Ernesto's POV:
I looked at Pidge in shock, trying to register what she'd said. Lanza... wouldn't want to come back? Is that really what she thought? Of course Lanza would come back! I chuckled nervously and kept walking, followed by Pidge, and shook my head.
"You have no idea what you're talking about, Pidge! Of course Lanza is going to come back! He cares about all of us, doesn't he? He has a lot to come back to!" I said, trying to keep the shaking out of my voice. Pidge shook her head.
"You've got to be kidding me... and to think, you said you knew Lance better than all of us! Lance always said that if he died, and there was a chance he would come back, he wouldn't take it!" My blood ran cold. I shook my head slowly, not wanting to believe her. Why would Lanza say that...?
"It was always really weird... but Lance said it was because of God." Pidge smiled a little and raised an eyebrow at me. "He said your parents raised the two of you and your sister as Roman Catholic, so he was pretty faithful. He said that if he died, he didn't want us to try and bring him back because he believed that whenever he died, it would be God's will. It was... pretty incredible of him, actually," Pidge said, shaking her head a bit. I blinked, trying not to laugh. Lanza believed in those fairy tales? Sheesh, I always thought he was a bit more logical than that.
"Alright, we're here. This is Blue's hanger. I'll leave you alone with her," Pidge said, and I could've sworn she smirked as she walked off to go join the others. I gulped as I saw the towering, blue, robotic lion standing just feet from me. I was supposed to form a bond with this thing! And then fly it! I'd never even flown a regular ship before. Shaking slightly, I walked up the robot and placed one of my hands on its paws.
"H-Hello? Uh... My name is Ernesto! I'm Lanza- Lance's older brother. I've come to take his place as your paladin!" I shouted, craning my neck so I looked up at its magnificent head. A low growl sounded and I scurried backwards, falling onto my back and staring at the lion in fear.
No one can replace him! A voice in my head screamed, and I covered my ears, grimacing. "I-If you let me be your paladin, I-" NO! NO ONE ELSE! LANCE WAS THE ONLY ONE TRULY WORTHY TO BE A PALADIN! The lion roared, its voice filled with grief. My hands fell away from my ears and I got to my feet, glaring at the lion.
"You know what?! I know that Lance was amazing! From what everyone here has told me, he was the best paladin out of all of them, and I couldn't be prouder of him! But he's dead, and they've found out a way he can come back! But you need to bond with me, and let me be your paladin. I promise I can bring him back!" By now I was desperate. I'd been told by two bratty teenagers and now a metal lion that I shouldn't be the paladin, basically saying I couldn't have my brother back. I was sick and tired of everyone getting in the way of Lanza's recovery! If they really cared about him as much as they claimed to, he would be alive again already!
The lion went dead silent and the glow of her eyes began to fade. She shifted her position so that she was curled up like a house cat, one of her yellow eyes directly in front of me. Unlike most glass, I couldn't see my reflection in it. Instead, I saw a different person. With a trembling hand, I touched Lanza's image that seemed to be engraved in the glass. My eyes fell and my hand formed into a fist against the glass.
Lance was truly the kindest of my paladins. Coran and Alfor were wonderful as well, but there was just something special about him. He was in so much pain, and yet he was able to laugh and smile. He lifted others up while he was at such a low point in his mind that he wanted nothing more than to die. When a paladin and their lion form a bond, it's like nothing else. I could feel his pain and anguish, and I could tell just how much he was hurting.
He wanted to be loved, and I tried to provide it but it wasn't enough. Lance tried to impress the others, make them laugh, and he tried so hard to be there for all of them so they would never end up like him. And there was never a moment where he stopped thinking about you nd the rest of his family. He loved you all so very much, and staying away from you almost killed him. And then, he was captured by the Galra. I believe the others failed to brief you on that little bit of information? Blue said, her voice soft. I was shaking, and tears were welling up in my eyes. I shook my head slightly, and Blue heaved a great sigh.
Lance was kidnapped by the Galra about a month ago. Somehow, the witch Haggar had hacked into my systems with her magic and possessed me, tricking Lance into coming to the main Galran ship in the meantime. What they did to him then... It was so horrible. He was entrusted to the care of the Galran's most effective interrogator, Gorerage. He beat him, whipped him, electrocuted him, made him hallucinate, and used him for his sexual pleasures. I fell to my knees, my eyes wide as I clamped my hands over my mouth to keep myself from screaming.
When Lance was rescued, he thought that the others were part of the hallucinations he was receiving in the Galran prisons, along with the Castle when they eventually returned here. He kept hearing voices in his head even after he finally became convinced that he was back, telling him to kill them all! And eventually, they told him to kill himself.
The others did everything they could to find a cure, but they were almost too late. In the last possible few hours, they used the cure on Lance. He was in a coma for weeks before the cure and it took him about a day to actually have the cure work, and everyone was so worried, since the cure could have possibly killed him. It didn't though, but when he woke up Lance had no memory of anything except for Keith, Hunk, and Pidge. He thought his entire family was dead. I was sobbing uncontrollably, clutching my chest.
He was so convinced that all of you were dead, he wouldn't Keith talk him out of it. Keith brought him to the holodeck in response, showing him memories of each of you individually with him. He wasn't completely convinced that you were all really alive, but he felt a slight bit of relief and allowed himself to open up a bit more to what Keith told him. I was still back on the Galran ship and in horrible disrepair due to what the Galrans were doing to me. Hunk and Pidge created a headset that allowed Lance to contact me. His mind was partially mended and I found the strength to get out.
When I got back, I helped Lance to fully heal his mind. It seemed as though he was completely cured, and that nothing was wrong with him. He was so happy to be back with everyone, and he remembered everything. Besides Keith, Coran was the most relieved. He sees Lance as a son, and loved him like he was his own child. I sniffed, wiping my eyes and trying to calm down. This didn't make sense. If Lance had been fine... then why did he try to commit suicide? Blue mewled softly, her voice sad as she continued.
Lance had a nightmare that night, one that revealed the most horrible part of his stay at the Galran ship. It all went downhill from there. He only lasted a day. I heard his thoughts as he got ready, and I wanted to help him, but somehow I was blocked from him. The voices returned to him, and he once again lost his memory. He was devastated without even knowing why, screaming where no one could hear him. His memories returned, and he didn't want to risk losing those memories ever again. So, he took his Bayard and ended his life. My eyes went wide and my hands flew to my mouth like before, my body trembling. I heard Blue purr softly and she turned her head so that her eyes were facing away from me.
You cared for your brother very much, didn't you? You have his heart, Blue mused, and I looked up at her in confusion, the last of my tears lingering on my cheeks. "His... heart? What does that mean?" I asked. Blue purred again, warmly.
You share the same love for your family. Both of you are brave and kind, loyal too. The most important things to you are family and friends. If you became a paladin, I know that you would not really replace Lance in our hearts, but you would help fill the emptiness he left in them, just a little. The others will grow to care for you and love you, and you shall do the same. I don't know if you can bring Lance back but if you do, I will still accept you as my paladin. I gaped at her in disbelief. She accepted me. She really accepted me!
In a loud voice Blue bellowed, Ernesto, brother of Lanza McClain and son of Esmeralda and Pedro McClain, I hereby declare you the paladin of the Blue lion, guardian of the waters, protector and defender of the universe! May you forever use your new powers for the good of others!