The New Lar's (Steven Universe / Lar's)

Chapter 11: Secret's Exposed!

As Lars slowly blinked back into reality, his vision was slightly blurred, indicating that some time had passed. He found himself staring up at a wooden ceiling that was unfamiliar to him.

Lars: Great... where am I? It seems like I managed to survive.

One good thing was that he didn't feel any pain as he had during the fight with Jasper. He had no self-regeneration, so either he had died or... Steven healed him.

As he gazed upward, lost in thought, whispers emanated from nearby.

???: Who brought him here, anyway?

???: He could have just broken through the room and fallen on the table or something.

???: Come on, Amethyst, there's no hole in the room, so he couldn't have just... fallen in.

???: Enough. What's important now is to let him rest.

???: Huh? Lars!

Lars's peaceful daze was shattered when a weight pressed against his chest, causing him to cough out some air.

Lars: Oof...

???: Are you okay? You were bleeding a lot!

???: Yeah, but not as much as you'd think.

???: How do you feel... Lars?

He looked down to see Steven, tears welling up in his eyes, his expression showing a mix of emotions. It was clear Steven was in a very emotional state.

Steven: Thank you, Lars! So much!

He began to cry more on Lars shirt, sneezing on him and cried more.

Lars: My life is hell.

He looked back up to see Garnet's face appearing in front of his gaze, smiling slightly.

Garnet: I appreciate what you did for us.

Lars turned away to see Pearl looking worried at him, and Amethyst just blankly staring before giving him a thumbs up with a goofy smirk.

A few minutes passed as Lars sat on the couch with Steven, while the Crystal Gems stood nearby in silence.

Lars: So, what happened in the end?

Pearl: Well, after Peridot... escaped, I was on my way to guide the ship back to Earth when the controls exploded a—

Amethyst: BOOM GOES THE SHIP!

Pearl coughed into her hand before nodding.

Pearl: Well, I wouldn't put it like that, but...

Garnet: It crashed.

Lars: And Lapis?

They turned their heads away, and Steven looked out the window with a saddened expression.

Garnet: Well, before we found you here, Lapis fused with Jasper, forming an unstable fusion. Lapis sacrificed herself to keep both of them locked under the ocean.

Lars: This day just keep getting great. 

He leaned forward, resting his hands on his chin with a serious expression.

Lars: Jasper is out there then.

Garnet nodded as Amethyst clenched her fist in secret.

Lars: I nearly died just facing her and she escaped? Fu-

In his mind, he replayed the memory of facing her over and over. It was quite hard, even suicidal. He couldn't just escape like he would have normally as a heroic spirit. Now, he was a human with restrained mana... It was stupid of him to even try to defeat her when the result was her managing to survive and being locked away for the time being.