A/N: This has been in the works for a long time. I was originally planning on releasing this some time ago, but then new episodes came out and I had to watch those and think about how they factored into this story. Then for some reason I started to think that my idea was stupid. For a while, I gave into my insecurities and started to believe that absolutely no one would like this idea. But then I saw Pink Diamond for the first time. It gave new life to my idea as well as new plot points to work with. Namely, the fact that Pink Diamond, the big bad that the Crystal Gems fought against, had the looks and disposition of a child. I thought to myself: "what would a child want more than a playmate?"
Thus I bring to you, dear reader, Titanium Mk I: Prototype. The story of a mechanical man dedicated to logic and his leader who, through his interactions with the rebels who would dare defy his great Homeworld, begins to see logical fallacies in the way things are run, mainly in the all too rigid caste system. Why does Homeworld find cross-Gem fusions unbelievable, disgusting, and so unheard of among other things despite them clearly being stronger than single-gem fusions? How can a Pearl be built for the sole purpose of looking pretty and nothing else, yet still be able to best someone in combat? How can a Bismuth have better combat experience than a Jasper? But not all of life's questions have logical, satisfying answers.
Sometimes, things happen that no one can explain.
RECEIVING POWER...
POWER AT FIFTY PERCENT CAPACITY. DISTRIBUTING POWER TO ALL AREAS. INITIAITING DIAGNOSTICS CHECK.
VISUAL RECEPTORS: ONLINE. AUDITORY RECEPTORS: ONLINE. DATA MAINFRAME: ONLINE. MOVEMENT APPARATUS: DISABLED FOR EXPERIMENTAL PURPOSES.
ACTIVATING WAKE UP SEQUENCE…
The room was blank. Nobody was in sight. There were voices, though, that much he could tell.
"Titanium Prototype." The voice came through a speaker into his room. "Can you hear me?"
Who is speaking? he thought. Words flashed across his eyes. They translated as:
VOICE RECOGNITION IDENTIFIES YELLOW DIAMOND, HEAD OF TECHNOLOGICAL AND SCIENTIFIC DEVELOPMENT AND A RULER OF HOMEWORLD. MAIN DESIGNER OF TITANIUM PROTOTYPE.
He tried speaking. Each syllable lasted a second long with pauses between them twice as long.
"I…can…hear…you…"
"Excellent." She paused, then spoke again. "Make sure the next version is faster."
"Yes, My Diamond. Again, this is merely a preliminary test to see if our design is even functional. After this, a series of fine-tuning tests will be conducted to perfect the design to the best of our ability."
VOICE RECOGNITION IDENTIFIES A PERIDOT UNIT, THE PRIMARY TECHNOLOGICAL EXPERTS OF HOMEWORLD. THEY ARE AIDED BY STANDARD-ISSUE LIMB ENHANCERS AND HAVE BEEN KNOWN TO POSSESS FERROKINESIS.
"Excellent," said Yellow Diamond. "I expect no more delays. Any more, and you will be the one to deal with her displeasure."
"I…I see. That will not be necessary, I can assure you that everything will be on schedule from here on out, my Diamond…ah, it seems that he is waking up. According to these figures, he's progressing just as we expected. He's already seeing and hearing the world around him."
"Excellent," said Yellow Diamond. "Cut the power, he can wake up and that's all we need to know for now."
"Yes, My Diamond," said the Peridot.
They're talking about me, he thought. Instinctively he knew it to be true. But scarcely had the thought passed through his mind than a new voice entered.
"Can I watch you power him up? Pleeeeaaase?"
"We've already done it. I told you to wait, you won't get to see him until the finished product is complete."
"But why can't I watch? I promise I'll be good, I won't touch anything!"
I know her, he thought. How do I know her?
VOICE RECOGNITION IDENTIFIES PINK DIAMOND, MEMBER OF DIAMOND LEADERSHIP AND OWNER OF THE EARTH COLONY. CREATIVE MIND BEHIND THE TITANIUM PROJECT. ALL HAIL HER GRACE, THE CREATOR.
She created him? Then why couldn't she watch him? What was so wrong about that?
"I told you, you can't watch him until he's finished and that's final!" Yellow Diamond said.
"But…but…" It sounded like his Diamond was in distress. Without thinking he called out to her.
"Pink…Diamond?" he said slowly. His voice sounded distorted and had an unusual echo. He guessed that his voice box had been half-finished.
