Chapter 14: Ancient Feud
It ultimately took nearly two hours for the ship to arrive, properly dock, and the diplomatic entourage to disembark and enter the castle. The explanation, or as Zarkon called it, "lazy excuse", that was provided was that the Galran spaceport was sufficiently different from the Polluxians' that the procedures required more time than originally anticipated. It was, however, sent with a profuse apology for the delay, and a note that in future when approaching foreign worlds they hadn't visited before they intended to ask for port schematics and local landing procedures for the sake of expediting matters and prevent future delays as much as possible.
Zarkon only allowed them to get away with the stall due to them being 'sufficiently honest and polite about the situation,' though Sakura secretly felt another reason was because he was too curious as to what the Polluxians wanted to let his patience slip just yet. That, or he wanted to make them squirm a bit before he had them all killed for whatever trumped up reason.
Either way, before long a (slightly) calmed Zarkon sat almost lazily upon his throne, his head resting in his left hand, when the party came in and dropped to their knees with their heads bowed in a show of respect and submission to the King of Galra. Lotor stood to his right, and Haggar sat in her usual seat to the King's left, Cova in her lap, her hand lightly petting him. Sakura, for a change, was standing to the right of Lotor, at the Prince's instruction. Zarkon didn't countermand his son, so Sakura happily took that position. As this was a formal diplomatic meeting, Spinner, to his chagrin, was required to attend, opting to take his customary place on his mistress's shoulder, the right one this time as to allow him maximum distance from Zarkon.
The entourage consisted of five men, each one rippling with muscle and wearing what could be best described as tunics with capes attached along with leggings and boots. The one in the center was clearly the leader, and older than the rest by several years, yet still clearly very fit and healthy. As soon as they were "comfortable", Zarkon gave them leave to explain their presence.
"Mighty Zarkon, King of Galra," the leader started, clearly going for the 'sucking up' approach, "I am Heracles, King of planet Pollux, and have come to seek an alliance with you to aid us in settling a long standing grudge against planet Arus."
"Come again?" Zarkon arched an eyebrow. "Aid you in settling a grudge? And how could we do that?"
"Simple, your majesty," Heracles said. "As you are no doubt aware, the news of Voltron's return has spread across all of space, even to us. We are not so foolish as to challenge Arus as we are now that they have the robot in full operation. And it is known that the robot's presence on the scene has caused Galra no end of trouble, even to the point of apparently losing control of planet Jarre, if the rumors be true."
"Jarre can be reclaimed whenever we want," Zarkon dismissed that issue. "And Voltron is no difficult foe. Once circumstances are right, we can destroy the robot easily. Right, Lotor?"
"Absolutely," Lotor agreed. Sakura found herself using every bit of her will power not to say anything, and Lotor gave her a quick smirk to show he understood completely.
"Really?" Heracles asked. "And these conditions would be?"
"When we create a robeast more powerful than any before it, and have the right tactics and strategy, we can defeat the robot anytime we want," Zarkon elucidated.
"Then our request for an alliance is well timed, indeed," Heracles said. "As we seek to have you transform one of our warriors into a robeast for the very purpose of defeating the mighty Voltron once and for all."
"What?" Zarkon again arched an eyebrow, while Lotor and Sakura just stared at the man as he finally boldly raised his head, revealing a graying beard and mustache to match his hair, and piercing, confident dark blue eyes.
"The warriors of planet Pollux are known as some of the finest and strongest of the galaxy!" Heracles declared. "And I have brought my very best with me to be considered for the procedure, including my eldest son, Prince Avok."
"Strongest?" Lotor glared, seeming slightly incensed. "Stronger than our robeasts? I challenge that!"
"Relax, Lotor," Zarkon chimed in. "Let Heracles's son prove his claim, in the arena."
"Fine, I accept your terms," Avok, the red haired man on Heracles's left, responded, rising to his feet, and revealing brown eyes as piercing as his father's and a smattering of freckles across his cheeks.
"It'll be a short fight," Lotor sneered, slicing a hand against his throat. "The robeast will chop him down like a tree! And then I'll have his head on the spot!"
"Then I hope you're prepared for disappointment," Avok replied, not shrinking an inch.
"And we'll enjoy the nice ten minute diversion your arena fight will give us," Sakura found herself smirking as well. Avok glanced in her direction.
"I didn't realize you let your pets have such loose tongues, Prince Lotor," Avok commented.
"She's not a pet, Avok," Heracles interjected.
"Huh?" Avok turned to his father in confusion.
"Just look at her, Avok," Heracles continued as his son did so. "She's dressed in clean, tailored clothes, she's properly groomed, and, above all, she's clearly regularly well fed. No, she is not a pet. You are the apprentice of Zarkon's witch we have heard about, aren't you child?" Sakura found herself blinking in surprise at the Polluxian King's appraisal of her. Avok, meanwhile, just stared at her, incredulous.
"Yes, I am," she replied, then regained her composure and resumed her smile. "I am Sakura."
"Well, at least one of you has a modicum of intelligence," Lotor admitted
"But she's. . ." Avok still tried to put it together.
"The student that I chose, her race is of no importance," Haggar cut him off., smiling merrily. "My wicked darling has done me quite proud in her progress at learning my evil magic."
"I'm sure she has," Heracles smiled back, then turned to Lotor and Zarkon once again. "Now, then, I believe we were going to the arena?"
"Of course," Lotor said, then turned to Sakura. "Ten minutes, Witch Sakura?"
"I know," Sakura waved a hand dismissively. "I'm hopelessly generous." To her surprise, all their surprise, really, Heracles openly chuckled at her comment, while Zarkon merely gave a smirk of approval, then dismissed everyone so that they could head to the arena to see Avok battle to prove his worth.
Avok was given thirty minutes to prepare for his fight while Zarkon took his seat in his box, and the regular crowd took theirs, while Heracles and a few of his men were allowed to sit in the middle of the crowd about six rows back from the field. In preparation for the possibility of taking Avok to be transformed, Haggar had opted to watch from the east side entrance to the field itself, and Lotor, wanting to see the man's death up close, opted to stand right at the wall separating the stands from the field. Sakura, grabbing an excuse to keep herself away from Zarkon for a while, chose to watch the fight next to Lotor.
Once everything was prepared, Avok entered the arena, sword in hand, and a robeast was released. The robeast was dark gray in color with red eyes that had no discernible pupils and talon-clawed hands, one of which held a large scimitar. The two opponents sized each other up, the beast roaring in challenge. Then it charged Avok, swinging its scimitar with deadly precision, missing only because Avok dodged aside expertly before swinging back to knock the blade aside.
"Well, he can avoid a blow, anyway," Sakura commented. "He's at least smarter than most of our robeasts."
The two combatants continued to lock blades for several moments before Avok managed a fast downward jump slash that knocked the robeast's scimitar completely out of the beast's hand and away from it. Avok then took a couple of swings to knock the monster's hands aside and then thrust fast and hard, plunging his blade deep into the beast's torso. It fell dead to the ground a second later. The crowd just stared in stunned silence for a moment, as none save the Voltron Force had ever before managed to best a robeast in the arena, and even then it had been a team effort, not one-on-one. Zarkon, rather than stunned, simply looked on in silent surprise, and was mildly impressed. Sakura, too, was impressed, as well as a little flabbergasted that her earlier prediction had been nearly correct, the biggest error being the fight's victor. Lotor, however. . .
"Unbelievable! That man got lucky!" he roared, and jumped over the wall into the battlefield. "Now face a real opponent," he declared to Avok as he drew his blade. "Me!" And with that, Lotor charged Avok, the two clashing swords. In the royal seat, Zarkon growled in annoyance at his son's petulance.
"Lotor. . ." Sakura moaned her own annoyance at her Prince's brashness.
"Are we even surprised he did this?" Spinner asked rhetorically from her shoulder. Sakura gave a tiny shake of her head. Lotor, however, was holding his own, pressing Avok back, and ultimately bringing Avok to the wall, the two becoming locked in a stalemate.
"Hold fast, brother! Win this for Pollux!" a female voice called out, and Lotor allowed himself a quick glance up to see who had called. . .and froze at the sight. The woman was standing on a landing on the stairs between the rows of seats; she was wearing a blue dress with pink frills, and her long blonde hair was worn down. But what really got Lotor's attention was her face – it was almost identical to Allura's! There were a few minor nuances different in her stance, attitude, and the way she carried herself, but to the untrained eye, the women could be twins. Next to her stood a boy roughly a year or so Sakura's senior, with the same brown eyes and freckles as Avok, and reddish brown curled hair atop his head. He wore a blue tunic, dark blue boots, and a white cape, matching the other Polluxians, but where the men had worn leggings, the boy's legs were bare.
"Do it, Avok! Get him!" the boy cheered his Prince on. Lotor, however, could only stare in shock at the woman.
'She looks just like Allura,' he thought to himself, and then Avok grabbed the opening, pushing Lotor's sword aside and then thrusting upward, knocking the blade from Lotor's hand. Lotor found himself returning his attention immediately to Avok. "Oops," he admitted quietly. Once again, the crowd was stunned into silence.
"Lotor, you idiot," Sakura face palmed herself. Spinner, though, had glanced at the woman, and was just as surprised as Lotor.
"Actually, for once I can't say I really blame him," he admitted, drawing Sakura's attention to the one who had distracted Lotor to begin with.
