Disclaimer: I don't own anything that belongs to WEP or CBS/Paramount, so don't sue me. I'm not making any money off this anyway. What I do own are the crew of the Berlin, except Mordock and Scotty, the fighter Thunderwing, and the story itself.
Star Tron: The Retreat
Chapter 2: Checking In
Arus:
Somewhere over the desert, north of the Castle of Lions
Coming out of a formation turn, Keith looked around at the others. Lance, Hunk, and Pidge had kept position relatively well. They were a little displaced, but not badly enough to affect any formation tactics they might use in combination with the sudden, sharp turn.
Allura, however, was out of formation by at least half a kilometer. Consequently, so was Adam, who as usual stuck to Allura like a flea on a dog. Normally, Keith would have mentioned something to her, but given the events of last night, he decided to let it slide today. Instead, he decided to call it a day. "All right, that's it for this morning. Everyone head back for lunch."
Several acknowledgements at once came through his radio, and none of them objected. They headed back toward the Castle of Lions, peeling off one by one to head to their dens. Adam was the last to leave formation, waiting until Blue Lion had slipped beneath the surface of the moat before pulling into a vertical climb toward the starship orbiting above.
It wasn't until Keith was riding the tram back into the Castle that his thoughts finally came out of combat mode. The first thing he thought about was Allura relocating to the Berlin today. He couldn't help but note that it also meant she'd be much closer to Adam. He could see his chance slipping further away every second he delayed. He knew how he felt about Allura.
But did she feel the same way? Would she even consider his feelings? Of course she would, but would she reciprocate, or rebuff? And she and Adam did have a very good relationship. Even he had to admit that. He'd waited so long, putting her on a pedestal, worshipping her from afar. How could he overcome that?
And then there was his timing. He couldn't just blurt it out. He had to tell her in private, just between the two of them. Everything had to be done properly. But every time a good opportunity arose, he froze. He just couldn't make himself commit.
Maybe that was a sign. Maybe he didn't really feel the way he thought he did. Or maybe he was just plain scared.
Before he could think any further, the tram stopped and he reached up to grab the bar to ride up to the control room. For now, he'd have to put the topic on a mental shelf. He had other duties to attend to.
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U.S.S. Berlin
In orbit above Arus
That afternoon, Allura beamed up to the starship, with several guards, Nanny, and a large assortment of bags, cases, and other travel containers. Nanny, who had never been on the ship before, took in the small, dim transporter room. "Hmph. Certainly not much to look at."
Allura, unseen by Nanny, rolled her eyes. "This is only a transporter room, Nanny. The rest of the ship is much nicer."
"I like to think so," Adam said as he stepped from behind the transporter console. He looked at the guards. "Thanks, guys, we'll take it from here." He said.
Confused, the guards looked at Allura, who nodded. The guards took orders from all the members of the Voltron Force, who were officially higher-ranking, but Adam's position had always been a point of confusion, as he wasn't an Arusian or Alliance service member.
As the transporter whisked the guards back to Arus, Adam looked over the collection of bags and asked, "What is all this?"
"Her Royal Highness' matched luggage," Nanny replied. "You can't expect someone of the Princess' stature to arrive without certain necessities."
Adam did his best to suppress a smile as he nodded. "Uh, right. Well, if you'll follow me, I'll show you to your room."
The women followed the Captain out of the transporter room and down the corridor. Entering the turbolift, Adam called out "Deck six." He turned to Allura. "We've got you set up in the VIP suite. It's on the port side, near the bow, so you'll have a great view."
"And where's your cabin, Captain?" Nanny asked suspiciously.
"About seven doors down. Gredar and Jacobs are the next two from that. Deck six is what we call 'officer's country'. Senior staff, VIP's, department heads, and most of the crew rec facilities are there, including the holodeck. Sickbay's one up on deck five."
Nanny nodded, apparently satisfied that Allura wouldn't be associating with anyone too far below her station. For her part, Allura was starting to think that maybe this wouldn't be such a bad thing after all.
As if sensing her thoughts, Adam said, "You could look at this as an educational opportunity, Princess. Sort of like, immersive diplomatic training or something."
Allura smiled at his attempt to keep Nanny appeased. It was the first time she'd smiled since the incident the night before. Adam noticed, and felt a bit more relieved, and glad to see she was coming out of the funk she'd been in all day.
