We are at the half-way point…enjoy.

I make no claims to Voltron or any WEP characters.

Chapter 10:

Two weeks later, Admiral Graham listens, highly annoyed, to the commander describe the conditions at the base. It's not long before the admiral clears his throat to stop the constant droning, "Commander, I don't have much time and need a status update on Lieutenant Kogane."

Stifling his impatience at the admiral's request, Lietner answers, "Lieutenant Kogane is fine Admiral. In the two weeks that he has been here, he has performed his job adequately and has caused no trouble."

The older man's steely gaze rests on the commander for a moment before he replies, "I was asking about his mental status."

Returning the gaze, the commander thinks, 'He's worried about his little pet…too bad Kogane couldn't keep it in his pants.' Keeping his voice carefully neutral, Lietner responds, "To my knowledge Admiral…the lieutenant is fine."

Admiral Graham continues to study the younger man in front of him, his own thoughts racing, 'The moron can't get past his jealousy of Kogane…' Clearing his throat, Graham continues, "I would like to speak to the lieutenant's roommate in private Commander."

Beginning to question, "Why…" Leitner stops when he notices the look on the admiral's face before responding, "Very well, I will have him sent to you at once."

Admiral Graham nods to the commander then walks away.

xxxxxxxxxx

Admiral Graham sits working at the desk of his temporary study at the base when there is a knock at the door. Lifting his head, he responds, "Enter." and waits as the young man walks nervously into the room to stop before the desk to salute him. He keeps his eyes on the top of the admiral's head as he loudly says, "Lieutenant Johnson sir!"

Managing to withhold a smile at the younger man's enthusiasm, Graham responds, "At ease Lieutenant. Have a seat."

Lieutenant Johnson sits down and looks at the admiral expectantly. Graham observes the man for a moment before asking, "I need to know how Lieutenant Kogane is doing, both physically and mentally, and the commander doesn't seem to be very forthcoming with the information. So as Kogane's roommate you should be able to tell me what kind of condition he is in."

Looking down at the surface of the desk for a moment in contemplation, Johnson finally raises his eyes once more to the admiral, "Permission to speak freely sir."

Graham nods as he replies, "Granted."

Nodding, Johnson clears his throat before responding, "I didn't know Kogane before he came here, but from what I heard, he is an amazing person, very kind to the men around him and has a brilliant mind for strategy."

Sighing quietly, the admiral is beginning to get frustrated until Johnson continues, "Since he has been here, he has been quiet and unresponsive for the most part. He doesn't speak unless spoken to, barely eats or sleeps and when he does sleep, he often says her name. In meetings, he doesn't offer anything unless the commander asks him directly, which isn't often since it is quite obvious that the commander dislikes the lieutenant."

The last statement has Graham fighting to keep a smile off his face, "Well, they were rivals during their academy years…" He clears his throat before continuing, "Thank you for the information Lieutenant. Please do not tell the commander what you have told me."

Johnson nods before asking, "May I be dismissed?"

After waving a hand at him in dismissal, the admiral stops him before he can open the door, "Where can I find Kogane right now?"

Turning back to Graham, the lieutenant replies, "Our room sir. He does not participate in the afternoon breaks we are given to converse with each other."

Graham is silent for a moment then says, "Dismissed."

xxxxxxxxxx

Sitting at his desk, Keith reads through a report he had just written when he hears a knock at the door. He turns in his chair as he calls out, "Enter." When Admiral Graham walks in, he quickly stands and salutes him, "Sir."

The admiral smiles at him, "At ease Lieutenant." He gestures to the chair, "Have a seat."

Keith reluctantly sits down as he looks at the admiral. Graham studies him for a moment, noting the slightly gaunt look to his face and the looseness of his uniform from obvious weight loss before asking, "How are you doing?"

Silence fills the room for several moments before Keith quietly answers, "I'm fine."

Graham continues to study him for a moment before he responds, "Like hell you are."

As the lieutenant looks away, Graham moves over to take the seat at the other desk in the room, "Why did you do it Kogane? I had no choice but to demote and transfer you when the Arus ruling council lodged their complaint."

When Keith doesn't answer him or look his way again, Admiral Graham stands back up and walks toward him, "Is she worth it Lieutenant? Worth your career and everything that you've worked for since you joined the Garrison?"

