A/N: There we are! Lapis's special episode. Before we begin, there are special characters in this episode. Some of you may know most of the voice actors. It will go in alphabetical order. Adea will be voiced by Lindsay Jones (her voice will be similar to volumes 2-4), Atchiam will be voiced by Barbara Dunkelman, Krul will be voiced by Willem DaFoe, Luzria will be voiced by Kara Eberle, Pruknak will be voiced by Patrick Warburton, Sneren will be voiced by Mark Oliver, Vantiv will be portrayed by Jessica Nigri, Vezek will be voiced by Matthew Mercer, and Vrathrea will be voiced by Anna Hullum. Some of you may even have complaints about this chapter, but it's really hard coming up with an entirely new chapter, so please bear with me and enjoy.

Chapter 23: Spy for a Spy

At Kaecilius' cruiser, he and Omegus were told by Varek about his plan. He intended to expose not only Thace, but the entirety of the Blade of Marmora with a spy of his own. And upon doing so, their plan would be revealed as well. It wasn't according to their design, but, at least, they acknowledged it. Kaecilius was intrigued by his proposal. "A spy to infiltrate their headquarters, you say?" "Yes. They won't suspect one of them to be a traitor until it's too late." However, Omegus reminded Varek of his omniscience once again. "It is already done. They've begun to be aware of the traitor's presence. But it won't matter at the end. Whether this spy fails or not, I will rise again." Varek, then came up with a different plan. "While you do that, I have a promise to keep."

In the Violet Lion, Lapis was transporting Krolia, Kolivan, Antok, Azix, Ulaz, Caxas, and Jareth to the Blade of Marmora headquarters. As they got closer to the two black holes and solar flare barrier, they noticed it was closed. Lapis thought it best to be patient. "Well, looks like we might have to wait a little while." Kolivan thought differently from patience. "Not necessarily." Kolivan went to his wrist communicator before speaking into it. "Pruknak, activate the solar generator." A smooth and cool voice responded back to Kolivan in the process. "Solar generator activated, sir." Inside the solar flare, a part of the base opened up before a blue glow swirled around in the dark area, opening up a path inside. Lapis grew surprised to see that. "You have a solar generator?!" "There's a lot you don't know about the Blade of Marmora, Lapis." As they went in, Pruknak spoke again to Kolivan. "Shutting down generator in three, two, one." Then, the glow disappeared before the solar flare circled around again. When they got out, Lapis and company exited the Violet Lion as they saw a guard wearing traditional armor. That same guard noticed the Violet Lion and grew enamored by it. "So this is the Violet Lion of legend. Incredible..." Antok then spoke to the guard. "I'm sure it is, Pruknak. But right now, we have a message to deliver discreetly. The Grand Council must know about this." Pruknak grew shocked that a matter as important as having to summon the Grand Council would come so soon, but nonetheless, obliged to his duty. "Oh. Of course. Right this way." With that, they took the elevator and went down into the main hall as the Blades noticed them and Lapis walking into another elevator. As they walked, Kolivan spoke to Caxas and Jareth. "Caxas, I need you and Jareth to guard the elevator until our meeting with the council is over." The two nodded before they went on the left and right sides of the elevator as the first female Blade, who had short raven hair with silver eyes, spoke to her friends, one of which had a silver streak of hair amongst her purple hair in a ponytail and light blue irises while the other had long shaggy purple hair and pink irises. "You guys saw her, right?" "Yeah, Adea. It's actually, Lapis." "It's official, Atchiam. You definitely owe me 500 GAC." "Oh, real mature, Luzria." As they argued, Adea couldn't help but wonder why Lapis was summoned here. "Something's going on here, guys. For sure." Adea was on the right mark as a dark figure with purple eyes lurked in the shadows before vanishing, catching the notice of Adea who looked back to see the corner of the shadows and found nothing there before she grew suspicious.