All conversation stopped. The room was silent for so long, he thought that he had been left alone. He called again.
"Pink…Diamond?" He didn't know why he wanted her to stay so badly. He hardly knew her, but she was apparently his creator. Logic dictated that she deserved to watch him be built.
There was more silence. Yellow Diamond finally spoke after what seemed like an eternity.
"Cut the power, we're done for today."
"Yes, my Diamond," said the Peridot.
"But Yellow, please! He recognizes me! I want to talk to –"
He didn't hear anything else.
POWER AT ZERO PERCENT CAPACITY. RETURNING TO SLEEP MODE. THIS SESSION HAS BEEN RECORDED FOR EXPERIMENTAL PURPOSES.
RECEIVING POWER…
POWER AT SEVENTY-FIVE PERCENT CAPACITY. DISRTRIBUTING POWER TO ALL AREAS. INITIATING DIAGNOSTICS CHECK.
OPTIC RECEPTORS: ONLINE. AUDITORY RECEPTORS: ONLINE. DATA MAINFRAME: ONLINE. MOMVEMENT APPARATUS: LIMITED.
ACTIVATING WAKE UP SEQUENCE…
The room is blank again. He heard more voices, the same as before.
"He is awake now, my Diamond," said the Peridot.
There was a pause. Then Yellow Diamond spoke.
"Titanium Prototype, do you know who I am?"
The same text as before rolled across his vision.
"You are Yellow Diamond," he said. His voice had noticeably less echo than before and it was much easier to use. "You designed me. What can I do for you today?"
Another pause, then Yellow Diamond spoke to her Peridot again.
"The voice is much better than last time."
"Thank you, my Diamond, I did the adjustments myself."
Yellow Diamond spoke to him again.
"We are testing your movement capabilities. Please raise your right arm in front of your face."
He did as he was told. His arm moved incredibly slowly. It took ten seconds to get it to his desired position.
"Good," Yellow Diamond said. "Now close your hand and open it again."
He did as he was told. His fingers moved just as slowly as his arm did. He took the moment to inspect his arm. It was bare, no skin covered his mechanical parts. It was…he searched his database for the right word…yes, it was skeletal. His blueprints appeared in his vision. He saw the notes on his design, zooming in on them.
As per Pink Diamond's request, the metal endoskeleton shall be based on our research on humankind's own endoskeletons and will improve on their design. The Gem placed in the chest cavity shall not only power the body but shall also project a physical form onto the endoskeleton to make the look complete. This requires a certain amount of power and shall be deactivated for the purposes of testing.
He completed his task, lowering his arm to his side.
"Now stand up," Yellow said.
He paused for a moment, readying his body for much bigger movement. He turned his body around, his legs swinging off the table he had been laying on. He sat up, then pushed himself off. He nearly fell over yet managed to balance himself. He looked directly ahead at a blank wall.
"He is progressing smoother than our data projected," the Peridot said. "At this rate, we can complete his body by the end of the next Earth month."
"Turn around," Yellow said.
He moved his legs. Interestingly, his feet seemed to end not in toes like he thought they would, but large metal boots. According to his blueprints, this was for "better balance." He supposed this made more sense, yet he was a bit concerned that his Diamond would think less of him for this detail being off from her vision.
He had turned the full 180 degrees. He saw the two figures standing behind the window separating his chamber from the control center. The woman on the left, small compared to even him, was watching him, taking notes on her screen. A giant woman of bright yellow leaned down to see through the window, this being one of the few times where her immense height was a disadvantage.
There was someone missing.
"Do you recognize my face?" Yellow Diamond asked.
"No," he admitted. "I shall record your face so I may recognize you in the future."
"Excellent," she said. "Now lie back on the table, our session is complete." She turned to the Peridot. "Fine-tune the movement apparatus, he needs to be able to move at the pace of a normal Gem."
"Yes, my Diamond," the Peridot replied. Yellow Diamond turned back to the window. She seemed to be confused at how he was still staring at her rather than moving.
"Titanium Prototype, return to the table at once," she demanded. She wasn't quite yelling, but he could tell she was getting there.
"Where is my Diamond?" he asked.
The Peridot stopped typing on her screen. She gave Yellow Diamond a nervous sideways glance.
"I am your Diamond," she said.
"No," he replied. "You are Yellow Diamond. You designed me and without you I would not exist. Of that much I am aware, and because of it I will give you the respect you are due. I am referring to Pink Diamond, the one I was built to serve. I will ask again. Where is my Diamond?"
