Not only was Col. Collier able to have their ship ready in an hour, he was also able to wrangle two pilots, so Keith, Lance, and Darcy could plan rather than fly, and two escort ships to insure a safe trip home.

            After a quick and tearful goodbye, Col. Collier drove them over to the Garrison headquarters.  Allura sat quietly, clutching Keith's hand.  Her eyes were wide and darting around, taking in her surroundings and seeing nothing. 

            Lance sat in the passenger seat and fiddled with his communicator, trying to get it to work again. Keith jumped when he heard the telltale beep of the communicator coming on.

            "You fixed it?"  He asked.

            Lance shrugged, "I was just fiddling with the switch."

            Keith and Darcy both pulled out their communicators.   They both heard the same beep as they flipped the power switches.

            Keith swore under his breath, "He did this."

            "Do you know where he went?"  Col. Collier asked.    

            "We're assuming he's heading back to Doom.  We have Intel officers watching the area, they'll contact us as soon as they see anything."  Keith said as he dialed up Castle Control on his communicator.  "Koran?  I just wanted to let you know that our communicators are up and working again."

            "Thank you Keith."

            "Any word?"

            "Not yet, but there has been some activity on Doom.  The Intel is that they appear to be preparing for someone."

            Keith nodded, "I figured as much, thank you, Koran."

            Allura sighed and laid her head on his shoulder.  Keith brought his arm up around her shoulder and pulled her tight against him.

            The runway was brightly lit.  Keith and Lance met with the pilots and went over the flight plan.  Romelle took Allura's arm and helped her to board the ship.  Sven settled Erik into his seat and went back to help Darcy load the luggage.  It took them fifteen minutes.  They called their goodbyes to Col. Collier and prepared for takeoff.

            A heavy silence filled the ship.  Lance and Darcy stared quietly out their windows.  Romelle stroked Erik's arm as he drifted into sleep and Sven shifted restlessly in his chair, a dull ache spreading through his back.  Allura clutched Keith's hand as though she was afraid he would be the next to disappear.  For his part, Keith sat quietly, staring unseeingly at the wall before him.

            "We're ready for takeoff," the pilot's voice filled the cabin.  "We just received clearance for runway 12 and we should be in the air within five minutes."

Allura drew in a sharp breath and swallowed a sob.  Keith squeezed her hand reassuringly, wishing he could do or say something to make her feel better.  As much as his own heart was shattered at the moment, he could only imagine what she was going through. 

            As they lifted off and entered the dark night sky, Lance reached over and laced his fingers with Darcy's.  She looked up and gave him a weak smile.

            They all sat in silence until they were safely in the air and were able to unbuckle their belts and move about the ship.  Romelle scooped up Erik and took him to their room, where she tucked him into the travel crib that had been attached to the floor.  She stood over the crib and watched her little boy give into his exhaustion.  Imagining what Allura and Keith were going through at that moment, Romelle felt the tears well up in her eyes. 

            "Why don't you go lie down."  Keith whispered to Allura.

            "I don't think I could sleep now."  She whispered back.

            "Sweetie, you need some rest.  If anything happens, if we hear anything I'll come and get you."

            Turning from the window beside her, she looked up at him.  "I want to be with you."

            He reached out and stroked her cheek, "I'm not going anywhere."

            "If I go in there and lie down, alone, all I'm going to do is make myself sick with worry.  I want to be here, I want to know what is happening."

            Keith ran a hand through his hair and looked around the room.  Sven was tapping his fingers on the arm of his seat, looking at a spot above Keith's head.  Lance and Darcy both looked away quickly when Keith's gaze skimmed over them.  They were all waiting for him to direct them.  But he was at a loss.  When Allura had been captured, he knew she could take care of herself and they would get to her.  But this was his little girl, his baby.  Cady had no way of protecting herself and they had no idea where they had her.  Until they found them, he was at a loss.

