Okay, so first off, apologies are in order for taking so long to get this sucker finished. It is really a transition chapter so it was rather difficult for me to write, because I had to get everyone in place for the next part. That is also why it is a little longer than previous chapters.

Now that's out of the way...thank you to all you dears for sending your love. I really appreciate everyone's support in this task. Please stick with me through this transition. I promise it will be well worth it.

ENJOY!

In his dark, bedroom Richie stood rigid with the phone in his hand. The other person on the line had been silently taking his statement and now he was on hold.

"Mr. Vanderlough."

"Yes,"

"We're going to need you to come downtown to give a formal statement."

Richie ran a hand through his hair. "Yes, well, as I've told you already, someone has stolen my Hummer and your fugitives have taken my only other means of transportation."

"Very well, sir. We will send a patrol out to pick you up. They should be there in about twenty minutes."

"Fine, I'll be waiting."

Richie threw the phone on the bed and sighed loudly. Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine that he would be mixed up in intergalactic espionge. A movement made him look up. Keith was standing in the darkened doorway. Richie hadn't even heard it open. He squinted but found it nearly impossible to read the commander's face.

"Is it done?"

Richie nodded. "Wade is probably sending his whole search force out into the boonies looking for you. It should be a clear shot into Freetown. But they are sending a patrol out here to get me for a formal statement."

"We'll be gone by then. Thank you." With that, Keith turned to leave the room.

"Just so we're clear, Keith, I'm not doing this for anyone else but Deirdre."

The commander didn't bother to turn back to him as he walked into the hallway. "I know."

It was no surprise to Wade when the phone started ringing incessantly in his home office. He had been waiting for the calls. He closed his favorite book and laid it gently down on his desk before pouring himself a drink and settling down to answer the barrage of information that he was about to take on. Cradling the phone to his ear, he pushed the answer switch. "This is Wade."

"Sir, there's been an explosion in the lower level of Headquarters!"

"What?" Wade stood up from his desk banging his hand on the table just loud enough for the person on the other line to hear. "How could this have happened?"

"We're still not sure, sir. The blast wasn't large enough to damage any of the upper levels and it appears that nothing was compromised. We've got a crew still working on putting out the fire in the maintenance room."

"Casualties?" Wade smiled at his uncanny ability to feign concern when he knew good and well that there was only one casualty.

"Unconfirmed yet, sir. But Private Krouse was working the graveyard down there, and he is still unaccounted for, sir. We can't even send a forsenic team down there until the fire is out." There was silence on the line, and Wade knew that the young man on the other end was trying to figure out a way to tell him that their prisoner was missing. "There's something else, sir."

Right on cue. "Yes."

"Prince Lotor has somehow managed to escape during all the chaos."

"WHAT?" This time Wade knew he had to make it convincing. "How in the hell did you manage to let that happen?"

"I-um-well..."

"SPIT IT OUT, DAMN YOU!" he roared into the phone.

"We don't really know how he got out, sir. There was no evidence of forced entry. It was like he unlocked the cell doors and walked right out." The man sighed. "We have no idea where he is now."

"Well you better start looking, because I want this thing unfucked right now!"

"Yes, sir. Any further instructions, sir?"

"I want you to keep me updated throughout the whole investigation process."

"Yes, sir. I will contact you as soon as they have the fire out and begin a formal investigation."

Wade finally sat back down at his desk and poured himself another glass of brown liquid. "Good, and I also want to know how the search for Lotor is going. Regular updates."

"Yes, sir."

"Any word on the Voltron Force?"

"Negative sir. Not since the incident at the hotel, but we are currently blanketing the city."

Without announcement, Wade ended the call with a push of a button. He leaned back in his chair. Things were beginning to progress quite well now. The only chink in the chain right now was the unknown whereabouts of the Voltron Force. The set-up had worked perfectly. They were now not only wanted by Garrison, but the Alliance Counsil wanted them as well. Unfortunately, they had been evaded capture a little too well. Most likely due to the Garrison training that they had recieved. They were some of the most capable soldiers in the army. His smile turned to a smirk as he turned up his drink again. That was no matter. There was no way they could stay hidden forever.

He sat his drink down as his comm buzzed again. "This is Wade."

