Oh my God, I never thought I would finish this chapter, but finally its done! I'm so sorry. Those of you who know me know that the last couple of months it has been nonstop working. The pitfalls of working in the healthcare industry. Anyways, I'm hoping you guys haven't forgotten my promise of finishing this fic.
LadyD68: Yes, here's the next one. I'm so glad you found it and are liking it.
Guest: Thank you so much for your words. Out of all my stories, this is my favorite and the reason why I won't give up on it after so many years. Hope you enjoy this next installment.
Feli3: Oh, I'm so glad you're still reading it! As, I said before, it's my favorite story but I'm dying to end it. Definitely, my Achilles' heel. LOL! Hope you dance some more in this chapter!
Guest: Thank God, I'm alright. Just extremely busy working and the reason for the delay. Thank you for asking.
SnyperLady: LOL! Can you imagine. Lance a Father-in-Law. LOL! Poor Darrell.
Guest: I hope you do open and account. Be great to read a good story! Feel free to email me if you want guidance or suggestions.
LibAkilah: Well, the "crush" Haggar has with Keith is very real to her and hard to handle. She has feeling for him that range from hate to love to compassion. I don't think she knows what she's feeling. Will it be her downfall? We'll we will see soon.
Shiranai Atsune: Here's the next one!
FroobyB: I'm hoping you like the fight scene in this chapter. Let me know your thoughts if you read it.
RossodiSera: Absolutely. It's about to go down! LOL!
GoPinkLion: When I read your review it made my day. I'm so happy people like this concoction that sprouted from one song and one scene in my head. LOL. Thank you for reading and hope you continue to.
As always, a huge THANK YOU to you all for reading and your patience. Another HUGE SHOUT OUT to my editor in charge MERTZ who polishes my grammar. One more chapter after this one! Enjoy!
Playlist:
Audiomachine: Rise of the Black Curtain
AudioMachine: The Lion's Heart
Audiomachine: We Will Get Through This
Chapter 37
At first, the ride was quiet. Everyone in their lions, focused on the fight that lay ahead, the unknowns, the unexpected. The Corps fleet lagged a few thousand miles behind and Garrison would be on its way to meet them along their flight to Korrinth. Lance found himself unusually quiet. Nerves made him talkative and exceedingly annoying. His friends always told him so, and he agreed. A part of him focused on what would happen on Korrinth, but the other part yearned to know what was on Keith's mind. Giving up on silence, he decided that he needed to know. Patience was not his forte, another thing he acknowledged about himself and partly the reason he would never grow into the ranks of a captain or a general. No patience whatsoever. He connected to Keith through the vidscreen, hoping to quench the curiosity that was killing him.
"Hey, I need to ask you a question," he began.
Quiet for a moment, Keith answered, "I can only answer what they allow me to."
Lance rolled his eyes, "You don't waste time, do you?"
"I know you all have a lot of questions," Keith nodded, "The lions feel your anxiety."
"And they told you."
Another pause, "I can feel it too."
"Damn it, Keith," Lance was frustrated, "Talk to me, man." I know we have a lot to say to each other, but I can't go in without knowing something about what these lions are going to do. And, what you're going to do."
"Trust them, Lance. That's all I can say for now." Keith said in a calm, unemotional manner. "That's the first step. Trust them and they will trust you."
When Lance didn't reply, Keith believed the conversation was over and he could return to his thoughts. But moments later, he heard Lance speak words he never thought he would ever hear.
"I'm sorry."
"What?" the simple words caught him by surprise.
"Keith, I'm sorry for not believing you. I'm sorry for what you went through," Lance responded with a tone of regret. "I should have believed you. I should have pushed the truth out of you. God knows I was always able to in the past."
"You couldn't have known, Lance. Don't…feel any guilt over any of it," Keith responded. "I made the decision. I made decisions for you and that's on me. I'm sorry too."
"So, what do we do now?"
Keith sighed, "We get this done. Then…we talk some more."
Lance laughed, "Yeah…and no more secrets, right?"
The captain chuckled, "No, at least not from me. Not anymore."
"Well, that's good," Lance answered with a light chuckle. About a few seconds later, he received the signal of another incoming call. He smiled. "But, before I make that promise, I do have something to tell you."
"What?"
"Garrison is here. Take the call, I'm about to patch you through," he said.