            "I don't know," he announced, shattering the careful silence.  "I don't know what to say to you guys right now and I don't know what to do."  His voice shook slightly with helplessness.  "All I know is that he has my daughter and I don't know where they are."  Unbuckling his seatbelt he stood.  "I'm going to lie down."

            "Keit…" Sven began, softly.

            Keith turned to him, sharply.

            "Ve'll get her back.  You know dat."

            "No, Sven, I don't."  Without another word, Keith walked down the short hall and into the small room he shared with Allura. 

            Taking a shaky breath, Allura stood and followed him.

            Sven unbuckled his belt and went to find Romelle.

            Darcy swallowed the lump in her throat, "What now?"

            Lance brought her hand to his lips, "Now we rest.  When Landor contacts us, we're going to have one hell of a fight on our hands."

            "So that's it?"  Allura asked, entering the bedchamber.

            Keith sat on the edge of their bed, holding the little blanket his mother had made.

            When he didn't respond, Allura moved around to look down at him.  "Are you giving up, Keith?"

            He ran the blanket through his hands, feeling the soft, yellow yarn.  When he spoke, his voice was low and rough, "No, Allura, I'm not giving up.  I just feel so helpless.  She's just a baby.  I'm her father I should be able to protect her, now he has her."

            Allura sat down beside him, wrapping her arms around him, she laid her cheek on his back.  "This isn't your fault Keith.  You are an amazing man, if anyone can get Cady back, it's you.  But you're not a superhero and no one expects you to be."

            Keith turned in her embrace and pulled her close, "I'll do whatever it takes."

            "I know, honey, I know."

            He buried his face in her hair and tightened his arms around her.

            Sven entered the small chamber he shared with his wife and son.  Romelle stood over the crib, silent tears running down her cheeks.  Wordlessly, he went to her, wrapping his arms around her waist and resting his chin on her shoulder.

            "Ve'll find her."

            She took a shaky breath, "I know.  I know we will.  I just wish there was something I could do, something I could say.  Could you imagine if it was Erik?"

            "Ve all feel helpless right now.  All ve can do is be here for Keit and Allura, do vhat ve can to help."

            Lance stood from his seat and stretched.  He paced around the small room and stopped in front of the big window near the front of the cabin, crossing his arms over his chest. Silently, he urged the ship to go faster, to somehow get back to Arus in less than twenty-eight hours.

            Darcy stepped up behind him and watched his unmoving silence.  She wrapped her arms around his middle and laid her cheek on his shoulder.  Lance unfolded his arms and placed his hands over hers. 

            "She's out there somewhere," Lance whispered.  "Allura had checked on Cady less than an hour before she disappeared.  We figure they have an hour and a half to two hour lead on us.  If they go back to Doom, they have a thirty-three hour flight.  She's out there."

            Darcy turned and gently kissed his neck, "We'll find her.  An APB has been released.  Every ship, Garrison, police, and joyriders, are watching for any sign of Landor or Cady.  The fact that she's the Princess of a well-known planet helps, more people are interested in the outcome and they want to see her home safe.  Everyone is keeping an eye out for her."

            He turned and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tight to him, "God, I have never seen Keith like that."

            "We can only imagine what this is like for them."

            "This is something Lotor would've done."

            "Well, Landor is his half-brother."

            "We had hoped he wouldn't be as bad."

            Sighing, Darcy turned her face into his neck, "We'll get her back."

            "Come on," Lance took her hands and led her to their chamber.  "Get some rest.  Before this happened you were so tired you could hardly hold your head up."

            "I'm fine."

            "Humor me." 

            Darcy sat on the edge of the bed and untied her shoes, "I hate this waiting."

            "I know," Lance replied, shrugging out of his jacket.

            "I want to do something.  I want to find a ship, faster than this hunk of junk, and go find that son of a bitch."  She stood and pulled her sweater over her head, tugging down the t-shirt she wore underneath.

