Phew, what a chapter! This was a doozy to write, and I loved every second of it! Also, happy new year! I'm pleased to announce that I have more fics planned in this, the new year- one that I should hopefully be starting soon that is a bit of a departure for me since it's going to be canon-based as opposed to an AU. It'll focus on Allura and Keith, and also eldritch space terrors mixed with a bit of Narti backstory without (tragically) actually having Narti in it (don't want to get anyone's hopes up, lol). So hopefully that will be fun! I mean. It definitely won't be fun for Allura and Keith, but you know. Hopefully it'll be fun for us.

Anyways, thanks for sticking with me for (nearly) a full year! Here's to seeing y'all again soon!

cosmic dust

chapter twenty nine

black paladin

Once they all split up to their respective tasks, she and Matt made haste to the med bay, only to find it empty. Just as Coran said, all power was off, and there was no sign of Shiro.

Matt took one look at the empty med bay and grimaced. "Yeah, that's not good."

"Quite." Allura agreed.

Scanning the med bay for any sign of where he might have gone, Allura frowned. The situation was far from ideal, and the occasional rocking of the Castle caused by laser fire was not helping her nerves. Not only did they have the threat from the Galra to deal with, but they also had a brainwashed soldier on the loose- one that they could not afford to let escape.

"Where do you think he went?" Matt asked.

"I cannot say." Allura shook her head. "I doubt he knows the layout well enough to know his way around. I would suggest splitting up to find him, but..."

"Yeah, that's probably not a good idea." Matt agreed.

Allura nodded. Disabled arm or not, their odds were better if they stuck together. Heaving a sigh, she wished that at least the emergency power was still on. Her eyes had adjusted to the dark halls, but she wouldn't be surprised if Shiro's were better adapted. He had been living amongst the Galra, after all, such a modification was well within the range of expectations.

At least the paladins had helmets equipped with night vision, and Coran had the huge window of the Castle to provide them with some natural light. She and Matt, on the other hand, were entirely on their own.

"He may be trying to find the bridge." Allura stated. "We should head back to where Coran and Hunk are."

"He might also be trying to get to the hangar." Matt pointed out.

She frowned at that. It was a good point, but also one that bothered her. She was certain that Thace would have departed with Keith and Lance by now, so there was nothing to worry about there, but...

She watched as the same thought struck Matt in the exact moment it struck her. His face drained of color, grip on his staff growing tight. "Pidge!"

"I'll contact her." Allura quickly assured him. "Even without power, so long as she has her helmet with her, I should be able to remain in contact with her and the other paladins."

Matt breathed a little easier at that. Giving him a weak smile, she lightly touched one of her earrings. She would have to thank her father for setting them so that they coordinated with the paladin's coms. They hadn't done that before- she had to wonder if he perhaps knew what was coming when he had chosen to put her and Coran to sleep.

"Pidge?" Allura said. "Pidge, can you come in?"

There was a slight pause, before Pidge's voice came in on the other side of the line. To her great relief, she sounded fine. "Pidge here. What's up, princess?"

"Trouble." Allura stated. "Shiro is loose somewhere on the Castle."

She heard Pidge suck in a breath. "Is he-?"

Still brainwashed, she likely wanted to ask. "Very likely. Where are you?"

"I'm heading from the hangars back to the bridge." Pidge informed her. "Where are you?"

"In the med bay, with your brother." Allura told her. "Do you think you could join us? We could use a little help tracking him down."

"Copy that." Pidge said. "I haven't seen him, but if I run into him before I run into you, believe me, I'll let you know."

"Do." Allura said.

She didn't want to be rude- she was certain that Pidge was more than capable of holding her own, if she had been raiding Galra ships for nearly a deca-phoeb, but if even Keith had struggled to fight Shiro, she failed to see how Pidge could beat him on her own. Granted, he had been likely held back by his own bond to the man, but who was to say that the same bond wouldn't hold Pidge back just the same?