Within moments, Keith saw the incoming call and took it. He was surprised by who he saw on the vidscreen, "Grand Marshall Hawkins?"
"Captain Kogane," the man smiled. Hawkins, a man now in his sixties, still have a full set of hair, although completely white. Wrinkles and fine lines decorated his eyes and forehead, but the man still looked strong and fit. "It's a pleasure to see you…son."
"I…wasn't expecting you to accompany us, sir," Keith responded, feeling shock after looking at a man he hadn't seen in decades. In his position, Hawkins would have most likely led from afar. A Grand Marshall was not supposed to be on the battlefield. He would have been as protected as any president or leader of a nation.
"There was no way I was going to miss this fight. Lance told me about your plans and I ordered a fleet to Arus as you requested," he began, "And, the fleet accompanying you to Korrinth. However, Captain, I want the honor to fight along with you this time. It's something that I've longed for twenty years."
"You don't have to do this," Keith shook his head.
The man laughed "I'm honored to do this. And, I want to also provide you with some additional help aside from our Garrison fighters."
"Additional help, sir?"
Lance smiled, "You're not the only one who can keep secrets, Kogane."
"Let's just say, Voltron will not be fighting alone," Hawkins smiled.
XXXXXXXXXX
Haggar walked into the control room in full Drule attire as she looked ahead at the large screen showing Planet Arus. Her short pixie cut style, long gone, replaced with a sleek pull back. Her stare was cold, defiant. She was all business.
"Are we prepared?" she looked seriously at Cossack, who operated the room.
"Yes," the Drule nodded without looking at her. "All the fighters are prepared. We've already intercepted a feed from Garrison. Their fighters reached Arus a few hours ago. Haggar, they know we are coming."
"That's fine," she shrugged and smirked. "Won't do them any good with what we are bringing to them."
A moment later, Lotor came in, "When do we leave?"
"Start boarding," Cossack answered. "All fighters are ready. Weapon is also secure."
Looking at her son, Haggar smiled, "This is the day of our reckoning, Lotor. We are about to let everyone know that Korrinth has risen."
The young Drule looked at his mother and offered a small smile, "Part of me never thought this day would come."
"I never doubted it," she firmly replied.
"Still," he sighed. "What I want most in this world is to end the life of the man who murdered my family. Haggar, I want his blood."
Taking Lotor's hand, the woman squeezed it gently, "Perhaps that can still happen today."
XXXXXXXXX
"ETA fifteen minutes, Captain," Darrell stated as the lions drew close to Korrinth. "Stealth mode on the lions and the first fleet will activate immediately upon entry of the stratosphere, but we will only have a five-minute window until they detect us."
"That means no waiting," Keith responded. "As soon as we are in, we attack the base. Fleets will take out all surrounding bases, hopefully minimizing the counter attack and giving the rest of the fleets a chance to enter and support them."
"I hope this is enough," Allura said after she pulled up visuals on Black Lion.
"It's got to be," Keith answered. "Get ready to form Voltron."
XXXXXXXXXX
As Commander Cossack studied the screens in front of him, surveying the sky, he took a moment to look at his adopted mother and brother. He smiled proudly. Haggar had always been upfront with him when it came to Lotor being royalty and he, his second-in-command. Cossack was okay with that. Lotor may not have been his blood brother, but he might as well have been. The prince was loyal and always took care of Cossack. Even in their younger years, as they grew up in exile, Lotor took care of him, just like he took care of Lotor. Theirs was a bond that would never be broken. Haggar made sure that they would be there for one another.
She always took care of him and never made him feel second. In her own way, she loved him. And, in his own way, he did too. She once told him that his father had been a brave commander and loyal to both Zarkon and Zolon, and now it was his turn to take over. She proudly told him that she would make sure to he would continue his father's legacy.
"Cossack," Haggar called to him.
He went to her, "Yes, Haggar."
"We need your help," she replied. Her gaze met Lotor's, who looked concerned.
"What do you need?"
"Our ground troops do not know the terrains of Arus well. I've taught you and Lotor everything there is to know about the terrain. I'd like you lead our troops there."
He nodded firmly and looked at Lotor, his brother's frustration was reflected in his features.
"Lotor disagrees with me," she shrugged. "I keep telling him that you are smart and very capable of not getting yourself killed."
At this Lotor sighed in frustration.
"It would be an honor to command the ground troops," he bowed to the prince with pride. "I can do this, Lotor."
