"Shiro? Shiro, wake up." Someone was poking his face and he groaned, wincing at the crick in his neck. He lifted his head, blinking blearily to clear his vision. Where was he…? He glanced around and took in the small shack he was in from where he was on the couch with a blanket strewn across him, and the smell of coffee filled the small space. Oh right, he'd come over to Keith's for an all-night study session. And he'd…fallen asleep?
"Crap!" He was completely awake and upright in an instant. "How long was I asleep for? What time is it?"
"Relax, you were only asleep for two hours max." Keith held out a steaming mug of black coffee. "You still have about 5 hours before the exam."
"That's not enough time." Shiro groaned and took a large gulp of the coffee to get him moving a little quicker. "If I get anything less than a 95 I won't qualify for the long distance space travel course. I'll be confined to Mars at the farthest. Nothing happens on Mars."
Keith let out a soft chuckle as he sat down beside him. "You'll be fine, Shiro. You always do fine."
With his laugh, the scene seemed to meld into something entirely different. The view around him warped into a vast, empty desert with the wind whipping through his hair. Sand dunes and hills flew by him as he soared across the sand on the hoverbike. His arms were wrapped tightly around Keith's thin chest as the boy pushed the bike to its limit and expertly glided around sandstone cliffs and down uneven hills. He had such a talent for piloting that Shiro had no doubt he would one up him in an instant if they were in the same class. It was as if the bike was just an extension of his own body the way he manipulated it so smoothly.
"Shiro, this is amazing!" Keith shouted over the wind in their ears and he had a grin from ear to ear which hadn't faltered since he sat down. His face was glowing with excitement and joy and seeing so much happiness on his face, Shiro was sure it must be contagious as a smile stayed glued to his own.
Once again, the scene changed rapidly, this time to a mildly cluttered dorm room that mimicked the dull colors of the Galaxy Garrison. Keith stood with a sheepish smile as he observed himself in the mirror beside the bed. The orange garrison uniform was just a little too large but otherwise he looked great.
"I knew you were hiding something!" Shiro slapped him on the back hard enough to jerk him forward unintentionally. He was absolutely elated with the news he'd just received. He'd known Keith had intended on applying to the Garrison the very minute he was old enough, but Keith had kept it under wraps that he'd even gone to the entrance exam and passed with flying colors. It wasn't until he showed up at Shiro's dorm room with his new uniform that he chose to tell Shiro the exciting news, and exciting was an understatement. "I told you you would get in with no problem. And top of your class at that! Keith, this is amazing!"
"Thanks." Keith plucked at his bangs, feeling a little embarrassed at Shiro's swooning. Of course he'd kept it as a surprise to see Shiro as happy as this. He blinked when Shiro held out a hand to him and he gingerly took it, only for him to pull him into a tight hug.
"Welcome to the Garrison. I couldn't ask for a better classmate." He squeezed Keith tight and after a second, he finally returned the hug with a smile.
The memory faded to black and Shiro groaned as his body began to wake. He opened his eyes a slit, but his body felt odd and light like he was suspended on a cloud. He thought he could hear the castle's intercom saying something, but the words sounded muddled and far away.
He forced himself to open his eyes and his breath caught in his throat when he did. He wasn't at the castle at all, and the feeling of lightness suddenly made much more sense. His body was floating in a tube of some kind of thick viscous liquid which resisted when he tried to clench his fist. There were tubes inserted into his arms and legs and attached to his chest, and dozens of wires connected to his Galra arm. Where was he? How had he gotten here? Panic quickly rose in his chest as he tried to piece together the situation.
He had to get out of here. The glass around him looked thick, but it couldn't be anything so strong that his Galra arm couldn't cut through it. He raised his right arm and quickly activated his hand and-
Pain ripped through his body the very second his hand glowed purple. It was like every nerve in his body was suddenly on fire and his back arched in agony. A scream tore through his throat as his muscles convulsed in reaction to such intense pain.
Shiro shot up in his bed with sweat pouring down his face and chest heaving with agonized breaths. The pain was gone as soon as he woke up aside from a pulsing headache, but his muscles still felt the ache from it, and his fingers trembled. He tried to steady his breathing as he gazed down at his Galra arm. What was that…? The dreams with Keith, those were clearly memories returning, but that…there was no way that could have been a memory. It was so vivid and the pain had been so real. Pain wasn't supposed to be felt in a nightmare either….so what was that?