"What are you. . .wha?!" her eyes bugged out of her head for a moment at what she saw. "Who cloned Allura?" Meanwhile, Zarkon had gone from mildly annoyed to outright annoyed.
"You fool, Lotor," he growled aloud, "Letting yourself be distracted by a woman!" Lotor, though, was busy backing slightly away from Avok's blade, currently pointed toward his face.
"All right, you've convinced me, your skill and strength are considerable," Lotor stated calmly. "I yield."
"And you'll help me with our plan?" Avok asked.
"Absolutely," Lotor agreed, and Avok sheathed his blade. Lotor took a quick breath of relief, then turned to Haggar. "Haggar, take Prince Avok to your lab and begin your work," he called to the elderly witch. "With courtesy," he added. Haggar stepped over to Avok, an appraising smile on her lips.
"So, you truly wish to become a robeast, young man? Then come with me," Haggar told him, and began walking away, Avok walking after her. After watching them leave, Lotor grabbed and sheathed his own sword, then hopped out of the field and back into the stands, walking pointedly to Allura's doppelganger. Upon getting close to her, he dropped to one knee in greeting.
"Greetings, oh beautious one. To whom do I have the honor?" Lotor offered his hand to the woman, who giggled at the flattery.
"I am Romelle, daughter of Heracles, and Princess of planet Pollux," she introduced herself, accepting his hand courteously. "It is an honor to meet you, Prince Lotor of Galra."
"The honor is all mine," he rose to his feet, and, despite being a step below her, looked her straight in the eye. "And him?" he batted an eye to the boy.
"My younger brother, Prince Bandor," Romelle introduced her other sibling, who nodded, also courteously.
"My, your father seems not to have known when to stop producing heirs," Lotor smirked. "Must have been quite demanding on your mother. . .why do I suddenly have a chill?" His smirk dropped as his eyes started to move to his left, too late to change his fate as Sakura's foot found its mark on his yet again, leaving him to let out a grunt of pain as he briefly grimaced.
"Do you never stop?" Sakura chided him, a small scowl on her lips. "You're already chasing the other one, you don't need her, too."
"That's for me to decide, not you, Sakura," Lotor replied. "Now, do you mind?"
"Sakura? The apprentice to Witch Haggar?" Romelle's eyes widened a bit as she gazed at the young girl before her.
"Can't be her, she's human," Bandor cut in. "No way someone as ugly as Haggar would take on a human as her apprentice, especially one so cute."
"Cute?" Sakura blinked in surprise, then glared at the young prince. "Mama Haggar isn't ugly, she's just really, really old. So kindly watch your tongues."
"Mama?!" Romelle and Bandor both stared slightly aghast.
"Yes, Haggar acquired her at a young age, and is effectively Sakura's parent," Lotor said. "She is indeed the apprentice, and my friend and occasional confidant. Occasionally."
"Seriously?" Bandor was still staring.
"Yes, seriously," Spinner piped up. "Please stop squawking like a confused bird, it gets old rather fast." Now Bandor's eyes were staring in shock at Spinner, while Romelle's were simply surprised.
"Wow, you can talk?" Bandor asked.
"Of course I can," Spinner replied. "I am Sakura's familiar, Spinner Sun. She created me with the gift of speech in mind from the start, and, I would say, succeeded quite admirably."
"Oh, quiet you," Sakura smirked as she gave Spinner an affectionate bop on the head.
"Well, clearly she has done quite well here in general to earn the trust of the Prince of Galra," Romelle smiled warmly. "Greetings, young Witch, little familiar. I am Romelle, and this is my brother, Bandor. We are the younger siblings of Prince Avok."
"Wait, really?" Sakura blinked in surprise again, then let her eyes momentarily dart to her right. "That actually explains a few things."
"Explains what?" Bandor arched an eye.
"Nothing important to the likes of you, little boy," Sakura waved dismissively at him.
"Hey, I'm not little, I'm thirteen!" Bandor huffed.
"Oh, wow, how special for you," Sakura drawled sarcastically, then turned back to Lotor. "Now, about you being stupid about girls, again. . ."
"And your interest in the boy, Pidge, is 'smart'?" Lotor smirked.
"Well, at least I'm only focused on the one!" Sakura snapped.
"For now," Lotor smirked teasingly, as did Spinner.
"My, what an interesting relationship you two have," Romelle commented. "Almost feels like mine with Avok, or with Bandor but in reverse."
"Nah, we've never been that bratty," Bandor observed, causing Sakura to flinch.
"Bratty?" she turned to the young Prince. "You care to say that again?"
"What'cha gonna do? Magic me into a toad?" Bandor challenged her. "Pretty sure that won't be good for our alliance."
"You think I need magic to handle the likes of you?!" Sakura glared at him.
"Please, I'm a Prince of Pollux!" Bandor crossed his arms. "We begin combat training the moment we can walk five steps without falling down!"
"Oh, really?" Sakura said, then slapped her staff into Lotor's chest, briefly causing him to lose his breath while taking hold of it, and then she grabbed Spinner and tossed him onto Lotor's shoulder before grabbing his sword from it's sheath. "Need to borrow this!" she snapped quickly, then pointed the blade at Bandor. "Care to put your money where your mouth is?" Bandor blinked in surprise, then smiled, resting his hand upon his own sheathed sword.
"Well, if you insist," Bandor replied, waving toward the arena, and the two went down and climbed over the wall. Bandor pulled his blade, and the two squared off. They paced each other for a moment, sizing each other up, and then Sakura made a thrust, Bandor just dodging it and parrying her blade aside before making a counter thrust, but Sakura rebounded, blocking and knocking his sword aside as well. Sakura then took a cautious step back before making a feint, Bandor moving to parry again, only for Sakura to swerve her blade around and counter-parry, forcing Bandor to step back himself. Sakura, though, wasn't about to let up now, and stepped forward, pressing the attack with more thrusts and a few slices, Bandor somehow managing to parry each in turn. He then swung forward, forcing Sakura to step aside completely to avoid it.
During all this, Zarkon watched with an arched eyebrow, honestly impressed with the young witch's skill with a blade, wondering when and where she'd learned it. The rest of the Galrans in the audience were of mixed feelings, some bemused by the two youths dueling before them, others making active bets, still others who actually knew about Sakura and recognized her, cheering her on to win the bout, and a few others still who cheered for both pre-teens to ultimately kill each other. The Polluxians, though, were wondering the same thing as King Zarkon, save for King Heracles, who was busy steaming.
'What is my fool of a third born doing down there?!' he thought. 'This isn't part of the plan! He could jeopardize everything!' He then felt himself stare in shock as Sakura managed to dodge a blow and swing her blade up, hard, jarring Bandor's own aside so hard he began to spin slightly, then thrust her blade in close to Bandor's neck causing him to halt in his tracks. A good chunk of the audience roared in delight, some cheering Sakura's victory, others calling for her to "finish it!"
"Whoa. . ." Bandor stared at the sharpened steel warily.
"So, then, who's the bratty one?" Sakura asked coyly.
"Did you use magic to do that?" Bandor asked, calm as he could.
"You'd know if I did," Sakura replied. "It's pretty much the direct opposite of 'subtle'."
"Oh. So, then, who taught you to use a sword, anyway?" Bandor inquired.
"I learned from the best there is, Prince Lotor himself," Sakura proudly beamed.
"Lotor? Really?" Bandor's eyes widened in surprise. Back on the stair landing where Lotor and Romelle were watching them, Romelle had also asked Lotor about where Sakura had learned proper swordsmanship, and gotten the same answer, while many members of the audience began whispered conversations on the subject, some partly disbelieving, others pondering why their Prince would even bother.
"You did? Why?" Romelle asked the dark Prince.
"She caught me doing practice drills one day, a few years ago when she was seven," Lotor explained while Spinner glanced in their direction from his current perch. "She picked up a practice sword and started swinging it around like a wild person, and though it was kind of cute in its own innocent way, the professional swordsman in me could only take her untrained, ungraceful swings so long before I stopped her and started instructing her on how you really use a sword. Heh, I guess she really was listening, and has been getting some occasional practice in whenever she could, and now it all gets to pay off for her." Romelle nodded in agreement as Spinner smiled with pride at his mistress's accomplishment, and the nearest members of the audience began relaying what they'd heard to their neighbors. Meanwhile, back in the arena, Bandor found himself smiling at his opponent.
"Well, looks like you got me after all, congrats," he admitted, raising his hand in submission, the other keeping his blade lowered. "So, are you actually seeing anyone?"
"Huh?" Sakura's pupils shrank to dots.
"Cause if not, I'd be happy to escort you to dinner tonight," Bandor continued, unperturbed.
"Are you serious?" Sakura still stared, her brain slightly locked.
"Sure," Bandor replied. "Why wouldn't I be? Oh, I'm sorry about the 'bratty' thing before, by the way, I won't do it again, promise."
"W...why would you...?" Sakura was still doing mental flips as she lowered her own blade slightly, trying her best to figure this Prince out.
"Because you've proven yourself to me, and, if I'm being honest, you are pretty cute," Bandor explained, sheathing his sword while Sakura finally dropped hers completely to her side, her eyes now wide with surprise.
"Ho-e?!" she squeaked. By this point Lotor had taken Romelle's hand and led her down to the wall. Lotor then released Romelle for the moment, jumped the wall, and grabbed his own sword back from the befuddled Sakura while slipping her staff back into her hand and letting Spinner flutter back over to his mistress, sheathing his sword smoothly. Some of the more bloodthirsty Galrans in the audience booed the lack of a kill, again, but Lotor ignored them.
