Epilogue

Peridot's eyes were wide and filled with stars as she stared up at the mountain-like mass that loomed over the ocean floor. Most of its bulk was covered in a thick layer of sediment, making it almost blend in to the seabed.

"See, told ya he was big," Amethyst smirked as she gently jabbed Peridot with her elbow.

Peridot scowled but quickly returned her gaze back up at the sleeping creature. It was so large and powerful looking, yet it seemed peaceful in its slumber.

"And this is the creature you called 'Godzilla'?" the green gem asked.

"The one and only." Amethyst responded with an excited smile. "The King himself!"

A pale hand snapped tightly over Amethyst's mouth before her voice could travel.

"What did I tell you?!" Pearl hissed quietly as she squeezed Amethyst in a headlock. "Be quiet!"

Amethyst squirmed and slipped out of Pearl's vice like grip. She smiled and blew a stream of bubbles through the water towards Pearl.

"Relax P, the big guy is fast asleep," Amethyst whispered with a smug grin. "It would take an earthquake to wake him up."

"Amethyst, do you remember what he did the last time he woke up?! (See: Don't Wake the King)

Amethyst's smile quickly soured into a frown as the memories resurfaced.

"Fine, I'll be quiet," Amethyst pouted. "What are we doing here anyway?"

"Garnet said that there was some form of energy that was spiking around this undersea valley." Pearl answered as she began to walk after their leader. "It has been interfering with electronics."

"Duh, its Godzilla," Amethyst chuckled. "He is a giant walking energy spike."

Pearl scowled and rolled her eyes, enticing a smile from Amethyst.

"It's not his radiation," Pearl responded. "It is something else."

"I was wondering what that tingling feeling was," Peridot said with an almost giddy giggle. "Is it true that he destroyed an entire army of Homeworld warriors, then turned and destroyed most of your forces? Is it true that he can fire beams of highly concentrated radiation out of his body? Is it true that he survived being attacked with a shooting star? Is it true that-"

"YES!" Pearl snapped a bit too loudly before slapping her hands over her mouth.

The three gems slowly turned towards Godzilla, praying that he did not hear them. As luck would have it, he didn't. After taking a moment to collect herself, Pearl grabbed Amethyst and Peridot by their hands and calmly dragged them with her.

"Ahem… yes, it is all true." Pearl said with a false smile. "Did Garnet tell you all of this?"

"No, Lapis told me," Peridot answered in a matter-of-factually tone. "She told me everything about him. Like how some corrupted gems started to worship him. And how he destroyed a Homeworld colony city. And how she and Jasper woke him up while they were fused as Malachite." (See: Don't Wake the King)

"It was them who woke him up?!" Pearl hissed in surprise. "Why didn't she say something about it?"

"Oh, she is terrified of this Godzilla creature. So much so that she started digging a hole in the barn so she could have a place to hide from him." Peridot said with a smug smile. "Ah, Lapis, she is an odd one."

The three gems found themselves at the entrance of an undersea cave. Godzilla's tail had been smashed through the top of it so that the end of his tail was hidden. The water within the cave seemed hotter the deeper they went in. They could see Garnet standing tall against the darkness, her body illuminated by an ominous pulsing purple light. She was silent as she looked down into a deep fissure in the cave floor.

"Find anything, Garnet?" Pearl asked as she peered down into the fissure.

Garnet was silent for a moment as she looked on into the abyss. Suddenly, Garnet opened her hand and shined a beam of light into the fissure. The light was greeted by the glittering of countless crystal shards.

"Pearl, do you remember if we managed to bubble all of the proto-cluster after Godzilla destroyed it?" Garnet asked in her usual stoic voice.

Pearl felt a shiver run down her spine as she remembered the vile three-headed creature.

"I didn't think there was anything left to bubble," Pearl answered with a hint of worry in her voice. "I thought he had destroyed it completely."

The fissure walls suddenly lit up a bright purple, revealing the horror that hid in the shadows. Twisting and clinging all around the tip of Godzilla's tail were several writhing skeletal humanoid creatures with discolored yellow and purple gem shards. Jutting out of their backs were the iconic dorsal spines that lined Godzilla's back. Garnet's light lingered on one of the figures for a moment. Its eyes snapped open and it strained its neck to look for the light source. Garnet quickly put out the light before the creature could find her. With a low growl, the creature returned to its sleep like state. Pearl felt like she was going to be sick.

"He is corrupting the gem shards…on purpose…" Pearl stated weakly. "Why…why would he do that?"

"Woah, that is seriously messed up!" Amethyst exclaimed in disgust.

"Fascinating, he is much smarter that Lapis lead me to believe!" Peridot squealed. "He is using his own natural radiation to not only corrupt these proto-cluster shards, but he is somehow making them roughly in his own image!"

"Be quiet!" Pearl shushed desperately. "Garnet, why would he be doing this? Why is he corrupting these gem shards?"

Garnet looked back down into the fissure and frowned. This was not good, not good at all.

"He is building an army," Garnet answered flatly. "An army of loyal corrupted gems."

The weight of Garnet's words struck the gems like an avalanche.

"Why does he need an army?" Pearl asked, her voice now shaking with fear. "What would make him think that he of all creatures would need an army?"

Garnet was silent as she mulled to herself. Godzilla was strong, there was no denying that, but even he must have known that he was out numbered. Sure, he could decimate fleets and destroy entire armies, but even he would eventually tire.

"He is preparing himself for war," Garnet stated as she took several steps away from the edge of the fissure.

"War, war with who?" Amethyst asked.

"Anyone he wants." Garnet answered.

With a flash of red light, Garnet summoned a massive bubble to encapsulate the corrupted gems. With a red flicker of light, the fissure was empty.

"We need to leave," Garnet ordered firmly as she made her way out of the cave.

As the four gems made a hasty retreat out of the cave, Peridot tripped and slammed hard against a small rock spire.
The small spire fell and knocked down a larger rock spire, which then knocked over an even larger spire.
Everyone held their breath and shut their eyes as the largest of the spires collapsed right on top of the slumbering Godzilla's head.
As the rocks and silt finally settled, the gems were relieved to find that Godzilla was still fast asleep.

"Boy, I guess he is a heavy sleeper," Amethyst stated in shock.

At the sound of her voice, the gems noticed an ominous blue glow shimmer through the dark murky waters. With a deep low growl, Godzilla's eyes flickered open. He was awake, and as always, he was angry about it.

"Aw crap…"

The End ?

Yeah, the End !

Hope you enjoyed it.

Until next time, stay golden.