AN: Happy new year everyone! Say hello to 2020! So let's kick-start the new year with a new update! Sorry if this is late, but let's get on with the story.

Chapter 18: Honor and Trust


"Will he be okay?" Asked a figure dressed in a Blade of Marmora uniform.

"You broke protocol." Stated a taller figure dressed in similar get up. Beside sat another wearing the uniform, only he was unconscious. The smaller blade then takes off his hood and his mask dissolved, revealing him to be Keith.

"I had to." The Paladin said. The bigger one then took off his hood and his mask dissolved, revealing the blade leader, Kolivan.

"You didn't consider that something could've happen to you. That would make two men down instead of one." The galra scolded the young halfling. "Every member of the Blade of Marmora understands that the mission is more important than the individual. This isn't Voltron." He stated.

"I understand that." Keith rebuffed. "In Voltron, we would've gone back in to save Regris. I went back to save the mission. Regris had the intel. Getting him and it back on the ship was worth the risk." The Red Paladin said as he handed the intel to Kolivan and walked away. The Blade leader looked at the younger. Something was wrong, he could tell.


Afterwards, Keith flew back to the Castle of Lions on Olkarion. He went up to the bridge, to find Allura and Kuro there.

"Keith, you're back. Just in time. The team is on a mission. You need to get to the Red Lion and join them immediately." The princess informed, while monitoring the other Paladins.

"I will, but I think we just discovered a new form of quintessence. The readings are off the charts. Kolivan says it could be linked to Lotor." Keith informed.

"Alright. We'll discuss this when you return." Allura said back. "The team is escorting refugees out of the Fimm System." She added.

"This is Lotor I'm talking about. He hasn't been seen in months. This might be our chance to track him down." Keith rebuffed.

"I understand Keith, but the team needs you out there." The Princess replied. Just as Keith was about to object again, Allura shuts him down. "You need to focus on the mission at hand. This is not a request, it's an order, you need to get to the Fimm System. Now." She said with authority. Keith looked dejected and went to board hid lion. Kuro looked at him in sympathy, and went to reach out to him, but stopped and withdrew his hand back, with a skeptical look.


Keith, flew out to meet with the others and help getting the supply ships to Olkarion. Needless to say, they were a little miffed at his tardiness. Pretty much only Shiro spoke to him, and it was to tell him to be quicker next time. Not really in a mean way, but still a stern way. The Paladins made it back to Olkarion with the supply ships. Keith was currently outside the Red Lion looking at the others.


"Keith." The said Paladin turned to see Shiro walk up to him.

"Was Allura able to speak with Kolivan about the intel?" The ravenette asked.

"She did. Her and Coran are going to find out all they can about that strange quintessence." The Voltron leader informed. "But we also need to discuss your performance as of late." He suddenly said. "Keith, I support your decision to continue your Marmora training… but not at the expanse of being distant from the team. We all need to be there, and work together." He said, not leaving any room for argument. Shiro then walks away, leaving Keith looking down.


Later, the Paladins met up with the Alteans, and Kuro, on the Castle bridge.

"Okay, everyone, today we'll be heading to Reiphod, a planet recently liberated from the Galra forces." Coran announced.

"This is embarrassing. We're basically the grand marshal of a parade." Keith said.

"Not a parade. A show of arms!" Coran corrected.

"Whatever it is, this is the second one of these we've done in just a week." Pidge added.

"I know it's not fighting the Galra, but believe it or not, this is helping us boost morale and strengthen alliances." Allura said next.

"Right, right, strongholds and all that. Now I say we go over our lion choreography one more time. I don't want a repeat of what happened last time, Hunk." Lance spoke up. Giving his best friend a particular look at the end of his sentence.

"I thought I had more room." Said Yellow Paladin replied. Suddenly a transmission came on screen. It was Kolivan.

"Shiro, my apologies for interrupting, but this is urgent." The blade leader said. "A Galra supply ship has been spotted passing through Quadrant Omega-Raylar-Six." He informed, as an image of said ship and its location appeared on screen.

"What's it doing so far from the normal supply routes?" Shiro asked.

"We can't be certain, but taken together with the fact that Lotor hasn't been seen in quite some time and the emergence of this new form of quintessence, we feel compelled to investigate. Normally, we would wait for better intel, but I believe we should act on this now." The Galra on screen explained.

"We'll go in Voltron to intercept." Shiro suggested.

"An infiltration mission makes more sense. We can plant a tracker and see just how far the supply route extends." The blade suggested instead. "With all the Galra activity as of late, my agents are spread thin." He added.

"Not anymore. Count me in." Keith suddenly spoke, and everyone turned to him.

"Hey, what about our performance?" Lance said. "We can't razzle-dazzle the crowd with only four lions." The Blue Paladin added.

"This mission is more important than a show of arms." The Red Pilot stated and turned to the leader. "Shiro?" He said. The Black Paladin turned to Kolivan.

"How long will it take?" The Japanese man asked.

"Not long, but we must act fast, or risk the ship jumping to hyperspace." The leader replied and informed.

