Hey, guys, you came!"
As the sun shone overhead, Lance greeted Allura and the other Paladins with a renewed vigor, eager to go from the boardwalk to the beach itself, specifically, a large beach close to his home where the Blue Lion just happened to be resting a few miles off of shore, unbeknownst to anyone. With the Blue Lion safely hidden away, and Pidge's program assured to take several days before it could pinpoint the exact location of Keats' hidden base on Earth, the group had a few days of actual downtime, downtime they intended on taking advantage of.
Keith was nowhere near as bombastic as his partner, but he was doing something that he hadn't done too much of since coming to Earth. He smiled. The McClane family was very friendly and accommodating, fixing the pair breakfast before they headed off to work, both promising to come home early to fix everyone a late dinner of the pernil Lance kept bugging the group about.
With breakfast done, and Pidge's rather generous acquired sum of cash in hand, the pair had headed to a nearby shop to get swim gear, and at Lance's insistence, rented surfboards for all five of the group right before heading off to the beach. Holding them under both arms, he walked up to the group, with Allura looking on at the odd plastic shaped items. To Lance's disappointment, she was wearing a T-shirt and shorts over her bathing suit, something that Pidge and Hunk followed suit with. Hunk held a large umbrella and a cooler, presumably filled with food and drinks for later, while Pidge carried a bag with towels and Allura a few rented beach chairs.
"What are these?" Allura asked, having put down the chairs she was carrying and examining the odd plastic shaped device. "They look like bludgeoning tools. Are you planning on training today?"
"No, no, no," Lance said. "They're surfboards. On Earth, a popular sport in coastal areas is to use these to ride the ocean waves as they come in."
"Really?" she asked, her voice showing some intrigue. "That sounds…interesting."
"It's actually a lot of fun," Hunk said. "My one brother was really good at surfing. Actually did a few contests. I was…okay, but I wouldn't mind doing it again. It's been a long time."
"Can't say I've ever gone surfing," Pidge said.
"Me neither," added Keith.
"Oh, come on guys!" Lance exclaimed. "It's not that hard! It'll be fun!"
Picking up one of the boards in her hands, Allura asked Lance "Will you teach me?" His response was immediate.
"Sure!"
"We should probably find a place to put our stuff first," Hunk said, carrying the cooler down to the beach itself, with the others following suit. As they did so, Keith looked on at the beaming Lance.
"Something tells me you didn't get the surfboards just so we could bond as a team."
"Well I was planning on showing Allura something I could whip your butt at, but honestly, it's just been so long that I miss it."
"Don't get too cocky," Keith snickered, helping Hunk and Pidge set up their spot. "For all you know I can ride circles around you."
"Yeah, sure."
The group set the spot up quickly, and at Lance's insistence, grabbed the surfboards to head down to the beach. Before she did, Allura removed her T-shirt and shorts, causing Lance to stare.
"Wow. That…is a good look for you."
"You think so?" Allura asked, adjusting the top of a silver colored bikini top, the colors and shape accenting her already impressive figure. "I must admit, Alteans didn't do a lot of swimming. The environment was far more…vegetative. You were far more likely to see grass than beaches. The store owner advised me to take this outfit."
"Extremely," Lance said, mentally reminding himself to thank said store owner. As he continued to stare, however, the blue Paladin was elbowed slightly by an annoyed Pidge.
"Don't stare." She too had removed her shirt, revealing a far more modest one-piece bathing suit. Lance couldn't help but scoff at the request.
"Easier said than done."
Fireball had performed all of his usual rituals before boarding Vytor. He had put on his pilot's suit, looking on at pictures of his family. Finally, he looked at a picture of April. With that done, he walked into the hangar, looking at the massive robot that he had come to see as a suit of armor. When called upon, he would don Vytor and vanquish evil.
And now he was being called upon to battle the evilest man to have walked the Earth in over a hundred years.
All systems are green Fire…Shinji, announced the voice of April as Fireball continued to adjust the controls on the cockpit, the robot being raised from its below-deck hangar to the surface of the ship. With all the instruments accounted for, the Japanese pilot gripped the controls of the robot.
Vytor is ready to launch at your command.
