Hello everyone! For those who came back, thank you!

I'm dedicating this chapter to Drowningblonde, who I am grateful to for her taking a look at my story and offering wonderful advice. Thank you for caring enough to help me become a better storyteller. I appreciate your input and I will definitely take your offer! Expect emails soon!

DrowningBlonde: Space western…wow, love it! I think you are going to love the antagonists in this fic…well, I hope. ;). BTW: Loved the Razor's Edge chapter! People, read it. It's awesome!

BKNBU: I liked that line too. Made me laugh a bit when I wrote it. Oh, Liam is special, hopefully you'll see why.

Feli3: Well, here's what happens next chica! And yes, it is a daytime soap. So…oh boy!

Mertz: I'm trying to make them short…I really, REALLY am!

Smithy: I'm updating as quickly as I can. I never realized that Dorma and Hazar were playing matchmakers until some of you guys pointed it out…go figure.

FroobyB: I have to teach a class tomorrow….care to teach it for me while I work on the next chapter? Pretty please…

Aprilcon00: Thank you for reading. I may leave you hanging every week…unfortunately that's how soaps work.

KathDMD: Lovey! You have made writing fun again! Please let's set up our virtual girls night out…

Petite0312: See, here's next week. Thank you for reading. Thank you, thank you.

Bluebaby1219: I never thought people would get a kick out of a cowardly Liam. Thank you for reading. Did you find the time machine?

Cubbieberry: Sorry, no Easter bunny…but, at least the week went by fast, right?

Ok, here is the next chapter everyone, see you soon.

Chapter 4

Lance heard the sounds of a galloping horse coming his way as he ran back to the site where the group was attacked. Soon, he watched the mare appear in front of him. At first, he thought it was Keith coming up to him, but seeing how the rider was having a hard time controlling the horse, he quickly dismissed him as his commander and friend.

"Liam!" Lance came up running toward him once he recognized who it was. The prince abruptly stopped. Lance could see the panic on his face as he demanded, "Where's Keith?"

"He was taken! I tried…I tried to stop them…" Liam began to explain, stuttering while trying to contain his panic, "Where's Allura?"

"She was taken too," the lieutenant replied. Lance suspected something wrong with the prince's demeanor, but he realized it was not the time to interrogate him further. He had to find Keith and Allura. "Give me the horse," Lance ordered.

"Where are you going?" the prince asked surprised, "We should go back to the castle. Besides, you're hurt!" Noticing Lance's left shoulder bleeding.

"I have to go back to find Keith and the princess!" the Red Lion pilot replied in anger. "Now give me the damn horse!"

"Absolutely not!" Liam challenged. "I need to get back to the castle. You want to go back to that war zone, fine! But, not with me. I'm not going back. "

Knowing he had no time for arguments, Lance pulled out his gun and aimed it at the prince, "You want to go back, fine! Use your legs. Now, get your off the horse, right now!"

"You can't do this!" Liam panicked. "You can't treat me this way. If anything, you're the one that should be taking orders from me!" Nervous as he was, the prince still managed to try to pull a gun from his holster and point it at Lance.

"Try me," Lance roared, unfazed by the gun being pointed at him. "Wanna bet who can pull the trigger faster?" When the prince didn't immediately respond, he snapped, "Liam, I don't have time for this! Now, get off the horse or I'll shoot you!"

Staring down at Lance's wild eyes and the anger radiating from the tone of his voice, the prince acknowledged he couldn't win and put away his gun before he dismounted from the horse. Stepping back his expression still shined with his rage as he snarled, "You will not get away with this!"

"You better hope Keith is alright," Lance retorted with rage, ignoring the comment, "Because if he's not, we'll have lost the only chance of getting Allura back." Mounting the horse, Lance turned and headed for the area where they were ambushed.

XXXXXXXXXX

Groaning, Keith opened his eyes and found himself strapped onto a bed. Nothing looked familiar to him until he turned his head to the side and saw the princess across from him lying on a bed similar to his. Her eyes were closed and a Drule woman stood over her. The Drule's hands were on Allura's temples rubbing them softly, her eyes were closed in deep concentration.

"Captain, glad to see you're awake," he heard an unrecognizable voice. The captain suddenly turned to the other side and was met with another pair of Drules eyes, "We can get started now," the man gently told him.

Still somewhat hazy, Keith asked groggily, "Who… are you? What are… you doing to the princess?"

"Don't worry, Captain Kogane," Hazar smiled. "No harm will come to either you or the princess. We just need your services for a short period of time."

Pushing the fogginess away, Keith continued inquiring as he looked at the Drule with contempt, "What are you talking about?"

Sighing, the Drule commander answered, "I wish there was more time to discuss our situation. Unfortunately, we do not have such luxury. It will only be a matter of time before your team finds us. If it makes you feel any better, you will know everything in due time." Placing his index and middle fingers on each side of Keith's temples, Hazar closed his eyes and tried to enter the captain's mind.

Keith shook his head trying to deter him, realizing what the Drule was trying to do. He tried desperately to resist, "No!"

Finding that he could not get a hold of Keith's mind, Hazar stopped what he was doing and studied the man further, "You are an interesting specimen, Kogane."

