Basalt

## Basalt

### Nickname(s)

* Rock
* Rocky ("human" alter ego)

## Professional Status

### Affiliation(s)

* Pink Diamond (formerly)
* Cave Rocks
* Progressives (employer)

## Media

### First Appearance

* November 12, 2015 (original concept)
* December 4, 2015 (official debut)

Basalt (real name Obsidian Facet-4 Cabochon-12) is a defective Obsidian and unaligned Gem currently living in The Fortress on Mars. She is a cave rock and spent most of her life on Earth; recently, however, she was taken to Mars against her will.

## Appearance

Basalt is a relatively short Gem, not much taller than Amethyst, with gray skin and disproportionately large arms. She has a round head, no nose, thin lips, long canines, and olive green eyes with no pupils. Her hair is short and dark gray, styled into messy spikes. Her Gemstone is on her upper back.

Basalt wears a gray top with black leggings, a light gray undershirt, and light gray ankle boots. A portion of her back is exposed to reveal her Gemstone.

## Personality

Basalt prefers to put logic to one side and let her feelings dictate her actions. For this reason, she often seems childish and impulsive. She distrusts other Gems, and doesn't like being called a Gem herself; instead, she refers to herself as a "common rock." She doesn't consider such self-deprecating; in fact, if others call her a rock, she takes it as a compliment. Despite this, she is still self-conscious about her extreme defectivity.

Similarly to the Crystal Gems' Amethyst, Basalt enjoys experimenting with her form. While on Earth, she often assumed a humanlike persona she dubbed "Rocky." She also considers Earth to be her home, and had no intention or desire to leave the planet. Stranded on Mars, she has a fixation on returning to her home planet.

## History

Basalt was made in an Obsidian Kindergarten on Earth, intended to be given to a Melanite. However, the Kindergarten was designed and made poorly, by some less-than-competent Kindergarteners, and was a total failure. It was considered a miracle that Basalt emerged at all, let alone as a functioning Gem. Regardless, her Melanite quickly determined she was "useless" due to her lack of telepathy, and ordered her to be shattered on the spot. It was Rose Quartz herself, who happened to be nearby, that saved Basalt from this fate, taking her aside and later claiming she had been ordered by Pink Diamond herself to keep the rock active. Under these orders, Basalt was taken to the Prime Kindergarten and assigned to the command of Crazy Lace Agate. The Agate proved to be extremely abusive, regularly beating all the soldiers in her squadron but especially Basalt. Despite the torment, the off-color found solace not only in her fellow soldiers, but also Rose Quartz, who would occasionally visit her on her regular trips to Earth.

Not long after the Rebellion started, Basalt met with Rose Quartz one last time. The "quartz" explained her intents to Basalt and asked her to join the Crystal Gems. However, before she could give a yes or no, Crazy Lace spotted the rebels and called her squadron in to fight them. During the skirmish, both Basalt and her Agate fell into an underground cavern, getting sealed inside accidentally. The Agate became angry, drew her whip, and beat Basalt relentlessly until she decided she had enough. She grabbed the whip and fought back, destroying both the whip and the Agate's form; however, she found she couldn't bring herself to shatter her tormentor. For the rest of the Rebellion, Basalt remained trapped underground, and was presumed by both sides to have been shattered.

After Crazy Lace regenerated, the two "cave rocks" kept one another company and searched for a way out. Attempts to break through the walls with brute strength or tools were futile, and they even tried (and failed) to fuse for more strength. It was only long after the Rebellion that they found a way out, when a corrupted Gem dug its way to them and attacked. They managed to fend it off and wandered on the surface for some time. Eventually, they settled in a remote area of the Great White North, where they lived peacefully for thousands of years.

At some point, Basalt and Crazy Lace met a Cubic Zirconia that abducted them, taking them to Mars.

## Abilities

Basalt, for the most part, has standard Gem abilities, such as shapeshifting and superhuman strength.

### Skillset

* **Club Proficiency:** Basalt can summon a spiked club, and use it, with ease.
* **Acrobatics:** Basalt has learned to use her small size to her benefit by dodging attacks rather than blocking them, and will use her agility to get to otherwise difficult to access areas (through forests, to the tops of cliffs, etc).
* **Disproportionate Strength:** Basalt is far stronger and ore durable than her appearance would suggest.

### Unique Abilities

* **"Gempathy":** Dubbed such by Basalt herself, she has a form of empathic telepathy that allows her to sense the presence and current feelings of nearby Gems. This power is strong enough to sense a Gem from behind a cover or even through a wall, and can allow her to "see" a fusion's individual components. However, she cannot pinpoint a Gem's location without concentrating, and she can get easily overwhelmed if a large number of Gems are nearby.
	+ **Gem Illusion Awareness:** Through her Gempathy, Basalt can sense the true form of a Gem that is shapeshifting or invisible. It is through this ability that she (accidentally) learned of Rose Quartz's real identity.
* **Weak Telepathy:** While she was originally thought to lack any form of telepathy, Basalt can still communicate telepathically with Gems; however, her Gemstone needs to be in direct contact with them for her to do so. She can use this ability to communicate while regenerating.
* **Telepathic Interception:** Basalt can unconsciously intercept nearby telepathic communications, allowing her to hear them even if she isn't the intended recipient. However, as she has not had any contact with telepathic Gems (not even other Obsidians), she is currently unaware of this ability herself.

### Weaknesses

* **Recklessness:** Basalt displays reckless behavior that causes her to become a liability in combat. She has been known to take on opponents much stronger than herself, resulting in her instant defeat.

