Chapter 48

A/N: welcome back for another chapter! Good to see y'all again. Remember, I just own my OCs and that's it.

/comm/

"Bold is intercoms/vid-chat"

Dreams/telepathy/flashbacks

"Keith."

"Keith."

Opening his eyes, Keith found himself in what appeared to be the Ascendant Realm, but…it was different. It was brighter. The ground was made of a mirror, reflecting the endless sea of stars shining above.

"Shiro? Where are you? Show yourself!" he demanded pulling out his sword.

"Keith. I know this must be confusing for you…"

"What is this place?! Where are we?!" he snarled allowing light energy to crackle over his frame threateningly. "You—You were trying to kill me! The others! You said…" Light began to eminate from behind him and Keith whirled, baring his teeth as Shiro appeared before him.

But…he was different. He looked like he used to, before he disappeared the second time.

"I'm not here to harm you. Everyone is fine," he spoke. "Just let me explain. The thing that attacked you wasn't me. Since my fight with Zarkon, I've been here."

"When you disappeared?"

"Yes. I didn't know where I was or how much time had passed. My physical form was gone. I existed on another realm…I died Keith."

Keith's gut sank and his sword clattered out of his hand. No…no…Shiro…he was just with him, he just fought him, he found him. There was no…he couldn't be…

"The Black Lion somehow retained my essence."

"Is that where we are? The Black Lion's consciousness?" Keith asked.

"I tried to warn the others of the imposter while on Olkarion, but our connection wasn't strong enough…" Shiro began to fade what he was trying to explain going with him.

"Shiro? Shiro!"

Keith's eyes snapped open and he sat up, finding himself on the floor of the Black Lion. "You saved us…thanks," he whispered gently patting the wall, smiling as he felt Black's happy rumble.

"Keith," Yorak spoke up and he turned his gaze landing on Shiro.

"Turn on the emergency pod. We need to put him in."

-.-

"Are you sure you should be down there?" Hunk asked watching the Awoken Warlock and Fae Hunter fly around the main turbine as the Yellow Paladin held a swinging Coran. "It doesn't exactly seem safe."

"Diverting power from the teludav to here should get the power back up and running again," Kol replied pressing some buttons before flying across and starting the next sequence.

"So, what are the odds that giant bolts of electricity will start flying once we get it started?"

"That's what we want to happen Hunk," Coran replied pressing some buttons before swinging to the next area, nearly taking out the Warlock in the process.

"What?"

"Besides, if it is dangerous and we die we'll just revive like we always do," Silyna agreed, her magenta wings fluttering quickly behind her. "But we need to hurry, Lotor and his lackies could be back at any moment."

"We really need to work on our safety procedures."

Coran waved off the Yellow Paladin's concerns before tapping his headset. "How's it going number five?"

/I've diverted as much power as I could from the teladuv to the main turbine as I could/

"Nice work! Looks like we have the power we need to attempt a system restart! Allura begin the reboot sequcence." Getting no response Coran frowned. "Allura? Can you hear me? Is this thing on mute?"

Up on the bridge, the Altean princess was startled out of her thoughts as Lance spoke up, /Allura?/

/Oh, right. What is it you need?/

"The reboot sequence," Kol repeated.

/On it/

Getting the reply, the Warlock and Fae flew up and landed beside Hunk before grabbing the rope assisting in the efforts to hoist the Altean man up onto the platform. "Allura's begun the sequence. Power should be flowing any tick."

"Any tick?" Hunk huffed.

Coran got up and started typing on the monitors before groaning. "Ugh, what? We're in worse shape than I thought. Looks like we've hit another snag. Hold tight!"

"Wren! Sky! Can y'all come down?" Kol called.

/We're on our way/

-.-

"I'll go down and help them out," Krolia said following the two guardians with Romelle trailing behind her, leaving Allura, Lance, Jaz, and Tarin on the bridge.

"Allura? Are you ok? You seem distracted," Lance noticed stepping up beside her.

"I'm just so angry with myself for allowing this to happen. I played right into Lotor's hands and I fear my actions have placed us in this dire situation."

"If anyone's to blame for this it's me," Tarin said from where she sat sulking in one of the chairs. "I knew him the longest, I should've seen him for what he was."

"Neither of you put us in this situation," Lance said. "It was Shiro who went rogue and released the virus on the Castle."

"And I should've noticed that too," Tarin growled, her ears flattening to her head as she slammed her fist on the armrest. "I was Haggar's apprentice for decapheobs, I should've seen the signs!"