Leaving the lift, the three walked down the corridor to the cabin. When they entered, though, Nanny gasped. "You call this a stateroom?" she demanded. "This is a closet!" The room was five meters from the door to the bulkhead, and had two chambers. The living area was five meters across, and the bedroom was two and a half. Off the bedroom was a shower unit and a small closet. The room was sparsely furnished, but suitable for entertaining several guests in the main room, and comfortably appointed in the bedroom and bathroom.
Adam looked at Nanny. "Nanny, this ship is sixty years old. This is as big as they built them back then. My cabin's even smaller, and I'm the CO, so can we please not nitpick?" Nanny harrumphed, but said nothing. Adam took Allura around the room, showing her how to use the replicator and computer terminal. In the bathroom, he explained, "We've got sonic showers here, but I'll set you up with a water ration." As they walked back through the room, he said, more for Nanny's benefit, "I'll post a guard at your door. There's nothing to worry about, but in case you need something…" Finally, he reached into a pouch on his uniform. "Here," he said, holding out a combadge.
Allura looked at him suspiciously. "Why? You want to keep track of me?"
"In case I need to talk to you, or vice-versa," Driscoll replied. "Just tap it, say 'Allura to Driscoll' or whatever, and the computer takes care of the rest. Wear it if you want, or just keep it in your pocket, but keep it with you while you're aboard."
Allura nodded, taking the device and pocketing it. Just then, there was a chirp from the door. "Come in," said Allura.
The doors swished open, and three security guards came in carrying Allura's things. They set them in the middle of the room, and left. Adam eyed the pile and looked at the two women. "Well, if you ladies'll excuse me, I've got some paperwork to do." He turned to Allura. "If you need anything, gimme a holler."
Allura nodded. She knew very well that Adam was just trying to get out before Nanny put him to work. "All right. Thank you, Captain," she said formally.
"Princess," he said with a nod. "Nanny," he said, turning to the governess. She acknowledged him with a nod of her own, and he walked out of the room.
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Later that evening, after Nanny had left, Allura was settling into her quarters. At first, Nanny had insisted on staying with Allura, for the sake of propriety, but Allura was able to convince her otherwise. Nanny would be more comfortable at the Castle, and Allura would still need her as a go-to person for her own business.
She sat down on the sofa and stared out the window, into the stars. The blue disc of Arus was just visible, the shadow of night just starting to creep across the land below. It was a surprisingly calming scene, like watching the rain fall on a misty afternoon.
The chirp of her door chime startled her. Who could be coming to see her here? But after a moment's thought, it became obvious. "Come in, Adam."
The Captain stepped through the door, now dressed in jeans and a dark green, collared shirt instead of his usual Starfleet pilot's uniform. He held a small bundle cradled in his arm. "How'd ya know it was me?"
"Who else would it be?" Allura asked, looking at him skeptically.
Adam nodded. "Yeah, you're probably right. Anyway, I thought these would brighten the atmosphere a bit." He handed the package to Allura, and when she unwrapped it, she found a dozen cream-colored, rose-like flowers.
"Adam, they're beautiful. What are they?"
"Altairean tree-lilies," he replied. "I was able to talk the ship's botanist out of a few he was going to plant in the arboretum." He said rather evasively. Based on how he was acting, Allura was willing to bet Adam had either pulled rank to get them, or just plain stolen them. She smiled at him knowingly and laid them on the table. "Just a little 'welcome aboard', cabin-warming thing."
Giggling at his discomfort, she said, "Thank you. Please, sit down." She gestured to the seat next to her. Adam quickly sat down, asking, "So… is everything all right?"
Allura looked around the cabin. "Yes, so far. It is a little smaller than my chambers, but it's comfortable."
Adam shook his head. "No, not the cabin. I mean you, and yesterday, and everything."
"Oh..." She trailed off a moment, caught off-guard. She'd been trying not to think about it all day, and put it behind her, but as she considered it, she realized that it was still with her. "I don't know. It… I mean, he…"
Adam laid her hand on hers. "It's okay, Ally. If you don't wanna talk about it, it's okay. I just want you to know that I'm here, if you do. Or when you do."
Allura nodded. "I know." She smiled at him. "You always seem to be there, don't you?"
"Hey, what're wingmen for?" Adam replied, trying to draw her out. "I've got your back, Ally. Always will."
Allura smiled again and squeezed his hand, silently thanking him as she glanced out at the stars. "It's just… I was so scared. I knew that it wasn't another kidnapping. I knew that he wanted to… to kill me. The way he talked to me, the way he touched me…" She looked at Adam a moment, then dropped her head. "I've never felt so humiliated. So disgusted."
