"That's the funny thing about trying to escape. You never really can. Maybe temporarily, but not completely."
― Jennifer L. Armentrout, Onyx
Chapter 21
Lance's toes were frozen solid. They were as cold as the ice on the northern sea. As cold as the drifting snow. As cold as a dead maid's cheek.
Not that she'd ever touched a dead maid's cheek before but you got the point.
It's not real a little voice said.
None of it is real.
Of course it wasn't.
She knew that.
But after being subjected to all different types of torture in her mind, a part of her believed that it was real.
These druids were good.
But Lance was better.
She curled her toes inside her boots, because they weren't frozen, not really. And this wasn't real.
The frozen ocean, the howling wind, even her being underwater and running out of air wasn't real.
If it were, Lance would have no trouble breathing underwater, regardless of how cold it was.
Take control.
Lance focused. She thought of the ocean back on Earth. The sunsets and sunrises that she'd seen on the horizon. The sound of the waves crashing in the distant. Feeling the warm sunshine on her back as she swam. The sound of birds calling to one another as they flew by.
The druid released a harsh growl from its throat.
Lance smiled.
The scenery changed to a dark forest and Lance felt a cold feeling wash over her, even though it was really warm and humid in the forest. There was absolute silence. Where there should be the sounds of birds singing there was only stillness. Even with her high sense of hearing she couldn't catch the sounds of any creepy crawlies roaming around either.
There were Goosebumps on her skin.
Something was coming.
She felt it more than she heard it.
A part of her wanted to run.
Focus!
Right.
Not real.
The forest disappeared and just to spite her torturer she thought of Chuck E. Cheese, the worst place she'd ever been. The place smelled like feet, the kids were spoiled pains in the butt, and the pizza tasted like road kill.
Creepy figures that were suppose to be fun to play with looked like they were mocking you as you passed. Creepy songs played in the background and a man wearing a giant mouse costume walked by with a creepy too wide smile.
The druid screamed and the world she created dissolved back to the purple-lighted medical room where she was strapped to the table, her hands pinned to her sides with handcuffs that even she couldn't break out of.
If she moved her head to the right she could see torture equipment on a display case on the wall. When she'd first come in they'd tried cutting her only for their instruments to break thanks to her tough skin.
They'd tried injecting her with who knows what but the needles broke against her skin as well.
They tried electrocuting her but that only made her stronger. She'd even gotten out of her hold and taken out two Galra soldiers and one druid before they pumped the room with knockout gas and she'd lost consciousness.
That's when the druids decided to enter her mind and torture her for information there instead. They always asked the same questions. Where are the rest of the paladins? Where is the Black lion? Who is the weakest member of the team?
She did not deign to answer their questions.
The torture happening in her mind was painful.
She'd been burned alive.
She'd had her limbs cut off.
She'd been shot to death.
It hurt.
But she could not give in to despair.
So she waited, and she screamed and she cried but not once did she say anything.
She endured.
Let them think she was weak.
It would make them drop their guard.
The druids got cocky and two more entered her mind but this time Lance was ready.
She took control of the situation and she burned the druids alive in her mind.
Made them watch the Teletubbies and watched them scream in horror.
Locked them in a room full of clowns and watched them cry.
The images dissolved and the three druids in the room burst into dust with the sudden overload.
One would think that after all of that they would stop their little torture session.
They didn't but Lance didn't really care anymore, she took over as soon as they entered her mind this time.
She was bored.
She didn't know how long she'd been here. She just wanted to go back to her cell and sleep in that little cot in the room. She was starving. Since she'd shown bad behavior they didn't bring her any food as punishment.
Back in the present, the druid before her shuddered and pressed a button by the wall. Little minutes later, three Galra officers came in, their weapons raised and expressions weary.
Lance laughed and she swore one pissed himself.
After a rather boring stare down one of the Galra that had a thick mouth and a crooked nose stepped forward and put a surgical mask over her nose and mouth.
The crooked nose was thanks to her. She was a little proud of that.
If her hands weren't restrained she would have punched the guy. She smelled something foul and her eyes began to droop but she didn't lose consciousness this time.
She was slowly becoming immune to this as well.
The shackles disappeared and she slumped to the floor and almost fell face first onto the floor but two strong arms gripped her forearms and she was dragged to her feet.
The metal shackles that blocked her usage of electricity were clamped on her wrists once again.
The Galra began to lead her back to her cell and Lance took the chance to lift her head and inhale.
Shiro was close.
She'll have to find him soon.
The last time she'd seen him; he'd been out cold and was being dragged away by two Galra soldiers and some druids following close behind.
She didn't know what the heck happened.
One second they were fighting against Zarkon and just when they stabbed the guy, his armor exploded and sent them flying backwards in their individual lions and that's when the Black lion had started roaring in her mind and then…nothing.
When she later woke up it was to the feeling of having hands on her. She tried to move but she was so tired.
A sound to the right made her turn her head to see Shiro lying next to her in his paladin armor before purple hands grabbed him and they began to drag him away.
Lance lost consciousness after that.
How had they ended up here?
Had Keith and the others gotten away?
Were they okay?
Honestly, Lance thought her guards were idiots. They hadn't confiscated her mood bracelet, which could totally be used as a GPS to find Keith and the others. Then again, the crystal in its center had been cracked so contacting Keith had not gone well so far.
Her transparent bracelet had been damaged so they'd thrown that away.
The same with her blue and white paladin armor. It'd been damaged and so they'd gotten rid of it as well.
They'd even let her keep the red crystal necklace that Keith had given her. Which was good because so far it was the only thing keeping her sane.
They stopped at a black metal door. The Galra with the crooked nose leered at her before placing his palm on the scanner beside the door to open it.
"Since you can't seem to behave yourself, we're giving you a cell mate." The Galra she'd given a crooked nose to harshly whispered in her ear, his hot breath making her wrinkle her nose, "He's been known to annoy and make even the strongest of men go mad so you probably won't last very long paladin."
Jeez.
Say it don't spray it.
Lance gave him a droll stare and nodded at his nose, "Want me to fix that?"
The Galra growled and placed a silver ring that looked like a tiara on her head before she was all but thrown in her new cell.
The three Galra soldiers laughed.
"Enjoy your new cell mate," was the last thing she heard before the metal door closed and she was left in the dark.
Matt Holt was bored.
He'd tried playing I Spy but had gotten bored pretty quickly. The game was only fun when you had someone else to play with anyway. Plus, the same three items in the room hadn't changed much. There was a small cot in the corner of the room, a toilet that had seen better days, and a wrinkled old blanket. His cell was a perfect cube with smooth, shiny black wall panels on all six sides.
He seriously wanted to redecorate.
Didn't these guys know that there were other colors in the rainbow?
He was just glad that he could actually use the toilet this time.
The last cellmate he had had refused to let him use it. Kept claiming that it was his.
Rude.
What was his name again?
Rudolf? Ralphy? Rodolfo?
Bah, who cares? The guy didn't bathe anyway.
Good riddance.
He'd heard a rumor that he'd become part of security for this place in exchange for more food, but Matt wasn't sure.
He'd tried talking to the guards but they just looked like they wanted to strangle him. Perhaps they were still mad about him protesting about the soap.
It's why he was transferred to solitary in the first place.
It's not his fault though.
Maybe if they used actual soap that didn't smell like stinky feet he wouldn't have complained. Although, he probably shouldn't have thrown it on the floor and caused the other alien prisoners taking a shower to trip and start a fight amongst themselves either.
He'd managed not to get punched in the face by crawling along the floor but the alien prisoners had ratted him out as being the culprit for starting the whole thing.
