**I do not own Voltron: Legendary Defender (duh)
Once the others had suited up and collected their weapons, Scarlett and Lance led the way to the nearest air lock. Flipping the lever, the doors slid open and they were sucked into space. The five Voltron lions were drifting aimlessly in front of them, and everyone activated their jetpacks and boosters to begin propelling themselves towards them.
Red laser beams soared past their escaping group, and Scarlett turned to see several pirates approaching, guns blazing. She pulled out her blaster and began firing at their opponents, the other paladins quick to follow suit. Unused to fighting in a gravity-less environment, most of her shots missed. A few of them managed to catch a jetpack or the barrel of a gun here and there, but most of the rogues were scattered thanks to the paladins' work.
Taking her by the hand, Pidge led Scarlett to the Green Lion. The lion's jaws opened and they stumbled inside, the gravity restored. They made their way to the cockpit and Pidge plopped down in the pilot's seat. She picked up Coran before he could be attacked by two lingering enemies, and they waited until the others had made it safely to their lions. Now all that was left was for Keith and Acxa to emerge from the cruiser and they could get out of there.
"Guys! Zero in on my location and fire on the ship," Keith ordered over their comms.
"Are you sure?" Allura asked, hesitant but already working on locating his position.
"Just do it!"
The rest of the paladins did as their leader instructed. The lions each unleashed a collective shot from their mouth cannons, the blue beams cutting right through the cruiser. The ship lit up in a chain reaction of brilliant explosions, ripping a gaping hole into the side. The Black Lion surged forward and opened its maw as Keith and Acxa fled the burning aircraft, swiftly collecting them and turning away from the wreckage. The lions zipped away from the cruiser, never once slowing down until it was well out of sight.
Scarlett pouted to herself. "Goodbye, Double Trouble," she murmured. The ship had no doubt been blown to smithereens by the lions' attack. "Acxa, what the heck kind of plan was that?"
"The bridge was empty. I had to come up with a distraction plan," Acxa defended herself over the comms. "Thanks to the older Altean's help, we got out without having them follow us."
Scarlett sighed and crossed her arms, but said nothing more. She supposed Acxa was right. The last thing they needed was for any pirates to follow them home.
"Guys, I don't know about you, but my lion's in really bad shape after that," Hunk piped up, the worry evident in his voice.
"Same here," Lance chimed in.
"We need to find a safe place to land," Pidge said, double checking Green's extremely low power reserves. "They need time to recharge."
Scarlett's mood lifted as an idea struck. "We can take you back to our camp," she suggested. "You guys can rest up, and we can get some much needed answers."
"Where is it?" Keith asked.
"An old Galra mining facility," she replied, already inputting the coordinates into Pidge's navigational systems. "The planet ran out of ore a long time ago. No one lives there. Well, except for us, lately."
The image of a brownish-orange and dusty planet and its two moons popped up on their screens. Scarlett and Acxa had been calling it home for the past few movements, although they'd been considering moving on to the next location. But now that the paladins had returned, maybe they wouldn't have to keep running and hiding.
"Okay," Keith said, his mind made up. "We'll stop there while the lions recover."
Nearly a varga later, the lions arrived at their destination. They practically collapsed upon landing, kicking up clouds of thick dust as they sagged to the ground. Their passengers hopped out and Scarlett excitedly led the way to the cave where they'd been staying. The eerie gray buildings of the Galra's deserted mining operations loomed over them as she approached the canyon side. She flipped the blanket aside that had been covering the entrance to their makeshift home, protecting their things from the wind and dirt, and allowed everyone to step inside.
"Welcome, welcome," she said. She gestured to the cargo crates that sat around the fire pit. "Take a seat anywhere you'd like. OH my quiznak!"
She squealed and nearly jumped out of her skin as a large wolf sauntered past her. He cast her a look, unfazed by her shock, before casually curling up on the floor and dozing off.
"What. Is that?" she hissed, pointing at it and eyeing it with caution.
"A cosmic wolf," everyone, save for Acxa, deadpanned.
Scarlett pressed her lips into a thin line and inched away from it. "Okay…"
"It's Keith's," Lance added, and she sighed.
"Of course it is." She made her way over to their firewood stash and groaned when she found it almost empty. A note has been slapped onto one of the logs, reading, 'Forgot to get more yesterday. Sorry. I'm out collecting more with Treble right now. -Mistu.'
"Dang it, Mitsu," she grumbled, crumbling the note. Who knew when those two would be back.
"Wait, Mitsubishi's okay too?" Keith asked. "He's living here with you?"
"Yep," Scarlett nodded, as if this should've been obvious. Plucking up the remaining logs, she chucked them into the fire pit. "Zyron, we're back! Come light it up!"
