I apologize for how long this took, I got distracted by a million other things that took forever and a day to finish, but I'm back, and ready to roll!


Chapter 3: Meeting The Rulers Of Darkness

Nearly seventeen months had passed, and while their activities had gotten into a fair routine of wake up, breakfast, shower for Haggar, lessons for Sakura, lunch, playtime for Sakura while Haggar worked or attended a meeting or some such, more lessons, dinner, more lessons/playtime while Haggar perused paper work, then bedtime, with baths for Sakura at least once a week, Haggar was continually impressed at Sakura's progress, such as it was.

Sakura had memorized the alphabet, and had managed to learn to read basic words, now able to go cover to cover on her "My First Reader", "My Second Reader", and "My Third Reader" that Haggar had acquired for her, and was already working on her "My Fourth Reader" with a will, seemingly determined to master reading as quickly as possible. Haggar had also, at Sakura's request, taken her over all the active potions in the lab, instructing her on which were safe, relatively, and which were decidedly dangerous to mess with without knowing what she was doing, as well as giving her an introduction to the basic ingredients and components thereof.

Spelling had come surprisingly easily for Sakura, who could now spell over three hundred words from heart, and about two hundred more that were slightly more complicated with help from her speller and notebooks, forty of which the girl had crammed full with her studies and practices. Haggar had even begun teaching her mathematics, a vital skill for any occupation, and even more so for spellcasting and potion making. Sakura had already mastered basic addition and subtraction, and was quickly learning the slightly more complex levels of the two. Haggar had a feeling it wouldn't be long before she would be introducing the girl to basic multiplication and division.

All the while, Haggar had helped the girl to come to terms with the loss of her family, and further gained the child's trust and affections, her magic continuing to slowly weave around and "adjust" Sakura's morality. Haggar was especially pleased that Sakura had yet to notice that her notions of "good" and "bad" were being subtly subverted and reversed.

Rasheen had come through, and Sakura now had a proper wardrobe of her own, currently preferring blue slipper shoes and red, dark red, and brown-red dresses, though she would also occasionally go for a simple shirt and pants, colors varying from day to day. Over the course of time, her clothes had been replaced twice due to Sakura's physical growth, but then that had been expected from the start. The carpenter had also completed his task in three days time, providing Sakura with a beautiful bed that she would be able to use for years to come, growing into it comfortably over time, the bed a full sized single, simple, yet able to be customized at Sakura's whim.

Haggar had also taken the initiative and acquired the empty room to the right of her quarters/lab, having a new door inserted to connect it to the lab as her bedroom and the bathroom were, then quickly converted the spare room into a proper bedroom for Sakura, acquiring her a small chest of drawers for her clothes and placing the new bed within, as well as adding a small desk for the girl and a toy box for the few toys she opted to bequeath her with. It had quickly become quite cozy as Sakura settled herself into her new room.

Yes, all had gone quite well, except...she still needed to tell Zarkon about Sakura, and, though she was very hesitant to do so, introduce them to each other. Fate, however, had something else in mind that afternoon, as Haggar was suddenly disrupted from her current paperwork by the door to the lab being opened with a bit of a thrust to it. Sakura jumped in slight fright at the noise from where she was sitting, the now recently turned five-year-old girl working on a maze puzzle in one of the latest children's activity books Haggar had gotten her. Three Royal Guards stepped in and promptly planted their feet at attention, another moving forward to advance ahead of the true guest, and Haggar inwardly shuddered as King Zarkon himself stepped into the room, and to her surprise Prince Lotor stepped in just a few steps behind his evil father, a final Royal Guard quietly and efficiently following behind him. So much for further stalling the issue, she thought quietly to herself.

Sakura stared at the new people who'd come in. The Royal Guards wore face masks that hid all but their eyes, which from where she sat may as well have been invisible, too, and long red cloaks with purple and black in the lining. Their feet were also covered by red boots, and single swords rested in hilts at their hips on one side, pistol side arms in holsters on the other. What really caught her attention, though, was the man who came in with them. His face looked like a demon's, his yellow eyes slitted like a cat's and his ears pointed like pretty much every other Galran she'd seen. His lips were pulled back in an angry snarl, revealing long, pointed fangs. Atop his apparently bald head sat an ornate gold crown, and he was dressed in expensive purple robes, a red cloak draped over it with intricate gold, black, and blue designs woven into the edges. His feet were covered by expensive looking red and gold shoes, and in his hand he held a gold scepter whose top looked like a fist with the index finger pointing straight ahead, the thumb outstretched slightly to the side.

