Lance was shocked when he seemed to be the first to stumble onto the bridge, welcomed by a very pink clad Allura. She wore the paladin armor.
"Pink." He notes dully, not even realizing the armor could come in that color- especially since there was no pink lion. She turns to him, her eyes wide, then quickly looks down at herself.
"Ooh… Oh, I'm sorry Lance!" she quickly apologized. "I forgot."
Not even sure what she was talking about, he glanced back down at her armor, taking the sight in. The realization struck him and his stomach dropped. That's right, he had forgotten too. Allura had been piloting the Blue lion since he disappeared. Of course she would have gotten used to the role by now.
That left a problem, didn't it?
Who was supposed to pilot the Blue lion now?
"Uh…" he scratches his head, unsure, feeling like an unwanted wheel suddenly. Of course, he had always felt that way with the team. He had just forgotten that feeling with Keith in Iespion.
Before they could work it out, the rest of the team came piling in, panicked to what was going on.
"Allura." Shiro steps up. "What is happening? You've located Lotor?"
Quickly forgetting the issues of who would go where she turned to pull up the screen.
"We just discovered his ship. It is here within this galaxy," the ship appeared on the scanners a moment later, floating aimlessly within the cold blanket of space. It seemed to be put to rest, most likely powered down to allow the crew or such to rest. From where it was, it was hidden away, only able to be picked up by the scanners if one was close to his coordinates. Lucky them, Lance supposed.
Shiro eyed the situation, taking in their supplies and manpower. If they played their cards right, they could get rid of Lotor once and for all.
"Are we going for it?" Pidge looked unsure.
"Keith and Lance haven't even flown in their lions since getting back." Hunk agreed, nervous.
"We can handle ourselves," Keith growled at him, eyes narrowed accusingly. "If this Lotor guy is a threat then we should stop him,"
"Even so, we aren't even sure if we can form Voltron. However… it's true that a chance like this doesn't come around often. We've been trying to get the upper hand on Lotor for months now." Shiro rubs his chin.
"We can handle this," Lance adds in, standing tall before his team, "We won't slow you down,"
Hunk opened his mouth, quick to say, "We never said you would slow us down,"
"But you all thought it," he lifts a hand, not wanting to beat around the bush, "Keith will be fine." he hadn't even tried to add himself into that sentence, because how positive could he really be about his own skill? But Keith, he was different. Keith was extraordinary. "Even with the small gap, he is still the best pilot I know." he motions to his Equivalent, smiling proudly. He tried his luck with Allura still in the room and made finger guns, winking, "Still great with a sword and man can he sure buzz the brillo."
"What?" Hunk tilted his head.
Lance smiles, "You know~ He can grease the loaf pan." The team frowned, sharing puzzled looks. Lance's lips curled, trying his best not to laugh and break character to such a beautiful moment, "He's good at jamming the clam, ya know? A real good jingle-jangler. He really likes to park that beef bus in Tuna town~"
Pidge shook her head, making a strange face, "Lance, what the hell are you talking about?"
"Y-Yeah, I'm so confused," Hunk admits.
"Passing the gravy, as my grandma used to say-hah-" he turned, laughing into his palm and waving them away, "Ignore me," he snickered.
The team blinked once, then twice, their expressions blank. "Right…" Shiro nods, trailing the word off and turning back to the monitor. Putting Lance's words to the side, just as the blue paladin planned, he began to discuss how they would have to strike if they wanted to go through with this attack. The others followed suit, willing to chalk that up as another weird Lance moment, except for Keith.
Keith stared at his feet, lifting his clenched hand to his lips and striking his thinking pose. He was legit thinking about it and was trying to work out Lance's strange sayings in his head. Lance grinned impishly at him, waiting.
"There are times I feel hung like a parlog being around Keith," he talks, as if talking to himself, but his sentence is made to head in Keith's direction. The red paladin blinked rapidly, knowing the others wouldn't really know a parlog that well, but having Lance bring it up just made it more confusing.
Hoping to give him a hint, Lance lifts his palm to his face, making a quiet noise for Keith to look at him. When their eyes met, he whispered, "You sure do know how to activate my particle barrier, Keith,"
Keith in return flushed a slow, dark red, gasping like he had been scandalized. "Those were Euphemisms. Ones about-" he inhales, "S. E. X," he spells it out like one would when a child was present, glancing at the team wearily. And Lance swears to every living being in the Universe, there is nothing cuter than this sweet little red paladin.
"Yes. They were," Lance nodded smugly, so proud that his naive love actually understood what he was trying to say.
"Are you two paying attention?" Allura grumbled, "We need to take this seriously."
Lance cleared his throat, composing himself, "Yes, right. Go on. I was just thinking about Keith releasing his mighty Kraken,"
Keith made a choking noise, clamping his mouth shut and burying his head in his hands.
Allura looks perplexed, looking back at Shiro for some explanation for the strange human culture she had just been slapped with. When he had none, she sighed. "Lotor is a dangerous enemy. We must focus. We could finish this, here and now." Shiro and her share a long look, as if quietly coming to an agreement.
"Even if it is just a hit and run, getting any upper hand on Lotor could help us in the long run." Shiro narrows his eyes, concluding. "Team, get to your lions and get ready for an attack."
