I'm not a really good writer, but I love red paladin Keith and wanted to write this so enjoy.

Chapter One:The Infiltration Mission

Summary: After meeting a galra prisoner that claims to know Matt Holt, the paladins plan an infiltration mission on the cruiser.

Keith never saw Pidge so hopeful and he couldn't blame her. When the galra prisoner, Spurk, arrived at the Castle of Lions a movement ago, he noticed Matt's name. After Pidge presented the picture of his last day on Earth, he mentioned that he had shared a cell with him. He didn't know everything, but he mentioned the cruiser had files on the prisoners. They had a chance to find him from there. And if they found Matt, they could find Sam too.

While he rested in a cryo-pod, the Paladins and Alteans discussed the what to do on the bridge. After a while of discussion, they tracked the cruiser Spurk was captive on. They agreed that Shiro and Hunk take Yellow and Black, but keep out of range as an emergency backup. Coran and Allura steered the Castle behind a stray asteroid and held their position. Lance, Keith and Pidge were to get on the cruiser, and find the information they needed.

The cruiser was hovering over a strange planet. It looked quite like Earth, but with a glimmering pink atmosphere.

Lance, Keith and Pidge proceeded taking Blue, Red, and Green to sneak aboard the ship. Before they launched, Pidge added temporary cloaking to Red and Blue. The permanent would've taken way longer. The three of them snuck aboard ship and send a clarification to the others as soon as they were on board.

They didn't send to much communication after that. They didn't want any galra picking up their communications. Keith, Lance, and Pidge backed up against a wall, bayards at the ready. Pidge opened a screen from her gauntlet, typing through some code. Her eyes skipped over the schematics on the screen, before turning her attention back on them.

Pidge turned to them. "Alright, we have to head left and take the right tunnel at the fork." Lance snorted a laugh. "We head straight on from there until we reach the doors. By then, we could use Keith to open the doors."

"That isn't insulting at all," Keith mumbled.

Pidge ignored the comment, "One problem though. Someone is guarding the fork in the road. I could... try to hack him from here, assuming it's a century."

"And if it's not?" Lance asked.

Pidge shrugged. "We hack it from there."

"That is... brutal," Keith blinked. "Okay, give it your best shot," Pidge nodded and turned back to the screen. As they waited for the green paladin to continue her work, Keith wondered if the mission would be a success. Spurk was a little... untrustworthy, to say the least. But then again, Keith couldn't trust many people trust anyone. Especially in this war. But Lance didn't trust him either.

Lance was waiting next to Keith, pouting as he watched Pidge. "Got anything, Pidgeon?"

"Give me a moment," Pidge hissed, glaring back at Lance. After a couple more button press, the 'crazy Pidge' face danced across the screen. "There!"

She gestured for the two of them to follow her and head down the hall, to the left. As the schematics have predicted, there was a fork in the road with a century hanging between the ways. From the dark screen, Keith could tell Pidge has disabled it.

"Huh," Lance said, a mischievous glimmer to his smile. "For a place with prisoners, you'd think they have more security. It would be useful to add robots that are less likely to be hacked."

"It was hard, Lance," Pidge said. "I only upgraded a bit on Spurk's information about the patrols."

Lance huffed, "I don't know why we're trusting this guy." She glared at Lance, not impressed by his hesitance.

"Because he knows something about my brother," Pidge said. "He mentioned seeing them with him in one of the cells, you remember? I will find them. This is the best place to start. C'mon," She turned around heading right. "We don't have time to stand around."

The three paladins followed Pidge and they got to the assigned doors. Keith stepped forward and scanned his hand on the panel. The doors slid open and the three of them entered the room. If Pidge wasn't on a mission and hiding on a galra cruiser, she would've squealed in excitement. Computers and screens were blaring all over, like a Gunderson paradise.

Pidge ran to the main control screen and hooked her gauntlet to the system.

"Shiro, we're in," Keith said into his com. "Pidge is gathering the information right now."