From the back of the cave where her sleeping mat laid, the little bot squirmed free from under her blankets. He zipped through the air, his tiny lighter feature activated as he set the wood ablaze. Then taking in their many unexpected guests, he chirped in delight upon recognizing their faces. He plowed into Pidge, nuzzling her neck and whirring in hello.
"Zyron! Oh, buddy, it's great to see you!" Pidge beamed, cupping him in her hands. "You got any new upgrades?"
"Nope. Haven't been able to upgrade him in forever. Don't have the parts or access to a lab," Scarlett answered. The Green Paladin cast her a quizzical frown, but before she could ask a single question, the Utearen clapped her hands together. "Okay, first thing's first: who wants to quickly go collect some more firewood for your lovely hosts?" she asked, gesturing to their blanket door.
When no one answered and proceeded to avoid direct eye contact, Scarlett pointed to the nearest paladin to the door. "Thank you for volunteering, Hunk!"
"W-What? Me? Why me?" he stammered. "I didn't volunteer."
"I heard your stomach rumbling when we walked in," she replied simply. "You need a good meal and we can't start dinner without any wood."
His fear was instantly replaced with a steadfast determination and understanding. "Say no more. I'm on it," he said, before disappearing outside.
Scarlett whirled on the remaining paladins, making them involuntarily jump. "Second thing's second: who's injured and needs first aid?" she asked. "Pidge?"
"I'm good," she quickly said.
"Old man Coran?"
"He could probably use some ice," Allura admitted, casting his bruised features a worried glance.
"We have cold patches," Acxa offered, rummaging through a first aid kit and producing a few strips.
"That will do," the princess said, gratefully taking them from her and beginning to apply them to her advisor's swollen face.
Scarlett placed her hands on her hips as she stood next to Acxa. She surveyed the team around her, each of them tired but slowly being warmed by the comforting fire. Her gaze fell on Krolia and the new Altean, both of whom were lingering at the edge of the group near the door.
"Okay, third thing: who's the Altean?" she finally asked. "And why is Krolia here?"
"You know Krolia?" Keith asked and Scarlett nodded.
"Her sister, Immea, was one of the many Blades I trained," Krolia elaborated, granting the Utearen a familiar smile. "We met a few times before she left with Ulaz to operate the Thaldycon base."
"She's also Keith's mom!" Lance stage-whispered to Scarlett, and Keith shot him a glare.
Scarlett rolled her eyes. "Well, I figured that much out a long time ago."
Lance raised a doubtful brow. "You did?"
"Yes," she said. "And the Altean?"
"This is Romelle," Keith introduced her, and Romelle granted Scarlett a nervous wave. "She's from a hidden colony of Alteans Lotor was maintaining. He was using them for their quintessence. Krolia and I discovered it."
"So it's true," Scarlett muttered to herself. Acxa gripped her hands tighter together as she glowered at the floor.
Suddenly, the blanket flapped open as Treble burst through, dragging Hunk by the arm behind her. "We found a wild paladin!" she cheered, raising her fist in triumph. Her eyes widened as she took in the others sitting around the fire and her smile grew even bigger. "We found ALL the paladins!" she squealed, unable to contain her rising excitement as she bounced on her heels.
Mitsubishi slid inside the cave behind them, a bundle of sticks in his arms. "We saw the lions land," he said, his face as emotionless as ever. His hair was a vibrant yellow though as he looked at each and every one of their long-lost friends. "I almost thought we were hallucinating until we ran into Hunk."
"They glomped me outta nowhere," Hunk stuttered sheepishly, his grin frazzled and nervous. "They pinched my tummy. Real hard. It hurt."
He too was balancing a stack of sticks in his free hand, of which Treble promptly snatched and tossed into their wood pile corner. Mitsubishi followed suit before turning to them.
"Which reminds me. We have to check the rest of you now," he said.
"Check the rest of us?" Shiro repeated. "What do you – GAH!"
Before anyone could stop her, Treble tweaked his side. Then she and Mitsubishi proceeded to do the same to the others, save for Acxa, Scarlett, and the wolf, eliciting a series of yelps and swears of varying levels of confusion and irritation.
Romelle slapped a hand over the new sore spot, glaring daggers at the Flouwan girl. "What was that for?" she pouted.
Treble grinned, unfazed by her hostility. "I'm just makin' sure none of you are shapeshifters," she replied.
"We aren't shapeshifters!" Lance shrilled, irately massaging his stomach.
Mitsubishi shrugged. "You can never be too cautious. We're not taking any chances after all the trouble they've caused us."
Lance scowled, briefly looking him and his sister up and down. "I see you two look all different now too," he muttered, taking note of their changed appearances.
