Chapter 31 – Consequences

I don't own Voltron Legendary Defender. I'm taking the characters out for a spin.

As the Castle of Lions approached the Galra HQ, Lotor stood by Allura. "To return so triumphantly is a dream I thought I would never achieve. We are one step closer to bringing peace and prosperity to the entire universe." He turned to face Allura. "This all because of you, Princess."

Adam rolled his eyes. This song and dance of Lotor's made him want to gag. It was getting old, extremely fast.

Allura gazed at Lotor. "We did it together. I would have never even known of Oriande without you, and therefore could have never unlocked its secrets."

As the doors slid open, allowing them access to the throne room, Shiro spoke, "We'll see what intel is in your briefing and decide what to do. Maybe we can—"

He was interrupted by a woman who faced them. "Lotor."

Lotor frowned. "Oh, no."

Lance slid in front of Lotor. "Uh, who the heck are you?"

The woman stepped up to Lance. "How dare you speak to me without authorization from Blood Emperor Lotor." She bent what looked a lot like a riding crop back and released it smacking the Red Paladin in the forehead.

Lance yelled as he jerked back.

Lotor explained, "She was my governess. No one had used the term Blood Emperor since before we were a star-faring race." He turned toward the Voltron team. "And these are my colleagues. They have more than my permission to speak. Everyone, this is Dayak."

Everyone but Lance said hi in one fashion or another while the Red Paladin groaned.

Lotor didn't look or sound thrilled to see her. Especially to Adam. "So to what do we owe the honor?"

Dayak smiled. "Word of your victory at the Kral Zera has spread throughout the empire. I always knew you had it in you to crush your enemies. Dayak's raised you from a child to a man, and now I'll witness your ascension to the throne."

Lance broke into laughter. "Wait, she raised you from a child? Aww, is this your nanny?"

"Governess."

Lance gripped his hands together under his chin. "You have a nanny!"

Adam sighed as he shook his head. His cousin had a bad habit of running with something when he should just drop it. And this seemed to be another one of those times.

Lance ignored his cousin's sigh as he continued. "Is she going to read you bedtime stories? Is she gonna rock you to sleep? Is she gonna—" Ow!" he yelled as he was struck again.

Dayak brandished her crop. "I instructed Lotor in the ways of the Galra. The history of our conquests, our customs, battle philosophy, and the art of war."

Hunk gazed at her. "Hmm, Galra customs, huh. Is that like when you guys say vrepit sa and stuff? There's so much we don't know about you."

Adam, if asked later about it, would swear he saw the wheels in Lotor's head-turning.

Lotor leaned over to Hunk. "If you're interested in our society's history, you couldn't find a better teacher than Dayak."

She held her head up proudly. "What Lotor says is true."

"Oh, wow. Would you teach me about the Galra?"

Lance blinked at Hunk. "What do you want to know about the Galra for?"

Hunk looked over at Lance. "We're gonna be working with Lotor to bring peace through the empire, right? It makes sense the more we know about their society, the better."

Dayak gazed at the Yellow Paladin. "If you are to learn the ways of the Galra, you must be prepared for the most challenging trial you could ever undertake. There will be no turning back. Her eyes narrowed. "Victory or death."

Hunk raised his hands as his eyes grew. "Uh, oh, that's okay."

Allura spoke from behind him. "Hunk, you're a Paladin of Voltron. There is no challenge too great for you."

Hunk groaned. "Will I learn what vrepit sa means?"

"Yes."

Hunk pumped his fist in the air. "Let's do it!"

Dayak walked away with the Yellow Paladin following.

Shiro gazed at Lotor. "Let's get to that briefing."

A Galra officer stood in front of a huge screen showing a map of the Empire along with different factions. "The civil war continues unimpeded. More Galra forces are leaving to join other factions." He pressed a button bringing up an image of a Galran they were all associated with. "Sendak has claimed the most deserters. They call themselves the Fire of Purification."

Lotor glared at Sendak's image. "It is time I address all Galra and make my claim as emperor absolute."

Lance gazed at Lotor. "Does that mean you'll start freeing planets?"

Lotor turned his gaze on the Red Paladin. "It's not that easy. My grip on the empire is tenuous at best. I need to offer an alternative to our current state. That is why it's so important that Allura and I gain access to the quintessence field."

Allura gazed at him. "Are we to focus all of our energies on that?"

Adam's eyes narrowed. Lotor was definitely up to something. He could feel it. He heard a low growl near him and turned his head to gaze up at Thace. The Blade of Marmora member eyes glared at Zarkon's son.

If Lotor noticed he didn't show it. "It is paramount. However, we cannot let the empire fall apart. I will address my people at the astral conflux."

An alarm blared through Galra HQ. Nearly all of the paladins, along with Coran, Adam, and Thace, joined Lotor. A Galra commander's face came on screen. "The planet has already been fired upon, and we do not have the means to protect ourselves. You must send assistance immediately."

Shiro appeared from wherever he'd been at. "What's going on?"

Lotor turned to face them. "One of our labor planets is under attack from Sendak and his fleet."

Lance sighed. "Sendak? Not that guy again."

Pidge spoke up. "We've got to help that planet immediately."

Lotor gazed away from them. "Sendak would have me respond to his attack and neglect my empire."

Allura gazed at him. "Voltron can handle this while you continue to rule."

Lotor looked at her. "But, Princess, I need you here. Without you—"

Allura shook her head. "Your plan has waited this long. It can wait for a tick longer. We must protect your innocent subjects."

Lotor appeared torn as he replied. "Of course. You're right."

We will return as soon as we can."

As the Lions flew away from the Castle of Lions, Thace and Adam moved to their stations. Adam picked up his earbud microphone. He gazed at Thace. "I can tell that Lotor is pushing your buttons."

Thace stared back at him. "What do you mean?"

"All that low growling you've been doing. It sounds like you've set your claim on the Princess."

Thace nodded. "I knew that I liked you. I don't have to explain much to you because of your preceptive mind. Yes, in a way, I have. I will go so far to challenge Lotor to a duel to the death in the arena if I have to."

"I hope it doesn't come to that. He's very handy with a sword."

A feral grin pulled at Thace's lips. "I will be the challenger, and I will have the choice of weapons. There are some that I am a true master of."

Adam took his seat as Coran, who was oblivious to their conversation, opened a wormhole for the lions to fly through.

