A/N: This is my first attempt at a fanfiction, this prologue was mostly me getting a feel for writing the characters, and I'm eager to see where this story goes.


Prologue:

Lance came from a big family. As the middle child of seven children, he learned at a young age that you had to be loud if you wanted to make yourself noticed. Lance loved his family, he really did, but sometimes it felt like he had a lot to live up too. Besides having three older siblings (two sisters and a brother), he had a plethora of cousins, both older and younger. There was very little that someone in his family hadn't tried to do or hasn't done before.

Most of his family were content with their life on Earth. They had everything the could ever want or need, why would they ever want to venture out into the dangerous unknown of space, there was enough to be done on Earth as it was. Most of Lance's siblings had ordinary dreams and ambitions, one wanted to be a doctor, another an accountant (though Lance could never understand how a person could actually WANT to be an accountant), the most far out dream was to be a pirate (to be fair, his little brother is six years old and still believes in the tooth fairy).

Unlike most of his siblings, Lance was an explorer. He wanted to go places, find things. He wanted new and exciting. Lance wanted to go to space. More importantly Lance wanted to be a fighter pilot. He hadn't yet told his family about his ambitions, unsure of how they would react, after all becoming a fighter pilot meant joining the Galaxy Garrison, which was rather far from home.

He still has the application from school, it's in his backpack, carefully folded, unlike so many of the crumpled papers all piled at the bottom. It's due in a week, if he doesn't get it in by then, he'll have to wait till next year. Lance can't wait till next year. The eagerness to do something, to get out there is vibrating in his bones. As much as he loves his family, loves his home, the idea of staying here forever is suffocating. Lance is restless.

Which is why he's on the roof. Lance is looking up at the stars, dreaming of the day where he'll finally go there himself. "Just tell them." Lance mumbles to himself. "Don't ask, tell. I mean if worst comes to worst, I can try and forge the signature, I doubt anyone will look too closely." Lance says, thinking out loud.

"Should I ask them with everyone around, or should I try and get them alone? Who am I kidding, I'll never get them alone, better just to ask when I next see them, no point in putting it off, it's not going to change the answer. TELL! I mean tell. I won't ask, I'll tell!" Lance continues babbling to himself.

"AGGGH!" Lance shouts, sitting up and pulling on his hair with his hands. Inside he can hear the shouts of his parents trying the wrestle the younger kids into going to bed. "I guess I should probably help them." Lance says, before beginning his climb down. He climbs on to the branch of a tree that hangs just above the roof, steadily jumping from branch to branch, until he's low enough to just jump the last few metres to the ground.

The first thing Lance sees upon entering the house is his father chasing his six-year-old brother, Robby, around the house. Robby is stark naked, complaining about how he doesn't want to go to bed. Unaware of his presence, Lance intercepts Robby, and sweeps him into the air. Robby immediately starts giggling.

"Lance!" Robby yells excitedly. "Are you gonna tell me a story?! Your stories are the best!"

"First you have to put your pajama's on, get tucked into bed, and then I'll tell you a story," Lance replies.

"Oh good. You caught him." Lance's father says wearily. "I'm getting to old for this."

"You're trying to trick me!" Robby exclaims. "I'm not going to bed!"

"Then you won't get a story. You do want a story, don't you?" Lance says, fighting back a smile.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Robby says vibrating with excitement. "Ok. Put me down! I'll go get dressed!"


Once Robby has fallen asleep, Lance get's the application form for the Garrison from his backpack, unfolds it, and brings it to his parents, who are talking in the kitchen. Surprisingly enough they're alone.

"Thanks for helping with Robby." His dad says as soon as he spots him. "He can be a handful sometimes, but he always listens to Big Brother Lance."

"Yep, he sure can." Lance replies, gathering his courage for the announcement he's about to make. "Mom, Dad. I want to join the Galaxy Garrison, I want to be a pilot." He announces.

"What?" His mom says in a rather hoarse whisper.

"I can't say I'm surprised." Lance's father says with a sigh.

"You're not?" Lance askes, shocked.

"Lance, Honey." His mother begins, having regained her composure. "From the time you could crawl you've been trying to explore, go places you really shouldn't. Your father and I both knew you would never be happy staying put."

"You nearly gave your mother a heart attack when you tried to climb into the lion enclosure at the zoo when you were three." His dad says with a smirk. "Space is a little farther than I expected, but we always knew you'd want to get out there and explore."

"So, I can go?" Lance askes hopefully.

"Yes, you can go." His dad replies with a sad smile.

"You have to write to us everyday though." His mother says, her eyes beginning to water.

"Ma, I'm not going to write to you everyday, not enough happens in one day to write a decent letter, besides, who actually writes letters anymore?" Lance replies. "They're a rather outdated form of communication, people call, they text, they email. How about this? I contact you some way once a week, it could be email, calling, texting, or an old-fashioned letter."

"My baby." Lance's mother replies, now crying, sweeping her son into a crushing hug.

"Ma. I'm not a little kid anymore, I'll be fine." Lance replies, hugging his mother back. His dad is signing the application form. "Besides I won't start until September, which is 10 months away."