"Well, then, I think I'll just take Romelle on a tour of the castle and grounds," Lotor said as he got back out of the arena and back to the Princess in question. "I believe you two can take care of yourselves for a while." He then shot Bandor an encouraging wink before grabbing Romelle's hand again and leading her off, the Princess lightly giggling at the Prince's bravado while her brother grinned back at Lotor briefly, quietly pleased at the vote of confidence. He then turned back to the still befuddled Sakura, took a step forward, and took her hand.
"So, aside of all this, what do you do for entertainment here?" he asked her, which somehow finally snapped Sakura out of her befuddlement.
"We have a few things," she answered him. "Not sure you'd like any of them."
"Well, why don't you show me, and I can find out," Bandor suggested as he led her to the wall where they got out of the ring and proceeded to the exit.
"Oh, this is definitely going to get interesting," Spinner commented as he followed behind them, Sakura giving him a quick scowl as they moved. From where he sat, Heracles continued to steam, now with heightened fervor.
"My daughter with Lotor?" he growled. "My younger son with that fledgling spellcaster?"
"Majesty, not here, please," one of his adviser's said, quickly grabbing the King by the arm as he started to rise. "Think of the alliance and defeating Arus! You can scold your younger children later when we're on our ship heading back home." Heracles growled a little more, but accepted the counsel, closing his eyes as he took a few deep breaths to calm himself, even as he glimpsed Lotor leading Romelle out of the arena one way, and Bandor chatting away with Sakura and Spinner as they exited another.
For the next few hours, Sakura did her best to find something "entertaining" for Bandor to do with her, hoping he would lose interest and ask to go back to his own people. Spinner floated behind them the whole time, chuckling. But despite her efforts, nothing shook him. Most of the sights of the castle he found fascinating rather than repulsing, stating that if Sakura could put up with them all the time, then he could easily handle it for a short while, right? Finally, in desperation, she took him to the Arcane Science tower, where Haggar had already begun work on his older brother. This time Bandor was almost giddy, dashing up to have a look in the transformation pit at his brother, who's skin was starting to take on a slightly purple hue.
"Is that all?" he asked surprised, catching Haggar's attention.
"Expecting more, little one?" she smirked cruelly. "Tell me, my evil darling, who is this young boy you have brought to my tower of monsters and horrors?" Bandor, wisely, took a smell step away from the elderly Galran woman, while Sakura merely smiled warmly at her.
"Prince Bandor of Pollux, your new plaything's little brother," Sakura introduced him. "Prince, the High Witch Adviser to the throne of Galra, and my master, Haggar."
"Nice to meet you," Bandor gave a quick nod, Haggar's smile never wavering.
"Have you brought him because you wish to try creating a robeast again?" Haggar asked. "I didn't think Pollux would be so generous."
"We're not," a voice snapped from below, and they turned to look back into the pit where Avok was scowling. "Bandor, what are you doing here?"
"Just being shown around by Miss Sakura," Bandor admitted. "Is this really all the change you've gone through?"
"He's got a point," Sakura commented. "Shouldn't he be more monstrous by now?"
"Under normal circumstances, perhaps," Haggar stated. "But Prince Avok came to me in a completely fresh state, no preexisting alterations or transformations. Therefor I am literally working from the ground up and must take greater time and care to acquire a desirable finished project. But don't worry, he'll be ready in due time." Sakura nodded, thinking back to Lisa and her brother, and how Haggar had worked on the brother for almost two and a half days while Lisa was getting fully prepped for what was ultimately a failed mission. For a moment, the upset that Sakura had felt about that particular mission reared its ugly head, but she quickly quashed it.
"So, he's gonna change more?" Bandor asked, batting an eye at the old witch.
"Oh, yes, much, much more," Haggar assured him. "I've barely begun my work on him."
"By the time she's done, it's possible you won't even be able to recognize him, he'll be so different," Sakura added.
"Really?" Bandor's eyes widened a little, then he glanced one more time, his eyes now saddened, at his brother.
"Remember, it's for the future of Pollux, and the crushing of Arus," Avok told him, and Bandor nodded, determination returning to his eyes.
"How very noble of you," Spinner commented, Avok now blinking at the familiar in brief surprise.
"Sure you don't want to join him?" Haggar's smile had yet to waver, but before the boy could answer the sound of a gong reached their ears. "Ah, time for supper, the King has decided to have a banquet," Haggar said, turning to her apprentice. "Run along, Sakura, don't keep him waiting." She then turned once more to Bandor. "The little Prince can stay here."
"No, that's okay, I can go with Sakura," Bandor replied, quickly grabbing the young girl's arm again and moving toward the door. "My father and sister are probably gonna be there and I could use a bite to eat myself." He then paused, a thought occurring to him. "Aren't you coming?"
"In a little while, I want to work on your brother a bit more first," Haggar answered. Sakura finally decided to tug him out of the room, Spinner once again flying right behind them.
"She's probably the only one on the planet who can get away with being a little late to one of King Zarkon's banquets," she told him. "Anyone else. . .trust me, you don't wanna know." Bandor noticed a flash of fear in Sakura's eye, and decided not to ask.
Not long afterward, they reached the banquet hall, and upon reaching the table found Zarkon, unsurprisingly, at the head with Heracles and his advisers to his immediate left, and Lotor and Romelle, in that order, to his right, two empty seats separating the former from the King. The King signaled Sakura and Bandor to take the empty seats, and therefor sit next to him, which Sakura initially hesitated at until Bandor pulled out the chair immediately next to Lotor and offered it to her. Sakura plopped herself down, calmly setting her staff to lean against the table beside her before looking to her plate as it was placed before her by a passing slave. Bandor then took the remaining seat between her and Zarkon, Zarkon arching an eyebrow at the boy's actions.
"You sure you want to be this close to me, little Prince-ling?" Zarkon asked as Bandor was given a plate of food by another passing slave. During all this, Spinner brought himself to rest on a nearby cushion where another slave dropped him his own plate of food. Drinks were also served to the two youths, though to their disappointment they were given only a fine fruit punch.
"Of course, sire," Bandor replied. "It is a great privilege and honor to feast at the hand of such a mighty King." Zarkon blinked, then gave a merry laugh.
"You've taught your boy how to suck up well, Heracles," Zarkon grinned at the Polluxian King. "It will serve him well in the courts of Galra."
"Simple manners and diplomatic training, Highness," Heracles replied. "A visiting dignitary wouldn't be worth his time if he didn't possess at least these rudimentary skills." The whole time, though, the Polluxian King's eyes kept darting to his son and the young witch who sat next to him, which Zarkon noticed.
"Ah, but is it for my sake, or is he doing so to impress the little witch in an effort to win her away from my court and into his private chambers?" Zarkon grinned at the two youths, Sakura visibly flinching at the statement mid-bite.
"I would never steal anything from you, oh great King," Bandor stated. "The lady's approval is more than enough reward for me." Now Sakura found herself starting to blush while Romelle giggled into her hand.
"Well played, little brother," Romelle said, an encouraging note in her voice.
"Indeed, I believe that's three points to you, Prince Bandor," Lotor agreed with a smile. "I'm going to have to up my game if I'm going to win your sister before you win Witch Sakura."
"To be fair, Prince Lotor," Bandor responded, "She's been somewhat. . .reluctant at my attempts to gain her friendship, despite my efforts."
"I see," Lotor raised his eyebrow. "Would you like some tips?" Sakura lightly smacked her utensils against the leg of meat she'd been quietly munching on, and grabbed her staff one handed, but without actually lifting or moving it. A beam jumped out a second later, and sprang over and into Lotor's lap as he watched the energy confused, only for his expression to suddenly go panicky a moment later.
"I'm sorry, Lotor," Sakura put on an innocent look while using her free hand to hold her ear, as if she had trouble hearing others, "Did you say something? I don't think I heard you quite right."
"Nothing, nothing at all!" Lotor all but squeaked, and Sakura released her magical hold.
"That's what I thought," Sakura replied, and returned to her own meal.
"Seriously, Sakura? Below the belt?" Lotor lightly glared at her while catching his breath as quick as he could. Zarkon found himself torn between wanting to sneer at his son for his quick retraction, and smirking at Sakura's method of gaining it.
"So, Sakura, I heard a rumor you've actually seen Voltron first hand?" Romelle cut in, choosing to draw attention away from Lotor and Sakura's little squabble.
"A few times, actually," Sakura admitted. "Through chance and, if I may so, unexpected orders from my King, I've taken part in the Arus problem from the start."
"So is it as powerful as the legends say it is?" Bandor asked. "'Cause Avok thinks the legends have exaggerated its strength."
"Well, having watched it a few times, I'd have to say your brother may most likely be underestimating it," Sakura stated carefully. "Possibly by a lot."
"Are you saying this strategy is in vain?" King Heracles glared at the girl. "That my son cannot become powerful enough to win?"
"No, I'm saying we haven't figured out the robot's limits, and thus can't say what will happen for sure, only what we want to happen," Sakura responded, minding her words for the benefit of both Kings, as well as herself.
"Ah, an interesting and, dare I say, astute observation of the situation, little witch," Zarkon stated. "Indeed, there are no guarantees. But, if all goes well, then Avok will manage an evil miracle for us, Arus will be shared between our two planets as Heracles and I have agreed, and then afterward we can use Avok for other conquests."
