"Please don't be a giant monster in there! Please don't be a giant monster in there! Please don't be a giant monster in there!" Amethyst prayed to herself as the steam finally dispersed, and the coffin stood wide open before Voltron.
Whatever was inside the coffin; it had dozens, if not hundreds, of glowing green eyes with no visible pupils. The horrifying beast let out a low growl as its long, tentacle-like arms and hands clasped the edge of its pod; pulling itself out with it strength, baring its actual form to the entire planet it stood on.
The monster was the size of Voltron; with the shape of its body resembling that of a lizard and octopus hybrid with spider-like eyes covering its entire body, and the jaws of a shark. The beast was armored from head to toe in a metallic, red shell that barely left any skin exposed; with the symbol of the Galra Empire proudly tattooed onto the creature's chest.
The DeathBlack Beastman
"Quiznack!" Amethyst cursed.
The monster lets out a blood-curdling roar, one loud enough to force the Paladins to cover their ears, before he stares at Voltron with an animalistic glare.
"What the hell is that thing?" Pidge loudly asked with some terror in her tone.
"It's a Deathblack Beastman," Keith answered.
"A what?" Stevonnie asked."
"One of Witch Haggar's monsters," Keith explained. "They're abominable fusions of dead flesh and machine; making them some of the Empire's most dangerous weapons like that giant Demons of chaos."
"So, they're Robot Beasts… Ro-Beasts?" Stevonnie asked; they knew the answer was obvious, but still asked it anyway.
"Yes, if you want to simplify it," Keith answered in a deadpan tone.
"Well, I'm calling it a Ro-Beast," Amethyst added in. "Deathblack Beastman sounds like a metal band if you ask me."
"Paladins, focus," Shiro ordered the group. "Keith, you know what these things are capable of; do you have any tips?"
"No one's ever beaten a Beastman before," Keith informed. "All I know is a limited amount of Quintessence powers them, and they keep on fighting until they run out and die."
"And how long would that take?" Peridot asked.
"With the current state of the Balmera... the planet will give out before the beast does," Keith answered, plainly and simply.
The Ro-Beast let out a second blood-curdling roar as it charged towards Voltron on all fours at a terrifying speed for its size.
"Shield up!" Shiro shouted.
"Right!" Pidge and Peridot shouted as they lifted Voltron's left arm; placing the tower shield in-between Voltron and the Beastman. The gigantic creature leaped into the air like a pouncing predator and swiped its claws at the shield; its sheer, unrelenting strength managed to push Voltron back with each swipe.
"Damn, this thing is strong." Shiro cursed to himself as the creature continued its assault. "We need to pull back!" Shiro ordered the other Paladins. With that said, Amethyst and Stevonnie max out Voltron's leg thrusters to put a significant amount of distance between him and it.
"So, what's the plan, Chief?" Stevonnie asked their leader.
"Hit it with everything we've got?" Keith asked.
"Disable its weapons?" Pidge asked.
"Call it names?" Amethyst asked.
"Anyone of those would be great right about now!" Peridot frantically shouted.
The Ro-Beast lets out one more roar before it spreads its arms outward, exposing all its eyes to the Paladins; which begin glowing a brighter green. The light grows brighter until it fires a massive beam of raw energy, one strong enough to shake the entire ground.
"Brace for impact!" Shiro shouted as Voltron raised his shield; taking the bulk of the blast head-on. "Keith, help Pidge and Dot fortify the shield! Petal! Amy! Max out all available thrusters!"
"Got it!" The three Paladins shouted as they carried out their tasks.
Voltron managed to hold his ground as the laser blast continued to push at him; barely hovering over the planet's surface, so they don't damage it even further. Eventually, the laser fire ceased, and Voltron could temporarily lower his defenses.
"It can shoot freaking lasers, because why not," Amethyst complained about their current predicament.
"We can't let those blasts hit the planet!" Shiro stated, before activating the communication line to the castle. "Allura, how's the evacuation going?"
"That beast is terrifying the Balmerans and making the evacuation much harder," Allura stated over the comms. "And according to Coran's calculations, there is only twenty-eight dobashes left until the planet collapses."
"Get as many of the Balmeran's as you can onto the castle and take off," Shiro told the Princess. "Leave Voltron behind if you have to!"
"I'm not going to leave anyone behind!" Allura protested. "We're all going to make it out!" With that, the communication to the castle was cut off for the time being.
"We'll finish this as fast as we can. Form sabers!" Shiro ordered, with Keith and Stevonnie thrusting their Bayard's into their respected lion's activation slots.
The right arm of Voltron flashes a bright red before a large blade appears in his hand; while the right leg of Voltron flashes a bright blue before the energy crawls up the robot's body to left arm; where a second saber materializes in that hand.
The Ro-Beast roars once more as it spreads its arms outward and exposes all its radiating green eyes once again; the Paladin's knew what was coming and took to the sky. The Beastman's eyes followed the mighty robot as they glowed brighter and brighter until it fires another massive beam of energy.
Using his enhanced speed, Voltron manages to evade the energy blast; doing everything he can to keep the attack focused on the sky. Until the energy finally dissipates.
"Let's hit it before it recharges!" Amethyst shouted as she and Stevonnie maxed out Voltron's thrusters; while Pidge, Peridot, and Keith prepared to swing the blades.
