Lance stuck his head out of the top hatch of the Siren. They had come to a stop in the middle of the forest. Surrounded by the dark of night, it was nearly impossible for him to tell where exactly they had landed. Easing himself back into the cockpit, Lance glanced to where Deirdre was now laying tied up against the cabin bulkhead. The only light available at that moment was a steady stream of moonlight coming through the front glass of the ship. He frowned. The jolt that she had received courtesy of his rifle had knocked her out longer than he had anticipated. There was no way that he could carry her through the woods in the dark. Even if he could, there was no way he could find his way out.

There was also the notion that even if she woke up, she might still have it in her head to kill him. She was clearly not in her right mind, and they had Lotor to thank for that. Lance had no idea how Lotor had managed to brainwash Deirdre, but Lance was intent on killing him for it.

Lance shook his head to clear it. Planning his revenge against that bastard was not going to get them out of their present situation. He suddenly felt very tired and realized that he had not slept in almost two days. Drule troops were most likely crawling all over the Arusian landscape. The best plan at the moment would be to stay where they were and wait for morning. He sank to the floor across from Deirdre and reached up to gingerly touch the large gash on his forehead that he had received courtesy of the ship's console when they had crashed into the trees. It had stopped bleeding for the most part, but had left him with a splitting headache.

Rustling from the other side of the cabin brought his attention to Dierdre as she struggled to a sitting position with her back against the bulkhead. She was mumbling what he could only assume to be a string of profanities through the cloth gag in her mouth. He watched her for a moment until she finally noticed him and settled a bit.

"I'll let the gag loose if you keep your mouth shut." he said with the utmost intensity. "If you scream or do anything to give away our position, I will stun you again. Understand?"

She glared at him for a moment before deciding that she would rather be quiet than be knocked out again. She nodded. He crawled the length between them and pulled the cloth down so that it fell around her neck.

"Where the hell are we?"

Lance sat back on his heels. "We're in your ship. We crashed on Arus. Sorry about the ropes, but you did try to kill me."

She narrowed her eyes at him and for a brief moment, he hoped that she might actually yell at him for wrecking her precious ship. Then he would know that his Deirdre was still in there. He was disappointed when she responded with, "What are you going to do with me?"

"I'm going to take you to someone who can help me figure out what Lotor did to you, and how to fix it."

She shivered violently, and it occurred to Lance that the temperature in the cabin had dropped considerably since they had landed. While there was no true winter on Arus, there were times of the year when the nights could get exceptionally chilly. Moving around the cabin quickly, he managed to find a blanket that Deirdre kept in storage. Dropping next to her so that they sat shoulder to shoulder, he covered them both.

Meeting her eyes, he could barely see clearly enough to recognize that they had turned back to their normal shade of green. There was no blue left in them at all. And her hair, which had been blond when he found her on the Inferno was streaking with her natural red. The subtle changes gave him hope. Maybe the spell was wearing off.

Deirdre watched him with curiosity. "You do know that if I get out of these restraints...I will kill you."

He sighed. "Yes, I know."

"Then why are you trying to help me?" she asked in a soft voice.

He watched her again for a moment. "Because I know that Deirdre – the one who doesn't want to kill me – is still in there somewhere. And I am not going to stop until we get her back."

He met her gaze until she was forced to look away, but before she did, he saw a small glimmer of conflict within her. Maybe there was a way to get to her after all.

Silence fell around them, and the irony was not lost on Lance. It was a very rare occasion that neither he nor Deirdre could come up with a quick-witted quip – one always trying to outsmart the other. But now they sat with nothing to say. Feeling the exhaustion settling in, Lance leaned his head against the bulkhead and without even realizing it, he closed his eyes.

The sun's early morning rays filtered into the castle, bringing a welcome light to the dark walls. Walking unhindered into the Castle of Lions through the front door was supposed to be Lotor's final victory. To an extent is was, but as he gazed up at the five colored banners hanging over the doors of the Great Hall, Lotor felt less than victorious. Things had unraveled very quickly on the Inferno. While he and Hagar had managed to board an escape pod and arrive safely on the surface of Arus, there was no way to know whether or not Allura had gotten off the ship before it blew up. On the brighter side of the situation, Lotor relished the fact that there was no possible way that Keith could have escaped the blaze. The Commander of the Voltron Force, the bane of Lotor's existence for so long, was dead. It felt strange that Keith was no longer standing between him and what he wanted most in the world. Voltron.

