**I do not own Voltron: Legendary Defender
The next morning, it was time to put their plan into motion. The paladins suited up and situated their lions around the giant teludav, ready to carry it into space whenever Allura was ready.
"Thank you, Ryner, for all you and the Olkari have done to assist us," Allura spoke to the leader of the Olkari before boarding the Castle. Then addressing the other inhabitants who had gathered to witness the launch, she announced, "Once we defeat Zarkon, it is my hope that we can continue to unite our forces and rebuild the once great coalition that my father, King Alfor, began."
The Olkari cheered in approval and Allura smiled. "Princess, it's time," Coran said, and she nodded before she, Coran, Slav, Scarlett, Mari and their two Blade of Marmora allies – leader Kolivan and his right hand man Antok – boarded the Castle of Lions. They entered the bridge and Allura rebooted the castle-ship's systems.
"You ready?" Mari glanced down at Scarlett who stood by her side, an anxious smile on her face.
Scarlett grinned just as nervously and Zyron chirped in excitement from his perch on her shoulder. "As I'll ever be."
Allura took her position at the helm while Coran stood at the ready at his control panel. Shiro's face popped up on screen as he said, "Princess, we are go for launch."
"Charging main turbine," she said, her screens activating as the ship whirred to life. The Castle shook as it took off and the lions followed close behind with the teludav in tow. Once Olkarion had disappeared from sight and they were safely floating in space, the Castle came to a halt and Allura connected the ship's systems to the exterior teludav. Now linked and unable to float away in space, the lions released it before returning to their hangars. Then the paladins gathered on the bridge so they could all go over their plan once more.
"All right, guys, listen up," Shiro began, taking center stage as he led everyone into the review session. Very much like a coach and his game-plan sheet, he used several holographic images of the lions and teludav to assist in visualizing their movements. "I'll use the Black Lion to lure Zarkon's fleet to our current location and make sure he's within the teludav's area of effect. Keeping the teludav hidden behind the space-fold until the last possible second is essential. We can count on you, right, Scarlett, Slav?"
"Absolutely. We'll be fine," Slav assured him. He paused and scrunched up his eyes as he glanced away from the Black Paladin. "I'm not sure about the gravity generator, though…"
"What?" Hunk said, worry lacing his tone. "What was that last thing?"
"Hiding a ship is one thing, but we've never had to build a gravity generator for something this large before," Slav explained. "We know it'll work, but we're not really sure for how long."
"If you hadn't been so particular about my work method last night, we could've tested it," Scarlett grumbled and Slav crossed his many arms indignantly.
"Oh please. With the way you were doing things, it would've made the success rate of this mission drop to fifteen-point-four percent," he said. "At least now we are no longer in complete danger of failing."
Scarlett's cheeks turned red and her antennae glowed in anger. She looked like she was on the verge of pummeling him. As if sensing this, he let out a shrill "Eek!" and scurried to hide behind the nearest paladin, Pidge.
Shiro frowned but continued nevertheless. "It's okay. It's a risk we'll have to take," he decided. "Once Zarkon's ship is in position, Kolivan and Antok will coordinate with Thace. Together, they'll take down Zarkon's security system and upload Scarlett's virus."
"And then, he'll be a sitting du-flax," Pidge grinned matter-of factly. When she was met with confused looks, she shrugged. "What? A du-flax is an Altean creature with a beak and webbed feet."
"We'll wormhole Zarkon five hundred million light years away, and he'll be in the Yggiz Galaxy before he knows what's hit him!" Coran jumped in, leaping in front of Shiro and taking over the demonstration by throwing the holographic images across the room. They shattered into nothingness against the wall.
"What about Thace?" Shiro turned to Kolivan expectantly.
"He should be getting into position now. We received his last communication three quintants ago," Kolivan reported. "We should hear from him soon."
"Good. Let's do it," Shiro said. The plan to end Zarkon's reign once and for all was a go.
Mari made her goodbye with Shiro quick. With the way he set his jaw and how his eyes were alert and focused, she could tell he was itching to go and get this over with. They all were, really. But it was up to him to get this ball rolling, and she didn't want to keep him.
"Be careful out there," she said, watching him as he put on his helmet.
"I will." He pulled her into a tight embrace and planted a kiss on the top of her head.
She was silently glad it was only the two of them in the Black Lion's hangar. Even though their first flight lesson had only been a few days ago, it felt like forever since it had just been the two of them together. As always, Shiro was warm and so kind to her. He always knew how to get past her defenses and comfort her. She didn't think she deserved such a gentle and caring older brother.
She wrapped her arms around him to return the hug. "Don't do anything stupid to get yourself killed," she croaked, her voice watery.
"I promise I won't," he said. "Be good while I'm gone?"
Mari clicked her tongue. "I'm not a little kid anymore. Of course I will."
His chest vibrated as he chucked. "I know. But I'll always worry about you," he said, his voice even softer now. "And I'll always love you, Mariko."