This only irritated Yellow more. "She will not be watching the process of your creation. She is of no use in this step of the process and I will not have her causing any more disruptions in my work."
He tilted his head. "She is my creator, is she not? Logic dictates that she should be allowed to watch my creation."
Yellow Diamond drummed her fingers on the control center in annoyance. The Peridot was now typing on her screen faster as if trying to distract herself from thinking about what was happening.
"Be that as it may," she said, her voice the very definition of strained, "She is of no use to us right now, and as such I will be leaving her out of this. She is a very busy Gem with a colony of her own now, against my better judgement. Now get on the table right now or I will come in there and make you."
This answer did not satisfy him, but he saw no other way out of this predicament. He began his slow descent onto the table, the gaze of Yellow Diamond never leaving him. Even as he was powering down, he could still feel the disapproval oozing out of her.
POWER AT ZERO PERCENT CAPACITY. RETURNING TO SLEEP MODE. THIS SESSION HAS BEEN RECORDED FOR EXPERIMENTAL PURPOSES.
RECEIVING POWER…
POWER AT EIGHTY PERCENT CAPACITY. DISTRIBUTING POWER TO ALL AREAS. INITIATING DIAGNOSTICS CHECK.
OPTIC RECEPTORS: ONLINE. AUDITORY RECEPTROS: ONLINE. DATABASE MAINFRAME: ONLINE. MOVEMENT APPARATUS: FULLY OPERATIONAL.
TITANIUM IS NOW COMPATIBLE WITH GEM'S WEAPON. WEAPONS SYSTEMS ARE NOW FULLY OPERATIONAL.
INITIATING WAKE UP SEQUENCE.
This room is different from the previous one. In fact, it's not so much a room as it is a large chamber, large enough to fit a warship inside. There are several devices which he identifies as targets. They are holograms projecting images of different types of gems. There are Ruby targets, Jasper targets, and several others. Of note are several shaped like members of the Gem elite: Sapphires, Holly Blues, etc.
"Attention Titanium Prototype," Yellow Diamond's voice boomed through the room, "you are standing in the Homeworld training ground. You are here to test your reflexes and combat capabilities as your accuracy and judgement. You are tasked with summoning your weapon and using it to destroy as many targets as you can. If you destroy any targets shaped like high-ranking Gems, you will be penalized. Your power source can be deactivated remotely at a moment's notice. You may begin when the signal is given. Please take a moment to practice moving your newly-upgraded body."
So, this was his task today. He had moved up from having difficulty with the simple tasks of speaking and moving to combat training. Homeworld technology was truly incredible.
He moved his arms experimentally. The movement felt…natural. He assumed that he was moving at the normal speed for any other Gem. He waved his arms, shook his legs, and all of it felt natural. At long last he could move.
He looked down. He looked exactly how he thought he would based on the blueprints. His black rectangular gem was in the middle of his chestplate, a clamp fastening it in place and preventing its removal. He couldn't see it very well from this angle, but he somehow knew exactly what it was like. The gem had a faint purple glow, and many tubes were draining energy from it and distributing it throughout his body.
Out of curiosity, he pulled up an image of a human skeleton from his databanks. Indeed, these tubes reminded him of the human ribcage. Yellow Diamond really had outdone herself when she made him look like a human.
His thoughts were interrupted by a loud droning noise that reverberated throughout the room. On instinct he slapped his arm on his gem. Bright purple light surrounded his hand, advancing up his arm all the way up to his elbow. The light faded, replacing his arm with an arm cannon.
He looked up and let his instincts take over. Lasers flew from his arm cannon with such accuracy that it was as if they were drawn to the targets. Upon being hit, the holographic targets burst into light and disappeared. He turned in every direction, thinking carefully with every shot. He calculated exactly how to move to maximize his accuracy.
After a while, he would get into a pattern: look, aim, shoot. Look, aim, shoot. That's all he would do for a long while.
He missed many times. Once, his shot missed a Ruby and hit the Sapphire directly behind the former. He fired many times at a Jasper and the extra shots hit things he wasn't aiming for. He understood it to be sheer dumb luck that the Holly Blue to the Jasper's left was the only thing shot as a result of his recklessness. He incorporated these mistakes into his targeting systems. He would not fire so brashly at his targets. If he saw a desired target within a crowd of undesired targets he would seek out a more low-risk opportunity.
