Either Pidge's tracking program had malfunctioned or something major had changed with The Queen's militia. The Green Paladin and Coran had noticed the odd behavior of the armada's movements. Now the Castle crew had gathered around on the bridge yet again. It was Lotor who was brooding in the back of the room now. Nayni glanced over her shoulder at the Galra Prince. His gaze was glued to her. It appeared that he was the one with trust issues now. She'd have to come up with a better lie about Tomyko's death if she hoped to get him to shut up about the matter.

Coran was leaning over the main control panel. The display above him had been illuminated with the green windows of Pidge's program. Even though Nayni was just looking at a bunch of red blips on a screen, she still felt a chill run down her spine. She wouldn't feel completely at ease until she knew The Advisor had been removed from the face of existence in totality. The cluster of blips did seem smaller than what normally populated the screen. The only people in the room that seemed to really be troubled by what was on the display was Coran and Pidge.

But, Nayni had immediately noted how closely Lance and Allura were standing next to each other. They were practically leaning on one another. Maybe the Blue Paladin had taken her advice. When she first met him, Nayni would've been furious to see him with Allura. Not much time had passed since then but it seemed like an eon had gone by. Now Nayni was certain she wouldn't want anyone else by the Princess's side. Nayni still wanted to have a bit of chat about that.

Shiro stroked his chin as he looked over the program with a quizzical look. Hunk already looked like he was bracing himself to hear something terrifying. Nayni didn't blame him, there had been nothing but bad and horrifying news as of late. Shiro flexed his cybernetic hand and looked at the Green Paladin.

"Mind telling us what we're looking at, Pidge?" Shiro asked.

Normally, Pidge was pretty enthusiastic to share what she'd deducted with everyone. She didn't seem excited at the moment but she wasn't scared. Her brows were furrowed with concern. Pidge pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose.

"Well, I started to have some concerns after the rescue mission," Pidge began.

She looked at Coran and the redhead just nodded.

"The Queen's behavior has been pretty consistent until now," Pidge went on. "She engages with combatants, if their defenses get worn down she then opens a rift back to her reality and brings in more of her warships. We then get overwhelmed and have to bail out."

Oh yes, that had definitely been the pattern of things and it had become incredibly repetitive and frustrating. An entire alien race had been left homeless because of that tactic. Coran typed into the main control panel. The logs from the tracking program that he pulled up were dating from around the time that they'd first encountered the Queen's militia. Coran leaned back and folded his arms across his chest.

"After every battle, The Queen would replenish her troops," Coran said.

Nayni watched the old footage. The small cluster of red blips suddenly developed into a larger cluster within a tik. Coran brought up the current tracking log and zoomed in.

"After her battle with Zarkon, the Queen's fleet was weakened substantially," Coran explained. "And during our rescue mission I fully expected her to open a rift and bring in more ships but that didn't happen."

Coran watched the red blips move across the main display.

"It would've been natural for her to open up another rift after we fled and bring in more troops," Coran said. "But it's quite clear from the tracker that this hasn't happened either."

Nayni's heart started racing. She couldn't explain the sudden crushing terror that had come over her. It was as if The Advisor was standing right behind her again. She could practically feel his icy cold breath on the back of her neck. She actually looked over her shoulder to see if he was there, as stupid as that was. The only person behind them was Lotor.

Lance pursed his lips and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Maybe we just pushed them too far and it's taking them more time to recover," Lance said. " I mean they did get hammered pretty hard by us."

Allura shook her head. She rested her delicate hand on her chest as she looked over the main display.

"No-" Allura said. "Something definitely feels-"

The Princess furrowed her brow. She hesitated before she continued.

"I can feel it," Allura said. "It just feels wrong."

The girl had good instincts. Nayni put a lot of stock in them. The only information they had to work with were these strange movements. Nayni's intuition was drawing her towards a conclusion that she didn't even have the evidence to prove was true. She wasn't certain but from what little she'd skimmed from the other Nayni's memories it took a great deal of energy to power the mechanisms of the Other Castle that opened rifts. It was a level of power that only the Queen seemed to be capable of producing. It operated in a way that was similar to the Teludav. She'd been weak when Nayni was being held prisoner but by now The Queen should've recovered enough to replenish her fleet.

Nayni shifted on her feet. She didn't like making shots in the dark like this but she was their best source of information on their enemy now.

"The Queen's the one that opens the rifts," Nayni said. "So maybe-she's not there anymore."