"How is that?" Keith spat out, his anger rising.

"I can't enter your mind," Hazar answered with a matter of fact tone. Pausing for a bit, the Drule looked intently at the captain and smiled when he realized something, "You are a Garrison Special Operative, aren't you, Captain?"

Keith didn't reply to the statement, but Hazar nodded in acknowledgment, "I am well aware that the Garrison trains their operatives against mind control. You must have gone through hell. I've heard the conditioning process is painful, to say the least. This delays our plans a little, but don't think you'll stop them, Captain."

The Drule commander walked away for a moment, leaving Keith's sight. Turning his head he found Allura, sleeping peacefully, Keith thought he actually saw her smile. His attention was cut short, however, when he noticed the Drule returning carrying a large hypo gun, "It's a good thing that we've developed something that will enable me to counter the conditioning Garrison put you through." He took the gun and quickly shot it into Keith's on his left temple. He screamed with pain, feeling an excruciating blast from the side of his head. Holding Keith's head once again to control his movement, Hazar replied, "I'm sorry, I forgot to tell you that this method is rather painful as well."

The captain felt the initial pain slowly drift away, but it was quickly replaced by a hazy yet relaxing feeling. He felt free, light, and weak. Looking blankly at the Drule commander, Keith saw him smile, Hello Commander Kogane…Tell me…what is your deepest desire….

XXXXXXXXXX

Allura found herself in the forest. She knew she was on Arus. She just didn't remember how she got away from her captors, but she had and she was happy. Then, she heard a voice, coming from the heavens, "Who do you dream of?"

"Him," Allura smiled as she looked around the talking forest and pointed at the answer to the question, "I dream of him." Suddenly the one she dreamed of appeared before her eyes. "He's the one I dream of every night." Her dream smiled at her as she walked toward him. Taking her into his arms, he kissed her with such passion, she groaned, "I love you so much, Keith."

"You love him?" the heavens asked.

"Yes," Allura answered while looking intently at him.

"Does he love you back?"

Allura's smiled faded, along with the man she had kissed, "I don't think he loves me. He's only a friend. Just a friend."

"Would you love him Allura?" the forest replied, "Would you truly love him as much as he loves you?"

"I'd give anything to love him."

XXXXXXXXXX

When Lance arrived, he found nothing but the dead guards and the carriage. There were no signs of Keith anywhere. Quickly, he took out his comm unit and tried once again to contact castle control. Surprised when it didn't work, he threw the device on the ground out of frustration. "Damn it!" he shouted before turning his horse around. Quickly, he headed toward the direction he had left Liam. He needed to get to his lion and fast.

XXXXXXXXXX

Entering the commander's mind proved more difficult than Hazar originally thought. Keith fought the Drule with all he could, but the drug administered to him gradually weakened his state of mind. He soon heard Hazar's voice in his head and slowly succumbed to his order, can you hear me Keith?

"Yes," he choked out.

Show me your hopes… your fears… The voice whispered in his mind. Before he could not stop himself, he did as the voice asked and showed him everything.

Hazar continued exploring his mind before he found himself shocked by what he saw. Allura of Arus! Her smile, her face, memories Keith had of her in his mind. Moments of laughter, of fear, and then he felt what Keith felt; love. It was so strong, so pure that he felt his body shook. His eyes snapped open and he noticed Dorma looking at him. It appeared that she had been studying him for some time before he exited the trance. "Dorma…I thought…"

"What happened?" she asked.

"He…he is a strong one," Hazar answered. Looking at the princess who slept soundly, he asked, "How is our dear princess?"

"I am finished with her. I've implanted the suggestion and she's ready whenever he is," she answered, gesturing toward Keith, who seemed to continue to fight with whatever narcotic Hazar had administered him. "What happened? You are...uneasy."

Nodding, he answered, "Yes. What I found out from Kogane was rather interesting. Seems like Captain Kogane is in love with the fair skinned princess over here."

"Is that right?" Dorma seemed interested. "She is in love with him as well, but she has hidden her feelings for him very deeply…it is as if she's afraid for them to surface out of her subconscious," Dorma concluded. "She doesn't believe he will accept her love."

"Interesting, so she is in love with him?" Hazar confirmed.

Dorma nodded slowly, "Yes, but, she's not letting her heart release that love." A smile crept across her features, "This shall be fun."

"What do you mean?" Hazar asked curiously.

"Continue implanting the suggestion. I'm going back to Allura. When I'm done with her, I'd like a few moments with the captain. I think I have the perfect way to not only gain Lotor, but to offer him Arus!" Dorma beamed.

XXXXXXXXXX

As he headed back to the castle, Lance ran into Liam, who was still walking. When the prince heard the sound of the horse coming, he quickly took refuge behind one of the trees within the forest. Almost rolling his eyes, Lance yelled, "It's me, your Highness!"

Walking out, the prince yelled, "How dare you leave me alone! Someone could have come and taken me."

"I highly doubt that," Lance answered, "Come on, we need to get back to the castle."

"What about Allura? We need to find her."

