I don't own Voltron, Defender of the Universe.
Chapter One- Laying Plans
It was a clear starry night on Arus, a night that was peaceful and quiet, a perfect time for reflection which Keith was doing. He was on sensor duty this night and all was calm. He leaned back in the chair, his eyes on the monitor but his mind was light-years away. They were on Planet Doom and to the prince of that planet: Lotor.
When Keith first encountered Lotor, he intensely disliked him for hate was too strong a word for an initial impression. He found Lotor to be arrogant, something that egotistical princes usually were. When they fought and Keith had been injured, he really didn't like Lotor. However, subsequent encounters caused Keith to reconsider his thoughts and feelings about the prince.
Lotor's good-looking, there's no denying that. I can see myself falling for a handsome and excellent warrior of a prince. Keith sighed in a combination of hope and despair. He had high hopes of telling Lotor how he felt but knew that Lotor would scoff and mock Keith if the commander admitted his feelings.
He sighed as he closed his eyes and imagined confessing love to Lotor and getting it in return. It was such a real scenario that Keith actually whined with desire. He sat up, a hand on his throat. I whined…like a wolf. But, that's not possible…or is it? Yes. It is. All the males in my family tree have the wolf gene in them. Generations ago, my ancestors were wolves who could be human for a period of seven years and they had children with a woman. Those children became among the first true werewolves. They would become talking wolves every night but become the vicious wolves that are where the werewolf legend and fear of wolves and the full moon come from; however a bite won't turn a human into a werewolf. Only through conception are werewolves born.
Over the generations, though, the werewolf gene turned dormant and only occasional canine sounds are an indication that one carries a dormant gene that can be turned active. Regardless, every male is given the recipe for a formula to activate their dormant gene. I would become a werewolf if I was to drink it. I have all the ingredients with me except for one: A beam of moonlight. However, there will be moonlight tomorrow. I could mix up the formula tomorrow night as it is my night off. If I drink it after the moonlight is added, I'll become a werewolf and remain so for the rest of my life. I was also given a pendent so that I can remain human on non-full moon nights. Keith allowed his thoughts to dwell on the idea of unleashing the wolf within him. He knew he would have to leave the castle three nights a month in order to be the vicious wolf he would be. He also knew that hiding it would be easy for him on the non-full moon nights.
But, do I want to be a werewolf? Keith briefly wondered before nodding. Yes. Yes, I do. I've been making occasional wolf sounds, usually when alone and I've been feeling urges to howl at the moon. It's time to let the wolf out. He leaned back again, his mind reviewing the formula and he stopped dwelling on Lotor.
Lotor brooded in his opulent room in his own throne. He lightly swirled his blood wine while slave girls waited on him or danced for him. Normally, this setting made him happy, but lately it made him feel moody. He had yet to conquer Arus, destroy Voltron, or capture Princess Allura. It frustrated him that all his plans to do any of those things failed and he spent inordinate amounts of time drawing up plans that would seem to guarantee victory.
Only they don't. No matter what plan I dream up, none work. He closed his eyes and let his mind freely ponder the situation. Destroying Voltron is the top priority; by getting rid of Voltron, it makes conquering Arus easier and that naturally, includes Allura.
But, capturing the lions' pilots and insuring they can't escape would also bring about the conquest of Arus. Yes, capturing all five would do that for with no pilots, the lions can't fly and with no lions, there's no Voltron. Once the planet is conquered, we will find the lions and destroy them. Lotor opened his eyes and smiled evilly. The capture of the space explorers and Allura was the perfect plan. Allura would dance for him and serve him but only once the lions were destroyed. He didn't want to risk her getting away, freeing the others, and all five escaping Doom.
Better yet, the space explorers will be immediately sent to the arena to face several robeasts while Allura sits in the dungeon. Father and I will greatly enjoy the deaths of those fools. Sending in a fleet to capture them is no good. The lions will destroy them easily. However, a stealth ship with fighter ships in its cargo hold could land without tripping the sensors. My ship has such capabilities. I will track down and fight each explorer one by one and have a robot fly off to Doom in a fighter ship with an unconscious and bound captive. Then, I'll focus on capturing Allura. He stared into space as he imagined his triumphant capture of Allura and the defeat of the explorers. He knew they were trained in combat but he was no slouch, either. He would defeat all of them, starting with the leader, Keith.
Keith and he had come to blows when they first met and that had been part of a plan to conquer Arus. That plan failed as he had only tackled one pilot and not all of them. Keith also appeared to have feelings of love for Allura, making him a rival for the princess' affections.
Yes, the rivalry between them was fierce, but he also respected Keith as a worthy opponent. A shame we're enemies; our fighting skills would make us an unbeatable team. An image of Keith appeared in his mind's eye and he felt his breath catch. He had never really noticed how handsome Keith was. He now saw himself courting the raven-haired man and even marrying him. Keith had many qualities that Lotor himself had and other traits that Lotor envied and admired.
Forget about Allura. Keith is the one I love now. Of course, that changes the plan a little. I will capture Keith last and while he's imprisoned, I will have Hagger whip up a love potion. I'm sure that if I were to go up to Keith and admit love for him, he would reject my confession and likely suspect it to be a sick part of a larger plan. That's certainly how I would view it. I'll stick to my original plan only I'll take down Lance first. I'll need to do some reconnaissance so I can fine-tune the plan, but I can tell Father the outline of the plan. He passed his glass to a slave girl nearby, rose from his seat, and headed to the Throne Room.
Zarkon looked at the doors as they opened and Lotor walked in. His son seemed to be in good spirits and there seemed to be a glint of cunning in his eyes. He looks like someone with a plan. I certainly hope so. It has been sometime since our last attack on Arus and I hope the inactivity has resulted in a cunning plan. "My son," he said as Lotor came closer and knelt.
"Father, I believe I have come up with a plan that will work. I plan to track down and defeat each pilot one by one and have robot pilots fly them here while unconscious."
"Not very detailed, Lotor. I expected better."
"I will need to do some reconnaissance to fine-tune it. I, however, propose the explorers be immediately sent to the arena upon arriving here and face several robeasts to insure they will not escape or survive."
Zarkon smiled cruelly. "Yes. I like that idea. Very well, Lotor. Proceed with your reconnaissance and then return when you have gathered enough information."
"Yes, Father. I will set out in one day after I have gathered the necessary supplies." Lotor rose and headed out, satisfied. His father approved of the plan's outline and gave permission for him to gather information to fine-tune it. He would certainly do that, but if he encountered Keith, he would confess his feelings. He no longer cared what Keith said; he just wanted to get it out.
It would be nice if he reciprocated my feelings and, if he did, I would do whatever I had to in order to prove that my love is real. Lotor headed to his ship to insure that it would be in perfect working order and write up a list of supplies.