Look, aim, shoot. Look, aim, shoot.
It went on for so long, he just stopped thinking about what he was doing and started speculating other things. Where was Yellow Diamond that she could see what he was doing? Where was the way out of this room? Was his Diamond watching him? How much longer would he be subjected to this test? What would he do for his Diamond once he was complete?
Look, aim, shoot. Look, aim –
The droning sound went off again and the targets all shut down. His final shot hit the wall to join countless other scorch marks there.
There was silence for a long time. He took the moment to inspect his arm cannon. It fascinated him, like he was looking at an alien specimen from another world. Everything about it from the dark purple of its casing to the brighter purple of the energy veins leading to the barrel intrigued him. He compared it to the rest of his arm. Thin metal wires pulled taught, a small metal cylinder encased by them, everything about it made him feel empty. He looked at his legs, seeing similar emptiness there. He wondered if his head looked as empty. His weapon looked so substantial in comparison to the rest of him.
Was that all he was, a glorified weapon to be used by Pink Diamond? He had no records of any other Gem type that closely resembled him, so he had no clue as to his purpose were he not attached to a metal body. Come to think of it, he had no idea what kind of Gem he was. No other Gem type had this exact shade of black, no other Gem shined with this purple light the way his did. It was a harrowing thought. He had no idea who he was! Ironically, not being part of a group hurt his sense of individuality! This logical paradox worried him, as it had no easy logical answer. What was he? What was he? What was –
"Titanium Prototype, respond!"
Yellow Diamond's harsh echoing voice snapped him out of his thoughts, returning him to the real world and its easy answers. He wasn't so sure he was happy with this.
"Yes?" he called to nowhere in particular, as he couldn't see where his superior was.
"Above you!" Indeed, he looked up and there was Yellow Diamond in a room at the top of the wall in front of him. She seemed to be in an observation deck of some kind, as there was nothing separating her from the testing range aside from a wall of glass.
"Apologies…my Diamond. I was lost in my thoughts for a moment." He wasn't sure why he had hesitated to call her that. Perhaps it was because she wasn't his Diamond. From what he had gathered, Pink Diamond was the one he was meant to serve. Perhaps that's why she was in his thoughts so much. It was then that he realized he was devoted to a Diamond whose face he didn't even know.
Yellow Diamond seemed to be pondering his answer, though he was too far away for him to read her expression. His blueprints stated that his eyes had a telescope function that could let him zoom in on anything, but he found himself unable to do so. Perhaps it hadn't been installed yet?
"You shouldn't tax your mind so early in your development," she finally responded. "Your CPU may not be able to handle high levels of critical thinking at the moment."
"Very well," he said. Then he realized what a golden opportunity here.
"My…Diamond," he said, still not completely comfortable with referring to Yellow as such, "what am I?"
He could see even from this distance that Yellow was lowering her head in exasperation. "You are the Titanium Prototype. You were commissioned by Pink Diamond to be her personal agent, bodyguard, whatever she wishes to call you. I designed you myself."
"I am aware of this," he said, though he was lying partially. He actually did not know what he meant to Pink Diamond until now. "Forgive me, I should have been specific. What type of Gem am I?"
"As far as I know, you have no name. There was no need for one until now."
"Surely my kind should have a name?"
"Your 'kind' consists entirely of you alone." He could tell from her voice that she was getting irritated. "You do not need a name."
"Can I name him? Pleeeaaase?"
He recognized this second voice immediately, though he had heard it only once before. "Pink Diamond?"
"I told you that you could only watch if you remained quiet during the test!" Yellow shouted.
"But names are important! Pleeeeaaase?" Pink Diamond begged.
"What kind of name would you even give him?" Yellow demanded.
This was followed by silence. It seemed Yellow had completely forgotten the microphone was left on, as he could hear Pink humming in deep thought.
"My Diamonds," he said. "If I may, perhaps projecting my physical form might give you some inspiration?"
Yellow rushed to look at him again. It then occurred to him that Pink wasn't in view. "That will not be necessary! Lie on the ground now so we can safely shut you down!"
"But you both seem to be having difficulty. I must do whatever I can to help you, my Diamonds."
His gem glowed brighter, the dim purple turning brighter, almost white. It spread from his chest, encasing his upper arms and legs.
Then it stopped. He heard alarms sounding and read messages on his screen.