            Lance smiled at her, "I love you."

            Making sure her communicator was within reach, Darcy stretched out on the bed, giving into the fatigue that was overtaking her.  Lance laid beside her, pulling her to him, her head on his shoulder and her arm across his torso.  It didn't take long for him to hear her breathing slow and even out.

            A half hour later, still not finding sleep and feeling restless, Lance slid out from under her and crept out of the room.  He longed for a cigarette.  His fingers played out a tattoo on his thighs as he paced down the hall and to the main cabin.  He found Keith standing there, staring out the window.

            "How're you feeling, man?"  Lance asked, coming to stand beside him.

            "Helpless, worthless, stupid."

            "You have no reason to feel that way."

            "I have a million reasons to feel that way."  Keith sighed and ran his hands through his hair.

            "You have the most amazing, tactical mind I have ever seen, Keith.  As soon as we have a sight on him, you'll find a way to get her out."

            "Shit, no pressure there."  Keith mumbled.

            "You're not in this alone.  I will help you any way I can.  So will Sven, Darcy, and the rest of the guys.  We will get her back."

            "We've been in the air for almost two hours now.  And we figure they have about a two hour head start.  I can only hope a patrol ship spots them, but we're not sure what they're flying.  Warden Cooper says Landor appeared to have just disappeared.  They had a wizard and two parapsychologists in to investigate and so far they have come up with nothing."

            Lance stared out as they passed stars, planets, and ships.  "Any word from Koran?"

            "No."

            "How's Allura?"

            "She finally fell asleep.  I don't think it'll last though."

            Lance laid a hand on Keith's shoulder, "I am so sorry, man, just let me know if there is anything at all that I can do."

            "Don't worry, you'll be the first person I come to."  Keith assured him.

            They both jumped at the sound of Keith's communicator beeping.

            His heart beating hard, Keith unclipped it and answered.  "Captain Whitaker."

            "Keith?  Koran here."

            "What is it?"

            "I just wanted to let you know that Intel has reported more movement on and around Doom.  They saw four small fighting ships taking off."

            "Thank you Koran.  Let me know as soon as you hear anything else."

            "Yes, sir."  The old man cleared his throat.  "How…how's Allura?"

            "She's resting right now, but she's dealing with it as well as she can."

            "She's a strong woman."

            "Yes, she is."  Keith agreed.

            "Alright then, I'll keep you posted."

            "Thank you, Koran."

            "Good bye, Keith."

            Snapping the communicator shut, Keith began to pace the small room.  "We can only hope he plans to use Cady as a bargaining chip."

            "For what?"

            "For me.  I hope.  I can handle myself."

            "If he does want to trade for you, or Allura…"

            "He won't get Allura."

            "What if that's the trade he wants?"

            "He can have me, the Prince Consort of Arus and the Commander of the Voltron Force.  That'll have to be enough."

            Lance knew not to argue this with him.  "You know that we will have the Lions in the air within seconds."

            "I know.  We should probably have a plan."  The wheels began to turn in Keith's mind.  He found a notepad and sat with Lance.

            Together, they went over the castle and surrounding lands of Doom.  Neither of them had been there in a year, since the last time Allura had been captured and they went in to save her.  They went over various points of entry and escape plans.  Now they could only pray that there had been no major changes within the castle grounds in the past year.

            Crumpled sheets of paper and quick sketches littered the floor around them.  Hours passed.  With something else to think about, Keith was feeling better.  As they planned and plotted, he began to feel as though he had some kind of control over what was happening.

            They both looked up when they heard someone enter the room.  Allura shuffled over, rubbing sleep from her eyes.  Her hair was down and formed a curtain of gold as she kept her head cast down. 

            "What are you doing?"  She asked quietly.

            "We're working on plans to get into the Doom castle." Keith told her.

            "Good.  Show me what you have, maybe I can help."  Allura settled down beside Keith and looked at the pad on his lap.