"No, this is my fault," Allura said crossing her arms and looking down. "I helped power his ships, granting him unlimited access to the quintessence field. I was fooled by him and it put the entire universe in jeopardy."

"We were all fooled by him Allura," Jaz spoke up.

"She's right," Lance agreed hugging Allura whom gladly returned the gesture of affection. "I had more reason than anyone not to trust him, but he did everything right. Let me tell you, as someone who's made a million mistakes all you can do is get up and try to make it right. You can't doubt yourself now. We need you. The universe needs you."

"And no matter what, we've got you back," Jaz smirked.

"Thank you."

"Hailing Castle of Lions," Keith said opening a comm-channel.

"Keith! What happened?" Jaz exclaimed noticing a burn running along his cheek. "Where's Shiro?"

"I got him, but it's not the Shiro we know."

"A clone, right?" Tarin questioned standing up getting a nod in confirmation.

"Then where's the real one?" Lance asked.

"It's complicated," Keith's ghost, Yorak, chimed in. "We'll explain later, right now we need to focus on Lotor."

"Silyna and Kol got back not too long ago. They told us they were on their way," Allura informed. "He needs to get here in order to breach the quintessence field."

"I'm on my way back now. But without a hyperdrive or wormhole it's going to take some time. You'll have to hold off Lotor without me."

"Don't worry, we won't let them go out alone," Tarin snarled cracking her knuckles and making a show of letting lightning flash along her arms.

-.-

"Accessing the quintessence field has been Lotor's singular drive for over a millenia," Tarin said as everyone got into their lions. "He wants to harness the power for himself."

/But we won't let him/ Allura agreed. /Thankfully, there's only one way into the quintessence field; through the inter-reality gate. So we must destroy it/

"I could just use on of my blasts to blow it up," Jaz offered putting on her helmet

"Save you energy, we'll need it for the battle ahead," Skylar said reloading a Cold Heart.

"For right now, we'll work on powering up the Castle," Coran agreed tugging on his mustache, "we'll need all the help we can get in the coming battle against…" his gaze fell to the Galra Druid and he took a breath, "against Lotor."

The lions flew out of their hangars, the beams of light from their guns blasting through the massive crater in the dead planet and out the other side, destroying the gate. And hopefully, Lotor's means of reaching the quintessence field.

-.-

/Lotor's going to be here any second. What's the plan?/ Pidge asked as the Lions regrouped.

/The Castle of Lions is broken down so there's no help there. The Black Lion isn't with us, so we can't form Voltron. So we'll just have to do what we can/ Allura answered.

/Coran, Krolia, Romelle, Wren, and Kol are working to restart your ship/ Skylar spoke. /Silyna and I will provide assistance where it's needed/

/And Jaz and I can provide extra fire coverage if necessary/ Tarin reminded.

/The last time we fought Lotor we had five ships/ Hunk chuckled, /at least our odds are better this time/

Allura blinked looking down at her scanner before speaking up again, /Tarin? Are you sure about this? You and Lotor—/

/It doesn't matter! Anything I felt for my hus…for him, was rendered null the moment he betrayed his morals/ she replied curtly pinning her ears back. /And as Empress to the Galra Empire, it's my duty to protect my people. Even if it's from their own Emperor. I cannot let them suffer the mistakes of another madman/

/Voltron, our scanners are picking up three targets of enemy origin/ Skylar spoke up. /Recommended attack plan?/

/Hold your positions. Let him make the first move/ Lance answered.

/Very well, we shall initiate cloaking, ambush them when the time is right/ Silyna nodded.

/I like them/ Pidge smirked feeling a little more confident about their odds.

The three ships came to a stop across from Voltron. /We need not fight today. We are all on the same side/ Lotor spoke in an attempt to diffuse the situation. /I know what you all must now think of me now that you know my past. But it doesn't have to change our future together. The truth is, I want to harness the power of the quintessence field to better the universe, just like I said. Nothing has changed/

/Explain your actions Lotor!/ Tarin snapped. /You went behind the backs of everyone who trusted you! You enslaved the very race you sought to save and turned around and took members to drain their life force! How many innocent lives did you destroy?!/

/Tarin I—/

/HOW MANY?!/ Allura screeched. No, she wasn't going to let him avoid the question. Not after everything he's done to them, to all of them. The Paladins, her friends, her people. No more were going to fall for his lies.