WARNING! PHYSICAL PROJECTION HAS BEEN DEACTIVATED FOR TESTING PURPOSES! SYSTEMS WILL ENTER EMERGENCY SHUT DOWN IF THIS PERSISTS! WARNING! PHYSICAL PROJECTION
Then he collapsed to the ground, dead to the world.
SYSTEMS HAVE ENTERED EMERGENCY SHUT DOWN. SYSTEMS WILL RESTART WHEN THE PROBLEM IS CORRECTED. THIS SESSION HAS BEEN RECORDED TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF SHUT DOWN.
It was much later. Yellow was in her personal quarters staring at the door. Her Pearl was with her, standing next to her throne at stiff attention, awaiting orders. She was not uncomfortable; she could hold that pose for as long as her Diamond commanded.
The door opened suddenly, Peridot 6HP entering and giving the standard salute for the Diamond authority.
"You wished to speak with me, my Diamond?" she asked.
"Yes," Yellow responded. "How has the Titanium Prototype progressed so far?"
The Peridot pulled up her screen, examining the data mentioned. "Very much ahead of schedule so far. If he continues at this rate, he will be finalized next week."
Yellow nodded. "And what do you think of this?"
It took Yellow Pearl all her force of will not to look at her Diamond in confusion. She rarely asked others for their opinion unless they were another Diamond. What was she playing at?
The Peridot seemed equally confused. "M-my Diamond?"
"I asked you a question," Yellow said.
The Peridot seemed to decide that expressing her opinion to be the lesser of two evils in this case. "In all honesty, my Diamond…if I may be so bold…his progress frightens me."
Yellow raised an eyebrow. "How so?" she asked.
Peridot took an unnecessary deep breath. "The way he has been progressing past all our data…well it's not like I am disappointed about this, but it is unnerving how quickly he's been learning."
Yellow Diamond nodded. "Is it possible that our predictions were wrong?"
"Perhaps…" she said.
"I agree," Yellow Diamond said, staring at the ground in deep thought. "We underestimated his potential for growth. No matter, it's not like we have any previous data to go on." She looked at the Peridot again. "You may leave now."
The technician saluted again, then left the room once again. Yellow Diamond sighed.
"I'm starting to regret this whole thing."
SYSTEMS HAVE BEEN MODIFIED. POWER IS BEING DIRECTLY RECEIVED FROM THE GEMSTONE. NO NEED FOR AUXILARY POWER.
POWER AT ONE HUNDRED PERCENT CAPACITY. DISTRIBUTING POWER TO ALL AREAS. INITIATING DIAGNOSTICS CHECK…
OPTIC RECEPTORS: ONLINE. AUDITORY RECEPTORS: ONLINE. DATA MAINFRAME: ONLINE. MOVEMENT APPARATUS: FULLY FUNCTIONAL. WEAPONS SYSTEMS: FULLY FUNCTIONAL.
PHYSICAL PROJECTION FUNCTION HAS BEEN ADDED. YOU MAY NOW PROJECT YOUR GEM'S PHYSICAL FORM ONTO TITANIUM.
INITIATING WAKE UP SEQUENCE…
How could he have done something so illogical? He knew that the physical projection had been deactivated for the tests. Why would he try that then? Why was he so desperate to help Pink Diamond if he hardly knew her?
He supposed it was because he was supposed to be her…agent? Bodyguard? Elite servant boy? Again, he came to the question of what he was exactly. He assumed his Diamond would explain for him. He must have been programmed to service her in any way, even at his own expense. At least, that's what his blueprints said.
Regardless, he made the decision to stay by logic for as long as he could. Acting on emotions seemed to only be causing him inconvenience so far.
He was back in the blank room, but he could tell there were people with him this time. They were there, just on the edge of perception, apparently having watched him for a long time.
"You may stand up now," Yellow Diamond said. Her voice was right next to him now, not through a speaker like before. It was then that he realized how big this laboratory must be to hold the full majesty of a Diamond.
He did as told, finding the movement to be easier than ever. He looked to the voice.
Up close, he realized how tall Diamonds were. Yellow Diamond was easily as tall as he was times three and perhaps a little more. If he could feel pain, he would probably feel annoyed to crane his neck to look her in the eye.
"Hello, Yellow Diamond," he said. "Are these tests nearly done?"
"As a matter of fact," she said, "I believe we are completely done. You are currently operating at maximum efficiency. I will turn you over to Pink Diamond now."