Again, rude.
Sighing, Matt went back to his little cot and leaned back on the wall before blowing away a light brown strand away from his face. He was in desperate need for a haircut; his hair already reached his shoulders.
He was wondering if he could bribe one of the guards to bring him better food in exchange for a compliment when the sound of footsteps outside his room disrupted the cell's peacefulness.
He turned to the door, squinting at the smooth glossy black door.
The voices on the other end ceased and the door swooshed open. Matt had to cover his eyes at the sudden brightness before something was thrown into his little cell and the door closed once again.
Oh, great.
Another new roommate?
Was this one going to claim that the dirty toilet belonged to him too?
Because if he was, Matt was ready to throw down.
He refused to pee in the corner like a dog.
His new cellmate groaned and Matt's brows shot up.
That didn't sound like a guy.
In fact, that sounded a lot like a female.
Suddenly excited about getting to see someone from the opposite sex, Matt shot to his feet and all but flew to the girls' side, a compliment already on the tip of his tongue.
One could imagine his surprise when his wrist was suddenly taken hold off and he was thrown over a shoulder where he landed hard on his back.
A second later, a booted foot came crashing down on his chest and the girl peered down at him in anger.
Matt stared.
Because standing in front of him was a goddess.
His heart nearly stopped. The girl who was still clutching his hand and was peering down at him was wearing a cobalt blue tank top with some black jeans, her skin was a light brown, like caramel candy, and her short brown hair was cascading over her shoulder, but it was her eyes that had him captivated the most. They were the bluest eyes he'd ever seen in his life. They were blue like the sea, crystal clear blue shimmering and crashing and churning.
She was looking at him like she wanted nothing more than to crush him with her pretty black and blue boots. But it didn't matter. Matt Holt was in love. She was the most dazzling girl he'd ever seen.
She looked like one of those Victoria Secret models. Matt swore he saw a halo and wings behind her back. Or maybe getting thrown to the floor was making him see things.
He had to get to his feet. There were important questions that he desperately wanted to ask her. Like her email address and phone number. And the most obvious, did she have a boyfriend?
The girl furrowed her delicate eyebrows and squinted before bending down to peer at his face.
Oh crap.
He should have done his hair!
When was the last time he'd seen himself in a mirror anyway? Weeks ago? Days?
Think Matt think.
Last time he saw himself in a mirror he'd still had brown eyes, light brown hair (which now reached his shoulders) and had a small scar going up on the right side of his cheek. His cheeks had been a little sunken but that was mostly from the meager food they gave him. But he still looked good.
He remembered winking at himself.
Hopefully he still looked that good.
And hopefully the girl would have a thing for guys with long hair.
"Matt?"
The goddess knew his name?
The girl slowly loosened her hold on him and her boot came off him. Biting her lower lip she offered him her hand and he quickly took it. Her hands were so soft! "Are you…Matt Holt?"
He vigorously nodded his head before taking hold of her hand and got down on one knee, "Do you have a Band-Aid?" The girl looked confused, "Because I just scraped my knee falling for you."
The girl stared.
No?
Let's try another one.
Scrambling for another pick-up line and finally finding one, he smiled, "I'm not a photographer, but I can picture me and you together."
The girl blinked and promptly started laughing.
Matt's smile faltered but laughter could be a good thing. Right?
Right.
After the girl stopped laughing she gave him a sultry smile that gave him Goosebumps and leaned closer, "Nice shirt, is it made out of boyfriend material?"
Matt's jaw dropped and he blinked rapidly but the girl wasn't done as she looked him up and down, "Roses are red, violets are fine. I'll be the six, if you'll me by nine."
Matt choked on his own spit.
He was sure his face resembled a tomato.
The girl laughed again and after a while Matt joined her. This was just too good to be true. Someone else who used pick-up lines too?
The two of them were obviously meant to be together!
Finally catching her breath, the girl lifted her hand in his direction for him to shake. Matt instantly took it, "My name is Leah McLain but you can just call me Lance. And you're Matt Holt right?"
She smelled so good!
And she was really rocking that outfit. Much better than his brown prison jumpsuit that all prisoners were obligated to wear. Clearing his throat, he discreetly began to fix his hair, "Yeah, the names Matt. You heard of me?"
Qu the suggestive brows.
Lance nodded and frowned at the silver tiara thing that was on her head, "Yeah, Pidge mentions you a lot."
Matt cocked his head to the right in confusion, "Pidge?"
"Katie. You know, you're sister."
As soon as she said the word Katie, all thoughts of flirting left his mind and he gripped her shoulders as he leaned in closer to her face, "Katie? Is she in space too? Did those Galra bastards drag here against her will?"
Lance eyed his hands with an arched brow and he immediately released her. Finally free to move, Lance looked around the cell and began to inspect the items in the room as she answered him, "Yes, Katie is in space too. No, the Galra didn't drag her here against her will. She came here voluntarily and she's also the green paladin of Voltron and pilot of the green lion."
Matt's mind reeled and he rapidly blinked his eyes, "Katie is part of Voltron? My baby sister?"
Lance grimaced, shrinking away from the dirty toilet. "Yup, she's really smart. Also, I'm the blue paladin, pilot of the blue lion."
Matt's jaw dropped, "You're part of Voltron too?"
Lance nodded absently before suddenly remembering something and began to look through her pockets, "Yeah, so is Shiro by the way. He's our leader and the black paladin. Naturally, he's the black lions pilot."
"Shiro too? Is he okay?"
Lance was still looking through her pockets with a frown but she nodded, "I think he's okay. He's somewhere in this ship so I'll have to rescue his butt too."
Whoa.
So Shiro was part of Voltron as well. He always knew his friend was destined for great things. He couldn't wait to see him too.
Lance suddenly made an "Aha!" sound and Matt turned to see her gazing at something small and cylinder. Matt's eyes widened as he gazed at the small black cylinder object in her palm. Was that what he thought it was?
"Do you know what that is?"
"I haven't the slightest idea." She held it up to him. "I stole it from one of the guards that I punched."
Matt grinned as he took the item from her, "Did he deserve it?"
Lance nodded seriously, "Oh, yes. He pulled my hair. No one touches my hair."
"I hope you landed a good punch."
Lance studied her nails with a smile, "Well, his nose is crooked now. If you ask me, its somewhat of an improvement."
Matt laughed as he began tinkering with the small cylinder. Turning it over he began to pull the top and watched with a triumphant grin as the cylinder stretched and a screen suddenly formed. Bingo.
He was right.
This was a portscreen.
"What are you doing?" Lance asked as she came over to his side.
"Getting us a view of the whole ship and hopefully get us out of here."
"Oh. Sweet."
He pulled out a yellow wire from the top cylinder and dropped it into Lance's lap, then sank cross-legged next to her on the floor and began to work.
Lance watched, mystified, as he took out another cable, this one blue, and replaced it where the yellow cable used to be. Matt felt his chest puff with pride as he felt a small blush appear on his cheeks.
He was totally impressing her now.
Nice.
Matt had some mad skills.
The portscreen in his hand changed to static and he frowned.
"Try giving it a good smack," Lance added helpfully as she leaned in to take a closer look, "Sometimes that helps."
Good idea.
Shrugging, Matt lightly hit it and then shook it in the air a few times until finally, finally, the screen turned on and displayed one of the halls outside where two Galra soldiers were walking by.
Lance and Matt high-fived.
"Do you think you can find Shiro with this thing?" Lance asked, her hand lightly stroking the red crystal necklace around her neck.
