Author's Note: Being the neurotic author that I am, I'm repeating my previous statement as well as adding on to it - the robeasts in these chapters are part of DDP, and the terms Aidan uses for the weapons are also out of DDP. I figured that since Albegas is the Voltron prototype in my story, it would only make sense for him to use technical terms instead of terms like "Spinning Laser Blades" or "Blazing Sword." As always, I own nothing except my characters, their morally-bankrupt choices included.
Thanks to everyone who's still reading along! I love the fact that I have such loyal readers. HEADS UP - there's naughtiness ahead!
To Cha - Thanks for your messages. I'm really liking your song choices, so don't be surprised if you see some of them mentioned down the line. And you know I'll be there for you when you decide to tie the knot!
To bknbu - Erimar always said that if a woman's heart was broken, well, it's fair game. Looks like he's standing by those words, doesn't it? ;) Keep that AC on!
To Sally On - I'm waiting for "Rah frickin' rah" to become the team's stupid cheer. And you're right - Cossack's not as dumb as he looks.
To Craze - It's about to get a lot hotter where Romelle and Erimar are concerned!
To FroofyB - Good to hear from you! And yes, Romelle is going to be a bad girl indeed, but then again, Sven might have it coming to him...
To Wade Wells - Watch for the Keith/Christiane conversation to start in the next chapter! (BTW: I'm still waiting for that K/A fic, as well as more K/M!)
Title Song: "Blow" by Ke$ha
At the head of Albegas, Aidan stared down the crazy-looking tentacled robeast. "Are you freakin' kidding me?" he muttered to himself. "This is the best those bad boys could come up with? A giant jellyfish?"
"Hey, if you've ever been to the Jersey Shore in the summertime, you know how bad those things sting," Taye countered.
Thinking of Cliff's "fabulous" place in Jersey, Aidan laughed.
"Well, Dalloway, if we're going to do something, now would be a good time," David pointed out.
"Of course, Rackens. Weapons Protocol Gamma. Does that make you feel better?"
"Much."
Albegas had a few tricks in its arsenal. Gamma was, in honor of David Rackens and his piloting of the blue "gamma" mecha, a pair of dual-barrel pistols. Albegas formed the pistols, aimed at the pink jellyfish, and fired. Two sets of bullets hit the robeast perfectly, one by each side of its face.
As if David Rackens would allow anything less than a perfect shot.
"Nice shootin', Rackens!" Jeff shouted. His Vehicle Team faced the ugly muddy-colored robeast, brandishing its huge broad sword. "Okay, team. Spinning laser blades!"
Vehicle Voltron slashed the robeast across the arm with its pair of laser blades. The monster reached for its wound, dropping its sword in the process. "Come on, team!" Jeff urged. "We gotta destroy that thing's sword before he can use it against us!"
The laser blast came out of nowhere, aimed perfectly at the fallen broad sword. Jeff opened up his scanners to full range to see if Commander Hawkins had arrived with the Explorer. No. He vaguely made out a base camp through the blizzard conditions. A base camp with cannons?
His communicator crackled again. "Command Jet Explorer, this is Tech Sargeant Christiane Kogane. Did I hit anything useful, or did I just make everything worse?"
The tears sprang to his eyes. "Chris? Is that really you? Are you okay?"
"Yes, it's really me. I'm okay, Jeff, I swear. Your friend's taking good care of me." He could almost hear her smile over the audio. "Now, promise me you'll finish this fight and stay safe. I didn't come this far for you to die on me."
"Never, Chris. Never."
"I can't see anything over the monitors, so I don't know what's going on. Care to fill me in?"
"Three robeasts, Chris. Lucky for us, we've got three Voltrons."
"Oh." There was grief and jealousy in her silence, and he knew how much she wished she was there with her team. "How's Albegas doing?"
"Good. Really good. Rackens is the best gunner in the Alliance."
"Tell me something I don't know."
He smiled. "Well, Chris, I've gotta get back to destroying this robeast. Promise me you'll make it out of here okay."
"I promise, Jeff. I love you."
"I love you more." He clicked off the communicator, finally feeling more at ease with the situation. Christiane was safe, and as long as they could destroy these robeasts, they would be too. He just hoped that the three robots would be able to take down Lotor's fleet.