Adam just sat there for several minutes, letting her do all the talking. He was glad she was able to get some of it out. He could see it at practice and all day that it was eating at her. "He didn't just want to kidnap me or kill me. He wanted to… If Keith and Lance hadn't gotten there when they did, if I didn't have the transponder…"
She looked at the Captain, her eyes expressing the emotions she couldn't put into words. He moved his hand up to her shoulder, giving her a reassuring squeeze. "I know… No, I don't. I can't imagine what that must have been like for you." He trailed off, not knowing what else to say. He wanted to reassure and comfort her, but the words just wouldn't come. Finally, he said, "But you still beat him. You weren't helpless, Ally, and you didn't act like it. You got yourself out of there. You did, not Keith, and not me. You." He paused a moment, letting her absorb his words, then he looked her in the eye, and said with deadly conviction, "And I don't believe for one minute that he could have really gotten you. If you didn't have the transponder, you'd have still found a way."
"But I felt so helpless, so filthy, so… I don't even know how to describe it."
Adam nodded. "That's not unusual, Allura. I'm no expert, but from what I hear, considering what he did to you, that's a normal reaction. What he did was," his lip curled in disgust at the thought of the assassin touching Allura. "It was just the low-down, dirtiest thing you can do to a woman. But you have to realize he was the creep, not you. You did your best to get out of that situation as soon as you could. You did nothing wrong."
Allura sat there for several minutes, staring out the window, and thinking about what Adam had said. And he was right, she realized. She felt scared and humiliated at the time, but she still had the presence of mind to do something to save herself. Finally, she looked over at her wingman. "I know you're right, but it's still hard."
"I never said it was easy. You'll get through this, Allura. You just have to realize that sometimes, crap happens. It's what you do about it that counts." He squeezed her shoulder again reassuringly, glad that Allura seemed to be coming around a little.
Allura was surprised. For a kid of sixteen, Adam sometimes talked like Coran. Silently, she nodded.
"Well, I'll let you get some rest. You look like you could use it," said Adam. He smiled at her one last time, and then got up to leave. As he got halfway across the cabin, he heard Allura call softly to him. Turning, he was surprised to see Allura standing right behind him. Without a word, she wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a quick hug. Adam put his arms around her back, careful about how he touched her.
But as suddenly as the moment began, it was over. Allura stepped back, blushing slightly at her boldness. "Thanks, Adam. I do feel a little better. And I think you're right. He was the one with the problem, not me."
"Anytime, Ally. Just remember. What happened was bad, but you can deal with it, and you will. Just don't try to avoid it. And if you need to talk again, come find me. Anytime."
"Thanks," Allura said again, as Adam turned and left her cabin.
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Castle Doom
On planet Doom, King Zarkon paced his chambers in frustration. He was doing that far more often of late, so much so that he could swear he could see an area of the floor that was becoming shinier than the rest. Mostly because of Lotor and his repeated failures to dispose of Voltron. But now, he was stewing over another failure. It seemed that the old saying was true. Good help was very hard to find.
He'd just received word from his spies on Arus that Princess Allura had survived the assassin he'd sent after her, and was now in hiding aboard the starship. That was exactly what he had hoped wouldn't happen. With his fleets depleted and in disarray after the invasion fiasco, it would be difficult for some time to field a force capable of dealing with the starship with any certainty. So now, he had to find another way to get her.
The Princess, he had come to realize, was the key to the defeat of Voltron. She was the one key piece without which Arus would fall, and his forces would be free to take on the rest of the Alliance, and even push into the Federation. Without her, Voltron was cut off from its creator, King Alfor, and his power. Indeed, he could not even be formed without her and her Blue Lion. And without her as a distraction, Lotor would be able to focus on conquest and grooming himself to take over the kingdom. Yes, disposing of the Princess would be most beneficial indeed.
The problem was how to do it. An attack was not an option, as she was always defended within the Castle of Lions, or with her Lion ship. And with the Berlin at Arus, any force he sent would be significantly weakened before it even reached the planet. That was why he had decided on the assassin. But that plan had now failed, and thus he was back to his original question: how to dispose of her?
It was a vexing conundrum. Wiping out whole armies and conquering planets was child's play. A simple game. But assassinating a single person, that was difficult, especially when that one person was so well protected. He knew the Voltron Force would be ready for another attempt as had just been made, so that option was closed.