"Other conquests?" Romelle's eyes widened in shock. "But we only want Arus!"
"That may be, but your father and I have conferred, and if Avok wins, he shall continue in the employ of Galra for as long as he is able," Zarkon grinned sadistically.
"Father!" Romelle snapped at her sire.
"Yes, I'm afraid it's true," Heracles lowered his eyes from her, man enough to show shame at this turn of events.
"But Father," Bandor jumped in, "Surely after we have Arus he'll be turned back to normal, won't he?" Sakura froze for a moment, a smirk claiming her face before she cracked into a brief laugh and turned to the young Prince.
"Turn him back?" she continued to smirk at him. "You really don't get how this works, do you?"
"Surely there's a way to do it," Bandor stated. "You study under her, hasn't she said anything about it?"
"I actually asked her about it once," a new voice entered the conversation, and a new Galran male in green came to the table and took a seat a couple spots down from Lotor. "According to her, she's never bothered to even research the possibility of reversing the process, and probably wouldn't unless ordered." As he took his meal and goblet filled with wine from a slave and started to dig in, Bandor couldn't help but notice the scowl of fury that now marred Sakura's face.
"Who. . .let. . .him. . .back. . .on. . .planet?" Sakura slowly hissed, clearly barely containing a full on rage.
"Oh,yes, nice to see you again, too, Witch Sakura," the male Galran said to her, a light smile on his lips. "Did you miss me?"
"To answer your question, he returned to Galra with me," Lotor said. "I've been having him run various errands and such, though I didn't think he'd be free for the banquet." The Prince began to flick his eyes back and forth between the two, as though expecting something.
"Which is why I personally requested Fleet Commander Mogor's presence," Zarkon grinned again. "Surely your personal second-in-command is allowed a decent meal in full finery once in a while, is he not, my son?"
"That's not the problem, Father, and you know it," Lotor briefly glanced at his sire while continuing to bat his eyes between Mogor and Sakura, the former quietly eating his meal while the latter continued to simmer.
"I hardly see the problem," Mogor commented idly.
"You know how I feel about him," Sakura hissed at Lotor.
"Which is why I made it a point to try and keep you two apart," Lotor admitted. "We don't need any. . .issues while we're trying to resolve the Arus situation."
"Why would you think there would be "issues"?" Heracles inquired.
"Surely the young witch wannabe isn't still acting like a baby, hiding behind Haggar's legs?" Mogor smiled as he took a drink from his goblet of wine. Sakura growled loudly, grabbed her staff again, and this time the burst of energy smacked Mogor square in the chest and sent him flying backwards, his face in clear shock, caught only by another magical beam.
"WHO'S HIDING?!" she barked at him.
"Because of that," Lotor said calmly to Heracles, pointing lazily towards Mogor, who suddenly lifted back into place, Haggar stepping up a moment afterward.
"Now, now, my dear, mind your temper," the elderly Galran said as she took a seat and claimed a meal and drink of her own. "You know this does nothing but entertain his majesty and serves no other useful purpose."
"Ah, but it is a useful purpose," Zarkon chimed, the grin still having not left his face. "It shows me just how far your disciple is ready to go when properly motivated."
"What did he do to make her so mad at him?" Romelle ventured to ask.
"Not a clue," Lotor admitted. "She's hated him for as long as I've known her. I think even she's forgotten the reason."
"Maybe I don't need a reason," Sakura snapped. "Maybe some people just deserve to be hated!"
"I really wish you wouldn't," Bandor interjected.
"Huh?" Sakura turned to him.
"You're not as cute when you're angry," he added. Zarkon broke into laughter as Sakura found herself unwillingly blushing at the young Prince's comment.
"So, uh, why do you want Arus so bad anyway?" Sakura asked, now keenly interested in changing the subject.
"Generations ago our people lived on Arus, until the two sons of the King became locked in a dispute over a political arrangement," Romelle explained. "Before they could settle the matter, the King himself, old and feeble, intervened, and ruthlessly banished his younger son and all who chose to pledge loyalty to him to planet Pollux, leaving the no doubt smug elder son to take the throne upon the King's death. When the planets next came close enough our people attempted to peacefully return, wishing to rejoin our homeland, but were callously rebuked and denied! Ever since, when the planets are at their closest to one another we have sought to reclaim what is rightfully ours by any means necessary." At the last, Romelle's eyes drooped for a moment, clearly thinking of the price her elder brother had chosen to pay for that goal.
"Seriously?" Sakura asked, her voice somewhat deadpan.
"I know it may sound a little silly, but it's important to us," Bandor said. "If you lost your homeland I'd bet you'd want it back, too." Sakura felt an odd yet momentary twinge in her heart at that comment, finding herself glancing back at the young Prince.
"Perhaps, but we of Galra would never let ourselves be forced off our homeworld against our will, no matter the circumstance," Zarkon stated, somewhat boastfully. "We do the taking, and have done so for ages, and we're not about to stop now, not even because of the "mighty" Voltron!" At this, the Galrans at the table, Lotor and Haggar included, cheered their King.
"Out of curiosity, why wait until the planets are close to each other?" Lotor inquired. "After all, if your space travel technology is advanced enough to reach Galra, getting to Arus whenever you want is surely more than easy enough." At this, the Polluxians froze, the realization seemingly only occurring to them as Lotor commented on it.
"Um. . .tradition, mostly," Bandor ultimately replied. "I guess." The rest of the Polluxians quickly nodded in agreement, having no other reason they could think of.
"Okay, fair enough," Lotor accepted, an amused smile on his lips. The meal continued, the conversation varying, with Bandor attempting to learn more about Sakura and letting her get to know him, while Lotor all but shamelessly flirted and sweet talked Romelle.
King Heracles' only comfort was that while Romelle clearly humored Lotor, she was also clearly not interested whatsoever in the man, whilst, to his surprise, Bandor was equally very clearly interested in winning over Sakura while Sakura was just as clearly resisting his fledgling advances. Though, from where he sat, she did seem to enjoy his son's attentions, which to the King's dismay meant that on at least some level they were working.
Ultimately, the Polluxians would stay for three days before Haggar declared her work on Prince Avok to be complete, and Heracles stated it would be more convenient to issue the challenge and launch the attack on Arus from Pollux. Zarkon agreed, and Heracles took his entourage and departed for Pollux first, while the Galran contingent, lead by Lotor, followed a few short hours later. To his satisfaction, Heracles was able to drag his younger son with him on his own ship, thus separating the boy from Sakura. But to his dismay, Lotor's pursuit of Romelle had him insisting on having Romelle fly home with him. By that time Heracles only solace was that Romelle was clearly no longer trying to humor Lotor's advances, and was ready for any excuse to part ways she could grab. To further the Polluxian King's quiet ire, though, Lotor let him know right before his departure that he intended to bring along both Haggar and her apprentice.
"Really?" Bandor had asked, eyes beaming with unrestrained joy after having bid Sakura farewell.
"Absolutely, Prince Bandor," Lotor replied. "In no less than a mere half a day you'll be able to continue your adorable courtship of our young witch-in-training."
"Alright! Hear that, Sakura? We won't be apart that long after all!" Bandor smiled at her.
"Yay. . ." Sakura said, while Haggar chuckled in amusement behind her. Spinner, sitting on her shoulder like usual, had a wide smirk on his face. "You're just doing this to annoy me, aren't you?" she accused Lotor with daggers in her eyes.
"Me? Surely you jest, my friend," Lotor placed a hand on his chest in mock innocence.
"Oh, come now, you two are so cute togeth-" Spinner started, only to be cut short by the head of Sakura's staff smacking against his face.
"Shut. The hell. Up," she growled, getting laughs from all around, save Bandor, who just smiled consolingly, and Heracles, who was doing his best not to growl in his own annoyance.
"Don't worry about them, Sakura, it'll be fine," Bandor told her reassuringly. "I'll see you soon on Pollux, okay?"
"Hff, fine," Sakura agreed. Heracles finally grabbed his son and pulled him toward their ship.
"We really need to get going," he insisted, making it clear in his voice he would accept no further delays.
"Yes, father," Bandor said, then quickly called to Sakura, "See you soon!" The two then finally boarded their ship, and shortly thereafter took off.
When Lotor's command ship finally arrived on Pollux, it was directed to land in an open space within the walls of the royal castle, which, despite sporting most modern technology, from the outside still looked like a classic English/European medieval stone structure. As Lotor disembarked with Romelle, Haggar, Sakura, and Mogor, the court of Pollux awaited them, including Heracles and Bandor, once again on their hands and knees in supplication. Lotor, in the lead, strolled over to where the court was kneeling, taking a moment to glance around before addressing the Polluxian King.
"King Heracles, are you ready to set our plan into action?" he asked.
"Yes, the planets' orbits will have them at their closest tomorrow," Heracles replied. "I must say I'm quite anxious to begin dividing Arus between us." Lotor decided to be "nice", and gestured for them to rise, which they quickly did.
"Very well, we hand Avok back to you as agreed," Lotor stated. "Haggar has done her evil best with him, and soon the fun can begin." He then turned to his Fleet Commander. "Mogor, get him!" Lotor ordered.
