ISOLATING THE VARIABLE
"It's me. It's been me all along." The princess stared down at the pillars her hands were currently sitting atop. The slight tremble in her grip was barely noticeable but he still managed to catch it. "That's how they found us on Planet Arus." Her fears made sense; Keith had to admit that it did explain a lot. But as Mr. Holt used to say: "Correlation does not imply causation." And he had just as many reasons her theory could be wrong.
"It doesn't matter, princess. We're in this together and we're gunna get out together." Shiro announced before Keith could say anything.
The plan was simple enough: form Voltron, lure the Emperor's Central Command away from the Castle of Lions, let Allura get into open space, then wormhole away. The biggest problem was the state of the Teludav. According to Coran, each scaultrite lens-stone would need to take the equivalent of five beams. It was incredibly risky, but it was their only shot.
Keith raced to his lion and Red opened her mighty jaws before he even had to ask. "Good Kitty" He purred, taking his place in the pilot seat and flying out to meet the others. Shiro was the first, followed by Keith with Pidge and Lance immediately behind him, and finally Hunk a tic or two after that. They flew out from the relative safety of the eye and into the raging storm surrounding them.
"Alright team, Form Voltron!" Shiro commanded and the legendary robot took shape.
Together, as Voltron, they dodged debris and evaded the Empire fighter pods. Flying further and further into the storm to lead them away from the Castle. Shiro called for their shields from Pidge, extra power to the thrusters from Lance and Hunk, and their sword from Keith. They sliced their way through the various projectiles and eventually blasted free of the storm entirely. Inside the chaos, Red's sensors had been going wild but once they were clear of the super cell below them, it was peaceful inside the lion.
That peace lasted all of 3 tics before Emperor Zarkon tried to take control of the Black Lion once again. He had a feeling this would happen and, when Shiro ordered them to fall back, it was already too late. He should have spoken up sooner, he should have voiced his concern about Black back on the bridge, but he didn't and now they had to fight against the hate-fueled presence of the corrupted Emperor.
Keith tried to focus, tired to offer his support to Shiro and urge Black to resist, but it was no use. He sat back in Red, Help me connect to your brother, he begged her and the resulting purr pulled him deep into a trance.
Everything was fire. He stood amongst the flames and watched as they licked across his body. He could feel their heat surrounding him, a comforting and empowering warmth. The smell of smoke and embers hung in the astral plane and Keith lifted his right arm, watching as the flames swirled in the wake of his movement to wrap around the appendage like a caress. The heat of the fire burned inside him, he could feel it fueling his very being and it felt familiar. He'd had this fire with him since the day he was born, Red had always been there, he just hadn't known it was her. And now, in this place, she surrounded him inside and out. Her flames, his fire, their shared passion; together creating the inferno that blazed unquenchably around him. But it wasn't Red he was here to see.
Turning, he felt the cool sensation as it whispered past his face. Blue. She too was familiar; he'd spent his youngest years in her protective shadow. The smell of salt and something fresh yet crisp found its way to the foreground of his mind, chasing away the heated smoke of the embers. Cold waves lapped at his ankles and he could see the water swirling around his feet. A shiver snaked up his back and Keith missed the fire, he missed the passion of Red. Blue was a calming essence, not the rush of adrenaline and desire he was used to, but instead a cool breath of fresh air and a loving understanding. Red pushed him to be better than he was, she urged him to test his limits and break through barriers. But Blue felt like she was trying to hold his hand, guide him to the right path, and her very presence made him feel like she had his back. Is this what Lance felt? No wonder he was so fond of his Lion. It was nice, it was comforting, but it wasn't what Keith wanted. He didn't want his hand held, he wanted to driven to excellence. Red's responding purr immediately pulled him back to her blaze.
The familiar flames wrapped around him and he felt Red's heat in his very bones, the blood in his veins responding to her. It's Black I need. He urged and ignored the feeling of safety and protection that accompanied a musky-earthy smell. Yellow shrank back, his stability giving way to the prodding of Green as she came swooping in to replace her brother. Vines crawled up his body and the exotic scent of a rain forest threatened to over take the exhilarating smoke Keith he loved so dearly. BLACK, he pressed and the vines retreated, leaving him to his beloved inferno.