Her suggestion definitely terrified the Yellow Paladin. Hunk's eyes widened and he started fiddling with his fingers.

"Uh-so where did she go?" Hunk stammered. "And I mean-how can we know for sure? I mean she could just be doing spooky devil stuff. Oh God, you don't think she's like summoning an army of demons to come kill us or something do you?"

Nayni opened her mouth to speak but Lotor stepped forward. He had a grin on his face now. He rested a hand on Nayni's shoulder. She felt nothing. She thought his touch would've made her recoil but Lotor didn't have that effect on her anymore.

"Mayhaps that little pit stop you and Tomyko made brought all of this about?" Lotor said.

The way he looked at Nayni was a tad unsettling. He seemed very impressed with her. That look in his cold an eyes was so strange. He was hard to read but Nayni thought he seemed to have finally seen through her. It wasn't possible for Lotor to know exactly what had happened in The Advisor's chambers. She was just being paranoid. Lotor stroked his chin and his smirk only grew wider.

"The cause of this doesn't matter anymore," Lotor hissed. "It could be a trap but I don't think so. They're even weaker now. This is the time to strike."

Nayni had a promise to keep. She was terrified to face The Advisor again but it had to be done. He and The Queen had to be stopped. Lotor looked over the faces of the Paladins. He was eagerly awaiting their answer. Shiro looked back at the main monitor. His tuft of white hair fell in his face when he turned to speak.

"He's right," Shiro said. "We've already got the rebel forces with us, we have the Blades and the Terrapin. If we bring in a few more big guns, I think we've got this."

They all stared at the cluster of red blips on the green display. Hunk didn't seem sold on the idea.

"Yeah but if it's a trap then they're just gonna rip us in half with a rift," Hunk said.

Lotor found Hunk's paranoia to be rather amusing. He chuckled and brushed his silver hair away from his lavender face.

"If they could still open rifts, I'm sure they would've done so and brought in more warships," Lotor said.

He gestured to the main display.

"That clearly hasn't happened," Lotor said.

Allura stepped forward. She had that look of determination in her eye again. It was an expression that Nayni knew all too well. There would be no swaying the girl. The Princess had made her decision and nothing was going to stop her from taking that action.

"Let's end this," Allura said. "We need to stop them. They've pulled our attention away from Zarkon for too long. They've taken too many lives already. I can't allow this to keep going on."

The other Paladins nodded. This was it. This would finally be the end of it. They only had a vague idea of what they were diving into. It looked like this was the prime time. It could be a trap, as Hunk suspected, but if they had enough allies at their back, Voltron could win this. Voltron could finally bring justice to everyone that had fallen victim to the Queen's wrath. Nayni believed that down to her core. Allura's speech had actually drawn out a smile from Shiro.

"All right then," Shiro said. "Let's make the arrangements. We make our move tomorrow morning."

The view of Arus from the bridge was so serene and peaceful, but it did little to raise Coran's spirits. Voltron had been restored but so much had been lost. Thousands of years had slipped by while he and Allura were locked away in the sleep chambers. It had all been so overwhelming. He was grateful that he'd been able to distract himself by training the new Paladins. But during the quiet vargas of solitude, he couldn't escape the questions burning in his mind.

Alfor's contingency plan hadn't exactly gone the way it was supposed to. Coran had not expected so much time to have gone by. He hadn't followed the protocol that he'd initially planned to when he'd been revived. Alfor had wanted him to utilize every asset that he'd set aside for him and Allura. Coran wondered if these tools were still available.

They had Voltron. He had to keep reminding himself of that. As long as they had Voltron, there was still hope. Coran brought up the immense star map. The holographic blue stars and constellations filled up most of the bridge. He'd spent vargas running the calculations through his head. He'd double checked them with the Castle's systems. Even after all of that, he wasn't sure he had it right.

He typed the Ark's original coordinates into the main control panel. The star map rotated around him and zoomed into that sector of space. From such a distance he wasn't sure the Castle would be able to get an accurate scan of the star system. His heart raced as the Castle tried to scan the area. He felt a pang of disappointment when nothing appeared.

Coran input the calculations he'd done to accommodate the possibility of drift. After so much time it was very possible that the Ark was nowhere near where it had been. It could've passed through solar storms or barreled through asteroid fields. It had been designed to survive these things. It didn't really have the power to navigate very well. All of its power was meant to keep the sleep chambers going.

