Chapter 1 - Voltron's Return

I don't own Voltron Legendary Defender. I'm taking the characters out for a spin. Please Read and Review if you'd like

Adam sat on one of the bar stools in the officer's lounge and stirred his coffee. He sat the spoon down and hooked the cup's handle with his fingers. As he brought it up to his lips, realization shot through him. It was here where he and Shiro had their fight, and he was sitting in the same seat when he'd demanded that Takashi not go on the Kerberos mission.

He sat the cup back down on the saucer. He turned and glanced over at where Takashi had sat on the couch. Moisture gathered in his eyes. How could I have been so selfish? He thought. The words he'd spoken in anger still haunted him.

He stood up from his seat. He wished again that Takashi would appear out of the blue so he could tell him he was sorry. He released a sigh as he wiped at his eyes.

Lights out would be soon, and all cadets should be in their barracks. He stepped out of the officer's lounge and caught the sight of a bit of yellow that crawled past the window. He knew it had to be Lance and Hunk again. Those two were going to drive him to drink. He thought as he frowned. He decided to follow to see where they were going.

Adam watched as the pair followed the little guy, Pidge Gunderson, onto the roof. He couldn't say he was surprised to see Pidge surrounded by tech given the boy's technically oriented mind. He slowly moved closer, sticking to the shadows to hear what they were saying.

He silently chuckled when Pidge slapped Hunk's hand. "Stop it! With this thing, I can scan to the edge of the solar system."

Lance crossed an arm over his chest as he gripped his chin with his other hand. "That right? To Kerberos?"

Pidge deflated as he looked away.

Lance continued unfazed. "You go ballistic every time the instructors bring it up. What's your deal?"

Pidge caught Hunk messing with his equipment. "Second warning, Hunk!"

Hunk groaned.

Lance stared down at his younger teammate. "Look, Pidge, if we're going to bond as a team, we can't have any secrets."

Pidge glared up at Lance. "Fine." He picked up a notepad where he'd scribbled some drawings on it, but in bold letters, one word was written across the page. "The world, as you know, it is about to change. The Kerberos Mission wasn't lost because of some malfunction or crew mistake. So, I've been scanning the system and picking up alien radio chatter. They keep repeating one word, 'Voltron,' and tonight it's going crazier than I have ever heard it."

Adam took a step forward with full intention to send the cadets back to their dorms in the barracks when an alarm sounded followed by Iverson's voice. "Attention, students. This is not a drill. We are on lockdown! Security situation Zulu Niner."

Hunk turned his attention caught by a bright light in the night sky. "What is that? A meteor? A very, very big meteor?"

Pidge pulled out a pair of binoculars from his backpack and looked up at the falling object through the binoculars. "It's a ship!"

Lance yanked them from Pidge as he gazed through them. "Holy crow! I can't believe what I'm seeing."

He pulled them away from his face, intent on passing them to Hunk when another hand reached out, grabbing them and glancing up at the sky. Adam's deeper male voice cut in. "That's not one of ours!"

Pidge replied voice almost solemn as if he'd stumbled across the Rosetta Stone. "No, it's one of theirs."

Hunk's eyes grew large. "So, wait. There are aliens out there?"

Before anyone could answer, the alien ship crash-landed at a distance from the Garrison. Vehicles pulled out, leaving the Garrison as Pidge quickly packed away his equipment and slung his backpack on his back. He turned to the others grinning. "We've got to see that ship!" He turned away and took off running.

Lance hurried behind Pidge and called out, "Hunk, come on!"

Hunk reluctantly followed.

Adam groaned, but he had to follow along. Even though he was a distant cousin of Lance's mother, he knew the woman would kill him if he allowed anything to happen to her youngest son. He hurried after the others.

The three cadets and Adam found an outcropping that overlooked the crash site. Lance with Pidge's binoculars in hand glanced over the scene below. Lance focused on the ship that now lay strapped onto a trailer. "Whoa! What the heck is that thing?" he asked as he scanned over the area focusing on a woman. "And who the heck is she?"

Pidge yelled, "Lance!" as the younger boy smacked Lance upside the head.

"Ow!" Lance replied as he refocused his attention back to the alien ship. "Right, alien ship." He lowered the binoculars. "Man, we'll never get past all those guards to get a look."

Hunk groaned. "Aww, man. Yeah, I guess there's nothing to do but head back to the barracks, right?"

Lance turned to look back at Adam. "But you could."

Adam shook his head. "Only if there was a reason for me to be here, but there isn't."

Hunk rose intent on heading back when Pidge spoke up. "Wait. They set up a camera in there, and I grabbed its feed. Look!"

Adam leaned over and gazed at the screen, what he saw made his blood run cold as his face paled. It was Shiro, but he was different from the last time he saw him. He looked more muscular, with a shock of white hair for his bangs. Not to mention the prosthetic that replaced his right arm. The Galaxy Garrison had him strapped down to an exam table like he was the alien.

Lance pointed at the screen. "That's Shiro! The pilot of the Kerberos Mission! That guy's my hero!"

Hunk added, "Guess he's not dead in space after all."

Pidge frowned. "Where's the rest of the crew?"

As they watched, Shiro became increasingly agitated as he said, "We have to find Voltron."

"Voltron!" Both Adam and Pidge spoke at the same time.

Shiro's stress level rose as one of the med techs injected something into his arm.

Pidge's expression was of someone stricken as he quietly said, "They didn't ask about the rest of the crew."

Lance couldn't believe what he was seeing. "What are they doing? He's a legend. They're not going to listen to him?"

Pidge craned his head to stare at Lance. "We have to get him out."

Hunk sighed, "I hate to be the voice of reason, always, but weren't we watching on TV because there was no way to get past the guards?"