"We must move quickly. It will only be so long before he realizes we are here." Allura exclaimed. The team rushed for their tubes, Lance winking at Keith in passing. He swallowed, cheeks red and eyes wide. Stumbling into his tube, he shot down without another word.
Lance, on the other hand, stopped just as he was about to enter. Holding his breath for a few ticks, he slowly looked back at Allura, noting how she was staring at him.
She swallowed thickly. "What are you waiting for?"
With a tight curl in his stomach, he quietly asks, "Are you sure?"
She was puzzled, taken aback, "What?"
He hated to bench himself- to admit that he was almost useless to the team right now- but it would be selfish to go out there just to give himself some peace of mind.
"You were the blue paladin the whole time I was gone. I haven't been able to pilot for months, so who knows if I'm rusty or not. If this is this Lotor guy, perhaps it's for the best that you go out there?"
Allura's eyes widened, "Lance…"
"Are you sure, my boy?" Coran was just as surprised, his eyes gentle.
"I just wanna assure no one gets hurt out there because I can't pilot correctly." He smiles, taking his bayard from his belt. She probably hadn't been able to use any bayard since Keith and Lance had taken them with them when they left. "Here." With only a second of hesitation, he tosses it to her.
Catching it, fumbling to grasp the handle, she inhaled sharply. "L-Lance…" she moves closer to him, eyes shimmering. She was touched, so grateful for him to not take Blue away from her. He could see it in the way her hands trembled. "Thank you," she wrapped an arm around him in a hug.
It felt rather cold, being the bigger person in this situation. Just to receive gratitude from the woman who had been causing him nothing but grief for the last three days. It was bizarre, and kind of mute.
"You better get going," he mumbles, his arms held firmly at his side, refusing to hug her back. Pulling away, looking almost hurt at his cold shoulder, she nods, scurrying to the pod and shooting downward.
Left with just the two of them, he could feel Coran staring at him.
"You alright, Lance?" he inquired carefully. Lance nodded, pushing through the anxiety he felt.
"Fine," What he had said was true after all. They had the best chance with Allura out there.
Shaking it off, he approached the controls, standing next to Coran as the Lions shot from the hanger. He felt so distant having to watch the lions head into action instead of being in them. It gave him a different perspective on just how fast they moved and how powerful they appeared, standing together.
"Alright team," Coran says into the intercoms, "While you take Lotor's ship head on, Lance and I shall stay out of sight, ready to give support when needed. We'll wait for the opportune moment to strike, then-"
"Why is Lance in the Castle?" Keith's voice boomed, his face appearing on the screen. The second his eyes locked with Lance's the confusion started to morph to something darker.
"I am piloting the Blue lion in his place." Allura speaks up.
"What?" Keith snaps, already understanding what had happened before she even said anything,
"But Lance is the blue paladin. Why the hell are you in there?"
"Keith." Shiro says sternly, not appreciating his tone.
"Lance is the Blue paladin, isn't he? Blue choose him to be her pilot first! Not Allura!"
"It's fine, Keith," Lance says quickly. "I told Allura it was alright. She has been flying a lot longer than me and we both haven't been able to pilot in a while. So we shouldn't risk having two rusty pilots out there." He fakes a smile, and he can see in Keith's eyes that he sees right through it.
"Lance…"
"This is our chance to take down Lotor. I can try to get in some flying with Blue later. I don't mind just being back up."
"Are you sure?" Shiro inquired, surprised.
"I learned recently that sometimes the best thing to do is knowing when to step down." Lance tells him, "I'm sure. Let's take this guy out. I'll support you from the castle."
"Yes indeed!" Coran salutes. Lance was sure it wouldn't be that bad. Coran was forced to watch them fly off in their lions everyday. Surely he had to feel the same as Lance and wanted to be out there too.
Similar to Coran, he would do what he could from the castle, bringing support when they needed it. The castle had tons of support fire, after all. He could take down just as many Galra ships from here and probably do it in twice the time.
"Go get 'em, guys," he gives Keith a wink through the coms. It seemed to calm him enough, but the way he gripped the controls of his Lion was tell enough to how much he disliked this idea.
"Alright team." Shiro says, turning his lion in the direction of Lotor's ship. "Move in a tight formation and give them everything you got!" The Lions followed one by one, Keith holding off as long as possible before grumbling and following Shiro's lead. A few seconds later, Lance could hear Shiro ordering to fire.
"Beginning attack." Pidge confirmed. In the distance, Lance could see the first signs of explosion before the battle broke out. They had surprised Lotor, managing to snag a good chunk of his ship before his fighters came flying out of the sides, moving to attack the lions. He zoomed in to watch how the lions moved, amazed at how much Hunk and Pidge seemed to have improved since he saw them last.
"They've gotten better." he stated, his voice distant.
"They had to." Coran nods, "It was hard to get by without Keith and you." He lifts his eyes back to the screen, smiling when the red lion shot by. "I almost forgot how fast it was."
Keith was perfect.
Lance hadn't expected any differently. Even with the 7-month gap, Keith maneuvered that battle field like he was born to, angling his lion at just the right time to have them colliding into each other, his speed unmatched by every other pilot. Previously Lance thought his flying was cool, or admirable, but watching it now made his blood pump madly.