From the way she and Matt spoke of Shiro, it was more than obvious that they had known him- possibly even were close. It didn't surprise her in the least- he had been the pilot of the Kerberos mission, the one Matt had been on. Space travel was a far more daunting process for humans than it was for Alteans, so knowing who you were going into space with was likely considered even wiser in their case than it was amongst her own people.

Frankly, she didn't care for the idea of forcing any of the paladins to fight him.

Exhaling, she looked over towards Matt. He gave her a nervous smile, squinting in the dark. She could only hope that Lance and the others would be successful in their mission to deactivate the weapon, so that they could restore power to the Castle before the situation got much worse.

Somehow, she feared that it would.

Drawing in a long breath, Pidge squared her shoulders. She was fine. She was currently alone on a dark ship that had a brainwashed Shiro running around on it somewhere, all while they were under attack by the Galra Empire, but she was fine. She could handle this. No big deal.

All she had to do was meet up with Matt and Allura. She would be fine. She wasn't scared.

Okay, maybe she was a little scared. Fifteen... no, twenty percent scared. That was it. That was a perfectly normal ratio of fright given the circumstances.

She had summoned her bayard pretty much as soon as Allura had informed her that the med bay had lost power, gripping the weapon tight in her hands. She didn't want to have to use it on Shiro, but better safe than sorry. She didn't know how merciful he'd be if they ran into each other.

From the sound of it? Not very.

Ugh. This would totally be easier to deal with if this didn't all feel like the set up of a horror movie. She just hoped she didn't have first victim painted all over her.

Let's see- alone, isolated from everyone else, and tiny. Crap.

Still, she forced herself to remain calm. Her first instinct was to hurry, but she fought against it, instead making her way slowly up to the med bay. Once she made it to the elevator shaft, she'd be fine. She could jetpack the rest of the way up.

Creeping down the halls, she kept her steps quiet. Bayard held tight in her hands, she peeked out from around the corner. Once she got past this next bend, it would be a straight shot to the elevator shaft, and she'd be home free. Sure, she'd still have to go with Matt and Allura to actually track Shiro down, but there was a huge difference between dealing with him alone and having two other people to watch her back.

Good. Clear.

Racing towards the elevator shaft, she skidded to a halt in front of it. Using her bayard, she pried the doors open, shining the light installed in her armor's gauntlets upwards. Good. Looked like she could get through this way after all.

"Going somewhere?"

...crap.

Tensing, Pidge turned on her heel, holding her bayard defensively in front of her. She thought she knew what she expected to find when she did, but somehow, she was wrong.

Well, she wasn't wrong. It was Shiro. Completely brainwashed, but definitely still Shiro. She just hadn't been prepared for how not-Shiro he was at the same time.

What she remembered of him best was his warm smile, the one that filled her with confidence. This was the man who was going to fly her brother and father to Kerberos and back. The man who was going to make history with them. A man she could trust.

This wasn't that Shiro. This was the Champion.

She'd been warned about the cyborg arm, currently hanging limply by his side. Knowing that it didn't currently have a power source didn't make her feel any more confident. She was definitely going to need some backup.

"Allura," Pidge began, activating her coms, "-slight problem."

That was all she got out before Shiro attacked.

Rolling to avoid the blow, she fought the urge to yelp. Scrambling to her feet, Shiro wasted no time in pursuit- one thing was clear, he's not letting her get back to the elevator shaft that easy. She can't figure out if he's been following her all this time or not, but somehow, she wouldn't be too surprised.

This was absolutely not the Shiro she knew.

Using her jetpack to help propel herself down the hallway faster, Pidge rounded the corner. Bracing herself, she gripped her bayard, ready for Shiro to follow behind- it took a second, but he did. Once he's in range, she fired her bayard, and while she has confidence in her aim, Shiro is just faster.

He dodged it. Dodged it and grabbed it. Left hand grasping the cord tight, the second she contemplates sending an electric shock down it is the same second he used it to pull her towards him. This time she did yelp, unable to keep it in, just barely managing to collect her thoughts mid-panic enough to banish her bayard.