Matt hummed and began to tap the screen with his finger. The images changed to different floors, some with those flying triangle robots that zapped you, some with those creepy druids walking around being their eerie selves, passed some cells that probably had other prisoners inside and finally the medical rooms.
He changed to another angle so he could peer inside the rooms and kept swiping. Most of the rooms were empty. Just when Matt was about to hang his head and tell the beautiful goddess that he couldn't find Shiro, Lance suddenly gripped his shoulder and told him to go back.
Startled, he quickly went back and Lance grinned.
"There he is!" she exclaimed with a happy grin.
Matt paused and looked at the image closer. What was she seeing that he couldn't see?
"Its his boots," she explained when he questioned her and pointed at the black boot on display, "Shiro only has one pair of boots. That's him. I'm positive."
Matt grinned and got to his feet. "Awesome. Now how do we get out of here?"
Lance gnawed on her lower lip and gave the room a once over once again before bringing her gaze towards the grate at the ceiling. Tethered wires that snaked around the room surrounded it. He and his first roommate, a blue little alien guy who only had one eye, had tried escaping through there as well but neither of them could open it.
It was too heavy for either of them.
"Can you give me a lift?"
"Already tried that, it's too heavy," Matt said, but he laced his fingers together anyway.
Lance stepped onto his palms and he easily lifted her. With the added leverage, she began to fidget with the grate.
Matt frowned as he peered up, "It's heavy. Don't feel bad if you can't-"
Lance tossed the grate on Matt's little cot with a small thud and pulled herself into the opening without hesitation.
Matt's jaw dropped and Lance glanced down at him with a frown. "You coming or what?"
Scrambling to his feet, he took her offered hand and watched in amazement as she easily pulled him up alongside her.
Dang.
This girl was strong.
Matt like-y.
Although it did make him question his manliness.
"Does that thing show the blueprints of this place?" Lance asked him after he just stared open-mouthed at her like an idiot.
Shaking his head, he brought the portscreen to his face and after looking through it after a few minutes he pulled up the ships interior structure to check the direction they needed to go to get to Shiro.
It seemed Lance and he were in the fourth floor. Shiro was in the second floor. The rest of the prison cells were in the second floor too and the hangar bay was in the fifth floor.
They'd have to secure a ship to escape later on.
But first things first.
Find Shiro.
Finally having a destination, they began to crawl.
Lance in front with Matt crawling behind her.
Matt was enjoying the view immensely.
The trek was mostly quiet, although Lance did hum under her breath; in fact Matt was pretty sure she was humming out Staying Alive by the Bee Gees.
Oh yeah.
Matt was definitely in love.
Naturally he sang along quietly and Lance sent him a wide grin over her shoulder that had his heart beating wildly in his chest.
Matt would have impressed her with his mad dancing skills but since he didn't have a lot of room to maneuver in he settled for bobbing his head up and down.
Lance looked like she approved.
It's too bad really; Matt was particularly good at doing the hustle.
They had to stop twice when they heard footsteps from somewhere below.
Matt briefly wondered if there would be an alarm when their escape was discovered. Part of him was a little surprised that one hadn't sounded yet.
They'd been crawling along for almost half an hour according to the time on the portscreen. It would be nighttime by now and the guards usually didn't bother checking after their prisoners until morning but sometimes if they were in a pissy mood, they came to check on them while they were sleeping.
Jerks.
Thankfully, they still had hours before the Galra guards came to check on them. Hopefully they'll have Shiro and be long gone by then.
Sweat was beginning to drip from his nose and his breath was becoming shallow. The walls looked like they were closing in around them. What if the blueprint he was reading hadn't been updated in a while and he was just leading them into a trap?
Matt didn't think he could stand it if that were true.
Maybe Lance shouldn't place her trust in him.
Oh god.
What if he was leading them in circles and they would starve here?
Matt's breaths became quicker.
Oh great, he was having a panic attack.
So not cool.
"Everything all right?"
Matt breathed deeply through his nose but it still came out shaky. Lance frowned at him over her shoulder.
He shook his head to clear his mind.
Calm down dude. This was no time to panic. Lance and Shiro were counting on him to get them out of here.
"Sorry," he finally mumbled, "Just had a small panic attack. No biggie. It's cool."
Lance frowned, the portscreens light making her blue eyes sparkle in the darkness. "What does your blueprint say? Are we almost there?"
Glancing down, he licked his dry lips and slowly nodded. "Yeah, we should be nearing the second floor soon. Just a little longer."
Lance nodded and began to crawl again. Matt followed after. For a few minutes the only noise in the small air duct was his heavy breathing until Lance spoke up, "What's your favorite song?"
Matt startled, "What?"
"Your favorite song," she said patiently, "What is it?"
Matt blinked and tried to remember, it'd been a while since he'd heard Earth music. "What's up by 4 Non Blondes," he finally answered.
Lance grinned, "Is that so? Any particular reason why?"
Matt bit his lip, "Well, because it sounds funny. Sometimes I do a pose and sing in this really ridiculous voice that sounds so bad that it makes me laugh."
Lance nodded as if that was totally normal and continued crawling. After a few seconds of silence he asked her the same question she'd asked him and watched as she thought about it, "Right now it's a tie between Dancing Queen and Girls Just Want to Have Fun."
Matt gasped and put a hand over his heart, "Oh my god. Tell me you grab a comb and sing into it as you dance around in your room."
Lance gasped and shot him a shocked expression that she was obviously faking, "Oh my god. How did you know?"
"Girl, I do the same but in my underwear."
Lance lightly laughed under her breath and Matt grinned, his little panic attack all but forgotten.
They rounded a corner and saw a square of checkered light on the duct's ceiling. Instant relief fluttered inside him as he and Lance crawled over to it and peered down.
"Is this it?" Lance asked as she peered at him, the grate casting peculiar shadows across her face.
He began to open his mouth to say yes when they heard voices. Matt shut his mouth and both of them ducked back.
"Haggar said that she'd be coming soon. Lord Zarkon needed immediate medical attention so she's been too busy to come and check out the two new prisoners. She seems very interested in the blue paladin for some reason," said a Galra soldier.
Lance and he exchanged worried looks.
What the heck did that witch want with Lance?
"Whatever Haggar wants with the blue paladin can't be good. I kind of feel for her. You know she punched Hendrix so hard she messed up his nose? That was pretty awesome actually. The guy is a total douche, it's an improvement I say."
Lance cheekily grinned and whispered, "Maybe I'll let that one live. I like him."
"Is it true that even the druids are scared of her?" asked the previous Galra.
"Oh, yeah," the Galra that Lance liked said, "They tried torturing her in her mind but whatever she did to them make them scream in fear and they evaporated to dust. It was awesome. Personally I don't like the druids anyway. Creepy little things."
The other Galra shuddered, "Tell me about it. Wish I could have seen it though. Oh well, maybe next time."
The conversation faded as they stepped through another hall and Matt looked at Lance in approval. "You made druids scream? What'd you do?"
Lance shrugged and casually said, "Showed them a few Teletubbies. Some clowns. You know, normal stuff."
Matt snickered and raised his fisted palm for a fist pump. Lance lifted her own and they bumped fists before peering down. "Think it's safe to go down now?"
Lance tilted her head and slowly nodded, "I think so. I don't hear any more guards. Let's go."
Matt began to pull back the grate but when it refused to budge Lance kindly took over and removed the grate as if it weighed nothing before she jumped out and gracefully landed on her feet.
Matt would have fallen on his face if Lance hadn't steadied him. The black and purple halls were quiet but Matt found a few cameras' that after a few taps on the portscreen began to show an empty hall. He made sure to keep that video on loop for the other four cameras that they found as they silently walked down the halls.