As Voltron struck the beast, translucent, green energy surrounded the body of the monster; causing sparks of the same color to fly out and electrocute the Legendary Defender causing all the Paladins to scream in pain.
"Hel… Help us!" Stevonnie heard several, pain-filled voices say as they continued to be violently electrocuted. "Hel… Help us! Pain… so much pain! Help… us! This… this is hell! So much pain! Help us! Help us! Help us!" Stevonnie let out an agonizing cry as she pushed the thrusters for Voltron's right leg above their maximum; the imbalance in structure weight to thruster power caused Voltron to lean back just enough to kick the Beastman in its face; before successfully pulling back at a safe distance.
"Wha… Wha… Wha… Wha… What was that?" Peridot asked, her physical form slightly glitching from the unpleasant experience; luckily, her gemstone was not damaged.
"I think it's its eyes." Pidge deduced while groaning in pain; while here wound, thankfully, didn't open; the shocks amplified the pain around that part of her stomach. "I think they are generating a thin forcefield around the Ro-Beast's body."
"So, we can't punch it or slash it without getting nearly fried," Amethyst stated with understandable aggravation in his tone.
"We'll deal with the eyes later," Shiro said. "Our priority is to keep its attention on us and make sure it doesn't do any further damage to the Balmera. Take to the skies again!"
"Right!" Amethyst shouted but noticed she did hear Stevonnie's voice. "Petal, are you there?"
There was no response; as Stevonnie sat in the cockpit, still hearing those painfilled voices in their head. Stevonnie, technically Steven, hadn't heard voices like that since… the Cluster…
"Stevonnie!" Amethyst's voice shouted, snapping the human Fusion back to reality. "Stevonnie are you there?"
"Yes, I'm fine Amy." Stevonnie lied to the Yellow Paladin.
"Then let's take to the sky," Amethyst said.
"R… Right." Stevonnie replied as they and Amethyst powered up the thrusters and ascended into the air.
"This isn't good," Coran said as he and Allura watched the battle from the castle's control room. "I've never seen a creature of any caliber like this before, but it's giving Voltron problems I would never believe possible."
"I thought Voltron was supposed to be unbeatable," Matthew stated over the communicator, while he helped Lance and the Gems escort the Balmeran's onto the castle; with assistance from Shay, Hunk and Rax. "He defeated the monstrosities of chaos, how can he not defeat that thing?"
"Voltron's power varies based on the strengths of his Paladins," Allura stated. "Considering the physical and mental strains we had to deal with before and after we arrived on the Balmera; Voltron isn't in the best condition to fight a beast like this. If the Paladins were given time to recover and make a strategy, this battle would've been over already."
"In other words, exhaustion is beginning to catch up with them." Garnet summed up over the comms device. "This is my fault; I'm the one with the future vision, I should've seen this coming."
"Garnet, there was no way you could have seen something like this happen," Pearl stated through the comms.
"No one would've expected a giant robot monster to drop out of the sky." Lance pitched in through the comms.
"How is the evacuation going, cousin?" Allura asked Lance over the communicator while the Altean Prince and the others helped the worried population of the Balmera onto the castle; making sure they are settled in all right.
"We're almost done," Lance assured, trying to hide his worry about the battle going on outside. "Just ten more dobashes before we can take off. However, considering what you said, we may not have that time."
Pearl looked around at the scared Balmeran's who were just about to lose everything they ever loved; they reminded her of some humans during the Gem War, and how they almost lost everything too. Pearl clenched her hands and turned to Garnet with determination in her eyes. "The Paladins need assistance; I believe we can give them that time," Pearl stated.
"How?" Garnet asked the skinny Gem. "We can't man the castle's defenses and help with the evacuation at the same time."
"By letting "her" help," Pearl said.
Garnet instantly realized what Pearl meant by her; although Matt and Lance were left confused by whom the Gems were referring to. "Matt. Lance." Garnet turned to the two young men. "Pearl and I have an idea on how we can help Voltron; can you continue the evacuation without us?"
"We'll do what we can," Matt assured.
"All right, Pearl," Garnet said as she turned to her fellow Crystal Gem. "Let's do this."
Voltron quickly raised his shield and took the full force of the monster's blast in the sky. "We need a plan!" Keith shouted. "We can't keep dodging and blocking forever!"
"Pidge. Dot. Have either of you picked up any weaknesses for the creature?" Shiro asked the Green Paladins.
"We might have something," Pidge stated.
"Upon further examination of the beast." Peridot began. "We discovered its shield deactivates while it's firing its laser. We all made the mistake of waiting for the laser to disperse before attacking it."
"So, in other words; we have to attack it while it's firing at us." Shiro summed up.
"Exactly." Pidge and Peridot simultaneously said. "Which is not going to be easy." Pidge continued. "Considering the laser protects its least fortified areas: the chest and the head."
"Then we take out the arms and legs first. Form sword!" Shiro ordered. The right arm of Voltron flashes a bright red once more forming its large blade. "Amy. Petal. Get the side thrusters ready, but don't activate them until I say so."
"On it!" The two Crystal Gems affirmed.
"Pidge. Peridot. Put the shield away; we'll need Green Lion's strength added into the swing." Shiro further ordered.
