LOG-138.

  I was going to die here, if things didn't change.

  That was the singular, primary thought that continued to run through my mind, even as a Peridot checked up on me and sent me off with a clean bill of health.

  Even as I passed by countless saluting Amethysts, being forced into line by a Holly that likely would have reeked of sweat, if she had possessed the appropriate glands for such a substance.

  Even as I locked gazes with Blue Diamond's Pearl, the lithe Gem staring at me silently, her arms kept pinned behind her back by the two Citrines I'd sent after her, the large soldiers offering me quick nods as I skulked on by.

  And even as I settled down within my section of the armship's bridge, staring at the fragmented, broken pieces of the space station in front of us, barely held together by its overall megastructure, all I could continue to think of was how tired I was.

  Would this be enough? How much time would it buy Earth? How much more would I need to do until I could go home, and know that home wouldn't burn for the crime of existing?

  I just wanted to go home. To see the blue sky again. To feel the green grass beneath my feet. The sounds of cars rolling by outside on the road. To hear the clink of doors opening as another person came into the store to buy something from me.

  What more did I need to do until I could have that again? Until I could preserve that?

  "Casualties are still coming in. Whatever her Radiance did, whatever that was…it was worse at the epicenter than the edges. Anyone too close to the blast is probably in shards at the moment. Only those with the durability of Quartzes or Gems at the perimeter would have been fine."

  "But we're still reading her?"

  "Affirmative, alongside Blue Diamond. Maybe…maybe they stopped fighting."

  "...What if Blue Diamond won?"

  "She wouldn't have! Yellow Diamond is objectively superior in military matters! R-Right!?"

  "But if she did…?"

  Repressing a quiet snarl as I realised that my sash was quite literally charred in places, I slipped the ruined fabric off of me, idly ripping the jewelry out of my hair as I did so, the light clinking of it impacting the floor drawing the attention of the Emerald and Era One Peridot arguing ahead of me as I planted my hand atop the console in front of me.

  "If Blue Diamond has discorporated Yellow Diamond's lightform, it is our duty as Yellow Court Gems, as her servants, to open fire on the armship across from us with everything we have, as it's the only place she could reasonably flee to at this time. Am I understood?"

  Wide eyes met my own at that, what felt like the entire bridge crew staring at me as I held my gaze on the Emerald.

  "Open fire? But…but Blue Diamond is…well she's a Diamond!"

  My fist slammed against the console, causing the green Gem to flinch slightly as I leaned forward.

  "A useless one that's just attacked our Diamond! We can't afford a schism like this, not unless it's managed by Yellow! The Empire is at war with countless enemies that wouldn't hesitate to pounce at the first sign of weakness!"

  My eyes narrowed dangerously at the increasing hesitation on the admiral's face, the snarl I'd been holding back beginning to erupt on my features.

  Home. I was going to go home. One way or another.

  "If Yellow Diamond isn't the Gem to exit that station and return to this ship, you will open fire, am I understood Emerald?"

  Maybe it was the tone of my voice. Maybe it was the fact that I could literally feel my claws trying to manifest over my hands. Or maybe it was something else. But regardless, the green Gem's expression turned stony, before she clenched her own hands into fists and gave a singular, short nod.

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  "...Yes, my Pearl. All hands, all vessels lock onto Blue Diamond's armship! Be prepared to fire on my command-"

  "That won't be necessary."

  If I hadn't spent my literal entire life as a Pearl repressing outward signs of fear, I probably would have jumped a solid ten feet into the air.

  Instead, I diverted that panicked energy into snapping around, arms coming up in a crisp, picture perfect salute as I yelled out.

  "Yellow Diamond on deck!"

  Rather militant of me? Probably. But that was Yellow Court culture for you, and the Diamond in question seemed to appreciate it as she slowly made her way through the open doors of the hallway and into the bridge.

  "At ease. Your attitude is…appreciated, Viridian. As is your solidarity."

  To say the monarch looked…haggard, would be an understatement. There was a slightly pained expression on her face as she slowly stepped forward, looking as if she wanted to limp, but was keeping herself from doing so.

  "The Yellow Court stands with you, my Diamond. Always. And judging by your victory…soon the Blue Court will learn to fall in line as well."

  More important than any of that however, was the brilliant golden bubble currently held in her hand. One she glanced at in response to my words, visibly wincing at the immense gemstone contained within.

  "...It shouldn't have needed to come to this."