It was on the sixth room where they found Shiro. Unfortunately the door was locked.
Matt frowned and looked back at the portscreen. Did this door need a code or something?
There was a creaking sound and Matt whipped his head to see Lance prying the door away like nothing. With a small grunt, she pulled back the handle and the door completely came off.
Matt was ready to propose right then and there.
"Ladies first." Lance said to him.
Matt glared and Lance grinned, "Oh, ha ha. Very funny. For the record, I could have totally lifted that door of its hinges too but I figured you could gain some muscle so I let you do it first."
Lance gave him a cheeky grin and Matt made his way inside the room with his head held high. Once Lance was inside she placed the door back where it was but it looked a little crooked.
"A little to the left," he said with one eye closed.
Lance sent him a vulgar gesture that had him raising his hands in a pacifying manner. Right. Best not to anger his future wife.
Lance and he quickly made their way over to Shiro who was strapped to the table spread eagle. He looked like he was having a nightmare. Beats of sweat had formed on his forehead and he kept frowning, making the scar across the bridge of his nose stand out.
He was wearing a light gray long sleeved with a black zipper vest over it. His right hand was wrapped in a black fingerless glove.
His pants were black as well as his boots.
Matt briefly wondered if he wore all black because he was the Black paladin of Voltron.
Lance was wearing a blue tank top…is that how they advertised what paladin they were?
This was some serious power rangers' stuff. Those guys did the same thing. Even when they weren't in their spandex armor.
Matt lightly patted his friends' cheek, "Takashi, wake up. We're here to rescue you."
No response.
Matt tried again.
Still nothing.
Lance made a frustrated noise and bitch slapped him. It was the only way to describe it really. She slapped him so hard she left a red mark across his cheek.
Shiro woke with a shout and began to struggle in his bindings. Matt put a hand to his shoulder and Shiro slowly blinked, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
"Matt?" he croaked.
Despite himself, Matt felt tears prickling the corner of his eyes, "Hey Takeshi. Long time no see."
Shiro slowly blinked and made to reach for him before remembering his restraints, "You're alive."
Matt grinned and lightly punched his shoulder, "Of course I am. I'm too awesome to die."
Shiro gave him a wide smile.
Lance cleared her throat and both males turned in her direction, "Lance?"
The blue paladin gave him a little wave and pulled at one of the metal shackles on Shiro's leg and crumbled it into a ball and threw it behind her like it was nothing.
Again.
So cool.
Matt like-y.
"Hey Shiro," Lance said as she began to remove the rest of the metal shackles, "Lovely weather huh. For todays forecast I predict a lot of Galra's with a punch to the face and our awesome escape from this little prison with us flying away with an awesome explosion behind us as we fly to freedom. Perhaps we'll do a pose. I know I will. Maybe I'll convince you two to join me."
Matt grinned. Punching Galra's in the face? An awesome escape and some explosions? Poses? Sign him up!
Shiro blinked as he slowly got up and rubbed his wrists before hissing, "Did you bitch slap me?"
Lance clicked her tongue and smacked him upside the head. Shiro looked absolutely offended. "First of all, language. You're an adult, set a better example for me." Matt snickered as Shiro spluttered, "And second of all, you wouldn't wake up. I had to."
"Or you just wanted to slap me," Shiro darkly muttered under his breath.
"Yeah, maybe that too," Lance said, not even bothering to deny it.
"I'll tell Keith when we get back," Shiro threatened.
Lance gave him a wide smile, "I'm sure my fiancée will be on my side, but go ahead."
Matt frowned. "Fiancée?"
Lance gave him a strange look, "Yeah, I'm engaged. Did I not mention that?"
Matt deflated. Figures the girl he fell in love with at first sight would be taken. No fair. Why was life so cruel?
Wait. Keith? He turned his brown eyes to Shiro, "You mean your adopted little brother is here too?"
Shiro nodded as he got to his feet. He swayed a little but both he and Lance steadied him. "Yeah, he's the red paladin and Lance's fiancée."
Matt groaned and looked at the heavens, "So not fair!"
Lance lightly laughed as Shiro put a comforting hand on his shoulder and looked at him with a serious expression, "She'd destroy you."
That earned him another smack from the blue paladin.
Shiro growled low in his throat, "Damn it woman! That hurts!"
Lance sniffed and crossed her arms over her blue tank top, "It's supposed to. Anyway," she turned those pretty blue eyes to him, "The rest of the prisoners are in this floor too right?"
Matt looked down at his portscreen and nodded. "Yeah, so it says. We have to go further down but yeah."
Lance nodded and Shiro looked back and forth between them in confusion, "What other prisoners? And where are we? Last thing I remember we were fighting Zarkon."
Lance went over to the door and peered through the small little window it had and looked outside for a bit, "I don't know. I just woke up and I was here. Got tortured by a few druids for a few days I think. Zarkon's apparently alive but on life support with Haggar healing him or so the guards said. Then I was tossed inside Matt's little cell where we began to escape through an air duct and here we are."
Shiro furrowed his brows at the Zarkon comment and quickly walked to her side, his face etched in fury, "Those druids did what? I'll kill them." The way he said it made Matt cringe. Boy was Matt glad that he wasn't one of those druids right about now. "Are you okay?"
Lance gave him a small smile and patted the hand on her shoulder, "Nothing I haven't been trained for. I'll live. As for the killing them. Well." She flashed him a feral grin and a peace sign, "I took care of that all on my own. Took down three of them. I'm sure I'll find that last one and give him a good beating."
Shiro still looked concerned but he slowly returned her feral smile with one of his own, "We'll give him a good beating," he corrected and Lance beamed.
Matt awkwardly cleared his throat.
Boy did he feel like a third wheel.
Lance tilted her head in his direction, "Anyone on your list that you want to beat up?"
Matt startled as both Shiro and Lance turned to him with expectant looks, "Well, there was this guy who refused to let me use the toilet. Had to pee in the corner for a few weeks."
"That scumbag," Lance snarled.
Shiro cracked his knuckles, "We'll find the fuck-" Lance threw an angry glare at him and Shiro awkwardly cleared his throat, "I mean, we'll find the prick and make him pay."
Lance nodded in satisfaction and Shiro released a relieved sigh that had Matt laughing. These two were hilarious.
"By the way," Shiro said as he eyed the silver circlet around Lance's head as well as the shackles on her wrists, "Do you not want to take those off or what?"
Lance glared at him but sighed in resignation as her shoulders slumped, "I already tried removing them but they won't budge. The shackles keep me from using my lightning and the tiara/circlet keep me from using the rest of my powers. I can't feel them at all."
That last part was said in anguish and Shiro's face softened as he pulled her into a hug. "We'll find a way to remove them when we get to the castle. I'm sure Pidge or Hunk can figure this out."
Lance let out a quiet sniffle and Matt patted her back comfortingly.
After a few minutes Lance stepped back and took a deep breath. No signs of distress on her face. Just pure resolve.
Man this girl was strong.
"Ready to go?" Lance asked them both.
Shiro looked around the room and found his belt with two satchels on the side and clicked it around his waist before nodding.
"Lead the way," Shiro said, his face etched in determination.
Shiro, Lance and Matt jogged to the doors at the far end of the hall and peered inside. It was dark but Lance and Matt insisted that this room had prisoners inside.
He still couldn't believe that Matt was here. Pidge was going to be so happy when they got back. It's too bad her father wasn't here either. When Lance and he asked his friend if his father was here too Matt sighed and sadly shook his head.