"At once, sire," Mogor bowed, and turned to wave at their ship, which quickly lowered a black space sarcophagus to the ground from its top by an energy beam. As this occurred, Bandor glanced over to Sakura, and noticed she was actively avoiding looking at Mogor, so he stepped over to her.
"Are you alright, Witch Sakura?" Bandor asked her. She blinked at him in surprise, then glowered.
"I asked Lotor to leave him behind, preferably on mine supervision duty, but he said he had some jobs for him to do here, and actually had the balls to try and apologize for not being able to arrange for him to have his own transport!" Now it was Bandor who was blinking.
"Wow, you really hate him, don't you?" Bandor commented.
"Is that a problem?" she hissed, and Bandor just gave her a consoling smile.
"I just wish you wouldn't waste your time on it, that's all," he answered. At this point, Lotor's voice cut in.
"Within this case you'll find your eldest son, Prince Avok. Haggar tells me he's her greatest achievement," Lotor stated to Heracles, who nodded and then turned to one of his advisers.
"Drak, has the challenge and demand for surrender been sent to Arus yet?" Heracles asked.
"Yes, Sire, it has been done," Drak replied. "I sent it by ultrawave half an hour ago."
"Very good," Heracles said. Lotor chuckled.
"I guess I should find a good seat where I can watch the show," Lotor commented.
"And soon Voltron will be finished," Bandor smiled, then turned back to Sakura. "Would you like me to show you around, my lady?" he offered her his arm. Sakura felt her eyes widen slightly in surprise, then glanced at Lotor and the nearby Haggar.
"Go ahead, dearie, have fun. We have things to attend to here, though if you could, leave Spinner for the moment," Haggar waved at her.
"Agreed, go on and have a little time to yourselves," Lotor nodded.
"Well, if it puts some distance between me and him for a while, I guess I can go," Sakura said, and, albeit a little reluctantly, took Bandor's arm, who led her off. As they started, Sakura nodded to Spinner, who'd been lazily lying draped over her shoulder, and the familiar lifted off his mistress and flew over to Haggar. As the youths walked off, Romelle decided to head into the castle as well, only for Lotor to step forward to stop her.
"Where are you going, Princess?" he asked her. "I was hoping you'd give me the grand tour as I did you."
"I doubt you'd find our planet anywhere near as. . .interesting as your own," Romelle responded. "And I believe I have duties I need to tend to."
"Nonsense, surely anything you're required for can wait," Lotor said, and then Heracles stepped in, putting himself between the two, which any Galran citizen could have told him was at great risk to his own life.
"Actually, there are some things I must insist she attend to immediately, Prince Lotor," Heracles stated calmly. "The two of you can reconvene later, I promise." Lotor glared for a moment, then quickly checked the position, and temperament, of Heracles's honor guard, before deciding it was not a very good time to be pushing his luck.
"Very well. Later," he agreed, and watched as Romelle quickly retreated to her castle before returning his attention to his own men. From the side, Haggar noted the Princess and her father trading a quick smile, hers grateful and his reassuring. Haggar chuckled to herself, knowing Heracles and Romelle had, at best, merely delayed the inevitable.
On planet Arus, the Voltron Force had gathered in the control room with Coran, who had summoned them upon the main computer receiving the challenge letter from Pollux. The others stood around him while Coran sat at the main control station.
"A challenge letter? By e-mail?" Lance asked. "Are you kidding me?"
"I wish. It came in just an hour ago," Coran responded, then began reading the message aloud. "Ruler of planet Arus, prepare yourself! You know the history of our two worlds, and with the help of King Zarkon and as vanguard of the Galra, we will settle our long feud now, once and for all. Our worlds will soon be close. You have one chance, surrender or be taken! King Heracles of planet Pollux."
"I remember reading about Pollux," Allura commented. "It'd be bad if we started fighting them when we're still putting our own kingdom back together."
"Where exactly is this planet Pollux, anyway?" Keith asked, and Coran pushed a button, bringing an image of Pollux up on the main viewscreen.
"Pollux is Arus's twin world in this system, orbiting in the same habitable zone of space around our star as Arus," Coran explained. "But the planet's orbit is eccentric, and the two only come within space hopping range every eighteen to twenty years. The last time was nineteen years ago, and with all the fuss with rebuilding Arus, holding off Zarkon, and everything else I forgot the next approach was about due. I apologize for the oversight."
"He mentioned a feud. What's that about?" Lance inquired curiously. .
"Several generations ago, the then King of Arus had two sons. The elder was peace loving, and the other a hooligan known for hard-fisted decisions and actions. When the King grew old, the two sons got into an argument over how the kingdom should be expanded and its resources managed from then on. The argument nearly had the two coming to blows when their father sent for them to tell them he was dying. When the younger son showed more interest in the brothers' prior argument than his own father's ailment, the King finally had enough and banished him to the erratically orbiting planet Pollux, along with nearly six hundred people who had already sided with that Prince."
"So that's what it's about," Pidge commented. "I guess every barrel has at least one bad apple in it, huh?"
"The Prince declared himself King of Pollux, and twenty years later staged a bloody attack to take back Arus when the planets finally came close again. The Polluxians were bested then, and have made additional attempts ever since whenever the planets came close enough," Coran continued. "The blood of that uncouth ruffian still runs in the Polluxian royal family's veins, and they still carry the grudge."
"So you're saying that if they attack, the people of Arus will effectively be fighting their own relatives," Keith stated. "I think we can all agree that this no time for Arus to be engaged in a petty battle over something that happened so long ago. We should try talking to them and forging a peace. What do you think, Coran?"
"I agree completely," Coran turned around and stood up. "As Chief Strategist of the Arus Kingdom, I shall accompany the Voltron Force on this errand."
"No, Coran, I'll go," Allura interrupted. "The royal heiress should be the one to go and represent her people in this affair personally." The rest of the team thought about this for a moment, and then nodded their agreement with the Princess, as Coran nodded in concession. Keith gave the order, and they quickly took to the lions, launched, and formed Voltron, blasting into space and out to planet Pollux. They arrived within an hour, after local nightfall, and activated a scanning deflection field around Voltron. They carefully flew in, picking up the location of the Polluxian Royal Palace, and landed Voltron in a canal about a mile and a half off. They disembarked and used the canal to slip into an underground waterway, not unlike a sewer, leading right beneath the palace walls.
They crept through the waterway stealthily, eventually reaching the under side of a runoff drain, through which they briefly viewed the Polluxian fleet. It did little to soothe their nerves, and they moved on, coming to an opening into a reservoir on the palace grounds. Maintaining stealth, they swam quietly through the reservoir until they got to a spot where visibility from the ship port was obscured by the palace itself. A palace, as Keith quickly noticed, that was fairly high. They got out of the water, and crept to the building, quickly deploying their Ultragrip Hooks to scale the wall until they reached the first available window and slipped inside.
Meanwhile, Heracles had a late night meeting with his advisers, to discuss their true plans for the days ahead. They all sat at a simple rectangular table, Heracles at the head, the room lit by a single overhead chandelier. The only noticeable absentees were Romelle and Bandor.
"Gentlemen, I would like to give my thanks and praise to all of you, the plan has gone very well thus far," Heracles began speaking. "Lotor and his men don't suspect a thing, which means neither does Zarkon."
"Indeed," an adviser agreed. "About the only things not gone as expected was Lotor's interest in the Princess, and Prince Bandor taking a liking to the old hag's precocious student."
"True, but much as I dislike it, it can work to our advantage, distracting Prince Lotor and the half-pint spellcaster when we need them to be, meaning the only potential wild cards are Commander Mogor and Haggar," Heracles concurred. "Is everything set for tomorrow?"
"Yes, my King," another adviser said. "Everyone is ready and prepped to take down Lotor and his entire posse once the signal is given. All that needs to happen first is for us to destroy Voltron!"
"That won't be a problem," Heracles stated. "Thanks to Haggar's dark powers, Avok is now more powerful than anything else the galaxy, nay, the universe has to offer! Soon I, and I alone, will rule both Pollux and Arus! And then we'll topple Zarkon, and take the whole Galran Empire!" Heracles was gripping his fist in his excitement and anticipation. Unfortunately, above them, sitting in the chandelier, watching and listening to every word being said, was Cova, with Spinner calmly floating beside him, a smirk upon his lips.
In another chamber that was provided for him, sitting in a fancy chair, supping wine, was Lotor. Beside him, on a pair of small stools, sat Haggar and Sakura, a crystal ball sitting on a small pedestal before them; and via Haggar's magic, they could see and hear all through Cova's eyes and ears in the ball. Also, at Haggar's instruction, Sakura was connecting the ball to Spinner as well, though her efforts were clearly still novice at best. Lotor was impressed at her attempt at the advanced form of surveillance, nonetheless.
"Do they really think such a plan would work on us?" Lotor smiled. "Like we weren't expecting such a move on their part."
"Agreed, Sire," Haggar replied. "The difference between your plans is like night and day."
"When we spring our trap, are we going to eliminate all of them, your majesty?" one of Heracles's advisers asked on the crystal ball.
"Yes, all of them," Heracles responded. "My youngest will no doubt despise me when his little crush is lying dead in her own blood, and I can only imagine it'll prick at my own conscience for a while, but better that than to leave such an unimaginably dangerous loose end behind."
"Dangerous loose end? Me?" Sakura blinked. "Am I supposed to be insulted or flattered?" Just then, though, she began to wobble, her part of the image wavering. Lotor noticed immediately, and Haggar glanced over a second later.
