Reawakening
Prologue: Ancient History

This is my take on the Voltron: Panthera Force concept, the original pitch for the show that became Voltron Force. It is a next-gen fic, but does use versions of Daniel, Vince, and Larmina; while I've drawn heavily from VF for their personalities, they shouldn't really be considered the same characters. (Other than their names and appearances, Bruno and Imam are basically OCs.) I still used several events from VF as a bit of a framework.
So many thanks to my beta Sean Montgomery for not murdering me as I probably deserved... repeatedly... heh.

"On this day, three hundred and fifty years ago, the Battle of Galra took place to end the Doom Wars.

You all know the story. The mighty Voltron led the assault, with the full backing of the Alliance fleet led by Sky Marshal Holgersson himself. The target was the Dread Palace on Galra itself, a world of such power and evil it was believed to be a myth, the world where the Haggarian Quasar was born and commanded. Halfway between Alliance space and the Drule homeworlds, the task force found this world of legend, and struck with their full fury.

Voltron's assault was unstoppable, a wonder to behold. Dozens of robeasts fell before its power, and countless Drule soldiers tried and failed to cease its advance. But in time the pilots were forced to abandon the machine, in order to enter the complex where the occult scientist Maahox harnessed the Quasar's power. As they battled through his traps and armies, ending the threat of haggarium for all time, Drule reinforcements barred their return to the Defender of the Universe.

And yet, they fought on. Battling with the might of lions themselves, the Force brought honor to their names and glory to the Alliance, unstoppable in the face of overwhelming odds as they approached the final fortress of the enemy.

When the reality of his defeat became clear, the mad King Lotor played his final card, setting off an explosion which obliterated the Dread Palace and everything around it. He made his intentions clear, letting his enemies know of their impending demise; the Yellow and Green Lion pilots charged in bravely, hoping to stop the blast, but ended up being caught within it.

Lotor's final act of spite did not succeed. Though he killed two lion pilots and destroyed the bulk of the Alliance fleet, his few remaining forces were destroyed as well, leaving none left to carry on his cruelty. And despite being badly damaged, Voltron and its remaining pilots stood tall amongst the ashes.

Through their courage and sacrifice, the threat of the Drule Empire was finally silenced once and for all. Thus was Voltron sealed away in victory.

Thus, this day, we honor its legend."

Sky Marshal Amelia Kasun stood on the platform as the speech ended, sweeping her gaze over the assembled cadets. They looked bored, and why shouldn't they? After listening to Captain Morton drone on, she was bored too. But they could deal with it. This ceremony was necessary.

Voltron was ancient history, and they all knew it. What they didn't know, because they didn't listen to Morton's other lessons either, was that history always repeated itself. What they didn't know was that as they assembled in the shadow of the Castle of Lions, history was waking beneath them.

They would know soon enough.

"Three hundred and fifty years." The speaker's broad form filled the Umbral Throne, a dark blue-skinned Drule with haughty features to match his ornate armor. His golden eyes glowed with contempt, with hatred. "Three hundred and fifty years to this day, we were thwarted from our rightful conquest, from the lush worlds of the Alliance. Banished back to these miserable rocks."

Everyone kneeling before Emperor Kargil was deadly silent, the courtiers and nobles watching their lord with some trepidation. Everyone knew what he'd been preparing. The only question had been the when, and it seemed that question would be answered now. A fitting date. Yet this date also raised the specter most of them would have rather avoided. The why. Several bristled at the reminder of disgrace, of crushing defeat at the hands of humans. It still stung.

A few also bristled at the idea that the Drule homeworlds were only 'miserable rocks', but those few wouldn't dare to voice such things. Not after one look at the madness which lit their emperor's eyes.

"Today we right this wrong. Today we move against the Alliance once more. We will take what is rightfully ours, and destroy all that stands in our way. For the glory of the Empire!"

"For the Empire!" his courtiers echoed. Some yelled it with pride and fury. Some murmured the words with no conviction whatsoever. But every single one repeated it. They didn't dare remain silent.

The recovery had been flawless, as well it should have been. Cryostasis was fairly basic these days. Granted three hundred years ago the science had been much less refined, but the primitive pod was functional enough. Given the importance of this moment, the Alliance's top experts on the science had been placed in charge of the awakening. The subject had been left to sleep off the initial disorientation. Now the small team filed into his room to see if he'd fully regained his senses yet. The sooner he could get to his mission, the better.

"Sir?"

Two brown eyes fluttered open, peering at the scientists curiously. Definitely alert. "I'm awake, I'm awake. Hard to be anything else in these lumpy med wing beds. Some things never change, huh?" He sat up, flipping his hair, auburn with just enough gray shot through to betray him as the old veteran he was. "So when am I? ...And where, I guess?"

The head of the science team stepped forward, saluted. "We are beneath the Castle of Lions on Arus, sir. The year is 3058; it's been three hundred and thirteen years since you were placed in stasis."

"Hmm. That's not so bad." His eyes darted around the room, then down to himself, frowning at the skin-tight stasis suit he was wearing. Even in his sixties his body was fit and trim; his body wasn't the problem. "Well? Where is it? We had a deal, you know. I mean, me and your great-great-great-grandwhatevers had a deal."

A slight chuckle escaped one of the scientists; another rolled her eyes. They'd all been informed of the deal, of course, but most of them hadn't really taken it seriously. Which wasn't to say they hadn't fulfilled their part of the bargain...

With a brief nod from his boss, the most junior of the scientists approached, presenting the newly awakened man with an ancient leather jacket.

"There we go!" With a broad grin and a mischievous spark in his eyes, Lance McClain slid off the bed and pulled the jacket on. "Okay. Now that we've got the important stuff done, let's get this show on the road."