In the main hall, Pruknak asked Kolivan before the council consisting of a doppelganger of Sendak, only sans robot eye, a woman with long and shaggy Raven hair and red irises, and another Galra with a scar over his left eye for the report. "What's the situation, sir?" "We've recently found out a spy could be in our midst as well." The female grew shocked to hear this. "A spy? In the Blade of Marmora? Didn't we take care of Xarnas already?" "I assure you, Vrathrea, this time, it has nothing to do with Xarnas. This spy could be sent from... Omegus himself." The council immediately gasped at this before the Sendak doppelganger rebuffed this theory. "Inconceivable. The Blade of Marmora has maintained its secrecy for 10,000 years. What makes you think a spy could've been planted in our organization?" Lapis spoke up with permission. "Uh, permission to speak, sir?" "Granted." "We recently obtained this knowledge from Ayame, a fellow Paladin of mine." The doppelganger grew skeptical of the name. "A word of a Voltron Paladin isn't nearly good enough." "She's not just a Paladin. She also goes by Xaira." That had the entire council gasping in utter shock as Vrathrea and the scarred Galra stated their disbelief. "Zarkon's daughter?!" "But how?" "I was as shocked as you guys when I found out, but she's on our side." The scarred Galra wasn't anywhere close to convinced. "And how can you be certain of this? How do you know she won't turn against us?" Vrathrea turned to him in disapproval. "Krul, please." "Because she's my friend. She'd never do that to us." "Can't you see she's playing you for fools?" Vrathrea placed her hand on his shoulder to calm his temper. "Sneren, enough. Lapis has proven herself worthy to be a fellow Blade, and the daughter of Zaltron. She wouldn't rely on her if she knew she was the enemy." Pruknak spoke up in defense next. "She's right. Kolivan told us of her time with the Paladins. Are you telling us you don't even believe your pupil?" Sneren only grunted in exasperation before turning to Lapis. "Very well. But how are you supposed to find the spy in question?" Kolivan turned to her before she answered to the council. "We'll have to gather evidence and figure out how long he's been among us." Sneren felt that by the time they've done it, 10,000 more years would've gone by. "But where can we even begin to search?" At this moment, Lapis had an idea come up. "You said it's maintained its secrecy for 10,000 years. For all we know, the spy could've been here for that long, too." Sneren grew doubtful of this. "If there was a spy in the Blade of Marmora for 10,000 years, we'd have known by now." Vrathrea glared at him again to remind him of Lapis' status. "But... if you believe you can locate him, I won't stand in your way. All those in favor of allowing a 24-hour search for the spy, say 'aye.'" As a response, Vrathrea, Krul, Kolivan, Azix, Krolia, Pruknak, and Lapis raised their hands while saying, "Aye". Then, Sneren sighed in defeat before he spoke. "It appears the motion is carried. Starting now, you have 24 hours to seek out this spy and apprehend him before the plan can be executed. Meeting adjourned." Lapis then bowed down to them in respect. "Thank you, your honor. I promise you won't regret it." "On one condition. You must realize that Nepotism will not save you." Lapis grew shocked that he'd think she's using nepotism to win them over. "What do you mean?" "You may be a daughter to Zaltron and a Voltron Paladin outside the Blade of Marmora, but you're in our territory, now. So, you will be treated like all the other students here." That caught Lapis' attention as her ears pricked up. "Wait, students? So, it's a school, now?" Kolivan explained further to Lapis. "How do you think we've taught the Blades the art of espionage and secrecy?" "Why can't we just tell them and do a search?" Sneren only sighed in disbelief at her candid ignorance before explaining. "Because, it would only cause distractions from the plan when it's not proven yet. Honestly, if this is supposed to be what represents a Paladin, I'm not impressed." Vrathrea didn't find it helpful and snapped at him. "Sneren!" Lapis was unfazed by his comment, however, and took that lesson to heart. "My apologies, sir. I still have a lot to learn." "Apparently. But if you're as worthy as your father believes you to be, then I don't think we'll have any problems." Then, he turned his eyes to Krolia before calling her out. "Krolia." "Yes, sir?" "You will be taking Lapis under your study." "Of course." Then, Lapis had trouble seeing how it's supposed to help her case as she turned to Sneren. "With all due respect, sir, I don't see how being placed in a class with a bunch of kids is going to help us find him." "Like I said, if Voltron can be piloted by amateurs, I highly doubt you'd have any trouble finding the spy." Lapis blinked her eyes in confusion, trying to figure out what it meant. "Is that supposed to be a compliment?" Krolia only took Lapis to the elevator and went down with her, Kolivan, Antok, Ulaz, and Azix. "Come on, Lapis. It's almost time to start, anyhow." As they went down, Vrathrea turned to Sneren. "How can you be so cold, Sneren? She's trying to help." "The last time anyone tried to help, our luxite was stolen and given to Zarkon's daughter." "She's nothing like Xarnas." Sneren took another look at her as she walked with her group. "I hope not."