"I love you too, Takashi."
He held her for a moment longer before pulling away. A small grin briefly graced his features and there was a sort of nostalgic sadness in his eyes as he looked at her. "I'll be back before you know it," he promised, and he gave her one last loving ruffle of her hair before turning away to board his lion.
As the Black Lion departed, everyone else took their respective positions: the paladins, Coran, Allura, Mari, Kolivan, and Antok remained on the bridge, while Slav and Scarlett moved down to the Castle's engine control room to fire up the gravity generator to hide the teludav.
Mari stood at the ready next to Allura's station at the helm, space suit on and her weapon hanging on her hip. She stared straight ahead at the vast sea of stars, her heart thudding rapidly against her ribcage as they waited with bated breath for Shiro to report back. After what seemed like an eternity, his face appeared on screen. "Zarkon took the bait. He's got my location," he reported. "Is everybody in position?"
"We've not yet heard from Thace," Kolivan said, he eyes narrowing in concern. "He was supposed to contact us two vargas ago."
"He could've been captured," Antok said.
"Or killed," Kolivan surmised. He grit his teeth as he thought for a moment. "We need to abort the mission immediately."
"Abort?" Allura scoffed in disbelief. "No! We cannot back away now."
"The Blade of Marmora does not take chances," Antok replied, a mild bite to his tone. "It's how we've survived for so long."
"It's held you back," she snapped. "Your caution is the reason Zarkon is still in power!"
"We would rather wait than jeopardize everything," Kolivan said. "Besides, it's too late to get someone else on the inside."
"I'll do it," Keith suddenly piped up, standing from his seat.
"What?" Allura exclaimed, her bright eyes flashing in surprise.
"I'll sneak onto Zarkon's ship," Keith said. "I'm Galra, so I'll be able to interact with their technology. Pidge, you can rig up one of those pods with a cloaking device, right?"
"Well…yeah," Pidge answered, her hesitation apparent.
"Going onto Zarkon's ship is a suicide mission," Kolivan said, turning to the Red Paladin. "I would never command someone so inexperienced to go on a mission so dangerous."
"No one's commanding me," Keith frowned, and the fierce determination in his gaze revealed a mind that was already made up. "I'm doing it."
Allura scowled in disapproval but she said nothing. Avoiding eye contact with the hostile princess, Keith looked to Shiro for confirmation. Their leader was quiet for a few seconds, his brow furrowed with reluctance. Finally, he spoke.
"Pidge, get that pod ready," he said. He took a deep breath, mentally preparing himself for this sudden and dangerous change in their plans. "Keith…Let me know when you're on your way. I'll give you cover."
Keith nodded and a feeling of dread pooled in the depths of Mari's stomach. It was bad enough that Shiro was using himself as bait and Thace was in danger, but now Keith was venturing into the very heart of enemy territory by himself. As he and Pidge headed for the doors, their eyes met for a brief moment, dark gray boring into bluish-gray. Whatever he saw in Mari's expression made him slow down as he passed and he gave her a firm pat on the shoulder, as if silently promising her he'd be okay and not to worry. Long after he'd left the bridge, the touch of his hand on her lingered and she folded her arms over her chest as she tried not to think about it.
Not long after, Zarkon's ship and the Galran fleets appeared at Shiro's location.
"I've got Zarkon on the hook. Bringing him your way," he relayed. "Keith, you ready? We've only got one shot at this."
"Engaging cloaking device," Keith reported from his pod. "Moving toward the fleet now."
"Roger that. I don't see you, but I'm locked on your signal. I'll clear a path."
The Black Lion soared past dozens of enemy fighters, wiping them out with ease and grace.
"Thanks, Shiro." There was a loud screeching noise of metal on metal. "I'm coming in hot!" There was a loud crash and the sounds of fighting before Keith finally confirmed over the comms, "I'm in."
"The plan is working," Allura said. "Keith is on board and Zarkon's fleet is on the way."
"The Castle of Lion's defenses are up and ready to go," Lance announced.
"Starting the gravity generator now," Slav called out over the speakers.
"Commencing cloak," Scarlett said.
Outside, the teludav shimmered and disappeared from sight as the generator activated, completely hiding it from view. Meanwhile, Kolivan tracked Keith's position and began to give him instructions.
"Okay, you've made it to the lower communication deck," he said, his voice even and clear despite the hint of urgency in his tone. "Head left down that corridor…Based on the schematics from Thace, there should be a large door up ahead. This is the central hub for the Galra fleet."
"I see it," Keith said.
"I'm two minutes out," Shiro said. "Is everybody ready?"
"No, Keith hasn't made it to the hub yet," Kolivan replied. "We need more time."
"How much more?" he grunted.
"I hope not much because the gravity generator is not going to run forever!" Slav piped up frantically, followed by Scarlett's muttered bitter remark, "It could have if you'd listened to me during its construction."
"Well, I don't know how much longer I can hold Zarkon's fleet in this position by myself!" Shiro reported.
