"Klara, why am I looking at an empty plate?"
"Klara, why are my clothes not laid out for me?"
"Klara, I want a hot bath drawn by the time I return. Make sure the water is exactly the way I like it."
"Klara, I'm bored. Entertain me."
"Klara!"
"Klara!"
"Klara!"
As the door of the utilities closet slammed shut behind her, Klara slid down to her knees and screamed into the pile of used rags she currently held clutched to her chest. She had only been working for Lotor for around ten quintents and she was already regretting her decision.
"If he calls my name one more time, I swear I'm going to strangle him in his sleep!" She thought to herself as she leaned against the door and closed her eyes, enjoying the moment of peace the closet blessed her with. However, her moment of bliss quickly came to an end as the door to the closet was suddenly flung open, leaving her to fall on her back.
"There you are! Lotor wants you." Ezor chirped as she stared down at Klara, an smile on her lips and a glitter in her eye.
Klara groaned and slowly got up.
"Of course he does." She grumbled under her breath, tossing the rags she was holding into the pile in the corner where they would later be retrieved and washed. With Ezor trailing behind her to make sure she didn't try to make a mad dash, she began walking down the hallway in the direction of Zarkon's throne room. While her eyes remained fixed in front of her, her ears listened acutely to everything going on around her, a skilled she had quickly developed her time in captivity. As she predicted, the sound of marching feet rang in her ears just as she came to the T-intersection just outside of the throne room and she slowed to a stop as a parade of sentries marched past, a few of them shooting glances at her as they passed. Once they had gone, Klara took a deep breath and, after mentally preparing herself for whatever was to come, pushed open the throne room, peeking her head inside.
Lotor stood with his back to the door as he stared at his father's empty throne, his face set in a scowl and his folded arms resting against his chest. A thick layer of undisturbed dust had taken up residence on the seat and its metal garnishments now looked somewhat dull, but Zarkon's intimidating aura still permeated the air around it, sending an involuntary shudder down Lotor's spine.
"You called?"
Breaking from his daze, Lotor turned to face Klara only to immediately raise an eyebrow at her. Realizing the cause of his reaction, Klara swallowed the irritated sigh that tried to escape her lungs and slowly dropped down to her knees. Almost immediately, a smile bloomed on Lotor's face.
"Much better. However, you also forgot to address me properly once again." the prince cooed smugly.
Klara pursed her lips. "You called, my prince?"
"Yes, I did. I am meeting with the head of the Galra outpost that has been established on your home planet to discuss the progress of integrating your people into the empire as well as investigating the natural resources that we could use to our advantage. Given that I do not trust you enough to leave you behind, you will be accompanying me. Perhaps you'll be able to share some valuable insight." Lotor purred, his smirk widening when he noticed Klara's body go stiff.
"This was supposed to be about me, not my people. They were not supposed to be involved in this." she practically growled, her voice barely above a whisper but angry nonetheless.
"Yes, but I also said that they would become part of the Galra Empire. If I did not keep my word and act, they would grow suspicious, wouldn't they?" Lotor chirped matter-of-factly, his eyes glittering with sheer pleasure as they remained fixed on the poor girl, drinking in every twitch of her brow and clench of her jaw.
"You could have just left them alone. They don't need to be involved in this. The Galra have already taken enough from them!"
"Sharing resources and living under Galra supervision is a small price to pay in comparison to what normally would've been done to them were I not leader of the should be thankful that I took into consideration the concept of innocent bystanders rather than inflicting severe punishment on the masses for the actions of one."
"You still don't have to take from them. I could show you how to grow the crops yourselves for food and-"
"Galra don't have time for farming. I'm sure the soldiers stationed there are only taking their fair share of the food."
"I have a feeling that our definition of fair is very different from yours."
"Well, even if they do take everything, your people know where to look for more food."
"Yes and those places are usually crawling with predators!"
"They've gotten past them before, haven't they?"
