Once Sam Holt entered the cell, the guards locked the cell doors tight shut, just like they always did. Matt saw that Sam seemed exhausted, and he made to stand up, to offer the lower bunk to his father, but Sam waved his hand in a 'no, no, it's all right' gesture and came and sat down next to his son.

"How's your leg?" Sam asked. His son shrugged and looked down at the ground for a moment before answering.

"I'll live," Matt said, but Sam saw how Matt's fingers were clenched into a fist by his side, and he knew that Matt trying to hide the pain his injury caused him.

"…it's Shiro, isn't it?" Sam asked, and Matt nodded once, abruptly.

"Whenever - whenever my leg hurts, I remember what he did for me - for us," he said. "Dad - we have to find out what happened to him - we have to-"

Sam nodded, looking back over at the door of their cell. It was thick and solid, but he lowered his voice all the same. They rarely spoke to each other above a whisper, even when they were alone in the cell they shared.

"I heard some of the other scientists talking today. It seems that there was an experiment that failed - the name 'Champion' came up - but they didn't say much about it. I got the impression that whatever had gone wrong had been - completely unexpected - and - and - "

Matt sat up, ramrod straight. Any news was better than none - but the thought of his friend dead - or worse -

Matt didn't want to think about what kind of hell Haggar was putting Shiro through.

Or - had -

No, he told himself fiercely. No, don't assume the worst. Don't do that, Matt. That's not going to help anyone. Not Shiro, not you, and not your dad. Come on.

Sam's voice was shaking, but he kept speaking. "Matt - I don't think it was recent news - and it was only a - a rumor - but - but it sounded like - "

Matt felt his shoulders tighten. "Do you think - maybe he - he got - away?"

Sam's shoulders slumped, and he shook his head. "I don't know. It sounded - it sounded bad, Matt. I think - I think it's possible that - "

Matt shook his head stubbornly, almost fiercely. "No - no - "

Sam's voice was low, but it was gentle. "Matt - I'm not saying - that we should - give up - on Shiro - for all we know, he is still alive - but - but I don't - want you - to - to - "

Matt's temper, frayed already, almost snapped then. "You don't want me to what, Dad?! Blame myself? You know I do - every day! If Shiro is dead - or - or - hurt - then it's my fault - it's my fault - "

Samuel Holt shook his head, when he spoke, his voice was gentle, but iron strong.

"No, Matthew, it is not your fault. None of it is. It's the Galra Empire, and their cruelty - and only that. What happened to Shiro is not your fault. You cannot blame yourself. You will go mad if you do-"

Before he realized what he was doing, Matt had gotten to his feet and was pacing the room, swearing under his breath at his leg, at the pain it caused him, at the desperation and fear he felt at the thought of his friend - of his friend -

"So what can I do?!" he asked his father, frustration causing his voice to come out louder than he meant it to. He knew this news wasn't his father's fault - his dad only worked in the data labs and tried to glean information as he could.

Samuel Holt opened his mouth to answer, but at that moment, an alarm began to blare in the hallways, and they heard soldiers begin to run past their door. Matt stopped pacing to listen.

"What's going on?" he asked.

Sam shook his head. "I don't know - maybe - maybe an accident in the mines?"

Matt came back to stand by his father, both of them listening hard to the voices coming over the intercoms.

"I - don't think so - " Matt said. "I - I didn't notice anything down there that could cause a reaction like this - not from the soliders, anyway - so what - "

There was a hiss, and a buzz, and then a new voice, a different voice, was speaking.

"- I swear, these Galra systems - these comms are -"

Static cut out the sound for a second, but Matt knew that voice. He knew it as well as his own. Matt saw his father turn to look back at him, his eyes wide in startled wonder and something resembling bewildered joy.

"Is - is - that - " he said, but Matt waved his hand frantically, gesturing for his father to listen.

Then the static died away, and another voice, one Matt dimly remembered, spoke.

"-yeah, Pidge, we know, we know, you're a goddess at hacking - but can they hear us now or not?"

Katie - or Pidge - that had - had been her nickname as a kid - spoke again, and her voice was that endearing mix of annoyed and preoccupied that Matt remembered so well.

"-quit freaking out, Pyro - "

The other voice sounded again, and it was terse, but there was something else in it that was hard to pin down. Exasperated affection, maybe? Like this was an argument they'd had multiple times? Matt knew what that was like. Katie was his younger sister, after all. It kind of came with the territory of 'siblinghood'.

"-I am not freaking out - I'm just - concerned - "

Sam suddenly remembered who the other voice belonged to, and he took in a sharp gasp of air in surprise and complete bewilderment.

Keith. Keith Kogane. That was Kenneth and Mae's son - Shiro's adopted younger brother.

What were Katie and Keith doing out here in Galra space?

Then Katie spoke again, and her tone was quick, decisive, confident.

"- and - done! Okay, they can hear us now. Iroh, you want to take it away?"

Sam and Matt looked at each other, confusion written on both their faces.

"Am I crazy…" Matt asked slowly, "…or is that…uh…"

He gave up, spread his hands wide in an expressive gesture that was half-shrug, half bewilderment. "I'm all kinds of confused right now-"

Then another voice came over the comms, and at the sound, Matt half-fell, half-leaned against the wall in shock. Sam's face went white as paper, because he thought he'd never hear that voice again.

"Attention all prisoners. This is the Black Paladin of Voltron. The mining planet you are on is unstable - the Galra soldiers guarding you have fled the planet. Stand by and prepare for transport - we're getting you out of there-"

"OhmyGod - Shiro?!" Matt cried, and Sam lurched to his feet in turn, his face pale, his eyes wide.

"The comms - they're only one-way, Matt - he can't - he can't hear you - "

But Matt wasn't really listening anymore. Heedless of his bad leg, he went as fast as he could to the door of the cell and tried to open it, banging on it uselessly. The only thing he could think of was trying to make his friend hear him.

"SHIRO!" he screamed, but then he felt an odd sensation, and looked down to see white motes of light starting to flicker all over his body. He stumbled back in shock, and felt his father reach out to grab his arm.