Steven took a deep breath and sighed, "Everyone lied... everyone... but I have to keep going, even if the truth hurts..."

With that Steven exited the room to confront what had happened. To confront...

Buck's death.

What he did not expect however...

Was Buck's rebirth...