"Oh, September will be here before you know it. Time passes faster than you think it does." Lance's dad says, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Okay, now you're just making stuff up." Lance replies.

"You'd better put this somewhere you won't lose it." Lance's father says, handing him the signed application form.

"I will!" Lance says, smiling brightly. "Thanks Ma! Thanks Dad!" He shouts back as he runs up the stairs to put the form in his back pack, more excited than he's ever been in a very long time.


Hunk is nervous. Hunk isn't actually his real name, but he's been called that for as long as he can remember, he's not actually sure where the nickname came from. His mother starts to laugh hysterically every time he asks, so it's probably better left unknown. Hunk can't decide if he should go to the Galaxy Garrison or not. He knows he should, it's a good opportunity, and of the thousands of people that apply every year, only a hundred get it, if that. He's one of the lucky few that were actually accepted. He should be jumping for joy, accepting immediately, day-dreaming about his future, something. But here he is still deciding, he only applied on a whim, not actually believing he would be one of the lucky few to be accepted.

Hunk knows it would be a good learning experience, he could learn things there that he couldn't anywhere else. He can't help but worry though, every little thing that could go wrong is flooding his mind, panic and anxiety drowning out all other emotions and rational thought.

"You know I'm not actually a big fan of flying in general, I mean space is fine, I have no problem with space, but you know me, I get motion sick very easily, I mean going into space requires flying, so maybe I shouldn't go." Hunk rambles. He knows that he's rambling, but he can't seem to stop himself.

"Hunk." His mom says with a smile. "You know as well as I do that your "motion sickness" is more nerves than motion sickness. Just believe in yourself, you'll be fine."

"What if the food sucks? I mean space food is notorious for being crappy, but what if it's practically inedible?! What if the amount of food we eat is limited?! You know me, I eat quite a bit, I mean I can eat pretty much anytime, except when I'm flying, eating while puking is kind of pointless. Not to mention gross." Hunk continues his tirade, getting himself even more worked up.

"Even if the food is terrible, I'm sure you'll find someway to make it delicious. You're like Aunt Sam that way, able to make something good out of just about anything. Besides, you said it yourself, the Galaxy Garrison offers the biggest challenge for you. You'd be bored out of your skull anywhere else." His mom continues, trying to soothe him.

"I know. I know." Hunk says, finally beginning to calm down. "It's just. Just a really big step, and I'm not sure I'm ready for it."

"You'll do fine." Hunk's mom says, pulling him into a tight hug. "No matter where life takes you, I'm proud of you."

"Thanks Mom." Hunk replies.

Now that he has calmed down, he can see that she's right. He's smart, smarter than a lot of other people, his teachers have always complained to his mom about his lack of focus. Hunk could never focus because he was always bored, most of the things he saw his classmates struggling to get, came to him easily. It resulting in Hunk not having very many friends. The Galaxy Garrison really was the best place for him to go if he was looking for challenges, the only problem being his anxiety.


"Keith. What happened?" Shiro asks gently. Keith has just come to him, covered in cuts and bruises, needing someone to help clean up, but unable to go to anyone else. Shiro was glad that he somehow managed to earn Keith's trust, that Keith was willing to come to him for help. He know's that Keith doesn't give his trust easily, but Shiro wishes Keith would get into less fights.

"I got into a fight. What does it look like?" Keith replies, wincing as Shiro gets to a bad cut on his cheek.

"It looks like you lost a fight. To half a dozen guys." Shiro says, trying to figure out what happened, without actually asking of course. He knows Keith, he rarely gives a straight answer about these kind of situations.

"There was only three!" Keith replies, not realising until it was too late that Shiro got exactly the information he wanted.

"What was it this time?" Shiro says with a sigh. He's worried what Keith is going to do when he's gone. He'll be leaving for the Kerberos mission in a few short months, just a week after the new term starts in September.

"The usual." Is all Keith says.

"You need to try and ignore them, I won't be here in a few months to patch you up. You have to be better than them." Shiro lectures. He know's Keith gets a lot of idiots spreading rumours and generally insulting him. Like Shiro, Keith was a pilot prodigy, which meant, that like Shiro, most of his fellow classmates didn't like him much.

"I am trying!" Keith protests. "I was doing a pretty good job of ignoring them too, but then-" He cuts himself off.

"But then what?" Shiro prods.

"But then they started bad mouthing you." Keith relents, speaking quietly. "Speaking badly about me I can take! I'm used to it, but you don't deserve that! You're the best pilot there is! They had no business talking trash about you. I wasn't just going to stand there and do nothing!"

"Keith." Shiro says, his gaze softening. "I don't care about a few idiots bad mouthing me, being the Garrison's star pilot tends to make people jealous." He says, putting his hands on Keith's shoulders. "What I do care about is you getting beat up. Promise me you won't get into anymore fights while I'm gone, please."

"I'll try." Keith promises.

"Good." Shiro knows that it's unlikely Keith will be able to avoid all fights, but it still feels like a weight has been lifted knowing that Keith will try. "Now. What movie do you want to watch, Star Trek, or Star Wars?" Shiro says, holding up the options in his hands.

