Disclaimer – I don't own Voltron: Legendary Defender.

Note – This AU takes some inspiration from Stargate. This is also written for the October 2016 Just-Write-It where the theme is Thriller, and I'm aiming towards psychological thriller delving into some of the psychological issues Sasuke has regarding the death of his family, which in turn he uses against Keith. There is also possibly a short lived one-sided slash pairing in this story, and I'm also using the theory that Keith and Shiro are brothers. Shiro's a teen in this as he's a teen in canon - see the comics for the reference. Also, the Japanese ends up translated because that was one of the languages the castle picked up when it scanned the paladins.

The Awaited
Poisoned Blade

Fear riveted through every bone in his body, having replaced the anger coursing through his blood minutes before. A familiar voice called out to Keith, attempting to call the red paladin out of the deep, emotional pit of darkness he found himself sinking into. The sixteen-year-old felt his chest tighten, struggling to breathe as a form of panic attack attempted to set in.

The Galra were to blame for everything.

They prevented Shiro from returning from the Kerberos mission a year ago. They took the black paladin's arm and scarred his face, leaving physical memories of the young man's time as a paladin. This time in captivity resulted in the ruin of the stellar piloting record of the then eighteen-year-old pilot. They also left the young man mentally scarred, evidenced by the lock of white hair turned prematurely white.

Now, the Galra pushed at the young leader's mental state again. They sought to take away the black lion just like they took away Shiro's stellar record back on Earth. The black paladin nearly smashed against the surface of the space structure, his jetpack that barely reacted in time instead of ending up broken and malfunctioning. The Galra were attempting to take Shiro away all over again.

The anger which flooded Keith's senses made him see red. Attacking Zarkon at the time seemed like an instantaneous fix for everything that happened, including the accumulated feelings of hurt gathered in the red paladin's own psyche. Then, the red came in form of the cockpit warning lights going off, and Keith's sweaty hands clutching the controls, thrusting them forward, only to find himself unable to move.

Shiro managed a rescue in time, something which always fell on the black paladin's shoulders. The fear refused to go away even when the two lions landed safely in the docking bay, and only escalated with the destabilizing wormhole threw the two out into space, the entire ship spinning out of control, increasing the level of fear and panic, but also the feeling of guilt for doing something wrong.

"Keith…"

The red paladin's eyes snapped open, realizing suddenly the voice he heard belonged to Shiro. The sixteen-year-old took a deep breath, knowing full well the nineteen-year-old leader expected a response. His mouth opened, dry. "Shiro…" The younger teen looked around, his lips pushed together taking in the flashing lights in red's cockpit, but also the stiffness of his body. "Oh, god…"

"Keith…"

"I trashed Red." A shiver ran down the red paladin's spine, as a hand went to his sore side realizing he'd ended up jarred from his seat upon landing, realizing then that he needed to lift himself up from the ground. "I'm so sorry."

"You don't have to apologize to me, Keith."

"No. Not you. Red." Keith let his hand glide over the control panel, before looking up at the viewing screen to see nothing. The sixteen-year-old swallowed, before heading out the back, hoping Red would open up despite whatever damage she received. Shiro remained silent on the other side of the comms, and he found himself exiting out of the cockpit to find the red lion crashed into a bunch of trees, creating a rather large crater. A hand glided over one leg. "I am so sorry Red."

"Keith, everything is going to be okay."

"No, it's not. Red's likely seriously pissed off at me right now." The red paladin swallowed back the bile welling in his throat, the thought of disappointing anyone he cared about hitting hard. "You're also not okay Shiro. I can tell."

"I'm fine. Take a deep breath."

"I don't need to! And you're not fine." Keith felt his psyche calming despite the worry pounding at the back of his head regarding how the black paladin was coming. "I'm coming for you. I can find you."

"No…"

"I am. I can find you. I know what direction you're in, kind of like how I knew that you would show back up. I can do this."

"Keith…"

The red paladin swallowed, the thought he might lose Shiro again, particularly without saying something important. The sixteen-year-old took a deep breath, knowing how awkward what he said would sound. "Shiro, I love you." The words were met with silence, making Keith close his eyes as he walked down the mountain. "Shiro?"

"Doesn't that go without saying, though?" Shiro's voice sounded weaker.

"What…"

"You know. You're my kid brother, so it goes without saying that we love each other. We're family."

Keith swallowed. "It does matter."

"Huh…"

Shiro sounded weaker, and the red paladin's throat tightened up. "It does too! I never, ever said it enough. Then you…"

"Got it. It's okay, 'cause I already knew."

"Shiro." Keith bit down on his lip, frustrated that his older brother struggled to read him. He needed the memory of saying those words at least once. "Don't you dare die on me!"

The red paladin continued, feeling as if the mental connection with the red lion broke. He heard a bit of rough breathing on the other end and continued on his way, stopping when he saw a flash in the sky, and a shooting start lighting up the noontime sky. Keith's hands twisted together, knowing his priority would be on Shiro. He continued along, the distance seeming to not grow any smaller.

"Hello." Another voice came over the intercom. The red-paladin bit back his disgust, not wanting to speak to the blue paladin. Lance, however, spoke for him. "Come on! Is anybody there!"