She barely scrambled out of the way of his next blow in time. It nicked her helmet instead- and she could hear something sparking inside of it that definitely wasn't supposed to be doing that. Yanking it off, she swore audibly underneath her breath, realizing the extent of the damage and the fact that it had probably just protected her skull from being similarly broken.

That's all the time Shiro gave her, because he's on her again in the next instant.

Dodging is about all she can do. He's faster than her bayard, but she summoned it again anyways. She doubted it'd be much use in close quarters combat, but it was better to have something on hand to actually defend herself with than try to rely on her fists. She was pretty sure that the last time they met, Shiro wasn't anywhere near this fast or this strong, so it was safe to bet that he'd undergone enhancements beyond just that of his arm.

She really, really wished it was just the arm.

But Allura got her distress message. She had to believe that she and Matt were on their way. She just had to hold out until they got here.

"Pidge? Pidge, come in!"

Swearing underneath her breath, Allura grabbed her staff. She should have known something like this would happen. She didn't even have to guess to know that Pidge had likely been attacked, and even worse, she had no idea where she was. Heading to the med bay, presumably, but there was no shortage of ground to cover between the main hangar and the med bay- she could be anywhere.

"Allura?" Matt asked. "What's wrong? What happened to Pidge?"

"I am afraid Shiro has found her first." Allura told him. "I have been trying to get to her over the coms, but they seem to have gone dead."

Matt swallowed, very clearly trying not to panic. "Okay, that's... that's bad. Is there any way we can find her?"

Allura shook her head. "If the Castle was active, I could search for her biorhythm, but..."

"Actually," Allura cut herself off, "-I take that back. There might be a way."

Matt looked relieved to hear it, so she could only hope that she was correct. "Hunk? Hunk, do you hear me?"

"I hear you loud and clear, princess." Hunk responded. "Is something wrong? Because uh, no offense, but that sounds like your something is wrong voice."

"We need you to locate Pidge, and quickly." Allura told him. "Your armor should have a built in tracker that can locate your fellow paladins."

"Okay, uh... just give me a second to figure this out." Hunk trailed off, and she had to stop herself from shifting anxiously on her feet. Every tick that went by was a tick that Pidge was in danger. She could only hope that she could hold out for a short while longer.

"Okay, found it." Hunk said. "And Pidge. She's on the sixth level, pretty close to the elevators. She's uh, she's also moving around a lot. Did she...?"

"Encounter Shiro? I am afraid so." Allura confirmed, already on the move. Matt quickly fell into step behind her, likely only letting her take the lead because he had no idea where they were heading. "Matt and I will hurry there. You are to remain on standby with Coran until further notice."

"Got it."

"Did you find her?" Matt asked.

"Yes. Thankfully, she's close." Allura assured him. "We should be there in two doboshes."

Matt just nodded. She got the feeling that two doboshes was still far too long for his tastes, for which she could not blame him. Though she had never had any siblings of her own, she still understood the desire to protect ones family- even if she no longer had any of her own to protect.

She tucked that thought away. She could not afford to lose focus, not now. There were far more pressing matters to attend to than a ten thousand year old sense of loss.

Leading the way, Allura used the Castle's emergency access stairs to descend to the sixth level. It wasn't far, just about two levels down from where they were, but she still found herself taking the stairs four at a time, and she was quite certain Matt would be doing the same were he capable- instead he merely took them two at a time. Humans and Alteans might look alike, but they most certainly did not share the same physical limits.

She was just grateful she was in her pressure suit, and not her gown. It wasn't impossible to fight in, but it was far from convenient.

They heard the sounds of the clash before they actually saw it- namely, the sound of Pidge's cry. That was all Matt needed to overtake her, adrenaline likely kicking in to give him a burst of speed that he would not be capable of otherwise. Not one to slack, she was hot on his heels, her borrowed staff tight in her grip.