The Castle ran his calculations. The star map rotated again as it searched for the resulting coordinates. This was agonizing. Coran didn't have high hopes. So much of this hadn't gone the way Alfor had planned. He had told himself that having all the Alteans on that vessel would be helpful. They would be of great strategic value and their civilization could be restored. But the truth was so much more selfish. He only truly cared about one of them.

The star map came to a stop. Coran braced himself on the control panel as he waited for the scan to finish. Again, The Castle found nothing. Maybe he'd been wrong. Maybe he needed to redo his calculations. Maybe if he made some adjustments to the tracking algorithms he'd find something. It couldn't be gone. It had to be out there somewhere.

Coran paced back and forth on the bridge. His prominent nose was practically touching the surface of the datapad in his hand. He typed into the orange interface with such fervor. He hadn't eaten or slept. He'd spent most of the evening working on this. There were a million things to do around the Castle but this issue was the one that he felt the most pressure to address.

He rushed this next set of calculations. They weren't much different than what he'd previously come up with. He typed them into the control panel. The holographic stars flew past his face as the map rotated again. The map came to a stop and the Castle's systems expanded that sector of space. He had to wait through another tortuously long scan. He needed to know. He just needed an answer.

Coran already feared that the worst possibility had come to be. But knowing was better than being consumed with all these questions. He didn't want to walk around always wondering what had happened to the Ark. They were about to rekindle this rebellion against the Galra. He couldn't let anything distract him. He was the oldest person involved now. It would be up to him to guide the Princess and these young new Paladins.

The scan finished and this time something actually came up. Coran felt his chest grow tighter. Another window opened up on the star map. His eyes glazed over the Altean text and his heart sank. One derelict vessel. Coran took in a sharp breath. He leaned over the control panel. He buried his face in his hands. Coran had gone to great lengths to design the Ark to endure and survive. But even he couldn't predict how long it could've gone on. He had never thought that vessel would have to survive for ten thousand years.

He was shaking. They had lost everything. That round olive face danced across his mind and his ear twitched. Nayni was gone. If he hadn't been clinging to the control panel he would've been slumped on the floor. He'd gone into this knowing it was possible. As soon as Coran and the Princess had found out how much time had gone by, he knew this was likely. He'd just desperately hoped it wasn't the case.

He thought about the last time he saw her. She had such a look of sadness as she stood on the loading ramp of that shuttle. Coran had wanted her to come to him so badly. He ran his fingers through his fiery orange hair. His breath caught in his throat as he trembled. He never got to hold her. The last time he'd seen her up close was before she and Allura had left Altea. That hug had been platonic and not of the nature that he'd desired.

She asked him to take care of himself and he'd already been doing a rotten job of it. Nayni had always been looking out for him though. She wasn't here to do it now. He pulled himself away from the control panel. He stared at the report that the Castle still had on display. One derelict vessel. He imagined the lights of the Ark slowly flickering until they stopped coming on at all. He thought about all of the pods slowly shutting down. The glow of the sleep chambers would vanish as they all began to fail from lack of power.

At least she didn't have to feel anything. At least she got to slip away in peace. The pain was still unbearable. It felt like someone had driven a knife right through him. There had been so much potential and it was all lost. All the hopes he'd held for the future would never come to be. He'd spent so many nights during that awful war dreaming about the two them getting back to Altea. He'd wanted to grow old with her. He wanted so watch Allura become a grown woman with her. He wanted Nayni by his side when Allura finally found someone worthy of being her partner in life and got married. Maybe Nayni could've been that partner to him.

That was never going to happen. None of it would ever happen. Coran wanted to cry but it hurt so much that he couldn't let it out. He felt the tears welling up in his eyes but they just couldn't break free. Nayni had told him about this. She'd told him how it'd felt when she lost Tomyko. He thought if he'd ever felt such agony that he'd cry out. He didn't feel like making a sound. He bit down on his lip as the tears finally came. They were silent. His hand shook as he wiped them away from his face.

Coran took a deep breath. He typed into the control panel and the star map closed down. He saved the report from that sector and the Castle tucked the files away in some hidden corner of its memory banks. Coran stared off into space. All he had left of Nayni was the unspoken promise he'd made to her. She knew him well enough to know that she didn't need to ask that of him. He would've remained dedicated to Allura no matter what but now he'd do it for the both of them.