"Affirmative!" Both girls simultaneously said, as the left arm detached its shield and gripped the handle of the blade.
"Charge forward!" Shiro ordered Stevonnie and Amethyst, who max out the forward thrusters; sending Voltron on a collision course with the Ro-Beast.
The monster unleashes another roar; spreading it's arms out and exposes all its radiating green eyes.
"Steady..." Shiro told the Paladins.
The beast's eyes glowed brighter and brighter.
"Steady..." Shiro repeated.
The energy build-up finally reached its peak as another massive energy beam fires from its body; just as planned.
"Now!" Shiro shouted. Stevonnie and Amethyst activated the side thrusters simultaneously; causing Voltron to dash to the right and avoid the blast while continuing his current trajectory.
Once they were close enough; Keith, Pidge, and Peridot let out an energized cry as they successfully sliced the Ro-Beasts arm off; without suffering any repercussions. The monster screamed in pain at the loss of its limb; just as the beam dissipates. In a painfilled rage, the Beastman thrusts its jaws forward and chomps down onto Voltron's right leg; the green energy surrounding the monster's sparks again and electrocutes Voltron once more.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The Paladins all scream in pain as the electricity surges through the robot's body. Amethyst's and Peridot's physical forms begin to glitch out from the voltage intensity. Shiro, Keith, and Katie began to feel their skin burn; with the latter feeling as if her scar was on the verge of reopening, luckily it didn't. While Stevonnie began hearing those same voices again as their flesh started scorching. "Hel… Help us! Hel… Help us! The eyes… Pain… so much pain! Help… Eyes… us! This… this is hell! So… destroy… much pain! The eyes… Help us! Help us! Destroy… Help us!" The Beastman continued to clamp down harder on the Blue Lion leg, causing the intensity of the electricity growing more violent by the second.
Suddenly, an eye on Ro-Beast's head was struck by a powerful object; forcing it to release Voltron as it backed up in pain.
"Oh my, are you all right, dears?" An elegant, bubbly sounding voice asked the Paladins; one Peridot, Amethyst, and Stevonnie recognized instantly as they came to. As soon as the other Paladins came to their senses and helped Voltron stand, they found before them, a giant woman; although she stood somewhere around seven meters tall; compared to Voltron, however, saying the mighty robot significantly dwarfed her was an understatement.
The woman had brownish-pink skin and blonde hair stylized into a triangle with very round corners; as well as four arms. She wore a black, tuxedo-leotard with gray leggings and long white gloves; as well as ginger colored glasses that revealed her four eyes. She was a Gem as there was a gemstone like Pearl's embedded in her forehead and two gemstones embedded in a pair of her hands like Garnet's. In her other hands, she held a massive, body-sized mallet with fist-shaped heads.
Sardonyx
A fusion between Garnet and Pearl.
"Who… are you?" Shiro asked the unidentified Gem.
"Why, I'm the lovely Sardonyx, Mr. Shirogane." The tall Gem introduced herself; playfully twirling her weapon while taking a bow. "I'm the best of what both Pearl and Garnet have to offer, and I'm coming to y'all live to help you whoop that things butt."
"It's nice to see you again, Sard." Steven's side of Stevonnie said.
"Yeah, we haven't seen you since you showed Peridot that card trick." Amethyst pitched in.
"I'm still trying to figure out your trick; how did you know I had a ten-of-spades," Peridot added in.
The Ro-Beast lets out an enraged roar as it recovered from its injury; garnering the attention of its combatants.
"While I'd love to chat with y'all; believe me I would." Sardonyx chuckled, as she readied her weapon. "We have a monster to smash."
Voltron summoned his shield once more and got into his fighting position. "Let's see if you can keep up tiny." Amethyst joked.
"The creature is placing its focus on us," Shiro stated to the Gem Fusion. "We'll keep it distracted while you go for its weak spots."
"But be careful," Keith added in. "This is one of the strongest Beastman I've ever seen."
"Don't worry loves. I'll be cautious." Sardonyx assured, as Voltron took to the skies once more; with Sardonyx charging at the unaware enemy.
"Holy Altean Pantheon!" Coran exclaimed as he and Allura continued watching the battle. "I haven't seen a woman that big since Alfor, and I went to Goliath XII; the home of giant Amazonian warriors."
"And it looks like she's giving Voltron the aid he needs," Allura stated. "Coran, how much time is left on the Balmera?"
"Just fifteen dobashes left, Princess," Coran informed. "Do you think they'll be able to beat it in time?"
"They will win…" Allura answered with calm certainty. "They have to win…"
Voltron continued to dodge the Ro-beast's laser attack; which was far weaker than the previous attacks, while Sardonyx went for the monster's legs. With the beast's attention still on the Paladins, Sardonyx took this opportunity to strike an eye on the creature's leg; knocking the creature off balance with a mighty swing of her mallet.
The attack couldn't have been timed more perfectly; especially since its laser dissipated a moment later after collapsing onto the surface. The Gem Fusion leaped into the air and quickly slammed her mallet onto one of the eyes on the monster's head again; letting go of the weapon and leaping away before the shock reached her.
The Ro-Beast quickly stood itself up and looked more annoyed, than it did hurt. "This isn't working," Keith said. "Sardonyx isn't as strong as Voltron; any major damage she deals will just be a scratch compared to what we can do."
