Chương 162: LOG-154.

For all that what I was proposing was utter insanity to the average Imperial Gem, Seventeen A was an extremely young, extremely impressionable Pearl who had spent her entire existence looking up to me, long before we'd even met.

"And that should be the last of those." Something that, for better or for worse, I was more than willing to exploit. Oh sure, I could justify things to myself, rationalise sending her off to Fawn as an act of kindness that would just so happen to benefit everyone involved, including me…but that would merely act as elaborate dressing for the truth of the matter.

"I-I've got them! This is… uhm, a lot of Gems!" That truth, of course, being that I was using the Pearl for my own means, with her primary motivations in cooperating being the vague promise that life would get better for her, and that I would be pleased with her. And yet, the most probable outcome is that her life will indeed become better because of such.

Thus while I may suffer from the temptation of wallowing in self reproach, the objective reality is that my egoistical interests in this matter benefit both me and 17A. Win win. The deeper part of my discomfort likely stems from the fact that at her level of experience and understanding, she can't truly comprehend the choice I have asked her to make. So it's a problem of capability to truly consent. Though that still won't be stopping me.

The complicated thoughts kept me from smiling too widely as my counterpart shoved away the last of the Rose Quartzes we'd painstakingly spent the past few minutes transferring from my storage space to her own, and what was left of the expression fled me entirely as I reached in once more, pulling forth a very specific bubble.

"Oh! I-Is there another Quartz I need to…?" I silently shook my head, even as I stared at the soft blue gemstone floating atop my palm, before handing it over as gently as I could.

"No, that one's a Sodalite. I had to deal with her after… well, nevermind that. One of the datapads I gave you will have instructions on what to do with her upon her release, but for now you can just store her with the others." My words earned a quick nod as my green minion quickly pushed the bubble against her stomach, the translucent sphere, and its cargo, disappearing into her inventory with a small flash of light. And just like that, I felt… lighter. Not physically, perhaps. That's not how Pearl…

or in this case Nacre storage spaces worked, after all. But it was enough of a mental offload that I felt the irrational urge to sniffle, just a little. It was still strange allowing myself that privilege, but Seventeen A and I had long since come to an agreement in regards to such things, and so the smaller Gem quickly turned around, busying herself with inspecting the new items contained within her lightform as I briefly vented just a little emotion into the corner of my office.

Eventually I felt satisfied enough to force back the torrent of tears, wiping what few stray droplets remained away from my eyes until I was perfect once more, my mask unmarred. It was with that same mask that I twisted back around, gracing my partner in crime with a flawless smile that she hesitantly returned.

— The graduation for Batch Seventeen was coming up soon, which perhaps should have prompted a certain amount of hustle and bustle around the Reef, as Gems rushed to finish last minute projects or prepare Pearls for their performances. But that hadn't been the case back when my Batch had graduated. And it wouldn't be the case now. Instead, the halls of the facility were quiet.

Oh sure, occasionally I would pass by a Peridot who would bow her geometric hair covered head in greeting before moving along, or in certain restricted areas I would exchange glances with Storm Quartz guards who hid the fact that they were bored out of their minds relatively well. But as a whole? Very quiet. Borderline deserted, even. Because, simply put, the work was done. The Pearls were as trained as the Nacres could reasonably train them. Every inch of the Reef itself was spotless.

The landing pads were set to receive visitors. And of course, a certain golden guest was busying herself with further recovery within the restoration pools, ever eager to return to full health and, subsequently, return to her Diamond. As much as free time wasn't supposed to even exist here… it did, and the various Gems that called this place home had come to the collective agreement that they would ignore each others' respective existences while that precious free time remained available.

Perhaps it was why so many of them were avoiding me now. I was an outlier. An Overseer. They did not yet know whether I would respect such an agreement, or whether I would have the lot of them rejuvenated for daring to take a breath after finishing their assigned tasks. Which suited me just fine, of course.

Because as safe and isolated as my office was, I did enjoy actually taking the occasional walk now and then, and such a thing could easily be excused as the new, high ranking Gem performing a few final, redundant inspections of her facility to ensure that nothing went wrong during the ensuing graduatio-"Augh-!" The echoing clicks that followed every step of my heeled feet came to an abrupt halt as I all but froze in place, eyes widening ever so slightly at the sound I was certain I had just heard.

The extremely muffled, borderline silenced sound. Something which shouldn't be possible, considering the way noise passed through various parts of the Reef. Either one heard it, or they didn't.

"Uh, yeah. Never made an entirely soundproof room before, but we did get asked to make some rooms less loud a while back. Shouldn't be a problem!" The words of the leading Bismuth I'd had work on my own office came to mind, and so my eyes narrowed, expression likely betraying some measure of my rapidly souring mood as I began to stalk forward, taking several twists and turns as I tracked the occasional breaches of silence like a bloodhound. But that was perfectly fine. Because I had every right to be visibly angry.