"Great," Shiro's voice rang in his ear. "Make sure you and Lance keep her covered."

"On it." Keith turned to Lance, who was watching Pidge in silence. "Lance, guard the doors while I stay here with Pidge. In case she needs anything."

Lance nodded in clarification and stomped over to the doors. He held his back up to the wall and glanced over the corner of the opened gap. Keith turned to Pidge. "Is everything going good?"

"Yup," Pidge said. "I just have to find the right -"

"Guys!" Lance whisper-called form the door. "Someone's coming."

Pidge cursed. "Shit! I need more time. Keith, help Lance take out... whoever!"

Keith ran over to Lance's side. "I think we have to hide. We can't take out all those."

He wasn't wrong. A galra commander was standing before 4 rows of centuries. Giving them orders. "What are they saying?"

"No idea," Lance said. "Maybe I could get better sound if I..." he tapped his gauntlet a couple of times before clicking a blinking red button on his helmet.

Keith watched as Lance listened in on the conversation. A couple of ticks later, Lance paled. "They know we're here. They're trapping us in at all angles!"

Keith's eyes widened and signaled him to hold the position. He hurried back to Pidge and said. "Pidge, they know we're here. We gotta find some way out before it's all sealed shut."

"What? How?" Pidge asked as she spun around. "The lions are cloaked and the others are far out of range. There's no way -"

"It should be Spurk," Keith said. "But we don't have time to dwell on that. We have to get out. Now."

Pidge thought for a moment. "Maybe... I... Fine. Alert Shiro and Hunk that they know."

Keith nodded and spoke into the comms, "Shiro, the commander of the ship knows we're in here. He's locking us in. We need a little backup."

"Roger that," Shiro said. "We'll try and distract them from here."

"Thanks, Shiro," Keith said. "He's got us covered, we might have enough time to -"

"OW!"

Keith and Pidge spun to the source of the sound. Lance's arm was cut and the commander, along with armed centuries, was standing before them. "Well, Spurk told me he'd get some valuable prisoners. Paladins of Voltron? Oh, I do underestimate that Dreczais."

Pidge's bayard sprung to life as she pointed it at the commander. "Leave Lance alone!"

As if on cue, a giant KABOOM made the ship shake with impact. They stumbled and it confused the commander long enough for the paladins to take action. Pidge shot her weapon at the lead as Keith dove forward to stab at the first century.

Lance seemed to regain his bearings, cause he shot at the other robot. The century Keith stabbed in the gut went down with a clang. He hurried to Lance and helped him up. "You okay?"

"Fine," Lance shoved him off. "We need to get out of here! Pidge!"

The three of them slipped past the commander and ran out the control room. "After them!" They heard as they ran away. They turned a corner and another one, before they were blocked by more centuries. They drew their shields and turned the other way, but more have already cornered them there.

"We're trapped!" Pidge cried in surprise. She shot her bayard at one of them. Lance wasn't so sharpshooting with an injured arm. Whoever got him, cut him deep. Keith dove toward the line of centuries with his sword.

They fought for a while before Keith sliced the last robot in the way. "It's open!"

Pidge and Lance ran for his position, still holding cover with their shields.

"Which way did we come in!?" Lance asked Pidge as they ran down the hall.

"I don't have time to check! I... I can't remember!" Pidge replied as another hard KABOOM hit the ship outside. Two more BOOMs threw them off their feet. More galra and centuries ran up to them and started firing. Pidge yelled as one of the shots grazed her right leg, before she drew up her shield.

"Pidge!" Keith called. "We got you covered! Check the schematics now!"

She held up her arm and checked as the screen popped up. Keith dove back into battle as Lance took it from long range. Between the crowd, Keith got cut by their sharp, hard armor and grazed by many of the lasers. But Lance wasn't holding up any better. He tried to keep everyone away from Pidge, thus being hit by several of the weapons.

