"Ah, Area Three, what a great time to be alive!" White Diamond cheered despite being by herself in the control room of her ship.

White Diamond liked to think her new role in the Gem Empire was even better than her old rule. Before, White was obsessed with making everything better, like herself. She had grown from that, of course. White prided herself as a fast learner. Now she made things better with her charm and doting affection, no matter the Gem or lower lifeform.

Her radiant white reflection beamed back at her in the viewing window from her ship. She checked herself over in preparation for her visit. Not a cape sparkle out of place. Perfection. Beyond her own reflected likeness was the Outer World she intended to visit. Colonization hadn't started in these outer worlds, but Gems had been stationed when Area Three came about. White intended to bolster the troops and of course help wherever she was needed. The Organics that lived on this world were still weary of Gems.

Yellow and Blue were still back on Homeworld. After so many centuries Homeworld bound, White liked to spread her helpful nature through the Colonies and Outer Worlds. She did charity work with organic worlds that otherwise would have been conquered in Area Two. White's presence alone was uplifting for most. Organic lifeforms were seldom her massive size, or as brilliant white. She accepted the attention with a humble air so not to intimidate. Her sweet starlight Steven had said she could be intimidating.

"White!" came the sing song voice of Spinel from down the hall of the ship. Her large shoes squeaked with each bound. White turned from the viewscreen and held out her hands for Spinel to land in. Spinel stretched her arms above her head and spun her elastic spine around in a few circles. "We at the Outer Worlds yet?" she asked, eager and bouncing in White's palms.

White tittered at her antics. It was scary how much like Pink she was. "Indeed, so bring your most winning smile! It has been eons since I have been this far into the Outer Colonies, I imagine things have changed a great deal."

Spinel leapt from her hands and went to press against the glass of the viewscreen. She beamed at the new planet, her eyes wide as saucers. She loved to tag along on outings. She brought about such joy in the Gems they visited. Observing Spinel's excitement for the adventure did White's own spirits good.

"Have you, Blue or Yellow ever been farther out?" Spinel said, still pressed to the glass, which made her voice sound sillier than usual.

"Beyond the Outer Colonies?" White asked.

Spinel peeled herself from the viewscreen to nod, her face still flat. White pondered the question, her own attention falling on the dark space beyond the planet. "It's been hundreds of thousands of years, for me at least. When I found Homeworld, I seldom left. It just felt right, for the longest time."

"What do you think is out there?" Spinel wondered.

"Beyond Gem kind's reach? More organic life I am sure. Endless oceans and plants and cell-based organisms oblivious to what is beyond their skies," She allowed herself a deep, melancholy sigh. "I sometimes feel bad for such lifeforms. They will never know what we have. Endless knowledge of the stars and technology to match…But! Steven would say that is judgmental, which I would never dream of being."

"Just, more of the same?" Spinel wondered. Her voice surprised White. Her tone didn't have its usual chipper spark. Spinel's face was rare, missing a smiling. She investigated the darkness of space, contemplative. "Organic life is great, but have you ever seen anything different?" She looked up at the Diamond when she asked. At first, White didn't know what she meant. "Life like us. Gems." She specified.

The smile returned to White's lips. "Oh, my dear! There is no other life like us. Gems are quite one of a kind. Much like yourself." she emphasized the last comment with a gentle poke into her stomach.

Spinel giggled and shoved away the large manicured finger. "You always know what to say!"

White offered her a shrug. "I was a leader all my life. I should hope I am diplomatic at the very least." She held out a hand for Spinel to jump into. "Shall we go my dear? The people are waiting."

Much to White's relief, Spinel's delighted demeanor returned. "At your lead, my Diamond!" she said and made her hands form an over dramatic recreation of the retired diamond salute. It made White nostalgic, but she refrained from indulging to much in the feeling. She led by example now, not by intimidation.

White lowered her ship down and landed on the final Gem controlled world, farthest from Homeworld. With Spinel seated on her shoulder, the ships white transportation sphere brought them to the ground.