Perhaps it was time to consult Haggar. He'd rather have kept this to himself, but there seemed to be no other choice. It was made riskier by the fact that he knew very well that she would inform Lotor of his plan if she could get something out of it. That would make Lotor want to interfere. The boy was so obsessed with Princess Allura, he could no longer see the liability she had become.
Luckily, the problem of Lotor's interference was easily remedied. At least for the time being.
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Castle of Lions
Arus
The next morning, Allura beamed down to the Castle of Lions just before practice. During the exercise, Keith noticed that her performance was only slightly below normal. It was obvious that she was feeling better now that she'd put a little time between her and the assassination attempt.
After practice, the pilots gathered in the control room for the usual debriefing, after which Keith asked Adam and Allura to stay behind. As the others left, he turned to them and said, "The preliminary reports are in on the assassin and his gear."
"Well?" Adam asked expectantly. "Don't keep us in suspense, boss."
"His ship was covered by some kind of low-grade energy field that deflected sensors and quieted the engine sounds. Our techs have never seen anything like it, neither have Hunk or Pidge."
"You want my guys to have a look?" Adam asked. "It's possible the guy could be Fed-Side." "Fed-Side" was a word that had recently popped up on Arus to describe anyone from the Federation side of the wormhole. It was certainly easier to say than "Alternate Milky Way", and less confusing.
Keith shook his head. "Commander Wright sent someone to check it out. It isn't from the Federation, or any race in your databanks." Quickly, he changed the subject. "We also figured out how he got in without the visual sensors seeing him." He went to a storage locker and pulled out one of the assassin's gloves. He pressed a switch on the back and threw it against a wall. It hit the steel with a metallic thunk and stuck there. "There are electro-magnets on the back of the gloves, and a series of scuff marks we traced back to the weapons bay."
"So the guy comes in with a nearly-cloaked ship," said Adam, "Shimmies into a weapon port, and pulls a Peter Parker to avoid our sensors. Is that what you're saying?"
Allura looked at him quizzically. "Who's Peter Parker?"
"Spider-Man," Adam replied. Allura still didn't seem to understand. "I'll tell ya later," he said.
"Yes," said Keith. "That's about it. But other than that, our assassin is just a typical, run-of-the-mill Drule."
"Drule?" Adam and Allura both asked.
"You mean Zarkon did this?" Allura asked.
"Maybe. Don't forget, there are other kingdoms in the Drule Empire. And with all the face Zarkon's been losing over Voltron, someone may have decided to help him out."
"So what do we do?" Allura asked.
"Unfortunately, there's not much we can do," said Keith. "If Zarkon's behind all this, the only way to stop it is to stop him, which, at the moment, we can't."
"And what if it's one of the other Drules?" Adam asked.
"We'll know soon. I called in a favor at Galaxy Garrison, and if they hear anything about an assassination attempt on Arus, they'll relay the information." He looked at Allura with a slightly pained expression, like he didn't really want to say what he had to say next. "For the time being, until we finish the upgrades and re-secure the castle, it looks like you'll have to stay on the Berlin. I'm really sorry, Princess."
Allura nodded. "It isn't your fault, Keith. You did all you could. At least now we know what's going on, and who's behind it. "
And awkward silence descended on the trio, before Adam's combadge chirped. "Berlin to Driscoll," Gredar's voice hissed. "You are needed in the conference room."
Driscoll slapped his badge. "Acknowledged." He glanced at Keith and Allura. "Duty calls," he said, and walked quickly from the room.
Alone with the Princess, Keith suddenly felt that old awkwardness again. He was about to ask her how she was feeling, when she said, "Well, I have some things I should take care of. Thanks for everything, Keith. I feel better knowing what we're up against."
Keith nodded. "Anytime, Princess." He stood as if anchored to the floor as she turned and walked out. When the door closed, Keith cursed himself. Well, at least he was consistent. Another perfectly good opportunity shot to hell. How was he ever going to tell Allura how he felt if he couldn't take the chances when they came?
But then, maybe it was a sign. It was his own rule that Allura was off limits, and now here he was, the man who made the rule, pining over the woman he himself had placed out of bounds. And he didn't even know how she felt about him. If she didn't feel the same way, he could understand. At least he'd know. But the not knowing…
But, as always, Keith swallowed his emotions and headed to his room. He had a stack of paperwork a mile high to take care of after the invasion, and now, he supposed, was as good a time as any to take a chunk out of it.