By now, Klara was faintly trembling due to the emotion swelling up inside her, her eyelashes fluttering like a hummingbird's wings as she blinked back the hot, angry tears welling in her eyes. Suddenly, her chin was forced upwards so she was looking Lotor in the eye as he crouched in front of her.
"Now now, there is no need to cry; you should be happy. You'll be getting to see your home again, though it will likely be somewhat different than what you remember." he purred as he brushed a strand of hair off of her face.
Without thinking, Klara sharply smacked Lotor's hand away. Realizing what she had done, she tried to pull back but by that time Lotor had already grabbed hold of her wrist.
"That was a very unwise course of action." He chastised her, his gaze now icy and his voice stern and reprimanding. Pulling Klara to him, he held her fast against his chest and leaned in close enough that their noses touched as he looked her dead in the eyes.
"Given that you have been cooperative as of late, I will overlook this little incident just once, but take heed because this shall be your only warning. Should you ever lash out at me again, especially in front of my subordinates, I will not hesitate to punish you harshly. Am I understood?" He stated coldly, his grip on her wrist tightening with every word.
Swallowing the current urge to spit right in his face, Klara lowered her eyes like she had learned and nodded.
"I didn't hear anything." Lotor snapped.
"...Yes."
"Yes what?"
Klara bit her lip to the point that it began to bleed a little. "...Yes, my prince."
"Good. Now, go get cleaned up. You might be a savage marauder but you must look as if you have at least some class if I am taking you with me. Find Ezor and have her help you." Lotor purred, his sneer returning as he rose to his feet and brushed past her. However, he had taken no more than a few steps before he suddenly stopped and turned toward her, a hint of annoyance on his face as he held his hand out expectantly. "Did you really think I wouldn't notice? Give it here."
Klara didn't move.
"Now."
Slowly, Klara removed her hand from beneath her wings and placed in Lotor's open palm the dagger she had slipped off of his belt while he was scolding her. She remained where she was with her head down till the sound of Lotor's footsteps had faded into nothingness before daring to rise to her feet. Reaching beneath her wings, she retrieved the other item she had snitched from Lotor's belt, a single flare no larger than her thumb, and held it to her chest; it may not be lethal but it was bound to have some use later on. After tucking the flare back into her own belt in a spot where it would be concealed by her wings, she hurried out of the throne room only to receive a right hook to the cheek as soon as she stepped into the hall. Staggering to regain her balance, Klara whirled around with full intention of swinging back but froze when she came face to face with the barrel of a blaster, the ominous glow of its laser core making her heart skip a beat.
"You will not address to Prince Lotor like that again." Axca snarled, her usually impassive expression replaced by a slightly angrier one as her finger hovered merely millimeters above the trigger of the gun.
Shifting her eyes from the gun to Axca, Klara raised a speculative eyebrow. "I don't believe Lotor would be pleased to know you are fighting his battles for him behind his back."
Pursing her lips, Axca struck Klara across the face again, this time with the butt of the gun. "I will not allow you to bring shame to Lotor. You will learn your place."
"You know, this whole good Galra, bad Galra thing doesn't really work if both of you are playing the bad Galra." Klara replied smugly, smiling despite the aching in her cheeks.
Axca's brow twitched slightly before she swiftly reached out and roughly grabbed Klara by her bangs, making her flinch. "You better hope Lotor gets to you first if you screw up because if he doesn't, I will personally punish you myself."
"If you are threatening to kill me then you might want to reconsider. From what I've heard, Lotor wants me kept alive."
"Believe me, I'll make you wish you were dead."
"Believe me, I already do. I'd finally get a break from his Royal Highness' whining."
At this point, steam was about ready to pour out of Axca's ears as her grip on Klara's hair tightened. However, before she could say anything else, a familiar, chipper humming wafted down the hall along with Ezor's light footsteps.
"Axca...What are you doing?"
Releasing Klara's bangs, Axca slowly stood up and stiffly brushed past Ezor, who glanced back and forth between her and the Lepidoptan in confusion.