"Sir," It was a distinctly different voice.

"Yes, I know about the explosion and Lotor. And I'm handling it."

"This is about the Voltron Force, sir."

Wade sat up in his chair, his drink forgotten. "Oh?"

"We've just recieved a message from the Freetown PD. They've got a lead on their whereabouts."

"Is it credible?"

"Seems to be. It's Richie Vanderlough. According to him there is bad blood between him and some of the pilots. And he insisted that Deirdre McManus is innocent, and that he can prove it."

"I'll be there in 15. Scramble the search teams."

"Yes, sir."

Wade hit the comm once more, this time allowing himself a broad smile. He felt so close to victory that he could taste it. Once he had the Voltron Force, he would wait for Lotor to make his move, then he would crush the prince, and Voltron would be his.

It had been some time since Lotor had been on a Drule battleship, especially one that was not his own. Wade had kept his promise again. Emperor Zeppo's ship had been waiting for him just outside the Brakah system halfway between Alliance and Drule space. Lotor smirked as he walked with his escort through the corridor leading to the bridge of the large vessel. Wade had been very useful thus far, but now Lotor had no more need for the man, and was looking forward to the day when he could crush him along with Galaxy Garrison.

The doors to the bridge slid open to accomodate Lotor and the two Drule soldiers. The men who had been following him stopped at the doorway as the prince sauntered in to stand before the captain of the ship. He bowed slightly – more out of courtesy and any form of fealty.

Emperor Zeppo sat back in his chair and templed his fingers. "Prince Lotor, of planet Doom."

Lotor nodded. He had met Zeppo only once when he was younger, but his father had hated the Drule emperor with a passion. "Emperor."

"I'm pleased that you found your way here without incident."

"Yes."

"Of course, none of this would be necessary had you not been captured in the first place."

Lotor's jaw ticked as Zeppo rested his condescending gaze on the prince. He now understood why Zarkon had hated the man, and Lotor wanted nothing more than to throttle the man where he sat. But he refrained. While Lotor and his father had a feeble relationship at best, the king had taught his son a thing or two over the years – though Lotor would never admit it outright. One of his father's constant complaints about him was that his actions were impulsive and irratic, and that he lacked any kind of discipline when it came to speaking his mind. Dead or not, Lotor would prove his father wrong now. There was too much at stake now.

"You are correct, Emperor." Lotor pulled all of his focus not to choke on the words. "But I would like to prove that I still have some worth to you, Sire."

Zeppo narrowed his eyes. "How do you plan to do that?"

Lotor raised his chin and stood to his full height. "Give me a fleet of ships so that I may crush Arus."

The Drule emperor laughed loudly, making Lotor's blood boil. "Lotor, you and your father have been trying to conquer Arus for years. And what has it gotten you? Your father is dead, and you were nearly sent to prison for the rest of your life. Why should I risk my ships for your war that cannot be won?"

"The Voltron pilots have become fugitives on their own planet. As well as Princess Allura. Doom still has loyal planets throughout the galaxy who will come to my banner if I can show them that I have the support of the Drule Empire. Without Voltron, Arus is unprotected." He held his breath as Zeppo seemed to consider his plan. It was clear, however, that the emperor was still skeptical. "Sire, I understand that you and my father were at odds with each other more often that not."

"Your father was a narcissist," Zeppo snapped. "He wanted to run things his own way, whether he had the consent of the Empire or not."

Lotor was growing tired of Zeppo's attitude. But he still needed the man's help so he kept his own grievances to himself. "Yes, your excellency. But I am not my father. What I propose will not only stregthen the Empire, but it will make the Drules the true rulers of the Universe." Zeppo raised an eyebrow, and Lotor knew that he now had his attention so he decided it was time for the big offer. "I can bring Voltron under the rule of the Drule Empire."

Zeppo closed his eyes as he considered Lotor's proposition. He was a man of action. Lotor knew this. If Zeppo believed for a minute that he could control Arus and Voltron..."Very, well, Lotor. I will give you three ships to take to Arus. If you can deliever to me intel that proves that Arus can be taken, then I will move my armada in and take the planet in the name of the Drule Empire."

