Steven had barely walked through the door of the castle when he heard noticed a flashing. He moved forward to see that the Communication Device was floating and glowing, which meant that the Gems were trying to contact him. Steven rushed over and tapped a finger on the crystal, causing the holograms of Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl to appear. "Steven, there you are!" Amethyst shouted with a grin, and Steven smiled back.
"Here I am. What's up guys?" Steven asked, and Pearl began answered.
"Well, Twilight told us to try speaking with you again around now, something about a 'surprise'?" Pearl said, looking at the mare.
"Yes, but the surprise hasn't arrived yet, until then let's have Steven tell you about the problem that Zecora was having." Twilight said, hoping to find any way to stall for time. Steven's eyes lit up and he began to tell them about their encounter, from meeting the zebra, to traveling through the Everfree forest, to the battle against the Timber Wolves. They each seemed to be having mixed emotions about this. Pearl seemed mostly concerned, although proud of him for dealing with such a threat. Amethyst was excited to hear about how the Wolves were beaten. Garnet however, seemed to keep a blank face, not showing very much emotion, although it was assumed that she was also proud of Steven, but a knocking got Twilight's attention.
"They're here! I'm sure of it this time!" She shouted, rushing out of the room.
Needless to say the Gems were confused, Twilight had just bolted away, leaving Steven, Connie, and the other ponies confused. Who exactly Twilight was speaking about they were unsure, and uneasy. They could soon hear Twilight approaching, and four other unfamiliar voices.
"Yes, they're right through this door, talking with the Crystal Gems. I'm sure they'll be delighted to meet you." Twilight said, before opening the door to reveal four taller creatures. Three of them resembled twilight, based on the fact that they both had wings and a horn. However that was where the similarities ended. One was white as snow, with a large colorful mane that flowed in a non-existent breeze, she had a sun on her flank.
The next was a deep shade of blue, with a darker mane that sparkled, but moved in the same flowing motion, instead of a sun she had a moon, surrounded by a dark black expanse.
The third was slightly shorter than the other two, with pink fur, a large pink, purple, and cream colored mane. The mark that she had was a heart made of crystal, with two golden objects on the side.
The final one was pure white, much like the first, but with a few key differences, based on the basic shape of this creature they could tell that this one was male, and his mane was a deep blue. His mark was a purple shield with a pink sparkle in the middle, one that nearly matched Twilight's.
They all stared at Steven, Connie, and the Gems with both caution and curiosity. After several moments of silence, Amethyst was the first to speak.
"Wow... You two are very tall... I mean, not as tall as Garnet, but still, you two are like skyscrapers! You two are just meh." She shouted, which took them off guard.
"Um... Thank you?" The blue one said, obviously confused about the entire situation.
"Steven, Connie, Crystal Gems, I'd like to introduce you to Princesses Celestia, Princess Luna, Princess Cadance, and finally my big brother, Shining Armor." Twilight quickly intervened, hoping this wouldn't be as much of a train wreck as she knew it could turn out to be. Steven and Connie quickly bowed, while the Gems remained standing.
Celestia smiled before saying "You may rise." However they noticed that when Steven rose, his eyes had once again become stars.
"Wow! I can't believe I'm actually meeting royalty! I mean I never thought that I'd meet one Princess, but now I've met four!" Steven said, practically yelling at this point. Celestia and Luna exchanged amused glances, for the only pony that could rival this energy was Pinkie Pie. "Oh, I'm Steven. Steven Universe." Steven reached out a hand, and the four shook it. Steven pushed Connie forward, who also extended her hand.
"Connie... Connie Maheswaran..." She said, never once breaking her gaze with them. She looked back at the hologram while the Crystal Gems stood there, just as stupefied as they were.
"These are my friends, the Crystal Gems!" Steven shouted, throwing a fist into the air. "That's Pearl."
"Um... Hello."
"That's Amethyst."
"Sup?"
"And that's Garnet."
"Charmed."
The four were shocked to say the least, and were unsure of how to continue. However, it seemed that Shining had found something else interesting.
"Where did you get that sword?" He asked, looking at Connie, she had picked up Rose's sword and leaned it against the wall.
"It's not mine! I just use it..." Connie said, before inhaling through her nostrils. "It had belonged to Steven's mother. I use it when fighting monsters or other things..." Connie explained.
"So you're familiar with how to use this blade?" Shining asked, and Connie nodded.
"We train a lot. I use my shield, and Connie uses Mom's sword." Steven said, and this caught their attention.
"Shield? We... I do not see a shield anywhere." Luna said, pausing at one point, almost as if she was correcting herself.
"Oh... Well... I kind of summon it using my magic." Steven explained.
"Magic? You have magic in your world?" Cadance asked, and Steven nodded with excitement.
"Yeah, all the Gems have magic. Dad doesn't really like being around it that much, he says it freaks him out... And that it may ruin what's left of his hair." Steven replied, and this seemed to provide mixed feelings.
"Does this mean that he can't use magic?" Celestia asked, and Steven nodded slowly this time.
Pearl sighed before saying "Gems can use magic. Humans..." She stopped and glanced at Steven. "With the exception of Steven... Cannot use magic. To tell the truth, they seem frightened of our magical capabilities, and our advanced, although equally outdated, technology." Pearl went to continue, but a loud roar got their attention. "Oh, that's just perfect..." Pearl said, before rushing out of view.
"Guys? What's going on?" Steven asked, and Amethyst shrugged before running after Pearl.
"Steven, we can talk more tomorrow, but for now..." Garnet began, and the gems embedded in her palms began to glow, and a pair of large gauntlets appeared. "Duty calls." Garnet disappeared, and the communication device ceased to glow, there was a soft clink as it fell to the ground.
"What was that?" Shining asked, and Steven shrugged.
"Probably a Corrupted Gem." He replied, and Shining turned to look at him.
"Which is...?" He prompted, and Steven looked at him confused, before having a realization.
"Oh, I haven't told any of you yet. A Corrupted Gem is a Gem, like Pearl, Amethyst, and Garnet. Only something happened to them, and it made them become these... Monsters..." Steven said, and the four new ponies seemed to be shocked by this.
"Other Gems? What exactly happens to them?" Luna asked, and Steven once again shrugged.
"I don't know. If the Gems know then they haven't told me." Steven replied. Suddenly, a clock tolled, startling them all, but provided a small moment of humor once it faded.
"Well, it was nice meeting you Steven and Connie, but it's getting late and we should really begin heading home. Have a good night." Celestia said, before the four began to file out, but not before exchanging goodbyes with all of them.
It had been fairly easy to make it back to Canterlot before the sun needed to be set, but they still had about another thirty minutes or so, and something seemed to be bothering one of the royal sisters.
"Tia?" Luna asked, and Celestia turned to face her sister.
"Yes, Lulu?" Celestia asked, and Luna paused, before finding the courage to speak.
"When the unknown creature roared... Did you feel something strange...? A unique and evil power?" Luna asked, and Celestia frowned.
"I had... I was hoping it was simply my imagination, but if you had felt it as well... Then it is very real... However, there is nothing we can do but wait, for it is not in our world..." Celestia replied.
Luna began to feel fearful. "Are saying we should just sit here and do nothing?" Luna asked.
Celestia gave a warm smile and began to nuzzle Luna. "No, I'm saying that we wait here and wait for the Crystal Gems to do their job..."