Lance gazed up at Hunk. "That was before we were properly motivated. We've just got to think."

Pidge replied, "Maybe we could get some hazmat suits and sneak in like med techs."

Adam snapped his fingers. "I can do that." He stared pointedly at the youngest of the trio of cadets. "I hate to say this, but they'd never believe you were a med tech." He turned and started to walk away from the others.

As he moved toward the hastily constructed quarantine building, several explosions went off in the distance. Adam caught sight of the red hoverbike that raced in. He whispered as the driver got off the bike and ran into the building, "Keith."

Adam picked up his pace and ran in behind him and couldn't keep the smirk off his face seeing Keith's handiwork. He heard the question uttered from the younger man, "Shiro?"

"I can't believe he's back myself," Adam replied as Keith cut through the straps holding the man who was like a brother to him on the exam table.

Keith turned and glared at Adam. "What are you doing here?"

"Same thing as you."

"Funny, as I remember, you two broke up before he left for Kerberos," Keith replied as he turned back to Shiro.

"I was afraid, and I know I said some things that I shouldn't have. I want to make amends."

"Tell that to Shiro when he wakes up. Right now, I have to get him out of here before they get back."

Adam made a step to help Keith with Shiro when Lance burst in. "Nope. No, no, no. No, you don't. I'm saving Shiro."

Adam groaned as he pushed his glasses up and gripped the bridge of his nose. "Lance, it's not a competition." He turned to Keith once more. "Where are you taking him?"

"The house in the desert."

Adam nodded. "I'll meet you there."

Keith nodded as he and Lance carried Shiro out.

Shiro stood on the small hill overlooking the terrain. A bird called in the distance. Adam wanted to talk to him but couldn't seem to bring himself to do that right now. He'd wait and allow him to get acclimated to being back on Earth again.

Keith turned to Adam. "Aren't you going to talk to him?"

Adam shook his head. "Not yet, he needs to get adjusted to being back on Earth first."

"I'll go talk to him," Keith replied.

Adam watched as the pair talked. He envied the way Keith acted with Shiro and the way Shiro reacted to Keith.

Keith led the way back into the house and stepped over to the wall that was covered by a white tarp. He yanked it away, and a large corkboard covered most of the wall with maps, pictures, drawings, and even a star chart all pinned to the board.

Shiro stared at it and asked, "What have you been working on?"

Keith replied, "I can't explain it. After getting booted from the Garrison, I was lost and found myself drawn out to this place. It's like something… some energy was telling me to search."

Shiro gazed at Keith. "For what?"

"Well, I didn't know at the time… until I stumbled across this area." Keith placed his fingers on a spot on the map. "It's an outcropping of giant boulders with caves covered in these ancient drawings. Each tells a slightly different story about a blue lion, but they all share clues leading to some event, some arrival happening last night. Then, you showed up."

Shiro turned and faced the others. As his eyes fell on Adam, there was so much he wanted to say but found it hard to say anything at all. He cleared his throat. "I should thank you all for getting me out," he said. He quietly whispered, "Adam," and swallowed hard.

Adam opened his mouth but closed it again. He closed his eyelids. He wanted to scream out Takashi's name and beg him for forgiveness. He wanted to take the man he loved in his arms and tell him everything would be alright, but with everything that has happened, it was just a little much for his mind to process.

Shiro turned to the other three cadets. "Lance, right?" he asked as he held out his prosthetic hand.

Lance froze for a minute as he stared at the hand before he finally took it in his, and the pair shook hands.

Shiro turned to Pidge as the servos in his mechanical arm gave a mechanical whine.

Pidge spoke up, "The nervous guy's Hunk. I'm Pidge." He quickly took Shiro's hand and released it. "So, did anyone else from your crew make out?"

Shiro's eyebrows knit together. "I'm not sure. I remember the mission and being captured. After that, it's all bits and pieces."

Hunk spoke up, interjecting himself into the conversation. "Sorry to interrupt, but back to the aliens. Where are they now? Are they coming? Are they coming for us? Where are they at this very moment?"

Shiro frowned as all eyes turned to him. "I can't put it together. I remember the word 'Voltron.' It's some weapon they're looking for, but I don't know why. Whatever it is, I think we need to find it before they do."

Hunk began rummaging through Pidge's backpack and came with a picture of who he thought was Pidge and his girlfriend.

As he flashed it up, showing everyone, Pidge yelled, "Hey, give me that! What were you doing in my stuff?" Pidge yanked his backpack out of Hunks's hands.

Hunk let out a nervous chuckle. "I was looking for a candy bar. But then, I started reading his diary." He pulled the book from behind his back.

Pidge yelled, "What?" and yanked it out of Hunk's hand.

The larger teen was unfazed. "I noticed the repeating series of numbers the aliens are searching for looks a lot like a Fraunhofer line."

Keith asked, "Frown, who?"

Hunk turned to Keith. "It's a number describing the emission spectrum of an element. Only this element doesn't exist on Earth. I think it might be this Voltron, and I believe I can build a machine to look for it, like a Voltron Geiger counter."

Keith led them out into the area where he was drawn, too, and Hunk's Geiger counter began picking up on the energy. He led them to a cave whose walls were covered in carvings.

Lance wandered over to the wall nearest him and wiped away a layer of dust and dirt off the carving. The carvings suddenly came to life with a blue light. A circle lit up under their feet, and the floor caved in, sending them all screaming down on a wild ride down an underground waterway. They landed with a thud and splashed in a pool of water.

Lance rose to his knees, staring up at the giant blue lion that seemed to be staring down at him with brightly shining yellow eyes.

Adam groaned as he rose, "Lance, what did you do?"