"I know you can," the prince answered. "Just don't get killed. You and Haggar are the only ones I have left. I don't intend on losing the last of my family to those killers."
"You won't lose me, brother," Cossack firmly responded. "I will come back to you and Haggar."
The witch looked at both of her children with pride.
"And if I'm able, I'll bring you back the Arusian princess you are so fond of," the second-in-command laughed as he affectionately grabbed the prince's shoulder. "This is our day, brother. We will be victorious."
XXXXXXXXXX
"Activate stealth mode," Darrell called out as he pressed buttons on the console and ordered the first fleet to do the same. Within seconds, Voltron's body glowed with a silvery light, as did the fleet behind him. "Entering the stratosphere in 5…4…3…2…1."
Voltron, along with the first fleet, began entering Korrinth's stratosphere. The rest of the fleets watched and began to get ready for their entry, knowing that by the time they entered, the skies would look very different.
From his ship, Grand Marshall Hawkins watched as the first team open the gateway to an all-out war, he wasn't sure would end anytime soon. Part of him hoped it would end with a victory. He knew he didn't want a repetition of twenty years back, but with his experience and years as a combat soldier, an admiral, strategist and now grand marshall, he knew better than to dream of a win. But he prayed that most of the team would come back, especially Kogane. He had suffered enough and deserved to have peace. The entire force deserved to be at peace, and deserved to heal amongst years of lies and betrayals. With a mere whisper, as he watched all the happenings from his vidscreen, he said, "Godspeed, Commander."
XXXXXXXXXX
"The victory will not be sweet if you're not around," Lotor replied with concern in his eyes.
"We will be fine," Haggar firmly told them. "I'm going to do a last-minute check on our weapon before we board." Walking away from them, the witch went to another console in the room and began finalizing the checklist she had for the weapon before boarding the ship that would take them all to Arus.
Once away from them, Lotor looked at Cossack, "I mean it. Be careful, Cossack."
"I'll be fine, brother," he reassured Lotor.
"You better be," the prince finally smiled a little, "Because if you're not, you will deal with me, brother."
Laughing, Cossack shook his head before walking back to his console. Once he sat back down, he noticed Lotor making his way to Haggar when the base shook violently as if bomb had hit the surface above. He fell off his chair and tried getting back up when again the floor shook violently.
"What's going on?" he heard Lotor yell as he too broke his fall by hanging one of the exterior consoles of the bridge.
Quickly, Cossack stood up and looked at his screens. His eyes widened with shock, "Holy hell."
"Cossack!" Haggar yelled. "Report!"
"It's Voltron," he yelled back. "And he's brought friends!"
XXXXXXXXXX
"Hit it again," Keith ordered as yellow and blue lions blasted sting ray missiles at the underground base where he knew Lotor and Haggar were. "We need to drag them out."
"It shouldn't be long," Hunk answered as he kept firing.
For a moment, Keith took a look around to watch the fight taking place around him. It hadn't taken long before the Drule fighters assaulted the first fleet of Garrison and Corps fighters.
From Red Lion, Lance smiled as he blasted a couple of Drule fighters flying around him, "Whoo Hoo!"
"Concentrate, Lance," Keith interrupted, "You'll have your fun soon enough. Right now, we need to get that robeast out in the open."
"Party pooper," his friend chuckled.
XXXXXXXXXX
"Get more fighters out!" Cossack screamed as he ran around the bridge, trying to get control back. He looked at Haggar and asked, "How did they evade our systems?"
"Stoker was working on some new technology before I left. He must have perfected it," she answered, angry at herself. She had made a costly mistake and she knew it.
Grabbing her arm, Lotor roughly turned her around, "You said they wouldn't come here. You said they would never attack first!"
"They never have!" the witch yelled back, "They've never done something like this. This is Kogane. He's changed the way he fights."
"Haggar," Cossack stated, "He did it before when he destroyed Zarkon and our families!"
Looking at the vidscreen, Haggar shook her head, "This isn't like last time. Last time it was only Voltron. This time he's brought everyone. Every. Damn. One of them!" Turning to Lotor she said, "He is planning on annihilating us!"
"We won't give him the chance!" the prince answered. Looking at Cossack he said, "Prepare the weapon. In the meantime, release the robeasts!"