There was a moment of silence as Lotor let the words sink in. Of course he wanted to take Arus himself and rule as the King. In turn, keeping complete control of Voltron for himself. Having Zeppo come in and steal his thunder was not the ideal plan. However, Lotor knew that he had neither the men nor the ships to take even a crippled Arus alone. He would agree. Zeppo could be dealt with at a later date – when Lotor had everything that he wanted within his grasp.

He bowed his head. "Of course, Your Excellency."

During his time in the Academy, Lance had always enjoyed the overnight training missions. Skulking around in the dark, catching the enemy team off guard. Now, as he lay in the tall grass, propping himself up on his elbows, he wondered how he had ever endured them. The ground was hard and the weeds threatened to send him into a sneezing fit. He imagined Keith, sitting comfortably in the charger only a mile down the dirt road, waiting for his report.

He swatted at another mosqiuto on his ear as he gazed down the empty stretch of highway through the night goggles that had graciously been donated by Richie Vanderlough. Lance almost snickered. Nothing Richie had done thus far had been gracious, but even Lance had to admit that the man had put his neck on the line when he agreed to get Romelle and Sven back to Pollux, and then again when he had lied to the police about the team's whereabouts. Of course, Richie had make it abundantly clear that if it weren't for Deirdre, he would be just fine with letting the rest of them hang out to dry. Lance snorted. Deirdre hadn't mentioned anything about Richie until they had sought asylum at his cabin. He wondered idly why she had failed to mention the closeness of her relationship with Richie.

The sound of engines echoing through the darkness cut his musings short. He directed his focus to the horizon and was pleased to see a string of headlights heading in his direction. As the glare of the lights moved closer, he dropped his binoculars and lowered himself into the grass. One by one, a caravan of military trucks raced by him flanked by police vehicles, their lights flashing overhead. He counted fifteen before he gave up and felt a swell of pride. Wade was really sending out the troops for them. When the roar of the engines finally passed him by and faded into the distance, Lance fished his communicator out of his pocket.

"Looks like they took the bait, Keith. They must have half the military out looking for us."

"Let's just hope that the other half is busy doing something else."

Lance shook his head. The glass was always half empty with Keith. "We should have a pretty easy time getting into Freetown."

"Copy that. Pidge has a lock on Allura and Deirdre. With any luck we'll be able to grab them and get out before anyone's the wiser."

"Great." Lance crooned. "I don't think I've ever wanted to get off this rock so badly in my life. Now will you guys please come and get me out of these weeds? I think I'm starting to get a rash in some very uncomfortable places."

The plan had worked just as Keith had predicted. Wade had pulled most of his military search team along with over half of the local police out of Freetown and sent them Bow City where Richie had tipped them that the Voltron Force would be. Romelle and Sven, escorted by Richie, had made the journey to the outskirts of Freetown without incident, but the ease of their travels did little to quell the overwhelming sense of dread that haunted Romelle.

She glanced back to the rear of Richie's sedan for the umpteenth time to check on Sven. He seemed to be resting comfortably, half covered with an old blanket, but the hard lines etched into his face told her that he was still in pain. While their situation was hardly as precarious as the first time they had met in the pits of planet Doom, Romelle was beginning to wonder if their lives would ever be without danger lurking around every turn.

She turned back to the front and caught a look at herself in the rearview mirror. She had dawned one of Deirdre's outfits from Richie's closet, consisting of a frumpy t-shirt and a pair of jeans along with a bright green scarf that she had wrapped around her head and an antique pair of reading glasses that had belonged to Richie's grandmother. Her own mother would not even recognize her.

She turned to Richie sitting in the driver's seat. He had been silent since they had gotten the all clear from Keith to get back on the hightway, and Romelle wondered about his motives for helping them. She immediately berated herself for the doubt. He had no reason to help them, yet, here he was making himself an accessory just to get them safely back to Pollux. Why should she question his reasons?

"Thank you," she began quietly, "for helping us."

Richie glanced at her, and his features softened a bit. "I never had a problem with Sven, and you seem like you were just at the wrong place at the wrong time."

"You don't like the others that much, do you." It was more a statement than a question, and from the tick in Richie's jaw, Romelle knew that she was right.

"We have a long history," was all he offered.

