"My affiliation with the rebellion isn't nearly so close," Spinel says, stretching her shoulders now that they are free of their burden. She's a small gem designed to move lightly and quickly, not to lug heavy equipment overland. They've got Quartzes for that, and other bulkier types. "I was approached as a spy shortly before the rebellion moved into the open, during my time under Pink Diamond. I've only sent reports to Earth since then." "Thank you. Most of it is prototypes of military equipment that Homeworld will no doubt bring against her - it will do the rebellion a lot of good to know wht they're up against."
Wrist Hematite picked up the heavy pack almost as soon as Spinel dropped it, and after adjusting the straps, slung it onto her own back. It looked considerably less oversized on her, and she did not find it nearly so cumbersome. "It would be unwise to assume our return, for now." Her gem sister nodded in agreement, and turned to Melon. "If you have a ship, then those of us unwilling to risk our lives for a rescue mission ought to go there as soon as possible."
Baroque finally spoke, once the shock of being spoken to, of being carried away, wore off. "I...am Baroque Pearl," she said hesitantly. "I think. Heard Coral tell someone I was that once." She looked at the others through her long bangs. So many Pearls, all talking and living in ways she'd always assumed were impossible--like fairy tales about enchanted dolls. She'd never heard of this Rose Quartz that the others were talking about... and she certainly knew nothing about her Pearl. "Who is Rose Quartz?"
Hematite... could not quite look at the armless Pearl. Too many years of working in the Kindergarten made their knee-jerk reaction to such deformity an instinctive crush it, cull it, it's wrong, it cannot be allowed, it will taint the whole batch. But then, they had been allowed to live, and they had done far more terrible things than simply being mined with such a deep and obvious flaw. "Rose Quartz... is a renegade gem." said Head Gem, and, being a little more compassionate than her sister, turned at least to face the crippled Pearl. "She holds power elsewhere - lightyears from here, or so I think. A Pearl aids her who is both considered a great warrior and entirely insane."
Lavender nodded at the explanation. "W-we should try to r-reach that Rose Quartz t-then. After We got away." She turned to Baroque trying her best to smile. "D-do you w-want to come with us? N-not the Execution if you d-don't want, b-but off-planet!"
"A-also thank you... Black Opal, was it?" Lavender said to the tall gem. She looked a bit embarrassed. "F-for helping me I mean. I mean us. Topaz W-would've cracked me i-if she'd kept going f-for much longer."
"Do you think I'd be useful if I help you guys with trying to stop the execution?" Rita frowned slightly, "I don't want to slow you all down but considering I think we're all in the same boat I can't let anymore Pearls get hurt if I can stop it.
Gray raised an eyebrow. "So we're actually going to try to stop the execution? That sounds very risky. Do we have an escape plan? I would offer to be ready with a ship, but we don't have one..."
"Hm. That is a problem." Gray pondered this for a moment. "I discovered in my escape with Baroque Pearl that my Gem weapon can unlock any door - so I will come, and if necessary we can steal a ship."
"Y-you have a weapon?" Lavender looked at the other Gem with unbridled curiosity. "How d-does that work? A-a-amethyst said Pearls c-couldn't summon any?"
"That's not true. Any Gem can summon weapons from their gem." Gray concentrated, and drew her key up from her left palm. "It takes training and focus. Onyx allowed me to be taught so that I could effectively pilot for her." She turned the key over in her hand, looking at it. "Though it is quite useless for anything offensive."
"B-but... That... I can do something like that? Summon a gem weapon? I can learn to do that?" Lavender was honestly shocked at the notion.
Rose looked at Gray. "....how'd you learn? What's the concept? Like, what do you do to summon it?" She wanted to learn to summon her own weapon!
Gray looked to Rose, and back at Lavender, then poofed her key with a flick. "You are basically creating a secondary physical form: your weapon is a part of you. Here is how I was taught: close your eyes, and focus in on yourself. Remember what it felt like to be inside your gem, without a physical form. Focus on that. Once you feel like you're there, raise your hand to your gem and mime pulling something out. Don't try to imagine what kind of weapon will appear: you are creating it, not removing it from storage, like you might store something for your mistress. Pull that feeling, the you-ness, out of your Gem." She smiled a little. "Go ahead and try it now."
Lavender tried. The feeling of being poofed and recreating her physical form was still fresh in her mind, after all! She focused all of her mind on what that felt like and tried to pull something from her gem. It felt like she had a handle or something... The glow from her gem stopped abruptly and whatever she had grabbed poofed immediately. "I-it didn't work..." she muttered, disappointed.
"That's okay," Gray said, "it didn't work for me on the first try, either. It takes a practice. Don't feel badly. You'll get it eventually. Your gem glowed! That's a good start."
Rose frowned and closed her eyes, taking a breath and then focusing on what it had felt like to be without a physical form, and then to create herself. She tried to hold that in her mind, she really tried, and then when she finally had it, she opened her eyes and tried to pull something from her glowing gem...only to have the glow immediately stop and nothing appear. She sighed. Shards. Well...maybe if she tried again? So she tried a second time, only this time, her gem didn't even start to glow. Shards!
"I don't think I have a me-ness," Rita said squinting her eyes and focusing on her chest. "Does my anxiety count?"