"Paladins, please report to the bridge." Allura's voice was coming over the intercoms. They must have reached the destination for the mission while they slept. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to force the nightmare into the back of his mind. That's all it was. A nightmare from his time with the Galra. He couldn't focus on it now. Right now he had to focus on being the leader of Voltron. Quickly, he got up and gathered his gear to make way to Allura.
"Shiro, we'll be at the location in ten minutes." Keith's voice relayed through the comms to the entire team once they had gathered on the bridge. He and Kolivan were en route to the quintessence holding facility, eager to get a start on taking down this supply line. Keith had been there when Kolivan had awoken from the healing pod, and explained the entire situation to him as he ate and regained his strength. Kolivan agreed to go ahead with Shiro's plan, although he stressed the need to be careful. He didn't exactly trust Lotor's words, and although he didn't explicitly say it, he wasn't eager for a repeat of the last mission. How he had survived the explosion, he wasn't sure. Even if the lions had found them in time, the fact that they weren't immediately shredded to pieces was a miracle. He wasn't going to take another gamble like that.
After a day of rest and preparation, he and Keith had headed out to the coordinates given to them by the map. Coran guided the castle as close as he could without being detected, and once Keith and Kolivan were successfully inside the holding facility, Voltron would head for the nearby planet, named Yianus according to Coran, to eliminate any Galra forces who could be called for backup and liberate the planet.
Shiro and the others boarded their lions, leaving Coran aboard the castle with not only the responsibility of watching over both missions, but also babysitting Lotor. He had obediently reported to the bridge when Allura had called the others there, but remained mostly quiet during their brief planning. By no means did that imply he wasn't taking in every word they spoke, and the entire team was keenly aware to watch their tongues when he was around. As the others left for their lions he took a seat in the Black Pilot's seat, keeping a watchful eye on Coran's screens with crossed arms. As long as he stayed there and didn't get any ideas, Coran could focus on the task at hand.
"Keith, what's your ETA?" Shiro questioned into his comms once Yianus came into view.
"We're docking now." Keith gave a curt response as he and Kolivan prepared their infiltration.
"All right. We'll hold back any reinforcements that head your way." Shiro couldn't help but feel a little worried, after the result of their last mission and a little of that may have found its way into his voice. "Let us know as soon as the facility is cleared. Keep your communications open. If anything goes wrong, we're close by."
"Understood."
"Keith, be safe, man." Hunk didn't attempt to hide his worry whatsoever, and the others chimed in with similar feelings.
"I'll be fine guys. Relax. Make sure to focus on your own mission." It was clear in his voice that he was grimacing at the over-protection. They had more important things to worry about than him.
"Shiro, look!" Allura's voice brought their attention back as they approached Yianus. A massive fleet of Galra cruisers awaited them, backed by a handful of Galra battleships. They seemed to create a barrier between Voltron and a larger battleship that hovered just over the planet. A purple beam shot from the ship to the planet's surface, and even from where they were they could see that the surface of the planet was blackened where the beam touched.
"Were they waiting for us?" Pidge took in the massive amount of enemies in front of them. The sheer numbers of ships certainly made it appear like they were aware that Voltron would show up.
"I don't know, but we must move quickly." Allura gritted her teeth as anger welled inside of her. "The ritual has already begun. They're extracting the planet's quintessence. If we don't stop them soon the entire planet will die!"
"All right, everyone, your target is that ship. Take it down and then we can focus on the others."Shiro spun to dodge the first attack from the battleships which had started moving towards them. He quickly pushed his lion forward, taking out a battleship that blocked his path towards the target.
"I don't think it's going to be that easy. Look!" Lance pulled their attention to the small Galra cruisers, which hadn't moved from their positions at all. The pointed ends of the ships were glowing a bright purple, but rather than emitting an attack of lasers, the purple light expanded outward until it reached its neighboring craft, creating a huge purple barrier in an oval shape completely surrounding the target battleship.
"It's just like Naxzela." Pidge observed the shield created by the colony of coordinated crafts. "They're using the same concept but by using mobile crafts they can move the barrier wherever they want."
"Let's see how strong it is." Hunk was always eager to test the integrity of Galra equipment and his lion was the best for it. He pulled back and rocketed his lion toward the barrier, slamming into it with his full force. A shock tore through his lion when he did, and though his impact sent a pulse through the shield, it didn't break. "Yeah, it's pretty strong."
"Don't let it distract you." Shiro quickly took out two more battleships as Allura and Lance simultaneously eliminated two more. "We broke through the barrier on Naxela and we can do it here too."