Matt literally burst into the fray, and not a moment too soon, from the look of things. Any reservations he might have about fighting Shiro were put on hold, as he slammed the butt of his staff into his side, with enough force to get him to back away from the cornered, but hardly defeated, Pidge.

She allowed herself a momentary breath of relief at the sight of the green paladin. She looked a bit bruised, but it was nothing a few doboshes in a healing pod wouldn't fix. She also looked just as relieved to see them as she was to see her.

"Are you alright?" Allura inquired, just to be sure.

"Yeah, fine." Pidge said, almost seeming to brush her off, but more likely just trying to get back into the swing of battle as quickly as she could. "Thanks."

Allura spared a moment to smile, before she turned towards Shiro. It was her first time seeing him conscious, and if she didn't already know that he was simply being brainwashed, she never would have guessed it. She could find no hint of any internal struggle, nor of recognition, even when faced with two people he very much should recognize. She hadn't had much time to read over the data Ulaz had brought them before the Castle lost power, but what she had read was disturbing.

She wished she could say that she was confident she could fix it, but she was uncertain. The basis of his manipulation did appear to be some form of Altean alchemy, but as for the rest... Haggar was clearly toying with powers that she had never even heard of, much less knew anything about. Knowing that she was Altean only made her skin crawl.

Knowing that it was possible that she might actually be Honerva gave her a clue as to what those powers might be- but that did nothing to reassure her, only fill her with more dread. She had heard the stories from her father, and from Blaytz- the other paladins, Zarkon included, had always been loathe to talk about the creature that had come from the other side of the rift.

And from what she had heard, she could not blame them.

"So," Pidge began, drawing in a long breath, perhaps to steel herself, "-got any ideas how to take him down?"

"Hit him hard enough that he passes out?" Allura suggested.

Pidge just stared at her, something in her eyes clearly expressing that she had expected a better plan. She was afraid that she simply didn't have one. She had been trained in combat, yes, but never against a brainwashed opponent who likely had completely different pressure points than what she was used to. She couldn't even imagine a scenario in which she would have needed that before now.

"You know what," Pidge said finally, "-that works."

So the green paladin had sent a distress call.

Easily deflecting the attack of what must have been the green paladin's brother- the other escaped prisoner, the one who had been picked up by the rebellion, the Champion wasted no time in retaliating. Having only one functional arm put him at a disadvantage, but he was still stronger than either of the two humans.

Stronger than any human, really, thanks to Haggar.

It was the Altean princess that was the problem. Seeing her step onto the battlefield took him by surprise- he had been too focused on the princess part. He was quick to recall that she too, was a trained combatant- and with the natural strength that Alteans were gifted with, would doubtlessly be a fierce challenger.

But he had expected the red paladin to be as such, and the only thing he had done was disappoint him. That he had lost to him in spite of that was his ultimate failing.

He had no intention of losing again. He would crush the green paladin and her brother, and capture the Altean princess, for the glory of the Galra Empire.

The former prisoner was slightly more proficient at combat than he'd anticipated. Not enough to cause him any concern, but at least enough to acknowledge. Someone must have taught him after he'd escaped, because his records indicated that he'd been sent to a work camp shortly after arrival, even though he had originally been bound for the arena. The records didn't specify why, and he supposed it didn't really matter.

Something stung.

He tried to recall the prisoner's name- it had been on the records, they all had names on records, even if they were never used. He couldn't, but he guessed that didn't matter either. He could recall his prisoner number- 117-9874- so that was enough.

He didn't have long to dwell on it before the Altean princess herself joined the fray, doing so with an admittedly impressive battle cry. He had to jump out of the way of her assault, staff striking down without mercy. Were the castle-ship made of weaker material, it likely would have crumpled under the force of her blow. In spite of himself, he felt himself grin- now here was the challenge that he had been seeking. It would seem that the Altean princess would not disappoint him where the red paladin had.

The green paladin too, recovered and rejoined the battle. Three against one. Not the worst odds he'd faced, but under the circumstances, not the best either. He had tried to restore power to his arm, but hadn't managed to do so- whatever Ulaz had done to it had completely knocked the systems dead. Without something to jumpstart it, it would remain that way.

