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They left the lights off as they changed.

From the window an orange glow from the particle barrier was their only light. Romelle had a small flashlight as she continued to pull out pieces of the paladin armor from a storage box under the window seat.

Quietly she piled the pieces according to color.

Silently they slipped into their suits, moving with practiced ease despite the low visibility. Judging by the still darkness outside and the chill it was the very dead of night. Coran helped Shiro buckle his armor. Kosmo's amber eyes and electric blue markings glowed in the room as he watched them ready for battle.

"The Galra cannot know we are here," Allura gripped her bayard. "Our suits will give us away."

"I thought of that," Shiro sighed. "But there's no time to find Garrison suits."

"We'll hit them fast and hard," Keith dematerialized his bayard into his suit. "They won't see us coming."

"I don't think it'll be that easy. We still don't know the extent of the Galra's upgraded tech," Hunk grunted as he tightened his breastplate. "Those drones we first ran into send distress signals. And those sentries had thicker, stronger armor." He looked up with a frown. "We didn't do too great against those pirate ships at the abandoned Blade base."

Lance paused in putting his helmet on. "So what, we do nothing?"

"Of course not," Keith flexed his gloved hand, making the material shift around his fingers better. "We're doing this, new tech or not."

Kosmo walked over to stand by Keith. The Black Paladin turned his head more fully to his team, not realizing that the whites of his eyes were faintly glowing with a yellowish tint.

"This is our home."

Shiro put a hand on his shoulder.

The glow faded slightly but Keith could still feel the rush of blood. Ever since they flew onto Earth he was a mess of nerves but not from fear or anxiety. He was itching to fight, to defend. It was what the Paladins did and in all other situations they would have been attacking already. But this was a different, delicate dilemma. Earth was so young compared to the other side of the universe. They were the understated underdog of this war and the leader of the siege was Sendak, a seasoned monster of the Galra and old enemy of Voltron.

This was personal.

The others knew it. Keith could even see the smoking anger in Shiro's eyes as they shared a look. There wasn't fire yet but Keith was certain that Shiro was keeping his rage in check for the right moment...

Something caught Keith's eye.

He looked down, seeing the dog tags around Shiro's neck. He knew for a fact that Shiro had lost his when the Galra took him prisoner. His eyes darted to Allura. She had seen where his eyes had gone. Her eyes closed, answering his silent question.

Shiro calmly tucked the dog tags under his armor.

"Pidge," Keith turned to the youngest paladin, "can you do something about the drones?"

She pushed up her glasses. "You mean have I upgraded our armors with tech to scramble feeds and distress signals within the first hour we arrived at the Garrison..." she turned her forearm to bring up her holo-screen built into her suit, "which I can activate if I just push this new option on my screen?"

Keith gave her a slow grin. "Show off."

"Aw, I'm proud of me too."


"Grif! Open up!"

James snorted awake suddenly. He rubbed his face. His laptop was still playing the feeds of the Galra tactics. With a sigh he scooted out of his chair, winced at the ache in his back from having fallen asleep at his desk, and then unlocked his room door.

Rizavi bolted in, pulling Leifsdottir behind her with the laptop cradled in her free arm.

"The feeds are corrupted!"

"What?"

Rizavi impatiently closed his laptop and put her laptop on it. "Leifs was obsessing over the Paladin feeds -"

"Analyzing," Leifsdottir calmly corrected.

"-when she saw this!"

James looked at the frozen image. "Commander Holt's daughter?"

Rizavi went back a little then let it play. The paladins were standing up from image projection training. Katie Holt turned, looked in the direction of the camera, then looked away.

"So she knows about the cameras. They're not exactly hidden."

"You're not looking Grif!"

"You didn't notice the first time either Rizavi," Leifs walked over to play the scene again. "Look at her hand. She touches her forearm and it faintly glows."

James squinted his eyes. The Green Paladin was at an angle so it was hard to tell but...

"I think I see it. So what -"

Leifs played it slower. James' eyes widened as he saw the barest hiccup in the video.

"It jumped." He pointed at the paused screen. "Her glasses weren't pushed up that high earlier."

"Her face is flushed as well," Rizavi crossed her arms. "She wasn't like that when she first stood up."

"They were practicing," James frowned.

"And they hid it," Rizavi scrunched up her nose. "So it wouldn't be caught on the feeds."

"But why mess with the camera at that point?" Griffin lightly tugged at the ends of his side bangs in thought. "If anything, I would think they would have hid the image projection part of the training."

"Whatever they are hiding," Leifs neutrally intoned. "It must be even more abnormal than the headbands."

"What could be freakier than that?"

Griffin zoned out as he tried to think of what it could be. There was a pound on his door, jolting him out of it. Leifs slowly looked up from the laptop. Rizavi yelped at the sudden sound and then glared at the newcomer.

"Seriously Kink, that's how you knock?"