Hagar appeared beside him. "Welcome to your Castle, King Lotor."

"Why is it so dark in here?" Lotor growled at her.

She gave him a menacing smile, showing off her sharp teeth. "Allow me." She lifted her staff, muttering a few words. As she finished the incantation, the lights of the castle blinked several times before roaring to life.

Lotor took another look around, noticing the walls for the first time. A very large painting of King Alfor, his wife, and their beloved daughter adorned most of the wall. Just below it, hung five smaller portraits. Lotor recognized them disgust. Hunk, Pidge, Keith, Lance, and Sven. All of them posing on the heads of their respective lions, hanging with honor on the wall with the monarchs of Arus.

The new King scowled. "I liked this castle better when it was still in the dark. I want these monstrosities removed and destroyed immediately."

Hagar nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty. Would you like to get settled in before we begin with the business at hand?"

He shook his head. "The first order of business is the most important." He leveled his gaze at the witch. "The Voltron Lions."

"I already have men working on it." she replied. "Shall we check their progress?"

Lotor felt heady with anticipation. "Yes."

They soon found themselves in then control room. All of the lights were back on now and several Drule soldiers milled around getting acclimated with the Castle's technology.

"Where are my lions?" Lotor demanded as he marched into the room with Hagar in tow. There was silence for a moment, and Lotor got the feeling that he had asked the wrong question. He picked one of the technicians who stood closest to the main console and leveled his gaze at him. "Well?"

The man's expression faltered. "We are still unable to access the lions, Sire." he mumbled, staring at Lotor's boots.

Lotor frowned then glanced at Hagar. "I thought that you lifted the spell on the castle."

"I did." she retorted, lifting her chin. She was appalled that her skills would be questioned.

"Then what the hell is going on? Where are my lions?" Lotor struggled to maintain some semblance of composure for he would surely kill everyone in the room if he lost his temper.

"Sire," a different technician answered from the other side of the console. "Apparently the castle's mainframe has a failsafe mechanism guarding it from magic. When the witch cast her spell, the central controls separated itself from the lion's motherboard. It could take some time before we are able to figure out how to access the lions. If it is even possible now."

Lotor growled, glaring from the tech to Hagar, contemplating which one of them to berate first. Before he could get a word out, a loud beep echoed through the control room.

"Your Majesty, we are being hailed by Emperor Zeppo."

The world slowed for a moment as the soldier's words resonated with Lotor. Zeppo had come to Arus sooner than expected. No, no, no! Lotor fumed. Not yet, I'm not ready yet!

"You Majesty, Zeppo wishes to speak to you. What shall I tell him?"

"Put him on-screen."

Zeppo's larger than life image appeared on the view-screen. "Lotor!" his voice boomed through the speakers.

Lotor took a deep breath and through clenched teeth responded, "Yes, Your Excellency."

"What is your status?"

"We are still securing the castle, Excellency."

"And Voltron?"

"Nothing yet, but we are still working on it."

"And my ship?"

"There was a...malfunction." Lotor lied. "The ship got infected with a virus that triggered the self-destruct mechanism. The ship was destroyed."

"Typical," Zeppo sighed. "You always get so close, before you do something to screw it up, don't you, Lotor."

Lotor lowered his voice. "Yes, Your Eminence."

"My fleet will be in Arusian airspace in a matter of hours. I expect you to have your shit together when I arrive."

"Yes, My Emperor."

Zeppo's image disappeared. Lotor moved his gaze around the room, daring anyone to meet his glare. None did. Suddenly, the anger that he had held checked only moments ago unleashed itself. "HEAR THIS, ALL OF YOU. I WANT THOSE LIONS FOUND BEFORE ZEPPO REACHES ARUSIAN SPACE OR ALL OF YOUR HEADS WILL BE HANGING IN THE COURTYARD ON STAKES!"

With every soldier in the control center quaking in their boots, Lotor turned sharply on his heel and stormed from the room.

The birds sang merrily as a cool breeze rustled the tall trees of the ancient Arusian forest. As the nocturnal woodland creatures found safe places to sleep in the early morning hours, the animals that roamed in the daylight were finding their way out of the safety of their comfortable homes. One such animal – a small furry creature that hunted in the top of the thick canopy of the forest – bounded playfully from branch to branch, enjoying the crisp morning air. It stopped briefly to gaze curiously at the large, shiny object that had invaded its tranquil home. The crackling of leaves on the ground under unknown footsteps prompted the creature back into motion. As it jumped from the small branch that it used as a perch, the branch snapped and fell, landing with a thud on the object below.