"Space Marshal? Space Marshal! Len, wake up!"
Kelly shook Lenora awake. Despite the green tea and yoga interludes, the Space Marshal couldn't help but fall asleep at her desk. She hadn't been home in over thirty-six hours, and the stress of worrying about her husband and friends was too much. She was trying to keep it together, but it was difficult on such a small amount of sleep.
"I wish I knew how Jon does it," she murmured as she was roused from her sleep.
"Hmm?" Kelly asked.
"Jon. He doesn't sleep. He only sleeps when I'm in bed with him." An exhausted smile crossed her face. "When I first met him, he could work twenty hours on a ninety-minute nap. He still can. Sometimes I wish I could do that."
"Might be nice. But I like to sleep." Kelly scrunched up her face. "You need to sleep, Space Marshal. I know you're waiting for word from the Explorer or a message from Wade, but you're useless if you haven't slept. You should go home."
She shook her head. "I can't. I'm the head of the Alliance. I owe it to everyone to stay awake and be able to meet any challenge head-on."
"You'll never stay awake at this rate," Kelly argued.
"I am fully aware of that. But I'm not leaving until I know what's happening." She shook her head again. "Our teams are fighting too hard for me not to do this for them. They deserve this."
"Space Marshal, you're gonna kill yourself."
"I'm well aware of that." She smiled. "I'm also well aware of the fact that I'm grounding the Explorer and the Vehicle Team once they return from this mission. They're grounded until the next mission is supposed to take off."
"Ooh, harsh. That's supposed to be in about ten weeks, right?"
Lenora couldn't keep the grin off her face. "Mmm-hmm."
"Does your husband know this?"
"Nope." She shrugged. "But the way I figure, he owes me."
Kelly laughed. "You are one mean Space Marshal."
"Well, it keeps him respectful." She laughed. "And it keeps me from going insane."
"Well, I suppose if I was married to Jon Hawkins, I'd wanna keep him home too." Kelly looked over at her friend. "I mean, you did marry one of the handsomest men in the Alliance, Len. I don't blame you for wanting to ground the Explorer."
"I also have a gut feeling," Lenora continued, "that once we get Tech Sargeant Kogane back, she's going to want to spend time at home with Captain Aki. I'd like to give her that time." She understood too well how it felt to miss her loved one when he boarded the Explorer. "After this fiasco, I'd say she's earned it."
Kelly placed her hand on the Space Marshal's shoulder. "I'd say you've both earned it."
From the balcony, there had yet to be a better day on Pollux in recent history. The sun was radiant, the waters were calm, the sky was the most incredible shade of blue. It was an even better day than Bandor's and Emma's wedding day.
It was too bad that the royal couples on Pollux were going from a vow of loyalty and commitment to an extramarital affair.
Romelle knew in her heart that it was only a matter of time before she succumbed to her body's wishes and desires. She wanted Prince Erimar. But she didn't just crave physical pleasure from him; she wanted desperately to be happy again. She'd been happy with her husband once. That seemed like a long time ago - too long, really.
She gripped the railing, acutely aware of the prince's body pressed next to her side.
"Romy," he began, "is this what you really want?"
"Yes," she answered breathlessly.
Imperceptibly, Erimar brought his arm along the length of Romelle's, hooking his pinkie onto hers without looking over at her, causing pleasure to shoot through her arm. "I'm still an honorable man, Romy. And you're still married, regardless of how happily that may be." His face hardened, looking out onto the picturesque landscape in front of them. "I am going to return to my guest room. Do not go there for at least fifteen minutes - I want you to be sure of what you are doing. If you are not there in thirty minutes, I will know that you've changed your mind about this, and I won't hold it against you."
She nodded. "I respect that, Erim. Go now."
"Indeed." Turning to her, he inclined his head, lifting her hand to his mouth and grazing his lips along her knuckles. She felt as though she were about to explode with sensations. Before she could, he gently dropped her hand and walked away from her without a glance back. Absent of his touch, she felt her entire body ache for him.
There was no question in her mind.