"Go, but you're done, meet us on Reiphod." Shiro said to Keith sternly.


Later on Reiphod, the Paladins had just started the show of arms, and "big shocker", Keith was nowhere to be seen. He was in fact still on the mission.

Speaking of, the red Paladin was once again with Kolivan and Regris as they boarded the ship. Which was strangely empty, no guards, not even sentries were aboard. Something was up, and they needed to leave, but Keith insisted that they at least plant a tracker like they originally planned. Reluctantly, the two blades head to the bridge, finding it was also empty. As Regris went to access the logs, the ship alarms suddenly blared and the door closed, locking them in.

"It's rigged to explode!" Keith realized.

"The ship's a decoy! Everyone out!" Kolivan ordered as he and Keith took out their blades and attempted to get the door open.

"Attempting to override the system." Regris announced, while Keith and Kolivan managed to pry open the door.

"There's not enough time! Come on!" Keith yelled to the fellow blade.

"Just a few more ticks." The half galra said, refusing to leave the council. Desperate, Keith went to grab his fellow blade, but Kolivan grabbed him and began pulling him out before he could.

"Regris, NO!" Keith shouted. Suddenly a force knocks them out and away from the bridge, just as the door closed and the whole bridge blows up. When Keith came to, he found himself floating in space, alone.

"Hello? Kolivan?" Keith tried to contact, but all he got was static. He then heard hissing and looked down to see a tear in his suit, loosing oxygen. He quickly covers the tear using his hand, and calls out again. "Anyone?" Again he's met with static. "Communicator must be broken." He grunted. He quickly took out his blade, attached to a rope, and launched it at the nearest piece of debris from the ship bridge. It stuck and Keith pulled himself to it. Things weren't looking good, he was stranded, and was losing oxygen, fast. Dammit! How did it go so wrong?

"I had hoped you'd learned by now, but instead it's just the same as before." A voice spoke. Keith spun around to see an apparition of a familiar figure. Zarc. "Why? Why does this keep happening?" He asked in an exasperated tone. "You know, I'm starting to see a pattern with you, and not a good one." He stated.

He then reached out his scaled arm and touched the red paladin's forehead. Suddenly, vivid images flashed in the half-galra's. A planet with white, pink, blue and silvery colors all swirling together. The image zoomed in, revealing a house, and out stepped a figure in a white flowing robe. When Keith snaps out of it, he looks up to see Zarc drift away and disappear.

"Seek out Lady Selifae, on planet Ara. She will reveal what you need." His voice echoed and faded away. Keith looked around, but couldn't find the being, instead he saw the Marmora ship.

Making haste, he snapped himself out of his daze and rushed to the ship using the debris. He just barely managed to make it into said ship, as the door closed. He collapses on the ground as his mask vaporized, and he was breathing hard. He looked to see Kolivan come through the door. Even with the mask, he could tell the blade leader was looking sternly down at him. Keith looked down in shame. Regris… Regris was gone. He felt uneasy.

"Keith…" said human/galra hybrid snapped his head up to see… Regris!? His mask was off, revealing his blue furred face and pure yellow eyes, with a few bruises and scratches that would easily heal. "Keith, are you okay?" the other galra hybrid asked as he kneeled down next to his fellow blade. Keith didn't answer, instead he enveloped Regris in a hug, scared to let go. The other hybrid hugged back.

Regris was one of the first blades Keith officially met and befriended, the two clicked for some reason and got along fairly well. Almost like siblings. The Red Paladin shivers slightly at the thought of losing his Galra friend. He didn't dare look up at Kolivan still feeling bad about what happened.


Meanwhile, as the four remaining Paladins were performing, the castle alarms suddenly went off. Allura quickly checked, and was shocked to discover a small Galran fleet approaching Reiphod.

"Oh, no." She breathed and contacted Coran and the Paladins. "Paladins! Can you hear me?!" She called out frantically.

"Loud and clear Princess. What's wrong?" Lance answered over the coms.

"There's a Galran fleet making its way towards Reiphod as we speak." She informed.

"What!?" The Paladins said at the news.

"Coran! Kuro! Get the citizens to safety! Paladins follow me!" Shiro instructed. The others follow his orders, while the lions quickly flew up towards the fleet.

"How are we going to defeat these guys without Voltron?!" Hunk asked over the coms.

"Yeah! Where is Keith?! What's Mullet doing that's so important he not only misses the show, but is late to this." Lance added, then quickly dodged out of the way of an incoming cannon blast.

"Allura! Is Keith back yet?!" Shiro asked.

"Not yet! It appears there was an incident on the ship they boarded." The Alien Princess replied, then a beep was heard. "They're on their way now!" She informs.

"Thanks Princess." Shiro said. "We're going to have to hold them off until Keith can get to the Red Lion." He instructed to the others, who all agree. While they manage to stave off, even destroy some of the fleet ships, the Paladins found themselves outmatched. Just as an ion cannon was about to blast them, another laser appeared from nowhere and shot down the ship about to shoot them.

"What was that?!" Hunk asked.