"Ready to go April. Fireball, Vytor, MOVING OUT!"
The roar of jet engines echoed throughout the vicinity as Vytor flew off from the Gallant, a hunter in search of its prey.
"See? You're getting the hang of it already! Well, some of you are."
Lance looked behind at the others, all of who were having varying degrees of success at trying to master the art of surfing. Hunk, who had some experience with surfing back home, seemed to take to it relatively well, moving through waves at a moderate pace. Pidge, surprisingly, had a remarkable sense of balance for a beginner, moving just carefully enough to avoid falling off. Keith, much to Lance's amusement, found it very difficult to stay standing on the surfboard, stumbling onto his belly to keep from falling in the water like he did the first time he tried.
And then there was Allura.
She was even more of a novice than Keith and Pidge, and yet seemed to take to it naturally, moving through the waves to and fro, spinning up and down.
"Lance!" she exclaimed. "You are right actually, this is quite enjoyable!"
"I told you!" Lance said, moving his surfboard next to Allura's as the pair continued to move through the cresting waves. "Just don't overdo it your first time out!"
"Nonsense!" Allura shouted. "What's the worse that could haaAAA!"
Allura had cut too far in one direction, and what was shaping up to be a fantastic run from a first time surfer ended with her wiping out in the water, forced to swim harmlessly back to shore where the others found her.
"Allura!" Hunk yelled as he swam back towards shore. As he did so, a piece of silver fabric hit his board, an item he recognized all too well.
"Allura," Lance began, "are you O…oh."
"What?" she asked. "What is it? And why is it so cold? Why are you staring at me like that?"
"Uh, Princess," Pidge said, pointing towards Allura's chest as the men were too occupied with the view to say anything.
"AAAHHHHHH!"
"She did not need to hit me over the head."
"You're lucky that's all she did to you," Hunk said, consoling Lance as the Blue Paladin held a chilled can of soda over the bump on his head. Allura had not taken his stares too well and chose to make her displeasure known with the nearest object, the rented surfboard. Luckily it didn't break.
"Well, it's not like I took it off of her! Even I have standards!"
"That was pretty fun," Pidge said, lying back on a chair as she drank a soda from the cooler.
"The surfing or Allura trying to cave my head in?"
"Both."
Lance mumbled but chose to lie back in his chair, letting the cold from the can soothe his bruise. "Hey, where is Allura anyway?"
"She went off with Keith. Presumably to mope about their inability to surf."
"She'll be fine after a few lessons, and with a better fitted bikini top."
Sure enough, a short distance from where the group was, Allura and Keith were sitting down on a pair of towels, getting some healthy distance from Lance and his little bonding activity. They would forgive him, but for the moment, needed some time away from the group. The fact that it happened to be with each other was perfectly coincidental.
"So beaches weren't common on Altea?" Keith asked.
"No, not by where I lived. Of all the things Father and I used to do together, swimming wasn't one we did all that often. And you? You didn't seem very comfortable on that contraption."
"I lived in a landlocked area," Keith replied. "We had a public pool in the neighborhood that all the kids would swim in, but a pool and the ocean are kinda different."
"I can imagine," Allura said. "Still, it's pretty. But there's something I don't get," she added, looking on at the crowds on the beach.
"What's that?"
"Your planet is at war with the Galra, but look around. The beach is full of civilians, men, women, and children. Do they not worry that the Galra could strike any second?"
"Of course they're worried," Keith said. "But that's not going to stop them from living their lives. If humans are good at anything, it's having hope, and trying to ignore the bad."
"Is that a good thing?"
"Depends. Now, I'd say it is. Otherwise, we would be stuck in the castle all day, only going out to fight. We'd be lifeless blobs."
Allura couldn't help but laugh at Keith's statement, prompting him to ask, "What's so funny?"
"Humans are a strange lot, you must admit."
"Yeah, but I'm still one of them. I still hope."
"What do you hope for?"
"You know," Keith said, trying to find the proper words. "Stuff. Like we'll be able to beat Zarkon. We'll be able to stay at home, settle down, do all that family stuff we're supposed to do."
Allura said nothing, but held Keith's hand slightly, causing him to blush. He didn't resist, however.