He almost lifted a hand to fan himself, the words "Is it hot in here, or is it just Keith" close to forming in his mouth.
Instead, he tried to focus on looking at the Castle's weaponry, trying to memorize what each button did so he could help the team out… But his eyes kept trailing towards Keith. Sweet Parlogs, he wishes he could be out there, fighting by his side.
"Team, they are sending another wave of fighters." Coran warned.
"We need more firepower." Shiro concluded. They shared a moment of silence, the same thought running through their heads. They needed Voltron. Pidge and Hunk were hesitant. Months of battle without Voltron had gotten them used to having to scrape through fights- they almost forgot how to even fight in that form.
"I say we try." Allura insists
"W-Well… let's give it a shot." Hunk agrees.
"If you say so." Pidge says, hesitant. Keith hadn't said a word on his end, only glanced at the screen to confirm he heard them. When they were quiet, waiting for his answer, he narrowed his eyes.
"I think it's a dumb idea. We can't." it was blunt but to the point.
"You'll never know unless we try. Team, form Voltron!" Shiro commanded. The lions angled upward, flying in formation, just as they always had when attempting to form the mighty warrior.
Lance bite his lip, hoping for the best, but knowing in his heart it wasn't going to work. 10 seconds passed, then another- Hunk began to make nervous noises from his communication.
"W-We're not forming voltron." he stated the obvious.
"No duh, we can't!" Keith snapped at him, pulling away from the formation. They were too deep into enemy fire to try and form Voltron any longer. It would just be a risk to continue on.
"Our bond isn't strong enough," Allura says.
"Well, what exactly did you expect?" Pidge says, irritated, forcing her attention back on the fighters. She had a point. Lance had hoped they could, just to get them out of the situation, but actually thinking they could form Voltron was unrealistic. They had gone months without being together, and when they were back together, a big gap had been gut between them with Keith and his relationship. Of course, they wouldn't be able to form Voltron. It was expected.
What Lance hadn't expected was for the Castle to suddenly shift, like an explosion had gone off below.
"What the Quiznack?" Coran panicked, falling back in shock.
"What was that?" he supported himself against the controls. Stumbling to his feet, the mustached Altean slammed his fingers to the controls to figure it out.
"We have damage to the lower haul. How is that possible?"
"Did some fighters get out here?" Lance lifted the scanners. They had been so focused on the fight they hadn't even thought of some managing to get this close past the lions.
"No, not at all-" Coran cut off, lifting a security Camera. A small shuttle was hovering below the castle, right in their blind spot. Whoever was piloting it had just managed to cut a hole into the side and were coming inside. The alarm was blaring a moment later, warning them of intruders.
"Paladins. We have a problem!" Coran called to them.
"What is it, Coran?" Allura grunted, caught up in her fight.
"I got this!" Lance ran for the extra weaponry supplies on the bridge, opening it to examine what he had at his disposal. Staffs, spears- oop, there we are. He lifted a small blaster, twirling it between his fingers. It shared the same white color as the ship, the tip of it blue like Coran's markings. "Where are they?"
Typing wildly, looking through every screen, Coran finally located the intruders towards the engines. There seemed to be only one, but he was tall, his face covered in a slick black helmet. "Located in the lower engines," he announces.
Tossing on his helmet, Lance bolted in the direction. "Man the bridge Coran."
"Be careful Lance!" he turned back to warn the others, "We have intruders on the ship!"
"Intruders?" Hunk gawked, "How?"
"I don't know. There seems to be only one." Coran shakes his head
"Can Lance and you handle them?" Shiro demanded. Lance was next to talk.
"You guys focus on your fight. We got this. Just make sure you get Lotor." scrambling down the hall, he could hear Keith calling to him.
"Give 'em hell, Lance!" There was a small pause, his tone growing gentle, "Be careful."
"Will do, sweetheart-" he tries to catch himself, but it's too late.
"Lance," Allura grumbled.
"Slip of the tongue." he shrugged. "Can't take it back now,"
Keith laughed- it was music to Lance's ears. Giddier than he should be as he ran to face an enemy, he sprinted to the elevator down to the lower floors. From there he located the intruder towards the back of the lower levels, trying to sneak their way through the halls.
"Hey!" Lance lifts his weapon, finding the weight of it to be different from his bayard. He forced it to work, "Don't move." with their back to him the figure slowly lifted their hands in a surrender motion, turning to face him.
"Lance!" Coran's voice called from the intercom. "You got them!"
"Yeah. Who are you?" Lance demanded.
Their finger pressed a button to their helmet and it disappeared, revealing their face. It was a girl? Whoever it was, it definitely wasn't like any Galra he had ever seen. She was colorful, smirking at him playfully.
"Never seen a paladin in blue before~ Where have you been, Kitten while your team's been pulling all the work?"
"I've been busy." he answered slowly, keeping his pistol trained on her. She tilted her head, amused.
"Wanna have some fun?"
He inhaled sharply when the intruder seemed to disappear right before his eyes. Taking a step forward, dumbfounded, he yelled when something cracked against his jaw. Flung back, feeling like he had just been punched, he lifts his weapon.
So, they were still here? They could turn invisible. Thinking it might have been cloaking of some sort, he stumbles to his feet. A second later a foot kicked his back and he fell forward. This went on for a while, each attempt leaving him pummeled against the ground. But he could slowly see it- the change in the area. Certain spots would become blurry, like the shadows were shaking.