The last person she glanced at was the boy, who looked to be in his teens, wearing black pants, boots, and a short sleeved shirt with a simple belt around his hip, the buckle resembling a skull and crossbones, another sword at his hip, but this time no gun. His eyes were like the rest, and his ears, like every other Galran, were pointed, but his face was almost human, except that it was a light blue. But what also got her attention was his hair – it was a beautiful white-blonde, tied off in a pony tail, and went down to his shoulder. For an alien Galran, he was actually very pretty to look at, much prettier than most she'd seen, though miss Rasheen was pretty, too, and she'd long since gotten used to Mama Haggar's face, writing off the less attractive appearance as being because she was so old. Sakura's pondering was interrupted then by the voice of Zarkon.

"Haggar, you were supposed to get me that report on your latest robeast enhancement formula an hour ago! Where is it?" he bellowed, walking straight over to the old witch. Sakura found herself terrified of this person, even more than of the man who killed her family, and slipped off her stool to hide behind the table, as far out of sight as possible. The young Prince noticed the movement, and glanced in her direction just as she slipped behind the table legs, his curiosity being piqued. Truth be told, he was only here because he and Zarkon were on their way to the space dock to catch a ship for a tour of some of the more important planets in the Empire. Zarkon just wanted that report first. So, ignoring his father and the old witch, whom he only half cared for, anyway, he turned his attention to the small being who had just attempted escape.

"Was it?" Haggar responded to Zarkon's question. "Huh, I thought I turned it in, or at least had sent it out. Dear me, I'm really starting to get forgetful, aren't I?" She began sifting through all the papers on her desk, one eye watching Lotor moving around the table Sakura was hiding behind, who was attempting to be invisible, no doubt from Zarkon; and she couldn't blame the child. Hell, right now she'd dearly love to be able to do the same!

"Hmph, it's probably that project you've been working on for almost a year and a half now," Zarkon growled. "This is only the latest in dozens of slips you've made since beginning it. How soon will it be finished, anyway? I want your focus back where it belongs already!" Haggar again turned one eye towards the children, Lotor inches from reaching her apprentice.

"It...may be some time, yet, your majesty," she admitted.

"What?" Zarkon snapped. "What in all Hell could possibly take so long to get done!" And then fate smote her last chance of evading the true answer to that question when Lotor snapped out a hand and grabbed Sakura by the arm.

"Gotcha!" he cried happily, and Sakura let out an "EEK!" as he yanked her out of her hiding spot. She stared up at her captor, then surprisingly let out a breath of relief.

"Oh, it's the pretty one," she said, mostly to herself, but Lotor heard all the same, and the activity had sadly finally gained Zarkon's attention, the King turning with a, "Hmm?"

"Pretty one?" Lotor asked as he released her arm, a slightly cocky smile on his lips. Zarkon moved towards his son, now curious as to what was going on.

"What are you doing, Lotor?" he asked. Sakura's eyes widened in fear, and she pressed closer to the Prince.

"Don't let him find me," she pleaded, surprising Lotor momentarily, then he chuckled lightly.

"Oh, you were hiding from Father," he said. "Don't blame you." Then, putting a hand aside of his mouth, he whispered, "There's been many a time I've wanted to be invisible to him, too."

"I asked you a question, Lotor!" Zarkon said angrily, then got up close enough to finally see the small child attempting to now use his son as a shield. "What the hell is this?"

"The aforementioned project," Haggar said calmly, standing up and walking over to them. "Or more accurately, my apprentice. Your report." The last was said as she handed Zarkon a file, which he quickly glanced over before returning his attention back to Sakura.

"Apprentice?" he asked, one eye arched. "What do you possibly need an apprentice for?"

