Corrupted Requiem (Melody and White Beryl)

[Melody]

It was a regular day on the moon. Many gems were preparing for the upcoming ball in the Diamond palace on Homeworld, Euclase included. Many operations were put on hold for the time being. There was still a bit of a crowd present in the medical centre and on the surface of the moon itself. Several Ships were occasionally landing or leaving the Earth's natural satellite. 

There were no medical appointments scheduled for today. However, Melody got an information that a White Beryl, a scientist from White court, booked a tour of the medical centre. It was a rare occurrence, White Diamond didn't usually send her gems here. Pearl of course wasn't here to question any of this. But she was curious why was she coming in here. Not to mention that she was also a bit worried, she had to make a good impression and put her home in the best light.

She waited and waited. She was standing behind her desk, her hands clenched together, her head bend slightly downwards, but with her back straight like an arrow. Her eyes despite the orange coloration were calm just like her face overall, but she also tried to keep a small smile. The color of her hair was like golden sand. Every single strand of her curly hair was carefully put behind the white headband connected to her gem where her right ear should have been. The Pearl wore a simple attire, a yellow-creamish shawl with a pink diamond insignia in the centre, beige sweater underneath. She also had pants a bit darker than her hair and orange footwear with yellow socks.



(Reference art)

Her gem emitted a gentle creamish light and was playing a simple melody composed of music box like sounds. The Pearl seemed to be completely lost in thoughts since she didn't look at anyone else around her. She just stood there and waited for the gem that was about to show up any time soon.

[White Beryl]

From the glass view of the spaceship, Radiant could already see the moon, and with it the Moon Base, floating in the orbit around Earth. Looking at that planet made him a little irritated. What began as an interesting journey to a planet full of interesting organic life soon turned into a dissapointing, boring mission on a dissapointing, boring rock of dirt and water. In the end, he had nothing to show for it. On one hand, it wasn't that bad, since theoretically this mission was one he created and applied for himself. Had this been a mission authorized by his Diamond, he wouldn't have gotten away that easily. On the other hand, his own, autonomous attempt at gathering data failed. Radiant failed. He failed at a task he put up for himself, and so was reassigned from that miserable little rock to the Moon Base in order to continue his research on Corruption, now under the more restricting gaze of his superiors. He may not have been punished, but he still failed, and more importantly, he failed at his own, self-made task. He sighed as the Ruby pilots brought the Roaming Eye down to the landing platform.

Walking out, Radiant looked around. Of course, the first thing he noticed was the same thing he first noticed as he looked through the view of the Roaming Eye: the impressive main tower of the Moon Base, followed by the buildings around it. One of those had to be the Medical Centre. He hoped that the other Rubies who were responsible for transporting his research materials from Earth to his new work space did so without error. He always kept hearing about incidents of Rubies messing up this or that task, and sometimes he even got to witness such incidents himself. If these little clods even so much as dared to forget or lose one of his notes, he'd have their gems for this.

After following the instructions of some other gems, Radiant managed to enter the Medical Centre. He was informed that a Pearl would guide him through the facility and to his work space. Looking through the room, there was a small crowd of gems spread throughout. And there, behind a desk, was a yellowish-cream-colored Pearl. Since her gemstone was the only one among all the other gems that was glowing, he assumed that the music-box melody he was hearing was being played by her. It was pleasant. Although he was sure that she was supposed to guide him through the facility, he waited a little to see if she would notice him. 

[Melody]

Fortunately for Melody, she had a decent sense of hearing. She noticed the sound of someone entering the building. The tune slowly subsided and her gem stopped emitting the gentle light. Her gaze turned to the newcomer with a gentle smile. Her hands  immediately formed a diamond salute "Hello and welcome to the medical centre of our glorious Pink Diamond."  She said with a quiet tone, but loud enough for the gem to hear. Usually the  visitors would approach her desk and then she would greet them, but this was a member of the white court, a rare sight around here... she had to make sure that she will make a good impression for the facility's sake.