The flames gave way to nothingness, absolute nothingness. Here should be Black, the twinkling cosmos spanning all around and a calming sense of duty and focus. But instead it was nothingness. Endless nothingness. Keith took a step into the void and ran abruptly against a blockage; a wall of energy prevented him from going any further. He wasn't Black's Paladin, he hadn't been chosen by the Lion, but this wall shouldn't be there. He should be able to connect to him like he had with the other lions. Black was their leader, the head of Voltron, and the one that linked them all to one another. This wall shouldn't be here!
A blast from the Castle of Lions hit the Emperor's Command Ship and broke his grasp on the Black Lion; it also jolted Keith back to reality. "Paladins, now's your chance! Get out of there!" Allura called over their coms and Keith had to force himself back to the present. He could puzzle over the barrier later.
"I forgot how intense Zarkon's connection to the Black Lion is. We have to keep our distance or risk losing Voltron." Shiro rationalized. "Let's disband and get back to the Castle." The rushed through the thick storm clouds, racing against the various Empire pods. They reached the Castle of Lions and flew into their respective hangars, prepared for an immediate get away. Except, nothing happened.
"Why haven't we wormholed yet?" He inquired over the coms only to have an incredibly agitated Coran yell at him about the scaultrite lens-stones.
"Sloven-dae-ho!" Coran shouted into the screen. Keith pulled his brows at the Altean words; Coran was being incredibly dramatic. Actually, yeah, that tracked.
"What the quiznak does 'sovereign-day-old' even mean?"
"It's 'sloven-dae-ho' Lance." He snickered. "And it means 'into oblivion'. Basically, it's overly dramatic Altean for 'the scaultrite lens-stones are pretty much done'."
"Wait, did you say 'scaultrite'? I've seen that somewhere before." Pidge jumped in. "I think Hunk was making some terrible cookies-" "HEY!" Hunk objected in the background "-from that stuff!" Pidge continued undeterred.
Sure enough, after they exited their lions and met up in the engine room, Coran confirmed that Hunk's cookies contained scaultrite. They were now arranged in the most absurd positions, perched precariously inside the Teludav, and holding said 'cookies' steadily in carefully calculated locations. One wrong move, one slip from their exact spots, and all five paladins would be vaporized by the beam.
"Wait, Coran! How dangerous is this?" Hunk asked and Keith had to roll his eyes. They were literally balanced inside a giant laser chamber holding onto cookies! He was pretty sure the answer to that was: very!
"Honestly, this is the most dangerous thing I've ever seen, or heard of, but since we're probably going to die anyways, WHAT THE HECK! LET'S GIVE IT A SHOT!" The eccentric Altean shouted back at them, instilling confidence in absolutely none of his helpers.
Their first jump attempt didn't work and Coran had to shine the lens-stones with the excretions 'the slipperies' provided. It was honestly disgusting and Keith was surprised Hunk didn't vomit. The Princess continued her count down over the coms as he worked. Before he was ready, time was already up so Coran quickly tucked himself away behind the wall of stones to avoid being in the line of fire. Keith watched as the laser built up its charge, and the moment it fired he felt the incredible rush.
The force of the beam hitting the cookie in his hand sent a shock wave radiating up his arm, and Keith had to actively push against the pressure to keep the disc in position. His right arm was outstretched, holding the disc in the precisely calculated location, while his left arm and left leg were holding him place. Unlike the others, Lance and Keith did not get to sit on the steady floor. The former was hanging upside down by his knees, holding two discs in a way that they replaced five cracked ones at the top. While Keith was half hanging, half stretching from the uppermost side.
He had one foot tucked behind a secured disc by the ankle, a firm grip securely in place atop another disc, and his right foot fully extended to press against a third disc for support. All of this meant that, provided they weren't jostled too much, his weight was evenly distributed amongst his grips. Keith was confident in his ability to hold his position; he'd been through something similar during training with the Blades when he was younger and had fared rather well.
Kolivan brought himself, Regris, Marra, Zavin, and Fayz to a planet whose name he couldn't remember anymore. He knew the planet was inhabited, but the locals lived on a large continent of solid, and relatively stable, ground close to the Southern pole. The Blade pods landed on an island in the Northern hemisphere and thus, never risked exposure. The island wasn't a warm sunny beach with refreshing waves, instead it was a barren and volatile wasteland surrounded by deadly boiling acid. It was not a planet one would describe as paradise.