It wasn't invisibility, but more of camouflage- like a lizard. They could mask their appearance, but not perfectly. If he listened close enough, he could even hear their breathing right before they punched him.
With that thought in mind, he backed up to the wall, pressing his back to it. Clutching his pistol in both his hands, he closed his eyes and listened. With ringing ears, he forced himself to calm down- slow his breathing and listens.
He almost pushes up his glasses by impulse and quietly scolds himself. Focus. Listen to everything around you.
The slight buzz of the hallway lights.
The dripping of his sweat hitting the floor.
A foot step. There!
He lifted his bayard and fired. The blast caught on something and the intruder's camouflage disappeared when they fell, their shoulders smoking from the blast.
She was growling, lifting a hand to grip her injury, eyes flaring in rage. When he fired at her again, she flipped back, eyes scanning the room quickly. She spotted the vents and made a break for them. Lance followed after her, firing at her feet to get her to stop- but she was too fast. She shot down the tunnels before Lance could stop her, escaping to the lower levels. Running, he peered his head down the ventilation shaft, cursing.
"Coran, I lost sight of them!" he called, booking it down the hall.
"Give me a minute to find them." Coran scanned the cameras, eyeing each one for anything odd. Lance focus fell on his own heavy pants at the pause. His face had been bruised, but most damage he took seemed to be angled around his torso, which was well protected by his armor. He adjusted his pistol, moving in small steps down the hall, not wanting to start heading in one direction too much till he knew where he was headed.
"Coran?"
"Found them. The intruder is located three floors below you, heading towards the living quarters… Wait a tick?" Coran sounded puzzled, "This doesn't make sense. The ship is reading a second- Wait…" There was a small pause, before Coran yelled, "Lance! There are two intruders-!" he was cut off. Lance froze, his blood running cold.
"Coran? Coran!?" he called into his communicator. Realizing the enemy was on the bridge he made a break for it. Just as he was starting to get close, he was surprised to see the particle barrier forming around the castle. Why would Coran activate it if the enemy was already inside?
A tick later, Shiro was voicing his thoughts.
"Coran?" his voice called through the comms, heavy fire echoing in the background, "Why is the shield going up?" when there was no response, he tried again. "Coran? Lance?"
"I'm here," he says, out of breath. "Something's up. Coran isn't responding. I'm heading to the Bridge now."
"What's going on over there?" Keith demanded.
"Relax, dear paladins. Your atlean friend has simply fallen unconscious,
Lance froze in his steps, not recognizing that voice. It was deep, ringing to the ear like a silver bell. It would have been charming if there hadn't been a snarky undertone to it- like the owner of the voice had just figured out something no one else had and was bragging about it.
"No…" He could hear Allura gasp in horror. "Lotor?!"
That was Lotor? Then the one infiltrating the ship…
"This was a set up!" he growled.
"You've figured me out, Blue paladin. But I'm afraid you are a little outnumbered here, alone in your pretty ship."
"Princess, we can't get in with that particle barrier." Pidge started to say on a second line of communication, so Lotor wouldn't hear.
"That is impossible…" Allura switched back to Lotor's, "How did you activate the barrier? Only Alteans can manage that!"
"Yes," he mused, "Only one of Altean DNA can work an Altean ship…" he left the train of thought there for them to figure it out. "Princess Allura, was it? I seem to have taken your ship, and it's only a matter of time before I capture your Blue paladin. If I were you, I would start working on your speech of surrender."
Like hell lance was going to allow that. He could confirm two people on the ship. Most likely, that first person he encountered was just a distraction so they wouldn't notice Lotor getting to the bridge. Lance had handled worse situations with a lot more enemies. Of course, he couldn't underestimate a son of Zarkon, and he had heard enough stories of his generals to give him nightmares…
"You lay so much as a finger on him and I'll rip off your head!" Keith snapped
Lotor hummed thoughtfully, "A little protective are we? I assure you, if he surrenders now, I will be merciful,"
"Not even in your dreams," Lance hissed.
Keith was cursing on his end, switching to the other channel to call to Lance, "Lance! Are you okay?!"
"I'm fine." he pressed his back to the wall, realizing the camera were probably in Lotor's control and he was probably looking for him.
"Lance, are you able to get to the bridge?" Shiro demanded.
"I think so. From what I can tell there are two of them. If I can just get to Coran, he can turn off the particle barrier and-" he winced when heavy static crackled against his ears.
Connections were cut off.
He was on his own.
The Lions weren't even able to get back to the ship! Of course, if the option was needed, they could easily take down the particle barrier themselves. That risked possible damage to the ship however, as well as anyone around the spots of impact. And it didn't help that Lotor's own ship was still in the distance as could easily surround the team in heavy fire if they tried to turn away from the fight.
They had fallen right into Lotor's trap
Hunk and the others weren't kidding- This guy was annoying! He knew what they were going to do before they did! The biggest problem was that he had full access to the ship's defense systems. He could open fire on the team if he so chose and fly the ship in any direction he wanted.
If he was able to activate the ship, Lance wasn't sure exactly what else he could do. Perhaps even activate a wormhole?