Finally, Keith turns back to him. The look on his face is resolute as he replies in a strong voice, "Allura is the air I breathe and the colors of my world, without her everything is gray, and I'm suffocating." He stands up, "She is worth everything to me sir, even my life."

Admiral Graham looks sadly at the man he has long considered his protégé and at some point, his successor, "I'm sorry son, truly I am. For both of you." He closes the distance between them and touches Keith's shoulder, "There is nothing I can do to resolve this. You have to let her go and move on."

Looking away from him, the lieutenant replies, "I can't." He sits back down on his chair, "I love her Admiral."

Shaking his head, Admiral Graham starts for the door but turns back around when Keith asks, "May I ask sir, how the team is?"

Silence fills the air for a moment before the admiral responds, "They are fine…pissed off at me of course, but Sven flew in to take your place until a permanent commander is found."

Keith nods then hesitantly asks, "And…Allura?"

Graham narrows his eyes a little, "Pressing your luck a little…aren't you, Lieutenant?"

Standing back up, his pleading eyes with the admiral, Keith quietly asks, "Please..."

A deep sigh leaves the admiral as he rubs his neck to relieve the tension before finally answering, "I don't know. Last I spoke to McClain three weeks ago, he hadn't seen her and wasn't being allowed near her." with that he opens the door and leaves.

Keith sits back down in his chair, opens a drawer and pulls out a picture of the team taken not too long ago. As his eyes travel over the figure in pink standing next to him, he fights back the tears that he had hoped were buried deep within him.

xxxxxxxxxx

Returning to his office after seeing Kogane, Admiral Graham finds a file waiting for him. Opening it, he quickly reads through it and immediately starts swearing. Turning to his video comm. he presses several buttons until the comm. connects with Arus.

As Coran's face becomes visible on the screen, he grimly greets the angry man in front of him, "Admiral…what can I do for you?"

Trying to rein in his temper, Graham begins, "Nine commanders Coran…I've sent you nine different commanders and not one of them can fly any of those damned lions?"

Coran lets out a deep sigh as his mind goes over the last three weeks, each time a commander would arrive, Sven would immediately take them out into Black lion. When the lion would once again fail to respond for them, they would continue through each of the lions unsuccessfully. Half an hour later, the frustrated commander was swearing as he grabbed his bag to head back to his shuttle while Lance waved at him with a sarcastic smile on his face.

Turning his attention back to the irate man before him, the Arusian advisor responds, "I don't know what to tell you Admiral…as I've explained to each of these commanders, the lions are a mix of magic and machine...they have a soul. If they sense an unworthy person, they will not operate for them."

Admiral Graham nods his understanding, having heard it after the first commander had been sent back, before asking, "What about Black lion?"

Shaking his head, Coran responds, "Still the same, the only one that lion will respond to is Princess Allura."

Letting out a deep sigh, Admiral Graham asks, "Is the Arusian Council aware of this problem with replacing Commander Kogane?"

Coran nods, "Yes…they are aware of the lions' behavior towards any replacement pilots."

Letting out his own growl when the advisor says nothing else, Graham asks, "And?"

"Well…" Coran starts, then clears his throat before continuing, "I'm not sure what you are looking for Admiral Graham…have they decided to allow Commander Kogane back? The answer is no." He watches the admiral's face turn red with anger before he continues, "They feel that eventually the…ah…"right" pilot will be accepted by the lions."

Admiral Graham explodes, "The right pilot? I don't have many more damn pilots to send you unless I start pulling snot nosed freshmen from the Academy…all my other "experienced" commanders have positions they are needed in and I will not pull them from them just to suit your council!"

The old advisor lets out a deep sigh, "I know Admiral…please…just send us the remaining possibilities and if they do not work out I will approach the council again."

Snorting, Admiral Graham responds, "Very well…" Taking a deep breath, he inquires, "How is the princess doing?"

The older man notices a look that passes through Coran's eyes before he responds, "She is fine Admiral."

Shaking his head, Admiral Graham responds, "You are lying Coran…I'm willing to bet she is doing about as well as Lieutenant Kogane.