Her hands dropped the salute and instead clenched together near her chest"White Beryl, right? I have got it in my notes that you booked a trip around the medical centre for right about..." She just glanced at the console installed in her desk "now, such a great timing." She said calmly to the slim gem towering over her. "Should we start?"

[White Beryl]

Radiant formed a slight smile and approached her desk, reciprocating the salute. "The pleasure is entirely mine. Thank you.", he said with a friendly tone, not too loud so as to not disturb the other gems going about their business, but clear enough for the Pearl to understand it. He may have pretended to smile and sound friendly as always, but that didn't make his frustration dissapear. But he did shrug it under the rug by looking at the gem in front of him. Dropping the salute, Radiant examined the Pearl more closely. She mostly looked like any other Pearl. Neatly dressed, in a simple and elegant manner, slim and delicate. Though with a color like that he would have rather expected her to serve in Yellow Diamond's Court. And her "musical ability" was also interesting. Radiant also didn't see any master or owner near her, or at least, didn't notice anyone who would be. Maybe she way purely a "desk attendant"? Seemed unlikely.

He interrupted his reflections as to not appear "strange" and self-sunken. "Yes, White Beryl. And yes, as right as before." Moving away from the desk, radiant answered: "Yes, we should. You lead, of course."

[Melody]

She simply nodded her head as a response. Soon, she clicked something on her console and a hologram-like screen appeared hovering over her desk with "Out of order for an indefinite period of time" in gem glyph. She then moved away from it and started moving in slow pace towards the corridor.

"Pink Diamond's base is extraordinary. Not only is it her first own base, but it is also the home for a big portion of her court. Therefore, not only our Diamond's tower was expanded, but the medical centre and hangar were constructed as well. There is a lot we could talk about, but we will limit our trip only to the medical centre." She stopped and stood near one of the doors. "This is my Euclase's office. She is the manager of the whole facility, if you ever wish to speak to her, it is best to contact me first, but I figured it might be wise to show you where she usually resides." She saddened a bit "She is a busy gem, a very busy gem."

She then moved away from the door to continue the trip "There are also rooms that belong to the other gems that work here, mostly  medics, all doors are singed so you shouldn't have a problem with finding the right one."

As they moved there was one more basic, less grand, but also bigger, door in a hexagon shape with pink diamond insignia in the centre "The first floor is also the place where our brave soldiers from Earth have their dorms. You will find many Amethysts and Jaspers roaming around the base." She barely avoided letting out a small chuckle "They bring... a lot of life to this place, they are very energetic. Although... Yellow Diamond recently assigned some Topaz guards from her court to protect this place. There is nothing to worry about, of course... but we live in weird times, it was decided that our Diamond's Moonbase in particular needs to be more secured."

She looked around to take a look around the corridor "I think that will be all when it comes to the first floor. I was instructed to also show you the second floor, elevators and the two lower parts of the facility. There is more to see of course, but those are the most crucial parts of our medical centre." She continued, a bit more lively "I nearly forgot, one of our Bismuths is currently putting the finishing touches to your very own Office that is also located on this floor."  She let out a small smile "All rooms can be customized from the inside and the doors can be locked. But I assure you, it won't be necessary. In fact, many gems, Euclase as well, leave their doors unlocked."

[White Beryl]

Radiant followed the cream-colored Pearl down the main first-floor corridor, nodding at her when appropriate while she was elaborating on the different sections. So she did have an owner, a Euclase, the manager of the Medical Centre, even. It always confused him why Pearls were assigned to particular owners. It always seemed so "ineffective", especially considering Radiant's thoughts on Pearls as a gem caste in the Empire. To Radiant, Pearls embodied everything that a gem should be: obedient, perfect in the execution of their specific duties, simple, elegant and with only superficial and inconsequential appearences differentiating them. So it never made any sense to him as to why Pearls should be treated lower than any other type of gem, or more importantly, why they were given to particular owners. This was because he sometimes heard rumours of some Pearls having betrayed Homeworld for the sake of their owners. Such a thing would be impossible if all Pearls would all equally serve Homeworld.