Romelle took the hint and looked forward again. "Well, whatever reasons you have against them, I will say that they have saved my life more than once. And my cousin's entire planet. Arus would have been taken by Zarkon years ago if not for them."

Richie snorted. "They haven't always been that way. When I knew them, they were nothing but a bunch of ingrates. Keith always thought that he knew better than everyone else, and Lance...don't even get me started on that guy."

"And Hunk and Pidge?" Romelle had noticed at the cabin that most of Richie's hostility was aimed at the two senior officers, but he never seemed to have a problem with the others. "Guilty be association?"

"I never knew why a smart guy like Hunk hung out with them. And I don't really know Pidge all that well. He was several years behind us at the time."

"Oh," she fell silent for a moment, trying to process the information. "Well, thank you again, anyway," she finally said quietly.

Richie looked at her again, and this time, actually smiled. Romelle thought he had a nice smile. She could tell it was genuine when it reached his eyes. It was short lived, however, when bright lights envaded the darkness before them. His face returned to a concentrated frown as he pulled up to a security gate. "Here we go."

Romelle stiffened in her seat. "Do you think this will work?"

"We're about to find out," he said as he rolled down the window to greet the approaching security guard.

"What can I do for you tonight?"

Richie pulled Jeff's ship key out of his pocket along with an ID badge and presented it to the uniformed man. "I'm here to do some maintenance on my friend's ship."

The man glanced at the key, the narrowed his eyes at Richie. Then he leaned forward to get a better look at Romelle. The princess was sure that she would pass out from lack of oxygen when she couldn't seem to remember to breathe. The man scrutinized her so that she felt her flesh crawl.

"And who is this?"

"My assistant." Richie smiled and winked.

The guard looked at the badge again. "Give me just a moment."

"Certainly, officer."

The man stepped away from the car and walked back to his station. The silence in the car was deafening as time slowed down while they waited for the officer to decide their fate. Romelle squirmed in her seat. "What's taking so long?" She spoke in shallow breaths, sure at any moment that she was going to start hyperventilating.

Richie turned to Romelle. "Relax. He's just doing his job." he coaxed her. "You have got to maintain yourself or we're all dead."

Finally able to find her breath again, she spoke spoke softly. "I'm trying. I've just never had to do anything like this before." She jumped when she felt something touching her. Turning back, she saw Sven's hand on her arm. Even in the dim light, she could see him peeking out from underneath the blanket, smiling gently at her.

"You can do this, love." he whispered.

With that simple statement, Romelle felt a renewed sense of confidence. She nodded, took a deep breath, and turned back toward the lights in front of her. Yes, she could do this. She squared her shoulders as the officer walked back to the car. His face was completely unreadable. While she told herself not to completely loose it, she could not stop the uncontrollable thumping in her chest. The man approached the car and leaned in the driver's side window. He looked from Romelle to Richie, and Romelle wondered if he was going to say something or if he was just jerking them around.

"Looks like everything checks out. The Commander called earlier this evening and said to expect a service call for his ship." He handing the badge and key back to Richie. "Hanger 7. Drive straight back and to the left."

Richie smiled at him. "Thank you, officer."

The man tapped the window and nodded. He moved back to the stationhouse. Romelle let out the breath she had been holding as the gate before them whined open for them. This time Richie gave her a big grin that stretched from ear to ear.

"Should be clear sailing from here on out."

The irony was not lost on Keith that The Emerald City's neon sign blinded would be patrons with a bright pink glow. What did confuse the commander, as he stared at the front door, was why Allura and Deirdre had chosen a strip club for their cover.

Lance approached and rested his elbow on his shoulder. "I know what you're thinking." Lance shrugged. "But it actually makes a lot of sense."

"How's that?"

"Look around. The only people in this part of town at this time of night are the scum of Freetown. The owners of these fine establishments pay the higher ups in the police department to keep their guys out of this part of town. It's a perfect place for a couple of fugitives to stay anonymous."

Keith blew out a slow breath. "I suppose you're right."

Lance perked up. "What? I'm sorry, could you repeat that, Commander?"

Keith narrowed his eyes. "Unless you want another one of those to match..." He pointed to the still prominate bruise on his friend's jaw, which he had received from Keith, courtesy of his own big mouth.