Keith laughs at Shiro's nerdiness. "I would say they're pretty much the same thing..." Keith teases.

Shiro's scandalized look just makes Keith laugh even harder.


Katie is pacing. Matt and her father are leaving in a few short days. "I wish I was going with you." She says to her brother. "You have to promise you'll tell me immediately if you find anything! I mean if you actually find something, it could change life as we know it! I'm not going to be left out, imagine all the amazing opportunities there would be if any kind of life is found! If you find something and don't tell me, I'll punch you." She says, giving Matt a look.

"I will, I will. Promise." Matt replies, holding his hands up in front of himself in surrender. "I wouldn't keep something that important from my baby sister."

"I am not a little kid!" Katie protests.

"I know. You're going to be smarter than me one day, if you aren't already. Even if you are short." Matt teases.

"I'm not that short!" Katie says with a huff. "And of course I'll be smarter than you, it's what little sisters do." She says grinning.

"Just promise me you'll be safe." Katie says, a lot more subdued. Even though she won't admit it out loud she's worried about something happening to her brother and her father.

"I promise." Matt says with a small smile. "We'll come back, and if we don't, I'm sure you'll find your way into space to drag us back."

"You bet your ass I will!" Katie replies, the somber mood gone. "So, you better be back on time." She punches him in the arm. "You better have something good planned for your last few days on Earth."

"You make it sound like I'm dying!" Matt says with a laugh. "I'll be back in six months."

"You don't have anything planned, do you?" Katie says horrified. "Come on." She says grabbing his arm and dragging him out the front door.

"Where are we going?" Matt protests. "I still have to finish packing!"


In a castle a long way from Earth lay two people in a frozen slumber, unaware that the world they once new is 10 000 years dead. Many planets are left without hope, believing they will never be free, or not even knowing what the word free means. Zarkon has taken over much of the known universe, no one able to stand up to him, not since Altea. The Universe has done nothing but watched as free planet after free planet is taken over, enslaved. The Universe has been sleeping, quiet in its slumber. Well, no more.


Shiro dreams of people screaming, yelling out in pain. Everywhere he turns there is someone new begging him to help, but he's stuck frozen, unable to do anything but watch. These people come in all different shapes and sizes, most are aliens, faces and forms he doesn't recognize, but every once in a while, a human will show up, tears in their eyes begging for news about their family. Shiro wants to help them, which makes it even more painful that he can't. Suddenly there is a voice in his ear. Wake. It calls. Shiro wakes up. He's in a cell, aboard an alien space ship, Matt and Commander Holt are with him, still fast asleep, along with half a dozen different aliens, all still asleep. He's more terrified than he's ever been in his life.

Keith dreams of Shiro. He's being dragged down a corridor, glowing with a faint purple hue. He's being dragged by two large purple creatures, aliens. "We mean you no harm!" Shiro is shouting at them, but they continue to drag him down the eerie purple corridor. Next is an alien woman, with pointed ears and white hair calling out to her father. "We must fight!" She yells at him. He somehow puts her to sleep. "If all goes well I will see you again soon." He tells her lovingly. He never sees her again. She is frozen, far away. There is a voice in his ear, progressively getting louder and louder, until he can hear the words clearly. Wake! It shouts out to him. Keith wakes up. He is alone in his room at the Garrison. The next day he finds out about the Kerberos mission. Pilot error. The words echo in his ears. He leaves the Garrison, and never looks back.

Katie dreams of darkness. Of a black-purple cloud covering planet after planet. On some planets people are screaming, begging for help, for aid. What's worse is the planets where they don't even scream, they just give up and beg for mercy from the dark force conquering their home. The hopelessness is overwhelming, it's suffocating. Just when she thinks she can't take anymore, there is a voice. Wake. It whispers. Katie wakes up. The following day she finds out about the Kerberos mission, she doesn't believe in the Garrison's excuse. She goes looking for answers, only to be banned from the Garrison a few short months later. Katie Holt needs answers, so she becomes Pidge Gunderson.

Lance dreams of families. Families calling out for there loved ones, families crying, mourning the dead. There is a little boy crying over his parents, all around him people are running trying to escape the horrors that are coming. The town burns. Lance wants to call out for someone, anyone to help this little boy. No one glances at him twice. It's only then that Lance realizes that all around him people are crying over loved ones, unable to move and avoid the slaughter coming their way. They all burn. Then there is a voice. Wake. It gently soothes. Lance wakes up. He finds himself face to face with his roommate, Hunk. There are unshed tears in both their eyes.

Hunk dreams of hopelessness. Of people who don't even know what the word free means. Their friends and family are taken away on a whim, never to return. No one fights, because they don't know anything else. It's everyone for themselves. They are ordered around like slaves, beaten, living in fear. This is all the know. It's not right, Hunk wants to cry out. This isn't right. Wake. A voice gently calls. Hunk wakes up. On the other side of the room, his roommate Lance lays, seconds away from crying. Hunk has never been so glad to not be alone.

On a planet in the far corners of the universe, a planet where sentient life has yet to step foot, a little girl wakes. Her eyes glow silver.

It's time The Universe fights back.