Meanwhile, Lapis was walking with Krolia and the others before they went their separate ways. Kolivan was to re-examine the Blades' tests, Azix would be given a tour by Antok and Ulaz, and Caxas and Jareth will be doing a perimeter check around the quadrant. As they went about with their duties, Lapis looked to Krolia in confusion. "Why is Councilman Sneren so... drill sergeant-like?" "It's not his fault. After Xarnas betrayed us by giving Ayame the luxite blade as a gift... he wasn't the same." Then, Krolia and Lapis heard Luzria's voice. "There you are, teach! You never told us you'd be bringing Lapis into our class!" Lapis blinked her eyes at her words. "You know about me?" Then, Krolia spoke to her. "Allow me to introduce your classmates." She pointed to Adea first. "This is Adea." At her cue, she took Lapis' hand and shook it rapidly. "It's so great to meet you, Lapis!" After the rapid shaking, Lapis' hand started throbbing, but despite that, she tried to greet her back as gently as she could. "It's... great to meet you, too." Krolia continued on with the introductions to allow her hand to recover. "This one is Luzria." Luzria just looked at her strangely as Lapis tried to greet her. "Uh, hello. It's an honor for me to meet you." Luzria smiled and made a proud scoff before reluctantly shaking her other hand. "I'm sure it is." Krolia then went on to Atchiam. "And this one is Atchiam." Atchiam held her first out to Lapis, who stared at it in confusion. "Well? Don't leave me hangin'." Then, Lapis remembered what it meant before she got her fist out. "Oh. Right." Then, she and Atchiam bumped their fists against each other before Krolia spoke up. "Now, she's going to be in our class today, so I expect you to treat her right and get along." The three students immediately nodded to her. "Yes, ma'am." "Good. Then let's get to class. Remember, in alphabetical order." As Krolia walked first, Adea and Atchiam walked ahead of Lapis while Luzria walked behind her as she whispered. "Welcome to school." Lapis smiled at her words as she walked along.

At Zarkon's Command Center, Haggar was in her chambers when two Druids came to her. "Haggar." "What is it?" "We found further evidence of the spy within our fleet. This encrypted chip was in the outbound entanglement quantum chain." Haggar had an idea had to remedy this. "Put the chip back, and wait to see who retrieves it."

Meanwhile, Luzria, Adea, Atchiam, and Lapis stood in the training hall with Krolia as their instructor. She walked by the students, making sure they paid attention. "Now, there are certain rules one must abide by in order to avoid suspicion in espionage. Number one, for example, is to blend in with the other Galra soldiers. Even if it means resorting to unspeakable acts you wouldn't otherwise do. For example..." Krolia suddenly tripped Lapis, surprising the rest of the students before Luzria giggled as she complained. "Hey! I wasn't ready!" "Underhanded tactics. And another thing, keep your distance from other members until the situation calls for it. If they even begin to suspect that you're working against them, everything we've worked for will be all for nothing." Then, Krolia held her hand out to Lapis before she took it and got pulled up. "Which brings us to lesson number two."