Coran is silent for a moment, his eyes full of suppressed emotion, before he quietly asks, "And how is he?"

Letting out a sigh, Graham says, "Depressed…barely eats, sleeps or speaks to the people around him." He sits closer to the monitor as he adds, "I have the shell of the man he was walking around here, and barely existing as he mourns what he lost…the people he considered his friends and family."

Looking away from the monitor for a moment, Coran digests the news. A moment later he turns back to Admiral Graham, "Princess Allura is much the same I'm afraid. While she has the rest of the Force members around her...she keeps to her room when she isn't in Black lion. Trying to get her to perform her others duties has been beyond difficult to say the least. Thankfully, Princess Romelle has filled in for her on a few occasions."

Clearing his throat, the admiral says, "Thanks for the information…" Rubbing his face tiredly, he adds, "I'll see who I have left to send to replace Kogane…but this will be the last of my people…after that you and your council will be on your own."

Coran nods, "Very well…I understand and thank you on behalf of the council and the prince…"

Admiral Graham cuts him off, "To hell with your council Coran…if it wouldn't do more damage, I would have pulled my remaining men out of there and left the council to suffer Doom's wrath for this bull shit." He glares at the screen as he adds, "The only thing stopping me is the pain I would put those men through doing that."

He pauses one more moment before saying, "I want Lieutenant McClain on the video comm. with no outside interference in thirty minutes. I wish to have a word with him alone." With that statement, he turns off the monitor.

xxxxxxxxxx

Sighing as he turns around in the chair, Coran finds Lance behind him. Glaring at him, he asks, "How long were you standing there?"

Lance tilts his head sideways to look at the advisor for a moment before saying, "Only for the last bit when you told the admiral how Princess is doing…" He walks forward until he is standing in front of Coran, "I'm surprised you would give that kind of information to the admiral."

Shaking his head at him, Coran walks around Lance to leave the room stopping before the door, "Since you were listening in, you are aware the admiral wishes to speak to you alone in thirty minutes. I leave you to monitor control until then." and he leaves the room.

xxxxxxxxxx

Thirty minutes later, Admiral Graham sighs when there is a knock at his study door. He yells, "Enter…" and Keith walks in and quietly asks, "You wanted to see me sir?"

Graham stands, "Yes, I need to go meet with Commander Lietner before I depart…but am waiting for a call to come in. Please answer it and explain I will be back in five minutes."

Keith looks at the admiral confused as the older man walks past him and out the door, closing it behind him. He stands there and looks at the door for a moment before taking a deep breath and walking around the desk to sit down, mumbling, "Now I'm a secretary…"

As the monitor rings the incoming call, Keith takes a deep breath, presses the button and is shocked to see who the caller is, "Lance!"

His friend also expresses shock as he sees who is answering the call, "KEITH! How the hell?"

A small smile crosses Keith's face for a moment at seeing his friend before his mind engages and he looks at Lance confused, "What's going on?"

Lance shrugs, "I don't know…I was told Graham wanted to talk to me alone and to call at this time."

Another small smile crosses Keith's face as he realizes the admiral had set this up for him. He leans closer to the screen, "We only have a couple of minutes…Graham said to tell the caller he would be back in five minutes…"

As Lance's mouth goes wide with an "Oh!" Keith desperately asks, "How is Allura?"

He lets out a sigh, "Not good…she is depressed, cries a lot, isn't eating much..." Lance stops for a moment then asks, "How are you?"

Keith shrugs then rushes as he hears the admiral's voice outside the door, "He's coming back…tell Allura I love her and I'll find a way back…somehow!"

The door begins to open as Lance says, "Wait! Where are you?"

As the admiral walks in followed by Commander Lietner, Keith changes his tone as he says, "Tell Nanny I miss her onion rings…"

Lance has a confused look on his face for a moment before a look of understand replaces it. Admiral Graham comes around the desk and looks at the screen, "Lieutenant McClain…I didn't realize it would be you calling…" His eyes turn to Keith as he continues, "and you know you are under strict orders to have no contact with Arus or the people on it Lieutenant…"

Keith slowly stands up and leaves the admiral's desk as the commander steps forward, "I'll have him reprimanded Admiral…"

Admiral Graham holds a hand up, "I'll take care of it personally Commander, please excuse us."

