A/N: Sorry for the late update, guys. Master's thesis plus job hunting equals no fun. I'm going to update as often as I can. English is my second language, by the way. Am sorry for the mistakes in Chapter 1, I typed it on my phone's Office Pro. Thanks for the great reviews!
Chapter 2
Alfor's eyes followed the swans that swam in the large pond, necks craned majestically as they preened and smoothed their feathers, before slowly extending their pristine, white wings and flapping as if to boast to the world on their beauty. He wondered if he would be able to keep such heavenly creatures safe on this chaotic world. He wondered if he could keep such pleasant, clear, beautiful days safe from the horror that was mounting this beautiful planet.
A sudden movement caught his eye from behind the white rose bushes a few paces from the pond. He could see a golden head moving slowly along the length of the bushes, cautious in its gestures and movements as it lifted slightly to peek over at the pond. He watched the figure for some time before he saw it disappear again as if startled behind the bushes again.
"Princess!"
"Princess Allura! Your Highness!"
He watched as the girl's nanny and two maids made their way slowly toward the rows of rose bushes. The little gold head, sensing their presence nearing, started moving away from the three, head securely tucked under the bushes as insurance. Unfortunately, she did not see the man waiting for her as she turned a right turn along her path, bumping head first into his booted legs. Alfor tried not to laugh at his daughter's plight as she was caught by his advisor and oldest friend, and the ladies searching for her. He could faintly see the frown on her otherwise flawless face as she realized her escape from Etiquette and Diplomacy class had been impeded.
"King Alfor!"
A voice cut through his private drama and he turned from the large windows that made up the walls of their meeting hall to look at his colleagues. The council of Arus was made up of the noble leaders of their planet. Five continental provinces represented by 25 delegates, all vying for a control, all yearning dominion. He found it tiring. Alfor, descendent of Ariella Raimon, the first blue lion knight and first Queen of a United Arus, hated politics.
"My Lords," he began, after taking his place back on the throne, " instead of arguing about who failed in defending the Eastern province or who should be stripped of power, we have to come to terms with the situation at hand. We have lost over a fifth of Arus's population to the Aidan's forces and the Drules in the last four years since Lord Kogane went missing. As it stands, they are gaining momentum and they are capable of attacking any province at any time. They know our tactics, courtesy of Aidan. They probably even know that right now, we are sitting here arguing and they are laughing behind our backs."
The council members looked at each other in silence, some in acceptance of this fact and others in denial.
"Then we surrender."
Gasps of disbelief echoed in the room as everyone turned to nobleman Brisal. The shallowest, most conniving, single handedly most greedy man in the room, he continued his weasel, pin prick blue eyes landed on the councilmen one by one, memorizing their expressions as he slowly rubbed his fat hand on his protruding belly.
"Yes. We surrender. If the Drules continue to advance, we lose territory, property and everything we have built since they were sealed in their dimension. Do you know how much my province has lost in this war alone? I dare say, if we can't beat them, why not join them."
"And what about the cost of human life? How much do you think a tub of lard like you is worth? How do we weigh you, huh? The amount you take in versus the shit you produce?!", interjects Vatra province's Lord Hunter McClain.
"How dare you ins…" Brisal did not have the chance to finish what he was saying as he was tugged roughly by the collar by Lord Hunter across the table until his pudgy, red, sweaty face was millimeters from the lord's face. No one dared to stop him as they knew how harsh the backlash of his fiery personality would be. His strength as one of the descendants of the Lion Knights was unquestionable, his fiery red hair proof of his lineage. It was the uncharacteristic cold tone that he used in that moment that petrified the other men in the room, all except the King.
" If you dare try to betray this planet, these kingdoms, me or the memory of the man I once called my brother, I will destroy every little ant, weed and lice along with everything you own before I gut you like a pig and feed you your own innards. Do you understand me?"
Brisal was shaking so much, eyes wide in despair as he realized the man that held him meant every little word he said. He nodded his head quickly, desperate to loosen the tightening around his throat. His face met the hardwood surface as he was unceremoniously released. After dragging himself to his seat, no one daring to assist him as he did so, Alfor again addressed the deathly quiet room.
" If Arus is to survive…no… If our families are to survive, we have to make our decisions henceforth with the intention of protecting our future. "
Alfor took his time to look at his council, watching as the weight of his words affected his comrades.