While listening to the Pearl talking about Yellow Diamond and her here assigned Topaz guards, Radiant couldn't really say that he surprised about such a security measure having been passed. "Yes, weird times. Considering how close the Moon is to the Earth, it is understandable. Were you informed about my previous stay on Earth? Ghastly planet. Even the majority of organic life there is some of the most uninteresting and bland I have ever seen. Well, except for one exception I suppose. But otherwise, it's just a mass of garbage. Hopefully it will at least make a good colony for you Diamond."

When the Pearl finished her tour of the first floor with the fact that his Office wasn't yet fully completed and which dissapointed him, Radiant replied: "Hm, good. That's good. Do you know if my materials have already arrived? I sent them seperately with the help of a Ruby unit. Well, nevertheless, I think we should allow the Bismuth to work in peace until they are done. Meanwhile, would you be kind enough to show me the other floors?", Radiant asked, imitating the small smile the cream-colored Pearl smiled at him.

[Melody]

"No, I wasn't given any details." She gave a simple answer. She just knew a gem from white court was going to work here among the Pink court, she didn't didn't need more information to know that she had to make a good impression. "The Earth did produce some remarkable gems. I am sure it will go into good use when it is all over." She said certainly, she knew what she was talking about. She already met brave quartz soldiers, heard rumors about the perfect Jasper, and her Euclase was a competent manager. Based on this alone it seemed that the Earth still had a lot to offer. Perhaps she wouldn't even mind visiting it again after the planet would be fully colonized. It did have some interesting architecture the last time she was there...


"Yes, everything is already awaiting you in your office. And don't worry, the Bismuth is just making sure the folding system in the desk works properly." She nodded And lead the way towards the stairs.

[White Beryl]

Walking up to the second floor, Radiant thought about the job waiting for him in the Medical Facility. Pink Diamond, although theoretically being the "weakest" of the Diamonds, did specialize in medical research. Considering this, he wondered how much progress her medics and scientists already did, and are still doing. Radiant hoped to be able to work mostly by himself of course, but being able to use pre-existing data adn research would certainly be helpful. Turning to next to him, he asked with a curious look: "I am slightly embarrassed to admit that I did not inform myself about this facility quite that well. Pink Diamond, of course, is quite esteemed with regards to medicine, so I don't expect that you would tell me that the medics here have NOT been doing quality research on the Corruption. That is the reason I am here, of course. So, how are things going here, if you could tell me? Any progress having been made? Any progress BEING made?" He tried to make himself seem more curious, more normal, by emphasising his speech, trying to not speak in the emotionless tone which was natural to him. But it didn't sound right. Radiant sounded like someone who wasn't used to speaking at all, weirdly "breathing" his words and breaking the flow between sentences. He simply hoped that the Pearl would simply not think about it too much.

He let the Pearl guide him through the second floor. He used to know gems who would have felt weird following a Pearl for any reason whatsoever. They always considered it a strange "mix-up" of roles. They felt like a Pearl, and saw the Pearl guiding them like their owner. Radiant obviously couldn't relate to these feelings as she toured him through the facility, but it did make him curious. Asking instinctively, without thinking, he asked: "How does it feel having an owner?"

[Melody]

While she would never admit it, she tensed up internally at the first question "Our medics and scientists work on finding the cure constantly. It is a stressful job, we are after all dealing with the first gem disease known to our kind." She said blandly, but soon continued to finally answer the question. "I am much more useful at the entrance than in the laboratories. However, from what I have understood, looking for a cure is like trying to explore a black hole. The moment we think we have discovered something new, we find even more fractures inside patient's gemstone." Her tone became more tired as she continued. But she did cheer up slightly at the end "I have no doubt that our court will find a cure, with our great experts it is is deemed to happen eventually... But nobody really knows how long it will take." The silence overcame her after that. There was nothing more she could say about the situation. Corruption was an enigma and she hoped that White Beryl didn't expect a better answer. Based on his pattern of speech, she thought that he might feel stressed about the situation, which was understandable. Knowing that she wasn't helpful made her feel worse, but she did tell him the truth.