/…It's true. Many Alteans perished in my quest to unlock the mysteries of quintessence. But I rescued thousands, preserved their culture, our culture Allura. You must understand that I've given everything I have to plumb the depths of King Alfor's knowledge, to unlock the mysteries of Oriande. Please Allura, we've come too far together. Surely you can see the greatness we've already accomplished. There's still more to come. Join me. We're on the same side/

/NO WE'RE NOT!/ The Blue Lion opened its jaws, allowing a laser to fly towards the three ships.

/YEAH! GO ALLURA!/ Silyna cheered.

Diving out of the way, a violet orb began to form between them. /HOLD YOUR FIRE! HOLD YOUR FIRE!/ Lotor ordered frantically. /Allura, stop! You, Jazmyne and I hold the ancient knowledge of our Altean culture. We're meant to be together. My feelings for you are true. And I know you have feelings for me as well/

/Then what were your feelings for me?/ Tarin spoke up, her ears drooping. /Was it all a lie?/

/No! Tarin! I—/

/Enough!/ Allura interrupted. /You betrayed and used me, you used all of us!/

/What about your father?/ Lotor spoke coldly. /He may've been a master engineer but Alfor was too weak to defend his homeworld. I'm the one who had to step up and save our entire race. Who are you to question my tactics of bringing peace and prosperity to the universe?/

/OH THAT'S BULLSHIT! I HAPPEN TO KNOW, FOR A FACT, MANY, MANY, MANY ALTEANS SURVIVED IN MY SYSTEM, WITHOUT YOU LOTURD! I'M HALF-ALTEAN BITCH!/ Skylar screamed popping up momnentarily on the video feed to flip the bird. /AND GUESS WHAT?! WE DIDN'T INTENTIONALLY MURDER THEM! SECOND OF ALL! PEACE AND PROSPERITY?! DON'T MAKE ME LAUGH! I GIVE YOU FIVE SECONDS AGAINST THE HIVE TOPS!/

/Damn Sky, chill/

/Lotor/ Tarin spoke, her voice surprisingly even, /You think we can trust you so easily again? After you lied to us?!/

/Tarin…/

/That's all it was, wasn't it? A lie?/ she snarled through tears. /You just made your feelings about me clear. You used me. I gave you everything I had and you just used me for your own gain. You're more like Zarkon than I could've ever imagined/

/…Destroy the lions/

The two Sincline ships on either side of Lotor's shot forwards, firing blasts as they flew towards Voltron.

The Blue Lion roared, flying towards Lotor's ships, weaving between the incoming fire. /Allura! Stay with the group!/ Lance called as they chased after her. The two ships split, chasing after Green and Red as Blue continued her pursuit. Charging at Lotor, his ship moved to the side, allowing the lion to soar past him. Allura turned her lion around, firing the cannon. Lotor shot forwards, skimming over the surface of his old homeworld, the laser ripping through the dead ground behind him.

Red and Green fired shots at the two ships chasing them and Yellow. The larger lion got blasted again, and Hunk grunted as he was knocked about in his seat. /Guys! We could really use some help here!/

/Finally!/ Silyna cheered. A blast came from nowhere, slamming one of the incoming Sincline ships aside. Turning to find the source, the Yellow Paladin sighed in relief as he watched one of the Guardian ships decloak and zip past.

/Thanks!/

/Behind you!/ Lance exclaimed and Hunk grunted as he was blasted again.

Meanwhile, Lotor pulled his ship up, maneuvering it behind the Blue Lion. /Once I defeat Voltron! I'm going to create a new Altea! An Altea that will never know Princess Allura or King Alfor!/ he growled as his target system locked onto the Blue Lion. /Nor will they ever know of the Lions of Voltron! All they'll know is me! Their great leader!/ He fired at the Blue Lion, laughing as she continued to run from him.

/SURPRISE!/

Lotor's head slammed against the dashboard as something rammed his ship. Looking up, his eyes widened as he saw a tank-like ship, shoving his own towards some of the ruins of Diabazaal. Inside, he could see an Altean Titain inside smirking. The same one who yelled at him earlier.

Gunning the engines, he shot forwards, narrowly avoiding a blast from the Blue Lion as he made his escape. He looped around an asteroid, coming around on Allura's tail once again. /I'M GOING TO WIPE THE UNIVERSE CLEAN FROM ALL MY ENEMIES! VOLTRON, HAGGAR, AND THE REST OF THE GALRA!/

At those words, the two sincline ships fighting the others, pulled away from the battle. Inside his ship, Lotor seethed with rage. His generals, even they were abandoning him. Was no one on his side?! He turned away from Allura and shot after them. Getting in range, he overrided their controls, ejecting the traitors from what was his.