"We became complacent whilst the Drules bid their time and amassed an army, not to fight with. They have one goal in mind. Annihilation." He watched as the grim truth settled on them.
Hunter spoke after a long while, silently flexing his right hand, the only sign that he was anxious about something.
" Surrender isn't an option. Neither is fighting as we are now. We won't win on the ground or in the air. What say you, my King?" he asked quietly
"We retreat. We go underground. Build our defenses from there. Train our men from there. Protect our families from there. As it stands, anything above ground will be razed by Zarcon's condensed lasers. The atmosphere of this world will be destroyed and the water polluted to the point that no human can survive. Only the Drule will walk this surface."
" Won't going underground trap us instead, my Lord? They'll come after us for sure and then what?", another member of the council asked. Concerned murmuring sounds around the table, questions asked in hushed tones.
" It is a risk we'll have to take. According to past records in the archive, drule physiology isn't compatible with being underground for extensive periods of time. It is because of the healing properties within the earth. What we consider therapeutic for us is deadly to them. They are razed with madness if they are underground. It is also the explanation as to why they destroy so much of a world's surface.", Lady Serena added.
"So we need to build an entire civilization whilst defending our backs at the same time? Talk about a rock and a hard place." Lord Myria, the oldest member of the council adds, significantly lifting the mood of the room.
" This would be easier if the Lions were in play.", he adds, looking between the King and Lord McClain.
" That is the other reason why we need to go underground. When the lions choose their knights the Drules will do anything to destroy them and the chosen ones. If the lions are destroyed, then there is no hope. No matter where we run.", Lady Serena says, in agreement.
"With the betrayal on the Kogane family, we don't know who will inherit the title as the new Lord. And as long as we don't know, there is no Voltron."
"One step at a time, young ones. One step is all it takes to make a difference. First, let's do what needs to be done. Build underground. When the time comes, all will be in place for Voltron's resurrection. One step." Lord Myria says.
….
After their life altering meeting, the council meeting ends, leaving Lord Mclain and the King alone.
"You know, your Majesty, you can't hide the truth about Allura forever." Hunter says, leaning back in his chair in the now empty council chambers.
"You're using formal titles now?"
"Don't try to change the subject."
Alfor sighs in resignation as he walks back to the window he had looked out from before. After what seems like an eternity, he responds to his friend's question.
"I wish it wasn't true. My baby girl has to carry such a huge burden and fight the very monsters she hides from every night under her blanket. She's my girl, Hunter."
"Would it have made it easier if it were one of your boys?", Hunter asks.
Alfor laughs quietly as he turns to look at his friend.
"Would it be easier if it were your son?
"Ha!", Hunter laughs in mock scorn. "That one can't wait to have one over me. He'll gloat until I kick the bucket."
"And I wonder where he got his personality from?"
"Shut up!"
Alfor laughs at his friend's behavior, fully aware of how much hell his friend's son could raise at any given moment. Like father, like son."
"Don't worry about Allura, Alfor. She's as tough as her three brothers. Baby of the family or not, she will raise hell as a knight. Just be her father for as long as possible."
"I know. I'll try."
The legend of the heroic lion knights who formed the mighty robot Voltron is passed down through every Arusian family, bearing with it hope for the Destined 5. An honor and a curse. One Alfor wished had passed his daughter. That night, when she was two, she woke up screaming and inconsolable. He, his wife and almost everyone in the castle had rushed to the princess's bed chamber, petrified that some harm had befallen her. Doctor Gorma, the royal physician, found nothing wrong with her. It was after a scared guard had come crashing into the royal suite in panic did it all make sense. The guard had been on his routine check of the castle boundary when he noticed there was something wrong. Alfor left with Coran and the Royal Guard, crossing the castle bridge before he stopped half way.
The water in the lake before the castle was swirling in a gigantic whirlpool. Droplets of water were in mid air, suspended. It was looking atop the very eye of an underwater hurricane. He had never seen anything more magnificent and terrifying in his entire life. They stood there, unable to move for almost another minute before the whirlpool dissipated, waters rolling against the lake shoreline in massive waves. The suspended water splashed back into the lake as well, and settled as if nothing had occurred.
The King and his men all went back into the castle, only to find the princess sound asleep in her mother's arms. Everyone believed that disturbance had terrified the baby princess. But he knew the truth.
It was all her.