Once he was gone, Romelle returned to her bedroom, the turret room that she and Sven had shared throughout their marriage. It wasn't the largest bedroom, as their king-sized bed took up most of the space, but it was definitely the most luxurious. The cream-colored silk sheets were topped with a matching hand-embroidered comforter, edged in organza ruffles. The rest of the room was painted in varying shades of blue, from pale to royal to navy and darker. The dark wood floors were covered in runners in neutral colors, accented with cream and blue. She kicked off her shoes and walked barefoot along those runners now.
Looking over to the adjacent nursery, she felt guilty. The door was closed, but she knew Rosalie was in there with Erik, silently judging her. So be it. Quietly, Romelle slid out of her usual full-length dress and changed into something a little different. She had commissioned the royal seamstress to make her a few dresses similar to Emma's - short-sleeved with a crew neck, and a full knee-length skirt with hidden pockets. The one she chose to put on now was in a shade of pink so pale it could only be described as a wash. She wished she had better undergarments, but there hadn't been any need for frilly underpinnings in a long, long time.
Slipping her feet into red satin ballet flats, she checked her reflection in the mirror and, satisfied with how she looked, tip-toed out of the room and made her way over to guest wing. Her heart hammered away in her chest as she took the elevator to his floor. It was nerve-wracking and exciting, living on the precipice of being caught, and it only goaded her further.
Across from the elevator shaft was a huge grandfather clock. She thought about how her father had loved those clocks, and had insisted upon placing them everywhere he could in the castle. As she stepped off the elevator, she could tell that twenty minutes had passed. She was right on schedule.
Finding his room, she hesitated briefly before knocking on the door.
Erimar drew a breath as he opened the door. "Your highness," he greeted her cordially. "Please, come in."
"Thank you, your highness," she answered, following the same protocol. She entered into his suite, and he locked the door behind her.
"Is it wrong to say I'm glad you're here?" he asked, running his fingers nervously through his auburn hair.
"No. I'm glad to be here. I want to be here." She wrapped her arms around his neck. "I want to be with you."
He needed no further invitation. Closing his olive-green eyes, Erimar wrapped his muscular arms around Romelle's waist and began placing kisses everywhere - her forehead, her cheekbones, her nose, her chin, her neck, her collarbones, the hollow of her cheeks - anywhere and everywhere she had exposed flesh. Then, once her eyes closed and she began to gasp with pleasure, his mouth found hers and he kissed her, forcefully and passionately.
"Is it too soon to get you out of this dress?" he asked.
"No."
Erimar unzipped her dress and helped her step out of it. "Your turn," she teased him, pushing him backwards towards the bed. "Don't disappoint me."
"Never, my princess." He gave her a naughty grin, and everything else in the world fell away as she felt things that had been absent from her life - and from her marriage - for a very, very long time. Slowly, very slowly, she began to remove the prince's clothing, savoring the anticipation of being completely undressed with him.
Allura faced down the robeast at the head of Voltron. She didn't wait for Keith to give directions; she took charge herself. "Form Titanic Trident!"
"Nice one, Allura," Lance commended her.
The third robeast, the one with three sets of teeth, charged at them. She noticed Vehicle Voltron throwing one of its spinning laser blades to help them out - this robeast was obviously larger and tougher than the other two. They were going to need as much help as they could get.
The jellyfish-like robeast refused to die; Albegas continued shooting at it. Even with its perfect aim - "Of course they have perfect aim," Lance grumbled - the pink tentacled blob refused to stay down. It was only a laser cannon shot that took the pink mass down for good.
"A laser cannon?" Allura asked, frowning. In the distance, she could make out a base camp with cannons on the roof, and automatically, she knew it was Sven. Sven had blown up the robeast.
"Dude, that was awesome!" Hunk shouted.
"Let's not think about that now, Hunk," Pidge admonished. "Voltron's power levels are down by almost a third. If we don't take care of these other two robeasts fast, no one will have any power left to defeat them!"
"It's a good thing we've got one robeast down, and plenty of help," Keith mentioned, referring to the other two robots and Sven on cannons. It had to be Sven, who else could it be?
Then a new voice came over the general communications channel, one which they recognized immediately. "In addition to your aforementioned plenty of help, we've brought back-up. All weapons, fire!"
Commander Hawkins and the crew of the Explorer.