It was that loud thud of the branch banging against the hull of the Siren was what jerked Lance out of his much needed sleep. He blinked his eyes as they adjusted to the light streaming through the front dash of the cockpit. It took him several seconds for the last few days to catch up with his consciousness. He glanced down at the light weight resting on his shoulder. Deirdre rested peacefully with her head propped against him. He leaned his own head against the bulkhead and listened to the morning sounds of the forest. Under any other circumstance, he might have welcomed his current predicament. As it was his neck was stiff, his ass was numb, and his bladder was screaming at him to take care of some much needed business.

Gently shrugging Deirdre's head from his shoulder, he eased to his feet and climbed out of the escape hatch and out onto the hull of the ship. He glanced around briefly, and once he was sure that nothing was amiss, he dropped to the ground and dashed for the nearest tree. He had just finished relieving himself when he heard the footsteps. Keeping himself hidden behind the tree, he stood stock still, listening. He could make out one set of footsteps. Of course, that only meant that one body had been sent out to scout. No doubt there were more to follow. They would find the Siren soon enough.

As they neared, Lance eased his pistol from its holster. He waited until they were almost right on top of him. Then, taking a deep breath, he stepped out from hiding, leveling his aim at the man in front of him, who, incidentally also had his weapon drawn and aimed right at Lance's head. The two of them stood in the tableau for a few moments before realization dawned on them both.

"This is getting to be a bad habit for us, McClain." Richie Vanderlough almost smirked as he lowered his weapon and holstered it.

Swallowing the urge just to shoot him right then and there, Lance reluctantly followed suit and put his own pistol away. "What the hell are you doing here, Richie?"

"Lance!" The restrained cry from Romelle as she and Sven entered the scene confused Lance even further. She hurried to him, throwing her arms around him.

Sven clapped him hard on the shoulder. "When we saw the ship go down, we feared the worst, brother."

Lance could only shrugged, still not really sure what exactly was going on.

"Are Keith and Allura with you?" Romelle asked, hopeful.

He shook his head. "I sent them ahead with Hunk. I'm assuming that they made it off the ship."

"That's a pretty heavy assumption." Richie retorted, eyeballing the Siren just behind Lance. "Where's Deirdre?"

Lance was about to explain when a loud voice suddenly erupted from the ship. "I'm in here! He's got me tied up. Help!"

Before Lance could stop him, Richie pushed passed him, easily pulling his large frame onto the hull of the ship.

"Richie, wait!" Lance called scrambling to catch him. "You don't..." But it was too late. By the time Lance had climbed up the side of the ship, Richie had disappeared through the escape hatch. When Lance finally dropped down into the cockpit, Richie was already kneeling in front of Deirdre, preparing to cut her loose.

Lance knew that he didn't have time to explain, nor would Richie listen. So he did the only thing he could think of. He unholstered his pistol and leveled it once again at Richie.

"Stop, Richie. Do no untie her."

The bigger man glared at him. "What the hell is wrong with you, McClain? What's with the ropes?"

"She's not who you think she is, Richie." With his gun still in hand, Lance quickly explained what had happened on the Inferno, and that Deirdre was under one of Hagar's spells and how she tried to kill him putting emphasis on the crudely wrapped blaster wound on his arm. Richie looked skeptical. "She's wearing the uniform of a Drule soldier, Richie. Look at her eyes and her hair."

Richie finally took full stock of Deirdre's appearance. While her natural red was showing through more and more, the blond was still streaked prominently throughout her hair. As he looked closer, he did notice that her eyes were not the same color jade that they normally were. They carried more of a blue-green hue now. She was definitely different. Finally resigned, Richie stood up and turned to Lance, who lowered his weapon. "Magic did that to her, Richie."

Richie took a deep breath and leaned heavily against the bulkhead. He appeared to want to say something and Lance could only assume that it was another tirade about how if Deirdre hadn't been involved with him and Keith, none of it would have ever happened. As it happened, Richie didn't say anything about it. Instead he spoke in a low, almost sad voice, "So what now?"

Lance suddenly felt prickly. It was not an abnormal sensation when Richie was around. He looked the bigger man in the eye. "We're going to find out how this happened to her, and we're going to figure out how to fix her."

"Hey," Romelle's voice filtered in from outside. "what's going on in there?"

