And here we go!

This is the sequel to maroon, which is in itself a sequel to burgundy. So, if you're coming to this fic without having read both of those, stop! Go back! Read them! Things will make a lot more sense if you do! This will cover the third season, but will also include a completely original arc that I am looking forward to writing- this is also where the story is going to start taking a serious bend from the canon. It will still definitely follow it in a number of places, but there's going to be one specific huge change to this season that is definitely going to change things further on down the road.

So without further ado, enjoy!


crimson

chapter one

change


Puig reminded him of the desert.

Earth's deserts, to be exact. Or at least, the one he'd lived in for nearly three deca-phoebs while searching for the blue lion. The extreme heat had been difficult for him to adjust to at first, so he could understand why most of the ground forces stationed here had been sentries.

Not that he was complaining. Anything that made taking the planet back easier was a plus in his book. Puig had only been conquered by the Galra for about five or six deca-phoebs, and while that was long enough for them to entrench themselves here, it wasn't long enough for them to make any kind of massive footprint, especially not this far out on the fringes. There were other targets that were of more strategic importance than Puig.

But it made it an ideal candidate for liberation- quick and easy, and with any luck, largely bloodless. They wouldn't even need Voltron to do it.

Which was good, since they didn't have Voltron.

Clenching his fists, Keith shut his eyes. It had been a phoeb since their battle with Zarkon, and there had been no sign of Shiro since then. He'd gone through the debris from the battle himself, only to turn up with nothing to show for it.

He really didn't want to believe that he was gone.

"Kyix?" Kolivan asked. "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah," Keith lied, trying to relax his shoulders, "-fine."

Kolivan frowned. Anywhere else, he would have pressed the issue, but right now they were busy trying not to draw attention to themselves. It was a task that was proving difficult- not only did their dark armor make them stand out, but just the fact that they were a small sea of Galra on a planet that had just chased off its imperial oppressors... it kind of made them stand out, even if they didn't want to.

He wasn't exactly blind to the glares.

But they hadn't helped liberate Puig for the glory. Fighting the Galra Empire was their sworn duty in life- and now that the Blade of Marmora had essentially gone public, the exact nature of that mission was bound to change.

At least there hadn't been any reports that any operatives had their covers blown as a result of the fallout. They had already lost Thace because of it- which was already a crushing blow in its own right. Not only because Thace had been their only eyes and ears inside Central Command, but because he had been a Blade for nearly as long as Antok had- which was to say, a very long time.

Ulaz and Thace- losing two senior Blades one right after the other had definitely done some damage. They were just lucky that Kolivan and Antok had returned from their fight with the druids okay. Though from what he understood, Antok had some kind of close call- even if he was a little fuzzy on the details. They had been so busy recently that he hadn't had time to ask.

Puig would be fifth planet that they liberated within this phoeb alone. Allura wanted to take advantage of Zarkon's defeat and free as many of the border planets as they could, so that they could begin to build a coalition- hopefully before anyone noticed that they couldn't form Voltron anymore.

There was that thought again. Gritting his teeth, Keith fixed his gaze forward, forcing his attention elsewhere. The paladins. He should focus on his fellow paladins.

He picked out Hunk from the crowd first- and felt the ghost of a smile tug at his lips. His reputation as a lover of food must have preceded him, because that was exactly what he was being offered. From what little he understood of Puigan cuisine, he was pretty sure he would like it- provided they didn't offer him anything that was still alive.

(Humans tended to be a little squeamish about that.)

And Lance... well, he was being Lance. Which meant showing off and posing for photographs, mostly with girls.

He couldn't help but frown at that. Sometimes it felt like Shiro's disappearance didn't matter to him at all.

He must have tensed up again, because Kolivan's gaze settled on him for a second time. Through his mask, he huffed. It was almost unfair how skilled his leader was at reading even the minute changes in body language- it was impossible to hide anything from him.

But then, it was probably a given that the lack of news regarding Shiro troubled him. It didn't exactly take a genius to figure that out.

"Perhaps you should retire early." Kolivan observed.

"I'll be fine." Keith insisted.

He wanted to be here. Needed to be here, even. He was a paladin, sure- but he was also a Blade, and he couldn't forget that. This was the first Blade mission he had been able to join since becoming a paladin of Voltron, and he wasn't about to retreat just because of a few mixed feelings and a general sense of not being wanted.