XXXXXXXXX
Two Drule fighters swerve in unison around Voltron's head before colliding with a set of Corps and Garrison fighters causing a massive ball of fire that made Keith unconsciously shield his eyes from the light. Four more enemy fighters pass at high speed from the left, "Incoming!"
"This thing isn't coming out, Keith," Lance fired at the fighters. "We need to help our Corp and Garrison fighters!"
No sooner had the red lion pilot said those words when the desert floor opened with three massive holes and three monstrous beasts flew up.
Voltron pulled back.
"This is where the fun begins!" Darrell's eyes widened in shock seeing the monstrous beasts make their way towards them.
"Not yet," Allura replied, realizing the enemy's play.
Around them, a giant battle continued with three groups of fighters assaulting each other in a synchronous ballet.
"What do you mean?" Hunk asked.
"This isn't what we saw," Keith answered. "This is their way of stalling and preparing for what they really have for us."
XXXXXXXXXX
Hawkins watched from the vidscreen on his bridge of his ship as the skies of Korrinth brightened with various hues of yellow, orange and red. Fighters littered the skies and they sparkled with the demise of them. When he found that three robeasts had in fact emerged from the ground, the leader of the Garrison knew it was time to bring in his weapon, "Send the teams now!" he ordered as he heard his commanding officers bark out orders to prepare the teams for action.
XXXXXXXXXX
For the Force, it seemed like they had gone back in time.
"Is this her idea of toying with us?" Hunk asked in disgust as three monstrous beasts ascended to the sky.
The first was a humanoid cyclopean monster with long claws, two huge horns in its head and a muscled physique, covered with green and red scales that resembled those of a snake.
The second robeast looked more mecha than humanoid. This one, all red and gray, had a head shaped like a pterodactyl and had large wings to its sides. It cried out a reptilian style shriek as it made its way up.
"She cooked up these things from an old recipe book," Darrell answered. "Guess, she picked out her best for this party."
The third had Allura's gasp. She immediately recognized it, "I can't believe this!" The thing looked like a king cobra with bulging large arms filled with spikes, thick legs and a long tail. It carried a large hatchet and it hissed as he flew up, "It brought back Bokar."
"They've brought back robeasts we've already fought," Lance shook his head. "Not my idea of a reunion show."
Keith watched, unmoved by the ghosts of the past. To him, they were just decoys, probably cheap imitations of the originals. They hadn't brought out what he wanted and needed to destroy. "They're trying to waste our time and resources on these beasts. Darrell, what are the probabilities of destroying these things fast."
"Running scans," he said quickly. "From preliminary scans, they seem to be strong, may take us a few hours, Captain. Each of these things have an average of two hundred feet in height and weigh at least, 4,500 pounds."
"They're trying to have us use all our weaponry on them," Allura said.
Keith looked at the three beasts making their way to them. Closing his eyes, he concentrated. A second later Voltron emitted a massive flash that sent all three beasts flying back.
"What the hell!" Lance yelled. "What did they just do?"
"Minimized their power," Keith answered solemnly. "We are not here to play games. The lions minimized their power."
Allura gasped. This was impossible. They had never done that, "How?"
"The lions have more powers, hidden powers that they gradually share when they feel the time is right," Keith replied.
"Keith, I felt power come out of me," Hunk answered.
"So did I," Darrell answered.
Lance nodded.
Allura shook her head, "You. It was you. You took that energy from us."
"It still lies dormant in you," Keith answered. "Only you can awaken it. Only I can take it, when necessary."
"They're coming back," Darrell replied.
"We need to get rid of them fast," the captain replied. "We've weakened them for a short window."
"They're going to attack us at the same time," Lance called as he looked at the monitors. "Twelve, three and nine o'clock!"
"Get ready!" Keith answered. "Form Blazing Sword!"
The monstrous three flew at rapid speed, closer and closer, throwing lasers, missiles and anything they had on them on at Voltron.
"Shields!" Keith cried out.
Hearing their commander's voice, each pilot turned on the shields of their lions, evading the rain of fire coming at them.
With swift action, Keith controlled the blazing sword, focusing on the sword's blade, Keith whispered, "Fire." The sword blazed with bright red flames.
"Whoa!" Lance whispered. "How in the hell?"
"Coming closer," Darrell yelled.
Taking the sword and holding it with both lions' mouth, Keith placed the mammoth mecha into its fight stance, waiting to intercept the robeasts.
"Shields decreasing in power, 65 percent," Allura called out.