They'd been given a set of crisscrossing bars and instructed to position themselves in such a way that they felt confident in their ability to stay in place for as long as possible. Kolivan had then moved the large set of bars to span a crack in the crust, dangling the kits above the boiling acid below. Though Keith had no way of knowing at the time, the Leader of the Blade of Marmora had several safety measures in place. Fail-safes such as: three layers of netting to catch them, an emergency rescue team on standby, and acid resistant fibers in their suits. He'd held on for longer than everyone, except Regris; the latter's tail giving him an edge. And when Keith did fall, it was nearly a varga after the others.
So all in all, Keith hadn't been too concerned about his ability to hold position whilst in the Teludav, but he had been worried about the others. Particularly Hunk who had to hold his legs in the air as steady as possible, and also Pidge who looked far from comfortable in their low-lying crouch with outstretched arms.
"Great work, team! We made it!" He heard Allura's pleased voice as the heavy barrier to the Teludav opened and Lance promptly fell face first from his perch.
The Blue Paladin groaned painfully as he sat back up. "Well, that was rough!"
"Yea, I vote we never do that again!" Pidge seconded. "All in favour say 'aye'." There was a series of incoherent grumbles and Pidge adjusted their glasses, giving a firm nod. "The groans have it. Never again!"
"I don't know - it was kind of a rush!" He countered, much to the chagrin of the four Humans and Coran.
"Did the laser fry your brain, Mullet?" Keith rolled his eyes at Lance but before he could respond, the princess was already directing them all back to the bridge.
The team was huddled in the middle of the large room, Allura sitting on her podium, and the others surrounding her. Keith leaned against the Red Paladin chair, separate from the group, but no less involved in the conversation. "There's no point in debating this further." Allura announced. "Zarkon, is clearly tracking us through me." A series of rebuffs sounded out as everyone rejected her conclusion. "Why would that be so hard to believe? Zarkon's forces showed up on Arus only after I awoke."
"She's got a point." Lance agreed. "I would absolutely travel across the galaxy to find you." Keith nearly gagged. Instead, he settled for rolling his eyes so hard he gave himself a headache.
"Okay look, if the Emperor can track you through your Altean quintessence, than he could probably track me through my Galran quintessence, or Shiro through his prosthetic." Keith crossed his arms, he knew he was most likely scowling but it might actually help to drive home his point. "I vote that Emperor Zarkon is tracking the Black Lion. Commander Sendak didn't show up until AFTER Black was awoken and every time we get close to the Emperor he tries to take control of the lion. His former lion!" Keith explained, throwing his arms in frustration. "It could be you, it could be me, or Shiro, but it's probably Black!"
"No Paladin has ever been able to connect with a lion over a vast distance." Coran countered. But Keith knew that wasn't true. He'd connected to Red multiple times before even becoming her Paladin and to assume the Emperor wasn't capable of the same was foolish.
"Look it doesn't matter how he's tracking us, because we're gonna take the fight to the Galra soon enough." Shiro asserted, once again speaking to the group before Keith had a chance to voice his own thoughts. "They've been chasing us from galaxy to galaxy, the last thing they expect is for us to come after them."
Keith frowned, which quickly turned into a confused expression as he tried to find anyway in which that wasn't a terrible plan. "The hunter becomes the hunted, hmm? Awesome!" Lance immediately spoke up. "That's like, the tagline from six of my favourite movies!" He was looking at Keith when he spoke the last line, as if the Galra Halfling had any idea which Earth movies he could possibly be talking about. Keith rolled his eyes.
At some point in Shiro's speech the tiny Green Gremlin had made their way over to their console, pulling up the screens and typing in a series of commands. It was from the Green Paladin chair that their voice now wafted, pulling the attention of the other occupants on the bridge. "As it happens, I took our list of recent Galra attacks and analyzed it for both commonalities and anomalies among the attack sites, while simultaneously cross referencing it with the data provided by Keith's organization, the Blade of Marmora. I was hoping to create an algorithm that would, within a statistically acceptable margin of error, provide a list of target-rich Galra environments – colour coded, of course, because what are we, animals?"
The feverish typing slowed to a normal level and the massive star chart appeared around them on the bridge. Various planets and systems were highlighted, and the English notes alongside Altean location names made the whole thing look even more intense than it had before. When Allura had initially displayed this map back on Arus, it wasn't nearly as detailed as the new version Pidge had modified.
"Cool … What is it again?" Lance commented, pulling the thoughts directly out of most of their heads.
"It's a Galra finder?" Hunk clarified and Keith scowled at him, then at Pidge. If they had used his tech and data to create a way of tracking his species Keith was going to be pissed!
