Chapter 14
Keith could feel Ankary's eyes on him, all the time. It was creepy. He felt like those crimson eyes bore into his very being, as if he could see every little detail or thought or emotion. It wasn't just when they trained; it was also when they were all in a meeting, and even now as they made their way quietly through the coliseum ship. Ankary had that unreadable expression towards everyone, refusing to give away any hints to what he was thinking, but those eyes were so analytical, observing the surroundings and calculating something the red paladin didn't know. Lance admitted out loud to him that he felt the same way. So Keith wasn't the only one he was observing, but it seemed that he had his eye on him more than the others.
The Galra ship was just the same as all the others he and the other paladins infiltrated in the past. The same purplish, pink lights that illuminated the dark, claustrophobic hallways were ominous. The way the harsh angles and the black and silver metal-like materials were cold and void of any soft warmth. That was another thing. The ship was freaking cold! The prisoner uniforms he and Ankary wore were very airy and flexible. Ankary was right when he mentioned the impressive range of motion they allow, far better than the paladin suits they wore. Although he did feel naked without the hard plates of armor on him. When he first put it on he was kinda self-conscious about how tightly it clung to his body. The black paladin reassured that he would get used to it.
They moved silently through the ship, during the night cycle. Ankary occasionally looked over his shoulder back at him, as if making sure he could keep up. They moved from hiding spot to hiding spot in the corridors, waiting for patrols to pass. Prisoners aren't free to wonder about so Pidge hacked into the system and assigned them to a holding cell, Ankary under his own name and Keith unregistered so he wasn't assigned to any matches in the arena. They moved from floor to floor and corridor to corridor until they made it to the prisoner cells. Pidge directed them to their designated "home base" through their headsets and they were allowed inside. She also provided the passcode so they could slip in and out whenever they pleased.
Ankary sat down on the floor and pulled up his hologram computer screen when he activated his arm bands. Keith sat down and leaned against the wall. Ankary typed away at the screen before him, pulling up diagrams of the ship and a layout grid of texts that Keith couldn't read. With the plan for this mission, Thace provided the names of all the prisoners held in this coliseum. One list consisted of those who were innocent and kept just as prisoners of war. The other list was names of those prisoners were legitimately guilty of their crimes, locked away on charges that weren't just "prisoners of war". They would save all of the prisoners, but keep those who are guilty under lock down while the innocent are returned home safely by the Blade of Marmora.
Keith waited for Ankary to give the signal so they could save a few prisoners tonight and space out the other rescues for the next few days. "Explain to me again why we can't just take down the guards and save everyone in one night?" Ankary lifted his head up to him, lowering his screen. The Dayan sighed before he brought up the notepad on his computer and typed something out in English: Patience. This mission is more than a barge in, guns blazing, get everyone and get out. The first reason being that we do not have enough back-up to take on a coliseum ship full of soldiers from the inside out. Secondly, if we did that we could be risking more lives than we would be saving. Thirdly, this mission is far more complicated in its intricate design that the Blade of Marmora and I have.
Keith scoffed and rolled his eyes, "Sounds just like those cowards. Hiding away so they don't accidentally break a nail." He noticed Ankary's tail twitch with irritation. He continued typing: If your only choice to save someone, innocent and guilty alike, over the life of the other paladins, would you risk it? What if Shiro's life was at stake? Keith flinched at that last part. That posed so many moral self-evaluations that he did not want to think about. Would he risk Shiro's life over someone like a prisoner who was guilty of many crimes and whose bloodlust could not be satiated?
Ankary sighed and shook his head: Didn't think so. He erased all of the text while Keith was trying to push away dark thoughts. The Dayan typed something else on his pad for him to read: I am in the Galra prisoner system and I am on the top of the suspect list as to who is destroying all of the coliseum ships. The only way I can clear my reputation is to prove that I am not the spy, hence why you are here. If I were discovered as the spy, there is no telling how many lives the Galra would take as collateral to bring me down. If they cannot prove me guilty with an alibi, my reputation is clear and I can go on incognito without eyes always watching me. Understand?
Keith scowled at him, but said nothing and nodded. He didn't like this idea of not manning up to a fight, but admittedly he did have a point. It would save more people this way. The Galra can't stop the culprit if they can't tell who the culprit is. It would be possible to draw him out with a trap, but if the Empire can't draw out the identity or the location of the Blade of Marmora for the past 10,000 years, it's highly unlikely that they would be able to think of something now.