"Take the prisoner and prep her to accompany Lotor to the base in the Tau quadrant. Make sure she is presentable and won't embarrass us." the bluenette stated curtly.
"Um...okay?"
As she left Ezor to deal with Klara, Axca took long, deep breaths to calm herself as she made her way to the place she knew Lotor would most likely be. As she walked, images of Klara's cheeky grin danced in her mind, taunting her. They had accomplished nothing; she wasn't broken at all!
As she entered Lotor's personal hangar, Axca silently made her way up to him and dropped down onto one knee till he acknowledged her. As he turned to face her, Lotor immediately noticed her expression was off ever so slightly.
"You look troubled, Axca." he purred softly.
"Sire, forgive me if I am overstepping my place but I have some concerns regarding the prisoner…"
"So you've noticed it too…" Lotor mused as he stared at his ship, his expression thoughtful. "Despite my best efforts, that defiant spark in her eye has yet to be snuffed out. She has proven to be harder to break than I originally expected."
"Perhaps we should resort to harsher disciplinary methods."
"Perhaps….or maybe we just haven't struck the right chord yet."
"I'm not sure I understand."
"Although she likely loathes being my servant, Klara is willing to endure my torment because I have promised to keep her team out of harm's way in return. However, I have made no such vow regarding her people."
"Do you plan to enslave them?"
"I'm not entirely sure yet. However, that is the most likely scenario."
"Is that why you wish to bring her with you? So she knows her people are suffering because of her?"
"More or less, although I also truly do not trust her to stay back by herself." Lotor cooed. "Is Ezor prepping her?"
"As we speak, Prince Lotor. She will likely be ready within the hour."
"Good. Go wait with Zetherid and Narti until I call for you."
"Yes sir. Vrepit sa."
"Vrepit sa."
Quorokine. The gluttonous, boar-like creatures of her home world were the first thing that came to mind when Klara first laid eyes on the Galra commander in charge of "relations" between her people and the Galra Empire. His head looked quite small in comparison to the rest of his body as he sat slouched in his chair, his monstrous potbelly and flabby limbs sagging in a way that was quite unattractive. The large, tusk-like teeth that curled up over his top lip and his tiny, beady yellow eyes added to the likeness between the two, and if not for the fact that the Galra was bald as bald could be and not covered with scales, Klara might actually have mistaken him for one of the beasts himself.
"So this is what the Lepidoptans look like, eh? I haven't gotten a chance to go to the village myself so I haven't seen them yet. My, she's quite a beauty! You sure they're vicious savages?" the commander purred as he scanned Klara from head to toe with hungry eyes, smiling in such a way that it sent chills down the girl's spine.
"Most of the people are fairly docile; however, there are a few defective ones who are more aggressive." Lotor purred as he shot Klara a sly glance, his smile widening slightly when he saw her back stiffen.
The commander let out a wet, throaty chuckle that made his fat to jiggle like gelatin. "That is to be expected of all societies, I suppose. Ah, where are my manners? You are likely famished from your journey. Please, take some of this food we acquired from the locals."
At the snap of the man's fingers, two robots entered carrying plates laiden with colorful fruits. A second pair followed behind them with large pitchers, one filled with water so clear it looked like glass and the other bubbling to the brim with a strong, blood-colored wine Klara could smell from the other side of the room. As the familiar smell filled her nose, the princess's brow crinkled in slight confusion but she eventually dismissed the issue as cultural ignorance. However, her puzzlement did not go unnoticed.
"What is it?" Lotor stated as he stared up at her with a raised eyebrow.
Realizing that all eyes were on her now, Klara nervously rang her hands and purposely looked everywhere except at Axca, whose scalding gaze she could feel burning holes through her.
"It...It is nothing. I was merely confused as to why you are serving Lo- the prince funeral wine." She mumbled. However, what puzzled her even more was the fact that the Galra had found the wine. Normally, it was stored in a hidden cave and only brought to the village when death was believed to be near to avoid misfortune from falling on the people.