"Keith, we can't take all three at the same time!" Lance yelled.
Ignoring the voices around him, Keith focused, waited.
"Keith, we need to move!" Hunk acknowledged.
"50 percent."
Voltron stood his ground. Taking all the hits, protected by the shield.
"30 percent."
Rebel fighters flew around them as Corps and Garrison fighters destroyed anything that might distract Voltron from its targets.
"20 percent," Allura kept calling.
"Keith!"
"10 percent."
The shields trembled; the crew now felt the vibration of the missiles. "We can't hold on much longer!" Darrell yelled.
The sword ignited into a stronger red, both the red and green pilots felt the heat from the sword. The beasts were just a few feet from them.
"5 percent!" Allura yelled as a missile finally penetrated the leg of Voltron.
Lance's eyes grew wide, when he saw a missile heading his way, "Keith!"
Come on…two more feet, Keith thought and smiled when the beasts hit the bull's eye. Suddenly, Voltron jumped, missing the last of the missiles thrown at him. Taking the sword, he swung fast, slicing two of the robeasts in the torso at the same time but missing the third one that flew out of the way to avoid the hit.
A tremendous blast rocked the skies as two of the robeasts were destroyed simultaneously. Fighters diverted from the ricochet of debris and body parts of the monsters. Attempting to avoid the blast, Voltron pulled back but was suddenly hit in the torso, causing him to fall and plummet to the desert ground.
"That hurt!" Hunk answered as he tried to control the dizziness of his aching head.
"Well, we got two of them with one hit," Darrell answered, tasting the blood from his split bottom lip.
Keith didn't waste any time staying down. He attempted to get Voltron back in the air when a charge of electrical rays slammed it back to the desert floor. Looking up, Keith watched as the king cobra robeast slammed itself against Voltron. Face to face, Keith watched the monster's tongue hiss at Voltron, its venom sickly falling off its fangs. The beast raised its left arm and magically a huge medieval looking axe appeared in its hand.
Keith tried to raise Voltron, but the weight of the robeast held him down.
The axe began its descent down towards Volton's head. Green Lion bit the arm, keeping it from moving farther.
"Don't think I can hold it for too long," Darrell yelled.
Another electrical charge prevented Voltron from pushing the beast away.
"Hang on, Darrell," Keith commanded. Looking up to the sky, Keith watched the fighters, but he also watched something else, he couldn't make it out from his position.
Red Lion hit the monster's torso, Lance hoped to get the thing further away from them, "This thing is strong."
"No, we used too much power on the shield. We're still charging," Allura answered.
"What now? We can't stay in this position for too long," Hunk replied while maneuvering his controls to see if he could set himself free.
"We'll disable Voltron," Keith ordered. "It's the only way."
"Won't work," Lance replied abruptly. "Once we detach, you won't be able to move. Much of his weight is on you. That axe will slam Black Lion's head for sure."
"Any more of that power you have on reserve?" Allura asked.
He shook his head, "Doesn't exactly work whenever I want it to. Besides, our anxieties and stress are blocking my concentration."
"Allura, how much charge do we have?"
"60%."
"We would go a lot faster if we weren't using that much force to stop this thing from killing us!" Darrell replied.
It wouldn't be much, but Keith deduced that it would distract the robeast enough to set Voltron free from its grasp, "Eye Beams," he commanded before Voltron's eyes lit up a shot out laser beams straight into the Bokar's eyes. The action was just enough for the reptilian beast to pull back and Voltron set himself free.
With all his force, Keith pushed Voltron out of the way. About to fly up, Bokar grabbed him by its right leg.
"Damn thing won't let go!" Hunk yelled.
Angry, the robeast pushed Voltron back down, forcing it face first to the ground. Bokar didn't waste time, he took its axe and was about to slice off Voltron's leg when it suddenly exploded into pieces.
Flipping over, Voltron tried to look beyond the smoke and debris from the dead robeast.
"Are you all okay?" they heard a voice coming from their comm. links.
"Keith, next time a little warning," Lance answered as he settled himself in his seat. A moment later, he noticed it wasn't Keith asking the question. "Wait, who is that?"
As the smoke cleared, the team saw another mecha stand in front of them. It was just a big and grand as Voltron. Its hand reached out to them, "Captain Kogane, is your team alright?"
Taking its hand, Voltron stood. Both mechas stood at the same height. Head-to-head, they watched each other, "Who are you?" Keith asked. The rest of the team watched in awe.
