Cady sat upright as the castle alarms clanged through the hall. She had just lain down and was planning to flip through the televiewer channels until she fell asleep. Jumping up, she grabbed a scrunchie off her dresser and pulled her hair back into a ponytail as she left her room. Charlotte and Tess were already in the hall, waiting for her.
"Where's Nick?" She asked her younger sisters.
Tess shrugged, "Probably still in his room."
Cady hurried down to the third door on the left and slid it open. The room appeared empty, but she saw his blankets pushed back and the little lamp shaped like Black Lion that sat on the bedside table was on.
"Nicky?"
No answer.
"Nicholas, answer me now!" Cady walked around the side of his bed and saw nothing.
Charlotte got on her hands and knees and looked under the bed while Tess opened the closet door.
"Cady," Tess pointed into the open door.
Nicky was curled up on the floor of the closet, his eyes squeezed shut and his hands clamped over his ears, his stuffed dog on his lap.
Cady crouched down and laid her hand on his shoulder, "Come on, Nicky."
He slowly opened his eyes, "It's loud, Cady."
"I know, Nicky. What do you say we go down to the caves, it won't be so loud down there."
His lower lip trembled, "I don't wanna."
"We have to, come on," she held her hand out to him.
"I want Mommy."
"Nicholas," Cady said sternly. "We have to go now."
Big tears rolled down his cheeks as he sniffled.
"Ach! Here you are!" Nanny huffed as charged into the room. "Come along. Princess, you are expected to be in the caves."
Cady leaned closer to her youngest brother, "Nicky, you can go with me, or you can go with Nanny, but you are coming with us."
"Can I bring Alan?" He whispered, clutching the ragged stuffed dog to his chest.
"Of course you can, come on." Cady took his hand and helped him out, picking him up and swinging him onto her hip.
"Ach, really, Princess! Why don't we stop at your room and you can change into something more appropriate," Nanny suggested.
Cady looked down at the old, gray sweatpants and Buccaneers sweatshirt she wore, "We don't have time, Nanny. I'm descent and I was getting ready to go to bed. There are some clothes in our quarters in the caves, I can throw something on down there."
"We have to purchase more…feminine pajamas for you then."
Nicky yawned and laid his head on Cady's shoulder as they rushed through the hall and down the steps accompanied by four guards.
The alarms were shut off and they could hear the sounds of an impending battle outside the castle. The Lions roared into life and the ships of the Air Brigade shot up into the air.
…………………………………………………………………………………
"Let the Air Brigade and the Garrison ships handle the small fighters," Keith barked to the Lions. "Get up there and take care of Vinn's ship."
Erik led the team, moving at a fast pace around attacking Bittor ships. Green and Blue each shot down a ship while Red and Black each took out two. "Now!" He yelled as the massive ship came into sight.
The five Lions came together and quickly formed the giant robotic knight. The smaller fighters moved quickly to get out of the way as Voltron shot through the atmosphere and towards the mother ship.
Two lasers shot from canons in the front of the ship, one grazing Voltron's right arm. They all felt the jolt.
"Sky! You okay?" Erik called.
"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied, shaking her head. The shot had shaken her Lion and sent what felt like an electric current through her.
"Form Blazing Sword!" He called.
Moving swiftly to avoid another shot from the ship, Voltron raised the sword above his head and brought it down swiftly, slicing first one canon and then the other off Vinn's ship, causing it to go into a spin. The pilot regained control of the ship just in time to move and miss getting hit a third time by the Blazing Sword.
"They're retreating," Keith announced.
Sure enough, the fighters joined their mother ship and they pulled away from Arus. The five Lions broke apart, circling above the planet to make sure everything was safe.
………………………………………………………………………………………..
Watching from Castle Control, Allura pressed both hands over her rapidly beating heart as the Bittor ships drew back. The Lions circled and she knew it would be another twenty minutes before they returned. "I'm going down to the caves and check on the children."
Keith nodded, not looking up from where he and Pidge were studying the radar and some of the readouts being printed. Hearing the door slide open, snapped Keith out of it, raised his head and motioned for two guards to go with her.
Lt. Alexander had stood beside his red-faced Captain and watched the short battle in awe. As the Queen bustled past him he glanced at Captain Klari before falling into step beside Allura. "Your highness?"
"Yes, what is it?" She asked hurriedly.
"May I join you? I would like to see how you have everything organized down in the caves."
Allura sized him up. Lt. Alexander reminded her of a younger Keith, however he lacked the confidence needed to lead. When she looked at him it amazed her to think that she and Keith were ever that young. "Of course you may come, Lieutenant."
