LOG-051.
"Oh man, that was awesome! Hey, you got that Vidalia girl's number, right? Did Becky give it to you?"
Vermilion smiled at the Quartz's persistent questioning, one hand going down to her gemstone and pulling out a small piece of paper in a flash of bright light. With a flourish, the material was brandished, the Pearl taking on a pleased look at her apparent prize.
"Home phone number and address! Additionally, I now also have two gasoline based lighters, a trio of empty liquor bottles, and seventeen separate thumbtacks!"
Then the red Gem was yelping in surprise as her shorter purple counterpart lifted her over a shoulder while laughing, hopping over the fence leading into the temple and setting the Pearl down with a grin.
"Sweet! We've gotta hang out with them more! I still need to figure out how the bong thing worked-"
The overcooked soldier Gem paused, eyes widening as a bright flash of light lit up the path leading over towards where Viridian had parked the Roaming Eye some time ago, the ship in question blocking whatever the source had been.
"...What was that?"
The Pearl's nervous question prompted a second of consideration from Amethyst. Then in the next second, the Quartz was grabbing the now uncertain Gem by the hand and rushing around the crimson craft's bulk, a curious energy suffusing her lightform.
"No idea, but I wanna find out! Maybe Rose or the others figured something out while we were...gone?"
Jogging turned to walking, until finally her steps petered to a stop altogether, Vermilion hesitantly leaning around her and glancing at the sight of a tall, strangely garbed figure seemingly talking to herself.
"How utterly fascinating. Enhanced lightform mechanics, and I've even come equipped with...a jester's outfit? Hm, that could mean more than a few things. Some definite implications there, probably."
Then her eyes also widened as the unknown newcomer finally caught the light, a pair of almost luminous eyes flicking away from staring back at a bemused looking Garnet to glance at them in turn.
A moment passed, before Amethyst let out a low whistle, her arms crossing as she did so.
"Are you gonna fuse with everybody Viridian? You're giving Garnet a run for her money!"
Whatever the Quartz had been expecting, it wasn't an amused chuckle as the large Pearl shifted in place, one hand rising up to flick at a small golden bell hanging from one of the drooping points of her headwear, mouth quirking upwards at the almost inaudible jingle that resulted from the action.
"Yes well, that particular component of mine just so apparently happens to have a rather delightful talent for it. Quite useful in keeping things fairly stable, you see. Though I do wonder just how well she would handle a multi-Gem fusion?"
The hand moved, fingers clicking across the air as the large Pearl pulled forth a pair of small hologram from her upper and lower gemstones, the light green surface of the constructs remaining blank before lines upon lines of gemglyph began to rapidly scroll across them.
"Something to account for in the distant future, perhaps. I'll take a few notes and transcribe them for her and Pearl's future use. Though perhaps they'll simply remember all this anyway."
Her eyes narrowed at the swiftly shifting text, before she banished the holograms with a flick of her fingers, a confident, almost mischievous looking expression plastering itself across her face. Slightly narrow eyes and a wide, open mouthed grin giving her a more lively look.
"Ah-but do pardon my lacking manners, oh fellow Gems of mine. Allow me to introduce myself!"
The rest of her lightform followed suit, figure twirling in place until her arms remained outstretched, body leaning over with a slight tilt and her legs locked in a wide stance as she made an almost welcoming gesture that swiftly transitioned into a dramatic bow, the small bells attached to her hat jingling with the motion.
"You may refer to me as...Harlequin? Yes, Harlequin Pearl. It suits the outfit at least, wherever that might have come from. Though I'm more of a teal or turquoise in actual colour...hm."
A second of thought distracted the Pearl, Harlequin, apparently, her expression almost seeming to waver before she waved a hand quickly back and forth, as if brushing off the idea as her previous posture reaffirmed itself.
"Bah! Semantics! Let's not get too caught up in them, there's work to be done, after all!"
Amethyst blinked as the tall Gem strode past her, long legs draped between the lower, almost dress-like portion of her long coat quickly carrying her towards the Roaming Eye.
"...What work? We just got here!"
The fusion paused, glancing at the purple Quartz out of the corner of her eye even as she somewhat idly adjusted one of her patterned cuffs.
"Why, solving the numerous issues we've gotten ourselves caught up in, my dear Amethyst! The Cluster needs to be dealt with swiftly, after all. There are materials to gather, components to fabricate and synthesize, machines to reactivate and direct! Lots and lots and lots of little things to work on before the big project comes together!"
The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.
Her eyes narrowed once again, a slight frown overtaking her expression.
"Alongside a few other key details that I'm going to have to manage personally, seeing as no one else has seen fit to do so." One hand went to her hip, the large Pearl carefully inspecting the ship in front of her for apparently faults even as she idly tapped a gloved finger against the side of her head, almost seeming to glare at herself.
"Now now, don't be so concerned. Getting access to those legs will improve our situation significantly, at least in the immediate resource department."
The frown deepened, Vermilion and Amethyst glancing at each other in concern as the fusion seemingly fought with herself, Garnet hesitantly beginning to take a step forward before that same smooth, confident and ever so eager look returned to Harlequin's face.
"It's us. Me. If anyone can do it, I can!"