Because boy, were they ever not wanted. Honestly, it seemed like Lance and Hunk were the only ones who didn't notice.

"You know," Hunk began as he approached them, "-based on our recent battles, it seems like the Galra Empire is just kind of falling apart."

"It's more than that." Kolivan told him, turning towards the etching carved in the rock behind them. "Look. Word of Voltron's triumph is spreading."

Even though he had already seen it, Keith still found himself turning to take a look. The etching clearly depicted Voltron, the glyphs speaking to its might. Zarkon's defeat at the hands of Voltron had spread like wildfire, creating a spark of hope amongst those still under the Galra Empire's thumb.

"Yeah, I guess the only problem is that we can't form Voltron anymore." Hunk remarked.

That, and the fact that they couldn't even be sure if Zarkon had actually been defeated. It had been a whole phoeb, and there still hadn't been a Kral Zera. There should have been one by now.

It was true that the Galra Empire was currently vulnerable- but for how long? How long would it be before they found out that Zarkon wasn't actually dead? Or until someone else ascended the steps of destiny, and lit the flame?

Or even worse- how long would it be until Lotor came back? If Zarkon was dead, then the prince's exile was effectively over. Everything that he knew about Lotor told him that he wouldn't ignore the power vacuum for long.

The last thing he wanted to deal with was the prince at the helm of the Empire. Even if it would give him a good excuse to kill him.

"Hey," Hunk's voice snapped him out of his thoughts before they could go too far, "-you want some?"

Keith blinked, looking at the kebob that he was being offered. He wasn't familiar with what kind of creature it was made from, but it smelled appetizing at least.

But he could also feel the Puigan's eyes on him. Being on good terms with Kolivan was one thing, since he was their leader, but he wasn't sure how Hunk being so friendly to what looked to be a random Blade would come across. Even if Hunk himself hadn't noticed, he definitely had.

Somehow, he didn't think they would be all that happy when they learned he was actually a paladin.

"Thanks," Keith said, "-but I'll pass."

"Hm," Hunk frowned, "-well, if you're sure."

"I'm sure." Keith told him.

Hunk looked a little skeptical still, but eventually shrugged. "Alright, suit yourself. You still on for being my taste tester for the coalition meeting goodies?"

He still had no idea how he had gotten roped into that duty. Hunk must have asked him when he hadn't been paying attention, because he didn't remember agreeing to it at all. But he must have, since he didn't think Hunk was the type to lie about it. "Yeah, sure."

Hunk hummed, apparently satisfied with that. He felt himself breathe a little easier once Hunk put some distance between the two of them- though the attention he was getting from the Puigans didn't exactly go away. Guess he had stood out a little too much.

At least it didn't last.

"Speaking of Voltron," the Puigan leader began, "-where is it?"

Keith felt himself wince even before the chanting began.


"Kyix, might I have a word with you?"

Turning on his heel, Keith glanced back towards Allura, a slight frown on his face. Things between them were less tense now, but they hadn't exactly gone back to normal. Mostly because they hadn't really had the chance to talk since their assault on Central Command- despite not being a paladin, Allura was by far the busiest out of all of them.

Despite living on the same ship, he didn't think he'd seen her at all in the past few quintants. So he was a little surprised to just run into her like this.

Then again, something told him that this wasn't exactly a coincidence. Allura had to have known that he had been on the mission with Lance and Hunk. It wasn't hard to figure out that he might want to go back to his quarters after that to clean off a bit- and to escape any possible scrutiny from the would-be coalition leaders that the two other paladins were tasked with bringing back to the Castle. He probably didn't have to worry about running into them on the residential half of the ship.

"Is something wrong?" Keith asked.

"I wanted to talk about the pending coalition meeting, actually." Allura said.

Keith blinked, before frowning slightly. He'd kind of anticipated this, so he wasn't all that shocked that Allura had tracked him down to talk about it. "What about it?"

He was pretty sure he knew. She was asking him not to come. He wasn't mad- if she hadn't suggested it, he probably would have. He just didn't think the universe was ready for a Galra paladin, even if he was also a Blade.

"I want you to be there." Allura said.

Wait- what?

"I- can you repeat that?" Keith asked. "I don't think I heard you right. It sounded like you said you wanted me to come."

"No, you heard me correctly." Allura said.

Yeah. That's what he thought she said. It just still didn't make any sense to him.