"To inherit my magical knowledge and possessions after I'm gone, of course," Haggar replied. "What else? I'm not gonna live forever, you know, so I need an heir just as much as you do. Now, Sakura dear, do be polite and introduce yourself properly to the King of Galra and his son." Sakura took a breath, stepped back to be seen properly, and took a small bow, her eyes never leaving Zarkon's angry face.

"Hello, your majesties, how do you do? My name is Sakura, and I'm mama Haggar's apprentice. It's nice to meet you," she introduced herself.

"It's nice to meet you, too. I'm Prince Lotor, and this is my father, King Zarkon," Lotor responded, indicating first himself, and then his dad.

"Mama?" Zarkon's eye twitched as he turned on Haggar. "Mama?"

"It's just what she calls me, it helps her feel more connected to me," Haggar quickly explained. She then turned to Sakura, and added, "From now on when we're among others, especially King Zarkon, you should call me 'Master Haggar', okay dear?"

"Okay," Sakura replied, still watching Zarkon carefully, her fear of the demonic tyrant ever present. "Master Haggar," she added, as much as a test for herself as for the King.

"Hmm, yeah, that's better," he said grumpily, then looked at the report again. "Alright, this should be all for now. Come on, Lotor, let's go, we have a tour to conduct. 'Mama'... ha!" With that, Zarkon turned and left the room, the first four guards departing with him in the same order they came, the last waiting on Lotor, who decided to make one last quip at Sakura.

"Do you really think you can teach her anything, Haggar? She's just a baby," he grinned, and Sakura's face squinted in anger, the girl snapping forward before anyone could stop her and right up to Lotor.

"I'm not a baby, I'm five!" she roared at him, holding up her small hand, the fingers outstretched to show him her age. Lotor blinked, then grinned and leaned down to bring his face closer to hers.

"You look like a baby to me," he said, Sakura's face fuming with rage, and then she did it. She stomped her foot down on Lotor's, hard! Well, as hard as a five-year-old girl can, anyway. But it was hard enough to make Lotor let out a small yelp, more from the unexpectedness of it than any actual pain.

"OW! You little...!" he glared, starting to pull back a fist, Sakura's eyes widening in surprise at what she had done, the imminent threat not yet registering. Then a cruel, cold laughter sounded, and they both glanced back to the hallway still visible through the open doorway, where Zarkon stood watching, clearly enjoying the events in his own twisted way. Sakura felt herself panic, and dove for Haggar, who was even then moving forward to collect her apprentice before the child did anything else stupid.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" she cried as she dove into the elderly woman's arms.

"Well, at least you selected a fiery tempered student, Haggar. Be sure to cultivate that aspect of her," Zarkon smiled, his smile sinister and frightening all at once. "She'll need it to be truly part of the royal court of Doom. Come on, Lotor, move it!" He continued to laugh as he walked away, Lotor finally following, giving only one last glance over his shoulder at the girl who had actually dared to strike him in such a way.

"Well, she's got guts, anyway, I'll give her that much," he commented, then finally vanished after his father down the hall, the last guard trotting smartly behind him. Haggar eased Sakura aside, and walked over to close the door, breathing a sigh of relief once it was shut.

"Well, all things considered, that could have gone far worse," she said, mostly to herself. Cova just meowed, he'd viewed everything from his perch on the table next to the recliner, having never once moved. Cova was never one to get too close to Zarkon or Lotor unless he couldn't avoid it.

"Am I in trouble?" Sakura asked, her face contrite and apologetic, worry in her eyes.

"Oh, it's okay, dear. I think Lotor was mostly just surprised that you did that. I know I am," Haggar waved it off, speaking in a reassuring tone. "Besides, you heard Zarkon, clearly he likes that you're willing to stand up for yourself to Lotor, though I'd seriously advise against trying it with Zarkon himself, I think that would be dangerous. Very dangerous."

"Like, 'off with my head', dangerous? Or 'feed me to a robeast' dangerous?" Sakura asked timidly, not really sure she wanted to know the answer.

"Oh, I'd say either or, possibly both, maybe even something worse," Haggar answered truthfully. "Zarkon isn't exactly known for his mercy or compassion."