"Getting tired, my darling?" Haggar asked calmly.
"No, no, I'm good," Sakura replied, rubbing her eyes and giving her head a little tap.
"You're done, Sakura. Retire for the night and regain your strength," Lotor stated firmly.
"But - ," Sakura started, but Lotor cut her off before she could finish.
"Prince's orders, little witch," Lotor again said firmly. Sakura scowled for a moment, then rose and headed off to the chamber that Bandor had personally had arranged for her, which she had to admit was rather sweet of him. Her end of the surveillance in the crystal ball cut out completely a moment later.
"She's really pushing herself on this, isn't she?" Lotor observed once she was gone.
"I'm not really sure who she's trying to impress more, if I'm being truly honest," Haggar responded. "Me, or you." Lotor thought about that for a moment, then smiled.
"Far as I'm concerned, she has nothing to prove to anyone," he said. "Not even my father, despite what he might say otherwise." Lotor then threw back a gulp of his wine while Haggar arched an eye at him.
Unaware of the goings on in the palace, Romelle entered a small side side room not far from her younger brother's bed chambers to find Bandor standing quietly in the dark, contemplating the coming events of the next day with barely hidden excitement. Romelle, however, held equally barely hidden doubt.
"What are you doing, Bandor?" she asked.
"Couldn't sleep," Bandor replied to his sister as he turned to her. "I'm too hyped up for tomorrow."
"You shouldn't be," Romelle said. "War is never anything to be excited about."
"What's the matter, don't you think the plan will work anymore?" Bandor asked. "I know losing Avok like this is a blow, but it's not like it's all bad." Just then a light entered the room, and turning to look out the window they saw it was the glow of planet Arus.
"Planet Arus," Romelle commented, her voice in awe of the sight. "How beautiful."
"And by this time tomorrow, we'll have finally conquered it for ourselves," Bandor declared, pointing at the planet. "Prince Lotor even promised I could be on the first ship with him and Sakura into battle."
"You shouldn't believe everything Lotor tells you," Romelle turned back to her brother, a look of deep concern on her face. "And you really shouldn't be so fixated on that young witch."
"Why not?" Bandor stared at her.
"Because Lotor is a horrible person," Romelle stated, matter of factly. "And I don't believe Sakura is any better."
"But Prince Lotor is a respectable warrior who fought our brother fairly in the arena," Bandor objected. "And Sakura is just as respectable, and she's nice to be around."
"No, Lotor got distracted by me for some reason," Romelle corrected him. "We don't know what he would have done against our brother had that not happened. And from what I heard about how the old witch works, I doubt she's taught little Sakura anything about respect or honor." Bandor pondered that last bit about Haggar, and his one one-on-one close encounter with the old woman, allowing himself a slight shudder.
"Okay, so Witch Haggar isn't winning any "Galaxy's Best Mom" awards anytime soon," Bandor conceded. "But Sakura's come out amazing, anyway. And Lotor. . ."
"No, Bandor, it's all a facade," Romelle stated firmly, a touch of fear behind her eyes.
"Romelle..." Bandor whispered, his eyes wide as he wondered just what had happened to her back on Galra to shake her so. But, before their conversation could continue further, a loud crash of metal suddenly reached their ears from the hall. They quickly dashed over to the door and peered out, spotting the Voltron Force just down the darkened hall, Pidge having accidentally backed into and partly knocked over a decorative suit of armor.
"Sorry, my bad, didn't see it there," Pidge quickly whispered to his team in apology, before moving forward. Bandor quickly drew Romelle back into the room, and drew his sword, waiting for the right moment to strike. A moment later he heard Pidge's voice more clearly, indicating the youth was now much closer to him.
"Don't worry," Pidge said. "It looks like nobody heard us." Bandor took a glance and then stepped back into the hall, pressing the tip of his sword to Pidge's back. "Oops, is that another one?" Pidge asked as he turned, only to find Bandor staring angrily at him. "Uh, oh..."
"You're not Polluxian, so unless you want to be filleted as a spy, you better start talking," Bandor stated. "You got ten seconds."
"We came to talk to you, to try and make peace," Pidge blurted in panic, the feeling of Bandor's sword leaving little question as to what lying would get him.
"Peace? Are you kidding?" Bandor glared at him. From down the hall, the rest of the team realized something was up; Allura, springing into action first, dashed over to her friend.
"Pidge, what's wrong?" she cried as she came up close. At that particular moment, Romelle lost patience and emerged back into the hall.
"Bandor, what's happening out there?" Romelle called out, and then stopped short as she stared in shock at the face so nearly her own as Allura also came to a stop, equally in shock at what was before her. The rest of the Voltron Force came up behind Allura a second later, and also stopped in surprise. The two boys had also frozen in place, their minds trying to decipher what they were seeing.
"They look so much alike, like duplicates, or twin sisters," Hunk breathed.
"I'm sure glad I'm wearing my glasses," Pidge quipped. "Cause I have no idea what's going on."
"Are you the Princess of planet Pollux?" Allura asked, trying her best to remain calm.
"Yes, I am," Romelle replied, doing likewise. "I am Romelle. And you are?"
"I'm Allura, Princess of planet Arus," Allura replied. "I've come to talk peace." Romelle jerked back a step, gasping in surprise.
"They're effectively distant cousins, but the resemblance is uncanny," Keith commented, Lance and Hunk nodding in agreement. Bandor, unfortunately, finally snapped out of his shock, shoved Pidge aside, and brandished his sword in Allura's face.
"Okay, you're all my prisoners!" he declared. This, however, spurred Hunk into action, the big man lunging forward.
"What do you think you're doing, you little punk?!" he demanded as he body slammed, albeit not hard enough to cause any serious damage, the young Prince, knocking him down, and causing his sword to go flying out of his hands and onto the floor with a loud clang. And this was the moment things took a decidedly bad turn when a voice suddenly rang out from the room across the hall. A, for Pidge, frighteningly familiar voice.
"WHAT'S GOING ON OUT THERE!" the female voice screamed loudly, and a moment later the double door snapped open to reveal Sakura dressed in only her sleeping gown. A light purple affair, on any adult woman it would arguably be considered lingerie given its moderate sheerness. On Sakura, though, it came off as downright inappropriate! "I'M TRYING TO SLEEP IN HER...Pidgey?" Sakura continued to scream, then stopped short when she spotted the green clad Voltron Force member sitting on the floor before her. She blinked for a moment, then froze, glanced down at her current state of dress, then shrieked and slammed her doors closed again.
"I'm ready to run back to Arus now," Pidge said, really not in the mood for his stalker at that moment.
"Pidgey?" Bandor blinked, then glared. "Pidge? You're Pidge?" Pidge glanced back at the Prince in surprise.
"Uh, yes?" Pidge replied, and Bandor reached into his boot and pulled out a backup dagger, brandishing it menacingly as he got to his feet.
"Then I have anther reason to end you," Bandor stated firmly.
"Bandor!" Romelle stared at her brother in horror.
"Once you're gone," Bandor continued, unperturbed, "Sakura will stop wasting her time thinking about you and focus on me!" Pidge blinked, and then glared back at Bandor.
"You can have her!" he snapped at the Prince. "She's all yours!" And then the door snapped open again, revealing Sakura now once again fully dressed.
"Pidgey!" she cried, and in the blink of an eye snapped out her left hand, magically tossing Bandor away from her target before diving forward and grabbing Pidge around the neck. It was all so fast, Pidge only had enough time to give out a small "ack" of dismay; dodging was out of the question. "Did you come all the way here for me?" Sakura asked him. "That's so sweet of you!" She giggled in delight, Bandor rising and staring in jealous fury.
"Uh, excuse me?" Allura said, feeling a little annoyed at the young witch's antics, even if deep down she did kind of understand it. Sakura looked up, not breaking smile for a second.
"And you brought the others as slave gifts! You shouldn't have!" Sakura chimed, causing more than a few arched eyebrows. Just then another familiar voice came floating from around the corner.
"You'd think she'd let me know she was retiring so I could slip out sooner, but no, leave me to float about unneeded while it gets late, see if I care," the voice mumbled, and then Spinner floated around the corner into view and stopped short at seeing the group before him. "Whoops," he quipped.
"Oh, I was just wondering where he was," Lance commented dryly.
"Well, this is awkward," Spinner admitted. "Should I. . .do something, Sakura?"
"Relax, I've got it well in hand," Sakura waved dismissively.
"Romelle, please, I only want to make peace with you and Pollux," Allura turned her attention back to the other Princess. "Are you really content with being ruled by Zarkon and his empire?" Romelle felt herself pause at that, thinking of Lotor and some of the vileness she had seen on Galra as part of his "showing her around".
"Seriously?" Sakura now arched an eye. "You can't possibly think they even want that, can you?" Bandor then grabbed Sakura from behind taking her by surprise and yanking her away from Pidge, eliciting a quick "Woo," from her, before jumping in front of Romelle. Spinner watched all, waiting for a moment to make a move
"Yeah, who said anything about peace?" Bandor added. "Once the fighting starts, even Voltron won't help you, so why don't you just surrender now?" The men, now rejoined by the freed Pidge, gave each other a brief glance.
"You do know we have you outnumbered right now, don't you?" Hunk asked. "You don't really think you can stop us on your own, the kid witch and her flying pet not withstanding, do you?"
"Oh, not a problem," Sakura said unconcernedly.