Or was Allura only able to do that? He wasn't sure if it was an Altean thing in general since it was always Allura who did it so he prayed that Lotor wasn't able to. For now, he just had to get to Coran and pray he was alright. Knowing he had to be smart about it, Lance lifted his bayard. He would have to do some serious repairs later, but if he was going to get through this, he needed to get out of sight. He had lived on this ship long enough, even despite the 7 month gap, to know where each camera was, so he lifted his bayard and took aim.
Taking out the one in the hall he was in, he leaned against the wall to hit the one in the next hall.
He needed a plan and fast.
They had Coran, but from what he knew, Lotor didn't tend to kill. That didn't mean he couldn't start, so he had to act soon.
The second intruder was last seen three levels below him, so he had a little time to avoid them.
The Bridge on the other hand would be a cinch to get to if he could use the elevators, but that made his presence too known. He had to take the stairs.
A full 5 floors. He hated stair cases.
Taking them two at a time, taking out camera or ducking around them as he passed, he questioned his plan here. Lotor must have expected him to aim for the bridge. It was the obvious thing to do so he could save Coran!
He froze mid step. Lotor was probably in wait for him up there with some plan. He couldn't just walk in there. He stepped back a few steps, kneeling down to catch his breath. He had to think. What would Shiro do? What would Allura do?
...What would Keith do?
Probably the most unexpected thing- though that tended to be the expected thing for him.
In a situation like this, what was unexpected? To head away from the bridge, right? But he couldn't do that- that wouldn't help anyone.
There was only one entrance into the bridge, and that was the main doors to the back. The second he opened the door Lotor could easily flank him down. He needed to get in there somehow without being shot first thing!
A small squeaking caught him by surprise. Turning, lifting his pistol, he lowered it the second a small little head squeezed out of the vents. It was the mice! He had forgotten they were even here!
"Hey guys!" he smiled, lifting his hand out to them. They leaped into his palm, smiling up at him. Happy to see them, especially to know he wasn't alone in this, he asks, "Have you seen Coran? Is he okay?"
The nod, one mimicking something along the lines of Lotor, while the second one lays on the floor, pretending to be tied up, but was making a big fuss about it. So he was alive, good.
"We need to get up there..."
The mice nod in agreement, leaping back to the vents. He peered in, seeing what idea they were trying to point at but shaking his heads. "There are no cameras, but the vents are too small up by the bridge. I'll never fit all the way there." He sighs.
The mice frowned, their tails flickering in thought.
The vents could have been his solution if he could shrink. They lead in and out of the place just like the tubes….
The tubes to the lions.
Lance gasped, a light bulb going off in his head. It wasn't an easy climb, that was for sure, but there were no cameras anywhere in those tubes. If he could get into them without Lotor realizing, he could get to the hover bike and back track from the Lion's hangar all the way to the bridge!
"That's it!" he leaned towards the mice to tell them the plan. If they could get into the controls and mess around with the surveillance camera's, they might just be able to pull this off.
With little salutes they took off to complete their mission. In return, Lance turned and ran in the opposite direction. If Lotor were to have seen him, he would have seen what appeared to be the Blue paladin fleeing from the fight instead of moving to face it head on.
And if he didn't, either worked in his favor.
Stepping close to the hangar doors, he glanced at the camera's and waited. They turned, following his every move. After a few minutes, a little too long for his taste, they fritzed and fell flat, going dead. He knew that he would only have so long before Lotor managed to find the problem and got them up and working again so he made a mad dash for the blue hangar.
He sprinted to the very edge of the area, pressing his foot the small elevator shaft and lowering himself down to the tunnels. Scrambling to then lined path the hover bike took to drive them towards the lion, he booked it down, watching as the silver walls began to turn to a tinted blue. Never used to having to run down this section, he moved quickly, lifting his head when he got to the opening leading up to the straight drop.
He used his jetpack to heave himself up to it, stopping from time to time and spreading his limps out in each direction to hold him in place. The strain to his muscles was painful to say the least
His body aches and sweat pool at his brow. He pushed through, managing to heave himself over the drop and to the spot where they tended to shot down from the moving bar. It was a large incline, but one he could manage compared to the drop. He used his jetpack to help get himself up a little faster- thank goodness for his jet pack.
When he reached the top, he put his hands on his knees, hunching forward to catch his breath. His eyes trailed up to the last drop, the one leading to the bridge. One more. Adjusting the pistol to his hip, he used the jet back to get up to the opening, then presses his knees firmly to one side and his back to the other. He had to be quiet at the point, knowing that he wouldn't be able to save anyone if he rushed and got caught. So he moved quietly, inching along the wall, feeling the burning sensation deep in his stomach.
C'mon ab muscles!
When his head bumped the top of the tub, he used his legs to support himself as he reached up to move the panel out of his way. Hoping to be as quiet as he could about it, he stepped into the small chamber and slide against the door. Squeezing a small opening to look in, he peeked inside
The bridge was undamaged as far as he could tell, but it didn't take long to notice Coran collapsed on the floor, his wrists and feet bound. Anger boiled in him at the sight of his swelling jaw.