Adam pushed the earbud into his ear as he flipped the switch, opening communications to the team. "I'm here in case you need backup. Coran can get the Castle to you in no time."

In reply, he heard Sendak's voice taunting the Paladins. "Here at your new master's bidding?"

Shiro gasped as if in pain.

Lance's voice called out, "Shiro, are you all right?"

Adam's eyes grew as he heard Shiro's voice. He sounded like he was in pain. "I'm fine. Come on, team, let's form Voltron!"

Sendak's voice came over Voltron's comm's. Adam gritted his teeth as the Galran spoke. "I know your true weakness. That you value the lives of others. And I will harness that weakness until you are crushed beneath my heel."

Pidge called out, "Oh No! Without those panels in place, the planet will be fully exposed!"

Lance asked. "Which means?"

"They'll have no protection from the radiation bands!"

Lance called out, "We can't let him get away!"

Shiro replied, "Lance, there's no time. We gotta fix that shield as soon as –" he grunted and cried out in pain.

Adam frowned. "Takashi, you are not fine."

"Can't talk now, Adam." He started talking to someone else. "We are the Paladins of Voltron, working with Emperor Lotor. We're here to help you. What is the status of your shield system?"

"Paladins, I am Commander Bogh. Our damage report indicates that a plate has been fractured. Our generator is offline and needs rebooting. Other plates have shifted out of their gravitational harnessing and must be repositioned. Only five dobashes remain until the next solar sequence."

Shiro said, "You're the engineer, Hunk. How should we handle this?"

Hunk didn't hesitate. "We need to split up. Pidge, you handle the generator system."

"Then I'm gonna need Shiro to come with me. I can use his arm to power the mainframe."

"Okay, good. Allura, Lance, I need you to refuse that fractured plate."

Allura replied, "Affirmative."

"You got it!"

Hunk sighed. "I'm gonna try to get the plates aligned."

Shiro replied, "Okay. We've got our orders. Let's move!"

Hunk asked, "Where does this plate need to be lined up?

Commander Bogh replied, "You're moving plate 7-2. It needs to be aligned with plate 8-1."

Hunk replied, "Got it, but those other plates are out of position. There's no way I'll be able to move them all myself."

"I can activate the manual thrusters on some of the plates. It will be slow-going, but I—"

He was cut off by his subordinates. "First you side with Lotor and get our system attacked by Sendak. Then you willfully work with Voltron, our sworn enemies!"

Bogh commanded, "Get to your station and begin the thrust sequence. That's an order!"

Hunk yelled, "Are you freaking kidding me? Palen-bol!"

Adam sat up in his seat. "Woah, you go, Hunk." He glanced over at Thace. "I think you'll like hearing this." He pressed a button on his screen that brought up the Paladins communications over the speaker of the Castle as a grin spread over his face.

Both Bogh and his subordinate replied, "Huh?"

"You're both a dishonor. Do you fight for yourself, or do you fight for the Galra?"

"Galra!"

Hunk's voice roared over the speaker. "Then Victory or death! Enough of this bickering!"

"We're going to die because of Commander Bogh."

Hunk replied, "You know, long ago, there was a desperate group of Galra that thought they were going to die. They executed a spear-like attack known as the Killing Thrust. Those soldiers knew what it meant to put their life on the line. They won the day. Are you ready to put aside your differences and fight with me?"

"Vrepit Sa!"

Adam and Thace both chuckled as Hunk said, "I guess all that pain did make me smarter." A few ticks later, Hunk spoke again. "Pidge, I need you to restore main shield power to get this gravitational harnessing going."

"We're on it." Pidge spoke again, "Okay, Shiro, let's jack your hand into that terminal, and we'll get this thing running in no time."

Lance's voice came over the speaker. "Okay, broken massive shield plate. I don't suppose there's a video on how to fix this, is there?"

Hunk's voice came over the Castle's speaker. "Make sure the connection's straight. If it's even one degree off, the shield will fail."

Lance yelled, "That's not a tutorial!"

Allura replied, "If you hold them in place, then I could freeze them together. But I don't think the ice will stand the radiation for exceptionally long."

"Hey, maybe after you freeze them, I could use my heat ray to weld them together."

"Great idea, Lance!"

Lance's voice came through the speaker again. "I hope this works."

Allura replied, "We did it!"

Hunk replied, "Nice job, guys. Pidge you ready? We're almost at the radiation belt."

"Hold on. I just need a few more minutes."

Lance replied, "Uh, guys, that radiation belt is getting closer!"

Hunk replied, "The last piece is in place. Fire up that power, Pidge."

Pidge's voice came over the speaker after several moments of silence. "Shields up!"

Adam heard Pidge yell, "Shiro, no!"

Lance asked, "What's going on with the plates?" He yelled, "Allura!" Which was followed by a scream.

Adam jumped from his chair. "Lance! Lance! Answer me!"

Allura yelled, "Lance!"

Adam yelled, "What's going on? Someone tell me something. What happened to Lance?"

Allura called out, "Lance, please respond!"

Hunk replied, "The broken plate shorted out. Lance isn't responding. Allura jumped out of her lion. What else could go wrong right now? Pidge what happened to the power. We're almost at the radiation belt."

"I know I'm on it. Come on, Shiro."

Adam heard Allura as she whispered, "No, no, No!"

He fell to his knees on the bridge. "Lance?"

Hunk called out, "Let's try this again."

Commander Bogh's voice came over the speakers. "Radiation exposure in four—"

Hunk yelled, "Pidge hit it now!"

"Three—"

Pidge murmured, "Come on."

"Two— One—"

Hunk yelled, "Great job!"

Pidge yelled, "It worked!"

Adam heard a slight, "Huh," followed by a weary sounding, "You saved me."

Adam took a breath at hearing Lance's voice. But he still didn't know what had happened to his cousin.

Allura replied. "I owed you one."

Adam rubbed a hand over his face. "Whatever happened out there, I'm going to require both Lance and Takashi to meet me in the infirmary."

"What?" Lance yelled.

"Don't you what me. I need to know what happened to the both of you. As the medic of the team. I can sit you both out of the fight for a while if need be."

Lance spluttered. "Th-That's not fair!"

Adam shook his head. "Wrong, Lance, it's perfectly fair. If you need to complain to anyone, complain to Takashi. He's the one who made me the medic Remember?"