His second in command jumped back, throwing his hands up. "Alright, alright...Let's just get the ladies and get out of here." He pulled the door open and ushered Keith, Hunk, and Pidge through.

The team was overwhelmed by the spinning disco lights and thumping music that bombarded them as they walked into the main room. The smell of alcohol and sweat hung in the air. Even Lance began to feel dirty just walking into the room. With a quick scan of the room, he caught a glimpse of unruly red hair close to the main stage. Quickly getting the other's attention, Lance made a quick trip across the room to stand next to Deirdre whose attention was focused on the stage. Giving her a quick once over, he grinned and leaned close to her.

"Nice outfit."

Deirdre jumped, spinning and nearly knocking him down. Recognition registered on her face when she realized it was Lance. The barrage of curse words that Lance had expected died on her lips when the others approached to stand behind him and Lance was almost sure that a nervous, even shameful expression crossed her face. Very un-Deirdre-like. She quickly recovered and raised an irritated eyebrow at him.

"You have no idea what we have been through tonight." She ground through her teeth as the thumping music faded and was replaced by a fast paced guitar riffed, signaling that the next song had started.

Keith stepped forward. "We can talk about it later. We've got to get out of here. Where's Allura?"

Deirdre's eyes dropped to the floor. He moved closer to her. "Deirdre, where's Allura?"

"Okay, Keith, just so you know, this was not my idea."

The commander cocked his head and narrowed his eyes at her. Before he could question her further...

"Oh-my-god!" Lance suddenly blurted out.

They turned to follow his gaze. A young woman had emerged on to the stage. Well, it was more of a sashay, if you were to ask Lance. Her outfit was a duplicate of the short, haltered dress that Deirdre wore that nearly showed every inch of the long legs that pranced forward into the fast moving, multicolored orbs that lit the stage. To those who didn't know her, it would have been nearly impossible to identify the Princess of Arus in the short, black wig and pink cowboy hat. Her flat shoes had been replaced by a pair of cowboy boots to match. But to the four men unable to tear their eyes away from the scene, there was no mistaking the big, blue eyes and the all too familiar determined expression as she moved with the music. It was definitely their Allura.

To the left of the stage, a group of rowdy men whooped and hollered as she moved to the beat. She looked in their direction and seemed to gain a certain amount of encouragement as she moved toward them.

Keith, finally recovering from the sudden shock, turned to question Deirdre only to find that she had slipped away from him to strategically place Lance between them. She saw him looking at her and gave him a sheepish smile. "What the hell is this?"

"It was wasn't my fault," she blurted out, "that scum bag Sonny wanted five hundred bucks for us to stay here until you came. We didn't have any cash, so he wanted one of us to dance."

Keith's face darkened, and Lance could see what was coming next. This was neither the time nor the place for Keith and Deirdre to have it out, so he took it upon himself to defuse the situation. Unfortunately, such things were not his forte. So he said the first thing he could think of to change the subject. "You know, she's really not bad." he remarked, eyes still on the stage.

"Shut up, Lance." Keith snapped at him.

"Look, Keith," Deirdre continued, "she volunteered. I would have done it myself, but I lost my pink wig during a run-in with the cops, and I would be recognized as soon as I walked on stage."

"Pink wig, huh?" Lance interjected. "Sorry I missed that."

"SHUT UP, LANCE!" Keith and Deirdre both barked at the same time.

"We have to get her off that stage." Keith commanded.

Deirdre shook her head. "Not a good idea. Pulling her now would definitely cause a scene. And we do not want a scene, right now. She has to finish the song."

Keith watched her for a moment before conceeding that she was right. He turned back to the stage to see Allura still dancing in front of the loud, drunk guys to the left of the stage. Her confidence had definitly picked up from their attention and now she definitly grooving to the music, doing cute little turns causing her short skirt to give them just barely a glimpse of her panties underneath. Keith ground his teeth as the men salivated over her like she was a perfectly cooked steak. She was the Princess of Arus for god's sake, and Keith deemed it completely inappropriate. He decided that he would tell her so when this was all over.

