Chapter 16: The Gems' Quest

A bright light pierced through the darkness of a wrecked craft. The floor of the shuttle was lost on the hard impact with the surface. The holes that lined the walls revealed the terrain to be acrid and barren. Though it seemed devoid of life, the perimeter was littered with movement.

What seemed like hundreds of mechanical beings stood at the ready, armed to the teeth with various projectile weapons. A quick glimpse outside would show that this shuttle was but one part of a larger craft, shattered and spread out throughout the dusty surface. It seemed like the robots had not only converged on the other portions of the ship but were prepared to lay waste to this section as well.

It was in this hellish situation that the Gems, Lion, Greg, and Connie found themselves.

"This is certainly different than the other worlds we visited," Pearl noted. She summoned her spear into existence as a precautionary measure. "Let's not stay here any longer than we need to."

"I don't know, guys," Amethyst looked around. "It's kind of cozy."

Lion sniffed the air and walked around a bit. The group looked at each other with hope in their eyes. "Jeez. If this is where Steven is, I'll be kind of worried," Greg shivered. "This looks like something out of Alien…why couldn't we be back in that neighborhood with the kids or with that blond-haired muscular dude?"

"Focus, Greg!" Garnet commanded. "We need to keep our priorities in mind!"

Pearl looked over to Lion and saw that he was motioning away from them. "Lion, what is it? Is it Steven?"

He shook his head and nudged his paw around the corner. Garnet moved forward slowly and peered around. It appeared to be a group of five or so people of various shapes, sizes, and colors. They were all huddled around some of the holes in the decaying structure.

"They look like some of the creatures that attacked that samurai! Don't tell me that we have gone in a complete circle back to that terrible place!" Pearl whispered angrily.

Lion pointed again at the people. "What? What is it about those people?"

Unfortunately, Pearl got her answer in the worst possible way. A dark, booming voice echoed the corridor and caused the warriors to fill with dread. "Jedi. You are surrounded. Your army is decimated. Make peace with The Force now. For this is your final hour. But know that I, General Grevious, am not completely without mercy. I will grant you a warrior's death. Prepare!"

The Gems all looked confused at this ominous warning. However, Connie and Greg both opened their eyes in shock.

"'General Grevious?'" Connie asked.

"'The Force?'" Pearl thought about it. "Where have I heard that before?"

"We need to go!" Greg cried. He started to break out into a sweat. "NOW!"

"Woah! Greg, what's got into your system?" Amethyst laughed. "Is Greggy a big 'fraidy cat?"

It was then that a familiar hum erupted from the strange, huddled people. Each of the strange-looking creatures and humanoids pulled out what appeared to be laser swords that emitted either green or blue blades of light.

"You don't understand!" Greg started looking around frantically. "I know where we are! I know what this is! This is the Clone Wars!"

"…the what?" Pearl asked as she tried to make out what the weird-looking people were saying.

"It's from Star Wars!" Connie clapped her hands. "Star Wars is a parallel dimension! That is amazing!" She started to try to get a good look at the Jedi Knights mere feet from her.

"No…I mean, yes," Greg admitted, before readopting his fearful expression. "But think about it! This is the Clone Wars! We are in a war zone! What will I tell your mother if something were to happen, Connie? 'Oh. Sorry, Priyanka. Connie got hurt in a lightsaber duel with Mace Windu!' She would kill me, bring me back to life on the operating table, and then kill me again!"

"Calm down, Greg," Garnet told him. "I'll open the next rift."

"Besides," Connie continued to geek out. "It's General Grevious. The guy is a pushover!"

"AHHHHHHH!" one of the Jedi screamed as he ran outside, clearly too impatient to let General Grevious come to them.

"No! Padawan!" another Jedi called after him. However, it was too late. A giant, metallic being in a cape jumped down and killed the noble warrior. The fallen Jedi's lightsaber flew through into the wreckage near the group. The caped cyborg then jumped into the rafters and hid with the shadows.