Lance sighed, "Fine!"

Adam stood in the infirmary as Shiro entered. "You wanted to see me?"

"Yeah, your head still hurting?"

Shiro ran a hand through his hair. "It's still there, but not as bad."

Adam ran the scanner over Shiro and frowned. "According to this, it says your fine. But I'd like you to take at least a day off unless it's an emergency. See if you can relax a bit. That might help."

"Okay." Shiro turned on his heel and exited the room.

Adam sighed.

A few moments later, Lance appeared, and Allura was beside him.

They stopped, and Adam eyed the pair. "What's going on?"

Allura placed a hand on Lance's arm. "Adam, I should explain. I wouldn't be here if not for Lance. You see the broken plate we were working on when the power went out on it Lance saw a something that I didn't. Using the Red Lion, he shoved both Blue and myself out of the way. But a bolt of electricity shot out of the plate and struck the Red Lion. I left Blue and found Lance not moving. Actually," she glanced down at the floor before bringing her eyes back up to gaze into Adam's. "His heart had stopped beating, but using what I learned in Oriande, I was able to bring him back."

Adam blinked as he gazed at his cousin. He took in a deep breath, trying to stay professional but coming close to losing it at least twice. He ran the scanner over Lance and then gazed into his cousin's blue eyes. "I don't see any damage done, but I want you to take a couple of days off from Voltron. I want you to rest unless an emergency comes up."

"No, you can't do that."

Adam reached out and grabbed Lance, embracing him in a hug. "Look, I know this is important to you, but you are important to me too. Okay?"

Lance nodded as he returned the hug. "Okay."

Lance slumped on the couch in the lounge when the mice ran up to him. Lance groaned as they squeaked at him. "Oh, great! Are you here to make fun of me too?"

Adam stepped up and stood over him. "They led me to you." He stepped over the side and sat down next to Lance.

Lance turned his eyes over to Adam. "Can't a man sulk in peace?"

Adam smirked at Lance. "I wouldn't exactly call you a man yet. But I think we need to talk about something."

Lance groaned. "What in the heck do you want?"

Adam gazed at the Red Paladin, "It's about Keith."

Lance sat up, and the mice squeaked in alarm as they were unsettled. He stared at Adam.

"Yeah, I thought that would get your interest," he gazed down at the floor for a minute. He raised his eyes to gaze into Lance's face. "Keith's missing. Kolivan sent him to get an operative from Warlord Ranvieg's base. They went to continue a mission looking for that new quintessence and haven't been heard from since."

Lance's eyes grew. "But, but that's what the Blades do, don't they? They go on radio silence when they're on a mission?"

Adam shrugged. "I don't know, Lance, but I thought you should know."

Lance turned his gaze to Adam. "What if he's dead?" A tear slid out of the Red Paladins' eye and raced down his cheek to drip off his chin.

Adam grabbed his cousin and held on tight as the Red Paladin cried.

Coran, the Paladins, Adam, and Thace stood on the bridge of the Castle as they observed the preflight checks that Allura and Lotor were going through on his ship.

As they got through the end of the preflight checks, Hunk glanced around at the others. "I can't be the only one who sees this is nuts, right? I mean, just getting in there is a long shot. Then they have to make it out again."

Coran folded his arms over his chest. "I agree with Hunk. This plan is foolhardy and full of unnecessary risks."

Pidge frowned. "I don't know. We've traveled through the quintessence field to another reality. This isn't just theoretical physics. Mathematically, we know it's possible."

Coran moved so fast no one was truly sure he'd moved or was beamed over by Pidge as he leaned over and stuck his face in the Green Paladins face. Pidge leaned back, and her eyes grew wide. Coran spoke, "We'll it's hard to argue with math. I've tried."

Lance placed his hand on his hip as he gazed at the older man. "But even if they do reach the quintessence field, then what? The last time anyone got in there, it turned Zarkon evil."

Shiro turned his gaze to Coran and Lance. "Zarkon fell prey to his evil instincts. The quintessence field didn't create them. It revealed them."

As Lotor's ship left the Castle, Coran gazed at the screen as he returned to his control panel. He frowned as he whispered, "So, this is goodbye, for now."

Lance spoke, "Allura."

The Princess turned her gaze to the screen. "Yes, Lance?"

"Get back safe."

"I will."

Coran spoke as his shoulders hunched. "T-minus ten ticks to gate entry." He began counting down. The gate glowed, the closer he got to one. Then the ship disappeared through the gate.

The klaxons blared, as Hunk asked, "What's that?"

Coran touched his hand to his helm, and the panel beeped. "It's an incoming craft."

Shiro stared up at the screen. "Shields up. And pull it up on the screen."

As Coran brought the craft up on the screen, he gasped. "That-That can't be. It's an Altean pod! An ancient one!"

Lance gazed at the screen. "What's it doing out here?"

Shiro stared at the screen. "Let's find out. Attention, Altean pod, identify yourself."

The screen changed to show the pilot in the pod. "Shiro, it's Keith."

Shiro found it hard to find the words. "Keith! Are you okay?"

Pidge asked, "Where have you been?"

Coran leaned further over his control panel. "How did you get your hands on that pod?"

Adam gazed at Lance. "Your staring."

Lance blinked. "Does he look bigger to you guys? He's bigger, right? No?"

Keith asked, "Where's Lotor?"

Hunk replied, "He's in the quintessence field."

Keith gasped and then frowned as he spoke, "Oh, no."

The Paladins, Adam, Coran, and Thace all gathered in the pod bay as the ship was brought in for a landing. Keith hopped out of the pilot's compartment.

Shiro stared at the young man just a few months ago was eighteen, but now appeared to be at the least two years older. "Keith! It's so good to see you."

Lance stopped staring as he walked forward. "Hold on. How do we know you're the real Keith and not his bigger, cooler, grizzled older brother?"

Keith glared at the Red Paladin as he started past. "I don't have time for this, Lance!"

Lance turned and announced, "Hey, everybody, Keith's back!"

Keith stopped to face Shiro. "We need to stop Lotor. He's been lying to all of us!"

Shiro gazed at Keith. "Lying about what?"

A woman shouted from beside the rear of the pod. "Everything!"

Coran gasped as he focused on the blonde-haired woman. "You-Your Altean!"

Lance asked, "And who's the Galran?"

Hunk gulped. "Is that a wolf?"