"Well, 'finder' suggests that it locates the Galra, whereas it would be more accurate to say that my model predicts their likeliest …" The Green Paladin paused mid explanation to take in the blank stares and perplexed expressions of the room before simply conceding. "Fine. It's a Galra finder." They pouted.
"Sooo where are the Galra?" Lance asked and Keith immediately spoke up.
"Well, there's one right here." He crossed his arms with a huff as all eyes turned to look at him in a mix of shock and confusion. "Seriously, can you guys just say 'the Empire' or even 'the Galra Empire' instead of just 'the Galra' cause it's getting real old, real quick. Unless your program tracks biology, it's an Empire predictor, not a GALRA tracker or else it would be beeping right now!"
"You're right, Keith." Allura addressed and turned back to the smallest of their group. "Pidge, where does your program say the Empire will be?" He nodded at her in appreciation and turned back to the star chart before him, watching as a planet lit up bright red and a series of English notes appeared.
"The nearest ones are right here. A planet called Taujeer." Keith furrowed his brow, the name sounded familiar but he couldn't place why. Maybe he'd been sent there on a mission with the Blades once? Most likely!
"Then that's where we're headed. Everyone should get some sleep. Tomorrow, we'll find that Galra – er Empire, fleet and take it out!" Shiro commanded and smiled kindly at Keith, proud of himself for his on-the-spot correction. Keith smiled in return and held back the eye roll that wanted desperately to escape. Instead, he followed the group out of the bridge and returned to his room.
Keith sat on his bed debating between heading for the training deck to help Coran with repairs, heading for the pools to swim laps, or just going to bed. In the end, all three options lost as he put on his Paladin armour and made his way to the Princess' room. They needed to figure out how the Emperor was tracking them once and for all. The quickest way to do that was by removing certain variables.
He knocked on her door but there was no answer. He knocked harder and still, nothing. What would I do if I were Allura? He thought to himself, slowly making his way down the hall. Think, Keith, think!
It wasn't long before he found himself in the main hangar with a bag of supplies. The Princess was a little stuck up and self absorbed, but she often times shared the same thought process he did. If he'd thought Emperor Zarkon was tracking him, Keith would have tried to sequester himself from the others. It was what he had gone to her room to suggest after all.
A dobash or two passed and he heard the doors opening, followed by footfalls far too light to belong to any of the Humans. Hiding behind one of the pod's engines, he waited until he was 100% certain of the others identity, catching a glimpse of white hair as a fleeing Allura tried to climb into the large pod.
"Princess, what are you doing here?" He asked, stepping out from his hiding place much to her shock. She froze for a tic and jumped higher than he'd expected, losing her balance and falling backwards off the side of the pod – directly into his waiting arms. Keith stared at her with a blank expression, and she was standing beside him blushing before he'd even finished rolling his eyes. A devilish thought crossed his mind; Lance would be so jealous. He couldn't wait to play this up and watch the other lose his mind.
"Oh! I might ask you the same thing." She countered, though the slight waver to her voice gave away her surprise.
"Waiting for you." He answered matter-of-factly then promptly winced at the way it must have sounded. "I – uh, I mean, I was waiting to speak with you."
"In full Paladin armour? With a bag of your belongings?" She attempted to call him out.
"Actually, these are provisions. I know you think Emperor Zarkon is tracking us through you. And I had a feeling you'd try to sneak out – so I came here to intercept you." She blushed at his confession, and how right he had proven to be. "Look, Princess, I know we've had our differences but I cant let you go out there on your own. I agree that separating you and the Black Lion is the fastest way to find out which one is the Emperor's conduit. Black has Shiro and the other paladins to back him up, you'll have me."
She stared at him for a moment, processing his offer and finally gave a small smile. "If you were Altean I'd pull you into a hug for your consideration of my safety."
"Yea, well – don't." He rubbed at the back of his neck and awkwardly shot his glance off to the side. Physical contact was soooo not an option with Allura. A quiet chuckle sounded from the Princess as they climbed into the pod. Keith placed his bag of weapons and food into the storage area in the back of the cabin and climbed into the pilot's seat.
"What makes you think you're piloting this craft? It's an Altean pod and I happen to be the only Altean between us." He quirked his brow at her protest. Really?
"Allura, I can fly circles around you. This may be an Altean pod, but no one flies like a Galra. Don't argue – just get in the passenger seat." She huffed slightly but conceded and climbed in beside him. A quick systems check and they were on their way. Keith hit the throttle as hard as possible the moment they cleared the hangar and he may have done a barrel roll to freak out the Princess in the process.