"Let's just enjoy the time we have here for now. We can worry about everything else later. Although I will ask you to place some more of the sunscreen on my body in a short while, if you don't mind."
"N…not at all."
The pair's respite was short lived, as soon after they lied down, a loud rumbling was heard overhead, waking them.
"What is causing that noise?" Allura asked only to look up at Keith's instance.
"Great. They found us."
"TAKASHI SHIROGANE!" a voice bellowed from the speakers of the massive robot. "I know you are hiding among innocents! Come out coward, so Vytor can give you the quick death you deserve!"
Panic began to spread among the beachgoers as the presence of the giant robot as well as the announcement of Shiro's presence caused people to run in fear; worried a battle would start. Keith and Allura were unsure of what to do, but soon found they didn't need to do anything.
"HEY! You in the tin can! Over here!"
Lance seemed to be doing it for them, waiving his arms up and down in an attempt to signal the pilot of the silver and red robot.
"Who are you? Where is Shiro?"
"I'd like to know that myself!" Lance said. "I've got a bone to pick with him, same as everyone else here! But you oughta cool your jets, literally. You're scaring everyone!"
From the cockpit of Vytor, the pilot began looking through information on the target in front of him. A match was soon found.
"Y…you were arrested along with Shiro! Are you Galra?"
"Hell no!" Lance yelled. "My name is Lance, leader of the Voltron Paladins!"
At this 'revelation', both Keith and Allura stared at each other, their expressions both asking if he really just said what they thought he said.
"Is that so?" the pilot asked. "And that means what to mean, other than your robot was seen helping Shiro?"
"Well 'Shiro' tricked us into working for him. We're deep space explorers who got roped into helping the guy, with no idea of what was going on with Earth! Trust me, if I find the guy, I'll be happy to give him to you! But we're not your enemies!"
The pilot of Vytor remained silent for a few moments, before saying "You escaped a maximum security prison with a weapon that Galaxy Garrison intended to study! Why should I believe anything you say?"
"It's not yours!" Lance yelled. "And if I was working for Shiro, do you think I'd really give a damn about the people here? I want you to leave so you won't hurt anyone!"
"Then you and your friends must surrender to me at once, and turn over your lion robots!"
"Fraid that's not on the table!" Lance said. "You want my lions, you'll have to take them from me!"
"That can be arranged! I can kill you right now!"
"And hurt innocent people?" Lance asked. "Come back here at sunset! I'll bring you the lions, but you'll have to take them from us!"
Allura and Keith were unsure of what to say. Both were thinking the same thing, namely Lance you complete idiot, but as the machine covered to hover, the pilot asked another question.
"Why should I trust you?"
"You know where one of them is! If you want the others, you can either look endlessly or wait till tonight and I'll bring them here!"
The machine hovered, before flying off, its pilot's words echoing.
"Very well Lance, I will meet you back here tonight. No tricks! If you try to escape, the wrath of the entire Galaxy Garrison will fall on this place!"
The robot flew off, confused beachgoers unsure of what to make of it. Meanwhile, Allura and Keith could only stare at Lance dumbfounded.
"Pretty quick thinking, huh?"
"You said WHAT?!"
Extreme boredom had been replaced by extreme anger for Shiro. Content to mull his time training and looking up information on what he had missed, he was soon informed of the other Paladins' action, particularly Lance's.
"Hear me out. It was not a bad idea!"
"Why wasn't it, SOLDIER?!"
Clearing his throat, Lance replied, "Because as far as Galaxy Garrison is concerned, the five of us are just a bunch of idiots who happen to have a powerful superweapon. You're Public Enemy #1."
"What are you getting at?" Keith asked.
"Easy. If Vytor only thinks that he's dealing with us," Lance said, motioning to Allura and the others, "and not Shiro, then he's probably not going to call in every plane they have to carpet bomb the city. They want Voltron intact and us for questioning. They want Shiro dead."
"OK, there's just one tiny hole in your plan," Shiro said.
"What's that?"
"I'm the Black Paladin. Voltron doesn't go anywhere without me. And from what it sounds like, this Vytor guy is itching for a fight."