His father along with other scientists had been taken somewhere else a few weeks ago.
Right now, all that mattered was getting the hell out of here.
Part of him hoped they ran into that druid that had tortured Lance in her mind. That guy was going to get a beat down. No one hurt Shiro's friends. He owed it to Keith to protect his fiancée as well.
Turning his prosthetic arm into a sword he cut the door apart and began to make his way inside. The stench of sweat and grime rolled out, slamming into him before the whimpers and whispers of fear came. Dozens of faces emerged from the dark, hands held up to shield their eyes.
Matt found a light switch and the room was enveloped in purple lighting. The prisoners recoiled and stumbled back.
Different types of aliens looked back at them. Some looked like reptiles with their green scaly skin. Others looked a lot like Olkari to him. And three of them looked like mini elephants with the long trunk on their face.
They were wearing the same brown jumpsuit that Matt was wearing. All of them had hollow cheeks, carved out by hunger.
At the sight of his prosthetic arm, some released panicked screams. Shiro's mind scrambled to come up with something to avoid having to carry them out.
"My name is Shiro," he said quickly, "I'm a paladin of Voltron. We bring you no harm. We're just here to rescue you."
One of the huddled aliens that looked like an Olkari raised his green baldhead towards him and slowly blinked, "Voltron? You're a paladin of Voltron?"
Shiro nodded.
"So am I," Lance added with a small wave.
The prisoners began to whisper amongst themselves and Shiro tried not to tap his foot in annoyance. Lance went out into the hallway to make sure it was still clear while Matt and he stayed inside and waited for the prisoner's verdicts.
After what felt like forever, the prisoners slowly nodded to themselves and began to step forward. The one that looked like an Olkari introduced himself as Festus and announced that they would go with them.
Shiro nodded and after Lance announced that the coast was clear they began to move out. Feet slapped against the tiles and they all leaned against a wall as Matt put the cameras on the next hall in a loop before moving out.
They found a stairwell and began to climb down to the hangar bay where they would steal a ship and get in contact with the castle of lions to get home safely.
It's when they reached the fourth floor that they found three Galra soldiers lounging in the stairwell. It looked like they were about to eat lunch or something. All three of them were holding something wrapped in foil in their hands. It looked like a burrito. Shiro's stomach let out a long growl.
When was the last time he'd eaten anything?
A while probably.
For a moment both groups just stared in confusion.
And then one of the men reached for the sword at his belt while the other one reached for his ear where a little device was attached.
Perhaps it was a communications device?
The third one looked like he was getting ready to scream.
Clenching his jaw, Shiro launched himself at the one reaching for his blade while Lance went after the other two.
A punch to the gut and a slam against the stairwell knocked the Galra out.
Shiro turned to see if Lance needed help but when he turned over, both Galra's were slumped on the floor with huge bumps on their heads.
Nice.
Matt let out an impressed whistle. "Remind me not to get on either of your bad sides."
Shiro and Lance grinned.
After moving the three unconscious bodies out of the way, they continued their trek to the hangar bay.
Lance took two of the blaster guns from the unconscious Galra before handing the third one to Matt who took it without hesitation.
Shiro couldn't wait to go home. He was so done being captured by the Galra.
Been there. Done that. Even brought back a shirt.
A part of him was trying not to freak out about whatever they had done to him in those few days while he slept. He hadn't woken up once.
Shiro seriously hoped he hadn't been molested.
The thought was enough to make him cringe.
An alarm suddenly rang out throughout the whole ship and the prisoners released panicked screams. Shiro let out a curse as Matt began to frantically tap the portscreen.
He shook his head and sent him frantic eyes, "I can't turn it off! They've locked me out!"
Lance took the portscreen from his hands and crushed it with the heel of her boot. "They'll have our location by now. Run!"
Shiro didn't need to be told twice.
He ran.
They went down the last flight of stairs where the hangar bay was and Shiro let out a curse when the door refused to budge. Even Lance couldn't seem to open it either.
Shiro growled.
"Everyone back to the fourth floor!" Lance barked as she gripped one of the gun blasters in her hand and a burrito in the other. "We'll have to go the long way!"
"You took a burrito with you?" Shiro accused in disbelief. He, Matt, and the rest of the prisoners followed after her as Shiro looked at her in envy.
Why hadn't he thought of that?
Lance took a bite of the burrito in her hand and shot him a grin that he did not appreciate. "I'm hungry, there was food right in front of me. Of course I was going to take some with me!"
Matt threw his head back and let out a long laugh.
Shiro didn't see what the hell was so funny.
Lance reached the fourth floor's door and burst inside the hall with Shiro hot on her heels only to almost trip on top of her when she stopped so suddenly.
Why was Lance stopping?
As if to answer his question a loud roar greeted them and as one they all turned to see a ten feet tall blue humanoid alien with a hairy muscular body. Its face was pretty brutish looking; his single eye in the center of his forehead glowed red. Shiro would have trembled in fear if it hadn't been for the fact that the aliens greasy black hair was matted in pigtails and he was wearing a tiger striped loincloth.
Seriously?
Matt gasped from somewhere behind him, "Hey, it's Rudolf!" his friend screeched, "He's the guy who refused to let me use the toilet!"
Shiro almost whimpered.
Of course it was.
Rudolf let out another roar and hit his chest like a gorilla, "It's Ralphy!"
Matt snorted and muttered under his breath, "Like that's any better."
For a moment there was absolute silence as everyone stared at each other wearily.
And then Lance threw her half eaten burrito at Ralphy's face and Shiro wanted to cry.
"That's for not letting my friend use the toilet!" Lance screamed in accusation.
Matt let out a mighty cheer.
Shiro could already feel the beginning of a headache.
Behind them the prisoners were exchanging looks and probably rethinking their life choices right about now.
The half eaten burrito unfolded itself and all its contents spilled down the ten feet tall giant Ralphy who was doing a pretty good job of not losing his shit despite having a burrito thrown at his face.
The smell of avocado and something that smelled a lot like bacon washed over the hall and Shiro licked his lips.
What a waste of a burrito.
Ralphy let out another roar and suddenly seven robot sentries carrying gun blasters appeared next to him.
"Great," Matt muttered. "We needed more enemies."
Shiro let out a long suffering sigh and turned his prosthetic arm into a sword before exchanging looks with Lance.
The Amazon princess nodded and gripped the two gun blasters in her hands.
Shiro ran towards the giant Ralphy with his sword raised high. Ralphy the giant swung a giant mallet towards him.
Who the fuck had given this guy a mallet?
Shiro rolled to the right and watched as the mallet made a dent where he'd been standing just moments ago.
Lance began to open fire from the back and Ralphy let out a pained yelp when one of her shots hit him in the crotch.
Shiro winced.
Damn.
Lance wasn't joking around.
As Ralphy put his beefy arms around his assets, Shiro used the opportunity to climb onto his back and began to stab him with his sword.
No dice.
This guy's skin was tough.
Lance kept shooting as Ralphy tried to swing Shiro off of him.
Through the chaos, Shiro caught glimpses of Matt and the other prisoners. Sentries surrounded his friend, but he seemed to be holding his own.
When had his friend gotten so good with an alien gun?
The prisoners behind him were throwing burritos at the sentries so Matt could shoot them down.
Where the hell had they gotten more burritos?
And why the fuck was no one saving him one?
Shiro was starving.
Gritting his teeth, Shiro got a good grip by pulling at one of Ralphy's pigtails and stabbed his red eye.
The giant roared and Lance ran forward to punch him in the gut and knocked him to the floor.
Ralphy didn't move.