## Relationships

### Crazy Lace Agate

Basalt was, like many soldiers under Crazy Lace's control, frequently abused by the agate. For this reason, Basalt both feared and hated her. After defeating her in combat and recognizing her as being similar to herself, Basalt was more willing to open up to Crazy Lace out of sympathy. Currently, the two have a friendly relationship.

### The Crystal Gems

Basalt has met only three of the original Crystal Gems: Pearl, Garnet, and Rose Quartz herself. She has mixed opinions on the Crystal Gems, living near their temple when on Earth but choosing to remain independent of them, unsure of their actual motives.

### Cubic Zirconia

Basalt strongly dislikes Cubic Zirconia due to the latter bringing the former to Mars against her will.

### Melanite

Basalt was made for Melanite, who was displeased with how she turned out and ordered her to be shattered. She vividly remembers her brief encounter with Melanite, and if the two met again, Basalt would be afraid for her own life, if only for a moment.

### Pink Diamond/Rose Quartz

Even in her absence, Basalt holds a deep love for Pink Diamond, referring to her as her "mother." She has always been aware of her double identity, despite never having been told, through her Gempathy. However, she hasn't told anyone, not even Crazy Lace Agate, the truth; though she never understood why Pink Diamond was living a double life, she respects her choice to keep it a secret. Despite her admiration for her Diamond, she still questions if Rose Quartz had bonded with her because she genuinely cared about her, or out of a desire to indoctrinate her into the Crystal Gems.

### Steven Universe

Basalt is aware of Steven Universe's existence and recognizes him as his own individual, as opposed to an alternate form or "shell" for his mother. However, she has not only never truly met him, but deliberately avoided him while on Earth. This is because she is made very uncomfortable by the sight of him alone, as he reminds her a bit too much of his mother.

## Trivia

* Despite not needing to, Basalt occasionally enjoys eating and sleeping.
* Basalt emerged from her exit hole upside-down.
* Due to the fact she spent most of her existence on Earth, Basalt frequently uses human terms and figures of speech when she talks.
* Due to spending virtually the entire war underground, Basalt was only barely exposed to the Rebellion.
	+ Out of all the original Crystal Gems, she only met Garnet (briefly), Pearl, and Rose herself, mostly because there were no other Crystal Gems at the time she was trapped underground.
	+ She is completely unaware of Pink Diamond's "shattering"; due to knowing of the Diamond's double life, she would be shocked and confused upon learning about it.
* Basalts exist within the Homeworld caste system, but actual Basalts are a servant caste that have virtually nothing in common with Basalt.
	+ Ironically, Basalt was first called such by Crazy Lace as an insult, but decided she preferred it to her "real name" (Obsidian).
* Basalt was her creator's first fangem, originally just a character made through messing around in Dolldivine's Gemsona maker. However, her appearance has changed drastically since then.
* In The Forgotten Planet, Basalt's speech bubbles are gray or lavender.
* Basalt is one of several Mars AU Gems that is associated with a Major Arcana tarot card; specifically, "The Fool."
	+ This is due to Basalt's childish nature and the original intention to make her a protagonist, a character commonly associated with the Fool card in media.
	+ She is also currently the only one of these Gems that has a tarot card drawn for her (though outdated).
* Basalt has several named fusions currently not canon to the Mars AU.
	+ If she fused with Crazy Lace Agate, they would form a Poppy Jasper.
		- This particular fusion was planned to make an appearance in The Forgotten Planet prior to its cancellation.
	+ If she fused with Cubic Zirconia, they would form a Moldavite.
	+ If she fused with Marble, they would form an Isua Stone.
	+ If she fused with Alexandrite, they would form a Bixbyite.
	+ If she fused with Zultanite, they would form an Epidote.
	+ If she fused with Peacock Pearl, they would form Boulder Opal. A similar fusion would be formed if Basalt fused with any other Pearl.
	+ If she fused with Vivianite, they would form a Bloodstone.
	+ If she somehow fused with Tiger Iron, they would form a Thunder Egg.
	+ If she fused with any Ruby, they would form a Red Obsidian.
	+ If she fused with any Diamond, they would form a Geode with the Diamond's color.
		- For example, she and White Diamond would form White Geode.
	+ If she fused with Crazy Lace Agate and Cubic Zirconia, they would form Rainbow Lattice Sunstone.
	+ If she fused with Crazy Lace Agate and Sodalite (or Aquamarine and Schorl Tourmaline), they would form a Charoite.
* If Crazy Lace Agate had been made for White or Pink Diamond, Basalt's final conversation with Rose Quartz would not have been interrupted, allowing her to make a decision. In both cases, she would choose to join the Crystal Gems.
	+ Basalt would still ultimately meet Crazy Lace and become a cave rock; it would just happen in the midst of the Rebellion instead of near the beginning.

## Gemology

Information

* Basalt is a dark-colored, fine-grained variety of igneous rock; it is not traditionally used as a gemstone.
* Basalt primarily consists of feldspar, micas, pyroxenes, and amphiboles.
* Basalt is one of the most common rocks on Earth, and is also abundant on the moon and on Mars.
* Basalt is commonly crushed for use as an aggregate in construction projects, and is occasionally cut and polished for use as floor tiles, monuments, etcetera.
* Despite not being typically used as a gemstone or healing crystal, it is still believed to have metaphysical properties.
	+ As a healing crystal, basalt is associated with courage, positivity, creativity, and passion.

## Gallery

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