"May I ask you a question?"
"Ask away," she replied as they hurried down the stairs.
"If you and Commander Whitaker are in Castle Control during a battle, who is in the caves overseeing the arrival of the people?"
"Cady."
"The Princess?"
"Yes. It is part of her job to gather the children and head to the caves. Once the younger children, along with Pidge and Becca's two kids, and Hunk and Paton's children are safe with Nanny in the caves, she meets up with Darcy, that's Lance wife and Sky's mother, and Paton. They then make sure everyone who wants to, gets into the caves, the doors are left open for twenty minutes after the alarm goes off, then they are closed. It is up to Cady to greet people, answer questions, make sure anyone who needs medical attention receives it."
Tristan's eyes widened. While he certainly found her attractive, if the truth be known, he thought Cady was a bit of a spoiled, air headed young woman. Granted, it seemed as though she had been unable to hold a conversation with him until dinner that night. He had no idea she was capable of such leadership, such responsibility.
"Cady loves to work with people," Allura continued as they approached the locked door that led to the royal quarters in the caves. "She is a born diplomat, although I believe Koran, my late advisor, had a hand in that. She will make a wonderful ruler."
Tristan nodded, not responding.
"Mommy!"
"Hi sweetie," Allura scooped up her youngest and hugged him tightly.
Nick rubbed his eye with his fist, clutching Alan protectively to his chest and glared at her with red eyes, "The 'larms are loud, Mommy."
"I know sweetie, but they have to be. Are you okay?"
He let his head fall against her shoulder, "I don't like da 'larms."
"Neither do I. Where's Cady?"
"She an' Aun' Darcy an'..an'" he stopped to yawn. "An' Aun' Pat are out dere." He pointed to the door.
"The Princess was meeting with the elders," Nanny announced. "And the two younger Princesses are in bed, although they won't sleep. And the little Prince just won't stay in bed. Oh, good evening, Lieutenant."
Tristan bowed, "Ma'am."
"Lt. Alexander wishes to see how things are run down here. The 'all-clear' signal should be sounded soon." She set her son down. "Nicky, I want you and Alan to go and sit with your sisters. When I come back, we'll go back up to the Castle."
"But Mommy…"
"No buts, Nicholas, go now. I'll tuck you in when we get back to your room."
Biting his lip to stop it from trembling, Nicky hung his head and sniffled as he dragged his feet toward the room his sisters were in.
"It may not seem it," Allura said to Tristan as she led the way across the room and to a door that opened out into the main area. "But this is actually a well oiled machine. We have guards and soldiers who keep order, town elders who are working with Cady to make sure everything runs smoothly and they work directly with Paton Landers, the chief of police. Not that there is ever really a problem, most of my people just want to be safe and they do what they are instructed. Oh, there's Cady."
Tristan didn't see her at first, his gaze moving past her and then back again when he realized the slender girl dressed in jeans, old work boots, and a faded Buccaneers sweatshirt was Cady. Her hair was pulled back with a bright red scrunchie into a long bundle of curls, her face scrubbed clean of any make-up and a small smile on her lips as she spoke with two women. She looked more like the pretty girl next door than a Princess.
Allura sighed and grumbled, "When I told her to pack comfortable clothes to keep down in the caves, I meant something more appropriate for a Princess ruling over her people."
"Allura," Darcy was the first to see her. "How is everything?"
Cady saw Tristan standing just behind her mother. At the sight of him, heat rose to her cheeks and she looked quickly to her mother.
"Voltron shaved a few pounds of metal off Vinn's ship. They left in a hurry so the Lions are circling, making sure everything is clear. I'm sure you'll all be sent home soon."
"Good," Paton said. "Natalia is terrified and won't have anything to do with me, she only wants her Daddy."
"No offense, Aunt Paton, but Uncle Hunk does have the ability to make you feel safe, no matter what's going on," Cady said.
Paton laughed, "No offense taken Cady because I agree whole heartedly."
"How is everything going?" Allura asked.
"Fine," Cady explained. "A few bumps and bruises rushing in here, but the medics have patched them up and sent them on their way, nothing serious. There was a problem with the plumbing over in section 7B, but I have men working on it right now. There is a little party going on in section 9A, but it's nothing bad, just some people hanging out and blowing off steam. I asked them to keep it down since it was getting late and I left two guards nearby to keep the order."
"No troublemakers this time?"
She shook her head, "No, Mom. I think last time was just the stress of the situation."