"He couldn't have just disappeared, Ezor." A voice caught his attention. Turning his head a little, he spotted a Galran. At least, he thought it was. As far as Galra went, besides Keith, he wasn't as hairy as the others. He was taller than himself, but short for a Galran, with pointed ears and long white hair. It trailed down his back elegantly, curling towards the bottom of his black and orange tinted armor.
He turned, surprisingly looking less Galran than Lance would have expected for a son of Zarkon. His eyes were a deep and piercing blue, deep in thought and lined with a slight confusion to where the blue paladin could have possibly gone.
Next to him, the colorful alien from before, apparently named Ezor, was folding her arms, "I looked everywhere and the cameras can't pick him up. Last place we saw him before the camera's went dead was around the hangars." she pauses, "You think there is an escape ship down there?"
"Even if he chose to flee like a coward, we would have noticed the ship. He wouldn't be able to get past the particle barrier." Lotor turned, rubbing his chin. "Check the engine. He may have gone down there to disable the barrier."
"Isn't the main energy source here, though?" Ezor motioned to the crystal, "He would need to come up here to stop it."
"There are back doors to every system. Check the engines." He commanded with a cool voice. Ezor nodded her head and ran off, leaving Lotor alone. Exactly like Lance wanted. He was leaning over the controls as Lance slowly pried open the automatic doors, slithering inside without a word. Well, he got this far.
The true test to all this was if he could actually take on a child of Zarkon. He admits to being hesitant, his hand stalling against his belt, holding off on grabbing his pistol. His heart was hammering, his tongue thick to the roof of his mouth.
He found his courage by looking at Coran.
"Give it up, Lotor." Lance growled. The prince tensed, but his eyes showed nothing but a poker face,
"How interesting. You managed to make it all the way up here without me noticing? How did you manage?"
"A good magician never reveals his tricks." Lance grunted, "Now get to your knees."
"Is that a command?" he teased, "Much too early to be requesting those."
"Shut up." he snaps, honestly just wanting to run over to Coran and make sure he was okay. "It's over, Lotor,"
He smiled, "It is?" He folded his arms, content, "Tell me paladin: you know my name but I'm afraid you forgot to state your own,"
Lance narrowed his eyes. He should have just ignored him, shot him where he stood, but he spoke up anyway, "Lance,"
"Like the weapon," He mused,
Lance shrugged, "I suppose…." he slowly moved to his right, inching towards Coran, keeping his gun aimed for Lotor's head. The Prince watched his feet carefully.
"He's alive, if you are worried about that. I've learned that Killing seems to only worsen the situation over making it better,"
Lance was caught off guard, "Oh…." he agreed to that logic, he just never expected Zarkon's child to hold the same views.
Stepping closer to Coran, he knelt down and pressed a finger to his pulse. He was alive like Lotor said and seemed to only be unconscious. He sighed in relief.
"I've always admired that about you Paladins," Lotor announced. Lance eyes him wearily.
"Admired what, exactly?"
"Your loyalty to each other." He tilts his head, "Galra both lack and thrive in that- depending on the person. Loyalty provides insurance in your team. It's how an empire thrives." He spoke almost philosophically, his gaze distant. It made Lance wonder exactly how similar Lotor really was to his Father.
Then, the Prince looks at him, gaze deep when he says, "How loyal would you say your friends are to you, Paladin?" It wasn't a question that should have stung the way it did. Lotor had no idea about Keith and him, or how the team reacted to it- he wasn't asking that question to make Lance hesitate.
But it did, and Lotor saw this. He raised his eyebrow curiously, "Do they show a lack of trust in you? Is that why you are here in your ship instead of out there?"
Lance grit his teeth, "You don't know what you are talking about."
"But there is a gap of the trust between you and your fellow paladins. Did you do something?" Lotor smirks. He was trying to get in his head, Lance knew. Trying to get him to lower his guard. "Or is it perhaps that they did something to lose your trust?"
"Shut up…" Lance's hand twitches and Lotor smirked,
"They did. Didn't they? In some way or another, they betrayed you,"
"Shut up!"
"Very well." His eyes flickered behind Lance. Realizing something was behind him just a second too late, Lance turned.
Ezor surprised him when she appeared from behind, slamming into his back and flipping his entire body over her shoulder. Hitting the ground, hard enough to knock the air out of him, he gasped, his chest convulsing, desperate to take a breathe. His helmet rolled to the side when he fell, and he rolled to avoid Ezor's.
Dizzy for a few seconds, he stumbled to his knees, lifting his gaze. His eyes locked with Lotor, and the Galra prince hesitated. Something odd flashed in Lotor's eyes,
"You…" Lance saw the chance and leaped to his feet, kicking his leg out. Slamming it into Lotor's chest, catching the Galran prince off guard, he hit him back into Ezor. The two crumpled to the floor in a pile.
Lance took aim with his bayard and fired a moment later, barely able to graze their armor before they were ducking to the right, rolling behind a chair.
"Incredible…" Lotor lifted a hand to his chest, amazed at how sore it felt. It was quite a kick, if he did say so himself. "How interesting!" He felt a rush, some sense of excitement in facing this new paladin. He had never encountered the Blue one before today, and had to wonder why that was. "You are strong, paladin. I shall give you that." he calls from behind the chair.
Lance didn't reply, stepping back slowly to make his way to Coran. When he got close enough, his pistol trained to the chair, waiting for the two Galran's to pop out, he knelt down to his friend.