A vast ocean greeted them, the water along the horizon dotted with green islands. White's feet sank into the sand. The world's sun was setting, and a cool breeze caressed both Gem's light forms.

"It's a lot like Beach City, but without the city," Spinel observed. "We should call Seven after we return to Homeworld!" That was a splendid idea indeed. After all the work Yellow had done to Steven's communication's device to make it work across light years White agreed they weren't using it nearly enough.

Inland, White spotted the Gem ships. Interweaved with the Gem tech were the mud huts belonging to the planet's locals. Small furred creatures on six legs ambled among the huts and pebbled streets. Most wore woven hats that had two holes at the top to allow their ears to poke through.

White retrieved the Galaxy Warp from her ship's cargo and held it under her arm. The old one had been broken by scared locals when Gems first arrived. No harm done, she thought. Organics were skittish things, and they could always make more Warps.

Her Gems waved as they came over the hill. The organic creatures noticed her too. They hid in their huts and behind their new Gem friends. White dawned a winning smile. "All is well, little ones! I am a Gem just like those with you." She promised.

Spinel leapt from White's shoulder and rushed to greet the other Gems. The first to meet her was a Nephrite and Off Color Jasper, 'Just Gem,' White Diamond corrected herself in her mind. Gems that once didn't fit into the old order were no longer labeled Off Color. Steven's Pink friend who commanded a Gem crew had made the worth of former Off Colored Gems shine bright in the past decade. Even White could argue with results.

"Welcome to the edge of the Colonies!" Nephrite said brightly. She saluted White with the old Diamond salutation and gave a more human wave to Spinel. The old ways were done, but White didn't correct Gems that carried on the salute. It made her feel appreciated. Her Gems had their own destinies now, but it was nice to know she was still recalled with respect.

"The Galaxy Warp couldn't have come at a better time," the Jasper added. "We have loads more to repair and now with the most recent ship crash we need all the supplies we can get."

White's face dropped. "Crash?"

Nephrite pointed into the village. "Yeah, just yesterday. Captain Lar's left to scout the outer asteroid belt for metal, but they came screaming out of the sky only a few hours later. They had an emergency landing on the beach. He and the crew were fine, but it gave us all a scare for sure."

Captain Lars, the former human White had only just been thinking of. A strange coincidence indeed.

"Did Lar's give padparadscha the controls again?" Spinel asked with a snicker.

Oddly enough, neither Gem laughed along with her. "It wasn't an accident. They were attacked." The small Jasper said.

That caught White by surprise, "Which one of the splinter Gems was it?" She asked. There were still a few Gem's that clutched to the old order. Even with the Diamond Authority retired, some Gems remained on the fringe of their new peaceful regime. They broke Warp pads, pestered organics or caused other such mischief. However, they had never managed to shoot down one of their ships.

Jasper and Nephrite glanced at each other, as if they hesitated to answer. White wondered if she had asked the question with too much clout in her tone.

"Best ask Captain Lars in person. I think he's almost done with repairs." Jasper said.

Spinel suddenly clapped her hands. "An attack? Goody! This trip is already exciting! Race ya there White!" she squeaked ahead and summersaulted along the trail.

White left the Galaxy Warp on the ground with Jasper and Nephrite and followed the pink Gem. The furred organics glanced up at her with wide eyes, less afraid like before. Some trailed behind her, blinking as a result of her star kissed cape or just gazed in reverence of her Gem nestled in her forehead. She smiled down at them, making sure to fluff her hair into place.

Captain Lar's brazen ship the Sun Incinerator was indeed grounded. White wouldn't have believed it if she hadn't seen it for herself. The large fusion Fluorite had a panel of the ship open and was halfway in the engine. The rest of the crew surrounded their once human Captain, who's eyes scanned his portable galaxy map as if it contained hidden secrets just beyond it's holographic screen.