Coran gazed at the Altean. "Where did you come from?"

Keith turned to face the others. "I promise I'll explain everything once we get to Lotor."

Pidge gazed at Keith. "We can't get to him. He entered the quintessence field with Allura."

Keith frowned. "We traveled through realities before. Can't we fly in there and attack?"

Lance walked up and stopped beside Keith. "She said Allura is with him. We can't risk hurting her."

Hunk gazed at Keith. "Why are we even attacking?"

Adam stared at Shiro. Why wasn't he taking control of the situation like in the past? He fingered the handle grip of his energy pistol.

Shiro gazed at Keith and held out his hands. "Look, Keith-Everyone, calm down. When they return, we'll get this all sorted out." He smiled at the former Red Paladin. "Lance is right. You have changed."

Keith replied, "Time is different where I've been."

The Galran stared at the Black Paladin. "Shiro, I am Krolia." She stepped forward and held out her hand. "Keith has told me all about you." They griped forearms. "Thank you for raising him to be the man he is today,"

Keith spoke from behind her. "Krolia is with the Blade of Marmora. Also," he found it a little difficult to express but managed to power through. "She's my mother."

Shiro smiled. "It's an honor to meet you."

Lance screamed, "What?" as he brought a hand to his face and held up the other hand palm facing them. He dropped his hand as he gazed at Keith. "Okay, this is nuts! You come back with your Galra mom, a wolf, and an Altean?"

Coran nodded. "Yes, I still want to hear the story of how you found this Altean."

Hunk held his hand up. "And why we're supposed to be attacking Lotor."

Thace stepped forward. "That will have to wait." He walked past Coran and held out his hands, and grabbed Krolia, pulling her into a hug. "It's good that Keith has returned and with you. I was afraid you were both lost when Kolivan called to tell me."

Krolia nodded as she smiled up at him. "It's good to see you again, too, brother."

Lance's mouth dropped open as he gaped at the pair. "Brother? Your Keith's uncle?"

Hunk gazed at them. "Man, I feel like I just fell into the Twilight Zone."

Pidge nodded. "Yeah, me too."

Adam stepped up to Lance and pushed on his chin. "Close your mouth, or you'll start catching flies."

Lance shook his head and glared at his cousin. "Hey, how come you're not freaked out over this."

Adam shrugged. "Thace had confided in me earlier. Why do you think I found you in the lounge."

Lance glared at Adam. "That is so not fair."

Keith gazed at Coran as the Altean fidgeted. Keith looked toward them all. "This is Romelle, and I think she should tell her own story."

Romelle gazed down. "I come from a planet where there are thousands of Alteans. We have lived there since the war with Zarkon began."

Coran's eyes widened. "What? That's impossible. Altea was destroyed. Allura and I were the only survivors."

Romelle gazed at him. "Every Altean child knows the story of how Lotor saved us from destruction. When Zarkon attacked, many were off-planet on trading expeditions." She continued her story of how Lotor offered them a safe haven away from the war.

She continued her story about how Lotor was creating a second colony and how her parents and brother were recruited for this other place. Tears came to her eyes as she told how her brother escaped and crash-landed. He died in her arms but not before telling her with his last breath that the colony was a lie.

She sniffed and said about meeting Krolia and Keith, and they figured out this so-called colony was on a nearby moon. They used the transport pod to travel to the moon, finding a Galra installation. But they discovered that Lotor was harvesting their quintessence. She put her hands to her face, wiped at her eyes.

Coran gazed at her. "That's horrifying."

Pidge whispered. "All this time—"

Keith gazed at them. "He's a monster."

An alarm beeped.

Coran gazed at the main screen on the bridge. "They're back."

Romelle stared at the screen. "What are you waiting for. "Open fire!"

Lance yelled from behind her. "No! Princess Allura is with him."

Hunk asked, "We're gonna let him back on board?"

Coran glared at the screen. "We must!" Coran leaned over, putting his hands on his control panel. "As long as the princess is with him, we cannot risk any sort of attack."

Shiro glared at the screen as he frowned. "Coran and Lance are right. We can't do anything until the princess is safe. Once Allura is secure, we will take Lotor down."

As Allura and Lotor stepped onto the bridge, she gazed at Coran and the Paladins. "What's going on?" The bridge door shut behind them. Krolia drew her energy pistol aiming it at Lotor as both Thace and Keith brandished their swords.

Lance pulled out his bayard and pointed it toward Lotor. "Allura, step away from Lotor."

Allura spread her arms out in front of the Galra Emperor. "I will do no such thing. Tell me what's happening here."

Romelle's voice came from the side and behind Allura and Lotor. As she spoke, they both turned to face her. "Lotor is a monster and has been harvesting Altean quintessence for generations!"

Allura gazed at her as shock set on her face. "An Altean!"

Romelle glared at Lotor. "You killed my brother and thousands of others!"

Pidge glared at the Galra Emperor. "Lotor has been lying to us the whole time. He's a murderer, just like his father!"

Lotor glared at Pidge. "You know nothing about what you speak."

Allura's eyes grew. She couldn't make eye contact with him. "What are they talking about?"

Lotor's face fell. "Allura, listen to me. I've dedicated my life to preserving Altean culture. Now that we have unlocked the quintessence field, all of your people, who would have been hunted down long ago, had it not been for my intervention can live in peace. Were some lives lost in the process? Yes. But they were martyrs to a noble cause. I sacrificed a few to preserve the future for millions. Allura, do not let this ruin everything we've worked for." Lotor leaned in close, "Think of everything we experienced in the quintessence field." He tried to take her hand in his.

Adam glared at Lotor. How could he say he was going to bring peace to the universe when he was harvesting the life force of innocent people who believed him to be a savior.

Allura surprised them all when she grabbed Lotor's hand and threw him quickly over her shoulder as if he was a sack of garbage.

The klaxon blared.

Coran yelled, "The hangar's been breached."

Hunk gazed at the screen. "It's Lotor's troops. They're stealing the ships."

Shiro groaned as he dropped to the deck, groaning as he grabbed his head.

Keith gazed at him. "Shiro?"

Coran asked, "What's happening to him?"

Lance took charge. "Allura and I will secure Lotor, Hunk, Adam help, Shiro. Everyone else get down to the hangar and stop those guys."

Hunk gazed down on the Black Paladin. "Shiro?"