"I have to agree with you," Sardonyx admits; in a reluctant, pride wounded tone.
"Then we need a new strategy," Shiro stated.
"Guys." Stevonnie began. "I think I know why this Ro-beast is so strong."
"What do you mean?" Keith asked the human Fusion.
"Sometimes… Steven can sense the feelings of other beings… especially Gems." Connie's side of Stevonnie began explaining. "While we were being electrocuted we heard anguish coming from inside the creature." Steven's side of Stevonnie concluded.
"What… are you saying?" Peridot asked, not wanting to know the answer to that question.
"I think Gems power this thing," Stevonnie answered, much to everyone's horror; especially the Crystal Gems'
"That explains it," Keith said, in a self-berating tone. "Gem Quintessence is supposedly stronger than normal Quintessence, which is why the Galra views them as valuable; I should've seen it earlier."
"We were too focused on defeating it to find out why it was so strong." Shiro said, trying to solace the young Galra; before turning his attention Stevonnie "If you've figured this out, does that mean you might know how to stop it?"
"I think so, Chief," Stevonnie answered. "While I heard the anguish of all the Gems inside; I heard some of them say words like 'eyes' and 'destroy."
"I think they want us to take out the eyes." Pidge guessed. "They could be where the Quintessence is being siphoned from, which is why it's attacks were weaker after slicing off its arm. If we take out the rest of the eyes, it'll have no weapons and no shield; it'll be completely vulnerable."
"Sounds good to me!" Amethyst shouted with eagerness in her tone.
"We'll take out the eyes on its other arm!" Shiro shouted. "Sardonyx. You take out the eyes on its legs."
"Happy to do so." Sardonyx replied as she summoned two new mallets from her gemstones; twirling the weapons around.
"And remember to watch out for those jaws." Shiro lastly said before Voltron took to the sky again and readied his swords; patiently waiting for the Ro-beast to prepare its attack.
The monster roars again as it spreads its arms out; exposing all its radiating green eyes that begin to glow brighter.
Without hesitation, Voltron and Sardonyx charged forward at the Ro-beast with their weapons in hand.
The Beastman's energy build-up finally reached its peak as… it fires dozens of scattering shots at both of its assaulters.
"Shield up!" A surprised Shiro ordered, as Pidge and Peridot quickly raise the shield; but were not quick enough, as Voltron received damage from several of the lasers before successfully blocking the rest; the damage was nothing critical, but still detrimental.
Sardonyx wasn't as lucky, as the blasts head-on struck her; hitting the Crystal Gem Fusion with enough force that it sent flying a considerable distance. She would've easily slammed into the Castle of Lions if she didn't quickly split into Pearl and Garnet; even though neither of them poofed, they were out for the rest of the fight.
The monster fired another round of his scatter shots at Voltron; who successfully blocks all of them this time. "Pull back!" Shiro ordered as the Voltron flew as far as he could from the laser fire; unlike the larger energy beam, the scatter shots where short ranged.
"Agh! What do we do?" Amethyst yelled in frustration. "What are we supposed to do? Everything we've thrown at it hasn't worked!"
Amethyst.
"Huh?" Amethyst said, realizing the Yellow Lion was speaking to her; as compartment with a slot shaped like her Yellow Bayard opened near the control panel. Without hesitation, Amethyst let out an energetic cry as she thrusted her Bayard into the slot; while her entire body was surrounded with yellow energy. The left leg of Voltron flashes a similar color before the power crawls up the robot's body all the way to the shoulder; where a massive cannon materializes.
"Holy smokes, that's a big gun," Peridot said in surprise.
Amethyst's targeting system begin flashing red as marks started surrounding the monster's eyes on the screen. "Yeah, let's use it," Amethyst said with a big grin as she pulled the trigger. The shoulder cannon begins charging its energy, before firing multiple scatter shots at the Ro-beast; striking all its eyes at once before it could even react.
The blinded monster roars in pain as Pidge and Peridot scan the monster's body. "All of its eyes are destroyed; it has no weapons or defense."
"Nice work, Amethyst." Shiro praised the Paladin. "Now let's take it out. Form sabers!"
The shoulder cannon disappears as the Voltron's twin swords form in his hands. The Legendary Defender charges the Ro-beast with its near untraceable speed; the Green and Red Lion pilots all let out a mighty cry as Voltron swings his blades at the Beastman, decapitating it with a single swing.
With a large explosion, the enemy was finally dead, and Paladins could relax and aid with the evacuation; with Stevonnie even hearing the now freed Gems no longer in pain and saying "Thank You" as their energy, peacefully, dissipated.
"All right Paladins; let's help Allura and the others with the…" Shiro began; only to be interrupted as the ground began to shake violently. "Oh no…"
"Coran, what's happening?" Allura asked her advisor.
"We're out of time." Coran sadly said. "The Balmera is beginning to collapse."
Allura's eyes widened in horror before she activated her communicator. "Lance. Matthew. What's the status of the evacuation?" The Princess asked.
"It's not good," Matthew answered over the comms. "The tremors are panicking the Balmeran's; we can't evacuate them all in time."
Allura clenched her fist before she ran to the exit of the control room. "Princess, where are you going?" A worried Coran asked the young woman.
"I'm not going to let another planet die because of the Galra," Allura answered. "I'm heading outside."