Lance pointed to what he was staring at as he whispered, "They are everywhere."

The others got to their feet as Pidge asked, "Is this it? Is this the Voltron?"

Shiro replied, "It must be."

Keith glanced around at the others as he started walking forward. "This is what's been causing all of this crazy energy out here. It looks like there's a force field around it."

As the others followed Keith, Lance zigged and zagged. "Does anyone else get the feeling this is staring at them?"

Shiro frowned, "No."

Lance said as he continued to zig and zag. "Yeah, the eyes are following me."

Keith stepped up to the force field and placed his hands on it. "I wonder how we get through this."

Lance joined him. "Maybe you just have to knock," he said as he raised his balled-up fist and knocked twice.

A bright light flashed in the cave as the eyes of the lion flashed, and the force field disappeared. They all mentally saw five lions joining together to form a large mechanical warrior. Lance and the others seemed frozen in their tracks. "Uh, did everyone just see that?" Lance asked.

Lance's words seemed to break the spell they were under. Hunk yelled, "Voltron's a robot. Voltron is a huge, awesome robot!"

Pidge, with his eyes still on the lion, added, "And this thing is only part of it! I wonder where the rest of them are?"

Shiro gazed at it in wonder. "This is what they're looking for."

The Lion stood and lowered its body into a crouch with its chin, nearly resting on the ground. It's lower jaw dropped, and a ramp lowered to the ground.

Adam frowned as he heard the low chuckle escape from Lance as he ran up the ramp. A groan escaped from Adam's lips.

Shiro glanced over at Adam as he pointed toward where Lance had been as he put two and two together.

Adam nodded. "My cousin's kid." He replied as he and the others followed in Lance's wake into the blue lion.

Lance chuckled again as the cockpit lit up, and the viewscreen cleared, showing them the view from the inside of the cave. "All right! Very nice!" Lance said.

The others arranged themselves around the seat where Lance sat. Hunk said, "Okay, guys, I feel the need to point out, just so that we're all aware. We are in some futuristic alien cat head."

Lance's eyes grew as he heard a purring from inside his head. He looked over toward Hunk. "Whoa. Did you guys hear that?"

"Hear what?" Keith asked.

Lance gazed down at the controls in front of him. "I think it's talking to me." Lance leaned forward, examining the keyboard. He pressed two keys, and two handlebar controls appeared by his seat as the lion stood and roared.

He pushed the bars forward, and the lion burst out of the side of the rock, doing a mid-air flip.

Adam yelled, "Lance, I taught you better than this!"

Keith yelled as Pidge and Hunk screamed around him, "You are the worst pilot ever!"

Lance grinned, looking over at Hunk as the Lion ran across the ground. "Isn't this awesome?"

Hunk begged for Lance to make it stop.

Lance replied, "I'm not making it do anything. It's on autopilot." The lion launched off the Earth. "It says there's an alien ship approaching Earth. I think we're supposed to stop it."

Pidge narrowed his eyes at Lance. "What did it say, exactly?"

Lance shook his head. "It's not like it's saying words. It's more like feeding ideas into my brain."

Hunk looked around nervously. "If this is the weapon they're coming for, why don't we just give it to them." He glanced up at the ceiling of the cockpit. "No offense, lion."

Shiro's expression grew both fierce and severe. "You don't understand. These monsters spread like a plague throughout the galaxy, destroying everything in their path. There's no bargaining with them. They won't stop until everything is dead."

Hunk gulped. "Oh, never mind then."

The Blue Lion made it into space when a large purple gray ship appeared in front of the lion. Everyone in the cockpit gasped.

Hunk gazed at Shiro. "Holy crow! Is that an alien ship?"

Shiro whispered, "They found me."

Adam, who stood next to Shiro couldn't take his eyes from the other man's face. It was as if Shiro was expecting to be a prisoner again. Adam balled up his free hand into a fist. He wouldn't allow that to happen even if he had to fight these aliens himself.

The alien ship began firing purple beams of energy at the lion.

Pidge yelled, "We've got to get it out of here!"

Lance replied, "Hang on!" as he thrust the bars forward. The lion managed to avoid the beams of energy. Lance spoke again. "I think I know what to do!"

Pidge yelled, "Be a careful man! This isn't a simulator!"

Lance smirked. "Well, that's good. I always wreck the simulator."

Adam groaned again as his mouth moved, saying a silent prayer.

Lance shoved one of the bars forward, and a bright white beam of energy shot out of the lion's mouth as it moved it's head cutting down the side of the ship. "Let's try this," Lance said as the Blue Lion shot forward and pounced on the side of the ship, raking its metallic claws down the side. Explosions flared up from the side of the ship as the lion leaped off and took off again.

Shiro grinned, "Good job, Lance."

The Blue Lion sped off into space as Lance spoke. "I think it's time to get these guys away from our planet."

"Good idea," Adam agreed.

Hunk fidgeted. "Oh, no!"

Pidge cried out, "They're gaining on us."

Lance frowned. "It's weird. They're not trying to shoot us. They're just chasing."

Keith asked out loud. "Where are we?"

Shiro gazed out the side of the Blue Lion's cockpit. "We're at the edge of the solar system. There's Kerberos."

Pidge adjusted his glasses on his face as he stared. "It takes months for our ships to get out this far. We got out here in five seconds."

Before anyone could comment on Pidge's statement, a giant circle of glowing blue energy formed in front of them.

Hunk pointed at it. "What's that?"

Lance glanced around him. "This may sound crazy, but I think the lion wants us to go through there."

Pidge asked quietly, "Where does it go?"

"I don't know," Lance replied. "Shiro, Adam, you're the senior officers here what should we do?"

Adam shrugged. "I don't have experience in space travel." He turned his gaze over to Shiro.