The Black Paladin raised his head and grabbed at Hunk, tossing him across the room like a football. He slammed into Coran.

Adam pulled his energy pistol from its holster. "Takashi, don't make me use this!"

Shiro turned his head as his gaze focused on the other man.

Adam blinked as he focused on the eyes. Those weren't Shiro's eyes staring back at him. He hesitated, and that's all that was needed for the thing he faced. It dove in and knocked Adam's hand with the energy pistol out of the way as the weaponized hand started glowing. Instant pain radiated from his abdomen as he looked down to see half of the things hand in his midsection.

His legs buckled from under him and he fell to the floor. He gazed up at the ceiling and heard more noises coming from around him and then footsteps past him.

Allura was saying something, but he blinked. He couldn't hear what she was saying because of the blood rushing past his ears in time with his heartbeat. He gazed up, seeing Lance hovering over him.

Adam saw Lance's mouth moving but didn't hear anything at first. The sound of his blood was too loud. He swallowed and then focused on Lance again. "Adam, Adam, what do I do?"

He groaned. "Pressure, put pressure on the wound to slow the bleeding."

Lance shook his head. "I'll hurt you." Lance blinked, trying to keep the moisture that was building in his eyes out of the way.

"Don't worry about that, just do it."

Pressure intensified the pain, and Adam groaned.

Lance raised his head and yelled, "I need help here," his voice cracked from emotion. "Adam's hurt, bad." He sniffed but kept up the pressure.

Keith's voice came over the speaker. "How bad?"

"Shiro stabbed him with his weaponized hand, and I'm putting pressure on the wound."

A couple of minutes passed until Keith replied, "Krolia and Thace are coming. They'll take over. Can you and Hunk pilot your lions?"

Hunk replied, "Yeah, I'll manage."

Lance gazed down at Adam as Krolia and Thace stepped onto the bridge. "We've got this."

Keith's voice came over the speaker again. "Then let's go! If we're gonna fight Lotor's ships, we'll need Voltron."

Pidge's voice came over the speaker. "Shiro's gone. Who's going to pilot the Black Lion?"

Adam cried out as an intense pain shot through his abdomen. He gazed up at Thace as Lance stood up. He turned his gaze to Lance, "Go," he whispered. "Find out what happened to Takashi."

Keith's voice came over the speaker in reply to Pidge's question. "I will!"

Krolia looked up at Lance. "Hurry. We'll take care of him." She turned her head down toward Adam. "Keith also told me about you, too, Adam. He'll be upset with me if I let you die."

Sweat broke out on Adam's forehead. "I'll try not to."

"Thace."

The pressure was released as Thace sat back. Adam knew Krolia had pulled away the cloth of the Garrison uniform coat from his body, exposing the wound. She pulled up his undershirt. She leaned over into his field of vision. "I'm not going to sugar coat anything, but this is going to hurt."

He heard the lid of something being removed, which was followed by a liquid sloshing around, and then the fire struck as the wound burned. "Hold him down," he managed to hear Krolia say. "I have to disinfect this wound if it gets infected, it could cause more problems."

The pain from his abdominal wound intensified as she poured some more of the liquid into the wound. Adam screamed as he thrashed, but pressure on his shoulders and legs kept him still. He tried to focus his eyes on anything, but his vision faded to black.

Adam's eyelids opened. His vision came into focus as he recognized his surroundings. He was in his room. How did I get here? The last thing he remembered was being on the bridge of the Castle.

As he moved to sit up, pain flared in his abdomen. A groan escaped from between his lips. The Castle wasn't lighting up as usual, what was going on? Had the Sincline ships returned and finished the job? Were Keith and the Paladins okay? He had to know. Lance, where was Lance.

He swung his feet over the side of the bed and groaned as he sat up. Adam placed his hand to the wound. He stood up, but his body swayed with effort. He took a breath and grabbed the wall to keep from falling. He remembered those dark gray eyes that had stared at him. The pupils were wrong. The pupils were a bright magenta.

He shuddered. "Where are you, Takashi?"

Adam sighed as he made his way to the door. He gripped the door with his fingers and muscled his way out. Sweat sprang to life on his forehead, and his wound screamed in pain as the muscles in his abdominal wall strained. He was able to slide out past the door, and it slammed shut behind him.

He leaned back against the door as he took some breaths. Maybe he should have stayed in bed. He pressed his hand to the bandaged wound. It was too quiet. He made his way toward the bridge and found the doors were forced open. He stepped onto the bridge and found Krolia, Thace, and Romelle discussing something.

"Did I miss anything?"

Romelle was the first to reach his side. "You should still be resting."

Adam shook his head. "I can't. I have to know what happened."

Krolia turned and gazed at him as some lights came up on the bridge. She placed her hands on her hips. "You've ruined my work. Now I'll have to rebandage that wound."

Adam walked over to his seat. "Okay, but no more of whatever that was."

Thace chuckled. "It was the alcohol you imbibed that got you drunk in three shots."

Krolia glared at her brother. "You gave him that? You have no idea what it would do to a human!" She frowned. "Sometimes, your too much like your father!"

"And you are too cautious like your own."

Krolia shook her head as she grabbed at her bag of supplies. "I'll just rebandage that, but I swear if you don't stay still this time, I'll-I'll have Keith's wolf sit on you."

Adam gazed over at the wolf. His markings were unusual. "He's pretty, where did you find him?"

"In the Quantum Abyss. Now stay still."

She removed the old bandages and pulled out the new bandages. She snapped the tape, activating it's healing properties. "It's going to take longer for this to heal since it's open. This bandage works better on a closed wound instead of an open one. I didn't bring anything with me for an open wound. I didn't think I'd need it."

Adam winced as she applied the bandage to the open wound. "Tell me what's been going on? Where are the Paladins?"

Thace gazed at his sister, who nodded. Thace placed his hand on Adam's knee. "I know you'll worry if I don't tell you. Keith had Voltron disband, and only he alone went through a wormhole that Haggar had created. The rest of the Paladins are back aboard the Castle. Before Shiro left with Lotor, he'd uploaded a kill virus, but Pidge was able to stop the virus before the Teludav exploded."

Pain registered on Adam's face as he leaned his head back. "That thing wasn't Takashi. I know it wasn't. Takashi would never do that. He's the most amazing man you've ever met. He's always going out of his way to help others."

Krolia placed her hand on Adam's arm. "I'm sure it wasn't. But where is the real man?"