Pearl had to slow down when White Beryl asked her another question. Was it just her head(gem) messing with hear? She could have sworn that she had heard a very odd question, but it was unbelievable. A gem such as him surely wouldn't ask such questions. She slightly tilted her head in his direction "I beg your pardon?" She asked with a bit of uncertainty in her voice. She couldn't just say that she wasn't listening to him and she definitely couldn't admit what she thought she had heard. It must have been an illusion, a mistake caused by her mind being elsewhere during the trip.

[White Beryl]

Radiant knew he had made a mistake and that his curiosity came through with him. When Pearl "begged his pardon", he simply pretended that he didn't hear her, and that nothing had happened. Although she was theoretically just a Pearl, he still knew that he would most likely see her a lot during his time in this Facility, and so he worried about what she would think of him now. Would she think that he was just weird? Or that he was a rebel in disguise? Maybe she simply didn't hear his question. No matter what the case was, it was better to stay silent and let the Pearl think about him what she wanted. After all, even if she'd assume the worst, it was highely unlikely that anybody would listen to a Pearl's accusations against a member of the White Court.

"So, what is located on this floor?, Radiant asked the Pearl. Trying to keep her mind away from his slip-up, he added: "Oh, if I may ask, would you know whether or not this Facility has a wide-enough arrey of corrupted gems? For experimentation, of course."

[Melody]

Was she really that old? She couldn't possibly start imagining things like that. While it did concern her, she tried to not think about this. But there were suspicious thoughts at the back of her head, theories, assumptions.  The fact that he didn't even try to respond was probably the most worrying aspect of the whole conversation. Was she really onto something? She decided that she would continue on with their trip, but this time, she would pay more attention to this gem's actions, just in case.

The Pearl cleared her throat and responded with a sonorous, but not too loud, voice. "The second floor is devoted almost entirely to those who need extra care." She said as they were passing the rooms. Some even had windows, Beryl could take a closer look at the medical equipment. "We have got rooms with gems and machines that are responsible of identifying and sorting shards of the fallen gems. This way, many of those less fortunate than us are being given a second chance to continue on with their duties." She said with a bit of proud in her voice. It is not like it has always been this easy to repair a shattered gem. But now, as long as all (or at least most) shards were present, a gem could be fixed and continue serve the empire. And it was all thanks to her  beloved Diamond.

"We have also got rooms meant for monitoring injured gems and those who has been repaired recently. Some need to stay in those rooms for a while. We try to make sure that our patients feel comfortable, that is why every room has got a place to lay down. Patients also regularly go through some check ups and basic exercise so we can be sure that everything works properly again." Her Diamond was too kind, to care so much about her subjects... incredible. She couldn't feel more proud to be a part of the Pink court.

"There are also rooms where our scientists work on different medical studies. But most are actually on the next floor which we are actually not going to visit today." It was not in her schedule and they still had to visit the underground parts of the facility.


The Pearl staggered a bit at the world "experimentation", but soon responded "The Corrupted gems are in the lower part of the facility, that is where are suppose to go now." She soon continued to properly reply to his question "If a gem with this disease was captured, it would most likely end up here on the Moon. Earth is where the corruption started and it wasn't found on any other planet. In addition, our base is the closest one to Sigma 1. There are some other facilities that also work on finding the cure, and so they own a small portions of the corrupted gems, but most of them still end up in here." There was bit of silent as they approached the elevator. "I mean, it only make sense, It is our duty to heal those gems. Not just for their sake, but to also make sure that we can proceed colonising the Earth without risking more gems getting infected.  I assure you, you will find more than enough corrupted gems to work on your studies." The last fragments sounded a bit tired. She didn't know how White Beryl looked the corrupted gems, but she did try to sympathize with them. Any gem could become corrupted, they were just less fortunate than she was.


She placed her hand on the console and the door opened itself nearly instantly. She then waited for White Beryl to enter the elevator first.

