Steven opened his eyes. It had already been twenty days, with only five left before Connie arrived in Beach City, so he preferred not to be anywhere on the Earth's crust when that happened.
I shook my head and pulled my foot out from under Lapis, who was sleeping like a parked truck. As soon as I did, her foot kicked back out of pure reflex, landing a direct strike right on my face and waking me up completely.
"Jesus, woman, you hit hard!" I said in annoyance as my pink form activated almost by instinct.
"Huh?" Lapis grunted, sitting up with a look that said she hadn't gotten nearly enough sleep.
We just stared at each other for a few seconds.
"What?" Lapis asked, totally confused, her foot still raised in mid-kick position.
"Put that foot down," I said in my pink form, though fortunately without the diamonds in my eyes.
"Oh, right," she replied, calmly getting up as if she hadn't just left my face red with a kick—though with the pink glow, you could barely tell anyway.
I stood up, stepping with my left foot first, and started my morning routine, still half-asleep. Lapis, for her part, shook her hair out and, using her water manipulation, washed her gem and the parts of her body where grass had stuck overnight, as if nothing had happened.
Steven finished stretching as the pink glow slowly faded, leaving him with that strange exhaustion that had already become a routine. He walked over to the barn's improvised kitchen while Lapis followed, hovering low to the ground and still half-asleep.
He set a few simple things on the table—nothing fancy. Bread, some fruit, and a pitcher of water that Lapis refilled with an automatic gesture, like it was the most natural thing in the world.
"Still playing Minecraft?" I asked, sitting down and taking a bite of bread.
"Yeah," Lapis answered, dropping into the seat across from me and resting her chin on the table. "I'm trying to build an underwater base, but water keeps leaking in from everywhere."
"You lack patience," I said with a half-smile. "Or glass. A lot of glass."
Lapis slowly looked up.
"That sounds boring."
"It is," I admitted. "But when you finish, it looks incredible."
Lapis went quiet for a few seconds, swirling the water in her glass with her fingers.
"Do you play to win?" she asked suddenly.
I shrugged.
"Not always. Sometimes I just play to distract myself. Building stuff, wasting time. Not everything has to have a goal."
Lapis frowned slightly, as if trying to process the idea.
"In Homeworld, everything had a goal," she said softly. "If something wasn't useful... it was discarded."
I looked at her for a moment, but didn't say anything serious. Not right now.
"Not here," I finally replied. "Here, you can build a hideous house in Minecraft and nobody's going to punish you for it."
Lapis let out a small nasal laugh.
"That explains why your builds are so ugly."
"Hey," I said, faking offense. "My houses are functional."
"Functional and ugly," she repeated, now with a clear smile.
I kept eating while she started telling me about a new game she had tried—something with blocks, weird enemies, and repetitive music. I just nodded, made a few comments, telling her she was probably playing it wrong or that she should lower the difficulty.
Nothing deep. Nothing heavy.
Just a quiet breakfast, with the sun streaming into the barn, and for once, not thinking about the Cluster, the Diamonds, or the end of the world.
And honestly, that felt good.
The temple door opened smoothly, and Garnet stepped out, looking at me through her visor as she walked slowly over to sit beside me. I was still in my pink form, holding a cup of coffee, clearly reflecting my emotional state that morning.
"What?" I said, taking a sip without breaking my gaze from the front.
Garnet observed me for several silent seconds, as if measuring every detail.
"What, man?" I said, now a bit irritated, feeling the pink form react slightly to my tone.
"You have a mission, Steven," Garnet said in that calm voice she always used when she wanted to sound mysterious.
...
...
...
I stared at her, saying nothing, the pink glow holding steady around my body.
"I think Ruby is trying to act mysterious," I blurted out with absolute seriousness.
Garnet lost her composure entirely for a second, and from the couch, Lapis lost her damn mind laughing, practically leaning all the way back while keeping her phone in hand.
"Not at all," Garnet said, regaining her posture and clearing her throat slightly. "You just have a mission. Duo or solo, up to you."