"Is that what this stuff was originally for? Heh, I guess that makes sense given recent circumstances." the commander grunted as he slurped down some of the wine that had been poured into his goblet.
"Recent circumstances, Commander Beliazar?" Lotor echoed questioningly.
"Yes. From what my boys have told me, the old crone in charge there got really sick not too long ago; most of the villagers seem convinced that she's going to croak soon-"
A loud crash cut the man off. All eyes turned to Klara as she stood in the middle of a puddle of spilled wine, Lotor's goblet at her feet. The corner of Axca's mouth twitched but she said nothing.
"I apologize, my prince. It slipped from my hand." Klara mumbled and stiffly knelt down to mop up the mess, biting her lip to keep it from quivering.
"A bit clumsy, isn't she? Stop stop! You're just spreading the mess around!" Beliazar barked before motion for the robots to attend to the mess.
Head bowed, Klara backed away and seated herself on the floor next to the couch where Lotor currently lounged. Frowning, Lotor glanced over at her and immediately noticed something different about her, and his breathing hitched slightly when he realized what it was. The light in her eyes was flickering dangerously, growing dimmer and dimmer as she stared down at her lap. She was breaking. The old hag's death was going to to break her.
"So why do I not feel satisfied?"
Frowning, Lotor snapped his fingers to get Klara's attention. When the Lepidoptan raised her head to look at him, the glow's fade stalled.
"Yes?"
"Grab some of the fruit from the table and bring it to me."
"Yes, my prince."
"She didn't even roll her eyes at me or glare." Lotor frowned as he watched Klara gather several pieces of colorful produce. Eyes flickering to Beliazar, he pursed his lips till they became a thin, firm line. The commander had been the one to tell Klara her grandmother was dying; he was the one that was breaking her, not Lotor. That must be why he wasn't pleased by Klara's lack of resistance, right?
Soon, Klara was by his side again, holding out the plate of food she had plucked from the table. Picking up a spherical fruit with spiky skin, Lotor turned it over in his hands for a moment before handing it back for her.
"Well, what are you waiting for? I can't eat this with the skin. Start peeling." He clucked.
Klara's head immediately snapped upward and Lotor was pleased to see the flame in her eyes brightening. Biting the inside of her cheek, the Lepidoptan set the plate aside and began stripping away the skin of the fruit, wincing slightly when the thorns pricked her palms but saying nothing because she knew better than to ask for anything sharp to peel with instead. Meanwhile, Lotor picked up his replaced glass of wine and took a tiny sip. Immediately, a wave of warmth and pleasant humming hit him hard, causing him to shake his head to clear it before setting the cup back down. Almost immediately, one of Beliazar's robotic attendants hurried over and refilled his glass to the brim. Raising an eyebrow, Lotor casually brought the cup to his lips once more and watched as the robot refilled the cup again. For a moment, a suspicious frown graced his lips but it disappeared almost as quickly as it had come.
"Hey, that stuff looks pretty good! Come here and peel me some too." Beliazar croaked, his eyes sparkling with mischief. After shooting a glance at the prince, he added, "That is, if it's okay with you, Prince Lotor."
Klara immediately shot Lotor a pleading glance, her eyes wide like a frightened doe's. Lotor could barely resist the urge to smile.
"You heard the man, Klara. Hurry up." he chirped smugly.
The hair on the back of Klara's neck stood on end as she glared at Lotor for a moment before slinking over towards Beliazar. Eying the plump Galra hostilely, she pressed herself up against the table to put as much distance between them as possible before slowly turning around, glancing at him once more over her shoulder before grabbing another piece of thorn-coated fruit. However, almost as soon as her nails had pierced the skin, she felt a large hand cupping her rump. Instinctively, she unfurled her large wings and used them to swat his hand away. However, to her disdain, Beliazar now stared at her wings in awe.
