The light
by jalpari
Pidge has an interesting conversation when the The Olkari Queen visits the rescued girl. The team is ready to attack the second rebel base.
A/N:
This fanfic picks up from where the "Voltron: Legendary Defender" Netflix series ended.
I am introducing a new character - Noor. She is an Indian (because a, why not, and b, represent!). I am going to slip in some desi tidbits and references to make her character more realistic and bring out the diversity. Plus, I love seeing an Indian woman in the world of Voltron talk about Indian things and do Indian stuff haha! Feel free to reach out with any questions you may have about these parts of each chapter!
"Hey...Noor, can we come in?" Pidge peeked into the room at the girl who lay on the bed staring out the window.
"We?" She whispered and turned to look at Pidge.
"I brought a friend...a Queen actually...but don't be scared...she's really nice. She would like to meet you."
Noor nodded slowly and Pidge smiled in relief. She opened the door fully and walked in, followed closely by Ryner.
"Noor...this is Queen Ryner of the Olkari...we are on their home planet right now."
Ryner smiled gently and walked up to the bed. Noor looked at her unsure but seeing her kind eyes, she smiled meekly.
"Hello, my dear", Ryner sat on a stool nearby while Pidge sat at the foot of the bed.
"Hello…"
"I am told you are from Earth?"
"Yes."
"I know you've been through a lot, Noor...but do you mind if I...inspect you a little bit?"
"Umm...", Noor glanced nervously at Pidge who nodded reassuringly, "...sure."
"Thank you."
Ryner walked over to Noor and felt her temperature. As she examined her, she continued her inquiries.
"Do you remember anything they did...in the lab?"
"No…"
Ryner placed one finger between her eyebrows and the rest just above her forehead and inhaled deeply. She frowned.
"Do you remember any odours...?"
"No…"
She laid her other hand on her chest and pressed her palm into her skin. She closed her eyes and seemed to concentrate harder.
"Do you remember any colors?"
Noor closed her eyes, trying hard to remember and after several seconds, spoke again.
"I think...when they tied me, they injected me with something to put me to sleep...but before I lost consciousness, I saw a bright light…"
Ryner stepped closer and observed the girl's eyes. They were a beautiful chestnut brown. Despite her trauma and fatigue, there was still a spark in them.
"I...I just thought it was my vision flashing as I...passed out."
"Hmmm…", Ryner gazed at the marks on her body.
She gently placed her hand on the girl's arm and gave it a light squeeze.
"Noor…", she smiled, "it's a beautiful name."
"Th...thanks."
"Do you know what it means?" Ryner grinned.
"Yes, it means 'the light'."
"Noor", Ryner sat down once more, "we are going to try and rescue the other prisoners tonight."
Noor's face froze.
"Yeah", Pidge continued, "We found another base...well the Olkari found another base. Krolia...Keith's mother...is leading the team."
For a brief second, Pidge thought she saw hope on the girl's face. But before she could be sure, Noor's gaze drifted off into the distance as if she was trying to see the planet her companions were trapped on.
"Can I...come with you?"
Pidge and Ryner glanced at each other.
"Uhh...that won't be possible", Pidge hesitated. "But I promise you, we're going to do everything we can to get them all back."
"You can join me in the control room", Ryner stated assuringly, "we will be keeping an eye on everything from here."
Noor nodded.
"Alright, dear. I'll let you rest. If you begin to remember anything, make sure to tell Pidge."
As they walked towards the door, Noor called out suddenly.
"I remember blue."
"Blue?" Pidge turned around bewildered.
"I mean...it felt like a dream...but while I was passed out...all I could see was blue."
"Hmm…", Ryner exhaled, "thank you."
With that they exited the room, Pidge carefully closed the door behind her.
"Pidge", Ryner paused outside. "You said you submerged her in a tub to control her fever?"
"Yeah, it was Shiro's idea. It worked!"
She looked at Pidge thoughtfully, "When you were in the water with her...did you notice anything out of the ordinary?"
"Like what?"
"I'm not sure."
"I don't know if this means anything...", Pidge shuffled nervously.
She had felt the same hesitation when she called Shiro and Keith to the bathroom. At the time, she didn't know how to explain it to them. And now, she didn't know now how to explain it to Ryner. She wasn't even sure if it had really happened. She was too preoccupied with her game.
She had managed to make up something with Shiro and Keith, but she knew she couldn't get away with something as unconvincing as 'she moved' with Ryner.
"Go on…", Ryner interrupted her thoughts.
"I could feel the water...umm...it felt as if the water was sparkly...but of course it could have just been reflections from the bathroom light or the flashes from the video game I was playing."
"How long was she in the tub?"
"About 45 minutes."
"Interesting."
"SHIRO? Do you copy?" Pidge screamed into her comm. After a few seconds she yelled again. "KEITH? Do you copy? Anyone?!" she groaned.
After few more seconds, she stated decisively, "Something's not right."
"I'm on it", Tara called out.
Pakim and Pidge looked ahead as two pods made their way down to the base. There had been no movements outside the base for the last 15 minutes and neither had there been any communication from their team.
"Pidg...can...hear..", a voice crackled on the comm system.
"Shiro! Is that you?" Pidge jumped up.
"Yes...we…..they are…"
"Shiro? I can't hear you. You're breaking up."
There were a few seconds of static and then another voice boomed across the room.
"Pidge…"
"Keith?"
"They were expecting us."
"What?" Pidge exclaimed.
Just then they saw a small craft rise in the distance, behind the base.
"Pakim! Get me a visual on that", Pidge ordered.
Pakim pulled up a video. As the drone zoomed in, they saw a small group of masked people boarding the craft.
"That's it? There are just...rebels on it", Pidge wondered out loud. "Where are the prisoners?"
"Over there", Tara pointed to the base.
They saw their team run out of the building, each holding on to an injured person.
"That's only four prisoners", Pidge counted. "I thought there were more."
They could see Krolia and Luten load the prisoners onto the pods as Shiro and Keith ran back inside. Pidge stared in horror, as a bright orange light exploded from the building. A loud sound boomed all around them, and then the entire building was engulfed in flames.
"SHIRO! KEITH!" Pidge cried out.
When the smoke and dust settled a bit, Pakim pointed down, "They're alright."
Pidge watched as two bodies crawled away from the flames and into the second pod.
"Get those pods here", Pidge whispered, "Now."
As the pods ascended towards them, another explosion took over the adjacent structures. Soon, the entire base was alit.
Noor stood in front of the screen in the control room beside Ryner.
She could hear Shiro and Luten as they found the prisoners. She could hear Keith and Krolia as they fought the guards. She could hear Shiro gasp and yell something that was lost in the crackling disturbances over the comm system. She could hear Krolia commanding them to retreat. She could hear Keith demand that they take the injured prisoners with them. She could hear Luten instructing the rest of the prisoners to follow him. She could hear the grunts and groans as they encountered more guards and struggled to make their way out.
Then everything went silent.
Several minutes later, she watched as hypnotic lights set the night ablaze.
After that, she heard nothing.
Not the explosions. Not the gasps and sobs of the people behind her. Not the screeches over the comm system. Not the terrified voice of Pidge as she yelled out for Shiro and Keith.
She felt nothing.
Not the goosebumps that lined her skin. Not the trembles that engulfed her body. Not the Queen's hand that grabbed her and pulled her into her arms.
The last thing she saw as she fell into the embrace was the black smoke giving way to a raging orange monster that devoured the only human she could call family.