Connie's jaw dropped. "Oh my stars. General Grevious was actually…effective?!"

"GARNET! WE NEED TO LEAVE...NOW!" Greg shook her. As she was shaken, the Belly Bag Badge fell to the ground. Greg immediately dived for it before finding himself staring right at the metallic shine of General Grevious' foot.

"You are not Jedi," he snarled. "But you will die just the same!"

"GEMS! PROTECT GREG!" Garnet yelled. Her fists changed into gauntlets and she jumped forward, punching the robotic general in the chest. Unfortunately, it did little to move him. He grabbed a lightsaber and ignited it. He swung down at the Gem before Amethyst used her whip to pull back the robotic hand. Using her staff, Pearl went in to strike. She jumped up and went to slice down before she was caught midair by Grevious' other foot.

Eying both the miniature fanny pack and the dead man's lightsaber, Greg dared to grab both and ignited the weapon. "Ahhh!" He slashed the weapon at Grevious' remaining foot. The general was prepared for this though and threw all three Gems at him, knocking them all backwards.

"Play possum!" Greg whispered in a groan. "The Jedi will cover us!"

As expected, the remaining Jedi, who seemed amazed that there were civilians caught up in their fight, used the opportunity to attack Grevious while he was distracted. Unfortunately, it seemed as if the droid commander was prepared for anything and effortlessly switched his attention from the Gems to the Jedi.

Connie opened up her backpack and went to grab her sword. "Connie, what are you doing?!" Pearl asked in horror after they found a moment to slink away back to Connie and Lion's position.

"They need our help! They are going to be killed!"

"This isn't our war, Connie!" Greg tried to reason with her. "This is the Clone Wars! Anyone who isn't named 'Obi-Wan Kenobi' or 'Yoda' is going to die! We need to get out of here before we are added to that body count!"

"But…" Connie pleaded before Garnet activated the Belly Bag Badge, taking the choice out of her hands.

*AGITR*

The group landed in a dark cave with a giant thud. Greg stared at the lightsaber in his hands in awe. "Oh my gosh! I held onto it! I OWN a lightsaber! Steven is going to be so jealous!"

"Greg," Garnet stood up and offered him her hand. "Thank you. You might have saved our lives back there."

"What?!" he started to laugh nervously. "No, I didn't! I just…"

"You really did, Greg, though I'm amazed to admit it," Pearl forced a smile. "Connie, are you okay?"

The girl looked a bit upset but nodded her head. Then she shook it. "I just hated leaving those Jedi to die! It is one thing if it was just a movie…but I SAW them! I KNOW what will happen to them."

"Connie, all things die," Pearl put her arm on her shoulder. She stared back at her and bit her lip. "Even us. For all we know, the few extra seconds we were there for bought one of them a chance of escape."

The girl just looked at the backpack she was carrying and frowned. "I…I've never been put into this kind of situation before."

"And I'm sorry you had to as well," Pearl told her. "It is easy to forget how little you and Steven have experienced. Combat is…well, there is never a good reason for fighting. But sometimes it is necessary to protect the ones you love."

"If we had stayed and fought, we could have died. If we had died, you would have died," Garnet told her plainly. "If you died, Steven would have nobody to play with when he got home."

Connie started to laugh a hollow, masking laugh. "Well…I guess it was all necessary to get to the glory that is Lando Calrissian."

Greg joined her in the chuckle, trying not to show his own insecurities about the situation in front of the grieving girl. "Say, where's Amethyst? She's been awfully quiet."

"She's been with me," a deep voice called out to them from the shadows.

"GENERAL GREVIOUS!" Greg whipped out his lightsaber, regaining his composure. "Stay back! I have a laser sword and I know how to use it!"

"Relax, Greg!" Amethyst laughed, coming out of the aforementioned shadows. "This guy found me and just wanted to know why and how we were in his cave."