"He's scary, mama Haggar," Sakura said as Haggar took her into a comforting hug. "Really scary!"

"Yes, I know," Haggar replied. "Why don't you go back to your game and I'll finish my paperwork, and then we'll do a reading lesson, okay?"

"Okay," Sakura said, and went back to her stool, her smile managing to return now that the adrenaline and tension had finally worn off. Haggar smiled as she went back to her desk. Yes, all things considered, everything was coming along quite well. Quite well, indeed. In fact, though she had intended to wait a little longer, it might very well be time to introduce Sakura to some of the more vicious aspects of life on Doom. But where to start?, she wondered. After a few moments she decided to begin with showing her what happened to the more uncooperative slaves, and a further thought occurred to her, an idea of how to further move Sakura towards the Galran way of thinking. Yes, she thought, that could definitely work!

It was about two hours later, after the promised reading lesson and a quick snack break, that Haggar had asked Sakura if she'd like to go for a walk around the castle and grounds, and the girl had been all too delighted, the girl always enjoying her outings away from their private rooms. To date, though, Haggar had made it a point only to show Sakura the mostly "safe" areas of the castle and parts of the grounds, away from training and practice areas so as not to risk damaging Sakura's progress by prematurely introducing the young girl to certain aspects of Doom's "hospitality" she didn't think Sakura was ready for. But today was different, Sakura had managed well in the presence of Zarkon, and even succeeded, in spite of herself, to impress the evil King, and even got an endorsement, of sorts, from Prince Lotor. So now Haggar was ready to go out on a limb.

Not long after leaving their rooms, she deliberately steered them towards an area of the castle currently being cleaned by some of the slaves. As they passed by the pathetic humans and other non-Galran aliens toiling in their labor, Sakura glanced at them, a brief flash of concern, and maybe even pity, in her eyes, but then turned away, her eyes focused ahead of her.

'Good,' Haggar thought, 'Her mind is not dwelling on them. A little of her morality may remain, it seems, but not enough to make her question, or protest. She is coming along well, indeed.' Haggar had wisely informed Sakura of the slaves existence early on, and what it meant to be one, and thankfully Sakura had only protested slightly at the time, and now showed no sign of wanting to help the worthless wretches around them.

Soon they departed the castle proper, and strode through the grounds, Haggar now pointing them toward the overlook of the nearby construction site where a new weapons housing building was being erected. Here the slaves toiled even more than in the castle proper, and Haggar glanced toward her young pupil to observe her reaction. Again the momentary look of concern and the ever so brief flash of pity, and then the girl seemed to shake it off, turning to her erstwhile "parent".

"What are they making, mama Haggar?" she asked.

"A new building, to house some newly developed and acquired weapons for the main Royal Arsenal," Haggar explained. "Scientific and technological progress, like magical, can never stand still, but move ever forwards, expanding on the old and ushering in the new and improved!" Sakura nodded, absorbing the information, Haggar smiling at having successfully teaching her student yet another valuable lesson, then turned her attention back towards the slaves toiling about and the various Galrans overseeing the construction. Haggar knew it wouldn't be hard to find slaves who were in the throes of punishment for failure to move quickly or defiance of their masters or even attempted escape. In fact, she didn't even need to look for very long, as in a few moments a grown man, human from the look of him, about six foot two, hands in chains to limit his arm movements to what was needed for his tasks, fairly broad shouldered and well muscled, suddenly threw all his weight into his elbow to slam it into the nearby guard, and then bolted away.

Ironically, he ran right towards Haggar, and upon seeing the elderly Galran altered course, only to find himself about to plow right into little Sakura, who let out another small "EEK!", but this time followed it by raising her hands and firing a simple defensive spell, one of the handful of spells Haggar had thus far taught her. The spell went off perfectly, causing the man to fall back in surprise, just in time for the guard and three of his buddies and a ranking Overseer to come and properly detain the man, chaining his legs so he could no longer run and binding his hands and arms tightly to prevent any movement entirely this time so he couldn't fight.

"Well, done, dearie," Haggar praised her student. "You've certainly mastered that base level defense spell. Now I'll have to see what you can do with a more complicated one!"