There was a good chance they might be dead tomorrow. Nayni was watching Coran run all of his system checks from the bridge. They were all alone while the others were going about their own business. She wasn't as anxious as she had expected to be. Nayni had just sort of accepted it. They were facing off against this powerful enemy. It would result in quite a bit of bloodshed. She was certain that Voltron would make it through but she didn't know what fate could befall the rest of them.

And after all the twists and turns that her life had taken Nayni was prepared for anything to happen. Coran glanced over at her. His warm, gentle smile brought her quite a bit of comfort. It always had. She'd always cherished it but now it had a whole new meaning. He smiled because she was here. She smiled too. She smiled because he was finally with her.

It hadn't been an easy ride but they'd managed to get here. Even if this battle was won and this enemy had been defeated they still had a universe to liberate. There was always something to be done until Zarkon was dead and gone for good. He leaned on the control panel and Nayni took in the sight of his lean muscles and that devilish grin. When they had first met, she'd watched him lean against a wall and flash that grin at many an Altean. All of them had blushed and giggled.

He'd tried that on her a couple of times. She'd only let herself blush after she thought he wasn't looking. Apparently, he'd always been looking though. She knew what it meant when he twirled the end of his mustache like that. Nayni tried to hold back the growing smirk on her face but it was pretty pointless.

"What is it, Coran?" Nayni pressed.

Coran still toyed with her but, she enjoyed the build up quite a bit now. They'd always teased each other but he'd always been far more talented at it than she was. He sauntered over to her. He just couldn't wipe that smug look from his face.

"So we're charging off to war tomorrow," Coran said. "We're facing off with one of the most powerful enemies we've ever encountered."

Nayni nodded.

"We could die," Nayni said.

Coran chuckled.

"You always assume the worst," Coran said.

He ran his finger along the curve of her jaw. She did always assume the worst but that had been her job her entire life. It was rather difficult for her to shake that habit. Besides, it was always a good idea to be prepared for the worst-case scenario. That way you'd either end up pleasantly surprised or fully equipped to deal with whatever turmoil came about. Coran was trying to put on a casual act. It was so forced that Nayni was fully aware that he wasn't exactly trying very hard.

"So, if we're to die tomorrow we should probably do our best to make tonight rather special," Coran said.

Nayni's ears tingled and flushed. She had expected this was what he was going to bring up but it still got her a tad flustered. She rocked back and forth on her heels like a teenage girl who'd just been asked to a gala.

"Yes, yes, I suppose we should," Nayni stammered.

That look in his eye was intoxicating. He could do anything he wanted to her. He just had to say the word. He tilted his head and took her hand in his.

"What have you always wanted to do? What have you been desiring for your whole life but were too scared to try?" Coran asked.

The tone of his voice was just oozing with a seductive quality. Nayni chuckled and shook her head. He was going to be rather disappointed with her answer.

"I've already done it," Nayni said. "I got to bed you."

He actually found her response to be rather satisfying. He grabbed her by the waist and pulled her against him. Oh Groggery, this man still possessed the ability to make her completely dissolve in his arms.

"What about you?" Nayni asked coyly.

She used to get quite nervous when discussing these subjects with him but she'd gotten used to it. She'd come to find out that he was a bit of hedonist. It was a rather delightful discovery that had come to light. What was even more adorable was that fact that he was the one blushing now. It was most surprising.

"I'd always wanted to go skinny dipping and then have my way with whoever I was with," Coran admitted.

His ear twitched. Nayni chuckled. It wasn't because she was mocking him.

"I did that as a teenager actually," Nayni confessed. "My boyfriend and I took a buxom girl we both had our eye on. We took her to the pond on my family farm and ravished her."

Coran's jaw dropped. His cheeks and ears grew even redder. Nayni was feeling rather smug about it. She'd been a tad wild in her youth but it was something she never bragged about.

"Madame, I had no idea that you had that in you," Coran said.

Nayni just shrugged.

"So we'll meet at the pool in a varga then?" Nayni asked.

Coran smirked. He'd been so accommodating to her wants since they'd gotten together. It was nice to see things be reversed. She traced her hand across his chest and started to make her way off of the bridge.

"Don't be late, Mister Smythe," Nayni teased.

He actually ended up arriving early. Nayni was leaning against the sleek white walls of the pool area and staring up at the peaceful waters on the ceiling. Apparently, Lance and Keith hadn't understood how Altean pools worked. They didn't realize there was a switch that needed to be activated that would make the water descend. It was how they sanitized the water. The pillars surrounding it projected a wavelength of light that kept the water clean and free of any contaminants. Lance had explained that on Earth they'd just used a great deal of chemicals.