"So... what?" Keith frowned. "Do you want me to come as your liaison to the Blade, or something? Because I'm sure Kolivan-"

"No," Allura cut him off, locking eyes with him, "-I want you there as a paladin."

"Princess, I don't think that's such a good idea." Keith said. "I'm not sure they'll be all that happy to learn a Galra is flying one of the lions."

"Oh, I am quite certain they won't." Allura agreed. "But the longer we continue to hide it, the more risk we take of there being a massive fallout once it eventually comes out."

She had a point. Thus far, he'd pretty much been hiding himself from the general populace of the planets they'd freed- including the ones they had freed while he had still appeared human. But that couldn't continue forever- something was going to have to give.

Just like how they all wanted to see Voltron now, eventually, they were going to start to want to see the red paladin. He couldn't hide forever.

Unless he could. He didn't like it, but... there was at least one way to get rid of the risk almost entirely.

"Then... how about we just get rid of that risk?" Keith suggested. "We still have the chip I used. We could just put it back and-"

"No." Allura cut him off, shaking her head. "The Voltron Coalition must be built on trust if it is to succeed. Presenting you as a human would only betray that trust."

Shutting his mouth, Keith narrowed his eyes. She was right about that too. Even if it did drastically reduce the chances of discovery, it wouldn't be impossible that his secret would come out. And as he knew, actively pretending to be something that he wasn't could create a lot more hard feelings than just trying to hide himself away.

Allura had forgiven him. He didn't know if anyone else would.

Taking a deep breath, Keith squared his shoulders. "Okay."

"So you'll attend?" Allura asked.

Giving the princess a weak smile, Keith nodded. "You made a compelling argument."

"Excellent!" Allura beamed. "In that case, we will be meeting in the central conference hall in one varga. I trust you know where that is."

She locked eyes with him as she said that, pointedly quirking her brow. In spite of himself, he averted his gaze, slightly shrinking back. Okay, he guessed Allura hadn't forgiven him completely- but she seemed angrier about the spying than she was about him being Galra. Which... was fair, if he had to be honest.

"It's possible." Keith said.

Allura held his gaze for a second longer, before she huffed. "Well, at least I know I do not have to worry about you getting lost."

"Guess not." Keith shrugged.

Allura nodded. "Make sure to wear your paladin armor. I want there to be no confusion as to why you are there."

Swallowing, Keith nodded. He wasn't fully comfortable with that, but she was probably right. If they were going to present a Galra paladin, then he at least needed to look like he was a part of the team. Besides, maybe the fact that he would be wearing red armor rather than black would help avoid any Zarkon comparisons.

...and that just made him think of Shiro again. It really was a vicious cycle, wasn't it?

It must have shown on his face, because Allura frowned. "I take it you did not have any luck on your last search."

Keith just shook his head. "Just a lot of debris. On the plus side, if the Coalition needs any scrap metal..."

Allura managed a small, if not strained smile. "I wish I could do more to help, but the truth is, I do not fully understand the lions either. I don't think even my father did."

And he wasn't here to ask anymore. Looking up at Allura, Keith didn't miss the way her shoulders slumped when she spoke of him. Guess she still hadn't gotten over having to destroy his AI- not that he expected her to. Maybe he didn't like the idea of creating digital ghosts, but he wasn't blind to how important having King Alfor's AI around was to her.

It had been her last real piece of him, and she'd had to destroy it with her own hands.

Unbidden, a memory floated to the surface- and not one of Shiro this time. His throat burned with it, and he swallowed, trying to force it away, but it only made the burning sensation worse.

It's not real, he told himself, it's all in the past. You're fine.

Drawing in a shaky breath, he felt the burning subside. Closing his eyes, he slowly drew in a deeper one, before just as slowly letting it back out, calmer now. He wasn't sure what had brought that on- maybe losing so many people so quickly had made him think about death more- and his own brush with it.

"Kyix?" Allura frowned, concern evident in her tone. "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah," Keith lied, "-fine. The central conference hall, right? I'll be there."

Before she could press him with any further questions, he peeled away from her. He didn't stop until he'd returned to his own quarters, and didn't relax until the door was shut behind him.

It was fine, he told himself. Everything would be fine.

He really hoped that was the truth.


In the end, he arrived early.

He was too nervous to do anything else. Even if he could focus, there wasn't enough time for a real training session- and odds were, he would just lose track of it anyways. He thought about tracking down Kolivan or any of the other Blades he was sure were still lingering around the Castle, but that just seemed like avoiding the issue.

