Chapter 9: Date 6 99 7

I waited patiently by the warp, laying down and feeling the cool grass on my form, my eyes closed, listening to the gentle wind through the trees and the distant chirping of Earth animals. It had been only a little bit, so I gave Peridot a bit of leeway time before I grew concerned.

The sun rose higher and higher before beginning its gentle decline through the sky, and still nothing from the warp. I stood up, pacing around the warp, nervously checking the functionality of it. I thought of going back, but it would be too dangerous if she was still fighting. So I stayed sitting in the grass by the glassy pad, too tense to sleep or even rest, as the sun sank lower and lower.

Then, finally, after what seemed like ages, the pad lit up brightly. I jumped to my feet, a grin on my face, as the light faded and Peridot stood there. But a few things were wrong.

For one, she was missing a foot. One of her limb enhancers had popped off and now she stood lopsided, smoke emitting from the machine. Her hair was matted, she was sweating, and she had bumps and bruises all over her form, and a few cracks in her visor. She hobbled off the pad and into the grass, collapsing and popping off her limb enhancers and flopping on the ground with a sigh.

"Oh my stars, Peridot, what happened?!" I knelt beside her and inspected her body closer, most importantly her gem. It had been unharmed, safely protected, with the only damage being done to her body. "Did it really take that long to fight them off?"

She shook her head. "No, I fought them off fairly quickly. But I realized that they could track me the second I stepped into the warp stream, so I changed course and went straight to the ship. I didn't want them to find you. So I trapped them myself, but they fused, broke out of the ship, and almost caught me, but only got away with my foot." Peridot sighed and closed her eyes. "We can't get into their base to get the pod now. I don't know what to do."

I bit my lip. It didn't work the way we thought it would, but minor setback, right? I racked my brain to find another solution, unconsciously twirling my fingers through Peridot's matted hair, who didn't seem to notice. Then, an idea. A small smile spread across my face, and Peridot looked up at me to also look for answers, raising an eyebrow at my grin. "...I know that face, Aquamarine. You've got an idea."

"You said we can't get into their base to get the pod back, right? Because we'll be captured." She nodded, and I tapped my chin, trying to find a way to word my new plan. "Well...what if we let ourselves get captured? One of us anyways. You can let them take you, and gain their trust or something. Then let me in when they're out of the dwelling, we take the pod, and boom! We're home free."

Peridot furrowed her brows, a look of deep thought on her face. "That might actually work...I recall stories of rebels taking hostages during the war, so they must have a place where they keep gems for interrogation or something. And with the spare parts they may have, I could even modify the escape pod to take us back to Homeworld, if I find the right things…" She stood up, pacing back and forth, mumbling to herself. Then her eyes lit up. "Yes, this will work!"

I grinned, standing up with her. "We'll finally go home! Wait, so you're okay with letting yourself be captured?"

She nodded. "Yeah, as long as you stay near the base so I can signal you if I need to. Or let you know when it's safe to get the pod."

Clapping my hands together, I took a deep breath. "Then let's do it. We'll plan it all out tonight, and then tomorrow we put it into action." Peridot nodded, her eyes filled with a new look of hope that I hadn't seen before. Her eyes twinkled, and I bent down and grabbed a stick, making small lines in the dirt as a makeshift blueprint.

The next day, we carefully observed the actions of the gems from a safe distance. It wasn't the most exciting task, but it had to be done. We watched their daily routines, the gems would go out fighting and the human would wander around the village or the house all day, occasionally joining them. Then, at one point, the little human came out onto the beach and was talking with a larger human, watching the waves crash onto the shore. We were close enough so that we could hear their conversation. It wasn't anything particularly exciting, until they started discussing a familiar name.

"Dad...I miss Lapis. I'm worried about her, y'know, being at the bottom of the ocean and such." The small human looked longingly towards the water. He was talking about Lapis Lazuli, the former informant of Peridot, before the ship was destroyed.

"I know, I miss her too. Well, as much as I can miss her, after she broke my leg and almost ruined my van." The larger one chuckled. "Thanks for fixing that by the way. I wonder what other things you can fix with that magic healing power of yours?"

Our ears pricked up at that notion. Power? "Yeah, we already know it can fix gems and people, it fixed you, Lapis…"

Peridot grabbed my arm and tugged me away, far enough so that they couldn't hear us. "Did you hear that? He's the one who fixed Lazuli's gem! Maybe he can fixed the warp!" Her eyes were sparkling and my own heart was racing at the thought.

"You're right, but can the same thing that heals organic material heal a warp pad?" She looked back at the little human. "It's another shot that doesn't involve us getting captured," I suggest. "It may be worth a try."

The pair walked into the house behind them. The sun started to set, and we knew the gems would be home soon and the small one would need to sleep to regenerate his energy. I turned to Peridot. "You have your limb enhancers. Maybe you could bring him to the warp pad, you know, so you can use your tractor beam to stop him if you need to?"

She sighed. "I...wish I had a better argument against that. But I really don't want to be captured...the thought of dealing with those crystal clods…" She shuddered. "I just want to go home. I want to get off this planet before it explodes, I want you to come back and see how much we've progressed. Honestly, all the data we've had of you should be wiped because we thought you were shattered. You can have a fresh start, as a technician with me or a designer of colonies. I just…"

Peridot sank behind the rock, the setting sun sending golden hues onto her form, which radiated it off with a gentle glow. "I don't want to be wrapped up in any of this chaos anymore. Jasper and Lazuli are gone, if I mess up any more who knows what'll happen with Yellow Diamond. I don't want to take any more chances, just peace." She sniffed, and I could tell that being stuck here was really getting to her. The only reason I ever survived without breaking down was the thought of her coming back for me. But now it was up to us to do it ourselves, and I didn't want that to hurt her anymore.

Filled with an emotion I didn't quite know until now, I stood up and faced the sun.

"Peridot, we are getting home tonight."

She looked up at me, and she looked scared, and she looked fragile. What emotion I was filled with I didn't know, but it made me want to help her. It made me want to protect her. Peridot was strong, and she was smart, and I was going to make sure she was happy. Whatever it takes.