"Thank you for all your effort, my Diamond," he said, giving what he recalled was the proper salute: forming his hands into the shape of a diamond, of course. He looked around, unable to see any other figures as towering and imposing as his designer. "Might I ask where Pink Diamond is?"
"Excuse me?" came Pink Diamond's voice. He looked straight ahead. There she was: his Diamond.
She was much shorter than he expected. She was only as tall as he was, perhaps a little taller. But that didn't matter. She was giving him a nervous smile. Why? She was a Diamond, she should be better than him in every way. What did she have to worry about?
"Ahem," she said. "Hello."
"Hello, my Diamond," he said. He was actually glad that she was so short compared to Yellow. This made things much more convenient.
"I have other business to attend to at the moment," said Yellow Diamond. "I will leave you to yourself, Pink."
"Bye, Yellow!" she said, her voice filled with sudden cheerfulness.
They stood there awkwardly while they listened to Yellow's booming steps echo through the hallway. They continued standing there even after the steps faded.
"So…um…" Pink Diamond shuffled her feet awkwardly. "Anyway…can I ask you something?"
"My Diamond," he said. "I live to serve you," he bowed deeply, his arms stiffly at his sides.
"Ahem…" she suddenly smiled. "How about that name?"
He suddenly straightened. "Any name you would give me would be an excellent one, I have no doubt. Might I suggest Titanium?"
"No, that's the name of your metal body," she said. "Speaking of which, why haven't you covered that up yet?"
"I was waiting for your order, my Diamond. I will do that now."
A purple light spread from his gemstone, covering his chest, upper arms, and legs. This time, it continued, even covering his head without obstruction. For a moment he was blinded by the brightness. He took the moment to search into his database to see how Gems were typically dressed. He settled on the typical Homeworld soldier uniform: a jumpsuit covering his body with a small opening for his gemstone. Then the light faded.
He looked at his hands. Pale purple skin replaced his metal wires and tubes. It felt…satisfying. He was happy to look more substantial now.
"Does this form please you, my Diamond?" he asked.
She had a look of pure amazement on her face. Her hands covered her mouth. "It's everything I could have hoped for and more," she said.
"Excellent. Shall we depart? I understand you to be quite busy now that you have your own colony." He attempted walking around her, but was stopped by a surprisingly strong grip on his arm. He looked at her in confusion.
"Don't you want to see how you look?" she asked.
Truly, he did have mild curiosity at his appearance now that he looked presentable. But…
"I don't wish to waste your time any more, my Diamond."
"Nonsense!" she said. "How can anyone go around not knowing what they look like?"
He quickly realized that he wouldn't win this argument, nor any other with Pink Diamond in the future. He stepped back into the room.
"I have a small problem, my Diamond," he pointed out. "I have no way to inspect my own appearance."
She smiled at him. "Good thing I thought ahead and had a mirror brought in here! Rather clever of me, I say!"
He looked to the corner of the room behind him. Indeed, there was a mirror his height leaning there. "I find myself agreeing with you, my Diamond." He stepped closer to the mirror, then stopped. Why was he suddenly so apprehensive about seeing himself? Did he think that he might seem hideous? Maybe he just didn't care that much about his outward appearance or what others thought of it. Well, aside from Pink Diamond, her opinion mattered very much to him for some unknown reason.
"Go on, then!" Pink Diamond, getting impatient, had apparently shoved him from behind, forcing him to stumble forward. Again, he found himself surprised by the strength of this smaller Diamond. He looked up.
It was…about what he expected.
His clothes he knew about. It was the standard Homeworld soldier uniform that all the Quartzes wore, modified for his purposes. The metal boots of his feet were the only things left uncovered, though he saw no need to cover those up. His frame was rather small, perhaps a bit more broad-shouldered than Pink Diamond. He saw the black rectangle of his gemstone directly in the middle of his chest, showing through a diamond-shaped hole in the suit. The rest of him came as a surprise. His skin was pale with a tinge of purple only noticeable on close scrutiny. His face had startlingly sharp features. His hair was short, black, and stood out in many directions at once.
Then he saw his Diamond standing behind him, her eyes peeking over his head filled with excitement.
"I think Onyx is a name that would suit you best," she said. "What do you say?"
He took in the moment. He was seeing himself for the first time, his Diamond was looking at him with approval, and he was being given a name.
He smiled. His teeth were remarkably white. "It suits me."
Onyx would keep this moment saved in his memory for a long time.