"No sing-alongs?" Allura asked.
Cady laughed, "No. Everyone seemed calmer, more prepared this time."
"Good, good. The 'all-clear' alarm should be sounded soon. You can get your brother and sisters and head back upstairs, I'll stay here and make sure everyone gets home safely."
"I can stay, Mom."
"No, sweetie, thank you. Go ahead on back, I'll handle this. Besides, you have to get up early in the morning," Allura patted her daughter's cheek. "Thank you so much for all your help, Cady, I am so proud of you."
"Thanks, Mom."
A loud clanging sounded, alerting everyone that it was all-clear and they could return home.
"Take the girls and Nicky to bed, tell Nicky I'll be up to tuck him in as soon as I can."
"Okay, Mom."
"Lt. Alexander," Allura turned to the young man who had been silently watching them. "Would you please escort my children back to the castle?"
He bowed, "Of course, your highness."
Cady gave her mother and the two other women quick hugs and wished them all a good night before turning to Tristan. He was watching her with interest, studying her. She felt her cheeks darken and she swept quickly past him, her head held high as she moved with purposeful strides toward the royal quarters.
"Um, your highness?"
She glanced over her shoulder, "Yes, Lieutenant?"
"This, uh, this is all very impressive," he motioned around them.
"It was originally started back before my father and the original Force arrived. The war with Doom had forced the people of Arus into the caves for safety. As time went on, they were updated and modernized over the years as a precaution."
"I would like to have a tour of them sometime, if you don't mind that is."
"Of course," she opened the door. "You really don't need to escort us, we're safe here."
"I was given an order, I'll follow it through."
A door opened and a small dark head peeked around the corner.
Cady smiled, "I see you, Nicky."
"Where's Mommy?" He whispered.
"She has some work to do, but she promised to tuck you in."
"Dere were more 'larms."
"Those were good alarms," she explained walking over to him. "That means we can go back upstairs."
He held his arms up and allowed his sister to pick him up, wrapping his legs around her waist and his arms around her neck, Alan dangling from one hand. "Charlotte said that bad men were shooting at us."
"Well, yeah, Nick, they were, but you're safe. Daddy won't let anything happen to you."
"But Dec got hurt."
"Dec is fine now."
"What…what if he gets hurt again?"
"Then he'll get better again."
"Can we go back upstairs?" Charlotte asked, coming into the main room.
"Yup. Get Tess and Nanny, tell them we're heading back upstairs."
"I know you," Nicky said, looking over Cady's shoulder to see Tristan.
"Uh, yeah," Tristan wasn't really comfortable with young kids. Most of his cousins were older than him and he had no siblings, so he hadn't spent a lot of time around them. "I'm, uh, I'm Lt. Alexander."
"You're with the mean lady."
"Nicholas!" Cady bit the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing. "That is not a nice thing to say."
"Cady, Char said…" Tess appeared in the room dressed in an old flannel nightgown. She saw Tristan and turned a bright shade of red before turning and hurrying back into her room.
"Excuse me," Cady nodded to Tristan and followed her sister. "What is with you, Tess?"
"Why is he here?" She hissed.
"Mom asked him to escort us back upstairs. What is the problem?"
"He just saw me in this!" She cried, indicating her old nightgown.
"So?"
"So? So! This is so embarrassing!"
Cady smiled and nodded, "Stay here, Tess, I'll be right back." She set her brother down and went back out to the main room. "Excuse me, Lieutenant."
"Yes, your highness?"
"I am relieving you of your duty. You may go now."
"But…"
"But nothing, um," she looked over her shoulder to make sure no one was behind her before stepping closer to him and lowering her voice. "To be honest, my sister is a little embarrassed about her, uh, her clothing situation."
He furrowed his brow, "What?"
"She doesn't want you to see her in her nightgown."
"I don't care."
"No, but she does."
Tristan smiled, his dimple just starting to appear, "Okay, I get the hint. But if anything happens to you on those stairs back up to the castle…"
"I take full responsibility and I can handle my father."
The thought of this beautiful, petite girl going against the great Commander Whitaker, and winning, widened his smile, bringing the dimple out in all its glory. "Then I will take my leave, your highness," he bowed and took her hand, gently brushing his lips over her knuckles. "Good night, Princess."
To say she was surprised by his behavior was quite the understatement. Cady could only watch, open-mouthed as he opened the door that led to the castle and jogged up the steps.
"Come along, Princess, we need to get everyone to bed," Nanny declared as she and Charlotte hurried into the room.