"You'll have to do it a little faster." Coran chimed in through the communications. "The planet's quintessence is being depleted rapidly. They've already acquired nearly 30% of its total quintessence!"
"Okay, we need to form Voltron and break through that shield and stop that ship." Shiro took out the last attacking battleship that remained outside the barrier which would allow them time to gather and form Voltron.
"Are you sure that's the best idea?" Lance chose to voice his concerns as he flew Red along the diameter of the barrier. "I mean you heard Pidge, they can move the barrier wherever they want. Which means if we do break through, they can just move to fix it and block us off. The lions are smaller and faster. If we hit it from five different places at once then we'll have a better chance of one of us getting in."
"It makes sense, but do our individual lions have the firepower to penetrate the shield?" Allura's concern was rising alongside the blackening surface of the planet.
"We don't have time to hope for an opening." Shiro could feel the tension of the time constraint and indecision wasn't a luxury they could afford right now. "With Voltron we have the most firepower and there's no question that we can break through. If we wait too long the planet will be at stake. Everyone, we need to form Voltron!"
The lions converged to form the giant weapon, though Lance bit back his retaliation towards the plan. Once Voltron was fully formed, they stood off some distance. They would propel Voltron towards the barrier and use its speed and momentum along with Red's laser to break through the barrier, just as they had on Naxela. On Shiro's mark, they faced their target and launched.
Shiro hadn't been wrong when he said they would succeed in breaking the barrier. Upon impact they immediately tore through, almost as if they'd been allowed to. Before they could react to the ease of the attack, all of the Galra ships were converged on them, moving the shield away from the ship and instead completely engulfing Voltron with tight knit battle cruisers that formed a bubble around the robot. They flew in close, refusing to give Voltron enough space to move or gain momentum to try to break through with physical force. They used their shield to force Voltron away from their the targeted battleship.
Lance gritted his teeth and powered up his lion's mouth laser, sending the strongest attack he could into the barrier closest to him, but the beam bounced right off and hit Voltron instead, sending a shock of pain through all of them. This shield was stronger than it had been on Naxela. That alone proved that they had allowed the previous attack to break through.
"Shiro? What do we do?" Hunk looked to the head for guidance, but he received silence in return. "Shiro?"
Pain tore through Shiro's right arm, the same pain he had felt that morning, so strong and agonizing that he couldn't hear Hunk's voice. It took everything in him not to scream into the communications as he grasped his Galra arm, desperately wishing he could tear it clean off of his body. He couldn't focus though the shrieking in his every nerve, couldn't think to comprehend the position they were in. For a moment ,everything was black, engulfed in excruciating, unbearable pain.
A short distance away, Keith and Kolivan had found the holding facility mostly inhabited by sentries, which was expected. They had quickly eliminated all of the guards that filled the facility, being sure to remain stealthy so as not to attract any stronger enemies. Once they had cleared the halls, the only remaining enemies were those who were inside the chamber where the quintessence was held. They regrouped outside the door and Keith took a second to relay a hushed status back to the others. "Coran, we've reached the holding room."
Coran pulled up his scans of the facility, finding himself a little flustered trying to manage two missions at once, especially with the downward spiral the Voltron mission was taking. The stress was evident in his tone. "I'm only receiving one sign of life coming from inside, but that doesn't mean there aren't sentries waiting for you. My readings also detected an incredibly large level of quintessence, so we need to make sure that doesn't fall into their hands."
Keith didn't need readings to know that there was a ton of quintessence stored inside that room. The energy that radiated from it was almost tangible, but that wasn't the only source of energy he felt cming from inside. He'd felt quintessence energy before, but there was something else that had made this supply line different since the beginning. A source of energy that he couldn't explain. It felt so similar to when he had felt the blue lion in the desert that when the Blades had decided to investigate the supply lion, he'd felt almost like he was drawn to joining the effort.
But Voltron only had five lions, so it couldn't be that. So what was it…?
Kolivan gave him a nod that signaled that they were ready to enter, and prepared to encounter a fight immediately. Keith returned the nod and opened the door carefully but quickly, keeping his blade at the ready as he entered. He was met with a chamber very similar to what he had seen before. Glowing yellow tubes of quintessence lined the walls, ready to be either transported or converted into fuel. Just like before, in the center of the room was the hooded figure of a druid. It reacted immediately to their entrance and vanished in a cloud of smoke, leaving them staring at a large glass cylinder in the very center of the room. The glass was so dark a black that it was impossible to see inside and streams of pure, yellow quintessence flowed to the tube, giving it a faint yellow glow. It wasn't like he had seen before, where the quintessence flowed into a spiral to be converted into fuel. This was something different. Whatever was inside there was the source of that unexplainable energy.