The man in question stepped into the light. He was wearing a blue and black costume with a yellow oval on his chest. A flowing blue cape hanged off of his shoulders and was attached to a cowl of the same color.

"BATMAN?!" Greg fell backwards. "HOLY SMOKES! YOU'RE BATMAN!"

The Caped Crusader blinked in shock for a moment and nodded. "I know."

"Wait…back up…so both Star Wars AND Batman exist in separate dimensions in our universe…" Connie was spouting excitedly, allowing herself the ability to think positively after the atrocities she just witnessed. "The implications of this are astounding! I wonder if we are going to see Under the Knife or Dog Copter or…"

"'Separate dimensions?'" Batman asked. "Hmm…that makes sense. Judging by your reaction, you aren't from a parallel Earth in my version of reality. Rather, I seem to exist as a form of entertainment in your world. Based on the conversation I overheard, it is clear that you are dimension hopping looking for a friend of yours. Still, to test the theory...tell me: what's my name?"

"Batman!" Greg and Connie said at the same time.

"My REAL name."

"Bruce Wayne!" Greg beat Connie to it. "That means we are under Stately Wayne Manor!"

Pearl raised an eyebrow and gave the man the once-over. "How…how could you have possibly come to that conclusion so fast?"

"I'm Batman. I make it my business to know. "

"Pearl, it's Batman." Garnet shook her head. "Even I know who Batman is."

"Don't you pay attention to anything Steven likes?" Amethyst playfully taunted.

Pearl opened her mouth to protest, but decided against it. "Alright then…'Batman'…you are right. Steven..."

"My son!" Greg interjected, clearly still in awe of standing in the presence of a childhood hero.

"Yes, Greg. Steven is your son. Regardless, Steven used an ancient alien weapon to accidentally send himself flying through a rift in reality and now we are trying to track him down."

"I understand," Batman motioned them to follow him. "You all look exhausted. I'll have Alfred make you lunch. I have a few tools that I might be able to use to help see if your son is on this Earth."

"You don't have to do that," Pearl pointed out. "Lion…"

"Um…" Connie spoke up. "We've been traveling nonstop for what feels like days. I really could use a bite to eat."

Lion roared in agreement. He was presently lying next to a dog in a replica of Batman's mask. "A bat-dog?" Pearl whispered to herself. "I don't understand superheroes…"

"How can you hate Ace the Bat-Hound?" Greg laughed, walking over to pet the Canine Crusader. "He's the odd pup out in the Bat Family, but he's still just as much of a part of them as any of the Robins or Batgirls!"

"'Robins?' 'Batgirls?' As in, more than one?" Batman thought about it. "Interesting…"

After a bit of typing and a few sandwiches made by an English butler, Batman had managed to pull up a surveillance feed directly from something called "The Watchtower."

"Unfortunately, I can't find a trace of transdimensional rifts on the planet that aren't related to either the known dimensions reached by a Phase Oscillator or through a Boom Tube outside of the Batcave. I'm sorry to say but I think you are out of luck."

"You tried, dude!" Amethyst said, shoving down another sandwich. "I guess it is back to that badge thing for us."

"Agreed," Pearl nodded. "We've rested enough. Thank you again, Mr. Batman person, but we really should be off."

"Wait," Greg asked. "What about Superman? Maybe he can use his Phantom Zone stuff to get a better lock on Steven...or something!"

The beak-nosed Gem shook her head in frustration. "Greg, now is not the time to delay finding your son so you can play with some outrageous superhero and live out repressed childhood dreams!"

"'Outrageous,' you say?" a disembodied voice called out. "In this dimension, that's more of an Aquaman thing than a Superman thing."

Pearl immediately summoned her staff. "What was that?!"

"Oh no," Batman groaned. "You don't want to know."

With a giant poof, a small floating young man appeared. Dressed in a similar outfit to Batman but decidedly more juvenile, he started to fly around the group. "Hmm, dimensional travelers, eh?"