Besides, he didn't want to risk any of the delegates running into him before the meeting. At least there, he'd have Allura and-

-right. Just Allura. Shiro was gone.

Well... at least Allura would be there. And she was perfectly capable of taking care of damage control all by herself. So was Kolivan for that matter, but somehow he doubted that he would be half as effective as Allura would be in this situation. Somehow he didn't think that the delegates would take the word of another Galra at face value.

As for him? All he had to do was just keep his mouth shut. And maybe smile?

Staring at his partial reflection on the table- which had been polished until it literally shone- Keith tried just that. But it looked so awkward and full of teeth- sharp teeth, that he instantly knew it was a bad idea to even try.

Right. No smiling.

"Uh, Keith? What exactly are you doing with your face?"

Jerking his head up, Keith flushed a deep violet. Wha- how had Lance, of all people, managed to sneak up on him? He was as subtle as a Swathian Meerakeet!

Even worse, he'd caught him doing something humiliating.

"I just... thought I should try to look presentable." Keith muttered, ducking his head. "I was trying to smile."

"Yeah, it really didn't look like one." Lance said, grabbing the chair next to him. "No offense dude, but you should probably leave the smiling to me. Or Hunk."

Keith grumbled, folding his arms in front of him. He already knew that. He didn't have to point it out.

"So... what?" Lance asked. "Are you nervous or something?"

Keith flinched. He hated the fact that he had seen through him that easily. "I just want to make a good impression."

"Oh man, you are!" Lance grinned, sounding way too eager about it. "You're totally nervous! What, is the big bad Galra spy afraid of social obligations?"

Growling, Keith glared at Lance, though he managed to restrain himself from baring his teeth. "I'm not nervous!"

"Geez, dude, calm down." Lance said, holding up his hands. "I'm not saying it's a bad thing. It just makes you seem a little more human, you know."

"I'm not-"

"Figure of speech, Keith." Lance cut him off. "You're usually so... I don't know, stoic and unfeeling. I didn't think you got nervous."

"Yeah well, maybe I do." Keith mumbled, huffing as he leaned back in his chair. "This is an important meeting. And in case you haven't noticed, I'm Galra."

"Yeah, and?" Lance shrugged. "I'm Cuban. So what?"

Keith rolled his eyes, even if he knew it was no longer that effective as a means of conveying emotion. Some habits were just hard to break. "In case you didn't notice, they weren't exactly thrilled with the Blade of Marmora's presence back on Puig. How do you think they're going to feel about one of the paladins being Galra?"

"Pssh, you worry too much." Lance said. "It'll totally be fine."

He wished he could have that kind of confidence. Glancing over towards Lance, he frowned slightly. "So... what are you doing here so early?"

"Honestly?" Lance said. "This ship is so big that sometimes I still get lost in it. I thought maybe if I left my room early, even if I got lost, I'd still totally get here in time. But as it turns out, today's the one day I didn't get lost, so... here I am."

"Your gauntlet should have a map." Keith pointed out.

"Yeah, but I stink at reading maps." Lance told him. "I'm a lot better with landmarks. Only the Castle doesn't really have any of those."

Fair enough. He didn't think they taught map reading to human children. They had GPS for that.

"What about you?" Lance asked. "What are you doing here so early?"

Keith frowned, furrowing his brow. "I just thought it would be easier this way."

"Wow, you're really worried about this whole Galra thing, aren't you?" Lance asked, arching his brows.

"You saw how Allura reacted." Keith said.

"Well yeah, but she got over it." Lance said. "I mean, the two of you had to fight to the death like, three times first, but she got there."

"We weren't fighting to the death." Keith said, huffing slightly. Why did humans have to make everything sound so dramatic? "We were fighting until first blood. And it only took up until the end of the first match. The other two were just for fun."

"Yeah, that's definitely not my idea of fun." Lance said.

"Doesn't have to be." Keith said.

They lapsed into silence after that. It was slightly awkward, but that was only because of the anticipation of the upcoming meeting. It didn't last for too long- Hunk and Coran's simultaneous arrival pretty much broke it, filling the room with ideal chatter as they set up for the meeting. Aside from greeting them, Keith didn't say too much, simply watching as they arranged the table.

Kolivan arrived just when they were about to finish. Arching a brow, his leader caught his eye from across the table. Looking up towards him, he gave him a helpless shrug.