Kolivan pressed his back against Keith's as both of their eyes darted around the room to spot the reappearance of the druid. They didn't have to wait long as it reappeared right beside them, attempting to hit them with a blast from its glowing hand, but Kolivan blocked the attack with his blade while simultaneously swinging out a kick. He managed to hit the druid, but it vanished again upon impact. Keith spotted it first when it reappeared a second later a short distance away. Its hands were already bright purple and crackling with dark magic, and Keith threw his blade at it just as it unleashed an attack. Kolivan quickly dodged the blast, yanking Keith away with him and Keith's blade hit its target. The druid folded in on itself from the touch of the blade, but just as it clattered to the floor they were both suddenly engulfed in darkness.
Kolivan kept close to Keith, who wouldn't be able to find his weapon in the pitch black. He could hear the rustling of cloth around them as a figure moved through the room and he focused on following the sound. It circled them, but didn't come too close, and didn't stop moving. He tried to pinpoint its distance and location but then there was silence.
They stood motionless, back to back, listening for anything at all but were met with only their own heavy breathing. Whoever it was still had to be here, casting this darkness over them, so where?
And then Keith felt it. A hot warm breath right on his face and the second he did he thrust out an open palm. It made contact with someone's chest and the force in his attack sent them skidding backwards. Kolivan reacted immediately to the movement and was in front of Keith before he could move. The only light that they could see was the shine of Kolivan's blade as he thrust it into whoever was in the room with them.
He felt his blade make an impact with soft muscle and flesh but there was no glow of a druid being eliminated by the blade. Instead he was met with a sickening laugh that sounded like it was from a woman. It echoed through the room and made his hair stand on end. He plunged his blade a little deeper. The darkness dissipated then and the room came back into view, but in front of him was nothing but his own blade.
Keith quickly collected his fallen weapon once he could see and took in his surroundings. There were no enemies that he could see, but the cylinder in the center of the room was gone along with a few dozen containers of quintessence. He and Kolivan searched the room, but whoever had been there was gone.
"Shiro, the holding facility is secure." Keith tapped into his communications and was met with an earful of yelling from the other Paladins. "Shiro?"
"Shiro! We're running out of time!"
"Shiro!"
All of the muddled shouting mixed with a ringing in his ears as his vision cleared again. The pain in his arm had stopped, but left him trembling and sore. It took a second to gather himself and comprehend what the others were saying. He wasn't given the indulgence of gently coming back to reality either as Voltron was violently yanked to and fro by the Galra cruisers that had converged upon it.
"Shiro! Wake up!" Lance's voice came loud and clear that time.
"I'm here." Shiro's throat was dry and uncomfortable. He grasped his controls, taking in the situation. How long had his episode gone on for?
"What do we do?! We need to break through this barrier!" Hunk wildly pulled at his controls, trying whatever he could to kick off the attacking ships.
Shiro struggled to move Voltron, but the hundreds of battle cruisers had converged so tightly around them with their barrier that there was no way to gain enough momentum to apply an attack. The lasers weren't strong enough. If only they were able to form sword, it could likely cut through. Shiro gritted his teeth to think, eyes focused on the blackened Yianus before them. If he didn't act right now it would be too late. Think Shiro!
Suddenly, a massive laser beam shot past Voltron, skimming the robot's head close enough to destroy a good amount of the cruisers and sent them flying. The beam reached all the way to the attacking battleship and blasted clean through it with ease. It was powerful enough to completely decimate the ship with a single blast.
They only knew of one ship that had a laser that powerful, and they were already indebted to that ship once.
"I figured it as about time you all woke up from your nap, Paladins. Were you having a good dream?" Lotor's words were patronizing as he drew his ship up beside Voltron.
"Coran, I thought you were watching him?" Lance sneered as they focused on picking off the cruisers now that they weren't caught in the web of the barrier.
Honestly, Coran had gotten so caught up in trying to manage two missions at once that he hadn't even heard Lotor leave the bridge. He had been busy preparing to go and help Voltron himself, and he was already halfway to them. His attention had been too taken up to bother noticing Lotor's absence. All he could give was a "Sorry."
"What is the status of Yianus?" Allura's concern lay in the darkened husk of the planet before them.
"Not so good. You all should return to the castle." Coran sounded deflated. "We have some evacuation plans to prepare."