"Leave that to me."
Sunset came as the seemingly empty field roared to life with the sound of jet engines, signaling the arrival of the machine known as Vytor. Its pilot looked around, waiting for his target.
"Well, this is the meeting place. April, make sure they're not trying to slip past me."
Five bogeys are inbound Shinji. They're the lion robots.
Good.
You don't trust this Lance that he's not working for Shiro do you?
"I trust him as much as I trust a thief. But he didn't immediately try to attack me, so perhaps there is a chance to resolve this peacefully."
"VYTOR!" shouted the voice of Lance from the blue lion, the smaller lion in the center of the formation. "The lions are here, and as you can see, aren't being used to blow up anything! Now, what do you want?"
"Surrender your machines and turn yourselves in," the pilot answered.
"I can't do that! Not until I find Shiro!"
"If you will not turn in yourselves to the authorities, then I will have to bring you in by force!"
"You want to fight, huh samurai? Well, I'll oblige you! Allura, you ready?"
"As ready as I'll ever be."
Allura looked behind her at the seating situation. Namely, she sat hunched over in front of a Shiro wearing all black, including a black ski mask, so as not to attract undue attention. The last thing the group needed was an errant signal showing Shiro and revealing their ruse.
"Allura," Shiro began, "remember; say whatever orders I tell you to the others. All this stuff will make sure no one picks up my voice, so you'll need to give out my orders to the team."
"Of course."
"Alright then!" Lance shouted. "FORM VOLTRON!"
"Viceroy, my plan worked perfectly, as you can see."
Viceroy Throk was intrigued by the sight in the control room, particularly the image from overhead on the massive monitor. It showed Voltron preparing to battle one of the members of the Super Robot Corps, the same way Keats' plan had called for.
"How are we seeing this?"
"My Robeast Draco-1, 2, and 3. They're viewing the battle, and will intercede if the time is right."
"When would the time be right?"
"To accentuate Shiro's guilt or to prevent Voltron from falling into the hands of the humans of course. But for now, I'm going to sit back and watch as they tear each other apart looking for me."
"I believe I'll join you. After all, the outcome of this battle will determine if we move forward with the Draco Robeasts or move on to a new model."
"I love Draco," Keats said, "but he isn't my masterpiece. I'm still working on that with the combat data acquired from the various Voltrons."
Standing in front of Vytor was a robot of equal height, the machine that Galaxy Garrison had referred to as "Lion Voltron", a name that would obvious to anyone when they looked at the machine's hands. Observing it, Fireball couldn't help but scoff.
"So this is the famous Lion Voltron that Earth's Super Robot technology is based off of? I must say, it looks like quite the disappointment."
"Voltron is the greatest weapon the universe has ever known!" shouted the voice of Allura. "You underestimate it at your own peril!"
"Allura, calm down," Shiro said, his voice hushed and muted. Remembering what Lance had said earlier, she first deactivated her signal before turning around and going "Sorry."
"It's fine. Just keep the channel clear unless I say otherwise."
"Very well then," Fireball said. "STAR NOVA BARRAGE!"
Expecting Vytor to draw a sword and then engage Voltron in close-quarters combat, Shiro became nervous when he saw numerous panels open on both the upper and lower parts of the armor, revealing missile batteries. Vytor meanwhile, had drawn its cannon, holding it in front of the machine.
"We can't close the distance in enough time!"
"Move!" Shiro yelled a command that Allura soon echoed.
"FIRE!"
As Voltron attempted to move out of the way, missiles and a cannon barrage began approaching the machine even as the Paladins did their best to dodge and dart. However, they soon found the missiles coming in too close for comfort.
"Pidge! I need a shield!" Lance yelled.
"OK, just keep them off me for a bit…"
BOOM!
Next - What is the fate of the Paladins against Fireball and Vytor? And just what is Keats' angle observing the fight?
One minor note: the Allura scene is not me being throwing it in just because, but rather a homage to a similar scene in the original edited Voltron. Yes, Voltron edited death and blood but left in the princess losing her top. You don't see anything, but you'd think that would have to go.
As always, enjoy and review. Big thanks to everyone who's liked or favorited it so far.