The teen gave Rizavi a half glare for the awful nickname but was quick to turn to Griffin. "There's a situation outside the barrier."

James didn't miss the fact that Kinkade was already in his MFE suit.

"Riz, Leifs, go suit up."


Commander Iverson was standing in front of the hangar. James stepped forward while the others stayed back. There was something wrong. Iverson was never a smiley man but his face just spoke of tension.

"Commander Iverson."

The commander looked over Griffin's shoulder to his team suited up and helmets in their hands then back to Griffin.

"I take it you heard about the situation."

"We don't have the details."

Iverson tsked. "And yet you came over anyways." He stepped away from the hangar doors. "You're becoming predictable Griffin."

"Commander, what is going on? We can hear sounds of fighting but there's no one in the air."

"Walk with me."

James made sure to stay a few paces behind. His brows furrowed as the booms of Galra lasers started getting louder. We're walking away from the hangars and armory.

"Why aren't we outside?"

Iverson's brow twitched ever so slightly before he continued walking. James and his squadron pressed on. They were outside the control room. Iverson placed his hand on the pad, gaining them access. As soon as the doors opened - the room was full of people in motion.

Every screen was up, displaying dark shadows surrounding one of the towers of the particle barrier but on their side of the barrier. One of the shadows stepped up to the orange barrier and gripped it, slowly bending the energy. James felt his jaw slack. It was the space princess.

The Paladins are causing the commotion?

"- body better boost those energy levels or I'll have every single one of you stripped of your ranks!" Admiral Sanda whirled around to Commander Holt still in his pajamas. "I thought you said there were no weak points in the particle barrier."

"There aren't any by some pure miracle," Sam Holt calmly voiced out.

"Then how do you explain that?"

There was now a hole in the barrier, allowing the paladins through.

"Our barrier is based on Altean schematics. Her people's technology. Is it truly any wonder that Princess Allura is able to manipulate it?"

The Admiral's eyes were threatening. "You're hiding something. All of you."

"'Them' vs 'us' language Admiral?" Sam's eyes held a thin layer of ice. "War does not discriminate."

Her steely eyes cut away from his. "I want guards posted around that hole."

"A couple of paladins are already guarding -"

"Did I ask for your input officer?"

"No Admiral."

"Iverson!" Admiral Sanda walked over to stand over the edge of the high platform. "Send the MFEs to the hole. I want nothing alien coming in, you understand?"

"Admiral."

Iverson turned around. James and the MFEs followed him out.

"Sir, why - ?"

"Be quiet officer," Iverson gruffly rumbled out.

James kept his head up but followed on. Rizavi shared looks with Kinkade and Leifsdottir. They were taken to the armory. Iverson walked over to the wall of laser rifles and guns. The MFEs started picking their weapons of choice.

"Some rebels snuck out people from a nearby work camp," Iverson tossed some clips onto the table for them to grab. "They're using Veronica's route to come to the Garrison for asylum."

James paused in slinging the rifle over his shoulder.

"...If that's the case, why aren't we letting them in?"

"Our supplies are low. We are beyond full capacity."

James felt the bristling before he could control his words.

"We're sacrificing our moral duty for comfort?"

"We're in a war, Officer Griffin." The commander fixed the squadron leader with a fierce look. "The lives of a few are not worth risking the many." He put a gun in his hands, forcing him to take it. "Go to the hole. Make sure no aliens come back in."

There was a tense moment as the last sentence rang out.

"You're sending us to the hole," Kinkade slowly voiced out what was becoming apparent to them, "to make sure the Altean Princess does not return."

Iverson looked at them with a blank expression.

"Admiral Sanda wants the Lions but they belong to the Princess." Pause. "It's no secret that the Admiral is out of patience with our Altean guest."

"...No."

All eyes turned to James. His eyes were wide and angry as he fixed his gaze on Iverson.

"Your orders are bull shit." James threw down the gun and rifle. "If being part of the Garrison leads me down this way, I'm done. I'm better off with the Galra killing me here and now."

Iverson saw the others' faces. They clearly stood by with their leader's sentiments even the levelheaded Kinkade. The commander stepped up to Griffin. Kinkade and Rizavi tensed on either side of James, readying for whatever the commander was going to dish out. Leifsdottir gripped the gun in her hands, her mind quickly running the numbers and various scenarios.

"Those are not my orders." He put a hand on James' shoulder. Griffin was about to pull away but a gleam in Iverson's eye made him stop. "The MFEs were created to protect." Their Commander stood up tall, putting his hands behind his back. "I'm ordering you to do your job."

Slowly, the tension morphed into determination.

"Yes sir."

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AN: This was getting too long so...Part One of the Refugee Rescue Mission. FYI, I still don't care too much for Admiral Sanda.

Side note: Wooow...a lot of people are reading this. No pressure. XD I'm honored I've tickled your fancy. :)