It helped that the three were a mess. Left alone, the green paladin and her brother could have worked well together, but they lacked any coordination with the Altean princess. If they were smart, they would have left the fighting to her, but instead they kept throwing themselves into the fray.

The staff strikes of the green paladin's brother were easily deflected by his left arm- not a trick he would try with the princess, not unless he wanted to have two disabled arms instead of merely one. What the green paladin lacked in strength, she made up for in mobility- he doubted she would have been able to last against him for as long as she had otherwise. Haggar had made him fast, but she was slight, and that brought with it a natural quickness that he simply couldn't obtain.

But just like the red paladin, they almost didn't seem to want to fight.

Aside from his initial strike, none of the rebel's strikes felt real. It was absurd to think that he was holding back when it was clear that he was much stronger than him, but he was. He'd learned to recognize as much in the arena.

It wasn't until he opened his mouth that he understood why.

"Shiro," the rebel spoke slowly, "-we don't need to do this."

Shiro. Again with that name. Did they have him mistaken for someone else?

No. Both the red paladin and this rebel- they were too resolute for it to be a mistake. There was a spike of sharp pain in his head at the thought, enough to render him sloppy. It lasted for just a second, but a second was long enough for the Altean princess to take advantage of, slamming the butt of her staff right into the pit of his stomach with the kind of force that would have broken bone had it not been for Haggar's enhancements.

All it did now was make him stumble.

He quickly retaliated, but the princess' choice of weapon combined with her physical strength made her a difficult opponent. If his arm still worked, his sword would have made short work of her- he had to quickly remind himself that Haggar desired her alive, not dead.

"Shiro-"

He didn't let the rebel finish. He'd let down his guard. Dropping into it, he struck without mercy. The princess he needed alive- the paladin and her brother he did not.

"Matt!"

He swore he saw his life flash before his eyes. Shiro's strike had been aimed to kill. If Pidge hadn't stepped in, he'd probably be dead already.

As it was, Shiro staggered back, the blade of Pidge's bayard sunk into his wrist. It was shallow, but good enough to stick- and the moment she realized it had struck, she didn't even hesitate to unload what had to be enough volts of electricity to cause a man of Shiro's size to black out.

He didn't though- he howled in pain, sure, but he remained standing. The sight was enough to make them all freeze- judging from Pidge's expression, she'd been sure that should have been enough wattage to knock him out cold.

He smirked.

Shiro smirked.

It wasn't like Shiro never smirked. He could be pretty humble, but there were times when even he would get a little boastful. Somehow, such moments only managed to make him more likable, not less, something that was only possible because he was Takashi Shirogane, the Galaxy Garrison's star pilot and all around Golden Boy.

Now his smirk just sent a chill down his spine.

Probably because it was accompanied by his right hand moving, when it definitely shouldn't be able to do that. Grabbing Pidge's bayard with it, he violently yanked it out of his left wrist, ignoring the blood doing so caused him to shed- it was almost like he didn't even care.

"I guess I owe you my thanks, paladin." Shiro said. It was the first time he'd heard him speak, and already, Matt wished he'd just kept his mouth shut. "You fixed my arm."

The eyes were bad enough. But Shiro's voice, with that cold tone? He didn't know if he could take that.

Pidge, at least, recovered quickly enough to send her bayard away before it could be used against her, but in that gap, Shiro attacked. With a flash, a sword made of pure energy emitted from his right arm- a sword that would have struck true, if it hadn't been for Allura's quick thinking.

Stepping in, the princess blocked the blow with her staff, but the borrowed weapon couldn't hold underneath it. That didn't stop the princess, however- now left with two pieces of her staff, she immediately went on the counterattack, slamming one so hard into Shiro's jaw that he was nearly afraid she was going to break it.

All it did was cause him to stagger back.

"Not bad." Shiro admitted. "Less of a disappointment than your paladins, at least."