"I'm assuming Princess Allura requested this." Kolivan stated.

"Pretty much." Keith told him.

Kolivan simply hummed, before busying himself with checking over his star maps. He was pretty sure that he had already done so at least three times, but if there was one thing Kolivan was, it was precise. He was their leader for a reason.

Leader. Again, his thoughts went back to Shiro. Shiro had been his leader for a much shorter time, but he still respected him almost as much as he respected Kolivan.

Pidge straggled in last, looking as if she had just hauled herself from the depths of the Castle's archives. Given that she had spent most of the past phoeb searching for clues about her brother's whereabouts, he didn't doubt that she had. Apparently she'd recovered footage of him escaping from a work camp with the help of two mysterious masked figures, and she'd been looking for answers ever since.

He'd passed the information along to Kolivan, but he wasn't familiar with this particular band of rebels. Their masks were pretty distinctive though, so he was hoping that they might turn something up if they looked hard enough.

He hoped so. If he felt this bent out of shape after losing Shiro again, then he couldn't even imagine what Pidge was going through.

Then finally, Allura arrived- and with her, the leaders of the five planets that they had recently freed.

Keith felt his breath hitch in his throat. Thankfully, he wasn't the first thing they noticed. No, that was Kolivan- but he didn't miss the way they all squinted at him with suspicion. Kolivan simply pretended not to notice.

It was only when they all finally sat down and had time to study their surroundings, that they noticed Kolivan wasn't the only Galra in their midst. Still, they held their tongues- though he could sense their growing discomfort. Hunk's offer of food seemed to offset it, but he didn't know how long that would last.

For the most part, he stayed silent and let Allura and Kolivan do most of the talking. It wasn't like he had anything useful to contribute anyways.

His silence didn't stop the nervous glances. But he didn't expect it to.

"The forces will all fight behind Voltron, right?"

"Yes," the Puigan leader concurred, "-where is Voltron?"

Keith had to fight to keep his expression neutral- even Allura strained a bit at the question. The fact that they had lost a paladin and couldn't form Voltron right now was a secret- they couldn't risk the Galra Empire getting wind of that information. If it knew they were vulnerable...

But obviously, people were starting to notice.

"The people you see before you are the paladins of Voltron." Allura told them, obviously deflecting the question. "Together, they pilot the lions that form the mighty warrior."

Keith felt himself tense, feeling the brunt of the delegates' scrutiny fall on him. He tried not to let it show on his face, but that was easier said than done.

"We were... unaware that one of the paladins was Galra." The Puigan delegate said, as diplomatically as possible, but his hesitation was clearly written on his face. At least the subject had changed- for now.

"Kyix is a member of the Blade of Marmora. I personally helped to oversee his training." Kolivan stated. "We understand you have your concerns, however I assure you, we seek only to right the grievous wrongs that our people have inflicted upon the universe."

It was a statement that the delegates found hard to argue with- at least, out loud. His ears twitched, picking up on the sound of their mutterings, though they were quiet enough that he couldn't pick up on exactly what they were saying. He didn't know if he was grateful for that or not.

"The Blade of Marmora's aid has proved invaluable." Allura chimed in. "Not to mention, Kyix flies the red lion, who among the Voltron lions, has always been notoriously picky. It would never allow someone that it couldn't trust to pilot it."

Again, the delegates found Allura's words difficult to challenge. They muttered amongst themselves for awhile, before one of them finally spoke up.

"I thought that there were five paladins. I only see four."

Allura stiffened- and so did everyone else at the table, save for Kolivan. There it was again, the subject that they all wanted to avoid.

"Well, you see-"

"The black paladin is gone."

Allura's eyes widened, looking at him in a mixture of shock and horror. He pretended he didn't notice.

He understood that if word got out that they couldn't form Voltron, it would put them at risk. But if they kept beating around the bush like this, nothing good would come of it. If Allura wanted to be as up front as possible about the fact that he was Galra to avoid any potential consequences down the road, then the way he saw it was that they needed to be just as honest about the current status of Voltron, and the team as a whole.

It took a tick, but Allura seemed to understand that as well, heaving a long sigh. "I am afraid that our black paladin went missing during our last battle with Zarkon. We have yet to find any trace of him."

There was a loud murmuring at her words- and this time, it was loud enough that he could make out almost every word of it. No black paladin means no Voltron, one of them said, cutting to the root of the issue.