Minutes later, Lance, Richie, and a still bound and very irritated Deirdre stood outside the ship in cool morning air. Sven was filling Lance in on the current situation.

"So after we got the word from Jeff, we decided that you might need some reinforcements on the ground." Sven was saying. "We've got several platoons holding position just on the other side of the mountains."

Lance smiled. "Wonderful. We're going to need all the help we can get. What about Garrison? Are they sending in the troops as well?"

Sven and Romelle glanced uneasily at each other. The princess shrugged. "When last we talked, the Vehicle Force had not been reinstated. Jeff didn't know what Wade has planned."

"So we're on our own." Lance finished her thought before smirking at her. "Just the way I like it."

There was a moment of silence before the inevitable question was raised by Richie. "What are we going to do with her?" he asked motioning to Deirdre.

Lance let out a slow breath. "Everyone in the castle was evacuated underground. Green's lair isn't far from here. We can use the access tunnels to get to the others." He paused glancing from Deirdre to Richie. "Dr. Gorma has a decent medical facility there, and with a little luck, Keith, Allura, and Hunk have made it back already and we can get a plan of action together."

The silence was palpable as Lance led his party of five to the entrance to where Green Lion was resting – waiting – bound to his lair by treacherous magic. The entrance to the dark cave leading to the left arm of Voltron sent a cool, yet welcoming gust of air that encircled the group. Romelle shivered slightly, pulling her jacket tighter around her body. She paused for a moment, peering into the dark passage. A warm hand on her arm made her look up. Sven smiled down at her, silently telling her that everything was okay.

Deirdre had been uncharacteristically quiet since they had been found earlier that morning at her ship. It made Lance decidedly uneasy. His imagination created lavish pictures of her silently following him, planning a most heinous demise for him. It drove him mad. At least if they were sparring verbally he could keep his mind off of the unknown. He had thought more than once about trying to provoke her only to realize that he truly had nothing to say to her. Not the way she was at that moment. Instead, he focused on the low hum that reverberated throughout the tunnel. It wasn't a sound that he was familiar with but it seemed to get louder the further in they walked.

After what seemed like a lifetime, the dark, cramped tunnel opened up into a large cavern, and there, standing proudly, ready for action was the left arm of Voltron – the Green Lion. Lance stopped to gaze up at the beast. The hum had now become so loud that he could feel the vibrations under his feet.

"What's that noise?" Sven asked loudly. He was standing next to Lance now.

Lance shrugged. "I have no idea, but I think it's coming from the lion."

"Deirdre!" Romelle's shriek grabbed their attention as both men spun around quickly.

Deirdre had fallen to the ground in a fit, thrashing and convulsing wildly. A pale white light emanated from her body. Richie and Romelle had already dropped to her side by the time Lance and Sven had sprinted to her.

"What the hell?" Richie yelled. "Deirdre!" He grabbed her arms in a vain attempt to hold her still. "Get her feet!" he ordered.

Lance crouched down and tried to grab her legs only to be rewarded with a swift kick to the chest. He cried out in pain as he stumbled back. Regaining his balance, he launched himself at her again, this time landing a firm grasp on her ankles. He felt his muscles straining as he fought to keep control.

"What's happening to her?" he yelled just to be heard over the loud hum.

Sven looked up at the lion then back at Deirdre. "Lance! It's the lion!"

Lance followed his gaze to the lion. Where it had been resting before, it's dark eyes were now lit up with a bright green aura that nearly matched the white light coming from Deirdre. He understood, somewhat, that the lion and Deirdre were having some kind of affect on each other, and he got a sinking feeling that it wasn't a good one. "We have to get her out of here!"

Without hesitation, Richie scooped her flailing body up in his massive arms and looked to Lance for direction. "Come on!" Lance yelled. He turned and sprinted to the far side of the cavern just behind the lion to a steel door with a coded entrance. He punched the correct symbols into the keypad and waited for what seemed like an eternity as the large metal door moved to the side revealing yet another dark passageway. He stood aside to let Richie, Romelle, and Sven through before following and immediately pressing the lock button on the other side. The heavy door slid shut.

Once the door had closed, the only sound in the tunnel was the heavy breathing of the party. The humming had stopped and Deirdre had passed out laying limply in Richie's arms. Whatever they had started by entering the lion's chamber was over. Lance leaned heavily against the steel door and let out a slow breath. The peace was only momentary however.

"What the hell just happened?" Richie demanded, still clutching Deirdre to him.