Like Scarlett, Mitsubishi had shot up in height. His voice had deepened and his shoulders had broadened while his scrawny limbs began to build up more muscle. Treble had put on several inches as well. Her baby fat was gradually disappearing as she entered her early teens, and her dark blue hair had grown long enough to be tied up into a ponytail. They too had been forced to obtain new space attire to accommodate their growing bodies.
Treble tilted her head curiously as she stared at Lance. "You don't look different at all," she noted. "Kinda weird."
"Not really," Lance said. "How have so many things changed in just the past few weeks?"
There was a hesitant pause as Scarlett and Acxa exchanged a confused look. The ex-general's frown deepened as she looked at the paladin. "'Weeks'? What are you talking about?"
"The last time we saw you," Allura said, concern beginning to creep into her expression. "You were fighting us alongside Lotor."
"That was three decaphoebs ago," Acxa said, slowly but surely. "No one has seen you since your fight with Lotor."
Keith's eyes widened. "That's impossible."
"It's true," she assured him. She took a steadying breath before continuing, "After Lotor jettisoned us, we managed to make it to cover on a meteoroid. There we saw both Voltron and Lotor disappear. Eventually Voltron re-emerged alone. But then there was an explosion, and after that nothing. That was three decaphoebs ago."
"Why do you think we've all aged?" Scarlett said, supporting Acxa's claim as she gestured to herself, Mitsubishi, and Treble. "We don't grow any faster than humans. At least not from what I've noticed."
A tense beat of silence settled over the cave as the paladins absorbed this fact of reality. Hunk's jaw dropped and his arms fell limply to his sides. Shiro's hand curled into a fist at his side, his jaw set with frustration. Lance swallowed, his eyes pooling with shock as everything began to click.
"Whoa," he whispered, unable to find a better word to express the complex series of emotions now churning within him.
"So, as far as everyone else in the universe is concerned, Voltron has been gone for three decaphoebs?" Allura clarified, her expression pinched in worry, and Acxa nodded.
"Where exactly were you all this time?" Scarlett asked. "What happened after the explosion? And where's the Castle?"
"Our fight with Lotor opened up too many expanding rifts in reality," Allura replied. "We had to close them by overloading the teludav reactor. We lost the Castle."
"Well, not completely," Coran reminded them, and he produced a glimmering crystal from a cord hanging around his neck. "The Castle of Lions was compressed into this. It's the last piece of Pop-Pop Wimbleton's great creation."
He tenderly cupped the crystal in his hands, staring at it fondly with a hint of sadness. A twinge of pain tugged at Scarlett's heart knowing that such a glorious ship and all its knowledge and technological innovations had been blown to nothingness thanks to Lotor's reckless desire for power.
"Coran, I'm so sorry," she said, and he sniffled and shook his head before tucking the gem away once more.
"If it really has been three years, that explains the discrepancies in the star charts in our lions," Pidge realized, pulling up the maps on her gauntlet. "I thought they were off because of our inter-dimensional jumping, which I guess they were, in a way. Because when you think about it, that must have been the cause of the time slippage between our experience and that of the rest of the universe."
Keith glared long and hard into the crackling golden flames. "So how did you end up here, helping us?" he asked, his question directed to Acxa.
"Zethrid, Ezor, and I were marooned on the meteoroid for days," she explained, her tone even and confident after having had three decaphoebs to mull over her experience. "Finally, a Galra ship came to investigate Lotor's last known whereabouts. We took it over. With Lotor gone, it was clear that there was a power vacuum in the Galra Empire. Zethrid and Ezor wanted to exploit that for their own gain but I knew I had to find my own path. And it led me to your friends."
She cast a knowing glance at Scarlett, Mitsubishi, and Treble, and a small smile graced Keith's features. "Thank you for saving us."
A smile of her own tugged at Acxa's lips, but it was quick to fade as she guiltily averted her gaze back to the floor. "I hope that this makes up, in some way, for the wrong I've done," she said, soft and sincere. "I realize now that Lotor wasn't the man I thought he was. He preached unity, but in the end, he sought only power."
"I understand how you feel. I fell for Lotor's lies as well," Allura said, sympathizing with her as she frowned at her boots in shame. Without a word, Lance took the princess's hand and gently gave it a comforting squeeze, reminding her that no one blamed her. They had all been fooled by Lotor, after all.
"Now, I'm doing everything I can out here to help the Voltron Coalition," Acxa continued, her eyes ablaze with determination.
"It's been great having another experienced warrior like her around," Treble beamed, moving to pat the top of Acxa's head, much to her annoyance. "Makes it easier to move. Less people get curious about us when she shoots her death glare at 'em!"