And then, the transformation sequence begun. The three ships combined to form his all powerful weapon. The weapon that would destroy Voltron once and for all.

/What is that thing?/ Pidge exclaimed.

/He's created his own Voltron/ Lance answered.

/That's why he was using me, using us/ Allura growled, her hands clenching tighter around the controls. /We helped him build it/

/Well, at least now it's six—no, eight on one/ Hunk sighed.

/LOOK OUT!/

The Sincline mech lunged forwards, appearing beside them in a blink of an eye. The massive tail on the back slammed the Blue Lion aside, nearly sending her crashing into an asteroid. As the others tried to put some distance between them and Lotor, Hunk cried out as Yellow was grabbed by her tail. The G-forces as he was swung around pressed him against his chair. And, suddenly, his lion was sent soaring right towards Silyna's ship.

The Hunter's ship zipped out of the way, flying around the battlefield as Sincline attacked the Green Lion. /Kol, Wren, get out here. This thing's gonna be a challenge/

/On our way!/

/Jaz? Krolia, what's the status of the Castle?/

/We finally have control of the weapons systems/ Coran replied.

/We don't have much power. Only enough for one shot/ Krolia informed.

/We'll have to make it count then. FIRE!/

The cannons on the Caslte powered to life and a blarge blast came from the ship's bow. As the Lions and Guardians pulled back, Lotor turned towards the disturbance, the blast slamming full-force into his ship.

/Nice shot Coran!/

Inside the Castle, Tarin's ears flattened as she saw a familiar glow coming from behind the glow of the blue light. "Jaz! Shield!"

The Awoken mage's eyes widened, and both sorcerers unleased their magic, forming a shield over the Castle. In that moment, a violet laser from the Sincline mech cut off the Castle's attack, ramming into the shield.

Both mages grimaced as they felt the dark energy attack their own. "Coran, do we have more for another attack?"

"No, I'm afraid that was our last shot."

/Pidge! Get out of his line of sight!/ Lance shouted as Lotor ceased his attack, turning towards the lions.

/He's locked onto me! I'm taking heavy fire/ she called back grunting as several blasts slammed into her lion, blasting them into an asteroid.

Seeing their chance, Tarin and Jaz formed their attacks. Two bright beams of light shot out from the Castle. The first one slammed into the Sincline ship, pushing it away from Pidge and into another asteroid.

Inside his ship, Lotor grimaced at the sheer heat. He could see his systems flashing in warning, see the metal of his weapon glowing and almost melting. The white light faded away, and the Galtean blinked in an effort to adjust his eyes before the second blast hit.

Lotor screamed. Lightning arched through his body, trying to fry every nerve. He knew who's attack this was, he could feel it. The rage, the hate, the utter betrayal; this was Tarin. A glowing flash of her came to his mind and pain exploded on the right side of his face.

Gasping, he could feel the rivulets of blood flowing down his face. In the glass, he could see the reflection of four gashes on his head stretching from his brows to almost his lips.

A thud jostled his ship and the Emperor's eyes widened as he saw the Titan standing on his chest. Activating his cannon, he fired, hopefully eradicating the beast from existence. Flying away from it, he glimpsed a flash of light and a ship giving chase.

Two smaller ships zipped by him, and Lotor grunted as several explosions knocked his ship back. Reeling from the attack, he barely pulled out of the way of several more large blasts coming from the Warlock and mages in the Castle.

A fist made impact on the visor and his eyes widened as he saw the same Titan again on his ship. Through her helmet, he could see her face, and for the first time in decapheobs, Lotor felt true fear shiver down his spine.

The only thing he could make out through her mask were those glowing eyes, and he felt his ship jolt as he fist made impact, cracks spreading across the armor.

Guardians, he was fighting Guardians. Immortals born for combat. He swung the mech's arm, attempting to fling her off. It worked, but she teleported back into her ship just as his alarms began going off again.

Turning to face the next attack, his eyes widened as he caught a glimpse of black, white, and blue. The blurr rammed into him, and he grunted as another wave of electricity shot through him from the damaged systems.

The Black Lion was here.

/Keith! How'd you get here so fast?!/ Lance exclaimed.

/I had some help/ he replied.

/What's the plan Cap?/ Skylar smirked.

/You guys distract him while we form Voltron!/