Shiro safely made his way down and grinned as he returned Lance's high five. "Well that was awesome."
Lance handed him a burrito and Shiro almost cried then and there, "Figured you'd want one."
Shiro took the offered item like it was a gift from god, "I could kiss you!"
"Please don't!" she said with a frown.
Rude.
"That was awesome!" Matt cheered as he jogged to their side, "By the way, these burritos are really good!"
His friend offered one to Lance who took it eagerly and began to eat it. Shiro finished his in two more bites as they began to run towards the end of the hall to reach the hangar bays. "Where did you guys get these?"
Matt shrugged as the other prisoners caught up to them. It was Festus who answered, "The three Galra that you guys knocked out had a bag with them. There were at least a dozen burritos in there. They were quite good."
"Nice," Lance said as she finished her own burrito.
"Okay guys," Shiro said, wiping his hands on his pants, "We're almost out. We just need to reach the hangar bay and then we'll be home free. Are you guys with me?"
Cheers followed his statement and Shiro grinned.
Reaching the elevator everyone crammed themselves inside and Shiro pushed the button with the number five on it. The ride to the hangar bay was kind of awkward.
They had some kind of poppy elevator music playing inside that totally ruined the seriousness of the situation.
To make matters worse, Lance and Matt were bobbing their heads and looked like they were ready to start break dancing.
Shiro seriously hoped they didn't.
The elevator door opened and just as Shiro was beginning to smile, Haggar and three other druids dressed in black long cloaks stepped forward to greet them.
Fuck.
Okay, so druids were creepy Matt decided.
He'd never seen one from so close before, usually it was from a distance, and honestly, he'd like to keep it that way.
Unfortunately, life seemed to have other plans for him and his friends.
As if finding out that the girl of his dreams was already engaged to someone else wasn't bad enough already, they decided to add creepy druids to the mix.
Gee, thanks universe.
Just what he needed.
"Anyone got another burrito to throw?" Matt muttered quietly under his breath.
Everyone shook their head.
Bummer.
"If it isn't the black and blue paladins of Voltron," Haggar the witch said in a voice that made him flinch, "I have greats plans for you two. You're not going anywhere."
Matt shuddered.
Whatever that witch wanted with Lance and Shiro couldn't be good.
"What exactly do you want with us?" Lance asked with a frown.
Shiro placed himself protectively in front of her. Matt followed his example.
Haggar spread her arms and Matt swore she smiled. It was kind of hard to tell with that cloak covering her features. Only her yellow glowing eyes and long silver hair showed, "I've heard some interesting rumors about you blue paladin. That you have…certain abilities."
Matt furrowed his brows. Shiro and Lance had briefly mentioned that. Something about electricity and some other stuff that he couldn't remember in the moment.
"You have so much potential," Haggar continued, "You're not making full use of your abilities. But I can. I've been thinking of getting a new body for a while. Yours will do just fine."
A chill went down his spine.
Lance audibly swallowed.
Shiro narrowed his eyes, "You want to take over her body?"
"Oh yes," Haggar purred, "Imagine how powerful I'll become when I take over her body. With my knowledge and her untapped potential I'll be invincible." Shiro growled low in his throat as the prisoners behind them whimpered. "As for you black paladin," Haggar went on as she directed her glowing eyes from Lance to Shiro, "I have plans for you as well. In fact, I've already tinkered with you since your last capture. It seems you've yet to notice."
Lance stepped forward, her hands curled into fists, "What did you do to Shiro you old trout?"
Haggar chuckled and Matt almost pissed himself. This woman should never ever laugh, "That's for the rest of the paladins to find out my dear. I'm afraid you won't be alive for very long."
Well that sounded ominous.
Desperation welled inside Matt.
They were so close!
If they could just get behind Haggar and her little squad of creepers who were oddly silent then they'd be home free.
Seriously, were those guys alive or what? They hadn't moved or made so much as a peep since Haggar started her whole monologue.
The hangar bay stretched out the length of a whole city block, filled with dozens of spaceships, large and small, new and old. Cargo ships, podships, cruisers, etc.
There was a ship in the middle that looked like one of those hippie vans that stoners use to smoke weed in. Even came with the peace sign and a rainbow drawing on its slide in door.
He was pretty sure everyone would be able to fit in that ship no problem.
Dibs.
It looked pretty simple.
Matt was sure that even he could drive it.
Now if they could just find a way to get there…
Haggar's yellow eyes moved to the bracelet around Lance's wrist and gasped, "A mood bracelet? That thing has a GPS on it. One of the other paladins must carry one as well, isn't that right?" Lance remained silent as Haggar growled, "Those idiot guards. If they'd taken that bracelet we would have found the castle of lions long ago. Honestly, do I have to do everything myself?"
Lance scowled and hid the hand with the bracelet behind her back, "You won't be getting your hands on it anytime soon you wrinkly old bag."
Haggar flashed them a wicked grin and everyone took a step back.
Matt immediately added 'Must never smile' on the list of things that Haggar should never do in front of any of them.
Scratch that.
That ho should never do it period.
"I'll do you a favor blue paladin," Haggar began, "I'll let you use your powers one last time before I take over your body. It's the least I can do."
Matt blinked and before anyone could stop her, Haggar shot a purple beam of lightning toward the tiara that was on Lance's head.
The thing crumbled to the floor and Lance took a shuddering breath that had her swaying in place before her eyes glowed a bright blue.
Whoa.
Matt and Shiro were in the middle of asking if she was okay before an unfamiliar voice ricocheted through the hangar bay, "There they are!"
Turning, Matt saw seven Galra guards coming through the stairwell with gun blasters in their grips.
Everything after that became chaos.
With a roar, Lance moved her palms to the sides and tossed the three druids and the seven Galra guards to the walls.
"Go!" she barked at them.
Matt and the prisoners ran towards the ships as Lance and Shiro engaged Haggar in combat.
Bursts of purple lightning shot in their direction and Matt cursed under his breath. A few more feet and they'd be in front of the hippie ship.
There was a boom and a shockwave that tossed everyone in the room in random directions before an explosion was heard.
Matt's ears were ringing.
What was he doing again?
"Matt, get up!" Lance called. Her voice seemed to energize him, shook him out of his stupor. He slowly sat up, his head groggy, while Lance grabbed him under his arms and hauled him to his feet.
The sound of clamoring feet in their direction made him turn his head to see two druids and three Galra guards coming towards them.
Lance lifted her hand and suddenly their enemies got clamored with two battle cruisers.
Matt heard crunching bone and pained yelps.
His feet swayed.
"Don't die on me," Lance ordered. "You are not dying on me. Pidge will kill me!"
"Yes, ma'am." He felt light-headed but she was still the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen in his life. Her blue tank top was singed. Her hair was smoldering. She had a cut on her shoulder, her face was smudged with soot on one cheek and she looked like she was ready to murder someone.
Beautiful.
Keith was one lucky man.
Lance's cheeks slightly tinged pink.
About twenty feet from them, Shiro was fighting against Haggar and the last reaming druid. The last four Galra soldiers were making their way to Festus and the other eleven prisoners who were swaying on their feet.
A few of them were throwing random ship parts at them.
He had to go help them.
Something told him that among the gathered prisoners he was the only one who could drive a ship.
Lance gave him a hard push in Festus's direction before throwing another few cruisers at the last remaining Galra soldiers.
They went down easily.
Matt whistled.
Dang.
Lance had some cool telekinesis powers.
"Get the ship ready!" Lance barked at him.
Right.
Stumbling to his feet he ran the last few feet to the hippie look alike ship and slid the door open with a grunt.