The tide turned unexpectedly on the commander, howeverm when she suddenly tossed her head around, and seemed to see them for the first time. Her smile widened even more as she pivoted on her feet and was now making her way toward them. The comfort level of the male persuastion of the Voltron Force suddenly hit rock bottom as she pranced over to stand in front of them, swiveling her hips back and forth.

"Um, Hunk?"

The largest member of the team tore his eyes away from the stage to glance down at Pidge who looked as if his face were about to explode into a ball of red flames. It occurred to Hunk that this was probably the first time that Pidge had actually been in a strip club, and watching Allura moving around on the stage was having a very strong affect on the young man. In fact, he looked as if he might pass out any minute. Hunk really couldn't blame the kid. There was something almost incestous about watching the young woman who had been nothing more than a girl when they had met her, moving around in such a provacative manner.

"Guys, I think Pidge and I are going to wait by the door. Get some fresh air. You know, in case we need to get out quick or something." His comments were lost but he snatched Pidge up by the scruff of his neck and hauled him away from the stage.

Keith neither heard nor saw them leave. The conflicted feelings that were waging war within his body was going to be his undoing. The rational part of him, that is, his brain, was telling him to avert his eyes - that the whole thing was wrong. Not only was she a princess under his protection, but he was her commanding officer. The whole thing reeked of inpropriety. On the other hand, the rest of him, was screaming not to look away. He suddenly wished that he had Lance's uncanny ability to shut down that rational part of his brain. After all, Allura was a very beautiful woman. Men all over the galaxy coveted her. Why shouldn't he be able to appreciate her the way other men did?

The whole thing was about to drive him to the nut house when Allura suddenly made eye contact with him. She seemed to sense his inner conflict and decided to have a little fun. Dropping to her knees, she slithered on all fours until she was right in front of him. She reached out and ran a hand through his hair. With the other hand she took off her cowboy hat and dropped it on top of his head, all the while grinning from ear to ear. Then she leaned ever farther and planted a feather soft kiss on his cheek before pulling back again and getting to her feet.

He watched her walk away and realized that she had made a very calculated move. She understood his conflict and, in her own way, was telling him that it was okay. That, not only did she not mind if she watched her, but she wanted him to enjoy it. To hell with it, he thought. Inpropriety be damned.

Deirdre was quite impressed with Allura's performance. The princess had proven herself to be very competent under pressure and could defintely improvise when circumstances dictated. It wasn't until she made the bold gesture to Keith that something clicked. Something in the commander's demeaner suddenly changed. She had to look closely, but it almost looked like he was enjoying himself – even smiling. Deirdre bit her lip and nudged Lance who finally tore his eyes away from the sortid scene. He followed her gaze to where Keith stood in a trance like state, now grinning stupidly with a bright pink cowboy hat afixed to his head. Lance and Deirdre shared a knowing smile before both breaking into a fit of hysterics.

The song ended – all too soon for some – and Allura finished her routine with a dramatic pose in the middle of the stage. The crowd erupted in coos and jeers as she took a small bow before hurrying to the steps to the left of the stage. It had been a very exillerating experience for her. It wasn't often that men around her really appreciated that she was more than her title suggested. A hot-blooded young woman who enjoyed having men think she was beautiful, and actually show it. She skipped down the stage, still riding high from the crowds response to find Lance waiting for her, leaning against the railing, his arms crossed in front of him.

"Well, well, Princess, never thought I'd get to see that side of you." he chided. Of course, there was a double meaning in that, but he was pretty sure that she didn't catch it. "You looked great up there."

She beamed at him as he put his arm around her shoulder and led her toward the others. "Why, thank you, Lance."

He leaned in close as they neared. "And I think even Keith was enjoying himself."Allura blushed deeply but said nothing as they approached Keith and Deirdre. "Keith! I was just telling Allura how much we enjoyed her show." Lance grinned like a cheshire cat.

Keith, whose previous spell had apparently been broken, cleared his throat loudly to cover his embarrassment. He was now fingering the pink hat nervously in his hands. "Yes, well, you did a nice job keeping your cover, Allura."

