Chapter 9: Game Plan:
Lance faltered. He'd been running directly behind Keith, being pulled along by his wrist that was being squeezed so hard he wondered if there was any blood left in his hand at all. The truth was he was exhausted, and didn't know for how long he could keep going like this.
Keith was relaying a plan to him, but the relentless pounding in his ears was making it hard to pay attention.
"… I'll get in contact with Red as soon as I can, and from there- well- Lance, where's Blue? Is she alright?" Keith asked, looking left and right before continuing down a long corridor.
"She's-" Lance gulped. "She's hurt, she can't get up. Can we…" He slowed down to a slow gait. Keith held his friend's hand firmly as he leaned on a wall.
"We're almost out of here, just a little farther down this way." Keith put another hand in Lance's shoulder, his eyes searching for some affirmation that the Blue Paladin could make it.
"I just… dude, you have no idea how many people have kicked my ass in the last two days." Lance shook his head, amused smile on his face. "I'm so beat. Gimme like two seconds."
Keith pursed his lips. "Alright." His eyes darted around, watching for Galra soldiers. Then he loosened up. "This is why Shiro told you to stick to the training regimen, so you wouldn't feel like crap after taking a few punches. I'm literally holding your hand." And he still was.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence, asshat." He spat back. "Kick me while I'm down, why don't you?"
"It's not kicking, it's constructive criticism."
"I'll construct my foot up your ass." Lance muttered. "Okay, I'm good." He swayed back and forth, attempting to let go of Keith's hand. But his legs gave out and he tumbled onto his knees.
Keith sighed. "Quit lying, you look like you're dying right in front of me." He watched for Galra once more before leaning in close. "We're real close to one of the exits. They have vehicles out there, and I bet I can drive one. That's all you have to go."
They shared a nod and Lance was helped to his unsteady feet. Together they made it to a pair of doors. The Blue Paladin gave his friend the key card, there was a quick beep, and they were out.
The wind had only picked up. The sun was setting, giving everything an orangish tint to it. Hundreds of purple Galra ships had landed all around and were taking on Cortaalis soldiers, winning every time. The invading force was tremendously larger than the natives.
It was hard to see. Dust clouded their vision, and Lance squeezed his eyes shut and looked away, while Keith trudged on. He was more accustomed to dust storms anyways.
...
Keith hatched a plan as he searched for any sort of vehicle. Red was in the middle of the chaos, his protective bubble keeping any type of infiltration from happening. Red. He called mentally. His lion's eyes gleamed with life, and his form shifted around for the first time in days. Time to go.Keith watched as his lion's shield went down and he bounded towards them through the swarms of ships. Meanwhile the Red Paladin located a vehicle left near the far wall of the prison. Reinforcing the tight hold on his friend, securing an arm around his waist and slinging Lance's arm over his neck, he broke into an awkward gait between a run and a jog.
Once at the vehicle, Lance was helped in, slumping over on the passenger seat. Keith hopped in and started it up. The engine roared to life, and the machine took on a blueish glow. The handles were easy enough to... well, handle. They were basically the same controls he was used to; two handles to maneuver. Pulling on them activated the brake, and pushing on them accelerated the vehicle. And then there were a bunch of miscellaneous buttons scattered on the dashboard that he could not find a purpose for at the moment. He stole a peep at Lance. Eyes closed, head tilted back. Hand on his stomach. He would live. He was just exhausted, that was all.
Keith eased the controls forward and drove the machine in the direction of his lion. But something was preventing the lion from getting any closer. A swarm of Galra ships buzzed around Red, shooting at him from every direction. He was having trouble swatting them away. One ship shot a ray of purple plasma into the side of his snout, and he roared angrily. His stood up on his hind legs and batted that particular ship with his powerful paws. The force sent the ship hurtling, and Red lunged forward and caught it in his jaws, shaking his head vigorously before dropping it with disdain and aiming for another.
He sighed. We'll have to go to you. Hold on Red. We're on our way.
His lion responded,Filthy Galra, like flies.
I know. The Red Paladin hid a small smile of amusement at the lion's way of expressing his detestation of the alien race. His heart rate quickened the closer they got to the edge of the battle ground. A blaster went off from behind him, and the shot broke the windshield. Checking one of the rear view mirrors, Keith was terrified to find six of the ten enormous Galra soldiers sent into the prison now sprinting towards them. He could easily outpace them in the "car" they were in, but this class of soldiers were known to have incredible accuracy when handling firearms. Keith swung the controls left and right to try to throw off their aim. His passenger groaned.
"You're gonna make me puke! I thought you were the best pilot in the Garrison." He said through gritted teeth, his face turning green.
"Either you can lose your lunch, or lose a bullet shaped cylinder of flesh through your abdomen: your choice." Keith barked at him.
"Could you at least try to keep it kinda steady, Mullet?"
Keith would have bitten back with a scalding retort, but he had to focus back on the terrain before him. He was only seconds from the first skirmish. Seven Cortaalis soldiers against three Galra. And the latter were destroying the former. The low grade blasters that the natives carried could do little to nothing to deter the hulking purple aliens. Keith dodged the battle, knowing that it would only get harder from there.
