Allura attempted to keep her mind off the previous conversations of the day. She felt she had made excellent strides in gaining the prince's trust.
A novel thought came to her. How odd that now it was her who was striving to gain his trust. She would have chuckled if Lotor were not standing directly behind her. Just as the first time, albeit slightly more subdued, the half-galran prince was exuding a mixture of confidence, stoicism, and sheer wonder. Even with her back turned to him, she could feel his eyes watching her every move. Not in the calculated, predatory manner that Allura was accustomed to sensing.
No, he seemed to be admiring the grace at which the machinery maneuvered… or something akin to that. She mentally added another tick to the growing list of things she was learning to 'love' about him.
The princess almost sighed aloud. A prodding voice in her head waggled a finger at her.
Luckily, Shiro's clipped tones came over the comms before she could grow too distracted.
"Pidge and I will examine sectors 5 through 8. Lance and Hunk take over sectors IG 12 and GI 21 on the poles…."
Allura could have sworn Shiro paused a breath longer. In fact, she thought she picked up a hint of something she did not hear from the man often: disdain.
"… Allura and Lotor, take the main compound."
She kept her own reply polished. "Affirmative."
Lotor spoke as soon as the comm clicked off. "He holds no qualms against showing his distrust, does he not?"
Allura licked her lips unsure of which side she stood on. It was probably safer to not say anything but a nagging feeling that she owed him a response plagued her. "I think he is worried about…" she blushed. "us."
There was deeply engrained caution in his voice. Allura was reminded of Lotor's past. "What do you mean?" It almost sounded like an accusation, but whether he was accusing himself or her, she was uncertain.
"I think he sees me opening up to you more and is being cautious," she clarified.
Lotor was silent for a long time. She fought the urge to fill the void by saying more, turning her attention to bringing Blue into the planet's atmosphere.
For the second time this trip, she was surprised by his tone of voice. It was gentle. "Is that a good idea?"
Allura twisted in her seat to meet his golden irises. Emotions swam just under the surface. "I think so," she said simply.
The slightest tightening of his throat. The most minute dilating of pupils…
That time, she saw authenticity.
Allura turned away to hide her smile. She focused her attention on landing. Her lion landed softly on the verdant surface. The planet was greener and seemed warmer than the previous globe they had explored. Outside, she could see a densely overgrown courtyard. It appeared to be an old landing platform, a large flat space.
A crackling voice broke over the silence. "This is Yurn. I have crew on the ground. Don't disturb them and we won't disturb you." The pirate was obviously still bitter over his previous loss.
Allura was only grateful that he had the foresight to stop fighting when he knew he was beaten. She answered respectfully, "Thank you. We will try to be as quick as possible."
She didn't expect an answer and she didn't get one.
"Everyone is in a good mood today," Lotor commented dryly.
"I think you may be onto something," Allura said. The change of pace was refreshing. She didn't realise how much she had been looking forward to this. He made it better as she moved to stand and Lotor offered her a hand.
A smile touched the corner of her mouth and she took it politely.
"Where should we begin?" She asked.
Lotor led her outside. He let go of her hand to block out the sun and survey the landscape. Yurn had mentioned his crew being close by but the area looked untouched. An oval building stood at the southern end of the long landing strip where 'Blue' had landed. "Going inside should enlighten us."
She let him take the lead as the two of them walked over the crumbling foundation. Interestingly, there were no ships on the grounds nor any signs of recent activity. The foliage was mainly brush and heavily vined, short trees. From the ground, the main compound was barely visible through greenery.
"I wonder where Yurn's crew is," Allura mused. She internally cringed. For whatever reason, a whisper felt more appropriate.
"It certainly seems this area is abandoned." Lotor dipped under a low hanging branch draped in thick vines.
She admired his broad shoulders as she followed him and he continued, "I would not put it past the pirate to only mention such worries as deterrent. How strange they do not inhabit the other world."
"This one was the most … complete," Allura offered. The words left a bitter taste on her tongue.
Lotor tilted his head in acknowledgement. It brought to mind the unfortunate circumstances that brought them here in the first place. Stop. Detach. She can't know. She can't see.
She wasn't going to allow that, and it frustrated him. "Lotor, tell me the truth." She took a breath. "What do you know of Galran activity concerning Alteans?"
A mocking snicker echoed through his mind. It stabbed with almost real pain. Truth in the same sentence as your name? Shut up. He didn't look at her. It was all a lie. He had never spoken untruth to her. Anxiety mounted. He violently forced the thoughts away. Lock them away. Shut them out. They don't exist. Not now or ever.