"Have you not," one of the delegates cautiously ventured, "-have you not considered a replacement?"

Everyone gathered froze. In truth, Keith had known it was a subject that was on all of their minds, only nobody had actually dared to bring it up yet. It was almost as if even talking about replacing Shiro meant that he was gone for good this time.

He didn't want that.

He'd already lost Ulaz and Thace. He didn't want to lose Shiro too. He was the one who had taught him that maybe not all humans were so bad, and had made life on Earth bearable for him. He deserved to go home and live and peace, not die in a space war that humanity didn't even have anything to do with.

But... as much as he hated to admit it, maybe they were right. It had been a whole phoeb since the battle with Zarkon, and they didn't even know if Shiro was dead or alive, much less what had happened to him. He didn't want to think that he was gone, but...

...but Shiro would be the first one to tell them that they had to move on. This fight was bigger than all of them- he knew that better than almost anyone.

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Allura's gaze. She was looking at him questioningly- and it dawned on him that she was asking him for permission to say anything. For a tick, it felt so bizarre that he couldn't even begin to process why, until he realized that out of everyone gathered here, he had been the closest to Shiro.

She didn't want to trample on his feelings.

And that... given how thorny things had been between them after his Galra reveal, the fact that she even cared enough meant something to him.

So he swallowed, inclining his head just enough so that she would notice. When she did, she merely drew in a breath, momentarily closing her eyes and squaring her shoulders as if she were bracing herself.

"Yes," Allura said, "-we have. And while it is true that we are currently down one paladin, I promise you that we will not rest until that situation has been rectified. Voltron will rise again."


It was probably the resolution in Allura's voice that convinced the delegates more than anything. Although a few of them spared him wary glances, in the end, they all agreed to join the Voltron Coalition.

Once the meeting was over, Keith had ducked out of the room before anyone could stop him. He didn't know where he was going, exactly- at least, not until he got there.

The black lion still lay in a crumpled heap, much like it had since he and Pidge had towed it back onto the ship after their fight with Zarkon. He could still vividly remember racing back towards the hangar on foot, spurned on by a strong sense of foreboding. It was the first time he had ever been inside the black lion, and he wished it had never happened.

"I wish we could speak with it." Allura's voice caught his ear, causing him to turn back towards her. She was gazing up at the black lion, her expression almost unreadable. "It might be the only one that knows exactly what happened to Shiro."

"I guess your connection with the lions doesn't let you talk to them." Keith said.

Allura shook her head. "No, I am afraid not. Does your reazit?"

"It might let them possess me," Keith said, his lips twisting in a tight frown, "-but I can't really recommend that."

"Yes, Kolivan mentioned something of that nature." Allura said. "Something about a temple?"

Keith grimaced. That was something he preferred the paladins not knowing. "He told you about that?"

"After the whole affair with Antok, I had... questions." Allura told him. "It's a bit funny, though. I thought the Galra didn't believe in souls."

"We don't." Keith said, before tilting his head. "But what does that have to do with Antok?"

For a tick, Allura just blinked, before something seemingly dawned on her. "Oh, right. I suppose I haven't had a chance to discuss it with you yet."

Keith shifted on his feet, feeling an odd mixture of both curiosity and apprehension. He instantly decided he didn't like it. "Discuss what?"

"How much do you remember about that time?" Allura questioned.

Keith just shrugged. "Nothing. It's all a total blank. I remember entering the temple, and then nothing."

"Well, it seems that what you were scribbling were actually protective runes of some kind." Allura informed him. "And it just so happened that one of them worked."

For a tick, all Keith could do was stare at her, unable to comprehend what she had just said. "It- what?"

"Yes, I was just as surprised myself." Allura told him. "I have been meaning to look into the matter, but I simply have not had the time. But I believe that while you were... possessed, you were channeling quintessence that was not your own. That is what allowed the protective runes to work."

"Of course," Allura added, "-scribbling them in permanent marker certainly helped."

He... didn't know what to make of that. Was she saying that the reason Antok was alive was because of him? He didn't even think the scribbles meant anything- he'd just been glad to get that chapter of his life over with.

"You're not planning to make me go back, are you?" Keith hesitated.

"Oh, most certainly not!" Allura said quickly. "Goodness no. We cannot afford to-"

She stopped herself short there, her shoulders slumping. Suddenly, the black lion's presence felt much more pronounced.