The squeak of Spinel's shoes gave them away. Lars glimpsed up from his map. His pink tinted face was still stained with grease. "Any trouble getting here?" he asked White without a hello.

White couldn't refrain from laughing. "Of course not. I would hope the Gem rebels would hesitate before attacking my easily identifiable ship." Her smile vanished and she held up a hand to her chest. "Oh, was that condescending? Steven tells me I can come across that way. I didn't mean to offend."

Lars pulled the holograph back into it's portal and latched it onto his belt. "Didn't notice if it was… I'm actually glad a Diamond ended up coming in person. I need to talk to someone higher up in Homeworld's ranks," Lars turned to his ship, interrupting his own train of thought. "Is the engine responding, Fluorite?"

The Six Gem fusion Fluorite crawled out from the open panel and addressed her Captain in a slow spoken description. "Finally done. The energy wave only stalled the crystal core."

"But that enemy ship is still out there," Rhodonite whimpered. All four of her arms were wrapped around her torso in a self-soothing hug. "We have the fastest ship in Emerald's fleet, and that did us no good!"

"What enemy ship?" White Diamond interrupted. She had to repeat herself and did well to hide her annoyance for being forced to doing so. Repeating herself was something she seldom had to do with her Gems in Era One and Two. "Who attacked you?" she added after she saw her first remark made Rhodonite jump in alarm. She must have been harsher then intended.

"No idea," Lars said for his crewmate. "But it was no Gem ship we have ever seen."

"It had a different engine pulse then a Gem's ship Crystal Core Engine," the left Rutile twin said.

The right Rutile twin finished her sister's comment, "It was some sort of magnetic power field that knocked out our guidance systems. We only managed to get away with a hyper warp in the opposite direction."

White pursed her lips. Before, such an attack would have brought about the wrath of the Diamond army. But thing where different, she had to remind herself. "Did you try and communicate?" she asked. It was something Steven would say.

Lars spit on the ground. "That's what escalated the situation. We got a read from their Engine's thrusters on our radar. Since it wasn't Gem tech in nature, we thought we had found organic based life with advanced technology. Exciting, right? We sent a friendly hello, and they responded with a hail of lazar fire."

Spinel leaned into White's ankle to get her attention. Spinel was sporting a devious grin. "Let's go out there and kick their butts. They won't stand a chance against your ship."

Indeed, it was tempting. She could make quick work of whomever dared attack one of her ships. White forced a smile despite her internal dialoged. "That would hardly be diplomatic of us. But we can't have hostile forces flying so close to our Outer Colonies. Once our work here is done, we will try communication again, after disabling their Laser systems of course."

The small Sapphire Padparadscha gasped with delight. "Captain Lars! Look, White Diamond is here! She'll be able to help us."

"It's a better plan then nothing," Lars agreed with the previous conversation. "Our ship has the enemy's radar signature. We can lead you to them if they are still lurking in nearby space."

"I really hope they're not," Rhodonite whimpered.

Animal whines came from the locals that surrounded. Thanks to the Gem's translation tech that was broadcasting around the planet, the organics were able to understand the conversation. They understood that the advanced alien race that had landed on their world, now had been outgunned by some unknown force just beyond their skies. 'Such a lack of confidence in Gem kind simply won't do.' White thought. She raised her arms out and radiated a smile to the organics and her Gems. It drew the gaze of all parties to her. "Nothing to worry about! I will personally handle any problems that may arise with this new species. Remember, we have the strength of all united Gem kind to rely on to protect ourselves and our dear organic allies." She emphasized her point by giving a small local a reassuring pat with one finger.

As she suspected, many cheered, bolstered by her confidence. Some of the Gems even saluted her with the old pose.

Spinel stretched her arms up to pull herself onto White's shoulder. She flexed her spindly arms to the gawking crowed. "Whoever they are, they'll regret messing with us Gems!"

Behind the cheers, White caught the former human Lars looking not at her, but rather the sky. He was still uncertain as he watched the stars, waiting for something to appear from the void.