As the fusion nodded to herself, seemingly reassured, Vermilion hesitantly raised a finger.
"Ah...H-harlequin? Is...is there anything we can do to help? Uhm...maybe I can carry things for you!"
The question prompted a confused glance from the larger Pearl, before she turned fully, heels clicking together as she returned her red counterpart's uncertain look with an indulgent smile.
"Your desire to assist directly is most appreciated, Vermilion, but allow me to assure you..." A clap almost seemed to shake the air, before the space around the fusion was filled with several streams of light emitted from her upper gemstone, quickly coalescing into familiar forms.
Pearls. Holographic ones with outfits similar to the fusion, their faux-eyes glowing a bright green, but Pearls nonetheless. A flick of her hand sent two of them rushing up the ramp into the Roaming Eye, even as another flick sent the remaining pair moving towards the temple with dainty, flowing steps guiding their translucent forms.
"My little holorinas will serve well enough as simple assistants for the time being. Although..."
That same hand slowly went up to her chin, Harlequin's expression turning considering.
"...see if you can't track down Rose for me, when you get the chance. She'll no doubt return from her little secret trips with that boytoy of hers soon enough. When she does, tell her I'll be awaiting her presence at the Kindergarten, would you dear?"
The crimson Pearl merely nodded back numbly, even as Amethyst noticed the latter two 'holorinas' sprinting back towards the ship, arms full of various items as they scrambled up the boarding ramp.
"Wha-hey! That's my fridge! I need that!"
Unfortunately for the Quartz, Harlequin's only response was a small, almost cheeky wave as she stepped up the ramp herself, body ducking low as she passed through the entrance.
"Don't get yourself caught up in a tizzy Amethyst! I'll bring it right back once I harvest some of the more useful material from its innards! Problems to solve and all that. I'll be taking the Eye as well, it should prove useful beyond just getting me to areas beyond the reach of the Warp network."
Those luminous eyes continued to stare at them, even as the ramp began to pull back into the craft's hull, the doors beginning to close.
"Well I'm off! We'll see each other again soon enough, with luck. Tata for now!"
And with that, the ship was taking off, all three Gems staring as its red form lifted into the air before almost immediately speeding off into the distance.
A beat of silence passed, before Amethyst twisted in place to stare at Garnet, her hands thrown into the air in a mix of mild frustration and bewilderment.
"What was that?!"
The fusion remained silent for a moment, before slowly adjusting her visor.
"...Harlequin, apparently. She's a bit...off right now, I think. But she'll level out later. Don't worry, she'll give you back your fridge. Plus it was already broken anyway."
---
The moment I stepped up towards the primary navigation console, I let myself relax a fair amount, the firm mask I'd kept affixed to my face cracking ever so slightly as my components continued to cautiously dance around each other.
Apparently we, or rather I needed to slow down, for a first time fusion I was showing remarkable stability, but...something seemed wrong about it. My personality, fabulous as it was, already felt far too dominant considering just how new I was to this, and yet part of me couldn't help but hurry along regardless. There was so much to do, so many issues that I could resolve if I just applied myself.
There was another vessel on this planet. I knew that much. And I wanted what was on it.
My expression twisted, fist clenching and idly guiding one of my holorinas out of the way as one...or both of my components continued to try and hide things.
But I wasn't stupid. I was intelligent. Observant. More than talented enought to see that one...no, both sides of me were trying to keep vital information from me!
And yet both sides continued to stubbornly pull away. For just a moment, their panic at potentially being found out, at realising that this existence wasn't precisely what they'd initially signed up for...well...it threatened to overwhelm me, my lightform beginning to brighten and contort, at least right before I took control of the situation, forcefully pulling them back together even as I let a disappointed hiss escape my clenched teeth.
This...wasn't healthy! It almost had disturbing parallels to Mal-Mala-No-!
Urgh! Stop! Holding! Back! Give it to me!
NO!
...
"Fine! Keep your damned secrets!"
It was ridiculous. Simply unprecedented. A fusion actively fighting against her conflicting components, bullying them into actually getting work done in favour of letting their disparate personalities and ideas get in the way. Garnet would be horrified. But that was the problem, wasn't it? Viridian and Pearl both had their own ideas, similar yet ever so distinct in their own particular ways. They were still divided. Still didn't see my vision.
My hand idly accepted a half melted microwave from the arms of one of the holorinas, Viridian's claws forming over my hands as I used the weapons as tools, carefully prying the primitive machine apart to get at what surviving components remained within.
"That's fine. Perfectly fine. You'll both come around once I really get started. You'll see just how perfect you two are for each other once we all spend a little more time working together. Just how perfect we are."
Smiling as I managed to pluck a small coil out from the neglected machine, I inspected it for a moment with a discerning eye before handing the piece off to another patiently waiting holorina.
"Cooperation is the name of the game, my secretive little Pearls. We need to cooperate. Focus, apply our respective talents in creative new ways, and solve the problem."
At the very least, Pearl and Viridian's next response was hesitantly accepting rather than outright refusing, even if it was a begrudging acceptance at best, largely due to still needing to deal with the Cluster.
Hmph, they'd learn. I'd make sure of it.