"Breathtaking." He murmured. Slowly, he reached out one hand towards the delicate appendages. "You truly are a work of art. Perhaps, if it pleases the prince, I could borrow you for a while-"
As soon as Beliazar's sausage-like fingers brushed against her wing, Klara's world became a blur. She barely felt anything as she spun around and struck the hog across the face with the back of her hand, the fires of damnation burning in her eyes, nor did she hear Axca's angry shout from across the room. It was only when she left the cold lips of a gun on her neck and someone's tight grip on her arm that she snapped back to her senses, the slight throb of her hand testifying to what she had done. Beliazar now lay on the floor, cradling his bruised cheek as his shock slowly melted away, replaced by anger.
"You...You little witch! How dare you strike me!" He roared as he rolled to his feet and loomed over Klara. However, just as he was raising his hand to strike her, Lotor cleared his throat to get everyone's attention.
"Klara, come here please." He stated flatly, his expression eerily calm.
Klara swallowed the lump swelling in her throat as she slowly pulled out of Axca's grasp and slunk over to the prince.
"Turn around." Lotor ordered.
Klara hesitantly obeyed, sweat dripping down her neck as a million possible punishments ran through her head. When the clank of metal greeted her ears, however, her blood ran cold as one scenario outshined all the others.
"He wouldn't, would he?"
Klara nervously shuffled her feet.
"Don't move." Lotor crowed from behind her.
Klara's heartbeat roared in her ears and she clamped her eyes shut as she braced herself for the pain come. However, nothing happened.
"There."
Eyes flying open, Klara immediately glanced over her shoulder and down at her wings to see some kind of mechanical clamp pinning down. Normally she would have been irritated by having such a device since it meant she couldn't fly but all Klara could feel was relief.
"You seem rather chipper. Did I not make the clamp tight enough?" Lotor cooed, earning a glare from her in response that dared him to just try to touch her wings again and see what happened. Dismissing her hostile gaze, he rose to his feet and turned to Zetherid, Narti, and Ezor, who had silently watched the entire scene go down. "Go prep the ship. I believe it is time for us to leave."
Zetherid and Ezor blinked in surprise but bowed respectfully before leaving with Narti in tow. Meanwhile, Eliazar was practically fuming at this point.
"That's it?! That's all you are going to do to her?! That servant of yours attacked me! She should be laying in a pool of her own blood at my feet right now!" he exclaimed, waving his arms wildly about like a child having a tantrum. However, one look into Lotor's eyes made him go still.
"Confining her to the ground will more than suffice as punishment. You're lucky I even punished her at all though given that you have committed a far worse deed than she has." the prince purred, his voice laced with poison.
Beliazar blinked rapidly and took a step back, both clear signs of panic. "W-What are you talking about?"
"You really think I wouldn't notice, Commander? I had heard you were rather dull-witted for a Galra but I'm surprised by how truly sloppy you are."
"I don't understand."
"You don't? Well then, let me explain to you. Upon my arrival to the base, I immediately noticed my team's comlinks go offline as soon as we landed in the hanger. As we were escorted to this room to meet with you and discuss your progress with the Lepidoptan people, I noted that all of your men seemed to be watching us, including your sentries that cannot divert from their programmed task unless the base is under attack. The last clue was the wine. One taste was all I needed to conclude that the wine was highly potent and could easily make one drunk, leaving him easy to overcome, and your robotic attendant constantly refilling my glass so it looked full only confirmed my suspicions. You mean to either kill or capture me so that another "more suitable" Galra can take over the empire until Zarkon awakens."
Silence hung in the air as Beliazar stared at Lotor for a moment, shock written all over his face; however, his expression soon darkened and he dawned malicious grin stretched from ear or ear.
"Not bad, Half-breed. However, it doesn't matter if you've figured it out. You and your generals will not be leaving this place." he hissed.
"Is that so? I assume my generals are currently fighting their way through a sea of soldiers to get to the hanger?"