"Everyone inside!" he yelled.
Festus and the other prisoners quickly made their way inside. Once they were all in Matt hurried in after them and made his way to the pilots seat.
He was ready.
Now he just needed Lance or Shiro to open the doors for them, get their own butts inside, and they'd be home free.
Festus slid the door close and Matt opened the back door so Lance and Shiro could jump in at any time.
"Come on guys," he muttered under his breath. "Hurry."
Haggar was a real pain in her behind Lance thought as she dodged the lightning bolt sent her way and aimed a punch at Haggar's wrinkly old face only to yell in frustration when the old witch teleported away.
Lance was running out of power.
That burrito had not been enough to fully replenish her energy and she was growing tired.
Shiro seemed to be running out of energy as well. Her friends' breathing was shaky and having a teleporting druid as an opponent was a pain in the butt.
Haggar and her druid were tiring them out on purpose.
Lance wasn't too eager to have Haggar take over her body. She visibly shuddered. Just the thought gave her the heebie jeebies.
She couldn't let that witch get Shiro either.
Lance just wanted to go back to the castle of lions and curl up in the couch with Keith. She missed him terribly.
Having her powers locked from her had made her feel hollow. Without them she hadn't been able to sense Keith in her mind. It was enough to make her cry.
She and Keith had been bonded telepathically for over seven months and when she'd woken up to his absence in her head she had panicked.
She'd almost thought something had happened to him.
She had to get back to him.
He must be going out of his mind by now.
When Haggar had broken that tiara on her head, the feeling of her powers rushing back to her was staggering. She was finally beginning to feel like herself again. Now if she could get those darn shackles from her wrists that would be great.
"Not bad," Haggar said and Lance looked around for the old crone but couldn't find her, "Now let's see how you deal with this."
Shiro stopped fighting.
His hands drooped to his sides.
Lance took a hesitant step forward, "Shiro?"
A low growl rumbled through his throat. He spun toward her, his gaze filling with hatred and raised his sword in her direction.
"Shiro?" she murmured, backing up a few steps. Her friend took a step toward her and that's when Haggar and her last druid reappeared from behind the black paladin.
Haggar chuckled, "it's a good thing his body is still weak. It makes his mind easier to control."
Lance scowled and reached out with her mind, grasping for the familiar strong presence of Shiro's energy, his own strong aura, but found something feral and dark clouding around him instead.
Shiro lunged for her.
Lance sidestepped and went for Haggar instead. She made as if to throw the witch off her feet so she would lose her concentration but her druid stepped in front of her instead.
She tossed him aside but her knee buckled as one of his energy spheres made contact.
Hissing, she threw out her hand as Shiro started running in her direction again and managed to toss a small podship in Haggar's direction.
The witch let out an annoyed grunt and teleported away.
Now was her chance.
Turning, she face Shiro as he lunged for her again and held his stare as she delved into his mind.
Shiro stopped mid-run.
A headache was beginning to form at her temples from the effort it required to control him, but she was making process.
Shiro's thoughts began to change.
There was still anger in there.
A whole lot of it, but there was also confusion as he regarded her.
Recognition was coming to him.
Yes.
"Come back Shiro, you don't want to hurt me."
His eyes flickered and he slowly blinked.
Bright spots were dancing in her vision. Her legs were trembling not just from the druids attack but also from the effort it was taking to bring her friend back to his old self.
One more push.
Lance sent him an imagine of Allura and the others. Memories of the sleepover they had in the living room. Memories of he and Keith sparring together with wide smiles.
Memories of ruffling Pidge's hair and making her laugh.
Memories of trying out Coran's food with a grimace.
Memories of he and Hunk talking over one of the yellow paladins new dishes.
Memories of he and her doing the robot and saluting the Slav dummy as it exploded and them cackling in the sky.
And finally a memory with him and Allura dancing and gazing at each other with shy smiles.
Shiro broke from Haggar's control with a shuddering breath and he dropped to his knees with a gasp. His whole body was shaking.
Hissing, Lance crumbled to her knees as well.
"Impressive."
Haggar's voice seemed to echo all around them but it sounded muffled in Lance's ringing head. Zarkon's second in command stepped out of the shadows, her yellow glowing eyes looking at her with so much glee that if Lance had the strength, she would have punched her.
With some effort Lance got to her feet. Her body felt heavy and she swayed. She so desperately wanted to sleep and wake up in Keith's arms and know that everything was going to be okay.
Haggar chuckled in amusement and Lance lunged herself at her, her hands poised to strangle the old witch until she stopped breathing.
She froze with her fingertips mere inches from Haggar's throat. The fury drained from her all at once and she collapsed. She began to sob on the floor.
What was wrong with her?
Shiro was yelling her name but she couldn't even turn in his direction.
Where had all her anger gone?
She tried reaching for it again, but the more she tried, the further away it went.
Matt yelled her name but the druid holding Shiro threw a ball of energy in Matt's direction and Lance heard a crash.
There was silence.
And then Matt and the other prisoners groaned but they were alive.
She could still hear thirteen heartbeats in that direction.
They'd be okay.
A feeling of utter hopelessness washed over her and she cried harder. She was useless. She'd been so stupid to try and challenge Haggar in the first place. The witch had been alive for more than a thousand years. She was all kinds of powerful.
'…ance…'
Haggar chuckled above her and Shiro began to crawl in her direction but the other druid reappeared and pits one knee on his back to hold him down. Shiro roared obscenities at the thing but it refused to budge.
'Lance!'
What was that?
'I'm coming! Hold on!'
Keith?
"It seems the red paladin is on his way," Haggar mused from above her, "Is he the one that has the other mood bracelet?"
Lance didn't answer.
Something clawed at her mind and Lance choked, "Yes."
"Good girl," Haggar purred and Lance's mind hushed, the self-loathing disappeared, and the tears trickling down her cheeks stopped their descent.
Haggar had been controlling her.
Like toying with a puppet.
Lance lay crumpled on the floor, her whole body shaking and Shiro shouted her name but she couldn't speak. Her throat hurt from all the crying she'd done.
"Perhaps I'll let the red paladin go so he can lead us back to the castle of lions where the rest of the lions are. It would be a great present for my lord Zarkon once he wakes up. That mood bracelet of yours will be quite useful."
Lance froze.
She couldn't let that happen.
With the way she was now, Lace didn't think she'd be able to make it to Matt and the others so they could get away.
But she also couldn't let Haggar get her hands on Shiro.
There was however, something else that she could do to prevent Haggar from getting her mood bracelet and Lance herself.
She just hoped it worked.
Keith was getting closer.
She could feel him.
Gritting her teeth, she forced her body to stop its trembling and pushed herself up. Haggar looked at her in amusement.
There were three things she had to do and she had to do them before Keith got any closer.
Her mind scrambling she thought back to the book that her mother had given her and desperately brought up the passage with her great grandmother where she put herself in a deep sleep.
She had to gather her energy and put a shield around herself.
And she had to do it without Haggar noticing.
Lance slowly brought up her right hand where her mood bracelet was and almost smiled as Haggar's attention went to her right wrist.
Gathering her energy as subtly as she could she began to form a shield starting from the tip of her toes.
In order for the shield to complete, it had to reach the top of her head.
Better start distracting Haggar.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Lance said as she slowly rotated her wrist to show off her mood bracelet. "Did you know it bonds both wearers telepathically?"
Haggar frowned.
Three feet away from them, Shiro looked on with narrowed eyes from where he was pined down on his stomach by the last druid.
His hair looked disheveled and beads of sweat had formed on his forehead. His breath still sounded shaky but despite the few cuts on his arm he looked fine.