"You're getting that same glare right now, Treble," Mitsubishi cautiously reminded her, and the Flouwan girl quickly retracted her hand from Acxa's head.
"Wait, wait, wait," Hunk intervened, reeling them back a few steps. "It's been three years, got that. And, just to be clear, everyone that was helping us thinks we're…dead?"
"Well, not everyone. Just most people," Scarlett confessed. "We didn't think you were dead."
"That doesn't make me feel any better," he squeaked, his face paling.
"Wait. I haven't been able to get ahold of my dad on Earth or Matt and the rebels," Pidge said, panic sparking in her eyes as she looked at Scarlett. "What's happened to them in the last three years? Have you heard from them?"
"Not at all. We haven't been able to contact them or any members of the Blade of Marmora either," she responded with a sad shake of her head. "It's been too dangerous. There are too many warlords and pirates hunting down the rebels and coalition members."
"There are more nutzos like Ezor and Zethrid who'll be after us?" Lance exclaimed. He threw his hands up, incredulous. "Great! Wonderful! So much for a peaceful trip home."
"We will just have to be careful," Allura tried to calm him, and he let out a tired huff, folding his arms over his chest as he slouched in his seat.
"So I guess…it really wasn't your fault that you were missing for so long," Treble mumbled, the joy from her eyes diminishing a bit. "You really weren't ignoring all of us after all."
"Of course not," Keith said, turning to her. Regret flashed across his features as he carefully added, "We saw what happened to Vurelle. I'm sorry."
Treble looked up at him in surprise. "You stopped by Vurelle?"
"We wanted to check in with you, since we're heading back to Earth," Hunk clarified.
"We met Orix and Anka and their kid," Lance added, with a disapproving tsk. "They're going to try to rebuild the palace and the town."
Treble grimaced. "Ugh. I don't know how to feel about that…"
Mitsubishi's hair flickered between white, orange, and red. "I don't know about Ellosh, but Korlis might be mad when we tell him."
Lance perked up in his seat. "They're okay? What about baby Kia?" he asked, a look of hope brightening his previously dour expression.
Mitsubishi nodded. "We've had spotty contact with them over the last three decaphoebs," he elaborated. "They hunkered down on Kythra with Te-freya and Te-osh last time we talked. Agamate, Meggix, Danua, Yauqeil, Zemphis, Mez, and Teol are with them too."
"Oh thank god." Lance sagged in relief. He ran a hand through his short brown locks, his happiness fading as he took a deep breath. "We wanted to ask Mari if she'd want to go home with us," he said quietly. "I didn't see the Kintsugi out there…Do you know what happened to her? Or where she is?"
Scarlett, Acxa, and Treble shared uneasy looks, hesitant to speak. While they didn't blame the paladins now for their three-decaphoeb-long disappearing act, it was apparent to them that Mari was, understandably, still very much mad at Team Voltron. She never mentioned them. Avoided saying their names. She'd listen to Scarlett's recollections of their good times, but always with a tight frown, as if she wasn't sure whether or not to believe her.
While Mari was willing to recall the good times, there was no forgetting the more recent bad ones. There was no forgetting that pain of abandonment. Deep down, Mari still loved her Voltron friends. But she was keeping her distance, clinging to the lingering hatred left behind by the Druid's torture so she wouldn't give in to grief. After so much time had passed without their reappearance, she didn't want to get her hopes up for people she may never see again. It was her way of coping, a form of denial that would gradually eat away at her, JiJi had said.
But Voltron had returned! Maybe now that the paladins were back, Mari would be able to really, truly, move forward. Maybe instead of sneaking from place to place and constantly worrying about hiding from pirates and bounty-hunters, going back home to Earth with them was just what she needed.
"Um. Well, about Mari…" Scarlett's voice trailed off as she struggled to find the right words to delicately explain her situation to them. Shiro was staring at her intently, begging for her to say something positive concerning his sister's status. "She's, um…"
"She's alive and well," Mitsubishi bluntly stated.
Pidge glanced up at his orange hair, doubtful. "But…?" she prompted.
"She might hate you," he said. "Like. All of you."
Keith's eyes widened in alarm, and Shiro looked like he couldn't decide whether to be confused, concerned, or relieved. Scarlett threw Mitsubishi a nasty look to shut his mouth.
"Okay, no, that's not what he meant," she scrambled to explain. "She doesn't hate you. Mari is just – "
"Oh, fuck my life."
Every head snapped to the entrance where a new figure had just entered the cave. Standing there with a dusty cloak draped over her armor and a small bag of GAC clutched in her hand, looking tired and peeved, was Mariko Shirogane.
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