Keith turned his attention back to his opponents, cutting through armor and metal. Cutting their laser guns and trying to cover Lance.

"AHHHHH!"

Keith spun around and felt his heart stop. "PIDGE!"

Pidge was laying behind Lance, blood dripping from her mouth and a fresh wound in her neck. Keith fought through the crowd to her side. As Lance tried to hold off the enemies, Keith dropped next to Pidge. He checked for a pulse and was relieved to find one.

"Lance!" Keith called. Lance glanced back and flinched at the sight of Pidge.

"Wha - What happened to -?" Lance was cut short as a laser ricocheted off the shield.

"Lance! You have to get Pidge back to the Lions!" Keith called over the blazing gunfire, holding Pidge close to his chest to shield her. "Get her back to your lion and call for someone to help get her lion back. Please, get out of here!"

"And leave you?" Lance asked.

"Yes!" Keith replied. "I'll hold them off! Get her back to the Castle! You have to hurry."

Lance hesitated, but as soon as his eyes laid back on Pidge he nodded. Keith covered them as Lance picked her up from the floor. He followed behind them, slicing away the enemies and keeping them out of range.

"I'll come back!" Keith called as Lance and Pidge ran away from the battle. "Just get her safe!"

Lance nodded and left Keith back with the centuries and galra. Keith ripped through their metal with his sword. He tried to block the paths of anyone who tried to go after Lance and Pidge. Blood splattered on his armor as he cut galra and got grazed by the lasers. He has never killed any of the galra face to face, so this was strange. A loud KABOOM would help once in a while, throwing his enemies to the ground.

But sometimes, he fell too. Catching him off guard.

When he finally got through the last century, he was bruised, cut and bleeding. He wondered if Lance got Pidge to safety and if she would be okay. He limped his way down the hall. He tried to retrace his steps. How he got from the Lions to the control room.

It took him to late to realize the century charging towards him. It banged into him, cracking his helmet glass. It raised it's weapon and got ready to shoot, but Keith summoned his bayard and sliced through his metal legs. It fell back into a panel and a voice filled Keith's head:

"Lowering Oxygen Levels."

Oh god! Keith tried to activate his helmet but it only flickered and dissolved. He got to his feet and hobbled to the control panel. He tried to turn off the sequence, but the century's force seemed to knock it out of commission.

Keith felt the oxygen levels lowering around him already. There was no way he'd get into Red like this. He had only one choice left. He tried to hurry down to the cruiser's hanger. He started coughing and losing breath. When he entered the hanger, five centuries ambushed him. Keith swung his sword through their metal.

"Oxygen Levels at 10%."

Keith hurried to the closest fighter ship and climbed into it. As soon as the glass around him sealed, oxygen-filled into his lungs. He gasped and coughed. He took a moment to recover before he grabbed the pedals and lifted the ship off the ground.

He steered it to the hanger door, which instinctively opened up. He shot the ship out of the cruiser, and as soon as he was back into space he saw what was going on. The blue and green lions were gone, but Hunk was trying to keep the galra away from Red. Shiro sped through as many ships as possible, trying to cut into the cruiser with his jaw blade.

"Shiro? Shiro!" Keith yelled into the comms. He heard static ringing in his ears. "Hunk? Lance? Anyone, come in!" Nothing but static. Quiznack. There was no way he'd get close to Red like this.

A blue light crowded his vision and he felt a fire burning his skin. He pushed the pedals forward as his body grew heavy with pain. Alarms rang around him as the ship sped at high speed to the nearby planet. As soon as the ship hit the atmosphere, the alarms went wilder. Keith's head pounded as it dropped to the surface.

He opened his eyes slightly to watch a blurry landscape grow closer...

And closer...

Closer...

KABOOM!

So, yeah. That's it for the first chapter. Tell me what you think about it and make sure to go check out my other fics if you enjoyed this one. Plus, the song is based off of Learning to Fly by Tom Petty.