"This is new..." Garnet commented, more confused than concerned.

"What do you want Bat-Mite?" Batman folded his arms sternly. "I thought you were going to stay in the 5th Dimension."

"5th Dimension...jiminy jillikers! You're Batman's Mr. Mxyzptlk!" the elder Universe pointed out. "Wait...that means you can bend the laws of reality!"

"Good thinking, Greg," Batman nodded. The man looked at the superhero in shock and awe at the mention of a compliment. "Bat-Mite, I assume that if you're here then you can possibly help these people."

The floating imp laughed. "Of course I can, Batman! After all, I don't want you sharing any more screen time with these interlopers!"

"Hey!" Connie pouted. "Who are you calling 'interlopers?'"

"Ah, the feistiness of youth!" Bat-Mite twirled in a circle. "Anyway, while you got here based on the properties of a character whose existence is based purely around the limitations of his place in reality, I have a bit more of a broader approach!"

He snapped his fingers and produced the map of the Multiverse that was given to the Gems by Mr. Gus. "You are all limited to travel purely in this layer of reality because that is all that your 'Uncle Grandpa' can access. I, however, can take you to anywhere and everywhere a Batman has appeared!"

"And what does that mean exactly?" Pearl asked. "How is this relevant at all?"

"Your precious 'Steven' isn't in this layer of reality. I checked for you with the studio executives," Bat-Mite rolled his eyes. "I have that power here in this chunk of reality."

"I am so lost," Greg admitted.

"Not the only one, dude," Amethyst concurred. "This whole experience has been way too out there for me."

"However, while I am limited in the next layer of your reality, I can bring you to the best possible person to assist you there. Several versions of Batman have existed there."

Batman narrowed his eyes. "A generous proposal, but what's the catch, Bat-Mite? You only ever do anything to get closer to me. How does this benefit you?"

"Oh, no reason..." the 5th dimensional being smiled. "I just want you to let me help you on another amazing adventure. I happen to have gotten some information that Bizarro may have created a Batzarro and I want to help out with the ensuing fight!"

"...is that all?"

"I also want your Bat-Radia...for sentimental reasons!" Bat-Mite flashed a toothy grin and batted his eye lashes. "What do you say, Batman? Please? Pretty please?"

The superhero nodded. "Fine, you can help me defeat that deranged duplicate's doppelgänger. Do any of you have any objections?"

"I'll do anything if it means getting my son back," Greg affirmed.

"You heard the man," Garnet cracked her knuckles. "Let's get going!"

"Thank you for your hospitality, Batman!" Connie smiled. "Um...before we go..."

The Dark Knight flashed her two pieces of paper. "Figured you might want it. One for you and one for your friend."

"An autograph! Thank you! Thank you!"

Before he could open his mouth, Greg was handed one as well. "Good luck finding your son, Gregory. I admire and respect your dedication as a parent."

As Greg startled to babble uncontrollably, Bat-Mite snapped his fingers and left Batman all to himself. He looked over to his dog, who seemed sad that Lion had left. "It's okay, old chum. It was for the best. Come on, maybe we can call Clark and let you have fun with Krypto or Streaky."

*AGITR*

Greg blinked for a second and realized they all had already been transported out of the Batcave. He gazed around to get a better grip of his surroundings.

Similar to the Clone Wars ship, it appeared as if they were in some kind of spacecraft. Unlike that shuttle, this one appeared to be in working order. Greg spied Connie run over to a window and gaze out into what the older gentleman was shocked to see as space.

"My gosh! We are on a spaceship!" Connie said excitedly. "You'd think the excitement would wear off by now, but this is still so amazing!"

The Gems made their way to the window to get a better view of the area. "I don't see any nearby planets. We must be in deep space...by our dimension's logic," Pearl rubbed her chin. "Um...'Bat-Mite,' where is this person you were talking about?"

"'Person?'" Bat-Mite laughed. "You're on your own! I'm getting back to Gotham!"