"Whatever is happening, the lion knows more than we do. I say we trust it, but we're a team now. We should decide together."

No one disagreed with Shiro. Even Adam kept quiet. He couldn't help focusing his gaze on the scar on Shiro's face that ran across the nose and ending under each eye.

Lance let out a sigh. "All right. I guess we're all ditching class tomorrow."

The Blue Lion shot into the hole of energy, but it wasn't a smooth ride as everyone was shaken like being in a giant blender that scrambled their insides. The Lion popped out the other side of the hole, and they saw a planet that reminded them of Earth.

Lance grinned as he gripped the handles. "Whoa that was—"

He was cut off as Hunk leaned over, facing away from everyone and retched as whatever was in his stomach came up. After the first explosion, he managed to say, "So sorry," before he threw up again.

Pidge adjusted his glasses as he deadpanned, "I'm just surprised it took this long."

Shiro gazed at the stars. "I don't recognize any of these constellations. We must be a long way from Earth."

Lance scratched at the back of his head. "The lion seems to want to go to this planet. I think it's going home."

The lion entered the atmosphere. But with Lance no being an experienced pilot, the ride was rough was an understatement. As they got closer to their destination Lance, Hunk and Keith argued amongst themselves. Shiro did what he could to calm things down as he raised his voice. "All right, knock it off! No one's happy to be in this situation, but we're here now. If we want to get through this, we've got to do it together. First, we find out where we're headed, Lance?"

Lance frowned, "I don't know. I'm sorry. The lion's not talking to me anymore." He gazed at the viewscreen. "But, there's a castle up there."

The lion landed in front of a large door. "Keep your guard up," Shiro said as he stared at the door.

Pidge turned to gaze up at him. "Something wrong?"

Shiro replied as they began to exit the lion. "My crew was captured by aliens once. I'm not going to let it happen again." His prosthetic hand drew up into a fist.

The lion retracted the ramp and rose while Hunk screamed about how he knew the lion was going to eat them. Instead, it roared at the door, which caused the door to open.

They cautiously entered the castle with the light from the open door providing just enough illumination for them to see by.

As they reached a large open area, Pidge gazed around. "From the size of the lion, I expected these steps to be bigger."

A series of lights lip up around them as a computerized female voice spoke from all around them. "Hold for identity scan." As they stood in place, a circular wave of light rose around each of them.

Shiro called out to the voice, "Why are we here? What do you want with us?"

Instead of a reply, lights began to flicker to life around them. More lights flickered to illuminate a hallway. "Should we go further in?" Adam asked.

Shiro nodded. "If we want answers, yeah." He started following Pidge as the younger cadet led the way.

They entered a large room with eight circles on the floor. Lance asked no one in particular, "Where are we?"

Pidge neared what looked to be some control panel. The panel flickered to life as two tubes rose up out of the floor.

Hunk looked at the tubes. "Are these guys… dead?" He gulped as he swallowed hard.

The front part of one of the tubes disappeared, and a young woman gasped as she called out, "Father!" She reached out as she fell forward.

Lance was nearest to her and caught her before she hit the floor. As he stood still holding her, his cheeks flushed red as he grinned at her.

She gazed up at his face. "Who are you? Where am I?"

Lance trying to sound suave, replied, "I'm Lance. And you're right here in my arms."

She gazed at him again. "Your ears."

"Yeah?"

"They're hideous. What's wrong with them?"

Lance let his emotions get carried away from him. He released her as his temper lashed out. "Nothing's wrong with them! They heard exactly what you said about them!" He screamed as the girl grabbed him by his ear and dropped him to the floor as she twisted his arm behind his back.

Adam couldn't stop the chuckle that burst from his lips. "Looks like he finally found someone who can put him in his place."

"Who are you? Where is King Alfor? What are you doing in my castle?"

Lance gasped in pain as tears came to his eyes. "A giant blue lion brought us here. That's all we know."

She released Lance. "How do you have the Blue Lion? What happened to its paladin? What are you all doing here? Unless… How long has it been?"

Shiro stood his ground as Hunk hid behind him. "We don't know what you're talking about. Why don't you tell us who you are? Maybe we can help."

She gazed at them as she sucked in a breath. "I am Princess Allura of Planet Altea. I've got to find out where we are and how long we've been asleep." She placed her hands on the control panel, and a holographic screen appeared in front of her.

The second tube opened, releasing an older man with orange-red hair and mustache. He opened his eyes and, believing the princess in danger, yelled, "Enemy combatants!" He jumped out of the tube, trying to attack Lance but missed and impacted with another tube. "Quiznack! You're lucky I have a case of the old sleep chamber knees."

Lance and the older Altean traded threats of what they were going to do to each other.

Adam slapped his face with his hand as Hunk stared at them, and he said, "Man, these guys are good."

Adam shook his head at Hunk's comment. "No, it just means I need to work with Lance on his hand-to-hand combat skills."

Shiro chuckled beside him.

Allura spoke up sadness, tinging her voice. "It can't be!"

The other Altean asked from behind her, "What is it?"

Her eyes grew large. "We've been asleep for ten thousand years." Her expression turned hard, angry even. "Planet Altea and all of the planets in our solar system have been destroyed." She gazed down at the floor before raising sad eyes to the man. "Coran, Father is gone. Our civilization…" She paused and pulled the fingers of her hand into a fist as she growled out the name, "Zarkon."

Shiro gasped, "Zarkon?"

Allura gazed at Shiro. "He was the King of the Galra. A vile creature and enemy to all free people."

Shiro stared at her. "I remember now. I was his prisoner."

Allura whispered, "He's still alive? Impossible!"

