Hello! I hate that this took so long to write, but I was having some serious writers block. I knew where I wanted to go, but I couldn't find a way to get there. I think we've got it now though! I'm looking forward to writing the next chapter. Despite the block, this has now become the longest chapter of this story! Enjoy!
Beeping. Why did it always have to be beeping? Before Voltron, the only beeping Shiro was concerned with was the beeping of the microwave telling him his food was ready or the beeping of the coffee pot informing him of the only thing that would prevent him from murdering someone. With the sheer number of beeps and sounds coming from the Castle of Lions and from the Lions' themselves, Shiro was certain he would never be able to get the God awful sound out of his mind. Too many times had he been awoken from a blissful, worriless slumber and forced into the loud and hectic world that was his new reality. Today was no different as Shiro dragged his body off of the floor to discover the source of the noise.
Keith cracked an eye open from his spot a few feet away, but none of the other Paladins showed any intentions of moving. He saw that Shiro was taking care of it and returned to his dead-like state. The rest that all of the Paladins had finally started receiving was doing wonders for their various injuries and had finally started the long process of healing, but their minds were getting antsy. They had nothing to do except monitor the comms and scanners for any signs of life and try to find a way to get the Yellow Lion moving once again. The information from the Blue Lion gave Pidge a place to start on removing the bomb buried inside the Yellow Lion's leg, but it was still slow work. Hunk was trying to combine the coms in both Lions in the hopes to reach Allura but neither Lion had enough power to boost the signal enough to reach that far.
This had better be worth it. Shiro grumbled out when the incessant beeping was giving him a bigger headache than any hangover he'd ever had. He doubted he would have many opportunities to sleep during their stay on this planet so he had intended to make the most out of this time.
"I-I-I don't believe it!" He stuttered out loud. The largest smile that the man hadn't been seen using since his time on earth graced his face once again. It was here! It was really here!
"Guys! Guys wake up!" He called, smacking legs and shaking the others until they grudgingly opened their eyes.
"Whaaaaaaaaat is it Shiro?" Lance questioned stifling a yawn.
"Look and see for yourself." With that, the paladins huddled around the small monitor stationed in the Yellow Lion; squinting to clear the sleep from their eyes and attempt to read something so early in the morning.
Slowly their eyes started to adjust to the bright screen glaring at them in the early morning hours. Pidge gasped, and practically scrambled on top of Hunk in her hast to make it to the small screen.
"It's here! It's actually here!" Pidge cheered, already starting to trace the signal.
"Huh?" Keith, bless him, was a little slow after being so abruptly woken up. He never did well early in the mornings. His appearance showed his mental capabilities; his hair spiked in all directions, eyes red from lack of sleep, and a hunched posture showing how close he was to returning to his death-like sleep he was in. Shiro was about to gently explain to him what was going on as a big brother should when Lance beat him to it.
"THE CASTLE! The Castle of Lions is here!" Lance yelled in his face, grabbing both of Keith's shoulders and shaking him harshly to help drive home his words.
"Lance, you have like fifteen cousins, don't you know not to shake babies?" Hunk quipped, making no move to stop the other man. Keith was too far gone at this point from lack of sleep and the aggressive shaking to notice Hunk's comment, but Pidge let out a chuckle as she continued.
Great. They're all losing their minds. Not that they really had much to lose in the beginning though. Shiro's mind informed him as he smiled at their antics.
"Can you contact them?" Shiro instead asked aloud.
"I'm trying that right now." Pidge chirped. She pressed a few buttons and a blank screen popped up. They waited, holding their breath, as a series of beeps spread throughout the Yellow Lion. The beeping continued for a few moments before it suddenly switched to a prolonged beep that suddenly ended.
"Did-did they just hang up on us?" Lance asked, temporarily stopping his movements, Keith white in the face and hanging limp in his arms.
"Ya know, it kinda sounded like they did." Hunk affirmed.
"RUDE. That's just rude." Lance grumbled.