Next, Krolia and her class were in the databanks. "You must not only be sufficient in combat, but also in data encryption. This is necessary to send a report to the Blade of Marmora on the inside and retrieve their next objective. Now, I'd like a volunteer to step up and demonstrate this." Luzria practically got giddy and raised her hand while jumping up and down. "Oh! I want to try!" Then, Krolia cleared her throat, urging Luzria to change her behavior before she tried again. "I'd like to volunteer for the job, Ms. Krolia." Then, Luzria sat down at a computer before she was handed an encryption chip by Krolia before she installed it in and typed up a report and sent it to Krolia, who'd picked up the message via gauntlet before opening up a screen and sent one to Luzria before she received it and smiled. "Got the message, ma'am." As the smiling Luzria walked up to her classmates, Krolia cleared her throat before pointing to a certain chip. "Aren't you forgetting something, Luzria?" At this, Luzria held her head down. "Oops. Sorry." "Sorry isn't going to cut it if you're trying not to get caught. Remember what I told you. If any detail changes, even a small chip's presence will ultimately lead to your capture, one way or another."

At Zarkon's command center, a soldier exited a room before Thace looked around and went in. He then removed the chip before placing it under his thumb, just as he heard a deep male voice. "So... you're a Blade of Marmora." Thace turned behind him to see a Galran figure in a black cloak with purple eyes glowing in the silhouette. "Vezek? What are you doing here?" "It's nothing personal. I was hired to retrieve you." "By who?" "I cannot tell you my client." Thace grew suspicious. He's just as mysterious to him as the Blade of Marmora is to the Galra Empire. And even if he does know about them and they don't, they never had this procedure. "And how am I supposed to trust you?" "You don't have to. But every job I take, I finish. Or would you rather deal with them?" "I'll take my chances." As if on cue, a Druid appeared and shot him with his magic towards a wall as he walked toward him. "Commander Thace, did you find what you were looking for?" Then, Vezek spoke to him. "Not so fast." As his eyes flared, he punched a purple lightning through him, causing him to groan in agony before disappearing and leaving his mask behind. Next, Vezek used superhuman speed to attack the drones and stood in the center before they immediately came apart. Then, Vezek walked toward Thace, who was confused. "Why are you after me?" "I can't let my job go to waste if you're dead. My client specifically wants you alive. However, he didn't specify you needed to be conscious." In an instant, his eyes flared before Thace suddenly fell to the floor and the both of them vanished from sight just as another Druid and Haggar arrived to see a mask and broken drones on the floor. "No!"

At the Blade of Marmora Headquarters, Lapis, Adea, Atchiam, and Luzria were in the same dorm room, remembering their lessons from Krolia. Adea was stunted by how intense she was today. "I can't believe how hardcore those lessons were today, guys. She's never this hard on us before." Luzria knew it was only a matter of time. "Well, I can't say I blame her. We've been taking her classes for about four decapheobes now. I guess this is her way of telling us to grow up." Lapis could agree with her, considering how giddy she was before. "Yeah. I believe it." Atchiam became surprised before she ooh'd at Lapis before Luzria grew offended. "What's that supposed to mean?" "Well, you were a bit giddy before Krolia corrected you to begin with." "Oh, and so what? That makes you better than me?" "What? No. I—" As things started heating up, Adea tried to break up the argument before it could get worse. "Uh, guys? Do you mind breaking it up before you—" Luzria just put Adea's hand away before speaking to her. "No! You really think you're special?! It doesn't matter if your father is a legend. You're just like any other student here!" "I know that! In case you haven't noticed, I didn't exactly come here to make friends, least of all, with you!" "Uh, guys?" Then, Atchiam pulled Adea back. "I'd stay out of this one." "Well, then, why are you even here?!" "I didn't ask to be placed in a stupid class! The only reason I came here is because a spy could be in the Blade of Marmora and I need to find him in 24 hours, or everything we've done for 10,000 years is going to be for nothing! But you're never going to know what that's like, because you're just a couple of kids and you've never been taken in captivity, you've never lost your mother, and you've obviously never known what it's like to be hated your whole life for everything our entire race has done!" That got Luzria and the others shocked as Lapis shed tears before wiping them away. "And you never will. So... just leave me alone." Then, Lapis went outside the dorm room as Adea called out for her. "Wait! Come back!" As she took off, Luzria held her head down, realizing she could relate. Contrary to Lapis' statement, she and her whole family had to deal with the whole universe's hatred of the Galra for 10,000 years since Zarkon annihilated Altea. Even if Lapis had been through worse than that, she had to admit she was a little off base to say they never knew what it was like to be hated their whole lives. Keeping them in mind, Luzria headed out of the dorm in a hurry while turning to Adea and Atchiam. "Hold down the fort until we get back." As Atchiam responded, Adea nodded."Uh, alright." As Luzria ran after Lapis, Adea felt bad for her. "I hope she's okay."