[White Beryl]

These repair procedures were indeed interesting, thought Radiant, watching a chipped gem being repaired by a machine, an attendant standing by it and observing. He didn't have reason to doubt the Pearl's words, even though they were, to him, incredible. He had to give his credits were credits were due to Pink Diamond for having made machines even capable of repairing shattered gems. What a wonderful thought that even shattered gems could be potentially put back into the service of Homeworld. Another benefit of gems being a non-organic lifeform. As a scientist of the White Court he didn't go around that much and mostly tried to kept to himself, especially considering his... peculiarity, so he didn't really know how well the other Diamonds could be equipped. "Incredible. Brilliant. I must admit I had some slight prejudice when coming here. But now... yes, I must say, I am impressed", Radiant said while continuing to watch through the windows.

As they continued walking towards the elevator, Radiant noded when the Pearl said they wouldn't visit the next floor above. Later perhaps. He was more interested in the Pearl's answer to his question. That the Moon Base had the most of these corrupted gems was very good news. "Good, yes, very good. Thank you for your information. You've been very helpful", he said, and to lighten the Pearl's mood and hopefully let her mind forget that little incident that happened, he made a friendly, fake smile and added: "It seems that everything that touches this disgusting bundle of mud gets corrupted, in one way or another." Once the Pearl put her hand on the console to open the elevator door, he stepped in, hands laid on his back.

[Melody]

She couldn't exactly blame him for not thinking highly about her court. After all, it was her Diamond's first colony, many gems that formed the court were made here on Earth, the same planet that gave birth to the infamous Rose Quartz. It still hurt to think about it, her Diamond was perfect, the most merciful being in existence that gave her a new purpose in live. Nonetheless, she was still proud of herself for showing White Beryl the more positive side of her court. She spoke towards the white gem with a bit more confidence and pride in her voice. "Innovating new medical equipment is our speciality."

"That is what my job is all about." To help, to be there for others... She said with a small smile and her eyes closed, her voice just slightly more chirpy. It felt good to be appreciated, it meant she was doing a good job.

Her expression did return to a more neutral expression when she entered the elevator after Beryl. She sighted internally, he was right. She saw it in herself, she saw in other gems from the court, the planet did have a negative effect on most of the gems. Some had to experience battles, some had to see their friends perish or turn into beasts. Then there were those who lost their position, their temples, their new homes. And she couldn't forget how this planet hurt her "In a way, yes." 

The elevator was quick and soon the pair was going down in a high speed. It didn't take long for the elevator to reach its destination and for the door to open soon afterwards. Cream naturally waited for the scientist to exit first.

After exiting the elevator White Bryl was met with the sight of a pretty enormous room. It was much darker in coloration with some artificial light here and there on the walls. The most noticeable aspect of the interior was probably the giant vault door. However, the door appeared to be closed, it was also guarded by two Topaz gems holding weapons resembling battle axes. Another peculiar part of this chamber were the six warp pads, three on the left and right side of the room.

Melody soon walked towards one of the nearby pads and waited for White Beryl to join before warping both of them away. She spoke as they were in the warp stream "Our scientists discovered that corrupted gems can't interact with gem technology, warp pads included, that is why those miniature pads were constructed, they are connected to the other side of the vault and only healthy gems can use them." She spoke nearly automatically as her hair was dancing in the stream. They appeared on the other side and she stepped of the pad "It minimizes the risk of a corrupted gem escaping." She continued after a second of silence "But my Euclase made sure that those gems will remain here, away from the higher levels of the facility."

She cleared her throat. "Now, on this floor the unbubbled gems are being tested on. It is probably where you will work most of the time besides your office. I could lead you to the observation room for now. After that, we could go even deeper to the... storage room."

Njrk made a neat room diagram)

[White Beryl]

"More like in all ways, all ways imaginable", Radiant replied. The elevator ride downwards was fast, as expected. Still, it gave him at least some time to think about how things should go from here. The Pearl was sounding much more emotive now. Even if she was just pretending that she forgot his akward remark earlier, he could accept that. As long as it did not mean any bad consequences for him, of course. It would be better, of course, if she would doubt her own memory or hearing more than him. He obviously wouldn't work with her, but she would be his guide and mediator to this facility for some time at least. It would be better to have her on his good side. Especially since she was the Pearl of the Euclase that ran this place. But he felt his curiousity being awakened again. He wondered... it wouldn't be as direct as the remark before. It was more harmless and reasonable. So why not? As the elevator would open, Radiant would simply stand still and, once the Pearl would look to him with a confused expression or ask him why he didn't step out, he would say: "I thought you were supposed to be my guide? Please, go ahead. I'll follow."