"I will take that as a compliment." Allura cooly observed. "But I will not have you speaking ill of my paladins."

Matt swallowed, clutching his staff harder. He could totally understand now why Keith had so much trouble fighting Shiro. It wasn't that he couldn't guess why before, but... knowing it and understanding it were two completely different things. He thought the fact that he'd already had an encounter with the Champion would have helped.

It didn't.

He'd looked up to Shiro. Admired him. He owed him his life.

Now he had to fight him. Some Shiro that wasn't quite Shiro. A Shiro that didn't even react to his own name. He didn't know if he could do this.

But he had to. He had to, because Keith had likely thought the exact same thing. And if Keith, his brother, had managed to swallow that all back to fight him, then so could he. Keith had gotten him here- now it was their job to make sure he stayed here.

For someone who always had his little sister's back, that was the least he could do.

The electrocution had been unexpected, and if he was being honest, immensely painful. Pain was not something he was conditioned to feel- another improvement, thanks to Haggar, but the shock had been enough to overpower that. She must have intended to knock him out- since it was obvious that not even the princess was in this battle to kill.

It didn't. All it had done was give him exactly the jump he needed. Now it was still three against one, but had the advantage of having his arm back online.

He was still bleeding from the entry wound the green paladin's weapon had left in his wrist, but that could be dealt with after he dealt with these three. The heat from his sword would be enough to cauterize it. He wouldn't get a chance before then- to her credit, the princess was relentless.

Relentless, but not trying to kill him.

Did they think they could question him? He wanted to laugh at that. He would never betray the Galra Empire. He had sworn his loyalty to Emperor Zarkon, and nothing could shake that.

Not even the strange name they kept calling him. Not even the way the name Matt had briefly made his head sting, or the way the horror in his eyes when he realized that he was about to die had only compounded the pain.

All of these were things he could report to Haggar later. Flaws she could fix.

There was a low rumble in the back of his thoughts at that. A rumble, not a sting- and for a split second, it was enough to distract him. Long enough for the rebel- Matt- to shake off his stupor and go on the offensive. Readying his sword, he prepared to counterattack- only to be thrown off his feet, blasted down the hallway by a powerful burst of energy that seemed to come out of nowhere.

It had been enough to knock him completely off his feet. Groaning, he looked up, catching a flash of white and yellow- the yellow paladin, then.

"Hunk!" The green paladin shouted in surprise. "You just-!"

"I didn't know it would hit!" The yellow paladin- Hunk- hurriedly said, his eyes wide in panic.

He scoffed. The princess had sought out paladins, warriors, but somehow, what she had come up with were mere children. No wonder they were all afraid to land a killing blow.

Still, that attack had done some damage. His bruised ribs had healed by the time he had come to, but they had cracked again, worse this time, under the force of the blast. The fact that he'd taken such a hit by pure accident infuriated him.

The prospect of being defeated by children who were afraid to kill was even more humiliating than being defeated by a halfbreed whose heart wasn't even in the fight. The Galra Empire had no need for those who were not strong- and it had been his strength that had gotten him this far. If he were to fail here...

He grimaced. If he were to fail here, Haggar would likely return him to the gladiator arena. Strip him of his title, his rank. All things he had worked so hard to gain.

Staggering to his feet, he pressed a hand against his ribs. The addition of an extra paladin changed nothing. Now that he had seen the damage his weapon could do, he would be hesitant to fire it again.

His arm hummed. If that was how they were going to do it, he saw no reason to hold back either. It wasn't as if Haggar needed the Castle intact.

That was when he heard it. The sound- the roar- shook him to his very core. The blast that he was about to fire sputtered and died, for a second, horror at what he was about to do taking place of cold determination. What had he-?

"The black lion," he heard the princess whisper underneath her breath, "-it woke up."

The black lion. Emperor Zarkon's lion. The one that he had been lead to believe had been destroyed ten thousand years ago. It was here.

He felt himself smirk. Change of plans.