I glanced at Garnet, who was deliberately avoiding eye contact with Lapis. Lapis, meanwhile, was completely zoned out, focused on her chat, fighting with someone named noobmaster55 like her life depended on it.
I shook my head and set the cup aside.
"Let me guess," I said with forced calm. "Does it involve something dangerous, emotionally draining, or something that's going to test my self-control?"
Garnet didn't answer right away, which was an answer in itself.
My pink form flickered a bit, but I took a deep breath, remembering the words she had told me days ago.
"Fine," I said at last. "Tell me what the mission is."
Lapis barely glanced up from the couch for a second.
"If something explodes, let me know," she said before going back to typing furiously.
Garnet nodded slightly, as if the day were only now truly beginning.
Garnet looked at the blue Gem, who was still absorbed in her phone as if the outside world didn't exist.
"You're going," she said with complete calm as she stood up.
"Huh?" Lapis replied, confused, looking up at the leader of the Crystal Gems. "Why?"
"Because you're not staying here for free," Garnet replied as if it were the most logical thing in the universe.
"Pfft," Lapis huffed, standing up and walking over to stand beside me. Honestly, I wasn't in the best mood for jokes or sarcastic comments.
"What mission?" I asked, all traces of my pink tone gone.
"You need to acquire an energy source resistant to spatial shifts," Garnet explained. "In short, energy that can shield the ship."
"Yeah, got it," I said, giving her a hand without any added drama.
Garnet, with her Future Vision, had clearly foreseen my reaction, handing me a drawing of what we needed.
...
...
I looked at what appeared to be a watch charged with energy bordering on nuclear and simply shrugged.
"Alright," I said, walking toward the Warp Pad.
"Random or with coordinates?" I asked, raising an eyebrow as Lapis took her place beside me.
"12333xaas, 89 3321240m," Garnet said, giving a thumbs-up along with the numbers.
"Ok," I replied just as the characteristic sound and light of the warp beam enveloped Lapis and me.
"I hope they get it," Garnet said to no one in particular. "Otherwise, only Steven will be able to go... and I don't think he can do it alone."
Without another word, Garnet went into her room, closing the door quietly, hoping for the best possible outcome.
The two of us appeared enveloped in the light of the Warp Pad, and almost immediately, the sound of water surrounded us completely. The air was humid, heavy, thick with salt. Before us stretched a massive aquatic domain, an open ocean fading into the horizon, broken only by a few rock formations rising like jagged islands. The water moved forcefully—it wasn't a calm sea, but a living, restless one, as if constantly deciding which way to push you.
Lapis stood still for just a few seconds. Then, something in her posture shifted completely. Her shoulders, which usually carried a constant tension, relaxed. Her eyes opened wider, reflecting the blue that surrounded her, and for the first time since we left the temple, her expression wasn't defensive or tired, but openly joyful.
"Water..." she whispered, almost to herself.
It didn't take her long to walk toward the shoreline, slipping off her shoes without a second thought and letting the water lap at her feet. The sea reacted immediately, as if recognizing her. The waves, which seconds before had been crashing with aggression, began to soften near her, forming controlled, almost docile currents.
I watched her in silence, arms crossed. I had seen that shift before. Whenever Lapis was near large bodies of water, something in her ignited. It wasn't just power; it was comfort, a sense of belonging.
"This place..." she said, raising a hand as the water responded, rising in small spirals around her. "It's not perfect, but it feels good. No walls, no orders, no one yelling at me what to do."
The water swirled slowly, as if dancing with her. Lapis smiled—a genuine smile, one she didn't show easily.
"I guess you don't mind being far away from everything out here," I said, watching a wave pass near us with a bit too much force.
"Mind it? No," she answered, her eyes still on the sea. "Here I can think. Here I don't feel like the sky is crushing me."
There was a brief silence, broken only by the steady sound of the ocean. Then, without warning, a stronger current slammed against one of the nearby rocks, kicking up foam and making the ground beneath our feet vibrate slightly.