*************************

            Darcy jumped and sat straight up as the alarms sounded.  She grabbed her shoes and pulled them on her feet, not bothering to stop and tie them.  She ran into Sven in the hallway as they hurried toward the main cabin.

            Keith was in the cramped cockpit speaking to the pilots.  The alarms shut off, he emerged and turned to the crowd surrounding him.  "There is a ship claiming to be Landor's wanting to make contact with us."  He crossed to the opposite wall and punched a few buttons on a keypad.  A screen came down from a slit in the ceiling.

            Allura held her breath as static filled the screen and slowly faded to an image of Landor.  He grinned at them.

            "Captain Whitaker!  So nice to see you again."

            "What do you want, Landor?"

            "I don't think you're in any position to ask questions, Captain.  I think I have something you're looking for."

            Allura stepped forward and clutched Keith's hand.  They watched as Landor snapped his fingers and a guard came into the screen, carrying a screaming little girl.  Landor picked her up by the back of her pajamas and dangled her in front of the screen.  Allura gasped.  Keith clenched and unclenched his fists.  Sven and Lance instinctively stepped forward.

            "I swear to God, Landor, if you harm a hair on her head, I will kill you with my bare hands."  Keith growled.

            "Oh, don't be so melodramatic, Captain, she's fine.  However we didn't really plan well enough, we didn't stock up on diapers.  It amazes me at the amount of waste your human babies make."  Wrinkling his nose, Landor held Cady away from him.

            Cady's little legs and arms flailed as she screamed.  Tears ran down her red face and she gasped for breath.

            Keith felt his heart constrict, "What do you want?"

            Grinning, Landor gently swung Cady in front of the camera, "I want you, Captain."

            "Fine," Keith said.

            Landor raised an eyebrow, "It's that easy?  Do you have some sort of plan?"

            "No, I just want Cady returned to Allura."

            "Fine, a switch, you for the brat.  We will dock with your ship and you will enter our ship, no questions."

            "I will be bringing my second-in-command.  Hand Cady over to Lt. Collier and I will gladly come with you."

            Allura let out a choked sob as she clutched Keith's hand.

            "You will be near us in twenty minutes.  We will contact you again when we are ready to dock."  Handing Cady back to the guard, Landor closed the connection.

            "You can't do this, Keith."  Allura pleaded.

            "I have you, we have to get Cady back, I can handle myself."

            "Dis seems too easy," Sven rubbed the back of his neck.

            "Yeah," Lance agreed.  "He has to know that we'll come after you."

            "Yes, but he also knows that we're still a good twelve hours from Arus.  By the time you get back there and get the Lions, who knows where they'll be."

            "Please, Keith," Allura pulled him to face her.  "There has to be another way.  We can attack while they're docked."

            "We don't have enough backup and we can't chance Cady's life.  I can handle myself."

            Allura stood quietly, going over all this in her mind.  She knew he was right.  But how was she to trade her husband for her daughter? Where was Landor going to take him?  What would he do to Keith?  They had to wait until they got back to Arus before they could go after him.

            Everyone watched her.  She was pale and shaking slightly, but she looked determined.

            "Allura?"  Keith asked, gently.

            "We have to figure out a way to get you back."  She muttered.

            Keith smiled, "Don't worry.  I'll be fine."

            "I'm going to call Castle Control, I want the Lions ready to fly as soon as we hit Arus."  Lance said, pulling the communicator off his belt.

            Keith took Allura by the hand and sat her down, "You're an amazing woman, Allura, we'll get through this just fine.  I need you to be strong for Cady.  When Lance brings her back, she's going to be tired and scared.  Take care of her, get her back to Arus, safely."

            She gave him a weak smile, "I'll do that if you promise to get your butt home."

            "Give me ten minutes, I'll beat you back to Arus."