Ankary closed the notepad and continued on with his work, Pidge's voice came over the headset, "Alright, you guys will be good to go. I've changed the schedule plan for tomorrow's matches to fewer and less intense. Not all gladiator matches have to result in death by the looks of it, so I've changed it so none of them require death as the end goal. How the prisoners react to these rule changes is…out of my control." Her voice was tense for that last part. It's true that the fights didn't have to have to end in death; they would go through gladiators faster than they could acquire them. There was no telling, however, if the prisoners will actually give in to the need to kill their opponent or not and succeed.
"It's alright, Pidge, we appreciate the help," Shiro sounded much more reassuring than Keith could ever offer. There was a moment of pause over the headsets.
"As for right now, I can take back a few prisoners in my lion once you guys are ready. Don't save too many that the guards will notice a depletion in their rosters, or they'll get suspicious. And be quiet. If you can manage to sneak them out without triggering an alarm, that would be ideal. I'm sending you the designated cells to clear for tonight."
"Roger," Keith replied. Ankary flicked his tail and pulled up the schema of the ship, particularly the prison cells. A couple of cells were highlighted near them and the path to the green lion waiting was close by as well. The red paladin got up from the floor, Ankary following behind.
They entered the hack into the security system and the cell door opened quietly. In an instant both of the prisoner impersonators ran out to the nearest hiding spot. Keith could hear the footsteps of a patrol behind them. Ankary pulled him along until they darted to the next hiding spot and waited. Keith felt his heart pound in his chest when the patrol got closer and closer. Soon they were right around the corner and he almost grabbed his blade to right, but Ankary held up his hand to stop him. They waited. The steps got louder and louder until he was sure they would spot them.
Then they receded, going down another hallway. Keith let out a breath and followed Ankary's lead as they dashed out from cover and ran as lightly as they could to the next spot. Together they navigated the ship; Keith tried his best to make a mental map of the place so it would be easier to locate where certain places were and how to get there. Again and again they repeated the same movements. The darkness of the hallways and their suits provided ample cloaking in the dark crevices of the corridors. The patrols were few and lightly manned, but still present.
Finally they made it to the two cells that needed clearing, one just down the hall from the other. Keith worked on getting the door open while Ankary was doing the same to the other. He felt relief when the access code worked and the door opened. Inside were a few prisoners, 4 at most. Each of their scared faces were shocked at the open doors and cowered in the corner, huddling together. Two were of the same species, but they were all unique in their appearances, shapes and sizes. All of them had their own version of the prisoner uniform to fit their bodies just like prisoners the paladins saved in the past. "Don't be scared, I'm here to rescue you."
They all looked at each other, then back at him. One of the prisoners was the one to speak up, "Y-you're here t-to save us?" Male in intonation. Keith nodded and held out a hand. He glanced over his shoulder. No signs of a patrol coming.
"Yes, but you need to be quiet. Come with me, I'll get you out of here." The alien that spoke to him turned to the others and made various sounds. That must have been another language or something. Moments like these reminded Keith that any version of the human language was not always universal. Ankary and his group of prisoners shuffled over to Keith. By the time they got everyone going, Ankary was the one to take charge of the movements. Saving in smaller groups was a lot easier than larger groups, especially when the paladins had a teammate.
Their movements weren't as quiet as Keith hoped, but they all managed to evade the patrols and make their way to the green lion waiting at a blind spot of the ship. Pidge was waiting outside and guided the prisoners in as best she could. There was some mild complaining about how everyone will fit, but she'll make it work. When she was about to depart, she addressed Keith and Ankary, "That does it for tonight. Thankfully this coliseum ship doesn't have too many prisoners to make this a long mission, but don't draw attention or they will all be in danger." Keith nodded and she specifically turned to the Dayan. "As for you, I've scheduled you to remain in the arena most of the matches tomorrow. While you're doing that, Keith will be exporting prisoners." Ankary signed something to her, probably some way of saying that he understood what she was telling him.
Over the headset, Lance, Hunk, Shiro, Allura and Coran all made their own wishes for good luck and reassurance that they will be watching and helping as much as possible. Pidge suddenly lunged her small body at Keith into a tight hug, "Please be careful, and don't get each other killed." He smiled and mirrored her affection. After she left with her lion, both he and his companion made their way back to their cell.