"Maybe something happened?" Pidge mumbled looking up at Shiro.
"There's no way to tell. Pidge, finish triangulating their position, the rest of us will get ready to leave. Either they'll pick us up, or we'll find a way to them. We'll try to contact them again if we don't hear from them soon. We have no idea what state the Castle is in after all." Shiro easily fell back into a commanding role, forcing the other Paladins to calm their minds and focus on the tasks that needed to be done. He knew they were worried, he was too. The only thing they could do right now was their own parts. The Castle was here now, that's all that mattered.
"I've got an idea."
"Oh no."
"You're not nearly as funny as you think you are." Methuselah snapped.
"For the record, I'm pretty freakin hilarious." Kalabhiti informed his fellow Elite. "What?" He muttered after a moment. He knew what kind of 'idea' the other had, and he also knew better than most what they meant and he already didn't like this conversation.
"I'll be blunt. I want to break into the Yellow One."
"Absolutely not."
"Listen! What we lack is information! If we were to break into the Yellow One-"
"We'd be killed!"
"-we could get the information we need! I know how to do it. I've seen them enter and exit through a hidden hatch-"
"Meth."
"All we would have to do, is open that door then-"
"Meth, listen to me."
"If we coordinate our entrance with the detonation of the bombs we should be able to slip in unnoticed. I'm not really worried about that though, there's only five of them so-"
"No! Methuselah! Just-just listen!" Kalabhiti reached out a grabbed the other man's shoulders to physically cut him off. "Do you even hear yourself?! These things almost killed Omisha. The Beasts, not the people! We don't even know the first thing about these creatures and now you want to break into one?"
"We don't have a choice."
"We do. We, out of all of us, have to choose to be smart. I agree with the lack of information, but breaking into an extremely hostile environment has got to be one of the worst plans you've ever come up with. I get that you're frustrated, but we can't afford anything rash right now."
"Then tell me what is the 'smart' choice right now! We're out of time. Omisha is a rookie. The bombs will work, if we detonate them, we'll be able to sneak into the Yellow One without them noticing. They'll probably open the door for us. We get in and observe. That's all I ask." Methuselah was well past waiting at this point, he had to do something. He had to move. He had to do something for the people that he had sworn to protect, the people that he loved. Kalabhiti knew this, but that didn't mean he would let his partner go off and do something reckless, even if he was there to help him.
"Meth, we don't have the means for this right now. We have to be patient, and wait for the opportunity to come to us. Just like we always have, that's how we live."
"We're not living, we're surviving. There's a big difference."
"Think about this with me-"
"I'm going. With or without you, I'm going."
"Methsu-"
"Kali, I'm going. It's been decided." Kalabhiti looked away at the name. He didn't want to think about that right now.
"You know not to call me that."
"Come with me?" Methuselah gave the best puppy dog eyes he could muster, he really didn't want to go alone, but he would. He wanted the other man at his side, but he was prepared to go without him. That wouldn't be necessary though, as Kalabhiti muttered an "Of course" out before turning more serious.
"One condition. We scope out the Blue One first while they're not in it."
"Done."
"Let's go then."
The two Elites made their way over to the rest of their two teams. Kalabhiti still hated this idea, but he refused to let his hotheaded partner go alone. At least by taking their time to inspect the Blue One they would be slightly more prepared to actually break into the Yellow One where their opponents lied in wait.
Yamajit and Kalayavan saw the two Elites arguing about a plan of attack and decided to patiently run the op, distracting the rest of the teams from the bickering duo. They knew that the two of them needed to hash this out, but it could make the others nervous if they saw their leaders arguing at this point. With the Captains keeping everyone occupied, it gave the two leaders the time they needed without breaking the delicate flow of this dangerous and unusual operation.
"How's it looking Yamajit?" Methuselah questioned his Captain.
"Business as usual, sir! Nothing to report."
"Good. We have something. We're going to do it."
"You can't be serious! You're actually going to do this?!" Yamajit turned his attention to Kalabhiti, hoping to convince the man to rethink this.