"But you said..." Connie protested.

"That I'd get you here, and I did! Now it's up to you to find him! Good luck, interlopers!" With a snap, he vanished once more, leaving the Gems, humans, and lion stranded.

"So...what now?" Amethyst asked.

"I knew I didn't like that little Bat-thing!" Pearl stamped her foot. "Oh, that just makes me furious!"

Garnet put her hand on Pearl's shoulder. "There's no need to get worked up, Pearl. We know that Steven might be in this third of reality. That is better than finishing the other layer and realizing how much time we have wasted."

"You mean if that creature was telling the truth to begin with!"

It was at that point a monitor came down from the ceiling. Once again the Gems readied themselves for anything. However, the screen turned on and revealed a being that was clearly female but more robotic in nature. "This is Sara from the Absolution. Free ship. Registration key 031797. Please identify yourselves!"

"Watch out! It's a female Max Headroom!" Greg cowered.

"Oh," the British sounding female A.I. spoke. "It's Carl. Here to see TOM, I suppose?"

"'Did he just call you 'Carl?'" Pearl asked in confusion. "Who's Carl?"

"Carl's here?" a male voice called out from down the corridor. "And he brought friends! Where's Meatwad, Master Shake, and Frylock, buddy?"

"Who?" Greg asked dumbfounded.

"You know, the talking food?" the voice responded.

"I think he's talking about that Crying Breakfast show Steven watches," Amethyst whispered to the group.

They all followed the voice to a medium sized grey and black robot. It had a spherical head and what appeared to be sunglasses for optics. As he drew closer he stopped and cocked his head.

"Hold on...you're not Carl. Sara, what is this?" the robot asked.

"I don't know TOM. He gave off an outer-dimensional reading similar to Carl," the female voice responded. "Plus, you have to admit he looks like him."

"'TOM?'" Connie asked. "As in, the one who knows Uncle Grandpa?"

The male robot pointed at Connie and then the Gems. "Wait...I know about you guys. You're those Crystal Skulls...no wait, that's not right."

"Crystal Gems!" Pearl explained, though clearly annoyed. "The Bat-Mite-thing teleported us here saying you can help us pinpoint our Steven, who might be lost in this layer of reality!"

"'Bat-Mite?' 'Uncle Grandpa?'" TOM folded his arms. "Hmm...follow me to the bridge. Explain everything to me again and we will sort this out. Let's roll, Toonami Faithful!"

"This is getting weird," Garnet commented offhandedly.

"'Getting?'" Greg and Amethyst said at the same time.

Pearl and Connie did their best to explain the situation to TOM, who seemed to be comprehending everything more than they were expecting. On the bridge of the Absolution, TOM sat down in his command chair and started pressing several buttons.

"Well, if Steven is stuck in one of the shows that I oversee, I think that we can narrow it down a bit more than purely dimensional hopping," TOM tried to explain.

"'Shows?' Don't you mean parallel dimensions?" Connie picked up on it.

"Yeah, that's what I call them. Go figure," TOM shrugged. "Garnet, tell me exactly what you saw with your Future Vision in the exact order you saw it."

All eyes fell on Garnet, who took off her sunglasses rubbed her three eyes. "I saw Steven leaving a tropical island and being on either a snowy mountain or a desert. I believe the mountain was the first thing I saw."

Typing fast, TOM started to read off a list of potential places to check. "Hmm...Neo Earth, Moon Kingdom, Negaverse, Cybertron, Jurai, Namek...okay here's one. Muscle Tower."

He pulled up an image of a snow covered mountain with a large tower on it. A giant red and white symbol appeared on the center of it. A young boy with a stick seemed to be running toward it.

"Well, Garnet?" Pearl asked. "Is this it?"

The Gem shook her head. "No. It's not right. Darn it."

TOM kept plugging away. "Don't lose hope now. I'm sure we will find something. Ah! Here we go! You said a tropical island followed by a snowy mountain? I present to you the Grand Line!"