Adam shook his head. "I don't know. Hopefully, Keith will be able to tell us when he returns." Adam grabbed his dog tags that hung around his neck and brushed his thumb against Takashi's ring. His brown eyes slid up to gaze into Krolia's. "I have faith in Keith."

Krolia nodded. "I do too."

Adam dozed in his seat. The Galran medical tape caused his skin to tingle. It wasn't an unpleasant feeling like pins and needles from a limb waking up after blood circulation was restored after falling asleep from loss of circulation. But it was unnerving.

His eyelids opened as he heard footsteps behind him. Adam craned his head around to see Lance and Allura walking to their places, but Lance stopped and gazed at his cousin.

A slow smile pulled at Lance's lips. "It's good to see you again."

Adam was going to rise, but Krolia glared at him. He held his hands up to her. "I'm under orders, not to move from this seat. What's been going on while I was out?"

Allura gazed at him. "You should be resting."

Thace sighed. "Krolia and Romelle have told him this. Are all humans so stubborn?"

Allura deadpanned, "Yes."

Lance's smile grew bigger. "Adam and Shiro especially." He frowned at his mention of the Black Paladin. "Pidge is drawing power from the Teludav to the engine room. Hunk and Coran are trying to restart the Castle from there." Lance took his seat while Allura took her position under the crystal, that was one of the casualties of the virus.

Allura didn't focus on anything as she crossed her arms over her body and gazed down at the deck. She was unusually quiet.

The main screen flashed to life on the bridge. Adam blinked as Coran appeared, but he was hanging upside down. He blinked his eyes several more times, thinking he might be getting sick, but no the image stayed the same.

Coran's voice came through the screen. "Allura begin the reboot sequence. Allura, can you hear me? Is this thing on mute? There's a lot of blood rushing to my head. I keep hitting the wrong buttons."

Lance gazed over at her. "Allura?"

Allura's gaze rose as she focused on Lance. "Oh, right. What is it you need?"

Coran's voice came over the speaker. "The reboot sequence. Can you run it again?"

Krolia shot a glare at Adam. "Don't move from that spot." She turned to the wolf. "If he moves, sit on him."

The wolf gazed up at Adam and then back to Krolia.

The Galran woman spoke, "Thace and I will go down and assist with repairs." As she and Thace hurried away, Romelle chased after them.

Lance rose from his chair and walked over to the Princess. "Allura, are you okay? You seem a little distracted."

Allura closed her eyes. "I'm so angry with myself for allowing this to happen. I played right into Lotor's hands, and I fear my actions have placed us in this dire situation."

Lance shook his head. "You didn't put us in this situation. It was Shiro who went rogue and released the virus in the Castle."

Adam glared at his cousin. "Wrong, Lance. That thing wasn't Takashi. You know he'd never do anything to hurt us."

"What do you mean?"

"His eyes, they were different."

Allura shook her head. "No, this is my fault. I trusted Lotor. I helped him build and empower his ships, granting him unlimited access to the quintessence field. He fooled me, and it put the entire universe in jeopardy. How can the coalition ever be expected to trust me when I'm not sure I can trust myself."

Lance lowered his gaze. "Allura, it wasn't just you who trusted Lotor. We all did. I had more reason than anyone not to trust him, but he did everything right. He didn't just fool you. He fooled us all."

Adam grumbled under his breath.

Allura reached and grabbed Lance, as the Red Paladin continued to speak. "Let me tell you, as someone who's made a million mistakes, all you can do is get up and try to make it right. You can't doubt yourself now. We need you. The universe needs you."

Allura whispered. "Thank you, Lance."

Adam smiled at his cousin. The boy had done it again.

The screen beeped as a message was coming in.

Keith's face appeared on the screen. "Hailing the Castle of Lions. This is Keith."

Lance nearly gushed in pleasure to see the Black Paladin's face. "Keith! You're okay!"

Allura smiled. "Where have you been? Did you get Shiro?"

Keith replied, "I got him, but it's not the Shiro we know. The Shiro who took Lotor was a clone."

Lance and Allura gazed at each other. Lance asked, "Well, then where's the real one?"

Keith replied, "It's complicated. I'll explain everything later, but right now you need to focus on Lotor. I've picked up the Sincline ships on my scanner. It looks like Lotor's headed back to your position."

Allura replied, "He needs to get back into the quintessence field."

Keith replied, "I'm on my way to you now. But without a wormhole, it's gonna take me a while. You'll have to hold off Lotor without me."

Lance replied, "We'll do what we can." As the communication ended with Keith, Lance called out. "Paladins, Lotor is coming back. Get to your lions."

Adam held up his hand and gave Lance a thumb's up. "Be careful out there."

Lance gazed at his cousin. "Aren't you going to monitor our communications this time."

Adam shook his head. "You've fallen into your role as the right hand of Voltron. Now you need to believe in yourself and your team."

Lance gave him a quick nod. "Okay." He hurried forward and wrapped his arms around Adam and embraced him carefully, not wanting to squeeze too tight.

Adam patted Lance on the back. "Go, take Lotor down."

Lance released his cousin and ran off the bridge quickly.

Keith's wolf cocked it's head as Adam squirmed in his seat.

Adam pressed a hand to his wound. "Don't you worry either. I'm just trying to find a more comfortable position."

Coran joined Adam and the wolf on the bridge of the Castle. He opened his communications so the pair would be able to hear what was going on with the paladins.

Allura's voice came over the speaker. "Accessing the quintessence field has been Lotor's singular drive for millennia. He wants to harness the power for himself, but we cannot let him. Thankfully, there's only one-way in. Through the inter-reality gate. So we must destroy it."

Coran replied, "I'll continue working on the Castle to get it up and running before Lotor arrives. It'll be slow going without the paladins, but we'll get it done."

Allura replied, "Good luck, Coran. We'll need all the help we can get in the fight against Lotor."

Coran hurried off the bridge again.

Adam guessed that Coran did it so he wouldn't feel left out. He gazed down at the wolf. "When it comes to engineering, I'm all thumbs."

The wolf placed one of his huge paws on Adam's leg as if to give some comfort.

Lance asked, "Are you sure about this?"

Allura replied, "We must. It's the only way."