"What do you mean?" Bandor blinked at her. And then they heard the sounds of heavy footsteps coming closer, followed by an alarm suddenly going off. The Voltron Force, Romelle, Bandor, and even Spinner perked up at the noise, the heroes in mild panic, and the others in simple surprise.
"Like I didn't hit the alarm while I was getting my clothes back on," Sakura said, then turned to Bandor and pointed at her face. "Does it say 'stupid' on my face?" she asked the Prince. In response, Bandor smiled broadly.
"More like brilliant," he said to her. "Seriously, why are you wasting time on that guy?" he asked, indicating Pidge, who at that moment was dashing over to the window. Looking outside, Pidge gulped as he saw literally dozens of ground troops filling the courtyard, and felt a small shiver when he spotted Haggar among them.
"Guys, I think we're surrounded," Pidge said. As he turned the footsteps finally stopped as a group of soldiers rounded the corner, Mogor at the lead. Except for Mogor they all had laser rifles in hand, at the ready. While Spinner just smiled at the Force's predicament, Sakura glanced at the troops and glared.
"Why'd it have to be him?" she growled.
"Oh, hey little witch, weren't you getting your ugly sleep?" Mogor replied. Before she could respond, he turned to the Voltron Force, who had pulled their own hand guns out. "Open fire! Kill them!" Mogor ordered, and Bandor quickly jumped back into the room he and Romelle had been in earlier, dragging Sakura and his sister with him. A second later the hall erupted into laser fire, both sides wasting no time in trying to eliminate the other. At the end of the hall, Spinner dived sideways as well, opting not to be in the path of a potential stray shot.
"Everyone, fall back! We're leaving!" Keith barked, and the V-Force quickly backed down the hall and leapt out the window into the water below. Lance went last after firing a few more shots, successfully taking out two of Mogor's men. The other men dashed to the window and fired after the escaping enemy, the men in the courtyard firing into the fluid as well after the Voltron Force went under the water, Hagar screaming at them not to let their enemies get away. As Mogor watched from behind his remaining soldiers, Sakura, Bandor, and Romelle emerged once again.
"Did you get 'em?" Bandor asked, taking a second to finally collect his dropped sword.
"No, they jumped into your reservoir," Mogor replied.
"So, in other words, you screwed up," Sakura smiled at him, Spinner floating up to finally rejoin his mistress.
"They haven't come back up yet, so the jury's still out," Mogor corrected her, not even bothering to turn and see her face. A few minutes later, Voltron launched out of the water canal outside the castle grounds at a position just outside their view, prompting Mogor to dash down the hall and around a corner to a mostly open balcony in time to see Voltron land on the ground, smashing a hole in the castle wall in the process.
"Unleash the robeast!" Mogor screamed. "Avok, strike now and destroy Voltron!" At that, an Infra Energize Beam fired from Lotor's command ship on the still waiting space coffin, which briefly expanded before Avok smashed his way out, rising to his feet. His skin was now a dark purple, with bone-like protrusions on his lower legs and neck. He wore a white cape with magenta lining, a grey kilt and shirt that left his stomach and left shoulder bare, and gray boots and a helmet, the latter of which had an ornate crest. He also wore a pair of dark gray wrist cuffs. On his waist sat two sheathed swords on either side.
"Voltron, behold my power and meet your doom!" he roared, then drew his swords and slammed them together at the base of the hilt, turning them into a double bladed javelin that he began to spin. Voltron immediately responded by going straight to the Blazing Sword. Avok wasted no time and swung his weapon in, still spinning. Voltron moved to block, and the Blazing Sword was knocked straight out of the robot's hand!
During all this, Romelle and Bandor had decided to move down to the courtyard for a closer view, Bandor grabbing Sakura – who had retrieved her staff – by the hand and bringing her with, Spinner clinging to his mistress's shoulder. They passed a group of windows just as Avok disarmed Voltron.
"Wow," Sakura commented, "He's actually doing pretty well out there."
"Of course he is," Bandor beamed proudly. "We told you the plan would work!"
Voltron then formed his Spinning Laser Disc and tossed it, the multi-bladed weapon smacking into Avok's javelin and knocking it from his hand. Voltron then charged in and began to grapple with Avok, hand to hand. At this point Romelle, Bandor, and Sakura reached the castle's front door, joined by King Heracles, and they all dashed outside and down the stairs to the ground. A moment later, Avok broke the grapple and flipped Voltron through the air down onto the ground, hard, then roared.
"Whoa, he's doing really well," Sakura admitted, fully impressed.
"Could this actually work?" Spinner asked from her shoulder.
"Obviously it'll work, it has to!" Heracles snapped, clearly agitated. "But it was supposed to work on Arus, not here!"
"Not our fault, they came to us," Bandor commented. Avok then moved forward, and grabbed the lion part of Voltron's head by one hand, and raised the other to strike. "Yeah, keep at it big brother, get him!" Bandor cheered aloud. Before Avok could strike, though, a burst of flame came out of Voltron's mouth and into Avok's face, causing him to release his grip and jump back in pain. Voltron seized the moment and regained its feet, jumping at Avok to grapple with the Prince-turned-robeast once more. The two wrestled fiercely, spinning around a bit until Avok slammed Voltron into the castle wall, and kneed the robot in the waist. Fortunately for the Voltron Force, the robot was very sturdy, and withstood the assault well.
Unfortunately, the wall they were up against, as had been previously seen, was not so sturdy. It caved, and Voltron fell backward with nothing left to hold it up, Avok tumbling with the robot down the slight hill and into the canal.
"AVOK!" Bandor cried in shock, fearing the worst. A moment later Avok and Voltron stood up again, and then a glowing field briefly surrounded Voltron, a small orb of energy raising into the air between the combatants before an identical field surrounded Avok. Avok jerked and screamed as though electrocuted, then dropped back to one knee.
By this time all of the Galran forces had retreated back to the command ship, save a handful of Lotor's personal men who were still on the ground just outside, and Sakura, who was still with the Polluxian royals. Within the command ship, Lotor was watching all from the bridge with Haggar and Mogor, the latter having departed the castle not long after Sakura and the Polluxian royals had stepped outside before returning smartly to the ship.
"Enough of this!" Lotor growled. "Open fire with everything we've got!"
"We don't have a clear shot of Voltron, Prince Lotor," Mogor commented.
"So?" Lotor glanced at him. "We were going to betray each other anyway. And it's pretty clear Avok won't be very controllable even if he does manage a victory, which at this point I doubt. Blast them both apart!"
"Very well, my Prince," Mogor nodded in agreement, a smile on his lips, then turned to the officers on deck. "You heard him, all Star Cutters open fire on Voltron and Avok!"
A flock of Star Cutters flew out toward the two titans, and opened fire, catching Avok from behind. He turned and swung his fists at the annoying pests, smashing three of them in quick succession. A few swung in close to Voltron, the robot shrugging the blows off for the most point, firing a few small lasers and crushing one Cutter with the jaws of Red lion. And then things turned. A Star Cutter fired its lasers true, twice, and took out Avok's eyes as he cried out in the sudden pain. And then two more fired a volley of heavy missiles into Avok's back. For the former Prince, it was one too many, and he buckled, then fell into the water. For a moment he started to revert to his original form, but then proceeded to explode apart, the Prince's life at an end. The remaining cutters then focused their fire on Voltron, who quickly unloaded some of its own arsenal, ending the assault and the remaining ships.
"AVOK, NOOO!" Romelle and Bandor screamed as their eldest sibling perished in front of their eyes. King Heracles was infuriated, and roared.
"DAMN YOU, LOTOR!" he screamed his rage, and charged over to a laser cannon sitting on the grounds, leaping into the control seat and immediately taking aim at Lotor's command ship. Sadly, a pair of surviving Star Cutters spotted him as he moved, and turned their lasers on him, hitting and detonating the cannon before Heracles could ever get off a shot. Heracles had only the briefest of moments to throw up his arms in a pointless defensive posture as the cannon exploded in an enormous fireball, the Polluxian King consumed in the flames.
"FATHER!" Romelle screamed, and dashed forward in a futile effort to save her sire. A pair of Lotor's remaining ground soldiers intercepted her, grabbing her by the arms and hauling her bodily to the command ship, which was in the process of preparing to launch. "NO! UNHAND ME! BANDOR!" she cried in panic.
"ROMELLE! LET HER GO!" Bandor screamed as he started to run forward to his sister's defense. But after only a few mere seconds his whole body suddenly seized up, feeling as though something was wrapping around him tightly, and he flopped to the ground with a small yell and a grunt upon impact. He looked up just as Sakura started to pass him by, the top of her staff glowing. "Sakura, what are you doing?!" he cried to her.
"Going home, obviously," she replied calmly. "This is clearly our cue to skidoo." She then paused and turned to the young Prince, a real sorrow in her eyes. "I'm sorry about your family," she told him. "But your father was planning to betray us. He should have known better than to think he could ever out maneuver Lotor and Zarkon." Sakura then turned away and walked over to the command ship, the remaining soldiers and Romelle already aboard. "Goodbye, Prince Bandor," she called behind her. "It was. . .pleasant." And with that she boarded the ship as well, and it jumped into the sky.
"SAKURA, NO! DON'T DO THIS! SAKURA! ROMELLE!" Bandor screamed after her at the top of his lungs, only just barely registering Sakura's spell lifting. He began to sob uncontrollably, his head falling. Then the lion-like roar of Voltron's limbs caused Bandor's head to pop right back up again as the robot shot into the air after the command ship.