"I'm here. Shiro is as well, but…"

Lance's sudden yelling made Keith want to yank his helmet off his head, his mouth pressing into the frown. "What the hell! If he's here, he would talk!"

"He's hurt."

"Well, that's all your fault."

"What do you mean it's all my fault!"

"You're the one who didn't want to follow Shiro's orders you moron!" Lance's comment made the red paladin's head real, the guilt he felt earlier rising back to the surface.

"Shut up." Keith would punch Lance if he were there right now, with how insensitive the other could be. "You didn't hear Shiro and my conversation?" That to was something he didn't need the blue paladin treating in an insensitive manner.

"I only have your word on that! And don't tell me to shut up! Not only did you disobey orders, you didn't want to go about rescuing Allura! You don't give a crap about her, you jerk!"

"Quiznack! I can't let my personal feelings for her get in the way of doing my job as a paladin. That…" Keith felt a hot heat spread across his cheeks, realizing what he said.

"Ehh…"

"Forget I said…" The red paladin stopped short, feeling something pierce through his back on the right side, sliding through to the front. Looking down, Keith could see the place of what looked like a katana piercing his gut, blood covering the beautifully crafted blade. The red paladin swallowed.

"Did you just admit that you have a crush on Allura? Wait until I tell her that you're trying to get a jump on our relationship. Seriously. I saw her first Keith."

The red paladin's eyes closed, swallowing due to not knowing what his next move should be. His hands trembled as someone stepped up behind him, wrapping their arm around his neck, their hot breath tickling the skin on his skin, the one place skin was exposed. Keith felt his eyes dilated, not liking the situation. Normally the sixteen-year-old felt he could take on someone who attempted to mug him, but the red paladin felt the killing aura imitating from the person, something he should have sensed, had he not let himself become distracted by Lance, but also his injuries from the crash.

"What is your name?"

"Keith…"

"Keith?"

"Keith, that's a very odd name, isn't it?" The voice was male, and the red paladin guessed they were the same height as him. He also felt the blade pull out of his gut, and a moan of pain escaped Keith's lips as his eyes closed. The teen felt the blood begin to pour out of the small injury, pouring over his suit as the blade came to his throat with swiftness only someone who was a trained swordsman could. Keith knew even if he could grab his banyard, it would do no good.

"Keith. Who is that? What is going on?"

The red paladin felt like wetting himself, not sure how to respond. The breath continues to flicker across his skin, what little was exposed. "What's your full name?"

"My name is Keith Kogane. Since I told you mine, care to tell me yours." Keith let out a deep breath as the blade bit slightly into his neck.

"You do realize I'm the one who stabbed you in the gut with a sword that I'm now holding to your throat. Are you really wanting to test me?"

"Keith…"

"Isn't it common courtesy for someone to give their name to someone they are going to kill?" The blood continued to escape from his body, pouring to the floor.

"Who says I'm going to kill you?" The breath remained too close for comfort, and something about this person made Keith ill at ease. "My name is Uchiha Sasuke, and I think I'll keep you as a pet. What do you think about that?"

"I…" Keith felt the person's arms move so that his hand pressed against a certain point.

"Keith. I'm coming for you, alright."

"Don't you dare Lance! He's too much…"

"You've some kind of communication device?" Sasuke pressed his hand. "How about you tell your friend what will happen if I put pressure on this spot on your neck?

"I'll go unconscious." Keith felt as if he would go unconscious with the amount of blood he lost.

"Keith…" The confidence normally in Keith's voice quickly went away, and the red paladin imagined the color draining from Lance's face in the same way it was his, but for a different reason. A smirk spread across his face, only for the small hint of glee to flee away.

"So they can hear me as well, which means they know my name."

"Yeah, but Lance is far away from here, so you won't find him, or any of my friends for that matter. They're spread across the entire planet." Keith felt a blade slip out of the kimono-like sleeve, touching his neck gently at first. His breath drew tightly.

"So, you know what this knife is for?"

"Either it's some kind of poison to kill me, or a poison to paralyze me, so in a few minutes I'm either going to be dead, or you're going to torture me, hoping I'll give you some kind of information. For your sake, I hope it's a poison to kill me because I'm not going to give you any kind of information."

"Who says I want to torture you for information?"

Keith swallowed, feeling the blade prick his neck. He felt his body go slack, falling to the ground as the young man let go of him. He hit the ground hard, jarring his already sore sides. His dark blue eyes narrowed, noticing the traditional dress of Japan, the sandals, and kimono, but also the strange purple rope sash which defied the natural laws for materials found on Earth.

However, something else sent a shudder down his spine. He caught a glimpse of the young man's eyes, which were dark like his, and the dark hair. The young man was of Japanese descent, and yet this young man looked like a dark, evil version of himself, making Keith wonder where on Earth they were, for where else would find humans.

The young man moved quickly, removing the helmet and throwing it to the side as one of Keith's fingers twitched, not a word escaping his lips. The young man proceeded to pull off the armor, tossing this aside as well, obviously making sure no communication device existed upon Keith's body. The sixteen-year-old felt his eyes narrow, wondering why the young man didn't immediately suspect the helmet.

A chill spread through his body, the blood continuing to leave his body through the small wound. The young man stripped Keith to the skin-tight undersuit. When Sasuke finished, he lifted the red paladin over his shoulder, carrying him away to who knew where.