In a hallway, Lapis just leaned against a wall before an older female Galra with short raven hair and dark yellow irises within her yellow sclera walked by her before stopping. "Oh. You must be Lapis." Lapis only turned her head away from her. "So what? I'm just like any other student here. Didn't Sneren make that clear?" "Yes. He did." "So, why are you even talking to me?" "Because you are a student. And as a teacher, it's my job to make sure every student gets their issues worked out before they get worse. It is Krolia's duty as well. Although, I don't think she's done enough." "What? How can you say that?" "Don't get me wrong, she covers the basics just fine, but did she ever really talk to you? As a friend?" Far away, Luzria saw the whole thing go down, both of them unaware that she's watching. "If she really cared for you, Lapis, don't you think she could've checked on you to see what's wrong?" "Well, that's on me. I didn't want any help, because anyone who ever goes near me or even tries to be my friend... gets hurt. I'd never wish that on anyone. That's why I never wanted to be in class. I didn't ask to be a Voltron Paladin or a daughter of Zaltron. I just am. It wasn't my choice." Then, the stranger handed her a little slip with a symbol of the Galra Empire. "Well, speaking of choices, I'd like to see if you're interested in a certain... mission." "And what's that?" "Our intel recently found out that Thace has been discovered and held captive by the Galra Empire. We need your help in bringing him back. Do you accept?" Luzria gasped at this before Lapis considered it and found it suspicious. If he really was captured, why wasn't there an alarm? Then, Lapis looked up to her. "Who are you? I didn't get your name." "Oh, where are my manners? I'm Vantiv." Luzria found it suspicious and made sure she remembered the name. "Vantiv..." Then, Lapis spoke again to her. "And the council? What do they think about this?" "The council is the one that approved it for you. Pretty soon, they'll all know your pain. One way... or another." Lapis tried to ask one more question before she noticed Vantiv was already gone. Then, she looked back at the slip and grew more suspicious. "Hmm... there's something about this Vantiv woman I don't trust. Odds are, I might as well have found my spy. I might need help, but... should I get help?" Then, Luzria spoke up. "Of course you do." Lapis looked to see Luzria and grew nervous before she asked her. "Luzria! How much did you hear?" "I heard everything." "Then you know why I have to do this alone." As Lapis walked away, Luzria got in the way. "No." "Move out of the way." "There's no way you're doing this alone." Lapis tried pushing Luzria, but she wouldn't budge. "Move... out of... the way." "I... told you... no!" Then, Lapis was getting worked up to the last nerve before she finally moved her. "Move!" However, in the process, she also knocked Luzria to the floor, shocking the both of them before Lapis tried to apologize to her. "Luzria. I'm sorry. I... just let me do this for you." With that, Lapis walked away as Luzria looked to her. "Lapis." Then, she remembered who's given her that slip to begin with. "Wait. She said Vantiv..."

Not long after, Luzria walked back into the dorm to see Adea and Atchiam with a determined look on her face. "Luzria?" "What happened?" "I just found out who the spy is. The council has to know about this, and I need you guys to help. Come on!" The confused Adea blinked her eyes as Luzria blinked her eyes. "Okay?"

At Kaecilius' cruiser, Thace stirred from his sleep to see Varek smiling at him. "Commander Thace. A pleasure to make your acquaintance." "Varek." "I have some questions for you to answer. I expect to be answered truthfully. Where is the Blade of Marmora?" Thace widened his eyes from his knowledge of this as Varek smiled.