"Pidge?!" Shiro asked.

"Hang on!" The Green Paladin said and began using her scanners to find the source of the blast. Another blast suddenly shot down another fleet ship, then again. That's when a new ship appeared, flying into the scene. It wasn't like anything the Paladins had seen before. It looked like a fighter, only larger with black metal shell and purple markings all over it.

"What the-?! What is that?!" Lance said. Suddenly, the Black Lion's com system alerted a transmission.

"The vessel is sending a transmission. Opening the frequency." Shiro announced, and proceeded to answer the call.

"Paladins!" A familiar voice was heard over the coms as a blurry image appears on screen, before clearing up to reveal a familiar, lavender face.

"Ulaz?" Shiro said surprised to see the Galra again. The Rebel Galra, along with blade second in command Antok, had left to take their friend, Yusarius, back to his home planet. It was nice to see a friendly face, but what was with the ship?


Later, when the fleet was dealt with and the Paladins returned to the planet, they along with the returned Blades meet up with the Alteans and Kuro on the bridge.

"You…" Ulaz says when he sees Kuro, who in turn looks shocked when he sees the lavender Galra, and moves over to Shiro, shivering as he grabs the man's arm.

"You know each other?" Shiro asked.

"Yes, I myself had a hand in his creation, under Haggar's orders." Ulaz answered. Just then, Keith came into the bridge, along with Kolivan and Regris. The Paladins all stared at their fellow Voltron Pilot.

"Guys, I…" The Red Paladin began. "I heard what happened. I'm sorry I wasn't there to help." He said.

"You keep saying you are sorry, but your actions lately say otherwise." Allura rebuffed. "Do you realize that your absence put in jeopardy?" She said angrily.

"And not just the team, the planet as well. I mean if it wasn't for Ulaz and Antok coming in the last minute to save our behinds, Voltron would be over!" Lance added with an angry tone. "Where'd you guys get that new ship from anyway?" He then asked to the two blades.

"After returning Yusarius to his fellow Necroshades on their home planet, which was far from easy, they proceeded to build and gift us with the ne ship you see here. Seems the legends of the Necroshades engineering prowess was not wrong." Ulaz explained.

"In order to operate said ship however, you need a key. The Necroshades gave us two. One for the Blade, and one for Voltron." Antok added as he brought out two things, presumably the said keys, handing one to Coran, then walking to his leader and handing him the other.

"Yes, it is impressive, however that does excuse Keith's absence." Allura cut off.

"And it wasn't just today. You've been avoiding everyone for a while now!" Pidge states angrily.

"Yeah! What's the deal man?! I thought we were passed this!" Hunk asked.

"Is my presence a bother?" Kuro spoke, getting the others' attention. "Do you think I'm a spy, and that's why you've been avoiding everyone?" he asked.

"Keith is this true?" Shiro asked with a stern look.

"I can attest that the clone, is no spy. Haggar herself deemed him a failure and scheduled him to be terminated." Ulaz attested.

"See Keith, Kuro is not a threat, and that's no excuse to not come to our aid when we needed it, or avoid us all together." Shiro proceeded to scold the younger.

"I do not understand." Everyone turned to Kolivan. "We arrived here a while ago, and Keith had went down to the red lion almost immediately." He explained. The others turned to Keith, who was looking away.

"What? Then why didn't you pilot the lion and come help us then!?" Lance angrily asks.

"Cause I couldn't! Okay?!" Keith snaps and everyone looked confused.

"Keith? What do you mean you couldn't?" Shiro asked.

"I mean, when I went to get Red, her particle barrier was up and I couldn't get in! I tried, but my lion just shut me out!" Keith answered. "Look…" He suddenly said. "Zarc appeared to me again, during the mission, and he told me to go to a planet called Ara, and find someone. Maybe they can help, so… I'm going to go." he said and turned away.

"This is familiar." Lance said, through Keith didn't turn back. "You turning your back and walking away. Fine, if you don't want to be with us, just go your own way. Until you're ready, just leave." He said rather coldly. Keith was shocked. Lance, the most optimistic out of all of them, just said that. Without, turning to them, Keith just walked out of the bridge and down to the hanger.

"Keith…" the said hybrid turned to see Kolivan. "You will not be going alone, I shall ascort you to Ara." He stated.

"Alright, but once on the planet, I need to find the person Zarc told me to go to alone." The Red Paladin said and the two proceed to board the ship and take off, setting a course for Ara.


Meanwhile, back up on the bridge the others were all starring at the Blue Paladin.

"Lance, buddy, I can't believe you said that. Don't you thing you went a little overboard?" Hunk asked his best friend. Who, uncharacteristically, had a blank look on his face.

"Yeah, maybe, but he needs to learn not to do these things, just because he having issues, and more importantly hiding them." Lance replies. The others couldn't disagree. "I'm gonna go train." He said and walks out of the room, leaving the others to think hard about their situation. While, Pidge decided to focus on something else.


AN: Hey peoples, sorry this is so late. Hope you enjoyed the chapter and come back for more next chapter.