            She clutched both his hands in hers, "Listen to me, Keith, I need you, Cady needs you.  Know that we will do everything in our power to get you back. Just stay alive, no over the top heroics, we'll get you."

            Keith pulled her into a tight hug, "I'll be fine, I have complete faith in you guys."

            "Cady needs her dad."  Allura whispered, her throat tightening

            Lance was busy filling Koran and the team in on what had just transpired.  "Everybody be ready to go as soon as we land.  We can't waste any time."

            "We'll be ready, Lance."  Pidge promised.

            "Lance, is Keith taking his communicator with him?"  Hunk asked.

            Lance shrugged, "I guess, but I'm sure they'll take it off him."

            "Okay, listen to me, all our communicators have homing devices in them.  If you can get a flat screwdriver and pry the bottom off, you will see a small disk, about the size of an aspirin and the thickness of two pieces of paper.  It's blue in the middle and clear around the edge.  That's the homing device. It's pretty tough and waterproof.  Have Keith pry that out and put it somewhere on him, somewhere they won't find it.  Maybe put it under his tongue until they search him.  This way we'll be able to track him."  Hunk explained.

            Lance grinned at the small screen on his communicator, "Hunk you are an absolute genius.  We'll do that now.  I'll contact you guys later."  He snapped it shut and went to find Keith.  They had fifteen minutes.

            "Keith, I need your communicator," Lance approached him and Allura.  He quickly repeated everything Hunk had just told him.  Taking out his pocketknife, he pried the bottom off the communicator.  After a moment, he handed Keith the tiny transmitter.

            "I don't know why we didn't think of this before."  Keith said, examining the small disk.

"I don't know what we would do without Hunk," Allura whispered.

"Why don't we send one of the escort ships to follow Landor?"  Darcy asked.

Keith thought for a moment, "I'm wary of leaving you guys with only one ship for protection."

"But if Landor has what he wants, why would he turn around and attack us?"  Lance asked.

Keith shook his head, "I'll be alright.  You can track me with this and chances are they're going to return to Doom.  I want you to have the protection of both ships."

"Captain Whitaker," the pilot's voice came over the intercom.  "We are approaching the ship.  They wish to make contact."

Keith went to the cockpit.  A moment later, he returned, approached the screen, and tuned in the transmission.

"Hello Captain, miss me?"  Landor asked.

"We're ready."  Keith said.

"First things first, Captain.  Call off the fighter ships you have with you."

Keith nodded, curtly, "Done."

"Neither you, nor the Lieutenant may bring weapons aboard."

Keith nodded.

"My men are in the process of docking with your ship." 

As if on cue, they heard metal hit metal and their ship shook slightly.

"Where's Cady?"  Allura asked.

Landor looked down at her with disgust, "She's here, with a guard.  Don't worry, she's fine."

"I swear, if you hurt her, I will kill you."  Keith said, calmly.

Landor laughed, "Stop being so dramatic, you'll have your little brat.  See you momentarily."   He ended the transmission.

Allura threw her arms around Keith, "Come back to me."  She whispered.

The others looked away, giving them a moment.

"Don't worry, I'll be back in time for supper."  He pulled back and looked at her.  "I love you."

"I love you, too, Keith."  Not caring, or noticing, that there were others in the room, Allura stood on her toes and kissed him as hard as she could.

Keith pulled back and looked at her, "That's reason enough to come back."

There was a loud banging on the entry hatch at the end of the hallway.

"Come on, man," Lance laid a hand on his shoulder.

Keith turned from Allura and walked with Lance down the hallway.  He looked at the small disk in his hand.  "Take care of her, Lance."

"Don't worry about it, Keith, you'll be back before you know it."

"I don't know, Lance, I have a bad feeling about Landor.  Just get Cady back here and get them both home, safely."

Lance nodded, "I will, and then we'll be out after you."

Keith nodded.  They locked eyes, words not being necessary.  He slipped the disk under his tongue and they approached the hatch.