"What! Have you gone mad?" Coran loudly exclaimed. "What do you expect to do outside the castle?"
"Anything I can," Allura answered with a determined tone, as she exited the room.
"Pearl, are you okay?" Garnet asked her friend as she stood; groaning in pain.
"I'm fine," Pearl affirmed, also grunting in discomfort.
"We have to get up." The Garnet told Pearl; quickly rushing over to and helping the slim Gem up. "The planet is collapsing. We need to hurry."
"Let's go," Pearl said as both Crystal Gems made a break for the castle; only stop upon Allura run past them.
"Allura!" Both Gems shouted as they stopped and turned, to follow the Princess.
"Princess, what are you doing? We have to leave!" Pearl exclaimed to the Altean sovereign.
"Not yet," Allura said. "There is still one thing we haven't tried yet."
"What's that?" Pearl asked.
The Princess said nothing as she got on her knees and placed her bare hands onto rumbling planet's surface. The pink markings on her face began glowing brightly, as her hands and the ground she touched radiated the same color as well.
"Princess! Princess, please return to the castle!" Coran's voice shouted through Allura's communicator; which Garnet quickly seizes.
"Coran, this is Garnet." The Fusion began.
"Garnet? Where's Allura?" The royal advisor asked.
"She knelt onto the ground, and now her cheeks and hands are glowing pink; along with the ground." Garnet summed up.
"She's trying to perform the rejuvenation ritual," Coran said in a tone of realization. "She's giving her Quintessence to the Balmera to stop it from collapsing. However, she doesn't have enough Quintessence to heal the planet; she'll die if she continues on her own!"
Garnet looked at the Princess, who was giving her life to save the planet and walked towards her; after giving Pearl the comms device. Garnet kneeled alongside the Princess and placed her hands on the planet's surface; which began radiating a dark red color in the same manner as Allura's as she touched the ground.
Pearl realized what Garnet was doing; she was aiding the Princesses endeavor by donating her Quintessence as well. The pale Gem looked at the comms device in her hand, then spoke into it. "Coran. We need you to come down to the surface; bring Lance, Matthew, and any volunteering Balmeran's. We're going to perform your rejuvenation ritual."
"You're right; I'm such an idiot," Coran said over the comms. "With everything that happened, we forgot the rejuvenation ritual was our original plan. Don't worry Pearl; we'll get down there as soon as we can. Coran out." As soon as the call ended, Pearl got on her knees, next to Garnet and Allura; proceeding to do what they were doing to donate their Quintessence, as the ground before Pearl began glowing a bright white.
"Paladins, are you there?" Coran's voice loudly asked over the comms.
"We're here, Coran," Shiro answered. "What's going on."
"Allura, Garnet and Pearl are performing a rejuvenation ritual." The older Altean explained. "They are donating Quintessence to heal the planet. I've explained the plan to Lance, Matt and some volunteering Balmerans on what we're going to do; but we could use all of your help as well."
"Okay Coran, what do you need us to do?" Shiro asked.
"We need you all to donate some of your own and Voltron's Quintessence to the planet," Coran explained. "Have Voltron kneel and place his hands on the surface of the Balmera, and just focus on donating parts of your life force to the planets own."
"Understood," Shiro said. "Paladins, did you get all of that?"
"Yes sir!" The limbs of Voltron all answered simultaneously.
Without a word, the might robot got on his hands and knees, and Paladins closed their eyes. Stevonnie and the Blue Lion began radiating cobalt energy. Amethyst and Yellow Lion started to emit golden energy. Pidge, Peridot and the Green Lion began radiating jade energy. Keith and the Red Lion started to radiate crimson energy. With Shiro and the Black Lion beginning to emit violet energy. All of which was being transferred from the body to the hands, to the planet; as the ground glowed multiple colors.
Coran, Lance, Matthew, Shay, Hunk, Rax and many other Balmeran's exit the castle at once and did what the others were doing. The tremors begin to decrease as all the energy from Voltron, the Crystal Gems, Alteans and Balmeran's traveled together into one spot; where the power built up into a giant light before dispersing. The luminescence engulfed the entire planet, and the earthquakes stopped at last.
Allura collapsed due to having given the most Quintessence but was carefully caught by Garnet. "You did it Allura," Garnet said to the Altean Princess.
"We did it." The alien sovereign weakly said, before taking a rest in the Fusion's arms.
Suddenly, the ground begins to tremble; at first, they all thought they had failed the ritual; however, the cause for the slight tremor was something else… something magnificent. For the first time in what seemed like centuries, a Balmeran Crystal grows from the ground; much to the celebration of the planets people. The Balmera had been saved and shall continue to live.
"Thank you all," Shay said to a still fatigued Allura, and the rest of the Voltron Force.
"No thanks are needed," Allura responded.
"Well, the Balmera begs to differ." Hunk pitched in, looking at the newly emerged Crystal. "That is its way of saying "thank you for everything."
"Well, we can use the part of crystal to help finish the repairs to the Teladuv Chamber." Coran pointed out.
"I'll help you with moving as much of the crystal as you need on to the castle." Rax offered.
"We'll give you some assistance," Garnet said as she and Peridot offered to help; which the Balmeran happily accepted.
"You may stay and rest on the planet as long as you wish." Shay offered. "Our home is your home."