They'd flown for nearly two vargas in relative silence before Allura finally spoke up. "You don't think they'll be mad about this do you?"
He let out a snicker of surprise. "Yeah, I imagine they'll be pretty pissed." He poked with a smirk. "Especially Coran and Lance."
"Yes, Coran can be quite protective and Lance can be … well …"
"Lance?" He cut in.
"Yes, Lance can be quite Lance." They both chuckled at the Blue Paladin's expense before she continued. "He's quite persistent isn't he?" Keith nodded. "Was he always this way? Or am I an exception?"
"Do you want to be?" He asked, masking his voice and trying to keep it as level as possible. Lance was hot, but he was a pain in the ass and Keith did not have a slight crush on him. Nope!
"What? No – I, I merely meant – oh, I don't know what I meant!" Allura buried her blush behind her hands and Keith snorted. It took almost another 40 dobashes before she dared to speak again. "You knew each other before finding the Blue Lion didn't you? What was he like?"
"I don't know – loud and obnoxious, but friendly enough I guess. Lance is very …"
"Lance?" She giggled, repeating his early description.
"Yeah." He chuckled back. "That's really the best way to describe him. One of a kind! But I didn't really know him very well."
"I thought you all went to the same learning academy." She puzzled.
"Well, yeah, we did. But it was a pretty big school and we weren't all in the same classes or grades or whatever. We were all Cadets and Shiro was an Officer; I only know him as well as I do because of a mentor-ship program. Pidge is the little sister of my friend Matt -"
"The Human boy that was taken with Shiro by the Galra?" She interrupted and he scowled at her.
"Yes – Matt was taken by the Empire when he went on a mission to Kerberos with his father and Shiro." She blushed and had the decency to look apologetic for her slip-up so he continued. "Hunk was a friend at the Garrison, not a close friend, but still a friend. And Lance had declared me his rival, decided he didn't like me, and in general just made my life difficult." He thought about it for a moment and amended his statement slightly. "He was never overtly rude or mean-spirited, just kind of a pain in the ass you know? But I wasn't on Earth very long, so I didn't have much time to really get to know the other Paladins, aside from Shiro."
The princess nodded, turning to look out the window and stare at the stars as they passed by. "I some times wonder if any of my childhood friends survived the invasion. If perhaps any of them were off planet at the time of Zarkon's attack."
"They would have been hunted down by Prince Lotor." He replied before thinking and Allura's head whipped around so quickly he'd be surprised if she didn't give herself whiplash.
"WHAT?" She shrieked at him. "Elaborate. Immediately!"
"Well, according to history, Prince Lotor was ordered by Emperor Zarkon to hunt down and exterminate any Alteans who had survived and were hiding amongst other populations. Since Alteans are able to blend in with the locals, they were particularly hard to find." Allura's brow was furrowed tightly and her mouth was pursed into a hard line yet she didn't interrupt, so he continued. "But it was easier for the Prince to find them since he's half Altean and-"
"WHAT?!" She screamed at full volume – in the tiny enclosed pod – right beside him. He hissed at her and jammed a finger into his ear to stop the ringing.
"Okay, Ow!" he snapped.
"Prince Lotor? Half Altean? What are you talking about? I don't remember Zarkon having a son!"
"Well, no – he wasn't born yet. The whole reason the Emperor went crazy was because of exposure to pure quintessence. His wife, Empress Honerva, was pregnant when they entered the rift." Allura gasped, her hand flying to her mouth in shock. "It wasn't long after Altea was destroyed that she gave birth to Prince Lotor."
"So, when we defeat Zarkon, his replacement will be half Altean?" Keith stared at her, taking in the strange expression that seemed to be trying to suppress a flutter of hope. He hated to be the one to crush it.
"Prince Lotor is just as corrupted as his father. Trust me when I say that the best thing for the Universe is for that entire lineage to die out."
"But he's Altean!"
"No, he's Galra, he just happens to have some Altean in his blood. Prince Lotor is like me. He has one Galra parent and one non-Galra parent but was raised in Galran traditions and customs with the Galran language and value system. Except, where I learned the old ways of Daibazaal, Prince Lotor was brainwashed by the propaganda his father was blasting out." Keith watched her expression fall and felt slightly bad, but it had to be done. "He hunted down and eradicated the remaining Alteans, luring them out of hiding and slaughtering them. He's power hungry and vicious. Allura, he can't be trusted."