"I did this." Lance's voice was a whisper, and Keith almost didn't hear him over the gunfire and shouting. He was too preoccupied with dodging bodies left and right to answer, but he felt a pang of empathy for him. The Blue Paladin's frail- looking body was bounced up and down on the seat with each protruding rock and shallow pothole they hit on their way, his head turned to all of the carnage laid out around them. His lips were pale, eyes half closed and full of pain.
All the while, Keith dodged battle after battle on the way to his lion. He was having trouble keeping his eyes on the road ahead and watching for any incoming danger from either side. He was thankful that both the Galra and the Cortaalis natives were more preoccupied fighting each other to quite notice that two of the Paladins of Voltron were driving right through them.
Red wiggled his haunches and leapt into the air, swiping four Galra ships out of the orange sky with his jaws. His landing was less than graceful. The impact cracked the ground under his paws, sending ripples across the land. Keith tried maneuvering around the ripple, but it hit their vehicle head on. He held fast the controls, and Lance kept a firm grip on the dash.
Careful! Keith growled at his lion. He crashed back on his seat, he and his companion becoming a tangle of limbs.
Keith grappled for the controls and Lance did his best to scramble away and let his friend drive, fully awake now.
"We're not far now!" The Red Paladin swung the controls around to dodge another skirmish. They were within 500 yards of Red, who was winning his battle with the gnat- like fleet of aliens. Then 400 yards. Then 200. No one dared go within an invisible circle around the lion, not wanting to get trampled, and soon Keith could travel in a straight line… more or less. The dirt being kicked up by Red's limbs was blinding. But something happened just then.
A beam of pinkish light burst from one of the mother ships. The beam surrounded the Red lion. Gravity stopped applying to Red, and his paws left the dirt. He was being lifted into the ship!
Keith wrenched the controls back, the vehicle coming to a screeching halt twenty feet from his lion. If we hurry we'll get to him in time! He flew out of the machine and bounded to the other side, helping Lance out. He threw his arm over his shoulder. The new weight on Keith's slender frame strained his joints, but on he went.
Together they reached the lion's front paw, dust and gravel staining both the Paladins' clothes and stinging their eyes. Their bodies turned pink as they entered the Galra's beam. The claws lifted into the air, and Keith jumped forward to latch on. His hand caught metal, and he swung Lance around, his arm finding something to grab as well.
They held fast to the lion's paw. They were soon ten, then twenty, then forty feet up. Keith didn't want to look down. Partly from all the destruction, but mostly because he was afraid of falling off. Lance wasn't faring much better. His knuckles were white, his head hung low, pressed against the red metal.
Once we're on the ship, we'll hijack a smaller vessel and pick up Blue. Then… we'll be outta here. At last. Keith thought to Red, but Red interjected a second later.
Watch out for the Blue one!
Lance's head lolled back, revealing a numb expression and half closed lids. His eyes rolled back into his head, his grip loosening. Keith gasped and launched his free arm at his friend's. His hand closed around the Blue Paladin's wrist as he went limp. His body swung around in the open air, one slip of the hand away from death. The only hand still holding onto Red's paw was in immense pain. Keith switched his view from his strained arm to Lance. He groaned with the effort.
"You douche!" He complained loudly. "You are so much heavier than you look!" Craning his head back he was able to see how close they were to the Galra ship. "Hold on!" He yelled, both at himself and his friend.
A loud blast to their right caught his attention. Three Galra ships, some of the smaller ones, tailed a Cortaalis vessel of about equal size. They were dangerously close to it. One of the purple ships blasted the green one's wing, and it spiraled out of control, headed for a rough landing. As it passed Keith flinched, bringing his legs closer to his chest. When they were once again out of sight, he shook his head. He knew he had to do something to rid the planet of the Galra. Somehow.
Red was lifted inside one of the docking bays of the mother ship. The doors underneath them closed, and Red's paws once again touched solid ground, except the one with his and the Blue Paladin. He carefully lowered it, making certain to give the Blue one as soft a landing as possible. When Lance lay on the cool metal, Keith let go of Red's claw.
He landed next to the downed Paladin. "Red, open up!" Keith ordered, and his lion complied, kneeling down and stretching his jaws wide. There were no Galra in the docking bay. Not yet anyways. Keith dragged Lance up the ramp into his lion.
He felt relief upon seeing the control room again. Just how he'd left it. He didn't bother putting his armor on, only his helmet as he set Lance down beside him and took his place at the controls.
"Okay Red. No use staying here any longer. Let's find a vessel and get the hell out of here."
The lion roared and ran up to the nearest exit, bounding ahead into the still vacant hangars.
They passed a few Galra soldiers who yowled incoherently in protest, but nothing could stop the Red Lion of Voltron now. They came across many countless empty hangars, big enough to have contained ships that could carry all five of the Voltron lions inside them.
Keith jolted back the control as he remembered- I have to get the Galra off this planet! But how? He spoke to Red. These ships are huge. Do you think we could get to the engine room and back?
Red answered, If we are fast. He skidded to a halt, and changed direction, now headed for the exhaust vents that would lead him to one of the five engines. Keith fed him the directions. It had been tough keeping his… secret from his lion, since they were telepathically connected. But now that his secret was out, he was glad at being spared the harsh words and possible abandonment from his mechanical friend.
I am quite lucky. His lion mused. I get paired with the one hu… the one being on Earth who knows how to get around in a Galra mother ship.
Keith pursed his lips and smiled.