Adam watched as the lions destroyed the gate. He rubbed his bearded chin. His thoughts drifted back to Coran's story and how King Alfor and the original Paladins destroyed the Galra homeworld and how that started the war. It seemed history was repeating itself, but this time with Allura and the new Paladins.

Pidge asked, "Lotor will be here any second. What's the plan?"

Allura replied, "We can't expect help from the Castle of Lions. The Black Lion isn't here, so we can't form Voltron. We're going to have to do what we can."

Pidge replied, "Got it. Attempt to survive."

Adam sighed. Leave it to Pidge to hit the nail on the head.

Hunk sighed. "Last time we fought Lotor, we had five ships, and Lotor had two, and he still kicked our butts. This time, he's gonna have three ships, and we only have four. Does-does anyone else see where I'm going with this?"

Lance yelled, "Zip it Hunk, no one's interested in your math equations right now. Especially ones that add up to us taking a beating."

Allura asked, "Coran, how are the repairs coming?"

"I'm working on 'em, Princess. The problem is we need for the systems that start the main turbine. But if I use that power for the main turbine, then I don't have the power to run the turbine. It's a conundrum."

Allura said, "Coran, without the Castle of Lions backing us up, we might not make it."

Coran replied, "Right, no pressure. Come on, Coran, think! I've got Krolia and Thace to help me-and Romelle, the space mice, and a cosmic wolf."

Lance's voice lowered. "We've got incoming!"

Hunks rose close to panic. "Guys, they're here!"

Lance replied. "Hold your positions. Let Lotor make the first move."

Lotor's ships stopped a distance away. His voice came over the speaker in the Castle. "We need not fight today. We are all on the same side. I know what you all must think of me now that you know my past. It doesn't have to change our future together. The truth is, I want to harness the power of the quintessence field to better the universe, just like I said. Nothing has changed."

Adam shook his head. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Did Lotor think they had stupid written on their foreheads?

Allura replied, "You enslaved countless Alteans. Harnessed their life sources for your gain." Her voice rose in tune with her anger. "How many innocent lives did you destroy?"

Lotor replied, "Allura, I—"

"How many?"

"It's true. Many Alteans perished in my desire to unlock the mysteries of quintessence. But, I protected thousands more, and I rescued their culture, our culture. Allura you must understand, I've given everything I have to plumb the depths of King Alfor's knowledge to unlock the mysteries of Oriande. Please, Allura, we've come too far together. Surely, you can see the greatness we've already accomplished. There's still more to come. Join me. We're on the same side."

Allura yelled, "No, we're not!"

Adam had a ringside seat as Allura attacked with the Blue Lion.

Lotor yelled, "Hold your fire! Hold your fire! Allura, stop! You and I hold the ancient knowledge of our Altean culture. We were meant to be together. My feelings for you are true. And I know you have feelings for me as well."

Allura growled in reply, "You betrayed and used me. You're more like Zarkon than I could have ever imagined!"

Lotor replied as his voice lowered to something that sounded predatory. "What about your father? He may have been a master engineer, but Alfor was too weak to defend his homeworld. I'm the one who had to step up and save our entire race. Who are you to question my tactics in bringing peace and prosperity to the universe? Destroy the lions."

Two of the Sincline ships shot forward blasting at the lions.

The Blue Lion shot away from the others.

Lance yelled, "Allura, stay with the group!"

Hunk yelled, "Coran, we need your help here! Please tell me you got the Castle up and running!"

Coran took his place on the bridge of the Castle. "Don't worry, guys. I'm here!"

Lance asked, "What's going on with the Castle?"

Coran replied, "We've got one of the engines working, so I'm kind of learning to fly all over again."

Adam stared at the screen but pressed his hand to his abdomen as the rough ride of the Castle shook his body. His eyes were glued to the thing that now replaced the three Sincline ships.

Pidge asked, "What is that thing?"

Lance replied. "He's created his own Voltron."

Allura replied. "That's why he was using me. I helped him build it."

Lotor's Voltron shot forward and attacked the lions.

Coran's fingers flew over the control panel. "I think I've finally got control! Ready the weapons systems!"

Krolia's face appeared on the screen. "We don't have much power. Probably enough for one shot."

Coran growled. "Well, then let's make it count. Fire!" He slammed his hand down on the panel. A beam of white energy struck Lotor's ship.

Allura replied, "Nice shot Coran!"

Lotor's ship fired a beam of energy that pushed the Castle's power back on itself. The great ship shook violently. Adam groaned as he was shook about in his chair.

Pidge yelled, "Impossible. Lotor's weapon has completely repelled the Castle's attack!"

Lance said, "Coran, shoot it with the cannon again."

I can't. That was our last shot."

Lance yelled, "Pidge, get out of his line of sight!"

"He's locked onto me. I'm taking heavy fire!"

Lance replied, "Get out of there! I'm coming in!"

Hunk yelled, "Lance!"

Allura said, "We can't take this much longer!"

Adam groaned again as something warm and sticky touched the palm of his hand. He was bleeding again. Adam turned his gaze back to the screen as the lion's floated in space. "Coran, is there anything we can do to help them."

Coran shook his head as he gripped the sides of his control panel. "No," he whispered.

Adam's eyes grew as his panel began beeping. "I don't believe it."

Coran turned to gaze at the human. "What?"

"It's the Black Lion, Keith is here!"

The Black Lion shot forward and stopped with its nose inches away from Lotor's cockpit. It flew away suddenly and stopped in front of the other Lions.

Lance said, "Keith, how did you get here so fast?"

Keith's reply was cryptic. "I had some help. Now hurry. We don't have much time. On me! Form Voltron!" The Black Lion's speeder came flying out of Voltron. "Coran, you have incoming."

"Affirmative." Coran turned and walked toward the doors but stopped by Adam's chair. A little bit of red oozed out from under Adam's hand. "Your bleeding again. I'll tell Krolia."

Adam frowned. "She's going to kill me."

Coran let out a half-laugh. "No such thing, my boy. Even if you'd been laying down, the shaking the Castle just received would have caused you to bleed again."

Adam nodded. "I guess you're right."

"I am right. Don't worry about her fussing at you."

As Coran left the bridge, Keith's voice came over the speaker. "Shield," followed by, "Hunk, form cannon."

"You got it!"

Lance yelled, "He's too fast!"

Keith replied, "Then we'll have to get in close. Form sword!"

Adam groaned. He could hear them, but the fight had moved out of range of the Castle.