Out in space, Lapis was driving a craft from the Blade of Marmora towards a cruiser, still wondering if she had made the right choice. The last thing she wanted was to hurt her, but it was the only way to move on without any more losses. "I'm sorry, everyone. But this is what's best for everyone." As it neared the cruiser, it turned invisible as it landed before Lapis activated her mask and put a hood over her head.

Meanwhile, the council, along with Vrathrea and Kolivan grew shocked to hear this, Sneren most of all. "Commander Thace has been discovered?" "Lapis is doing what?" "We didn't approve of this!" "That's exactly what I thought you'd say." Krul was stuck on the identity of who talked with her. "And you said her name was Vantiv?" "Yeah. I know every inch of this place. The teachers, the rooms, everything. And not once did I hear Vantiv at all. Pretty suspicious, don't you think?" That made things all the more clear for the council. "It appears we've found our spy after all." Then, Vrathrea was beginning to get concerned about her. "If what you say is true... she could be walking into a trap." Adea stepped up to the council next. "Exactly. Which is why we have to go and help her." Sneren, however, wasn't willing to condone this. "Hasn't there been enough mutiny already? I've already had Lapis home out by herself. I don't need three more students following in her footsteps." However, Krolia thought differently. "Councilman Sneren. We've all known it would come to this point. That one day, they'd know the stakes of the mission and risk their lives just like us. We can't deny them that." Sneren was surprised that Krolia would talk back at him and vented his anger. "You dare talk back to your superior?! Your mutiny knows no end!" That was the last straw for Vrathrea. "That's enough! I've condoned your temper for too long. We're going to help Lapis and that is final!" Atchiam grew happy that Vrathrea stood in defiance of Sneren as she pumped her fist. "Yes! I love it when you're feisty, Mom." Then, Krul spoke up. "It appears it's decided. The decision to go after Lapis and apprehend this spy is unanimous." Luzria and the others grew happy with that. "Now, let's go!" Then, Kolivan spoke up next. "And we better hurry. Lapis isn't our only concern here."

In the cruiser, Lapis looked left to right before ducking into a corner, upon seeing a drone walk by. Then, she ran throughout the hall before ducking into another corner. As she did, a drone walked past her, not noticing anything before she heard a voice speaking to Thace. "For the last time, where is the Blade of Marmora?!" Lapis knew very well who the voice belonged to. "Varek." As she crept closer, Thace continued denying its existence. "I... don't know." Varek then fires dark lightning at him in anger as he screamed. "You lie! Your chip alone is proof of its existence. Do not hold out on me!" Then, he received a signal on his gauntlet as it beeped before growling. "You're lucky to be breathing, Thace. But when I get back, no more questions. I will get the truth out of you, one way or another." With that, Varek began walking out of the torture chamber before Lapis hid herself. Once Varek's out of sight, Lapis went into the torture chamber and found Thace, who looked at her in surprise as he gasped before she spoke softly. "It's okay, Thace. I'm Lapis, a Paladin of Voltron." Then, he saw a certain accessory on her belt. "And a fellow Blade, I see." "I'll get you out of this real quick." However, she heard Vezek's voice before she could cut him loose. "Hold it." Lapis turned to see Vezek standing in front of her and Thace. Lapis didn't know who he was, but she could tell he was dangerous. "Who are you?" "I'm someone who's not going to let you steal what was promised to me." Hearing this, Lapis seemed to have figured it out. "So, you're a bounty hunter, then." Thace knee there was more to him than that. "Not just any bounty hunter, either. He has incredible speed and power." "Got it." Lapis got out her luxite knife and awakened it into a sword in preparation for combat. "If you're hired to retrieve him, who exactly hired you?" "I cannot say." "Not talking, huh?" Then, Vantiv's voice spoke to her. "He doesn't have to." "Huh?" Suddenly, in a swift move, Vantiv's hand dug into Lapis' belly as she yelped in pain before she ended up being pulled by the red and purple colored and kicked back to the ground. Lapis clutched into her area as Quintessence began leaking out of it while she growled at her. "Vantiv. So you were the spy." "Surprised?" "Not really. I knew there was something about you I didn't trust." "Really? What gave it away?" "The slip, your so-called intel, not to mention the fact that you were so eager to see me. So, basically everything." "Oh, is that right? Well, thank you for your notes." Then, Vantiv gripped Lapis by her hands and held her up. "You know, you're not so special yourself. You knew I was the spy all along, and you fell for my trap anyway." Then, Lapis looked to see Thace holding his head down before turning back to her. "I get it now. He wasn't really found out. You just captured him as bait." "You're half-right, actually. Vezek, here, actually captured him right when they found him. But I'm sure the Galra Empire would've done the same as we did to him. But..." Vantiv then flipped her and caught her legs before she held Lapis closer to her face. "...there is one difference for our version of this trap, though." "Really? What's the difference?" "We won't be asking you any questions." Then, she struck her fist on her wound, causing Lapis to exclaim in agony as she repeated the process. Thace couldn't stand watching the scene before he turned to see Adea, Atchiam, and Luzria before he nodded to them, reached for his own luxite blade and grabbed it. At which point, Vantiv stopped attacking her before she slammed her to the floor and turned her red and purple hand into a dagger. "Aw, poor little thing. Looks like you're going to die alone, after all. And no one will even care..." However, Adela's voice said otherwise. "But we do!" Vantiv turned around to see the trio in surprise before Thace ambushed her with a slash at her right eye, causing her to stagger back as he held her bridal style. "I've got you, Lapis." The trio noticed her condition and grew worried for her. "Oh, no." "Come on, girl." Then, Vantiv growled as she stood back up on her two feet before Thace turned to them. "We have to get out of here!" As they took off, Vantiv shouted to the wrist communicator that linked to all the drones. "Guards! Seal off every exit! Don't let any of them escape!" Then, Vezek gave his two cents. "You have a debt to pay, Vantiv, so you don't forget." "I'll pay it when they're wiped out." Then, Vezek glared at her. "Consider it done." Then, he disappeared as Vantiv breathed heavily, recovering from Thace's ambush.