He flashed an image of a snow covered island that seemed to be a shade of pink. Lion's body stiffened and growled. Garnet's eyes widened and pointed. "That's it! Steven is there!"

"How can you be sure?" Greg asked.

"That is the dimension! It's the pink hue! One of the outcomes I saw had Steven stand on a pinkish snow, but I thought it was just Steven's shield. I didn't think it was important, but that's it!" Garnet recreated her sunglasses. "TOM, I know it is deep down inside."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go get Steven back!" Connie cheered.

Each of the members of the group gave a triumphant and serious nod. TOM punched in a few more buttons and motioned to a door. "Go down there and enter the third doorway on the right. That will get you to at least Little Garden. You're on your own from there though. For what it's worth, I hope you guys find him."

"Take care, Crystal Gems!" Sara called to them.

Reaching the door, Garnet went to pull it open. She turned her head to her companions and kept her cool. "Let's do this."

"Yeah! Steven, we're gonna get ya!" Amethyst yelled. It was clear that all of the others shared the Gem's positive and energetic attitude. Garnet herself flashed a smile before opening the door and jumping through.

"STEVEN! WE ARE HERE!"

The Gem looked around and noticed she was in the air and plummeting towards a large patch of trees on a small (yet beautiful) island. "Oh bugger."

One by one they landed in the island, though Garnet made sure to catch Greg and Connie before they hurt themselves. Almost immediately, Lion began to point towards the center of the jungle terrain.

"Is it Steven, Lion?" Pearl asked with great hope. "Has he been here?!"

He nodded and roared a loud and mighty roar. The group started to cheer before spotting a most interesting sight. It had appeared that they landed not that far from an odd-looking boat.

"A 'three?' Maybe it's the third ship in a battle fleet!" Amethyst offered, unfamiliar with human naval vessels. "It looks weird."

"Hmm...I'm sure the 'BW' stands for something as well," Pearl went over to examine it. "It appears that we aren't alone on this island. Perhaps we can hitch a ride to the mainland."

The leader nodded and regarded Connie and Greg. "We need a ship to get off and find Steven. I don't know if Lion here can teleport us to him."

"Can you, Lion?" Connie knelt down to the pink beast. He shook his head.

"Besides, you two wouldn't be able to hold your breath that long. I have no idea how far it is to get to that desert I saw..." Garnet started to pace. However, she stopped when she heard a man's voice coughing and laughing at the same time.

"'Desert,' you say? It sounds like you...you need help," the voice spoke. He revealed himself from the thick forest of trees and vines, showing himself to be a man covered in bandages, a broken pair of glasses, and his hair made-up in a distinct "three."

Adopting defensive stances but withholding summoning their weapons, the Gems eyed the man up. Finally, Garnet stepped forward. "We do, stranger. We are looking for a friend of ours."

"Hmm..." the man looked to Lion and backed up in fear. "A pink lion...random people...no ship...you wouldn't happen to be looking for the Universe boy, would you?"

The group was in shock. This man KNEW who Steven was! "State your name and tell us how you know Steven!" Garnet moved closer to him, walking past a misty-eyed Connie and Greg.

"I assure you, the boy...ow!" the man clutched his sides in pain. "The boy is unharmed. As for my name...call me Mr. 3."

"Very well. Tell us everything you know about his whereabouts, 'Mr. 3.' It is very urgent that we find him!" Garnet pried offensively. There was something off about this man, but he was their only hope of getting Steven back to Beach City.

"Unless misfortune befell him, he should be sailing toward the Kingdom of Alabasta," Mr. 3 adjusted his glasses. "He is traveling with...ugh...with a group of pirates who raided my ship of all its valuables and food. I was hoping to catch them there myself."

He seemed to check out each of the Gems before adopting a calm, but calculated smile. "It seems we are both after the same thing, my dimensionally displaced friends. Care for a ride...partners?"