His brows were furrowed, probably trying to figure out what she was up to.
The shield was reaching Lance's knees.
"As the wearers become closer, so do their senses," Lance continued, "Eventually they start to feel each others pain. Whatever they see, the other will too. You'll always feel them at the back of your mind. Have you ever had something that special in all of the time that you've been alive?"
Haggar scowled and she growled low in her throat, "Bonds like those are for the weak. I've no use for them."
The shield was passing her stomach.
Keith was getting closer.
Lance shot the witch a look of pity, "It's such a shame. All this time and you have no one? Its sad really."
"I'd be careful little girl," Haggar said, her yellow eyes narrowed to slits, "Don't make me hurt my new body. It's much too pretty."
The shield was passing her shoulders.
"I can't let you have this," Lance said as she pointed at the mood bracelet, "But I also can't let you have Shiro or me either."
Haggar's eyes widened and she took a step forward, "Don't you dare-"
In one quick move, Lance removed the mood bracelet and Haggar tried to invade her mind to make her stop.
'Keith.'
'Lance, I'm almost there!'
'I love you.'
'Lance?'
'Don't forget that okay?'
'Lance, what are you planning? Whatever it is, you don't have to do it!'
'Find me okay? I'll be waiting.'
'Lance-'
Lance crushed the mood bracelet in her palm and staggered back at the sudden loss. A sob passed her lips. Keith's presence was gone. She couldn't feel him anymore. It hurt.
The loss was agonizing.
Haggar roared and threw a bolt of purple lightning at her.
Lance was thrown a few feet away but managed to remain standing.
"You little brat!" Haggar screamed, her cloak had fallen over her shoulders to reveal her face. Haggar was…Altean?
Shiro managed to land a punch at the druid holding him and Lance threw the creepy thing to the far wall with a flick of her wrist.
The shield was passing her neck.
Unconsciousness beckoned her and Lance swayed.
She was feeling sleepy.
She turned her gaze to Shiro who was getting to his feet; "Take care of Keith for me, okay?"
As Shiro started running towards her, Lance lifted her hand and with a yell threw Shiro across the room and inside the ship where Matt and the other prisoners were waiting before closing the ships door.
Shiro was on his feet immediately and started banging on the door.
Lance started the ship as Haggar threw herself at her.
Lance managed to land a punch to the old witch's face and smiled in satisfaction when she heard something break and Haggar was thrown across the room.
Shiro and Matt began screaming something.
Lance opened the hangar bay doors and stood her ground as everything began to be swept out into space.
Her hair was swaying around frantically.
Matt tried to take control of the ship but Lance didn't let him.
Haggar staggered to her feet, looks of such rage on her wrinkly face that it almost made Lance flinch.
A trickle of purple blood dripped from her nose.
Shiro kept roaring and banging on the door, shouting pleading words at her to stop.
The ship with her friends was already quite a few ways away and Lance willed the hangar bay doors to begin closing.
Turning her back to Haggar, Lance gave her friends a sad smile and waved goodbye.
A single tear ran down her cheek.
Just as the shield began to close at the top of her head, a trickle of Haggar's magic seeped into Lance's mind as the shield finished and Lance crumpled to the floor in a deep sleep.
The last thing she heard was Haggar's roar of rage.
Keith couldn't breathe.
The sudden loss of Lance's presence was staggering.
He almost lost consciousness.
Devastation overwhelmed him.
The mood bracelet on his right wrist crumpled to dust and Keith desperately tried to pick up the pieces and somehow put them back together.
But it was useless.
It was just dust now.
One week.
Lance and Shiro had been gone for one week and Keith and the others had been going out of their minds trying to look for them.
The mood bracelet had been on the fritz.
It must have been damaged during their fight against Zarkon.
Pidge and Hunk had attempted to fix it but since they weren't familiar with the mood bracelets type of technology, they had been stumped.
Of all the times for Slav to away.
The bastard had gone with the Blades who were also out there looking for their two paladins.
Keith hadn't wanted to stray far from the mood bracelet. Just having it off his wrist felt wrong.
But having it fixed would be the only way they could find Lance and Shiro, so while Hunk and Pidge worked on repairing the bracelet, Keith went out there looking for their missing paladins.
Allura and Coran using the Teleduv to wormhole and take the castle where Galra activity was going on.
They'd had no luck.
After a week of no results, Pidge and Hunk had called him over the comms to tell him that the mood bracelet had suddenly began to glow.
Keith rushed back to the castle, took the bracelet and clamped it on his wrist, and got on the red lion to go search for Lance and Shiro.
Hunk and Pidge following after him after a few minutes.
With the mood bracelet and Lance's presence suddenly back, Keith had given Allura and Coran the coordinates and they had all wormhole as close as they could to the their location.
As soon as they reached the place the coordinates led them to Keith was off before anyone could stop him.
The closer he got, the more he could hear and feel whatever Lance was feeling.
Lance was terrified.
Keith grit his teeth and concentrated so he could see through her eyes.
It was kind of hard, Lance's view was blurry from all the crying she was doing but he could still partially see Shiro trying to crawl his way to her. His friend looked both devastated and angry as he tried to reach Lance.
Someone laughed and Keith felt a chill go down his spine.
Haggar.
This was the bitch that was making Lance cry.
This was the stupid bitch that was messing with Lance's mind.
Unacceptable.
Gathering his strength, Keith called out to his fiancée.
Noticing his presence in the blue paladin's mind, the witch's laugh echoed in his own head before she thrust him back into his own mind.
And then…
And then Lance said that she loved him and Keith just knew that something was wrong.
Lance told him she was sorry.
Keith tried calling for her, his tone desperate and pleading.
"Find me okay? I'll be waiting."
And then he completely lost the connection and Keith cried out.
Lance was gone.
He couldn't feel her anymore.
The bracelet crumpled to dust.
"Keith? Keith, answer me!" Pidge yelled at him.
He had to get his breathing under control.
He'd been close. Perhaps he could still get to her.
Wiping the tears that threatened to fall, Keith gripped the controllers and turned the blasters to full speed.
Hunk and Pidge were yelling at him.
He didn't have time to answer.
Lance needed him.
There was a Galra ship just ahead.
Almost there.
Something small shot out from the ship and Keith narrowed his eyes as he zoomed in. Was that a small ship? It looked like one of those hippie vans that stoners used to use.
The screen in front of him began to beep.
A message?
Was it from that small ship?
Was Lance there?
He pressed the button to accept.
Shiro's devastated face appeared on the screen, a hint of light brown hair showing from the corner of the screen. "Keith, you have to hurry! You still have time, you have to get her!"
"Where is she? Where's Lance?"
"She's still inside the ship! I tried to make her come with us but-"Shiro's voice broke, "Keith, just hurry!"
Keith nodded and he guided Red towards the ship.
A wormhole suddenly appeared and Keith almost screamed in rage as the Galra ship began to head towards it.
Bringing up the communications, he alerted the rest of their friends of the situation.
Hunk and Pidge turned on their blasters to full speed and rushed towards the Galra ship along side him as Allura and Coran went to pick up the small ship that Shiro was in.
The Galra ship was halfway through the wormhole.
Keith began to open fire but a purple shield wrapped around it and Keith banged his fist on the cockpit.
He had to hurry!
Why couldn't Red go faster than this?
Lance was in there!
He couldn't let that ship disappear!
Pidge and Hunk began to open fire as well.
Almost there.
Almost…
The ship disappeared though the wormhole and Keith could only watch in horror as the ship and the woman he loved vanished from his sight.
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