The room he was now standing in was more than appropriate to keep corrupted gems at bay. The Topaz guards seemed more than competent enough to him. He followed her on one of the six warp pads. The ends of his suit were flattering upwards in the stream, together with his jabot. He simply nodded at the explanations given to him by the Pearl. As they stepped out, he politely explained himself now: "Yes, yes, I know. All quite obvious to someone like me. I consider it to simply be a matter of these corrupted gems not having the proper mind and will to make the warp pads 'resonate' with them. Though I heard other theories as to why such gem beasts cannot use gem technology. But I won't get more into it if you don't want me to. Not a very pleasent topic to think about for most. I can see why, of course. The consequences of all theories with regards to the Corruption and gems infected by it are rather , hm, 'dark' considering what they would mean for a gem's... gemhood. Let's put it that way." He thought a little and added: "I have no doubt that your Euclase took all the necessary containement measures, and perhaps even more."

He nodded at the Pearl's suggestion of visiting this "storage room" which she spoke of with dread, or rather the uncertainty as to how she should really call it.

[Melody]

The Pearl waited with a blank expression, expecting Beryl to leave eventually. She did raise an eyebrow since it was getting slightly ridiculous. "For the record, I did try to keep my manners impeccable." She said with satisfaction as she left the elevator. This remark pretty much confirmed what she had heard before. It seemed that White Beryl would either be a lot of trouble, or potentially a good friend and ally of the Pink Court. Only time would tell - She still didn't know his reasons for acting this way, she only had her little theories, her thoughts, something nobody besides her could see.

"Let's leave the theories for later. I am sure Euclase will love to hear them personally. As for now, there are still some things that you need to see." She was in no mood to talk about it. Simply the concept of a gem being "sick" like an organic being on its own would be considered a fairytale just a few years ago. But the fact that even with their advanced technology they didn't have a cure yet was even more terrifying. Not to mention it continued to spread, what if it could mutate as well? Probably not, but White Beryl would have to talk to gems that actually study it to learn more.

If White Beryl took a look around he would notice 4 corridors, each filled with numerous doors. Two corridors in particular, the ones that were in front of them when they entered the second section, had elevators that could take the gems even deeper into the facility.

The Pearl turned to the right. Her hands nearly perhaps not more relaxed, but were hanging freely as she walked. She didn't make any comment, or looked anywhere else besides their destination. The corridor was pretty large, but at some point they approach a large window nearly the size of a wall. Melody stopped with her arms crossed, she stared blankly through the glass.

Neat music that would fit this place

The room on the other side rather large in its own right, it was just one of the many testing rooms of the medical bay. The whitewalls were filled with all kind of machinery, but more noticeable was connected joining cell to the whole place. A wall of glass that seemed to have been installed recently and a stabilisation grid kept the lab with some scientists in it away from the beast that resided inside the cell.



The corrupted gem was curled up into the ball, some details were barely visible from that perspective, but it was hard not to notice how light was reflecting on the gem's sharp claws and gemstone. The face was empty with no eyes, only the gemstone that resembled an Iolite. The creature seemed tired, it probably stopped paying attention to everything that has been happening around it long time ago.

It seemed some gems in the lab were monitoring the gems behaviour. Several holographic notepads were floating around their heads, filled with notes in gem glyph. Some drones were around the cage monitoring the gem inside, possibly using the moment to scan it yet another time.

Melody looked everywhere, but at the corrupted gem, waiting to be finished with this place. She couldn't help, but feel irritated that they had to work on this corrupted gem right now. "You should receive detailed notes about our equipment soon enough, should we go to the storage section?" She said, and even though it was a very small difference, perhaps a more attentive listener would notice that she wanted to leave this place immediately.