Shiro gazed at her. "I can't explain it, but it's true. He's searching for a superweapon called Voltron."

Allura stared back at him. "He's searching for it because he knows it's the only thing that can defeat him, and that's exactly why we must find it before he does. But first, I told you who I was."

Shiro rubbed at the back of his head as he flashed her a slight smile. "Sorry, I forgot," he chuckled slightly.

Adam jabbed Shiro with an elbow. "Dork."

"I'm Shiro," and then he pointed toward the others. "That's Lance, Keith, Pidge, Hunk, and Adam. We come from the planet Earth. I can't believe your civilization created such advanced technology ten thousand years ago. It must have been an incredible place."

Coran's face fell as sadness touched his eyes. "Yes, it was," he replied. "But it's gone, and we're the last Alteans alive."

As he said, this Allura finally allowed herself a chance to grieve as she fell into the older man's arms and sobbed quietly on his shoulder. She heard a noise that brought her head up as she gasped. She walked over to the sleep chamber and gazed down to the bottom of it. "Looks like we're not the last after all," a soft smile pulled at her lips as she gazed down at the four mice.

An alarm blared. Coran rushed over to the control panel. He stared at the image he brought up on the screen. "A Galra battleship has set its tracker to us."

Allura asked, "How did they find us?"

Lance glared over at Keith. "I'm not sure, but I'm sure it's Keith's fault."

Keith glared back. "Say whatever you've got to say to make yourself feel better. After getting us stuck on the other side of a wormhole!"

Lance's voice rose as he turned and shoved his face into Keith's. "I'll stick you into a wormhole!"

Shiro moved over and pushed both teens apart. "Stow it, cadets! This isn't the time to place blame."

"No, it isn't," Adam said as he pushed Lance a little farther away from Keith. "But," he turned to Shiro, "What are we going to do? We only have two experienced pilots and four children."

"Hey!" Lance yelled.

Adam turned back to Lance. "Zip it, cadet." He lowered his voice as he stuck his index finger in Lance's face. "If you don't drop this cocky attitude of yours, I swear I will tell your mother about all of this when we get back home."

Lance gulped as his eyes narrowed, staring back at Adam. "You wouldn't dare."

"Try me."

Shiro turned to the Alteans. "How long before they arrive?"

Coran glanced at them. "At their speed?" He mumbled to himself as he counted on his fingers. "I'd say probably a couple of days."

Allura nodded as her expression turned hard and determined. "Good. Let them come! By the time they get here, you will have reformed Voltron, and together we will destroy Zarkon's empire!"

Adam stepped away from Lance. "Princess, there are six of us and only five lions. How do we determine who gets a lion?"

Allura and Coran led the others to the bridge. She stepped up onto a dais where a blue crystal in the ceiling glowed as she closed her eyes.

Coran stood off to the side with the humans. "King Alfor connected the lions to Allura's life force. She is the key to finding the lions."

Allura opened her eyes, and a giant holographic star chart filled the room.

Pidge stared around the room. "These are coordinates. The Black Lion looks like it's in the same location as the Blue Lion."

Allura smiled. "Very observant. That's because the Black Lion is in the castle."

Coran nodded. "To keep the Black Lion out of Zarkon's hands, King Alfor locked it in the castle. It can only be freed if the other four lions are present."

Allura gazed at the humans. "As you have found, the lions choose their pilots. It's a mystical bond and cannot be forced. The quintessence of the pilot is mirrored in his lion. Together they form something greater than science can explain. The Black Lion is the decisive head of Voltron. It will take a pilot who is a born leader and in control at all times, someone whose men will follow without hesitation. That is why, Shiro, you will pilot the Black Lion."

Adam folded his arms over his chest, but he couldn't stop the pride from beaming off his face. But he frowned because, at the back of his mind, he couldn't help but worry. Especially about the disease that Shiro was diagnosed with. Was it truly gone or in remission? Inwardly he also was concerned about what the man had gone through at the hands of the Galra. He pulled himself out of his thoughts to focus on the Princess.

"The Green Lion has an inquisitive personality and needs a pilot of intellect and daring. Pidge, you will pilot the Green Lion. The Blue Lion—"

Lance interrupted. "Hold up, let me guess. Takes the most handsome slash best pilot of the bunch." He smiled, flashing his best flirtatious smile at her.

Adam reached out and smacked Lance in the back of the head.

Lance turned around and glared at Adam.

Allura frowned and skipped the explanation of the Blue Lion. "The Yellow Lion is caring and kind. Its pilot is one who puts the needs of others above his own. His heart must be mighty. As the leg of Voltron, you will lift the team up and hold them together."

Hunk looked around at the others. Finally, he pointed to himself, "Me?"

Allura continued. "The Red Lion is temperamental and the most difficult to master. It's faster and more agile than the others but also more unstable. Its pilot needs to be someone who relies more on instincts than skill alone. Keith, you will fly the Red Lion."

Lance frowned at Keith. "What? This guy?"

Adam leaned forward. "Cut it out," he hissed in the younger teen's ear. "You're supposed to be learning how to be a team."

"Unfortunately, I cannot locate the Red Lion's coordinates yet. There must be something wrong with the castle. After ten thousand years, it might need some work."

"I might be able to help with that, I think," Adam replied.

Allura nodded.

The image of the Red Lion roared, and the others joined it in flight. Allura smiled at the images. "Once all the lions are united, you will form Voltron, the most powerful warrior ever known, the Defender of the Universe."

Hunk held out his hands in front of his body. "Wait. Okay, we're going to be in there and flying lions. Got that part. How do lions turn into legs?"

Allura sighed and rolled her eyes.