With his gaze moving from the admiral to Keith, who keeps his face carefully neutral, Lietner finally walks out of the room. After the door closes behind the commander, Admiral Graham studies Keith for a moment before saying, "One word to anyone and you will get more than a reprimand Lieutenant…"

Keith stands perfectly still for a moment then nods. Letting out a sigh, Admiral Graham says, "Dismissed." and Keith turns around and leaves the room.

xxxxxxxxxx

Lance smiles slightly as the video screen goes black, "That old man is crazy like a fox…"

Standing, he leaves castle control quickly and walks down the hallway passing by Coran, who asks, "The meeting go well with the admiral?"

Nodding, Lance quickly walks away. Reaching his destination, he knocks on the door then enters when bidden to find Romelle sitting next to Allura on her bed. Allura sits up as he crosses the room and whispers, "Is it just you two?"

Romelle looks at him questioningly as Allura says, "Yes…what is it Lance?"

Sitting down beside her on the bed, Lance quietly says, "I just got off a video call with Keith…"

Allura reaches for him as she desperately asks, "How is he? Is he ok?"

Smiling, Lance takes her hand within his as he replies, "He seemed ok…I didn't get to talk to him long, just a minute or two…but he asked me to tell you he loves you and he will find a way to come back."

Tears run down Allura's face as he pulls her into a hug, "It's all right Princess."

Allura rubs her cheek against his shoulder as she quietly replies, "Thank you for that Lance…"

The door to the room opens and Nanny walks in. She pauses in shock as she takes in the scene before her then explodes, "Lieutenant!" Lance pulls away from Allura to turn toward the governess as she continues, "You know you aren't supposed to be in this room or sitting on her Highness' bed!"

Letting out a sigh, Lance turns to smile apologetically at Allura then stands, "I'm going Nanny…I'm going."

The Arusian princess watches Lance leave the room then her eyes turn to Romelle as she slowly smiles at her. Romelle tries to smile back then leans forward to whisper in Allura's ear, "I know this has you excited…but don't get your hopes too high Allura. Keith still reports to Garrison and would have to go AWOL to come back."

The smile leaves Allura's face as Romelle pulls back. A single tear escapes again and slowly goes down her cheek. Romelle leans forward and wipes it away as she adds, "Don't lose hope either…"

Allura nods before turning away to watch Nanny bustle around the room, straightening things.

xxxxxxxxxx

Haggar walks quickly down the hallways of Castle Doom. Upon reaching the throne room, she spies Lotor kneeling before his father yet again as King Zarkon states, "Enough Lotor…you will never take Planet Arus or its princess."

He shifts his gaze from Lotor to the witch as she approaches, "Well, old witch? What is it?"

She smiles evilly at him as she states, "I've heard from my spies on Arus…the spy isn't sure what happened, but Commander Kogane has been transferred off of the planet."

Quickly standing, Lotor exclaims, "Now is the time to attack Father!"

The Doom king shakes his head before turning his gaze back to Haggar, "Did they get that other pilot from Pollux to fill in?"

Giving a reluctant nod, the old witch pushes forward, "But we know it was always Commander Kogane that ultimately…"

Zarkon cuts her off, "NO! I have wasted enough robots, ships and robeasts on the miserable planet! As long as they can form Voltron there is no point in attacking."

Lotor steps forth, horrified, "You would pass on the perfect time to attack?"

Snorting, Zarkon replies, "Perfect? As I've just said…as long as they can form Voltron there is no point!" He turns his gaze to look between the two again before firmly stating, "You will take no men or robeasts from here, either of you." He switches his gaze back to Lotor, "Do with your private forces what you will, but you will waste no more of mine on your pathetic attempts."

He waves them off and Lotor and Haggar walk away. Infuriated, the Doom prince growls, "The fool! This the perfect time to attack…Princess Allura will be vulnerable without her commander there to protect her." He stops and turns to the old witch, "Robeast or no robeast, I will gather my forces and crush that castle once and for all! Princess Allura will be mine and then that fool will step down and name me king!"

Haggar shakes her head as she watches him continue down the hallway away from her. Her eyes flash as she states, "Both idiots…" and turns to return to her lab.