She felt a tad silly about this. She'd thought she was too old for this sort of thing but Coran had been making her feel a great deal younger as of late. He couldn't really contain his excitement when he entered the chamber. He hovered by the door's control panel and typed into it quickly. Nayni listened to the clank of the mechanisms of the lock come together. Coran flashed her a wink.

"We actually know the door is locked this time," Coran teased.

He wasn't going to let that one go. He'd be holding that over her head for quite some time now. Their footsteps echoed around the vast chamber. Nayni took note of that. She didn't want their activities being broadcasted to the entire Castle. They'd have to keep it down. Coran split off and adjusted the lighting in the room. The blue lights at the base of the sleek pillars dimmed. He always tried to set the same mood. She didn't mind as it was very effective.

Nayni flipped the switch on one of the pillars. She watched the floor open up and reveal the empty pool basin that had been hidden beneath. The crystal clear water descended from the ceiling as it went through the sanitation process. The water settled into the basin without a single drop being spilled around the outside. Nayni watched him saunter over to her.

She was already removing the pins from her bun. He just quietly started undoing the buttons of his shirt with that devilish grin on his face. No matter how many times this man disrobed Nayni would still find the sight of his bare chest to be one of the most tantalizing images she'd ever take in. Nayni shook her brown hair loose and the frizzy curls fell about her shoulders. He tossed his shirt to the side and started undoing the buttons of hers. Nayni reached for his belt. She still struggled a bit with taking it off but she'd been getting better with that.

Taking in the sight of his naked body was still so deeply satisfying. She wriggled her way out of her trousers. He'd already crawled into the pool. This was much more sanitary than the pond from the farm. It would be nice to not have the scaly eels swimming by her legs while she took him. The water wasn't ice cold either. She'd never really been keen on swimming. She hadn't exactly been confident with how her body looked in a swimsuit for quite a few years now.

She just idly tread water as he dove under. He looked so happy that she couldn't help but smile. He swam over to her. He peeked out from the surface of the water and blew bubbles like a little boy pretending to be a submarine. This seemed to bring him a childish glee. Nayni shook her head. He was an idiot but she loved him for it. He poked out of the water and took in a breath. His damp red hair was clinging to his pink flesh. Remarkably, his mustache remained perfectly styled. She had no idea how he accomplished that feat but it wasn't exactly surprising.

Coran grabbed her by the waist and pulled her against his hard body. He already looked quite hungry for her. He was usually so patient about these things.

"Is it everything you hoped for?" Nayni asked.

He pushed her up against the wall of the pool. Coran slid his hand between her thighs and Nayni gasped.

"Not quite yet, but I have a feeling that's about to change," Coran said.

Droplets of water were running down his prominent nose. He grabbed her by the neck and brought her in for a kiss. He ran his fingers through her mass of wet hair. When they passed over the threshold he pulled back. She could feel his hot breath on her lips as he let out a curse.

She kept her legs wrapped around him as she gripped on to the edge of the pool. He took in deep hungry breaths. They had most definitely completely contaminated the pool but the smile on his face outweighed that cost. His ears twitched as he let out a hearty chuckle. She ran her hands along the curve of his shoulder blades as she planted kisses on his cheek.

"I think it's safe to say that I can die a very happy man now," Coran declared.

She pulled him closer. She didn't want him to die. She didn't want to die either. The warm water was lapping against the edge of the pool and relaxed her.

"I love you too much to allow you to die now," Nayni said.

She meant it. If it came to it she'd die to protect him. It just might come to that if things didn't go well tomorrow. He nuzzled his face into her neck. An intense heat was radiating from his body. They bobbed in the water as he pressed his hand to her cheek. That familiar warmth and blue glow emanated from his palms. She ran her hand up the back of his neck and rested it on his head. The green hue of her life energy spread out from her hand. She could feel all of his warmth and love washing over her. She felt their fears mingle. She felt it melt away as they poured all of their love into each other.

They cradled each other as the warm waters swirled around them. No matter what happened they would always have this. They could carry this one moment of happiness for the rest of their lives or into the cold realm of death. But the strength and reassurance that Coran had flooded her with had erased all of her doubts. They would win. They had to win. With Voltron, they could not fail.

Author's Note: If you hadn't noticed we're in the home stretch now. I have planned the two last chapters. I will be releasing them in tandem.