Shiro decided now it was time to get the Yellow and Green Lions. "We don't have much time. Pidge, and I will go after the Green Lion. Lance, you take Hunk and get the Yellow one. Keith, you stay here. If you locate the Red Lion, go get it."

Allura gazed at the others. "In the meantime. I'll get this castle's defenses ready. They will be sorely needed."

Coran gazed at Shiro. "I'll ready a pod and load the coordinates so that you can reach the Green Lion."

As the Blue Lion and the Altean Pod headed out toward the wormholes, Coran spoke again. "We can only keep the wormholes open for two of your Earth hours, so you'll have to be quick about your work. According to my readings, both planets are peaceful, so if you do get stuck, they'd be relaxing places to live out the rest of your lives."

"What?" Adam gasped at Coran as both the pod and Blue Lion vanished through the wormholes. He rubbed at his temples. What if they didn't make it back, he thought. What would he do then?

Keith stepped up next to Adam. "Don't worry. I'm sure they'll be fine."

"I hope so," Adam replied. "We've both lost Shiro once, and I don't want to lose him or Lance this time."

"Then, you should talk to Shiro when there's time and tell him how you feel."

Adam shot Keith a smirk. "How'd you get so wise?"

Keith shrugged as he stepped away from him.

The doors to the bridge opened as Shiro and Pidge stepped through. Adam let out a sigh of relief, but still worried about Lance. Adam nodded toward Shiro, "I'm glad you made it back."

The doors slid open a second time as Hunk and Lance entered the bridge as they both groaned. Allura smiled. "You made it."

Lance rolled his shoulder while rubbing it with his other hand as it popped. "Yeah, just barely. That was a nightmare. I almost puked out there. I felt like Hunk!"

Hunk held the side of his head. "Think about how I felt. I am Hunk."

Pidge gazed up at Shiro. "Yeah. We had a tough time, too." Her face lit up in a grin.

Shiro turned his gaze to Allura and Coran. "Did you find the Red Lion yet?"

Coran walked forward. "Allura just located it. There's a bit of good news and bad news." Coran tugged at his mustache and released it. "The good news is, the Red Lion's nearby." He crossed his arms over his chest. "The bad news is, it's onboard that Galra ship now orbiting Arus." Coran brightened, "But wait, good news again. We're Arus!"

Shiro leaned forward. "They're here already?"

Coran flinched a bit. "Yes. Guess my calculations were a bit off."

Adam rubbed at his forehead. But he lifted his head as the main screen flashed to life as a Purple alien stared back at them. "Is that?" Adam gasped out as he gaped at it.

"Princess Allura, this is Commander Sendak of the Galra Empire. I come on behalf of Emperor Zarkon, Lord of the Known Universe. I am here to confiscate the lions. Turn them over to me, or I will destroy your planet." The communication ended.

Shiro could sense the panic rising from around the room. "All right, let's not panic."

Hunk stared at him. "Not panic? The scary purple alien thing is driving his battleship toward us. We only have four lions."

Pidge crossed his arms over his chest. "Technically, only three working lions."

Hunk pat Pidge's shoulder. "That's right. Thank you, Pidge. Three working lions and a ten-thousand-year-old castle. Now is the perfect time to panic."

Allura gazed at Hunk. "Wait! This castle has a particle barrier we can activate."

Lance raised an eyebrow as he gazed at her. "Girl, you've already activated my par—"

Shiro raised an eyebrow as his eyes narrowed and slid over to glare at the teen. "Lance!"

Adam, who stood on the other side of Lance, reached out and smacked the teen on the back of the head. "Knock it off with the flirting! This is serious!"

Lance reached up and rubbed at the back of his head as he glared at Adam.

Coran scanned Sendak's ship. "The particle barrier won't hold Sendak's ion cannon forever. The Galra technology must have advanced since we last fought them."

Hunk asked, "Panic now?"

Shiro turned his gaze toward Hunk. "No. We've just got to figure out our plan of action, and figure it out quickly."

Lance took the opportunity to speak up. "I say wee pop through a wormhole and live to fight another day."

Hunk jumped on the bandwagon. "I second that. Yes. We tried to find the lions. We gave it the old college try. Couldn't do it. We only have three lions. We can't form Voltron I guess we could form a snake or worm to go through that hole Lance, that you were talking about."

Lance strode over to Allura. "Then it's settled. Allura, you ride with me. One of you take the old guy."

Pidge glared at Lance. "We can't just abandon Arus. The Galra will keep on destroying planets and capturing prisoners until we stop them."

Hunk held out his hands. "Okay. If we run, then maybe Sendak will follow us and leave his planet alone like when we left Earth. We form the snake-worm thingamajig, and we," he made a hissing noise, "out of here."

Keith crossed his arms over his chest as he frowned. "Sendak could destroy the planet then come after us anyway. Staying is our only option."

Lance leaned in toward Keith. "Here's an option, shut your quiznack."

Keith rose to his full height. "I don't think you're using that word correctly."

Lance stuck his face in toward Keith's. "What do you know, Mullet!"

Keith glared back as he stuck his face in closer to Lance's. "We're staying!"

"Leaving!" Lance yelled back.

Pidge yelled, "Staying!"

Hunk yelled, "Snake!"

Shiro and Adam both had it with the teens arguing, but Shiro was first to say anything. "Guys, stop!" His raised voice brought an end to the argument. He turned to face Allura. "Princess Allura, these are your lions. You've dealt with the Galra Empire before. You know what we're facing better than any of us. What do you think is the best course of action?"

Allura's face fell as all eyes turned to her. "I-I don't know."

Coran gazed over at her. His voice was soft as he spoke gently to her. "Perhaps your father can help."

"My father?" she asked as Coran led her away and off the bridge.