I had ordered them. Ordered my lesser Nacres not to touch the Pearls. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. And now they were doing it anyway. Going behind my back. Thinking subpar soundproofing could hide the occasional yells escaping their own offices.

I didn't know which one was behind it yet, or whether it was multiple, but whoever it was would be getting a real quick fucking taste of their own medicine- The borderline furious thoughts running rampant through my mind continued as I finally isolated which door the sounds were slipping from, angling myself in just the right way and drawing my heeled foot back and upwards.

It was with a perfectly balanced, perfectly executed, and perfectly ominous motion that I ducked low enough to dig a few slightly shapeshifted talons beneath the sliding door to Nacre One's office, before wrenching it upwards, its interior Era One style lock groaning in protest at the action as I slipped through, storming inside with a snarl twisting my features and-"Eep!"

-and pausing, sheer, unfettered confusion overriding every last one of my senses at the sparks of the destabilizer occasionally lighting up parts of the extremely dim room. The destabilizer that had been pressed up against a now utterly mortified looking Nacre One's extended forearm, the tool and weapon clutched in the tensed claws of an equally wide eyed Nacre Two. And with no Pearl in sight.

The subsequent standoff lasted for a long, long moment, both Caretakers seemingly frozen in shock that someone had so brazenly barged into their session of… of zapping each other, apparently. Which… well, at least the yells made sense now, but just why would any sane Gem-?

With a start, I felt a slight not-heat crawl up my neck and face, and I knew for a fact that if I had looked into a mirror in that moment, my cheeks would probably be coloured a darker green than normal as I realised they weren't exactly in what looked to be combat stances either. Both Nacre One and Nacre Two are in a heightened attention state, with no signs of the situation being unpredicted or unwanted by either of them. This is a known and accepted activity.

Two's grip of the destabilizer stays firm and secure even after being surprised. She has it directed away from her body, and disabled without looking or spending direct attention on doing so. She has a lot of experience operating it for this purpose. One's micro-movements show an aftermath of a trance-like response, one she has likely trained herself into accessing. The above explains the moments where I saw one of them in an elevated mood state without directly apparent reasons before.

The choice of light level in the room is deliberate, it affects their mood in a desirable way during the activity. Nacre three doesn't seem to be aware of the nature of their relationship, or she is significantly more adept at obfuscating her emotions than previously observed. Unlikely, to say the very least. There are utilities for restraining movements of one's body in the room.

Judging by the current schedule of lessons, their other responsibilities, general room occupancy, and correlating all of that with my observations of their habits, One and Two reserve time for these meetings at least twice per- As I forcibly shut down the traitorous train of thoughts, Two shot a glance at a now visibly terrified One, before turning to wince back in my direction, clutching the now inactive destabilizer close to her chest like she could hide it with her lightform.

"O-Overseer. If…if you would just allow us a moment to explain-" The lanky Gem's jaw shut with a sharp clack as I shot her a glare, before forcibly exhaling through my nose, forcing back the million and one questions I wanted to ask and instead biting out an actually usable response.

"... I didn't see anything. Please be… quieter, in future. The Pearls are leading themselves through a few open air dance routines in the nearby amphitheatre in order to keep their spirits up prior to graduation. It would not do well for them to… hear such things." Never in my life had I seen someone so quickly transition from looking as if they were about to be hung by the gallows, to gaining the air of someone who had just been handed a winning lottery ticket.

I found myself just barely resisting the urge to cringe as both Nacres leaned forward slightly, once more shooting each other a quick glance before turning their respective stares back to me, an odd intensity in their eyes that made me feel… dirty, even as One opened her mouth again.

"P-Perhaps you would like to… join us?" Part of the reason for her offer is to avoid the potential consequences she's still afraid of, even after my statement. Nacre One expects me to either report them after the moment of shock is gone, or to hold them hostage with the knowledge I've just learned, no doubt to my immense interest. At the same time, it also appears genuine.

There were subtle tells of admiration before, and they're significantly less subdued now that nearly all levels of propriety have been cast aside. Nacre Two in particular seems to appreciate the aura of competence, authority and danger I usually project at the Reef, with some elements of envy attached. She would like to try and overpower me.

The combination of fear, uncertainty, attraction and still present emotional effects from their previous activity has led to the both of them feeling desperate and interested in- - Nope nope nope NOPE NOPE NOPE- The word continued to ring out in my thoughts long after I'd stepped back, signalled the door shut, turned around, and power walked all the way across the Reef and back into the safety of my own office.

It was behind my desk that I finally allowed myself to still, briefly checking to make sure neither Seventeen A nor Bee had stuck around for a surprise visit, before curling in on myself, clawed hands coming up to tightly grip at the sides of my hair, gathering the elongated strands into desperate fistfulls.

Thankfully, I had actually made the effort to fully soundproof my own little slice of privacy from the rest of the world, and so the subsequent noise that escaped my mouth was heard by none other than myself, even as I luxuriated in a bit of perfectly well earned emotion.

"FUCKING EWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!"