"Yes, save them, Voltron, please!" Bandor breathed quietly. As he watched, the robot quickly cut the distance between it and Lotor's command ship, and then slammed its right lion head hand straight into the side of the ship, impaling it.
On board, Romelle had been dragged only as far as the bay with Sakura following up behind, where Lotor, Haggar, and Mogor had come to meet them. Romelle stared daggers at Lotor, who smiled back, more than satisfied with the results. Haggar, meanwhile, came up to Sakura, who was starting to wobble.
"Are you alright, my dear?" she asked.
"Fine, just didn't get all that much sleep before the enemy decided to show up way ahead of schedule," Sakura replied.
"You fiends, what have you done? You killed my family!" Romelle roared.
"Just doing to Heracles what he intended to do to us first," Lotor said back. "Be grateful I've allowed you to be the sole survivor."
"She isn't," Sakura turned to them. "Bandor is still alive. I only restrained him on my way out."
"He's alive?" Romelle glanced to the young witch.
"You spared him? Why?!" Lotor arched an eyebrow at Sakura. "Did his feeble attempts at courtship actually work on you?"
"I just didn't see any reason to kill him, that's all," Sakura replied. "What happened to the Polluxian guards? Shouldn't they have been present and all over us the moment you had Romelle grabbed?"
"I had them quickly and quietly taken care of after you left for bed, as a precaution," Lotor explained. Just then a Galran guard came running in.
"Prince Lotor, it's Voltron! He's - " the guard started in a panic, but then the head of Red lion suddenly smashed through the hull, the guard crushed and buried under a pile of debris. The lion head growled, and began to shake, the ship rumbling as the damage caused a cascade effect.
"Damn it all, abandon ship!" Lotor ordered, grabbing Romelle and dashing into a nearby smaller brown ship, Haggar ushering Sakura in after them and Mogor and a few surviving men right on their heels. The ship's engines fired a moment later and it blasted out of the bay.
"Uh, oh, I think we just did more damage than we meant to," Lance commented from Red's cockpit.
"What about Princess Romelle?" Allura asked, terrified they'd inadvertently killed her new-found cousin.
"Lotor dragged her into an escape craft, she'll be fine, just pull us back!" Lance said.
Voltron fell back from the command ship, pulling its hand free, while the escape craft blasted out the other side and shot the rest of the way into space. A few moments later the cascade finished its job and the command ship exploded apart. The shock wave buffeted Voltron a bit, and by the time the robot had regained its equilibrium, the escape ship had already gotten far off into space, and catching it before it reached Galran space was now a low possibility. So instead they returned to the planet's surface to tend to the ashes left behind.
Aboard the escape ship, Romelle was watching helplessly as Lotor clocked Mogor in his ire to the deck, and then dropped a foot upon the Commander's head.
"Idiot, is there anything tonight that hasn't gone wrong?!" the Prince snarled in his anger and frustration.
"We got the Polluxian Princess for your harem," Mogor grunted from the floor. "That went right."
"Grr, fool! I ought to. . .no," Lotor stayed his hand. "I'll let Sakura decide what to do to you, I'm sure she'll enjoy it. Sakura?" Lotor turned to the girl, only to find she had flopped into the command chair and passed completely out, Spinner having fallen from her shoulder into her lap on his back, following suit.
"I think it may be awhile before that, sire," Haggar commented lightly.
"Indeed," Lotor calmed himself. "Later then. Let her sleep."
"Amazing," Romelle remarked as she briefly watched the sleeping child. "Like that you would never suspect she's a little monster." She glanced back at her captors. "Just like all of you."
"Well, I have tried my best," Haggar replied, giving a happy chuckle.
Back on Pollux, the rest of the castle staff quickly aided in summoning reserve guards from the nearby villages, and the Voltron Force aided in putting out the fires and retrieving what little was left of Heracles and Avok. Under questioning, the King's advisers, who had wisely stayed inside the castle and watched all from their nearest available window, admitted to Heracles's true plan to turn on and kill the Galra forces after Voltron's defeat, including Lotor, Haggar, and even little Sakura.
"And he thought I'd just let him do that?!" Bandor snapped, the boy barely holding himself together.
"I'm pretty sure he intended to have you restrained somehow, my Prince," one adviser admitted. "That, or keep you busy elsewhere until it was done. He simply couldn't condone leaving a loose end like the old bat's student around." Bandor growled, but then Allura came up behind him and placed her hand on his shoulder, making Bandor glance up at her.
"I won't claim to be any kind of fan of Witch Sakura, and I honestly can't say if I would ever condone such an action were I to have the opportunity to do so," she said calmly to the advisers. "But, I can also admit that I do understand why he came to that decision. Short of finding a way to turn the little one to our side, not taking care of her somehow would be asking for trouble down the road." Allura's eyes rolled to the side. "And considering how pissed she was after we killed Yurak..."
The rest of the team behind her grunted in agreement, remembering how Allura had described to them her brief one-on-one with Sakura on the mobile battle station not more than a week before. Bandor had no idea who his cousin was talking about, but from her tone he got the idea. He still didn't like it though. After further discussion, he decided, under Allura's suggestion, to put the advisers on probation, for now.
Early that morning, funerals were held for the dead, the King and former Crown Prince being attended by Bandor and the Voltron Force alone, at the Prince's request. As he knelt before his father and brother's graves, he finally let go, the tears flowing freely.
"I was a fool," he sobbed. "I was so busy admiring Lotor's strength and how he was portraying himself to us that I didn't see him for what he really is." He stood up, still crying. "And now I may never see my sister again. . ." Allura came up behind, and touched his shoulder comfortingly.
"It's okay, Bandor, we'll get her back someday. You just have to be brave and have faith in that," she told him as he turned to her. She took out a handkerchief and dried his eyes. "It's your duty to her as her brother, right?" Bandor nodded at her.
"Yeah, I will," he said. Pidge came up to him, offering his hand.
"Let's take those Doom creeps out together, okay?" he asked, and Bandor took his hand.
"Yeah!" he agreed.
Finally, this one's done. Easily the longest chapter of anything I have ever written, I can't believe how long it went. It just didn't seem to want to end! But end it has, and finally I can move on. But first a few quick notes.
So, if anyone thinks a couple of the things I had happen on Galra/Doom sounds familiar, that's probably because I lifted a few concepts from LotornoMiko's "The Songbird's Lament" at , like a naughty boy. But I like to think I gave them enough of my own spin that she won't be too upset at me for it.
Next, I'm actually a little ashamed to admit that when I started this fic, I'd somehow forgotten about Prince Bandor/Alor. Then I started reading LotornoMiko's aforementioned fic, which is similar to what I'm doing only insomuch as it's the series from the point of view of one of the "bad guys", though in this case an OC, but it starts here, with the entry of the Polluxians/Heraclians as a large part of that tale is the OC Galran falling in love with Romelle. And not long after reading the first couple chapters it suddenly hit me – how exactly would Sakura and Bandor interact with each other once I got to this point? And not long after that I came up with the idea of the "sort of" love triangle between them and Pidge. As well as how I wanted to do the scene with the Force, Bandor, and Romelle in the hall. Well, not exactly how.
You see, originally I was going to have Spinner be in the room with Sakura, and after she dove back inside the group would hear her snapping at Spinner for not getting her to put something on first. Then I watched the episode again and went, "Crap, there's a scene of them spying through Cova here." And the fact that it happens just before the scene with Romelle and Bandor's private moment, and both are just after the Force arrives on Pollux, meant I had to choose – Spinner in the room with her, or Spinner on the chandelier with Cova. I made my choice, and I'm sticking to it. On the plus side, it also let me remove a weird problem with the ep. In the episode, where I have Spinner come around the corner, originally it's Cova who's there, and goes unnoticed, only to be in Haggar's arms less than two minutes later! How did her cat move from an upstairs hall to the castle courtyard that fast?
I also threw in that line from Lotor about the Polluxian guards, as in the episode they literally just vanish without a trace. Like I had Sakura observe above, they should have been all over Lotor's men the moment they tried to grab Romelle, most likely preventing her from being taken at all. I also decided to switch Bandor from getting shot in the leg to getting magically restrained by Sakura, as to avoid having to explain why his leg isn't bandaged at the funeral, a curious screw up in the episode frankly. Not as bad as Bandor getting shot in one leg and then the other being the one not moving, but still.
And a final annoyance, I had completely forgotten that this was the first episode to feature Mogor/Gobra! And there wasn't even any real introduction to him either, just Lotor and Haggar landing on Pollux and, bam, there he is. Hell, he's barely in the episode, really, but he is there, and considering he plays a relatively significant role in later eps. down the line, you'd think he'd get more of an intro, but no, that was it. And considering his history with Sakura, I knew I'd have to give him more of an intro than that just so I could establish their current relationship with each other, hence bringing him in a little earlier.
My beta also pointed out the rather curious logic hole in regards to the Polluxians waiting for the two planets to be close together before attacking, leading me to a last second addition to fill it. I went with tradition mostly because I had no other good ideas on it. And did I just hear someone playing a fiddle on a roof?
So with that, I'm done with this ep., on to the next...which is Zarkon seeming to be dying... I'll probably just zip squeal through that one so I can get to the buried castle...