"Thanks, mam...Master Haggar!" Sakura beamed at her teacher and "mother", happy that she'd earned Haggar's approval. She then turned back to the man who had tried to escape, and nearly run into her. What neither had noticed, nor would Haggar have cared, was that man had in fact hesitated upon laying eyes on Sakura, the presence of the small human girl in decent, if not expensive, clothing, clearly well fed, and very clearly not in chains of any kind had confused and startled him, enough to make him pause just long enough for the spell to hit him and push him back, condemning him to capture. He looked again at the girl, feeling a sick revulsion as she smiled happily at the old woman's praise. The Overseer then pulled out his five and a half foot long Australian style stockwhip, ready to deliver punishment.

"Thirty lashes ought to convince you not to try that again, slave," he sneered evilly at the man, raising his arm for the first strike. Sakura watched the proceedings, mixed feelings swirling in her belly, but before the Overseer could lay the first blow, the most unexpected voice called out.

"Wait, soldier! Hold your arm," Haggar stated, gaining all their attention, then waved with her staff toward Sakura. "Let her do it. She was, after all, nearly run over and squished by this unruly brute, it's only right she get a chance to punish him for it." The man looked aghast, and the Overseer was outright shocked at the old witch's request.

"Witch Haggar?" he asked, thoroughly confused. Haggar merely turned to her pupil, yellow eyes gleaming in anticipation.

"Go on, dearie, take the whip," she urged. "You could have been lost forever because of his attempt to defy his masters, and thus you. Make him scream in pain for it until he begs forgiveness and mercy!" Sakura stared up at her, then back to Haggar, her eyes calm yet confused and uncertain.

"Am I allowed to?" she asked. "Can I really do that?"

"Oh, yes, dearie, you are and can," Haggar affirmed. "As hard as you like. As hard as you can!"

"Witch Haggar, who is this...human?" the Overseer inquired, a slight note of disgust in his voice as he said the last word.

"This is Sakura, my apprentice and future Witch adviser to the throne," Haggar declared, surprising everyone, especially Sakura, who had thought she was only to learn magic, reading, writing, and maths, not be given a job! "Now do as I say, and hand her the whip!"

"Surely King Zarkon...," the Overseer started.

"Has met her and approved my choice, earlier today in fact," Haggar cut him off. "And she even managed to impress Prince Lotor with her wit and courage, so you needn't ask. Now give it to her." The Overseer finally sighed, and relented, walking over and handing the whip to Sakura. Sakura stared at it a moment, then hesitatingly reached out and took hold of it, hefting it in her small hand. Haggar gently, yet insistently, urged her forward until she stood before the man who stared at her, not with fear, but pity.

"Don't do this," he whispered. "Don't listen to her, to them, she's a monster, they're all monsters. Run. Just run while you still can." Sakura blinked, the words sounding familiar somehow, then glared, not liking how he referred to Haggar, not one little bit.

"Mama Haggar's not a monster, she's good, and she's teaching me magic," Sakura stated, Haggar chuckling merrily at her success with the girl to get her that far in regards to morality. And now would be the next step, as she signaled for the man to be turned around, his back made to face them. She then indicated for Sakura to raise and snap the whip against him. Sakura hesitated, lifting the whip slowly, the weight a little much for her, and then gave a tentative snap, the lash cracking very lightly against the man's back.

The guards and Overseer chuckled at her shortcoming, and the man gave a slight sigh of relief as he'd barely twinged at the blow, but Haggar just moved her staff to her other hand, then reached down and helped Sakura lift the whip and give it a more sure snap, this time getting a more pained reaction out of the man. The mixed feelings returned to Sakura's belly, swirling even greater, but Haggar simply helped her to lift the whip again, and again snap it against the slave's back, then again, this time more sure, the man giving further yelps of pain.

"Do you feel it, dearie?" Haggar asked. "The power? The absolute control you have over him? He can do nothing to stop you, only you can decide to end his pain, or continue it. How does it feel, to have such total power over another being?" Sakura's mind swirled at that line of questioning, not having considered it in those terms. She had complete control over this man? She rose her arm again, this time giving a slightly more confident snap against her victim, listening to his brief cry. He glanced over his shoulder at her, his eyes now pleading.