"I have no idea." admitted Lance. "I've never seen anything like that before." He pushed himself away from the door and went to Richie. He gazed down at the still Deirdre and pushed a piece of blond hair out of her face. She seemed to be resting peacefully now breathing steadily. For whatever good that did.

"Do you think it could be the spell?" Romelle wondered out loud.

Silence fell among them again as each contemplated the thought. Lance was nowhere close to an answer. "We have to get Deirdre to Dr. Gorma and regroup with the others. The underground bunkers aren't far from here. Let's get going."

The mood was heavy as they gathered themselves together to finish their trek to find their teammates. Deirdre's life now hung precariously in the balance, and they still had to wonder whether Hunk had made it off the Inferno with Keith and Allura.

The waiting area just outside of Sky Marshal Wade's office also carried a heavy somber feeling. The commanders of the Vehicle Voltron Force waited anxiously, not knowing why they had suddenly been summoned by Wade for a meeting. An agitated Jeff paced restlessly across the floor. Only a week earlier, without explanation, Wade had put them all on leave without even as the Drules had become more active in the nearby galaxies. What could he possibly want with them now? He wished that Commander Hawkins was there to give his counsel.

"Why the hell is he making us wait? What does he want?" he growled, half tempted to punch a hole in the wall – if only to make himself feel better.

Cliff leaned thoughtfully against the wooden paneled wall. In contrast to his hot-headed teammate, Cliff spoke in a decidedly calmer voice. "Perhaps it has something to do with the incident at the bar with Hunk. Then your ship inexplicably being 'stolen.'"

Jeff shook his head. "No, they finished the inquiry into that. They decided that I was not a fault. Hunk sucker punched me when I tried to arrest him, then stole my ignition key. That file has been closed."

Krik, who had been sitting in the corner absorbed in a book that he had brought with him, looked up suddenly to meet Cliff's gaze. While Jeff had not admitted it to them himself – knowing that they could plead ignorance later – the entire team knew that Jeff had let Hunk knock him down, and more than likely, it was Jeff who had slipped his key into Hunk's pocket. It mattered little that he had not told them, they would have stood up and lied through their teeth for the Commander's actions. Mostly because any one of them would have done the same thing.

Before there was any more mention of the incident, the door leading to Wade's office opened and the Sky Marshal stuck his head out.

"Gentlemen, please come in."

Wade's office – which incidentally was previously General Graham's office – had been made over to suit the Sky Marshal's sensibilities. Where the General had opted for a more traditional dark paneled study feel with the walls lined with books and pictures, the office was now a stark gray color giving it a more sterile feeling. The large oak desk that Graham had occupied was replaced by a sleek metal model that Wade now stood behind. He gazed hard at the three commanders standing at attention before him.

"I have just received some disturbing news. Zeppo and Lotor have invaded Arus and taken control of the Castle of Lions."

Cliff and Krik both gasped out loud, clearly rocked by the news.

Jeff stared straight ahead. Of, course he had already discovered that information through less than scrupulous – not to mention illegal – means. As before, he had declined to fill the rest of the team in on the news as a means of protecting them from the fallout should he be found out.

"I have also learned that Lotor's flagship, the Inferno has been destroyed. There is a good chance that Commander Kogane, Lieutenant McClain, and Princess Allura may have been on board. With this information," Wade continued, "we have to assume that the Drules also have control of Voltron. Now, I don't have to tell you what that means for the nearby galaxies." He paused to gage their reactions. Jeff seemed the only one not entirely disturbed by the news. "I am sending a fleet to neutralize the Drules on Arus, and I am reinstated the Vehicle Voltron Force. I will be taking General Hawkins place at the helm of the Explorer."

Jeff stiffened. The last thing he needed was for Wade to be breathing down his neck. Hawkins had always been excellent at letting Jeff lead the team even while his methods were unorthodox. But Jeff knew Wade to be a man who preferred to be in control. "Do we have definitive evidence that the members of the Lion Voltron Force are deceased, Sir?"

The question seemed made Wade's back straighten. "We have no evidence that they are alive, Commander."

Jeff nodded. "Orders, Sir?"

Wade narrowed his eyes at them. "Obviously, we cannot let the Drules to remain in control of Voltron. Without the true ruler of Arus to keep Voltron reigned in, Voltron will be a constant threat of falling into the wrong hands. Our mission, gentlemen, is to keep that from happening. Our mission is to destroy Voltron."