  To say that the ruler looked drained would be an understatement. And part of me idly pondered whether some of that was due to Blue Diamond's powers affecting her, or just the situation as a whole taking its toll on the golden warlord.

  Pushing aside the thoughts of Earth and going home for the moment, I squared my shoulders and marched up to my mistress, staring her in the eyes with all the conviction I could muster.

  "It shouldn't have, no. Because you gave her every chance. Every opportunity. You aren't the one at fault here."

  Turning to stare at the bubble, I withheld a grin as a flicker of anger passed Yellow's face.

  "She is."

  Brazen? Definitely. But if there's one thing I'd learned since getting into the business of getting interstellar empires to tear into themselves, it was when to double down.

  "...You're right. I…I tried to talk. To give her the chance to stand down. But she wouldn't listen! She wouldn't…she…"

  Bowing my head slightly as moisture began to gather in the Diamond's eyes, I spread my arms wide.

  "She chose the wrong path. But now you're in a position to make things right."

  The words were an empty platitude at best, but they seemed to steel Yellow, the enormous Gem glancing up sharply, bubble tightly held in her grip as she nodded and strode over to her throne, sitting down.

  "Emerald, what is the status of the station's garrison?"

  The admiral in question snapped to attention at that, more than she had been already anyway, turning to stare at the structure in question as she did so.

  "Nearly fully accounted for, my Diamond. Holly Blue Agate reports that the preserved contingent of Rose Quartzes couldn't be recovered in time. There were also complaints as to the contained organic specimens getting loose and expiring to vacuum of all things."

  Yellow's free hand clenched into a fist, shaking slightly as she leaned further back into her throne, glaring at the station.

  "A waste of resources. And the Rose Quartzes…those abominations should have been shattered centuries ago, not kept as Blue's horrid trinkets. I…what are we supposed to do with this station? What purpose is there to it?"

  The question was seemingly rhetorical, but her eyes unmistakably slid towards my lightform as she spoke it, an uncomfortable expression on her face.

  So I kept a firm tone, even as part of me internally checked that all of the Gems in question were still safely enclosed in their bubbles, tucked away in my gemstone.

  "There is none, my Diamond. Traitors one and all, and unless any organic specimens have survived…?"

  A glance towards the Emerald earned a shake of her head, and a hopeful part of me twisted with guilt as I bowed my own head in mourning.

  "Then I believe this outdated structure is fit for permanent decommissioning, your Radiance. The command is yours to give, our duty is to follow it. Regardless of what you choose, we will obey."

  There was a long moment of silence at that, Yellow's eyes staring at something I couldn't see as she faced the station.

  "Mine to give…?"

  Her gaze dropped from the station to the bubble in her hand, an odd sort of contemplation in it.

  "Pink is gone. Blue is…grounded. White's stuck in her head."

  There was an almost surprised expression on her face as she looked back up, as if she'd just had an epiphany.

  "...It really is up to me, isn't it? This station, this Empire, this species…it's all mine to bring back to order."

  …I definitely needed to get out of here as soon as I could.

  And yet in the meantime, I nodded quickly, agreeing with the dictator as sharply as I could.

  "You're the only one we can truly depend on, my Diamond."

  The words seemed to stabilise something in the Gem, as she slowly lifted her free hand, barren of trembles, with her finger extended outwards and pointing at the station.

  "It's…it's time for us to finally move on from Pink. Closure…that's what this is going to be. Order the ship to open fire, Emerald. Destroy this station, and everything on it. Order one of our escorts to board and assume control of the other armship as well."

  She sighed then, a long and tired thing as she brought up the limb and pinched the bridge of her nose.

  "And then get us out of here. Viridian has the right of it, it's time to finally start fixing this Empire, without Blue's constant interference."

  …An extraction team. I was going to call for an extraction team. Fawn owed me a lot for all of this. Then I'd finally get out of this mess and go home while I still had the chance.

  I stared as the green Gem snapped off an affirmative, and kept up that stare as brilliant golden bolts of pure energy began to pummel the structure, erasing entire segments and sending what remained careening out into open space.

  Maybe there were a few corpses in that mess, but if they survived the onslaught, they were too far to see.

  And as the station began to resemble a misshapen lump of metal more than any truly artificial construct, I did my best to forget that in another life, the whole place would have ended up as a luxury cruise liner.

  The eidetic memory certainly made that difficult, to say the absolute very least.