"If I don't, he'll just go alone. I have to go with him."
"What do you need from us?" Kalayavan butted in, he didn't exactly like the plan either, but he did agree it was necessary.
"Exactly what you've been doing. Run the op, and keep a look out for us. We're going to scope the Blue One to gather intel, then we'll move on the Yellow One." Kalabhiti informed the two.
"Yamajit, can you do this for me?" Methuselah asked sincerely.
"Fine. I'll do it. I don't like this, you know that; matter of fact I hate it, but, I've got your back, sir." There was no way Yamajit would leave the Elite stranded out there, regardless of how stupid he thought he was.
"Then it's settled. We're leaving now." Methuselah turned to make his exit when a noise interrupted him.
"You're joking. Right now?!" He complained when he looked to see the noise coming from both his and Kalabhiti's left wrist, accompanied by the familiar flashing red light.
"Kalabhiti, with Methuselah. What have you got?" Kalabhiti answered before Methuselah could continue his rant.
"Sir, reporting!" That did nothing except piss Methuselah off. Why would a low level be using the emergency long-range comms for just a report? They had messengers for a reason.
"What?" His green haired counterpart snapped just as annoyed.
"Command asked for you to be immediately informed. They are making contact with the enemy ship now."
"WHAT?!" Four voices shouted at the poor reporting scout, all of them shocked by this development.
"That's all the information I have to share. Your previous orders are still in effect. Message has been delivered, and you are now informed. That is all. Good luck out there boys." With that, the scout ended the transmission, unaware of the chaos he had just created and then left behind.
"Well now what the hell are we supposed to do?!" Methuselah snapped.
Dearil stared at a black screen as he waited for these intruders to answer his call. He had heard a small commotion behind him, but trusted his team to handle it.
"Sir, there is something you should hear." Nirasha said as she approached him.
"What is it?"
"There is a chance that these intruders are Voltron from the old legends."
"And who told you this?" Dearil questioned, not even glancing in her direction. There was no way that these guys were Voltron. Voltron was nothing more than a myth their ancestors had created in order to give them a sense of hope. Dearil didn't believe Voltron had ever existed, but if it did, it had been defeated by a powerful force long ago; or it had abandoned them all together. Having false hope would do them no good, he needed to shut this rumor down before it started catching wind.
"One of our own, Sir." She said. That made Dearil pause, he originally had an entire speech planned about how impossible that would be, but 'one of our own.' Nirasha wouldn't use that phrase lightly. That would mean that this rumor had to have come from a reliable source. But why? Who would be saying something like this?
"What do you-" His question was suddenly cut off by a beep and the appearance of a white haired woman. Her hair was the first thing that Dearil noticed, the second being the marks under her eyes. They seemed familiar to him, but he couldn't place why.
"Identify yourself now." He ordered. The woman seemed smart enough to not argue with him while on his planet and answered his question.
"I am Princess Allura of Altea, Captain of the Castle of Lion's, and Commander of Voltron." Voltron?! Again?! That couldn't be a coincidence.
"Impossible. Voltron is nothing more than a myth."
"We have been gone for a long time, so I can see how we would be considered a myth, but I assure you, we are very much real."
"And how would you prove that to me?"
"You have my name; give me yours." The woman, Allura, ordered. He heard the authority in her voice, but he didn't know what to think of her. His own team had just started talking about Voltron and now this woman appeared claiming to be a part of the old legend. Should he believe her? He had originally asked for proof, but he would have no way of knowing if it was real or not. They really knew nothing of Voltron except that it was supposed to be a powerful warrior that would protect them from their enemies. Dearil was long past believing in Voltron. He had long given up hope of a savior coming from the sky to help them.
"I am Dearil, Commander of the Thrakzian Warrior Branch, and leader of the planet you are trespassing on." Dearil's voice boomed. He would not be talked down to on his own planet. All of his men stood up a little straighter at his words, confident in their leader.