"You speak as if he's still alive." She said quietly, her voice an emotionless question that barely showed any influx or variation of tone.
"He is. Like I said, the Emperor wasn't the only one affected by the pure quintessence of the rift." She didn't react to his revelation, merely turning to face the window again.
This time, the silence stretched into what would be the start of the Castle's simulated day cycle and it was the sound of Coran's voice over the coms that broke the long established silence.
"Princess, Keith, where are you?"
"Exactly where we should be, far away from the Castle." Allura spoke into the com, her voice clear as a bell even with her face still displaying the warring emotions.
Shiro answered her; his voice clipped and annoyed "What? Why?"
"I must know if Zarkon is tracking me. Keith predicted my plan and offered to come along as backup."
"They're isolating the variable." Pidge elaborated.
"In English, please?" Lance interrupted and Keith could hear the Green Paladin groan from over the com, it made him smirk.
"In order to test a hypothesis -"
"I said English!"
"- UGHH! Never Mind!" Pidge grumbled. He could just picture it, they probably had their arms crossed, a pout on their face, and defiant slump to the way they most likely threw themselves back in their chair. He suppressed a snort.
"Pidge is right. If Zarkon finds you despite my absence, we will know with total certainty that I am not the one he is tracking." Allura finished and Shiro's very annoyed voice came over the com once again.
"Splitting up the group makes us far more vulnerable. Come back to the Castle immediately." He gave his command but the energy around Allura shifted. Keith watched as she hardened, sitting up straighter in her seat and squaring her shoulders.
"I'm sorry Shiro, I cannot do that."
"If the Emperor does find us, I can pilot us to safety. We're in wide-open space with plenty of room to maneuver. Plus, we'd be able to out run him; Pidge added that booster rocket. I have my bayard and blade with me, and I packed a staff for Allura."
"That thing's still on there?" Coran commented more to himself than anything.
"We need both of you back here now!" A loud alarm started blaring, effectively cutting Shiro off and they listened to the Paladins freaking out about a debris field.
"Coran, what's going on over there?" Allura pressed into the com, worry lacing her words. "Can you hear me? Coran?" The responding static answered for him.
"Do you want to turn around Princess?" He asked, hand moving to the controls once again.
"No. That would defeat the purpose. We'll wait here until we hear word." He nodded and resumed his silent staring, watching as the vast cosmos hung around them.
Several uncomfortable dobashes passed before Coran came back over the com again, having moved the Castle away from the interference. He informed them that the planet they'd been heading for, Taujeer, was shedding its outermost layer and that the Paladins were helping the Taujeerians flee to safety before the deadly acid destroys everything. Keith winced, he was kinda glad they didn't have to deal with that – it sounded pretty awful. Then again, floating around in silence with Princess Allura was no picnic. Between the awkward silences and the sideways glances, he was not exactly relaxed. Yeah, maybe he'd prefer that acid planet instead. At least then he'd be with Red.
They let the time pass in even more silence, the dobashes going by agonizingly slow. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he spoke up. "Still no sign of Emperor Zarkon." He said because honestly, Keith couldn't think of a single thing to say, and he count take the silence anymore.
"Well, I'm glad I don't have to wait out here alone." She turned from the window and stared him in the eyes and stars, was her gaze ever intense. If felt like her eyes were boring into his very soul. Keith swallowed uncomfortably. "You understand, I could never live with myself if Zarkon was finding us because of me. I must know. We face such a dire threat from the Galra … Empire." She corrected.
"Well, sure, no doubt about that. But -" He took a breath, and centred himself before continuing. "I know all too well what the Empire is capable of. But, what happens if Emperor Zarkon does come after us?"
"You said you could pilot us to safety, right?"
"Sure, but I mean, after that. Can we even go back to the group?" He watched the full weight of their situation fly across her face as she fully realized the implications. "And if we don't, who would pilot the Castle or create wormholes?"
"Well, what about you? Without you, the team cannot form Voltron."
"I guess we didn't think this through very well, huh?"
Allura gave a small chuckle. "No, I suppose we didn't." She stared at him for waaaay too long, seeming to build the courage to ask something. "What would your organization do in a situation like this?"
What? Was she seriously asking what a Galra group would do? Asking Keith, a Galra, for advice? She wasn't going to like it! "Well, for starters we wouldn't be in this situation because we don't have a dynamic like Voltron. But, hypothetically, the two of us would never return. We would find a way-station with an Operative on it, hand over our blades to be placed in the main base's resting wall, and try to cause as much damage to the Empire as possible on our way out."