The remaining paladins exchanged knowing looks. They nodded in silent agreement before hurrying to their hangars, launching the Blue, Green, and Yellow Lions to assist their leader. A flurry of explosions and purple and blue beams danced across the dark skies with everyone engaged in battle.
"Kolivan, I'm in," Keith spoke again over the comms. "Now, what?"
"Now, you need to reset the system, using the codes that Thace obtained," he instructed. "It'll be down for a dobosh. That's when we'll upload the virus."
There was silence on Keith's end for several painful ticks. "It doesn't seem to be working," he finally said.
"Try it again," Kolivan ordered. When Keith didn't answer, his frown deepened. "Keith, are you there?"
At the helm, Allura's attention was focused on her screen as she tracked the lion's positions in relation to the teludav and the Galran central command.
"Zarkon's ship is leaving the teludav's area of effect. You must guide it back in," she urged the paladins.
"This is getting hairy," Lance grimaced. "How you doing, Keith?"
"The Galra switched the codes," he responded. "We're trying a work-around."
"'We'? Who's 'we'?"
"Thace. I found him. I'll explain later."
"Copy that," Shrio said.
Mari let out a small sigh of relief she hadn't realized she'd been holding in. Thace was okay, thank gosh. The paladins were holding their own. Everything was going relatively smoothly for now. As she took in the rapid movement of brilliant fiery lights against the heavy blanket of space, the destruction and chaos occurring just beyond the window, she couldn't help but feel small in the face of it all. And so very…detached.
Suddenly, Scarlett's face popped up on screen with a nervous Slav fretting in the background. Alarms were blaring on their end and red lights enveloped the room. "The gravity generator just lost power," she reported grimly. She cursed as Slav jumped on her, making her stumble and almost fall over.
"Now, there's no reality where we all get out alive!" he shrilled as he clung to her for dear life, and she winced as he shouted in her ear.
The teludav had shimmered back into view for all to see, including the enemy. Coran's face scrunched up in fear and Allura bit her lower lip as the Castle and teludav drew nearer to Zarkon's central command. They were getting no word from Keith's end about his and Thace's progress in shutting down the enemy's systems. Zarkon and his forces had no doubt spotted the giant wormhole-making machine by now and were preparing to attack it. And the lions were starting to lose their fight against the Galran fleets. Their plan's success rate was dropping lower and lower by the second. Unless the virus was uploaded very soon, it would all be over.
"We cannot wait any longer. I'm powering the teludav now!" the princess decided, and she closed her eyes as she focused on channeling her energy into powering it.
"Come on," Mari muttered, her hands clasped tightly together. Whether she was begging for Keith to hurry up or for the paladins to hold out just a bit longer or for their plan to just please work, she didn't know. "Please. You can do it."
On screen, a large explosion erupted from the side of Zarkon's ship. "The system is down!" Kolivan exclaimed as he and Antok went to work at their control panel. "Uploading virus now."
Scarlett's masterpiece wrecked havoc amongst Zarkon's systems instantly. No sooner did Antok send the command for the upload did the Galran fighters stop moving all at once. The purple light emanating from the central command faded as the power was snuffed out. The enemy was completely immobilized, allowing Allura to position the teludav over the enemy's main ship. She glowed with Altean energy as she activated the device and a massive portal manifested outside. Coran promptly initiated the Castle's thrusters and they drove the teludav downwards until the entirety of Zarkon's ship was sent through the wormhole. The moment it disappeared from sight, Allura moaned as her consciousness slipped away. Her knees buckled and Mari was quick to catch her before she could fall to the floor.
"Everyone, hang on! Here we go!" Coran declared, proceeding to fly the Castle through the wormhole after Zarkon's ship. "Hurry, Paladins! We must make it in before the wormhole closes!"
All five lions followed after them, diving into the swirling portal and leaving the dispatched fleets of the enemy light-years behind. The inside of the wormhole sparkled with billions of passing stars and churning colors of unidentified masses. It was beautiful to look at, but no one could enjoy the view to its entirety. Not when the final battle lay just ahead.
"How's Allura?" Shiro asked, his face popping up on screen again. His eyes were attentive and bright, ready to face whatever came next.
Coran retreated from his station and he knelt down next to Mari. He gently took the princess from her arms, propping her up and letting her head lean against him. He granted Mari a relieved if not grateful smile. "She's weak, but okay," he said.
"You take care of her," Shiro said. "We got it from here."
Moments later, they emerged from the wormhole into open space. There were no planets or moons of any kind in sight; just more stars set in a black background that was tinged with an unsettling red.
"We did it! I can't believe we did it!" Pidge cheered giddily over the comms.
"See, I told you we could do it," Slav chirped, only to be shut down by Scarlett's irritated, "No you didn't! Get off of me, for quiznak's sake!"
"It's not over yet," Shiro reminded them, cutting their early celebration short so they could divert their attention to their final task. "Everyone, form Voltron!"
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