Keith yelled, "Attack!"

Pidge yelled, "We can't touch him. He's too fast!"

Hunk replied, "We need to stop him moving around, back him into a corner or something."

Keith said, "Hunk's right. We have to eliminate his speed advantage. Limit his movements. There! Now we lure him in close. Wait for him. Let him build up speed. Now!"

Adam sat up a little straighter in his seat. Keith sounded like Takashi with his snap decisions. A slight smile pulled at the corner of Adam's mouth.

Hunk asked, "Where'd he go?"

Pidge said, "He's behind us!"

Keith replied, "Hunk hit him with the shoulder cannon."

"On it!"

"Fire!"

Lance asked, "Did we get him?"

Hunk replied, "I don't know."

Lance said, "I think we got him."

Pidge replied, "It looked like he just disappeared."

Lance said, "Yeah! We got him."

Allura replied, "I'm not so sure."

Krolia appeared on the bridge. "Coran told me what happened. I have to agree with his assessment of the situation." She knelt beside his chair and removed the old bandage.

Adam winced and groaned.

Krolia waited for his muscles to relax as she pulled out a cloth and wiped away the blood from off his skin. "The good thing is it's healing, but this will still take some time. I believe that it will be fully healed in two or three Quintants." She set the cloth down the pulled out more strips of the tape, and snapped the first one. She pressed it to Adam's abdomen. She snapped a second strip and placed it over the first.

Krolia frowned as she heard the battle that raged outside somewhere coming over the speaker of the bridge. "Listening to this can't be good for you either. I should shut it off."

Adam reached out to stop her but stopped. It was silent. "What happened? Where'd they go?"

Coran stepped onto the bridge. "They went into the Quintessence field after Lotor. I hate when they do this."

Dobashes passed until they heard Allura's voice again. "If we'd stayed in the quintessence field, we would've kept fighting until we destroyed ourselves." She sighed. "Just like Lotor."

Keith asked, "What did you do in there?"

"I transferred the excess power from Voltron. It's a technique I learned on Oriande. Thanks to Lotor."

Lance replied, "Thank you, Allura. You saved us."

Hunk said, "Not just us. The entire universe."

Coran said, "Oh, you're back!"

Keith said, "Lotor is no longer a threat."

Coran brought up an image of the surrounding area on the screen. "Right. I'm afraid we face a bigger threat now. All of Lotor's jumping in and out of the quintessence field has created multiple growing rifts in the fabric of time and space."

Lance asked, "What does that mean?"

Pidge's face appeared on the screen. "It means unless we do something fast, these tears will continue to expand until all of existence as we know it has been destroyed."

Keith replied, "There has to be something we can do."

Pidge said, "Scanning the rift for any strand refabrication possibilities."

Hunk replied, "I'm running models to see if there's any chance it can close on its own."

Pidge sighed. "Nothing."

Hunk replied, "Nope. Me neither."

Keith asked, "How long do we have?"

Coran replied, "Based on the way those rifts are expanding, about fifteen dobashes."

Lance said, "Allura, you have to have a way to close it. Voltron opened it up. Maybe we can-I don't know. There's gotta be a way!"

"I'm sorry, but I just don't possess that level of alchemic knowledge."

Pidge said, "The only thing that could pull that rift closed would be a source of gravity more powerful than a supermassive black hole."

Lance replied, "Any chance we can find one and tow it over here in fifteen dobashes?"

Coran's eyes widened as they lit up. "Wait a tick. The Teludav."

Keith asked, "What about it?"

Coran replied, "Too make wormhole jumps, the Teludav creates a brief flash of infinite mass. There might be a way I can overload the Teludav's reactor and seal the rift. If one of the flashes went off in the rift, it could do the job."

Hunk replied, "But that would mean near sacrificing the Castle of Lions!"

Pidge asked, "What choice do we have? The Castle will be wiped out with the rest of us."

Hunk replied, "But still-it's been our home."

Coran sighed, "Oh, I hate to say goodbye to my grandfather's creation, the last piece of the real Altea."

Allura replied, "Coran begin preparations. Everyone else, start unloading the Castle. We need to evacuate immediately."

The lions flew away as the Castle of Lions flew into the rift. The backwash from the explosion rocked the lions.

Adam lay on a cot next to what was left of a healing pod holding the clone's body minus the Galra arm. Adam groaned. Krolia knelt next to him, bracing him against the cot while the wolf lay across his legs.

Hunk found a diamond was left of the Castle and sucked it up into the Yellow Lion.

Lance said, "Well, we saved all realities. What do you guys want to do now?"

Keith replied, "We need to find someplace to land and see if there's some way to help Shiro."

They landed on a nearby planet. The wolf teleported himself and Adam outside-facing Keith as he lay the clone's body down. This body is barely living, but Shiro's spirit is alive. It's inside the Black Lion. I've heard him talking to me."

Lance spoke up. "He-he tried to tell me, but I didn't realize it." Lance rushed forward and dropped down hard on his hands and knees beside Adam as tears ran down his face. "I'm so sorry, Shiro I didn't, I could've—" he was stopped by pressure on his shoulder and arm. He looked up into the tear-streaked face of Adam and the smiling one of Allura.

Allura stood up and walked to the Black Lion and placed her hands to its face. Her hands glowed as energy flowed through the lion. She turned and faced the paladins. Her eyes were solid white.

She stepped forward, crossing the distance from the lion to the clone's body. She knelt and placed her hands on either side of the clone's head. The body began to glow as Shiro's consciousness flowed out from her into the clone. When she stopped glowing, his hair and eyebrows had turned white.

The eyelids opened, and his eyes had an odd glow to them, but then they turned white and finally changed to Shiro's eye color. He sat up coughing and groaned as his body fell over into Keith's.

The lions roared around them, as Coran and Hunk cheered and hugged each other. Adam slid forward enough to wrap his arms around Shiro and Keith. Shiro whispered, "You found me."

Keith gazed into Shiro's dark gray eyes. "We're glad your back, Shiro."

Allura smiled, "Rest."

Shiro sighed as he closed his eyelids.

Hunk asked, "So what are we gonna do? The Castle is destroyed."

Pidge gazed toward a spot in the distance. "There's only one place that has the plans necessary to build a replacement for the Castle of Lions. Coran gave them to my dad."

Keith looked up from where he knelt, still holding Shiro. "We're going home."