"Do you really want to be a monster like her?" he whispered again. "Please, just run." Sakura glowered this time, anger setting in.

"Mama Haggar's not a monster!" she snapped, swinging the whip with all her might all on her own, and this time getting a more definitive cry of pain, and now she began snapping the whip without any more help or urging, wanting to make him take back what he'd said about Haggar. Haggar stepped back quietly and watched, a gleaming smile on her lips. The Overseer was now looking on relatively impressed while he counted the strokes, surprised as she soon passed the twenty stroke mark.

But more to the point, Sakura was feeling it now, just as Haggar had said to her. The power, the control, the total authority over the man's fate in her hands alone as she rose and brought down the whip again and again. She listened as the man cried out in pain and halted when she heard the Overseer declare aloud "Thirty!", remembering that that was what the Overseer had chosen as the number of strikes to be given to the slave. She breathed a little heavily from the exertion, adrenaline coursing through her. Adrenaline, and excitement. She had discovered a surprising new thrill, and turned to Haggar, a smile on her lips, and a broader one on the old witch's.

"Very good, dearie," Haggar crooned. "How did it feel?"

"It felt...good...," Sakura replied. Haggar just glowed with approval and satisfaction. A noise then got her attention, three slaves rising in a fruitless rebellion, Sakura almost eagerly trotting over with the whip still in her hand, asking to help punish them as they were subdued by more guards. And Haggar smiled even broader.

"She has walked through the door of her own will," Haggar said to herself, the Overseer blinking in her direction even as he ordered the first rebellious slave taken back to a cell to lie in his own filth and the blood from his split back for awhile. "And now she can never again go back."

The years continued to pass, one by one. Sakura's education continued apace, increasing in tenor as she got older and required fewer rest breaks during the day. She eventually plucked a girl from the mine slaves on a whim while she and Haggar were present for an inspection, and made the slave girl her personal servant, often tormenting the girl by threatening to throw her to a robeast as food. In time, Sakura came to forget her birth family, Haggar being the only family she needed or wanted. On her ninth birthday, Sakura created her own familiar, and dubbed him Spinner Sun, Spinner for short, impressing Haggar no end, but leaving Sakura drained for several days as a result as she had used a unique incantation in the process to allow Spinner the ability to speak.

And then came the day Yurak, now sporting the rank of Fleet Commander, returned from space with a new load of slaves, including five humans, space explorers by trade, who would change everything, forever...

From days of long ago,

From uncharted regions of the Universe,

Comes...

A legend.

The legend of...

Voltron, Defender of the Universe,

A mighty robot,

Loved by good, feared by evil.

As Voltron's legend grew,

Peace settled across the galaxy.

On planet Earth, a Galaxy Alliance was formed.

Together with the good planets of the star systems,

They maintained peace, throughout the cosmos,

Until a new, horrible menace threatened the galaxy.

Voltron was needed once more.

This is the story,

Of the super force,

Of Space explorers,

Specially trained and sent by the Alliance...

To bring back...

Voltron, Defender of the Universe!

(Voltron, Defenders of the Universe!)


And now our tale truly begins! Okay, I know, the whipping scene may have been stretching things a little, but I wanted to show Sakura was indeed starting to corrupt, as it felt like it wouldn't make sense that she survived on Doom as long she's supposed to have otherwise. As to the whip type, just look up "whip" on Wikipedia, and you'll find an image of that particular type, which should show you why I picked it for the scene – it looks like a five year old could actually heft it without too much trouble.

And in regards to the last line of the(slightly revamped) opening monologue, if you listen carefully, the sung part actually is plural, as they'd always intended multiple Voltrons right from the start. And I'll tell you now, I'm going to be mixing and matching facts with both Voltron and original Golion as stated in the summary blurb. Consider yourselves warned.

Scorpinac

LotorNomiko – For the record, in CCS, Sakura started at age 10, and had at least one birthday before the end, possibly two(someday I really need to get those last three DVDs!), thus making her 11 or 12 at the end. Mind you, this does not take into account the second movie, which takes place an indeterminate time after the end of the series.