Meanwhile, the group ran away before Luzria found a databank room and pointed it out to Thace, Atchiam, and Adea. "There!" They then ran into the room to find a single computer and got her chip out from under her fingernail. "Let's see what I can find." She installed it into the computer before attempting to get access to all the files. Adea and Atchiam didn't quite find it helpful in this situation as Thace took her hood off and wrapped it around her wound. "Uh, why are we in a computer room? We should be leaving!" "And helping Lapis!" "I know. But the doors are sealed off. We can't expect to get anywhere unless I override them. Can you guys cover for us?" Just then, the drones converged on their location before Adea and Atchiam smiled. "Oh, I get it now." "In that case, let's play rough." As the drones attempted to get in, Adea got her luxite blade and turned it into a medium scythe while Atchiam turned her luxite blade into a machete before they hacked at the drones while blocking their fire. As they did so, Luzria was getting close to overriding the exits. "Almost there, come on!" Suddenly, a blaster almost hit her before she yelled and turned to her guards. "Hey! Didn't I ask you to cover me?!" Adea responded as she sliced the weaponry before their midsections. "Sorry." Thace looked back to Lapis before he spoke. "Come on, Lapis. You've got to pull through. You've got to." Suddenly, a beeping rang out from the computer. "Got it, guys!" Then, the drones overpowered Adea and Atchiam only to shut down and collapse. "You're welcome." Luzria then removed the chip just as Lapis groaned and tried to open her eyes, much to Adela's worry. "Please, Lapis. Don't give up. Keep fighting." Thace turned to Luzria before speaking to her. "Are the exits unlocked?" "They should be." "Then we don't have much time." With that, the group ran off to the hangar bay before they saw an now visible Blade of Marmora ship. "There's our ride." Just then, Vezek appeared, to the chagrin of Atchiam. "Oh, come on! We were so close!" "None of you are going anywhere. And neither is the traitor." Adea turned to Thace before whispering. "Uh, I think he's talking about you." "They don't need to be involved in this. It's me you're after, Vezek." "My contract has changed. This time, I'll be taking out your friends as well." Adea grew scared of this as Atchiam grew angry while Luzria looked back to Lapis in concern before stepping up. "Why don't we try one on one? I'm not gonna stand by and let you hurt my friends." From Hearing those words, Lapis got the will to snap awake and turned to see Luzria standing up to Vezek. "Luzria..." "So that's how you want to play this?" "Yeah!" Then, Vezek closed his eyes before speaking. "Hmm. Very well, then." Then, in the instant he opened his eyes, Vezek appeared in front of Luzria whilst punching her in the gut and knocking her to the wall, earning Lapis' worry. Then, she struggled to move, catching Thace's attention as Luzria slowly got up from the attack as he walked forward. "You only have one option left. Surrender." Luzria's temper got snapped before she stood up and shouted. "Never! Victory or death!" She charged toward Luzria before he countered with a strike to her chest and then her side before she yelped while collapsing to the ground. Lapis saw the scene and strained herself to stand up while taking her luxite blade. All the while, Vezek moves closer before pulling his fist back. Thace knee from what he'd seen him do to a Druid that it's a one strike kill. "Luzria, move!" Then, Lapis yelled as she rolled out of Thace's arms before summoning her sword and running toward him with a shout. However, he was able to fire it at Lapis. But the result wasn't what he intended as she blocked it, catching his surprise and was frozen still. "No...!" Lapis growled at Vezek before yelling out and slashing through him, causing him to collapse, much to the group's surprise. Vezek groaned as he'd been bested before turning to Lapis. "But... but how?" "That's easy. Because I have friends worth fighting for." Vezek growled at her before he chuckled and stood up, causing Adea and Atchiam to prepare themselves as the got their luxite weapons ready. However, Vezek spoke the words they never expected to hear from him. "You may pass." Atchiam and Adea grew confused at them. "Huh?" "But weren't you supposed to kill us?" "I'll kill you on my own time. Always watch your back." Then, Vezek disappeared before Lapis turned to her group. "Come on, guys. Let's go!" "Right!" Then, they all boarded the ship before it took them away from the cruiser.