Adam gazed around him as Lance and Keith both shot glares at each other. Hunk still looked like he wanted to panic while Pidge just glared at Lance. He moved over to Shiro and gazed into his dark gray eyes. "We should talk."

Shiro nodded in full agreement. "But right now isn't the time. What we have to say should be in private."

Adam opened his mouth, but whatever he was going to say was cut off when Allura returned to the bridge dressed in a flight suit, and her white hair pulled up into a bun. "You five paladins and Adam were brought here for a reason. The Voltron Lions are meant to be piloted by you and you alone. We must fight and keep fighting until we defeat Zarkon. It is our destiny. Voltron is the universe's only hope. We are the universe's only hope."

Shiro nodded. "We're with you, Princess."

Allura led them to another room. As the light flickered on, she announced, "Your suits of armor."

Coran spoke up beside her as the new paladins stood looking at their armor. "Princess, are you sure about this? They aren't exactly the best and brightest the universe has to offer."

Adam sniffed and crossed his arms over his chest.

Allura shook her head. "No, but they're all we've got." She turned to Adam. "What can you offer?"

"I'm a pilot back on earth. I'm also trained in first-aid, hand-to-hand combat, and some basic mechanics."

Coran leaned toward him. "I assume what your wearing is some type of uniform."

Adam nodded. "You're correct. This is the officer's uniform of the Galaxy Garrison."

Allura crossed her arms over her chest. "I have an idea for how you can be of help and support the Paladins on missions."

Shiro called out to the others. "Boys, it's time to suit up."

As they put their armor on. Allura stepped over to a panel and pressed her hand to it. It opened to reveal some odd-looking devices. "The bayard is the traditional weapon of the Paladins of Voltron. It takes a distinct shape for each paladin."

Hunks turned into a giant cannon. Keith's turned into a sword. Lance's turned into an energy rifle. He laughed and then shouted, "Whoa!" Pidge's turned into an angular Katar.

Lance leaned over. "Aww, you got a cute little bayard."

Pidge swung the bayard out and smacked Lance with it as he sent an electrical charge through the older teen's body.

Lance screamed out in pain and fell onto the floor.

Pidge smirked as he looked down on Lance. "Yeah, it is pretty cute."

Adam shot Pidge a thumbs up.

Lance growled at Adam. "Traitor," he muttered.

Allura stepped up to Shiro. "I'm afraid your bayard was lost with its paladin."

Shiro smiled back. "I guess I'll just have to make do."

"There's just one other thing we need to do." Allura walked over to a wall panel and pressed her hand to it. As the door opened, it revealed several other suits of armor. "These were used by Altea's soldiers."

Adam stepped forward. Inside he found three sets like the paladin's armor only in the colors of orange, brown, and gray. He shuddered at the orange. It reminded him of the cadet uniforms of the garrison. No way was he wearing that again. The brown was too drab in his book, but the gray was similar to the uniform he wore. He chose that one.

Allura pressed her palm to another panel. Inside was an array of weapons from knives to energy rifles and pistols. Adam chose an energy pistol, belt knife, and an energy rifle that could be slung over his shoulder.

Once he was suited, the entire group walked back to the bridge. Allura stood on the dais as they all gazed at the diagram of Sendak's ship. "You'll need to retrieve the Red Lion from Sendak's ship."

Keith gazed at it. "That's a pretty big ship. How are we gonna know where the Red Lion is?"

Pidge gazed at him. "It's not a matter of we. It's a matter of you."

Hunk grinned. "Pidge is right. Once we get you in, you'll be able to feel it's presence and track it down."

Lance grinned. "Yeah, you know how you felt that crazy energy while we were in the desert?"

"Yeah. You made fun of me for that."

Lance crossed his arms over his chest and aimed a smug grin at Keith. "And I'm proud of that. But it turns out it's exactly like that mumbo-jumbo."

Allura turned to face him. "Keith, remember, the Red Lion is extremely temperamental. You'll have to earn its respect."

Shiro placed his hand on Keith's shoulder. "All right. Here's our plan of attack. The Galra Empire knows about the Blue and Yellow Lion, but they don't know we have the Green Lion, too. Hunk, Lance, you'll act as a decoy by pretending to give yourselves up. While Sendak is distracted, Keith, Pidge, Adam, and I will sneak onto the ship in the Green Lion. Keith and I will find the Red Lion while Pidge and Adam guard our exit. Hunk, Lance, find some way to take down that ion cannon."

Keith entered Sendak's ship first, followed by Shiro, Adam, and Pidge. Adam pulled the energy rifle off his shoulder as Shiro glanced around. He froze as images flashed through his mind. He groaned and panted for maybe a minute as he fought through the memories.

Adam took a step forward as Keith turned to look back at his friend.

Shiro looked up. "I've been here before. After I was taken by the Galra cruiser off Kerberos, they brought us here."

Pidge gazed at Shiro. "So, that means your other crewmembers. They might be held captive here. We-We've got to rescue them."

Shiro lowered his head and closed his eyelids. "Pidge, we don't have time. We have to get the Red Lion and get back to Arus." He opened his eyes and turned to face Pidge.

Pidge stared at him. "But we can't leave prisoners here."

"Look, no one understands that more than me, but, in war, we have to make hard choices. Now let's get moving." Shiro turned and started to walk away.

"No!" Pidge shouted as he stood his ground. "Commander Holt is my father. He and my brother were the ones on the Kerberos mission with you."

Shiro stared at Pidge. "Commander Holt is your father?"

"Yes. I've been searching everywhere for him and my brother. I'm not going to give up looking when I'm this close to finding them. I won't!"

Shiro made his decision quickly. "Then Adam and I are coming with you."

Keith gazed at Shiro, "What?"

"I remember where the prisoners are held. Keith, you find the Red Lion."