"How nice of you to remember the woman you supposedly want to make your wife," Lance's sarcasm slipped through his tongue, "What do you mean, what about her? You're the one who lowered her chances of being rescued when you allowed the Drules to take Keith too."

"There were too many of them!" Liam replied, "I couldn't do anything."

"So you say," Lance huffed, "Either way, we don't have time to argue. The faster we get back to the castle, the more we have a chance of finding them."

XXXXXXXXXX

Walking back to the captain, Hazar placed his fingers once again to his temples and began entering his mind, Captain, how much do you love her?

Mental pictures of Allura flashed through Keith's mind as he heard the question. "With my life," he whispered.

Why can't you love her?

Shaking his head softly, he continued whispering, "She…she loves…Liam. She loves Liam."

I'm here to tell you that she doesn't, Captain, Hazar explained, Allura of Arus loves you and only you. Satisfy her Captain. Would you love her? Would you show her your love?

Keith smiled softly, "Yes,"

Good Captain. Good.

XXXXXXXXXX

Making it back to the castle, Lance ordered Liam to quickly dismount from the horse before he dismounted himself. They both ran to Control, hoping that Keith had somehow communicated with Pidge or Hunk. As he ran in, Pidge and Hunk turned away from what they had been working on to see their friend gasping for air, "Lance! What happened?" Pidge asked.

"I…I've been trying…to contact you two…" Lance began. "We were…ambushed!"

Hunk's eyes widened, "What? When? We've received no messages from either of you since your last report. Where's Keith?"

"Where's Allura?" Pidge nervously asked before Lance could answer Hunk's question.

"Taken," Lance answered simply, still trying to control his breathing. "Both of them."

Quickly, Hunk went to the console and began searching, while Pidge contacted Coran, "Nothing has entered Arus' atmosphere since this morning."

"Check last night," Liam offered.

Shaking his head, Pidge immediately answered as he put his comm unit away, "No way. We would have picked up something on patrol."

"Unless they came in cloaked," Lance suggested.

"What?" Liam asked, whipping his head to face the lieutenant.

"A cloaking device," Hunk volunteered. Typing more information onto the console he added, "I'm scanning the area right now."

Just as Hunk began searching, Coran walked in, "How did this happen? Nothing has crossed our scanners."

"Coran, I'm not sure, they came out of nowhere. We think they must have used some type of incredibly advanced cloaking device," Lance interjected. "I'm not sure how to tell you this, but Keith and Allura were taken."

The color drained from Coran's face. "How…"

"I don't know how the hell this happened!" Lance answered frustrated. "One minute everything was fine. Keith and I secured all points, the guards too…everything was normal. Our scans didn't pick up anything! And then they appeared literally out of thin air," Lance stated. "It's like they were there all along…following us."

Typing away at another station, Pidge voiced out another concern, "I'm not picking up their tracking devices either. It's like something is preventing the signal from connecting to our systems."

"Damn it!" Lance snapped.

"Nothing!" Hunk banged his hand on the console. "I'm not finding a signal." The big man paused for a moment, "Unless…"

"Unless what?" Lance questioned.

Turning to the advisor, Hunk answered, "Coran, remember that strange signal we looked at earlier today? The one we thought could be satellite interference?"

Acknowledging the younger man's question, Coran nodded in agreement, "That has to be it!"

"I can't find it now," Hunk sighed.

"Keep searching," Lance stated.

"They could have left the planet by now," Liam argued. "Shouldn't you go to Doom and get Allura back?"

"We don't know that she's been taken there," Pidge looked at the prince with annoyance. "We need to locate the signal first…find where it is headed."

"This is ridiculous. We could be here all day!" Liam began to raise his voice, "We need to act now!"

Lance finally lost all his patience. Turning to the prince, he grabbed him by collar and pulled him close, so they were face to face, "Act now? Tell me, did you act quickly when you took off, leaving Keith behind?"

"What the hell are you talking about?" the prince seemed panicked as he tried to break free.

"Do you think I don't know what you did?" Lance pointed out. "There isn't one scratch on you, Liam. I know you ran out of there with your tail wedged firmly up your butt and left Keith there to fend for himself."

"That's preposterous!" the prince finally broke free.

"That's the truth!" Lance replied as he grab Liam's shirt roughly again. "You're not fooling me!"

"Get your hands off of me!" Liam fought, "I'm not going to listen you're your insults. I did what I had to do to save myself!"

"We don't have time to argue!" Coran broke them apart. Looking at Lance, the advisor opened his grey eyes widely at him as he made his point, "We have to find Keith and Allura."

Nodding in understanding, Lance sighed and turned around to Pidge and Hunk. Walking over to the console, he pulled up a map of the area where they were ambushed, "Run a scan around this area. Maybe we'll find a clue or something to give us a start as to where they might be or where they've taken them."

As the men did as ordered, Liam walked over to the advisor, "Thank you Coran." Hearing the prince's voice made Coran cringed. Diplomacy was out of the question at a time like this as he commented, "I suggest you get out of our way…your Highness."

Shocked to hear that tone from Coran, Liam snorted and left Control as the other three men continued searching for any clue that could lead them to their friends.