"Garrison's new creation, Kogane," they all heard Hawkins' voice answer. "May I present to you, Vehicle Voltron. At its command, Commander Jeffrey Aki."
XXXXXXXXXXX
The three could not believe their eyes.
"There's two of them?" Cossack watched the screen in surprise. He turned to his surrogate, "You didn't know?"
Haggar shook her head, still looking at the screen, "No. I broke into every file at the Garrison, every single damn file, and there was nothing about another Voltron. Nothing!"
Lotor sighed in frustration, "What now?"
"Release the weapon!" her anger laced in her tone. Neither of the men knew if she was mad at herself for not searching deep enough or for being careless. "This ends now. I will not lose to them again!"
"We never planned for the weapon to fight two Voltrons," Cossack replied. "What if it can't?"
"Voltron is much more powerful than that copy," Haggar replied. "Don't you see? It's a Garrison creation. It's just a large ship. Nothing more."
"It got rid of a robeast, Haggar!" Lotor answered. "It's powerful enough."
When she turned toward him, Lotor saw the anger in her eyes. There was so much anger that even he was surprised by the witch's loss of composure, "If it's capable of fighting Voltron, it's capable of fighting a mere copy of it. We will win! Now do as I say. Release the weapon now and destroy our enemies!"
XXXXXXXXXXX
"It's an honor to be fighting alongside you, Captain Kogane," Jeff responded as he pulled up visuals. He was a young man, probably in his late 20's to early 30's, with short black hair and green eyes.
"Thank you for helping us out of that bind," Keith answered. "I was hoping to get all three."
"You were close," Jeff smiled. "It was pretty cool to watch."
Suddenly, the group heard an ear-splitting sound coming from the skies. A complex glyph that glowed green appeared near the fighters battling above. The object illuminated brighter then expanded, showing a metallic surface with etchings. The group heard a pulse-like sound emanating from the object before it exploded in a catastrophic sight, vaporizing all neighboring fighters, friend and foe alike. Lightning arcs streaked against the sky as the object began changing shape, contouring and molding itself.
"Let's continue the introductions later," Keith stated, knowing exactly what was coming. "Is Voltron fully charged?"
"Almost," Allura answered. "Without any significant force counterattack, we are ninety percent charged. Most weapons are able to function."
"It will have to do," Keith sighed, the rest of the powers would have to come from them. He didn't want to put the team through that again. They weren't ready, but it appeared he had no choice. Turning to Vehicle Voltron, he asked, "Are you capable of fighting this thing with us? If your team isn't ready—"
"We are ready, Captain," Jeff said, "My three teams are prepared for this type of situation."
"They are ready, Kogane," Hawkins answered, entering the conversation. "They've been training with Vehicle Voltron for the last five years for a day like this. Commander Aki will lead them and you will lead him. He won't question your commands."
"I assure you, Captain Kogane," Jeff responded. "We will do as you say."
Nodding, Keith replied, "Let's go get the bastard."
XXXXXXXXXX
The shape contoured…molding into various different shapes, forming different body part. Yet, the shape wasn't solid, if one looked closer, it was made up of gnat like metallic critters, millions of them, maybe billions, synchronized in a perfect dance that created what looked like a version of Voltron in solid chrome.
XXXXXXXXXX
Vehicle Voltron moved just off Voltron's left side and angled itself into a defense position as the titanium like robeast began to regroup and form itself again, this time turning into the shape of Vehicle Voltron.
"What in the name of," Jeff asked, looking at the monstrosity changing shape before his eyes.
"Keep it steady, Commander," Keith answered. "It's studying us."
"It's creeping me out," Lance chimed in. "What the hell is it?"
"Commander Aki," another voice sounded on the comm. link, "This is Lieutenant Charles Scott." He pulled up visuals so all team members in both Voltrons could see him. He was a young man with brown hair and eyes. He controlled the left arm of Vehicle Voltron and was as studious of things happening as Darrell when analyzing. "It seems to be made out of small metallic creatures that transform into liquid chrome."
Darrell chimed in, "I've been studying the molecular structure that Keith and Allura shared when they first encountered it. Your assumptions are right. I'm adding that these things are smart. The evolving shape is its way of analyzing our structure, strengths and weaknesses."
"How do we fight it?" Hunk asked.
"I'm not sure," Keith responded.