She stared back at him in shock, opening and closing her mouth several times without being able to form a response. "Obviously that isn't an option for us, you know, since Red needs her Paladin and the Castle needs you." Keith quickly concluded.
"I guess I hadn't really thought about how much your organization has sacrificed. You've been through quite a lot with this war." Something changed in that moment. They'd been on the path to recovering their relationship, but in this exact moment he could feel the shift. "I'm sorry I've been speaking about the Galra as a whole. I hadn't realized until just now how much of a struggle it must be to separate yourselves from the Empire." He nodded along, finally she understood. "What was it like meeting your other parentage for the first time?"
"Awkward." He snorted. "Human culture is a lot closer to Altean than Galra. They're so chatty, and touchy, and emotional! It was really hard to adjust."
"Tell me some stories! What is Earth like?" He quirked a brow at her incredibly random question. "We have an abundance of time and you are the one Paladin I know the least about. I'm familiar enough with the Galra to know we are not close enough for you to open up to me about this Blade of Marmora or your family, but perhaps you will share about Earth?" He shrugged. She was right, there was no way he'd talk about the Blades, but Earth? Sure, why not.
"Uh, I mostly lived in a desert, but Lance says it's nice where he's from." Okay, so Keith sucked at this.
"What about the academy you attended?"
He shrugged. "It was alright. I got kicked out."
"What? Why? What happened?" She paused and narrowed her eyes before smirking. "What did you do?" Keith abruptly exploded into a fit of laughter.
"Why does everyone always assume I did something?"
"Because you're hot-headed, rash, and aggressive. Common traits amongst the Galra but not well received by other species … um, no offense."
He shrugged. "None taken."
"So, tell me about the Human's space programs."
Keith let out a bark of laughter at that one. "What space programs?" He condescendingly replied. "They can't even leave their own system. Not Galaxy - SYSTEM!"
"Oh dear!"
"Yup!"
They laughed and mused for several more dobashes about Earth and the Humans. Keith talked about Nadia and Ina, the two closest friends he'd made. He talked about James and how annoying he was. He talked about Commander Iverson, Nurse Rob, Mrs. Holt, Adam, and a whole slew of others. But the one person he didn't mention was his dad. Family is sacred to Galra and he wasn't going to open up about his relationship with his father to Allura. They weren't there yet.
He had just finished telling her all about the time he'd gotten drunk with Nadia and ran up and down the halls of the Garrison's residence to play a prank. They'd put something called a bouillon cube in each of the shower heads and replaced the Garrison provided soap bars with blocks of white chocolate. It had been hilarious until he forgot about it the next morning and decided to cure his hangover with a shower. Luckily Keith had sensitive skin and used his own products, but he smelled like beef soup for three whole quintants after that.
Allura's laughter was interrupted by Coran's voice cracking through the coms. "Keith, Allura, are you there?"
"We're here, Coran. What is it?" Allura immediately replied.
"Zarkon is definitely not tracking us through you!"
"How do you know?" She pressed.
"Because you're out there, and a Galra fleet just showed up here! We need you now!"
"We're on our way!" Keith called and hit the button for the booster Pidge had added to the pod. Which promptly blew them up.
The two occupants were ejected from the pod, flung in opposite directions before the entire thing exploded into nothing more than shrapnel. His Paladin armour had a jet pack built in and Keith activated it to re connect with Allura.
"Allura!" He shouted through their suit's coms. "Grab my hand!" They reached for each other, arms stretch as far as they could go and he was able to grab hold of the tips of her fingers, pulling her in and stabilizing them. "Princess, are you okay?"
"I believe so. Is your radio still working? All I get is static."
"Coran? Can you hear me?" He tested and when he was met with nothing but static he replied with a dejected "Same."
"Now, what? This was a terrible mistake! Shiro was right, we never should have left them."
Keith closed his eyes and focused. He'd felt Red before ever becoming a Paladin, and from further away to boot. He could do this; he could call his Lion and get them to their team. The others were counting on him. He focused, and focused, and focused until he felt the familiar tingle of Red's flames. He could smell her smoke and was enveloped by her heat. It didn't take long before a loud roar sounded in his mind and he opened his eyes to see the most beautiful sight in the universe as Red approached. She purred her appreciation and he laughed whole-heartedly, her giant jaws clamping shut around them.