"By myself?"

Shiro knew he couldn't let Pidge go wandering around Sendak's ship alone, but Keith had skills. He knew the teen could do it. "Minor change of plans. You'll be fine. Just remember, patience yields focus."

Doors opened, and a patrol of sentries came though as the paladins and Adam scattered to get out of the hall before being spotted by the enemy.

Pidge, Shiro, and Adam hurried down a hall when a floating drone spotted them. He hit it with his Katar and knocked the triangular-shaped drone out of the air.

Shiro glanced at it. "That thing saw us. We should get out of here."

Pidge flipped open a panel on the drone, and his fingers started rewiring it. "Wait. I think this might come in handy." He reset the controls and closed the panel. It rose up into the air again. "And it's working for us. I'm gonna call you Rover. Follow me."

The drone beeped as it followed Pidge.

As they ran down a hall, they came to a door. Pidge looked over at Rover, "Open up."

Rover hovered over to the door and shot a beam at the mechanism opening the door. Shiro half laughed and shook his head at the younger paladin. "Excellent, Pidge."

Pidge ran into the holding cell first, which was crowded with aliens of several different races that huddled together in fear. "Dad," Pidge called out.

Shiro stepped in behind the Green Paladin as Adam stood outside watching for patrols. Shiro spoke to the aliens, "Don't be afraid. We're here to help you escape."

One of the aliens spoke up. "It's you… It's you, the Champion. If anyone can get us out of here, he can."

Adam from outside, whispered, "Champion?"

Shiro stared at the alien who'd spoken. "Wh-What did you call me?"

Pidge gazed at Adam and Rover before looking back to Shiro. "We don't have much time. Let's get them to the escape pods."

Shiro waved his hand at them, motioning for them to move out. "Let's go. Come on!"

They led the prisoners to an escape pod when a voice said, "Halt!"

Five sentries ran forward to try to stop the prisoners who were boarding the pod. Shiro held his right arm up when the hand shot pain into his body, and he dropped to the ground as it began to glow purple.

Adam raised the energy rifle and squeezed off a shot. One sentry fell, it's head turned into molten slag.

Shiro jumped up and charged the remaining sentries cutting a path through them, leaving them as sparking scrap.

The escape pod launched. Pidge grinned up at the Black Paladin. "Shiro, that was amazing! Where did you learn to fight like that?"

Shiro raised his prosthetic arm and folded the hand into a fist. "No idea."

Adam stared at him. "Your hand is a weapon?"

Shiro shrugged but turned as he heard Keith's voice come through his helmet's communicator. "I got the Red Lion."

Pidge grinned again. "Let's get out of here."

All four lions sat in front of the locked hangar door for the Black Lion. Shiro stood facing it as Adam, and the other paladins waited to see what would happen.

The hangar door opened. The Black Lion's eyes lit up. It roared. The other four lions stood and roared back.

Allura's voice came over their helmet communicators. "Sendak is entering the Arusian atmosphere. We need Voltron now!"

Shiro turned to Adam. "This is our fight now. You need to get inside the castle."

"On my way. Lance, you'd better come back in one piece!"

Lance grinned. "Easy peasy."

Adam rolled his eyes, but he turned and raced into the castle. As he stepped onto the bridge, a bright orange-red glow surrounded the castle. He had to raise his hand to block the flash from blinding him. The castle shook from the blast of the ion cannon from the Galra ship. He had to grab at the nearest wall to keep his feet under him.

Coran turned from his station. "The barrier gets weaker with every blast. Once the shield goes down, the castle will be defenseless."

Allura stared at her screen as she spoke. "I can give you cover with the castle defenses for a while, but you have to form Voltron now, or we'll all be destroyed."

A second blast struck the castle. The lions were caught in a tractor beam as the castle was hit by a third blast that destroyed the particle barrier.

Adam sucked in a breath as all the color drained out of his face. This was it. This was the end, and he knew it as he whispered, "I love you, Takashi." He saw the ion cannon preparing to fire again. A gasp came from him as the beam of energy completely missed the castle.

Coran activated the viewscreen to see Sendak's ship. What Adam saw brought another gasp from him. As the smoke cleared, Voltron stood on Sendak's ship.

Adam smiled as Voltron ripped the ion cannon off the ship, throwing it down to the ground. He heard a cheer come out of his mouth as the giant warrior demolished Sendak's ship.

Coran Allura and Adam raced outside as the Paladins gathered around in front of their lions. Allura held her hands clasped together in front of her chest. "Good work, Paladins."

Lance smiled at her. "Thanks, pretty lady."

Keith began taking off his helmet when he stumbled.

Adam frowned. He noticed the scrape in the red of the helmet. He reached into the belt pouch that hung from the armor's belt and pulled out his penlight. "How hard did you get hit in the head?"

"I'm fine."

"I'll be the judge of that," Adam replied. He raised the penlight and flashed it in Keith's eyes, checking his pupil response and frowned.

"What is it?" Shiro asked.

"I'd say he has a slight concussion. I think I have some aspirin in my bag I brought from the garrison. Keep him awake for a while. I'll check up on him every two to four hours to make sure he's okay."

"I swear Adam. I'm okay."

"Keith," Shiro said as he placed his hand on the Red Paladins shoulder. "Adam is the closest thing to a doctor we have. You need to listen to him."

Keith groaned.

Allura turned to follow Keith and Adam with her eyes. "It appears the Red Paladin is as temperamental as his lion."

Coran not noticing still went on about how the Paladins would have to form Voltron again, and again. "It's not going to be easy being the Defenders of the Universe."

Shiro turned and smiled up at the Black Lion. "Defenders of the Universe, huh. That has a nice ring to it."