At the Blade of Marmora headquarters, Lapis was in the hospital bed as bandages were wrapped around her belly while Luzria, Adea, Vrathrea, Thace, Kolivan, Krolia, and Atchiam were by her side. "I don't understand. Why did you guys come back for me?" Kolivan spoke to her first before Adea, and Atchiam. "You took a great risk doing it on your own. It nearly got you killed." "Yeah, you had us so worried." "You didn't have to do that." Then, Lapis got confused on how she was found to begin with. "Wait. How did you even find me to begin with?" Luzria smiled as she answered. "Simple. I placed a tracker on your outfit when you tried to push me." Then, Lapis checked her pocket before finding a small device on her pants and pulled it out before she held her head down before she spoke again. "Look, guys. I'm sorry about what I said to you back there. I just didn't..." Then, Luzria interrupted Lapis before she could finish. "Stop. Do you have any idea how long we've been searching for you? 3 vargas. That means I've had three vargas to think about this. And in that three vargas, I've decided..." Adea, Atchiam, Krolia, Kolivan, and Vrathrea grew anxious about where it was going before she finished. "I don't care!" "Huh? You don't?" "Well, you just didn't want anyone to get hurt, right?" "Yeah, but that didn't excuse me to—" "Upupupupup! I don't wanna hear it. All I want to know is that the next time something this big comes up you'll come to your teammates, and not some... someone else." Lapis was confused at her words after what she'd put them through before she giggled and agreed to her terms. "Done."

At Kaecilius' cruiser, Vantiv stormed into the main control room to see Kaecilius, Varek, and Omegus. She was seething with rage at her scarred eye. Kaecilius turned to her and could tell she wasn't happy. "I take it things didn't go as planned?" "That would be an understatement." Omegus wasn't pleased with it, but was also indifferent on the outcome. "So... the spy failed. But it matters not. My ascension is fated to occur, and all of your work will not be in vain. That, I promise you..."