Beliazar's eyes shone with a dark light. "You've made a disgrace of the Galra Empire. Once your father awakens and resumes power, he will surely thank me for my loyalty and service-"
The smell of singed flesh tainted the air as Beliazar collapsed, a large hole in the side of his head.
"Sir, we need to get out of here." Axca stated as she charged her gun for another blast.
"I am aware, Axca. However, we must be strategic about this." Lotor cooed. After thinking for a moment, he turned to Klara, who scowled at him.
"What?" she snapped defensively.
"I was hoping you might have an idea of how we might get out of here given your success at breaking in and out of many of our other outposts." Lotor croaked with a sly smile.
Klara's eyes narrowed. "And why would I do that?"
"Well, if I die then someone else would take control of the empire, someone who could easily schedule all of your friends for execution or exterminate your people without a second thought." Lotor sneered.
"And why would they do that?"
"Because you humiliated us, and as I'm sure you've realized by now, I am far more forgiving and merciful than the rest of my people."
For a moment, Klara grew very quiet as her eyes glazed over and stared at nothing while thought over what the prince had said. When the glassiness disappeared and she met Lotor's gaze once more, he could already tell what she had decided.
"We can use the vents to get to the hanger. I doubt Beliazar thought to have men hiding in there." she said, pointing at one of the said vents as she spoke.
"Well done, my dear. Keep this up and I might even reconsider punishing you later for this little show you put on here." Lotor cooed. Klara merely scoffed in reply.
Using their combined strength, Lotor and Axca managed to pry off the vent cover and cast it aside. Lotor took the lead as they army-crawled in a single file line through the narrow passage, their breathing shallow and soft as to not alert the soldiers standing in waiting in the hall outside. After what felt like hours, they reached the end of the vent and Lotor pushed the cover away before sticking his head out.
"It seems we have a bit of a problem." he thought aloud as he watched the vent cover freefall through the air before shattering into a billion pieces when it hit the forest floor at least two hundred feet below. Moving slowly, the prince climbed out of the vent and carefully lowered himself down onto the narrow ledge lining the wall. Klara and Axca followed suit, their hearts pounding loudly in their ears as they stared at the massive drop before them.
"If we continue going to the left, we should reach the hanger entrance just as Ezor, Narti, and Zetherid are finished getting the ship ready for launch." Lotor stated as he tore his eyes away from the ground and looked at Axca and Klara. "Move slowly and do not look down."
Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, Axca began to slowly inch her way along the narrow ledge, her back pressed flat against the wall as she kept her eyes glue in the direction she was going. Lotor and Klara followed close behind her, Klara's lip trembling and a bead of sweat trickling down Lotor's view. Thankful, the distance between them and the hanger wasn't as great as they had originally thought and soon the platform of the hanger's entrance came into view. However, none of them even had the chance to sigh in relief as the scream of blasters echoed in their ears. Eyes snapping upwards, the group saw several robots that resembled eight armed beasts scurrying down the wall at alarming speeds, lasers spewing from their mouths.
"Axca, go!" Lotor exclaimed. However, before he could take another step, one of the laser blasts struck the cement beneath his feet, causing it to crumble away beneath him. Everything seemed to go numb as Lotor felt himself begin to fall, his eyes unusually wide and full of fear as he stared helplessly up at Klara and Axca.
"LOTOR!" Axca shrieked, reaching out to grab him but missing by an inch.
"Go to the ship. Tell them to take off and meet us in the air." Klara suddenly blurted.
"What?" Axca said, but before she could say anything more, she stared in shock at the now vacant spot next to her on the wall. Klara had jumped.
Had she thought this through? No. Was this a really stupid idea? Yes. Was she going to die? Probably. However, all these thoughts retreated to the back of Klara's mind as she nosedived through the air, her eyes fixed on Lotor. As she drew closer to him, she reached out her hand and made a wild grab for his arm, but he was still just beyond her reach.