"I can't believe you were able to connect to the Red Lion from this distance!" Allura amazed from beside the pilot's seat. With Red's speed they caught up to the others in no time.
Red took out the Cruiser's ion cannon with her jaw blade, causing it to crash into the acid below and alerting both Voltron, and the Empire fleet, to the Red Lion's presence.
"WOO HOO!"
"Yeah."
"Alright!"
He heard the collective cheering over the lion's coms. Followed by Shiro's "Good to have you back Keith!"
"Good to be back!" He smiled.
"Is the Princess with you?" Lance immediately asked. And Keith answered with a quick and reassuring 'yes'. "Like 'with you' with you or …" he trailed off and Keith rolled his eyes.
"Uh, Keith? Little help?" Hunk interrupted, pulling them all back to the current situation.
"On my way, buddy!"
Voltron made quick work of the cruiser, saved the Taujeerians, and returned to the Castle in record time. After Red landed in her hangar, Keith and Allura made their way to the bridge where they knew everyone would be waiting. He had not been looking forward to this. But hey, at least he was right. Black was definitely how Emperor Zarkon was tracking them.
But as Allura explained, this was unprecedented. Two Paladins battling for control of the same lion had never happened before. Shiro was going to have to re forge his bond with Black, and quickly.
"Well, while you're working on that. The rest of us need to find some new Teludav lens-stones, otherwise we wont be able to travel via wormhole." Coran pointed out.
"Is that something we have to mail order?" Hunk unhelpfully wondered and Keith rolled his eyes. This was 10,000 deca-phoeb old technology that could only be powered by an extinct race. Where they could find them wasn't the question, it was more like if they could find them.
"Does anyone even make those anymore?" He asked.
Allura answered, the adrenaline from their fight wearing off and leaving her drained. "I don't know. Only a few Alteans could use a Teludav. They may not exist anymore."
"I think I may know where we can get some." Coran quickly piped up, twirling the edge of his moustache. He raced over the main console and pulled up some nearby coordinates, as well as some old photos. A substantially younger Coran was displayed on the screen surrounded by a group of shady looking Unilu merchants.
"Coran! You're not suggesting going to one of those filthy swap moons! The last time you went, the Space Pirates took you for everything you had. Father was not pleased." Allura scolded and Keith tried to figure out what was at those coordinates. He pulled out his Blade data pad and cross-referenced them in his records while Lance asked about Pirates and Coran explained the less than clean-cut dealings of the Unilu.
"Well, while Coran's picking up his lenses, I'll take you shopping for something sparkly." Lance cut in, moving swiftly to stand by the Princess' side.
An enraged Coran separated them and raised his voice in a way Keith hadn't heard since they lost Allura to the Emperor. "THIS ISN'T SHOPPING!" He yelled in Lance's face. "You're not wandering around saying 'ooo, what a lovely pink hat, this is so becoming.' NO! I cant allow Allura to get anywhere near those filthy, low-balling Unilu hoodlums."
"Hoodlums?" Pidge snorted in the back corner and Keith suppressed the snicker at the words only he had been able to hear.
"But I'd love something sparkly!" Allura pleaded.
"Allura, you're the only one who can operate the Castle and you need to be resting after all you've been through. Now, let's ready a pod for our mission. You'll all need disguises!"
Keith had been waiting to say anything, he wanted to see their faces when they arrived, but there was NO WAY IN HELL he was walking around the mall in some stupid disguise. So he pulled up the information from his data pad and informed the group of the change. "Coran, it's been 10,000 deca-phoebs. The swap moon isn't a black market location any more, a nice cushy mall. With a fountain, and a food court. As long as you and Allura disguise your Altean-ness, you'll be fine."
"Well that settles it! Allura, you're coming with me. One of you can take Coran." Ahh, some things never change. Keith thought as he rolled his eyes at Lance.
"Uh, we can't take our lions genius!" Keith replied to the absolute moron. "It may be a fancy modern mall instead of a nasty swap moon, but it's a mall that's under Empire control. We still have to be careful."
"Then Allura is definitely staying on the Castle!" Coran shot back and Allura groaned in defeat. The group disbanded to head for the primary hangar and prepare one of the pods for departure.
"Coran, we can't show up in an ALTEAN pod. Those don't exist anymore. Let me call the closest Blade base and see if we can get one of our pods."
"Excellent suggestion, Keith!" He smiled and nodded at Shiro before falling back from the group to place the call in private.