"Coran." he shook him.
The altean stirred slightly, "Lance…"
"Yes, that's it buddy. Come on." he put a second too long into Coran, lifting his head a moment too late before Ezor was upon him, using her camouflage to sneak up on him. Her foot collided with the side of his face. For a moment, he saw stars when he slid across the ground. By impulse, his kicked out the moment colors flashed over his eyes, managing to snag her in the face. Her nose made a snapping noise and she fell back, shrieking.
During this time, Coran had lifted himself up from the ground, regaining his consciousness. Looking to see Lance and the Galrans in the midsts of a battle, he slowly inched his way to the controls. Moving like a worm with his tied hands, he pressed his chin to the chair and heaved himself up, leaning his body weight to the panel.
"Just a little-" he tapped a few buttons with his nose, "There!" clicking one final button, the particle barrier began to lower itself. The battle froze the second it did, both sides knowing what would be happening next
It wouldn't be long till the paladins returned to the ship and out numbered the Prince and his general.
"Lotor!" Ezor called to him. With one last glance to his shoulder, watching Lance closely as he ran to help Coran up, he smiled. Without another word they ducked out of the bridge and made a break for their ship.
"They're escaping!" Coran called.
"No they aren't!" Lance scrambled after them, grabbing his helmet as he passed and placing it on his head. Racing down the hall, he charged after the two. They were faster than him, making it back to their ship long before he could ever hope to take a shot and stop them.
He was forced to watch as they took off, managing to get a few shots to the haul of their shuttle, but definitely not enough for any decent damage.
When they fled from the ship, the Lions appeared a few seconds later.
Keith attempted to give chase, but Shiro called him back.
Several times.
In fact, Keith was so close to simply ignoring their leader, which he never did, if Lance hadn't called him back instead, saying that Coran was hurt. Rushing inside to check on their friends, re-activating the particle barrier to get them out of there, Allura tossed off her helmet.
With both sides retreating, they were able to take a moment and check everyone's well being.
"Coran," she slide next to him, examined the wound he had taken to the head, "Are you alright?" her hands were shaking, worry making her eyes water.
"I'm a-okay, Princess," he assured her, "Especially with Lance here." Keith was gathering said paladin into his arms and no one could stop him, fussing over him with wide eyes.
"Are you okay? Did you get hurt?" he cups Lance's face, turning it back and forth to examine him.
"I'm okay." Lance assures him. "That Lotor guy didn't stand a chance," he gives a charming smile and a thumbs up. "What about you? You guys were the ones out there going at it against the fighters."
"We managed,"
It heartened Lance to see Keith smile. "I'm just glad you were okay." Lance's fingers touched his jaw, lifting them to cup his face.
"It's nothing we couldn't handle," Keith assures him, leaning into the touch. Allura cleared her throat, giving them a pointed look.
Keith flipped her off.
She might have been insulted if she knew what it meant, but Shiro sure did, and gave Keith a smack on the back of the head. Keith turned to retaliate, only to be stopped by Lance's hand on his shoulder. Only calmed by the blue paladin, Keith stepped back to cool off. In the end, that was as far as the conversation went. They discussed needing to be more careful, shared some thank you's and good job's to Lance part- but overall, it was just kind of bland.
Lance was glad everyone was okay, and he knew they felt the same- but there was nothing to celebrate about today. They fell into a trap, almost lost their ship, couldn't form Voltron- today was the worst.
Like a cracked record, Lotor's words bounced around in his head.
"If you all don't mind… I'm going to go to bed." Lance announces, raising his hand. The team never tried to stop him, but as Lance sauntered out of the room, Pidge and Hunk followed his form with their eyes, then shared a look. Slowly trailing their eyes to Keith, several emotions crossing their faces. They felt perplexed, and more about their own feelings to the situation.
They had felt happy when the two were able to reunite, almost finding the interaction cute. It was a very sudden and new take on the relationship the two had that had startled them.
They weren't sure how to act about it.
"Hey," Lance says into their secret intercom later that night, "Are you mad?"
"No," Keith says on the other line, "At least… not at you."
"I figured… " Lance pauses for a few second, "I"m glad you are okay,"
"Me too. You took on Zarkon's son head on and beat him." Keith sounded so proud, grinning from ear to ear, "You're amazing, Lance."
He turned into his pillow, smiling, "No I'm not," he tries to play if off, "You took Zarkon head on once,"
"I lost that fight. Horribly lost." Keith sighs, "And I had the red lion. You didn't even have your normal choice of weapon. It makes me want to come over there and kiss you like the hero you are."
Blushing, Lance bit his thumb, half tempted to say Keith should do exactly that, but holding himself back.
"Lotor was smart…" he says instead. He pauses, softly saying, "He can read people easily,"
"What does that mean?" Keith asks. "Did he say something to you,"
"Nothing I don't already know," Lance sighs. "I'm sorry you guys couldn't form Voltron,"
"You don't need to apologize for that. It was stupid we even tried after everything that has happened."
"Yeah…" Lance hugs his pillow close to his chest, wishing it was Keith. "Maybe I'll get in some flying time with Blue tomorrow,"
Keith exhales, "You should have been out there today, not Allura. It didn't feel right without you."