"Thank you." Stevonnie said, offering the female Balmeran and handshake; who, instead, hugs the human Fusion; unintentionally hurting them with her superior Balmeran strength. But they were very happy and didn't mind.
While everyone was celebrating Voltron's victory, none noticed the small ship that was in orbit of the Balmera, witnessing and collecting data on the battle. Inside the ship was a Dark Eldar of the Gray splinters typing on the ship's panel.
"Sending data to Captain Syakallar."
The Voltron Force and Crystal Gems continued to rest and relax on the planet; enjoying their time with friendly locals. Shiro, Matt, Katie, Steven, Connie and the Crystal Gems were far more celebratory than the rest, however.
When Coran, Garnet, Peridot and Rax, along with some other helpful Balmerans were moving parts of the newly emerged crystal onto the castle; Peridot discovered that the material the crystals were made of is the same material used to forge Galaxy Warps for Homeworld.
Peridot even told them that she could build a miniature Galaxy Warp inside the castle that could take them Earth any time they want. They could see their friends and families again, even if it would be for a short while.
Peridot told them that she would get to work on building the make-shift Galaxy Warp, after helping Coran in the Teladuv Chamber; but speculated that once she starts working on it, the teleporter will be active in roughly twelve Earth hours. With nothing better to do until then, the groups decided to learn more about the Balmera and its people, through its people.
One of the locals gave Katie an ointment unique to the Balmera and applied some to her scar; stating that it would help it heal quicker, much to both hers and Matts appreciation. Even though the ointment felt like fire on the girl's skin, Pidge could tell it was slowly working.
Hunk took Pearl and Allura on a tour into the Galra mines, so they can collect all the left behind technology; supplying the Balmeran's with defensive weapons for if the Empire or the Tyranids ever has them in their sights. The three of them even witness the formation of new crystals inside the once stripped mines.
As for Amethyst and Stevonnie, the latter revealed themselves to be two teens; much to Shay's surprise, but she didn't see them any differently. After a long and exhausting battle, the two humans and purple Gem were understandably hungry, and Shay treats them to what she referred to as her "specialty:" Stickercup Stew, she called it. The three Crystal Gems assumed the stickercup was the strange snail, octopus thing sticking out of the bowl; but despite looking unappetizing, it smelled and tasted delicious.
Eventually, night came, and everyone decided it would be best to turn in; with the Balmeran's bidding them farewell, expecting them to leave by tomorrow to continue their fight against Zarkon.
Steven changed into his pajamas and retired to his room, where he didn't find Garnet; she was probably still working on the Galaxy Warp with Peridot, and figure she'll show up when she shows up. Not wanting to think about anything else right, Steven plopped into his bed and fell asleep.
A voice screamed in bloody murder, causing Steven to jump awake; he quickly realized he was not in his quarters. He was inside a chamber where mystical looking runes were carved into the walls. Everywhere the boy turned he saw Gems of varying shapes and sizes bound onto separate corners; peridots, sapphires, pearls, and other Gems he didn't recognize. All of them were screaming in pain, begging for mercy, some even wishing for death. Steven frantically turned at every possible direction to look a way out of this nightmare, when he spots something… no, someone.
Besides being able to recognize the person as a female, he couldn't tell much else; due to the rest of the body being concealed by a long, shrouded robe. Steven knew one thing though; she was the one causing all these Gems so much pain; seeing as dark lightning shot out from her hands, torturing her captives.
Steven tried to yell at the woman to stop but found that his voice had disappeared; the woman stops performing her spell and lowers her hands, remaining as still as a statue.
"I know you're there." The woman said in a spine-tingling wicked voice; one that would perfectly fit a witch. The woman turned around to reveal her sinister, amber eyes and charged at the paralyzed boy with her clawed hands and banshee-like screech.
However, before she could even lay a single hand on him, Steven woke up screaming in terror; he looked around for any sign of the witch and found he was back in his quarters. Steven let out a sigh as his face slightly sweated, thinking it was nothing more than just an intense bad dream; which he also believed was due to the exhausting battle from yesterday. Then there were three bams.
Steven jumped and turned to the sudden sound; quickly realizing that someone was knocking on his metallic door. "Steven. Are you in there?" Peridot's voice asked. "May I come in? Unless you are changing your appearance modifiers or something; you know, what you humans refer to as "clothes."
"I'll be right there, Peridot," Steven answered, as he hopped out of his bed and opened his door to the lime Gem.
"Are you okay? Your head is leaking." Peridot asked, noticing the sweat on the Demi-Gem's face.
"I'm fine," Steven answered casually. "What did you need?"
"I have something to tell everyone," Peridot explained. "But I need you all in the lounge."
"All right. Just let me get changed and I'll be there as soon as possible." Steven said.
"We'll see you there." Peridot concluded as she left, with Steven closing the door behind her.
After changing into his standard attire; Steven quickly met up with rest of the Paladins, Crystal Gems, and Alteans; some of which already arrived, while others came at the same time as the teenage boy. "What's up, guys?" Steven asked everyone.
"Check out what was finished last night," Garnet said as she, Pearl and Peridot presented to the rest of the Voltron Force a finished warp pad; built in the center of the lounge.