"Okay, I'll get Tess and Nick," Cady told her. "You guys can head on up."
"Is he gone?" Tess whispered.
"Yeah, he's gone," Cady swept Nicky up onto her back for a piggy-back ride. "Time for bed."
………………………………………………………………………………………..
The five Lions circled above the castle for fifteen minutes before returning to their hiding places.
"You okay, Sky?" Erik asked, meeting her at the entrance to Red's tube.
"Uh, yeah," she mumbled. "I'm a little shaky, but okay."
He took her arms and turned her to face him, feeling her tremble slightly, "Come on, let's go see Becca."
She shook her head, "No, I'm okay. How's Declan?"
"I'm fine," Declan replied, hobbling over to a chair. "How'd we do?"
Keith, Pidge, Lance, and Hunk had all gathered in Castle Control when the alarms had gone off and had been going over the preliminary reports and printouts. Captain Klari stood off to the side, watching everything with a scowl on her harsh face.
"You guys did fine," Keith said. "We still need to work on Voltron's wielding of the Blazing Sword, but considering it all, you guys did real well. Declan, I want you off your feet, go to bed. Sky, go get checked out. Barring any problems, we will meet first thing in the morning, before practice and go over everything."
"Come on, Sunny," Erik slid his arm around her waist. "I'll take you to the hospital wing."
"I'm fine, really, I just want to go lay down."
"Go, Sky, that's an order," Keith commanded.
Erik led her toward the door, passing Captain Klari. He met the older woman's gaze and glared back, pressing a kiss to Sky's hair as they passed.
"You're baiting her," Sky whispered when they got into the hall.
"I don't care," he replied. "I don't like her and I don't like that she thinks she can come in here and tell us what to do. How do you feel?"
"I'm tired and it feels like my insides are shaking."
"You took a hit, it looked like a regular laser, but it might have been something more."
"I just hope Red's okay."
"How was she flying?"
"A little rough. Hunk said he'd look at her tonight."
"Oh, hi Sky, Erik, what's up?" Becca asked as she stood outside an examining room door, reading over a file.
"Red took a hit and Sky's feeling a little shaky," Erik explained.
Becca looked up and ran her eyes over Sky, "Go ahead into examining room 4, I'll be there in a few minutes. We were lucky this time, very few major injuries, most of them were taken care of by the medics on the field."
"Do you want me to go with you?" Erik whispered.
Sky shook her head, "No, I'll be fine. You can go, thanks, Erik."
He dropped a kiss on her head, "I'll wait for you."
Sky sat on the table in the examining room and clutched her hands tightly together, trying to stop the vibrations within her. When Red had absorbed the shot, the entire Lion shook and she felt the shock throughout. However, the shock just didn't seem to leave her.
Ten minutes later, she left the room with Becca. Erik was true to his word and was waiting for her along side her parents.
"How are you?" Darcy jumped to her feet and hurried over to her daughter.
"We saw Red take a hit, but it didn't look that bad," Lance added.
"Sky will be fine," Becca assured him. "She just needs to rest. Her body took a shock, but I can find no real damage, she will be fine in the morning."
"We all felt the hit," Erik said. "It was like a shudder throughout Voltron, but Red took the brunt of the shot."
"Come on, honey," Darcy wrapped her arm around Sky's shoulder. "I'll help you to bed."
"That's really not necessary, Mom, I can get there by myself."
"I want to…"
"No!" Sky snapped. "I'm tired, I feel…weird. I just want to go to my room, alone, and lie down. Please."
"Um, okay," Darcy tried to hide the hurt in her voice. "But I will be checking on you in the morning."
"Whatever. Good night." Sky left the hospital wing, rubbing her hands over her face. She knew she had been rude would apologize in the morning, but she felt angry, confused and tired. These emotions annoyed her, but she couldn't help it and that only angered her more.
The hallway was empty when she arrived at her door. The others were already in bed, resting after their first battle with Voltron. She splashed cold water on her face and slipped into an oversized Bears t-shirt she had swiped from her father years before and a pair of worn flannel pants. With a sigh and shaking hands, she pulled back the comforter and sat on her bed, burying her face in her hands.
"Sunny?" Erik's voice was low and concerned from the other side of the door.
"What?"
"Are you okay?"
She stood slowly and crossed to open the door, "I'm fine, I just want to sleep."
"What is it, Schuyler?"
She shrugged, "I don't know. I feel weird."He furrowed his brow, "Weird how?"
"I don't know, just weird."