"Come on! Come on! Come on!"
Meanwhile, Lotor had closed his eyes not to long after he had first started to fall, deciding it was better to remain oblivious to death for his last moments of life. As the wind whipped through his hair, he watched his life play back to him behind his closed eyelids like he had always heard it would when he was about to die, but it seemed to be moving surprisingly slow to him. He relived his childhood, his banishment, his return to the empire, and his short time in power. He remembered all the time he had spent with his generals, bonding with them and training them to overcome the obstacles of being half-breeds. Yet, what brought a smile to his lips were the memories of Klara's irritated expressions whenever he had done something to cause her trouble or annoy her. These memories played slower than all the rest since they were the most recent and therefore the most vivid, but Lotor enjoyed every second of it. However, he could not ignore the slight aching he felt in his heart. He still had so much left he wished to accomplish and he knew that his generals would grieve his death. Death also meant he could no longer toy with Klara and silently relish in her glare as she pampered him, and if he died, that meant he could no longer prove to the universe, the Galra, and his father that they were wrong about him. No, he wasn't ready; he didn't want to die.
"Lotor!"
Lotor's eyes flew open in surprise and stared upwards with a look of pure shock to see Klara sailing straight towards him, her arm outstretched.
"Why are you just staring at me? Grab on!" Klara shrieked.
Overcoming his temporary paralysis, Lotor hastily clasped hold of Klara's hand and allowed her to pull him to her. Instinctively, the two wrapped their arms around one another as they continued fall, and Lotor found himself staring up at Klara in disbelief once again.
"Well, what are you waiting for, an invitation? Get these things off of my wings before we go splat" Klara barked.
Expression hardening, Lotor quickly obeyed and reached behind her back, undoing the lock on the clamp and pulling it off with ease. Wasting no time, Klara spread her wing and gave a mighty flap the sent the two shooting upwards, the ground growing farther and farther away beneath them. As Klara carried them up into the sky, Lotor released a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding and tightened in grip on Klara, his nails digging into her flesh.
"Hey, knock it off! Your claws hurt!" Klara snapped. Hearing the roar of an engine, she looked up to see Lotor's cruiser hovering not too far ahead, the door wide open. A few more strong flaps sent her soaring inside where she landed rather gracelessly due to Lotor's extra weight, falling flat on her stomach while Lotor landed on his back beside her.
"LOTOR!" Ezor cried, tears streaming down her face as she threw her arms around the prince. After shutting the bay door, Narti, Axca, and Zetherid gathered around the prince as well, their faces full of concern.
"Sir, are you alright?" Axca asked, her voice quivering slightly as she spoke.
"We thought we had lost you." Zetherid whimpered.
"I'm fine. Thanks for asking." Klara grumbled sarcastically from where she lay sprawled out on the ground like a starfish.
Frowning, Lotor slowly sat up and turned to Klara, his eyes full of suspicion. "You saved me. Why?"
That was a great question. In fact, Klara had been asking herself the same thing ever since they had landed. Why had she saved him?
"It...It's like you said earlier. Without you holding them back, the Galra would likely kill both my crew and my people. I was just looking out for them." she answered, though her voice was somewhat doubtful. That had to be the reason she did it, right? Nothing else made sense. Yes, it had to be.
"I see…" Rising to his feet, Lotor brushed himself off and hurried sat down in his seat. "Axca, set the quickest course for home. A new matter has come up that I must address."
"Yes, Prince Lotor." Axca answered, slightly surprised by his ability to casually return to normal after what had just happened but compliant nonetheless.
As his generals retreated to their stations, Lotor found his eyes drawn to Klara as she sat in the corner, leaning against the wall for support as she caught her breath. Images of her faces hovering mere inches above his own and the feeling of her arms wrapped tightly around him now plagued his mind and body incessantly, refusing to go away as he pondered over all that had just happened. Why had she truly gone after him? And why was his heart still racing despite the fact that he wasn't in danger anymore?