Lapis frowned for a second, assessing the surroundings more carefully.
"This sea isn't stable," she noted. "Crosscurrents, pressure shifts. If we aren't careful, it could sweep us away... or separate us."
I looked at the water, noticing how some currents seemed to move in opposite directions—invisible, but dangerous.
"Guess we didn't come here for a vacation," I replied dryly.
Lapis let out a soft laugh, brief but sincere.
"Definitely not." Then she looked at me. Not with mockery or irony, but with quiet seriousness. "Steven... I can move the water here, but not all of it. There are bigger forces at play. If a wave catches us off guard, I can protect myself, but I can't always protect you."
I stayed quiet. I knew she was right.
"And you're not in the best emotional state either," she added, without harshness, simply stating a fact. "It's not a reproach. Just... the truth."
The wind blew harder, kicking up spray that stung our faces. The sea was growing restless again, as if our conversation meant nothing to it.
Lapis took a deep breath and lowered her hand slightly, causing the nearby water to calm once more.
"There's something else," she said, hesitating for just a second. "If we're going to move through here, it's best to do it as one."
I glanced at her out of the corner of my eye.
"You mean—"
"Fusing," she said bluntly.
She didn't say it with exaggerated emotion or nervousness. She said it as a practical, logical, almost obvious solution.
"Together we'd have more stability," she continued. "More mass, more control. Less chance of the sea deciding to separate us or throw us somewhere we don't want to go."
The ocean roared in the distance, as if underscoring her point.
I stared at the horizon for a few seconds. The idea wasn't strange to me. We had done it before. I knew how it felt; I knew what it implied. Still, it wasn't something to take lightly.
"Are you sure?" I asked finally.
Lapis nodded. "I feel good here. And... I'd rather be with you than alone, especially in a place like this."
Her words didn't sound needy. They sounded honest.
Another wave broke nearby, stronger than the previous ones. Water surged up to our knees, shoving us slightly.
I sighed.
"Alright," I said. "If it's to avoid trouble... and keep the sea from making decisions for us."
Lapis smiled again, this time with obvious relief.
We stood face-to-face as the water around us began to rise slowly, forming a natural circle that shielded us from the harsher waves. I felt energy reacting, my pink form trying to surface on its own, blending with the blue surrounding it.
I closed my eyes.
The fusion came fluidly, without clash or resistance. The water responded instantly, calming down, adapting to the new presence. We were no longer two separate figures on an unstable surface, but a single entity with a firmer balance—heavier, more aware of our surroundings.
The waves that had threatened to sweep us away now glided around us, parting as if acknowledging they could no longer push us so easily.
Within that union, Lapis's calm was tangible—her quiet joy at being in her element, mixed with my need for control and stability. There was no conflict, only cooperation.
Together, the sea was no longer an immediate threat.
Quickly, now as Stela, I sprouted my water wings and hovered over the facility.
"This area... is completely surrounded by water, and if something gives way, everything will collapse into it," I muttered, my eyes tracking every current hitting the futuristic walls. "I can't let that happen."
"The panels and corridors look stable, but the humidity and lack of maintenance make them dangerous," I whispered, spreading my wings to feel the vibration of the water around me. "Every wave, every movement counts."
"The pink diamond reflections on the walls help me see the water pressure and where the ground might yield," I observed, adjusting my wings. "I have to keep everything balanced."
"If a conduit bursts or the water rises too much...", I thought, focusing all my attention, "...I can hold it temporarily. But I have to anticipate every single move."
"I remember the first missions with the water lady," I murmured, floating slowly over the current. "Every little detail teaches me how to control pressure and force so the facility doesn't sink."
"Everything depends on my concentration and my wings," I said softly, moving them with precision to balance the walls and water channels. "Nothing falls while I'm here."
"Every current touching the structure is information... and every pink diamond reflection shows me where to focus," I whispered, looking at the facility from above. "I'm not Steven, nor am I Lapis. I am Stela. And this place depends on me."
End of Chapter 58.