"Oh my gosh, it's done!" Steven excitingly exclaimed with stars in his eyes; same with Connie, Amethyst, Pidge, and Matt. "That means we can see our families back home!"
"Well, sort of…" Pearl answered.
"What do you mean by sort of?" Connie curiously asked.
"While we were able to create a fully functional Galaxy Warp from here to Earth." Peridot began. "I failed to consider how much energy said warp would need to take you from where we are now to where you want to go; based on the energy output of the castle. Because of that, the warp pad will lock for about one Earth month after use."
"In other words." Pearl slowly continued. "Anything that goes through the Galaxy Warp would be stuck on the other side of a month."
Just like that; Steven, Connie and everyone else who was excited to see their families once more realized that they couldn't go home yet. They held a responsibility to fight Zarkon and the Galra, and they can't do that if they are so many lightyears away from the fight. "Well, you gave it a shot." Steven began. "Thank you for trying to help us see our families again, but I guess we'll have to find another way."
"Actually." Garnet began. "Pearl and I had a discussion; we decide the two of us should return to Earth."
"What?" Everyone in the room said with surprise.
"We know of the great responsibility that comes with being a Paladin of Voltron," Pearl stated. "If we didn't see it for ourselves, we wouldn't have believed it."
"The Earth needs the Crystal Gems to defend it from threats. However, the universe needs Voltron to defend it from far more dangerous threats." Garnet summed up.
"You guys don't have to do this," Amethyst stated.
"We know." Pearl began.
"But we want to do this," Garnet said, kneeling before the youngest Paladins. "Your families deserve to know all of you are safe. Besides, we'll be back in a month to help you kick some butt."
"Then… I guess this is goodbye." Connie said.
"For now," Pearl said before all the Crystal Gems hugged each other.
Lance suddenly heard sniffling and realized it was coming from Coran. "Coran, are you crying?" The Prince asked.
"No, the air is just full of so much dust that it's bothering my eyes," Coran said, before fully breaking down into tears towards the Crystal Gems affection towards each other. "The air is so filthy!"
After the hug, the humans decided to make recorded messages for their loved ones back home quickly; one's Garnet and Pearl promised to deliver before teleporting away.
Steven and Amethyst made a message for the former's dad. Connie made one for her parents. The Holt siblings made one each for their mom. While Shiro made a message for his husband, Adam.
With the messages in hand, Garnet and Pearl stand on the Galaxy Warp and give the Paladins and Alteans one last look and wave goodbye; before they are engulfed by pads cyan energy and teleported away.
Castle Doom, Galra Space.
"I gave you direct orders to battle Voltron!" Zarkon shouted at Prorok; who tried hiding his fear from his Emperor.
"But my Lord, I saw an opportunity to capture him and took it." Prorok tried explaining. "I only wanted…"
"All you wanted was glory," Zarkon bit back. "Nothing more, nothing less. Your ignorance cost me cruisers, soldiers, and an entire Balmera."
"Why am I only being punished, the witches monster failed!" Prorok accused.
"Your battle against Voltron was to divide his focus against your fleet, the Beastman and protecting the Balmera." Zarkon coldly stated. "A competent leader would have recognized that strategy without having to be told. I guess I was wrong to think you would be competent."
"My Lord…" Prorok began to protest.
"I think it is time that you are relieved from your position. Permanently." Zarkon added in with venom in his tone.
"No!" Prorok shouted, before turning to Haggar; scowling at her. "This is all your fault!" The stout Galra reached for his blaster and prepared to shoot the woman but found himself lifted off the ground with his throat slowly being crushed by Zarkon's hand; the Galra Commander never heard him coming.
"I warned you, Prorok." Zarkon began while the Galra struggled for breath. "I carry more patience for Haggar than I do for the likes of you."
"Sire… please… mercy…" Prorok begged as he coughed and choked.
"Mercy is for the weak," Zarkon concluded before snapping his victim's neck with little effort. The Galran Emperor dropped the deceased body on the floor, before turning to a nearby guard. "Take his body to the Druids, have them siphon any Quintessence they can from his corpse; he'll continue to serve me in death."
"Vrepit Sa!" The guard shouted before carrying Prorok's body out of the throne room.
Zarkon returned to his throne and sat in it as Haggar approached him. "Sire, there is something I wish to bring to your attention."
"Yes, Haggar," Zarkon said, giving her permission to speak.
"During my study on some Gems, I encountered something... odd." Haggar said. "I saw an apparition of a boy."
"A boy?" Zarkon questioned.
"But something was different about him." Haggar began. "It's like his mind projected itself from far away, yet there was a vast amount of energy coming from him; energy far more powerful than any we have siphoned thus far."
"Go on," Zarkon said, his interest now piqued.
With Prorok's body delivered to the Druids, the Galran guard decided to pay their Marmoran prisoner, Ulaz, a visit. The guard steps through the doors to the torture chamber, where he found the Blade of Marmora agent chained to the wall; bloody and beaten. The guard waits for the cameras to turn away from him before pulling out a device and pressing its button; deactivating all the recording devices before taking off his helmet; revealing himself as Thace.
"Thace." Ulaz weakly said; while he did not show it, he was happy to see a familiar face. "It is good to see you, my old friend."
"How are you holding up, Ulaz?" Thace asked, stepping closer to the injured Galra.