"I hardly see how crash landing here could be seen as trespassing. Allow us to gather our allies and we will leave your planet immediately."
"A crashed landing is still an uninvited landing. What assurance do I have that this isn't some sort of trick? How do I know you won't get your allies and then attack us?"
"Because you'll have me." Well, that would be something.
"Princess, it seems we're being hailed. What do you want to do?"
"Answer it." Coran took one last look at Allura, unsure if they should really do this, but after seeing the look on her face, he didn't have any doubts anymore. Allure was a strong leader who led by example. She always managed to find a way to inspire others to follow her lead regardless of how they felt at that moment. They were always inspired and strived to give even the smallest of details their full attention and energy. Her attitude really was infectious as you couldn't help but believe every word she spoke; if she said it would work, it would work. If she said that answering an incoming call from an unknown source on a potentially hostile planet was the best course of action, then by the Allfather, it was the best course of action.
Coran accepted the call, both of them seeing a man standing before them. The man had dark black hair and equally dark green eyes, with the skin color of someone who worked outside often. The part of his body that could be seen consisted of broad shoulders and an obviously toned chest. Allura noticed that this mysterious man was all hard features and stern looks. He was a leader she knew. She had seen the same type of people on Altea all those years ago. What had this man seen? What had he been through? He had clearly seen war, but what war was happening all the way out here? It couldn't have been an internal war with how barren the planet was.
"Identify yourself now." His gruff voice pulled her out of her thoughts. She wanted to continue to analyze the man, but the only thing that mattered right now was the safety of the Paladins.
"I am Princess Allura of Altea, Captain of the Castle of Lion's, and Commander of Voltron." She said proudly. She loved being able to say the name Voltron; loved being able to announce the fact that they were finally back.
"Impossible. Voltron is nothing more than a myth." Her heart sank slightly at the mans words. They hurt more than she expected them too. She knew that the universe had lost hope in Voltron, but she was still saddened by such an amazing creation being referred to as a myth.
"We have been gone for a long time, so I can see how we would be considered a myth, but I assure you, we are very much real."
"And how would you prove that to me?" That stopped Allura. How would she prove it? She could simply show them the Lion's transformation, but would they see it that way? Or would they see it as a threat and think that they were preparing for an attack? Voltron was a massive robot after all. It was a beautiful sight in her eyes, but to unfamiliar and already untrusting eyes, it would be downright terrifying. She had to find a different way.
"You have my name; give me yours." Allura asked instead, she needed to know this anyways, but she also needed to buy herself time to think about what to do next. This man held all of the cards at this point. Allura had nothing to offer him, her only hope was diplomacy. She was forceful and demanding with her words, but she would play nice for the time being at least until she could properly assess the situation.
"I am Dearil, Commander of the Thrakzian Warrior Branch, and leader of the planet you are trespassing on." His voice rang throughout the Castle with all of the power and authority one would expect from a leader. It reconfirmed to Allura that this man had seen war. She was curious about their background, but that would have to come later.
"I hardly see how crash landing here could be seen as trespassing. Allow us to gather our allies and we will leave your planet immediately."
"A crashed landing is still an uninvited landing. What assurance do I have that this isn't some sort of trick? How do I know you won't get your allies and then attack us?" Allura stopped at his words. She had to do something. These negotiations weren't going too well, these people were so untrusting that she knew she wouldn't get anywhere. She had to give them something. Something that would guarantee both parties of their honest intentions.
"Because you'll have me." It was the only option. She had already proclaimed herself as the leader, if she was with them, the Thrakzians wouldn't have to be worried about a surprise attack. This was the only way she could guarantee the safe collection of the Paladins. She didn't care what happened to herself. Voltron was far more important. She would willingly give herself over to an unknown race if it meant that Voltron would live to fight another day.
"You'll have me." Allura repeated.
As always, thank you for the amazing support! It really motivated me to get through my block. Also- every chapter now has chapter names so go check them out! Chapter 17 will be out as soon as possible. See you next time!
~Kiera540