"Do you want to go sleep in the hospital wing? I'm sure Becca won't mind."
Instead of answering, Sky stepped forward and leaned against him, laying her head on his shoulder and closing her eyes.
Erik shut the door and wrapped his arms around her, "It's okay, baby."
"Erik?"
"What?"
"You, uh, you said a lot to Captain Klari."
"What do you mean?"
"About us being together."
"You don't agree?"
"I don't know."
He rubbed her back and kissed her forehead, "We can talk about this later. I want you to rest."
Sky tilted her head back and looked up at him, "I don't deserve you."
"Don't say that, Sky."
"You are such a good man, Erik, I don't know why you're with me."
"Because I love you and I am not going to let you put yourself down like this. You've had a rough night, we all have. Come on, I want you to lay down."
"You'll stay, won't you?"
He smiled at her and teased, "Why, Miss Sky, you are turning into quite the wanton woman."
"I guess I've just gotten used to having you around."
"That's good, 'cause I'm not going anywhere." Erik kicked off his boots and sat on her bed, pulling his shirt off. "You sure you're okay?"
"Yeah. Becca said the weird feeling will pass."
"No, I mean, you're okay with everything, flying, fighting."
She nodded, "Yeah. This is what I'm meant to do, Erik. I'm not afraid."
He chuckled and stretched out on her bed, "You're not afraid of anything, are you?"
Sky curled up next to him as closely as she could get, pulling the blankets up to her chin, "Sure I am."
"What?"
"I'm afraid of something happening to you. I'm afraid of Vinn defeating us."
"Neither of which are going to happen," he assured her, wrapping his arms around her.
"I'm afraid for you if my father ever caught you in here."
"Okay, I'll agree with that one. Promise me that if you father catches me here and kills me, you'll spend the rest of your life mourning for me and you'll never marry."
"Should I invest in some widow's weeds?"
"Yes. And wear them every day for the rest of your life."
"I don't think we'll have to worry about that since he'll kill me along with you."
"Then I'll see you in the afterlife."
She smiled against his chest, "Thank you, Erik."
"Anytime, Sunny."
……………………………………………………………………
"We have found that Vinn was not on the ship that attacked last night," Keith said the next morning in the meeting. "You guys did some serious damage to one of his main ships. We believe he sent them to see how we would react in battle and you guys did well."
"What was the final casualty report?" Gideon asked.
"On our side, three fatalities and thirty-one injuries, only three requiring over night hospital stays," Lance said.
"Now, since we have shown him twice that we won't back down and proved last night that it will be difficult for him to actually get on our planet, we're thinking he might try another way in."
"Like what?" Erik asked.
"Like sneaking onto the planet and infiltrating the castle on foot," Captain Klari said stiffly.
"We need to be vigilant at all times," Keith added. "If anyone sees anything out of the ordinary it should be reported immediately. We are going to be sending groups of soldiers as well as plain clothes officers into town to keep an eye out. Posters with Vinn's picture will be posted so everyone knows who we are looking for."
"What are we going to do?" Brina asked.
"You guys will continue on training, working out, and preparing for battle. We need you guys ready at a moment's notice. Any other questions?"
Everyone shook their heads.
"All right then, Sky, Erik, I want to speak with the two of you. Everyone else head out to Castle Control. We will be taking notes during practice and go over our findings later." Keith stood, signaling the end of the meeting.
Everyone filed from the room until only Keith remained with the new commander and second-in-command of the Voltron Force.
"Is everything okay?" Sky asked.He sighed and ran a hand through his gray speckled hair, "You guys just love to cause trouble, don't you? I mean, I expect this from you, Sky, you can really be your father's daughter sometimes. But Erik, I had hoped you could behave more maturely."
"What are you talking about?" Erik asked.
"I was cornered by Captain Klari this morning where she proceeded to tell me all about the inappropriate behavior she witnessed. Something about two teammates in a compromising position, they should be court-martialed or kicked off the team. None of you children can really handle what is expected of you and that if you can't control your raging hormones you will be putting this entire mission in jeopardy."
"I'm sorry, sir, but she said some things that were totally out of line, I guess my temper got the better of me," Erik replied.
"Yeah, you have your father's temper," Keith muttered. "Just try to keep your hormones under control for now. This mission does come first and if I think you guys are unable to handle it, I will pull you."
Sky tensed and was about to speak when she felt Erik gently squeeze her arm.
"Yes, sir, we understand. Nothing will get in the way of us performing our duty," he said.
Keith nodded, "Go. You have practice."