"Allura, I don't know everything my father undertook during the past. I was exiled." His voice took on a gentler tone. "I did not realise he had secret installations like this. However, it has been many thousands of years."
"What do you know, though?" She was persistent.
"Not enough," he spoke as close to true as he could. "Its obvious that he took Alteans captive to use their knowledge." He sighed. A pang of guilt touched him. Don't. "I am sorry I don't know more. I would give anything to know more of what he did, trust that Allura."
Whether or not she believed him, he could not tell. She didn't say anything again until they had climbed up the mossy stairs that led to the large square doors that led into the squat structure.
As expected, the interior was run down. Nature had taken civilisation captive after centuries of neglect. Long, dark hallways came off the main, circular chamber like spokes on a wheel. The large area would have been bustling in its prime time. Numerus consoles sat decrepit and eaten away by dangerous looking scarlet fungi. Thick vines intermingled with almost identical cords snaking along the floor. Sagging scaffolds hung precariously from the ceiling and against the furthest back wall a towering generator still hummed. Indeed, it was the only source of light in the dim arena basking everything in a now sickly green hue.
"This looks like a communications center," Allura said quietly.
Lotor nodded sagely. He took several footsteps into the massive space. The Galran machinery was clearly outdated, but the generator was what caught his attention. He moved carefully over the uneven ground to the large cylinder. He was aware of the princess hanging back, carefully inspecting another corner of the room. A stray thought entered his mind as he neared the generator.
A sensation tickled his ears like a whisper on the wind, making the back of his throat tingle. Something eerily familiar rose in the back of his mind. Despite himself, Lotor reached a hand outward. That feeling that occasionally followed Allura's presence came back to him. It was a soft glow just on the edge of perception. Where warmth should have been, Lotor felt cold. It was a sensation that was keenly recognisable. He was unaware of shutting his eyes.
His gloved hand only brushed the surface. Bitter ice shot through the contact and pierced his chest, filling it like cold water. The blossom of energy he sensed shifted shape.
The prince ground his teeth determined not to allow this chance to connect with the Altean magic slip away again. His face contorted as another more sinister ember ignited between him and the essence. He fought like one drowning in maddened, black water; lost in a midnight sea. Lotor continued to grasp, fighting, scraping, and clawing towards the quickly diminishing flash of pure quintessence he felt. It was a dim sunset across the quickly rising gulf separating him from that which he yearned to touch.
On the outside, he could hear a deep growl. Needless distraction.
Suddenly, powerfully, he was thrown into another realm. Or perhaps it was the depths of his mind being visibly conjured by such proximity to quintessence. He opened his eyes. Shadow and fog roiled around him. He immediately assumed a vision. A feat he had never before accomplished. A rushing howl made his head swim and his hearing ring. The floor immediately felt unsteady. A sickening, hollow, void burned through his chest.
Silver fangs snarled, contorting in terror and rage. Pain mounted. It was both physical and mind-numbingly emotional: another plane of existence he never knew existed full of memories both his and other poor souls. They cloyed him, pulling, screaming for mercy and laughing insanely to see another victim. Too close.
His golden irises snapped down to take in the horror. Deepest black streaked with sharp purple relief bled from a hole in his sternum. No. The word shook on his tongue though it only rung through his sub-consciousness. No. No. No! His claws clamped over his breast attempting to hold in the darkness.
Monster. How does it feel? To have your very essence siphoned from your soul!? She will sense your guilt. You are tainted. You will never touch the light. We shall always fight back. You are not Galra. You are not Altean.
He didn't recognise the voice change from that of an ancient Altean to his own. Filth. A damnation to the world.
His head spun. His breath came ragged, burning in his chest. His heart thudded deeply, frantically in his ears. You cannot erase us.
Finally, he broke contact. Lotor was physically thrown aback as the energy dissipated violently. A gentle thrumming filled the chamber. The green hue of the light was now a distinct lavender. He felt drained, exhausted.
Lotor pushed himself upright, being cautious not to touch the cylinder again. The adrenaline spiked and anxiety made it hard not to shake. He whipped his head around to scan the arena. He half expected to see the princess standing there looking disgusted and horrified.
No, she was gone. The void he had witnessed in the vision was abruptly feeling all too real.
"Allura." Please. Heavens please. She didn't see that. She couldn't have seen that. Please.