Allura narrowed her eyes and frowned. Surely she hadn't misinterpreted the signals she had been getting on stage. She was sure that he had liked her dance. But now, it seemed as if the old Keith had returned and now regarded her with the same ambiguous expression that he always did. Fine, she decided. If he could be dismissive, so could she. "Thank you, Keith." she said curtly before snatching the hat and moving passed him toward the door. A guilty look crossed his face as he turned to follow her. He knew what he had done.

Deirdre, clearly confused by the interaction, glanced at Lance who only shrugged. "You get used to it after a while."

"Whatever you say," she said and followed Lance toward the exit.

They were almost out the door, when Sonny stepped in front of them, effectively halting there progress.

"Hold on, there." His gaze raked over Allura. "Where do you think you're going?"

Deirdre stepped up to confront him, scowling. "We had a deal, Sonny! She danced, now we're outta here." She attempted to walk passed him only to have him grab her arm roughly.

"I don't think I quite got my money's worth, yet."

"Hey, hands off!" Lance pushed his way between Sonny and Deirdre breaking the other man's hold on her.

Max, who had been standing at the door watching the scene unfold, moved quickly to intercept Lance. He was no match for Hunk's lightening fast reflexes, however. Hunk grabbed the man from behind using brute strength to wrench Max's arm behind him, pinning him to the bar. While Max was indeed a hulk of a man, Hunk still had more than an inch on him, as well as about thirty pounds.

Sonny, with wide eyes, glanced from Max back to Lance, who was now smiling at him. "You know," Lance began, "I've been in a lot of bars in my time, and there is one thing I've learned. You don't have to be the biggest guy in the room to win a fight." He leaned closer. "You just have to have the biggest guy on your side." He turned to Deirdre, Keith, and Allura. "Shall we?"

Deirdre moved passed the two men first throwing a flippant smile at Sonny followed by Keith and Allura. The rest filed out behind them before Hunk hauled Max back to his feet and brushed the crumbs from the bar off his jacket. He patted Max on the shoulder and turned to follow his team out.

Allura took a deep breath as soon as she hit the pavement outside. "I am so glad to be out of there."

"Really?" Lance quipped, "cause it looked to me like you were having fun in there." His jest was rewarded with a swift punch to the arm by Deirdre. He rubbed his arm and feigned hurt.

"Alright, everyone," Keith said, "let's get it together. We need to get to a ship and get the hell off Earth, now."

"My baby!" Deirdre screeched as she bolted to where her Charger was parked by the curb, throwing herself on the hood.

Lance made a face. "Uh, why isn't she ever that happy to see me?"

"I can't imagine, Lance," Keith said. "Now let's get going." He started toward the car.

"Um, not to be a total downer," Pidge chimed in, "but where are we going to get a ship?"

"My ship's docked just outside of town. Noone will get in the way of us taking off. We can take her."

"We?" Lance smirked. "You planning on coming with us?"

Deirdre leaned casually against her car, folding her arms across her chest. "Well, since I've burned almost every bridge in Freetown, and I'm still on the hook for aiding wanted criminals...now seems like a good time to cut my losses and get outta Dodge." She walked around to the driver's side of the car. "I've still got contacts around the galaxy. I'm sure I can find a place to lay low."

Before she could get in the car, Allura grabbed her, pulling her into a hug. When she released Deirdre, tears welled up in her eyes. "Thank you, Deirdre. For everything."

"Don't let her fool you, Allura." Lance laid an arm casually on Allura's shoulder, grinning stupidly. "She just can't get enough of me, that's all." His remark earned him another punch in the arm – this time from Allura. "Hey," he pouted, rubbing his arm, "I think the two of you have been spending way too much time together."

"Ahem..." They turned to where Keith, Hunk, and Pidge still stood on the sidewalk. "If the three of you are done acting like third graders on the playground, we still have to get out of here before Wade realizes that he's been had and comes back looking for us."

In tandum, all three stuck their tongues out at Keith before piling into the Charger. Keith shook his head and sighed. It was going to be a long trip back to Arus.

This is officially the end of part one. Not to worry though, part two will be up soon with everyone back safely on Arus. Obviously, we still have some unresolved issues :) And the danger is far from over. Wade and Lotor still have every intention of carrying out their malicious plans. Wha-ha-ha-ha...

Cheesy, I know. But what the hell :) See you soon.