"They haven't gotten anything from me yet," Ulaz explained. "But I do not know how much longer I'll last."
"I'm still trying to arrange you a prisoner transport so that we may escape easier." The fellow Marmora agent explained. "But it's taking longer than I thought. The Galra are building something, a weapon which they believe can rival Voltron's power; but it lacks an energy source strong enough to keep it stabilized."
"You have to bring this information to Kolivan," Ulaz said. "Leave me behind if you have to."
"Leaving you behind will be my last resort, Blade Brother," Thace stated. "Only my last resort."
"I always thought Keith's stubbornness only came from Krolia." Ulaz joked to his old friend.
"I can't stay long, or the guards will get suspicious," Thace stated, as he placed his helmet back on. "But we will both get out of here. Until then… hang on, old friend."
Commorragh – Solway Firth district
A reddish gloom probed over the sinister city of Commorragh. Such a corrupt, rotten and cursed place where peace could never be established. This site was located in a conglomerate of dimensions within the Web and was a refuge for many Eldar survivors of the fall and for those who wish to avoid the influence of Slaanesh. Commorragh's dimensions are considered impossible to read by conventional means and its population exceeds that of some star systems. It can be said that it is a huge conglomeration of kingdoms and satellite cities connected by countless portals and hidden paths. If viewed from a certain perspective, Commorragh is a collection of remote nodes that spread through the arteries of the Web like a malignant virus. Its most populated cores are actually scattered throughout the Galaxy, although these places are linked by gleaming dimensional shortcuts. Within the Web it is possible to cover the immense distances between sub-kingdoms with a single step.
And it was here that the Dark Eldar used it as their home.
The Dark Eldar built tall towers that cut across the horizon and sinister catacombs to rest from their misdeeds. Commorragh is a horrible parody of what the slender Eldar cities once were. Where there was marble and harmony, now there is iron, stone and blood. Truly, they built a city in the likeness of their rotten hearts.
Solway Firth is a district that is considered unusual among the monstrous metropolises that encompass Commorragh, it was only about 1800 years old from its construction but had gained a good reputation during that period. It was not a place whose place of trade is based on the collection and sale of slaves, nor was it in the fights in the multiple coliseums, nor were they dedicated to torture or bodily experimentation.
Solway Firth was famous for its musical events.
It might be stupid to say, but the music district earned its fame well for its work. Many musical and artistic talents were born in the belly of the city. Do you want to see the best musical groups? Do you want to witness the artistic wonders of Mor'therian Y'neather? Or do you prefer to have a good time with your partner or lover? Solway Firth will be the place to rest from all the slaughter and monotonous looting.
And it is also the place where the Gray Splinters Sanctuary is housed.
Syakallar walked with his entourage towards the center of the district in which Archon Neck stood; He did not wear his helmet revealing his beautiful face hardened with centuries and battle scars, his great black hair tied in a ponytail flowed like oil and his eyes were yellowish green showing a perpetual frown.
The building where the Archon was located was a large tower that to the view of others of its kind was decorated with style: neon lights and millions of light bulbs gave life to the building with a tremendous amount of lights that would make a slave dizzy.
By the time they entered the building, she ordered the rest of her troop to stay and wait while she along with 4 of her guards accompanies her to see the leader of the kabbalah who is on the top floor.
At this point you could already hear the loud music coming from the floors that was passing, he supposed that many Drukhari came to have fun but that did not matter to him.
They reached the top floor, when the doors were opened, they were able to enter the Archon's private party.
The site was almost full of upper-class people from the Solway Firth hanging out alongside the rest of the shrine and their fellow captains, The Seven Daughters of Sorrow (Neck's personal Wych squad) were doing a dance demonstration in perfect sync with the music of the place.
And there he could see it.
The archon had the appearance of any proud and sadistic Archon. A characteristic wicked armor full of spikes on the forearms and knees whose color is a gray almost black, he wore a tattered jade green cloak with a long series of small chains tied under it, his shoulder pads (adding more wickedness to the armor) it was a pair of three large needles which still had dried blood on them.
Archon Neck's face was free from damage and in good condition, his skin was pale violet with orange eyes that showed a deadly cold calm, his head was free of hair but the emblem of the sanctuary was engraved on his forehead.
Archon of the Gray Splinters
Tu'alha'bal Neckrorius (Neck)
Neck was chatting with one of his captains when his gaze fell on the newcomer. Immediately a (friendly?) smile appeared on his lips.
"Syaka." Neck greeted the Drukhari woman who stiffened slightly in anger at being called that. "My Syaka, thanks to Khaine you came home."
Syakallar leaned in respect to his leader. "I am honored, Archon"
Neck snorted in derision. "How did your mission go? Did you find anything of interest or just more trash Galra throwing his crap around? I heard the Orks aren't making it easy over there."
"I would like to discuss it in private, if you are very kind my Archon." Neck's frown turned sour from a tick but he kept his facade.
He shrugged and took a drink from one of the slaves. "Sure, why not? But it had better be worth it. You know the punishments."
Syakallar's frown deepened darkly and he said monotomely. "Believe me, I assure you that you will be more than interested in what I discovered."
"Solway Firth" make reference to the last song of the last album of Slipknot. Besides, The Archon Neck's based of the singer of the band Corey Taylor.
There's what to be a lot references of this band in this sanctuary.