If he could return the black lion to its true paladin, his mistakes would be forgiven, and his rank would be secured. The Altean princess and her fledging paladins would never even stand a chance.

"The black lion," the words tumbled out of her mouth in disbelief before she could stop them, "-it woke up."

Impossible. Yes, it was true that they now had all five lions, the prerequisite to wake the black lion, but there was no paladin. Without a paladin, the black lion could not wake. And yet, it had. Not only that, but it had called to someone- she had felt as much in her bones. As much as she wished that meant it had been calling to her, she knew that was not true.

It was only when Shiro bolted, that it sunk into her.

"Wha-!" Pidge squeaked. "He's getting away!"

Snapping to attention, Allura momentarily put aside her thoughts. She had a feeling she knew where he was headed, but just in case she was wrong...

"Pidge, Matt, come with me!" Allura shouted. "Hunk, return to the bridge."

"But-!" Hunk protested.

"Please," Allura pleaded, "-do not leave Coran alone."

He was the closest thing to family she had left, and at his age, he lacked the strength to properly defend himself. An Altean's strength began to wane late in life, and for some it was worse- unfortunately, one of thosewas Coran.

Hunk swallowed, seeming to understand. He nodded, and though it seemed he was loathe to leave them, he did so, heading back in the direction of the bridge. Given the results, she was not angry at him for leaving his post, but the faster he returned to it, the more reassured she would feel.

"Come," Allura turned on her heel, knowing that they could not waste any further time, "-let us go."

Shiro had already managed to get a lead on them. Thankfully, she had anticipated this- it was why she had asked Ulaz to stand watch in front of the black lion's hangar. Leaving someone that she was not certain if she fully trusted yet in charge of a task so important was a gamble, but it was either that, or leave the bridge of the ship defenseless.

"Where is he going?" Pidge yelled. "He's not trying to flee, is he?"

"No." Allura said, certain that he was not. "I think he's going for the black lion."

"The black lion?" Matt asked. "Why?"

"Because," Allura frowned, "-I think Shiro is its paladin."

The sheer urgency of the situation was likely the only thing preventing the siblings from freezing in their tracks right there. She understood. She knew how absurd the statement sounded. Why would the black lion choose someone whose mind wasn't even fully with them as its paladin? It made no sense.

And yet, it did. The timing of the black lion's roar... if Shiro had been allowed to fire that blast, even if they had all managed to get out of the way in time, it would have heavily damaged the Castle. From the way Matt and Hunk had described it, the cannon built into his arm was incredibly powerful, so she did not doubt that the damage would have been severe.

The black lion had stopped that.

Perhaps what the black lion sensed was not the current Shiro- not the Champion, but rather, the Shiro that was. The Shiro that should be.

And that gave her an idea. It was risky, yes. But it was a risk she was willing to take.

Now here was a surprise.

He didn't think the princess would be so stupid as to leave the black lion unguarded. He just didn't expect that guard to be Ulaz.

"So," he began, "-you are a traitor."

Ulaz did not flinch. He merely drew his blade, only looking momentarily bothered by the fact that his arm had its power restored.

He truly was grateful to the green paladin- grateful enough that he would grant her a quick death, painless. It was only for that reason- and not because when he thought about killing the green paladin, something deep inside him almost seemed to rebel. He assumed it was just his weakness shining through again- Haggar would be able to correct that.

"In order to be a traitor," Ulaz began, his tone impassive, "-I would have had to be true to my oath. I never was."

A bold admission. He powered up his arm in response, forming his sword. Though the shape of it was different, the blade Ulaz carried was the same type as the knife the red paladin had wielded, right down to the matching emblem on the hilt. Perhaps they had been working together- inside information would explain the ease with which the small crew of two had been able to raid so many Galra ships.

He lunged. His strike was true, but Ulaz was quick, deflecting it. Luxite was too strong a metal for his sword to slice through, so they simply clashed instead. His ribs throbbed, and his left wrist stung where he had burned the gash closed. He didn't doubt that the princess and her child-paladins were hot on his heels.