"Blue lets her in, so… I trust Blue's judgment," he concluded
"I don't,"
"Keith…" Lance feels exhausted, and it must show in his voice
"I'm sorry. I just- I should let you get some sleep," he whispers to the comms, and Lance almost feels like Keith is right here next to him.
"I love you,"
There is a long pause, and when Keith replies, he sounds a little choked, "I love you too. So much, Lance,"
Lance falls asleep to the sound of Keith's breathing through the comms.
"We were so close." Ezor sighed, tapping her fingers against the table she sat at.
"Yes," Lotor nods, his voice distant. "We were." As much as the failure should sting, his mind was on another matter.
One concerning ocean blue eyes covered by a horrid scar. That sneer was still tormenting his mind and he wasn't sure why. That Paladin had been more than he first expected. He was strong and resilient- which were very charming qualities in his mind.
Something about that spark he had was crawling deep under his skin and refused to leave.
"The Blue paladin..." He says over his shoulder.
The generals pause. "The Princess?" They ask.
Ezor shook her head, "No, the one that wears blue."
They were perplexed. "I've never seen one that wears Blue before."
"In fact, I've never even seen the red lion till today. That sure was a surprise." Acxa admits.
"Indeed." Lotor agrees. "For a short time both the Blue and Red lion were missing, then only the red one."
"I thought they always had all five paladins, which is how they formed Voltron?" Zethrid grunted.
Lotor rubbed his chin. "Perhaps two were off somewhere for a while?" he mused. "That Blue one was quite formidable. In fact, these new paladins both seemed to be quite the troublemakers."
"The red paladin was a very skilled pilot." Acxa agrees. Lotor was smiling, and he wasn't sure why. Yes, both had been quite formidable in their own ways. It had made the bland mission one that he could remember fondly, despite having ended in failure. He hoped that he would see that Blue paladin again soon.
Yay! Sorry this chapter took so long 0.0 Things have been busy
But hey, in the next chapter, Blue gives Allura the cold shoulder and kidnaps Lance- so that is fun XD
Reviews:
Guest: Oh my goodness thank you! You are so sweet and thank you for reading it! Da smol beans will gain happiness eventually, I promise!
Lola: AHHHHH! THANK YOU! JEALOUS AND OVER PROTECTIVE KEITH SHALL BE A THING WHEN IT COMES TO LOTOR! THIS IS SWEAR!
Guest(That realates to this situation): That box idea is the sweetest thing I've ever hear of. That is so cute ;-; I'm like- I'm getting all these feels reading this and wanting to have Keith give Lance a ltitle box or something with cute little "open me when you doubt your worth to the team" letters as a thankyou gift for the gift Lance gave him! Thank you so much for such a beautiful review you beautiful person! They shall hence forth sneak letters to each other!
Guest: #letkeithandLancebehappy is fully supported by coran ;-;
Azun26: ... *trying to resist urge in making this a side ShiroXMatt fic* ... *trying so hard* ... AHHH! I can't do this! Yes I will! You know what, if my readers want something that bad, then by gosh, I'm gonna give it to them! PLUS IT IS FLIPPING CUTE! So yes. yes I will attempt to make this mattxShiro. I've never tried to write anything with those two as a pairing, but I'm gonna do my best!
Airenlag: Ahhh XD Thank you so much! You are so sweet! Writing the last chapter was so much fun for me too. I hope you enjoyed this chapter just as much :D
Anti-lancelot: I'll be honest, I was super confused to what lancelot was because I didn't actually know the name for Lance and Lotor till I looked it up. So i was very puzzled XD And don't worry about it. It'll be complete one-sided lancelot, but you don't have to read it at all if you don't like it :D I'll try to give it justice though to the best of my ability. Hope you can come back around for some of my other stories!
Pinkdoughtnuts: They did betray them! I've been there when my friends have been unsupportive to something I legit love- my family too. And it stings ;-; Having that happen with the person you love must just feel heartbreaking.
Anamilia: Thank you! I'm so happy to hear that! I can see why you don't like Allura, honestly. Sometimes she just grinds my gears too. But she'll get better in this fic eventually... hopefully... maybe XD
Deity of Death: THANK YOU!
Adraianna Agray: Those point of emotional pain are things I tend to aim for, yes. That is very true XD But I always try to add some sneaky fluff here and there too, so hopefully you don't recieve too much pain XD
Ewink18: Dearest friend, thank you so much!
Elements1999: I am touched you find my as beautiful as a potato ;-; XD Thanks for the comments on this chapter too, friend! They always make my day!
Thecolorfulmonster: AHHH! Thank youuuuuuu! Your review made me so happy and I'm so touched you enjoyed this story so much! I hope you continue to enjoy the upcoming chapters and I hope you had a lovely vacation!
Angelslaugh: aww, thank you friend!
Knightowl247: My love comes with the price of hearts being torn to pieces I'm afraid XD Thank you so much though! I always love seeing Lotor's generals, so I was so excited when I decided to write them into the story! I hope you liked thie chapter!
.X: Ahh, I love Miraculous. Your awesome name aside, XD Thank you so much! I should just throw all the readers into the room with the Voltron crew and just let them have at 'them! I'm sure the team will learn their lesson eventually XD
xPurplePaladin: THANK YOUUUUUU!