"He has to be out there somewhere." Keith said. He was still reeling from what it was that she had told him, but that didn't mean he was blind to how she was feeling- not when he felt the exact same way. "We'll find him."

"I know." Allura said, turning back towards the black lion, her expression forlorn. "I just wish we could do more. That I could do more."

"For what it's worth, I think you're already doing plenty, princess." Keith said.

Glancing up towards him, Allura gave him a small smile. "Thank you."

If the silence between them was heavy, then it was just due to the absence of someone who should have been there. Nothing more, and nothing less.

"You should get some rest." Allura said finally. "It has been a rather hectic day. We can discuss finding a new paladin tomorrow."

He opened his mouth to say something, only to shut it. He wasn't sure what he could say. Even if he and the princess were on somewhat better terms now, it wasn't like he knew her all that well. Granted, the only person he had to blame for that was himself- he had spent so much time avoiding her before this, that of course he knew practically nothing about her.

He should probably do something about that.

Just... not today. Allura was right- today had been exhausting. Just probably not in the way she meant.

So instead, he just wished the princess a good night, and slipped away. This time, his feet guided him to the red lion- and though he felt far safer on the Castle than he had before, he still found himself curling up in the pilot's chair, drifting away.

It wasn't long before he had completely fallen asleep.


Allura felt something in her relax once Kyix left.

It was not that she minded his presence- at least, not anymore. He was the paladin that the red lion had chosen, and she knew that was something that she had to accept.

That was the easy part.

Knowing what to say to comfort him... that was the far more difficult part. What could she even say to someone who was already far too used to loss than one his age should be? The Galra might be a warrior culture, but it was clear that the loss of Ulaz and Thace alike had impacted him greatly- the situation with Shiro was just icing on the proverbial cake.

It also reminded her that they had far more in common than she had first realized. She was not much older than he, and yet she had already lost so much- and all of it had been at the hands of the Galra.

Or so she had thought.

Because Haggar was Altean. She had been the one to create the komar, and she had been the one to create the robeasts- what other horrid things had she done for the Galra Empire?

Haggar was also the reason that generations of reazit children were taken from their homes, brainwashed and stripped of their free will. And that was just as loathsome of a thought as any other.

If Kyix had been born within the Galra Empire... she shuddered to even think about that.

Turning on her heel, she gazed up towards the black lion once more. Kolivan had said that it was the Blade of Marmora's sworn duty to undo the damage that Zarkon and his Galra Empire had done on the universe. In that case, was it not also her sworn duty as a fellow Altean to undo the damage that Haggar had done?

Yes. It absolutely was.


"High priestess, we have brought you the footage you requested."

"Good. Show it to me." Haggar said. "I want to see the face of our intruder."

The druid bowed, before they complied. Every single one of Central Command's systems had been affected by destruction of the central hub and the virus alike, so it had taken her much longer than she would have liked to recover the data from that time period. For a time, she had feared that it might prove impossible- but it would seem luck was on her side.

From what she had been able to gather from the druids, when Thace had barricaded himself inside the central hub, someone else had been in there with him. Indeed, she had confirmed that an unauthorized ship had docked in one of their hangars shortly before the power was lost- and she was willing to bet anything that was their intruder.

She was also willing to bet that it had been a paladin- and she had her suspicions as to which paladin it was.

The black, blue, green, and yellow lions had all been accounted for in the early stages of the fight, but the red lion had only appeared just before Central Command had been whisked away by the massive teleduv that the rebels had built. In other words, if the intruder was a paladin, then it could only be the red one.

The very same paladin she was beginning to take a growing interest in.

At first, there was nothing of interest in the footage. It displayed only what she already suspected- an individual clad in red and white paladin armor. His face was angled away from the camera, and with his helmet on, it rendered her unable to make out any of his features. She had solid footage of the black and yellow paladins, as well as more recently obtained footage of the blue and green paladins.

But she had no visuals of the red paladin, only verbal descriptions from a handful of scattered sources. All suggested that he was human, like the rest of the paladins, but that energy she sensed from him... there was something different about him.

It was not long until she realized why. She would recognize those eyes anywhere.

The red paladin was no human. He was Galra.

And if he was Galra... then he must be a reazit.

The druid looked towards her, slightly tilting their head. "What are your orders?"

"I want him." Haggar instructed. "Alive."