He would have to finish this quickly.

Once he did, he could claim the black lion for the glory of his Emperor. With its power, he could seize the rest of the Voltron lions, and Haggar could have both the Altean princess and the red paladin to do with as she pleased. It would be a great triumph.

"You're a fool to betray our Emperor." He told him. "Once he has the black lion, his retribution will be swift."

Ulaz did not look impressed. "Zarkon is not my Emperor. Nor is he yours, Shiro."

Shiro. This time, the name did cause him to flinch, if only just because Ulaz being the one to say it caught him so off guard. Was he this Shiro?

No, that wasn't possible. He was the Champion. He needn't be anything else.

The black lion roared again, and this time it filled his mind, shaking his very thoughts. He was-

-and then he was on the floor, Ulaz's blade pressed to his neck, leg pressed into him so as to render his right arm useless and his left pinned. But he did not go for the finishing blow. He almost seemed to be waiting- for what, he struggled to guess.

"Ulaz!"

Ah. The Altean princess, then. Narrowing his eyes, he adjusted his head, peering back at her. She appeared cross for the span of a second, before she seemed to realize that Ulaz was merely keeping him pinned, and not actually trying to kill him, at which point, she simply looked relieved.

He could not understand why.

"Princess Allura," Ulaz began, "-the black lion calls."

"It does." Allura agreed. "Do you have him secured?"

"Matt and I can sit on him if you need us to." The green paladin supplied. He grit his teeth- exactly how much humiliation did these child-paladins expect him to endure?

"I believe I can manage." Ulaz remarked, having the audacity to sound almost amused. "But thank you for your offer."

He watched as the Altean princess approached him, hovering above him for the span of a second before she crouched down. There was a certain determination in her gaze, bold and unrelenting that he couldn't help but admire. She may be the enemy, but-

-the low rumble that seemed to have taken root in the back of his mind viscerally disagreed with that sentiment. She was not the enemy.

Gritting his teeth, he glowered at the princess. "What do you intend to do to me?"

Brainwash him? He had been told of Alteans and their strange powers. There was a reason that their race had been wiped out- they were dangerous, foul. Manipulating his mind would be a simple trick for their witch-princess.

Allura merely frowned. She almost looked as if she were pitying him, and any admiration quickly turned to revulsion. He was a proud soldier of the Galra Empire, Haggar's own Champion- not someone to be pitied.

"Perhaps it will seem that way to you," Allura merely stated, "-but you do not belong here."

She said it so simply, as if she were not casually invalidating his entire existence. He opened his mouth to protest, but could not find the words. As if some part of him instinctively knew it was true.

Allura drew in a long breath, before looking away from him, and at those gathered. "I am going to attempt to link his mind to the black lion."

"Uh," the green paladin hesitated, "-isn't that dangerous?"

"Yes," Allura admitted, "-but it may very well be the key to undo Haggar's brainwashing."

He felt something in the pit of his stomach freeze. Him? Brainwashed? No. He was here by choice. Haggar had offered him this role, and he had accepted it, willingly.

But had he?

Something stung, only this time, it was as if his brain were on fire. He was only dimly aware that Allura had placed her hands on either side of his head, a faint blue glow just barely visible in his peripheral. The pain in his head spiked, growing in strength and fire, seeming to burn away all that he was, culminating-

-culminating in a roar. One so loud and clear that it broke apart the web of lies, the one that he had been ensnared by for too long.

No. He hadn't chosen this. It had been forced on him. At the same time she had granted him rank and status, Haggar had stripped him of his name and will- leaving behind only a shell in his place, one to be filled up in his absence by the one known as the Champion.

But he wasn't the Champion. He wasn't a loyal solider of the Galra Empire. He never had been.

He was Takashi Shirogane, of Earth. Pilot of the Kerberos mission, a lieutenant at the Galaxy Garrison.

And, he thought, finally understanding the roar the filled his head- the paladin of the black lion.