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As Color Fades Away
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Normally graceful, the Lions all but collapsed inside of the main hall, powering down immediately as they were almost all running on the barest of fumes and if they went completely out the recharge would take even longer.
The only one who was still aware was Blue, her yellow eyes tracking every movement on Red where she knew her Paladin was located.
She had allowed the princess to exit and the royal had taken off immediately for where she knew the bridge was located. The little human female had exited Green, but had not immediately left to follow, instead meeting Yellow's Paladin at the bottom of his ramp.
They spoke quietly, too softly for Blue to fully understand, but she caught the words 'see' and 'Spanish,' which she knew was the pretty language her Paladin sometimes sang in when it was just the two of them. Only after her message was conveyed did Green's Paladin follow the path of the princess and Yellow's Paladin hurried up the open ramp of Red.
Seconds later, after hearing some indistinguishable words being uttered between the pilots, Yellow's Paladim emerged and cradled in his arms was…
Blue let out a soft whine and lumbered to her feet, tail flicking back and forth in a mixture of joy and worry. My Paladin! she cried aloud, startling the human carrying him. But she could not be bothered with his surprise, lowering her head to closer inspect her own human.
Blue let out a low cry at the state her Paladin was in. She wanted to comfort him, wrap him in her quintessence, but he was completely unresponsive. She mewled in distress, only refraining from bumping her head up against Yellow's Paladin because she did not want him to drop her Paladin. Her precious, precious Paladin.
Black's Paladin emerged then, a figure in his arms too. Red's Paladin. Red had snapped at her when she had gone to embrace her, to get as close as she was able to her Paladin, for her actions had caused Red's Paladin pain. Blue could see why now; he was badly hurt too.
"Blue," Black's Paladin said gently but firmly all at once. She turned to look at the human's leader, her despair rising at the red streaks that covered him. She could tell immediately came from her Paladin. Her Paladin who was so lifeless. Her Paladin should never look like that.
She let out a mournful cry, tail flicking in distress.
"He's going to be all right," Black's Paladin assured her, drawing her attention back to him. She did not miss his waver of doubt that shook his words, but he continued, "You need to let us take him for medical treatment now."
You will take care of my Paladin she rumbled, the words an order but mixed with such pain that it came out more as a plea.
"We will," Yellow's Paladin said, sincerity and honesty embedded in his voice. Blue inclined her head. She would trust them. They loved her Paladin too. They would help him.
She watched morosely as the remaining four humans hurried away into the confines of the castle where she could not follow. Heaving a sigh, she curled up on the floor, pressing her back against Yellow, and placed her head on her paws.
All she could do now was wait.
xxx
He did not understand what was happening.
There were voices. So many voices. Yelling and screaming and then whispering. Rough hands had touched him, forcing his body to move and creating pain on top of pain.
There'd been heat. He remembered heat. The burns covering him told him heat was bad. He'd cried and tried to get away, but the voices hadn't let him. He wished they would just kill him. He had nothing left to live for and somehow, although he couldn't remember why, living as he was was bad. Dangerous.
He was going to hurt people. Somehow.
He didn't want that.
Let him die.
More pain had followed. Shouting. Gunfire. He flinched at the memory. Then all-encompassing agony. He'd screeched and cried and prayed it would stop. It did, only to return again and again. He couldn't even think then, just wanted everything to stop.
Why wouldn't it end?
Someone had touched him, tried to pet his hair. Haggar. The name sent dread all through him even though he was having difficulty remembering who it belonged to. He'd pleaded for her to stop although he knew it would do no good.
But it had. And then came more words, garbled and uncertain, but the cadence soothed him over the pounding of his heart and the fire coursing through his veins. He recognized those words. They were words of home. Clarity had struck for the first time in a while that he could really recall as he listened. And… and the voice had sounded like Pidge. He remembered Pidge. He could never forget her. He thought he'd tried to inquire, but then agony had started anew.
He couldn't make sense of it. Pidge had tortured him? No, impossible. Pidge was gone. They were all gone. He knew that. The Galrans tricked them. Or had they tricked him? He was so confused. He just wanted it to stop.
It had for a bit, he thought. But now it was back. The voices were loud again. Every piece of him ached and cried out as his body was jostled about. He vaguely realized he was being carried and he weakly tried to pull away. A new location always meant bad things.
No more.
He couldn't take any more.
But something was wrapped securely around him, pressure aggravating his wounds even more and he let out a sharp keen as something pressed directly against his mangled arm and hand.
And then there was water.
He recognized that immediately. His feet touched it first and he felt the rest of his body being lowered in. It rose up, sinking in fangs to drag him further down.
He was going to drown.
Drown drown drown.
Not again.
He couldn't do it again.
Lance forced himself into action with the last bit of himself he had, thrashing as best he could, feet kicking up spray that only had him flinching more as it struck against his face. "No!" he cried. "No! N-no más agua! Por f-avor! No!"
His eyes flew open but they saw nothing. It only made him scream more, fighting against the hands wrapping around him and the water trying to drag him under, rising further and further.
The voices were growing in intensity and he shrunk away, his own words, pleas, giving way to gasps as his breath and energy faded.
He had nothing left in him to fight.
Failure.
Weak.
Pathetic.
He heaved out a sob, feeling the water trying to come higher.
And then it stopped.
It receded.
He was being lifted out of the water and then there was a voice against his ear, whispering hot breaths, and he shuddered, whimpering.
Haggar.
But...
This was not Haggar's voice.
It was...
No. Impossible. They were gone. They were gone and he was here with the Galrans and he was never going to escape because he was weak.
But the voice continued, murmuring words of comfort and the water was gone and this was... this was...
"Estás bien, hermano," the voice said. "Estoy aquí. Es tu amigo Hunk. Tu mejor amigo. Tu hermano."
He recognized this voice. He knew this voice. Even the arms gripping him suddenly did not seem so bad; they were secure. Safe.
The voice continued. "It's okay now. Estás bien. I've got you. You're okay. It's okay. It's Hunk. Soy Hunk."
And as the words continued Lance found himself listening with a feeling of… belief? Hope? Was this just like with Pidge? Had she actually been real? Was this real? Was this really him?
"Hunk?" he whispered, voice breaking.
It couldn't be.
"It's me," came the reply, and something warm and hit him on the face. He cringed, waiting for the pain that was sure to follow. But another drop and then another fell and other than the shock of the action nothing else was forthcoming.
Tears, he realized. Those were tears. Hunk was crying.
It was Hunk.
He was here.
"Hunk," he repeated, breathless.
"Sí, it's Hunk. God, Lance…" The arms about him tightened and Lance whimpered at the increased pressure. It lessened immediately. "Oh God, I'm so sorry. You're safe now. We've got you, hermano. You're in the castle."
A second, accented voice chimed in. "Number Two is right, Lance. We'll have you fixed up in a jiffy. Well, as quick as a jiffy as we can make it."
"C-Coran?" he rasped, trying to make sense of it all. He didn't think he was dreaming. This certainly wasn't his mindscape. Everything felt wrong though, but in a good way. This wasn't a trick of Haggar's was it? Make him think he was rescued so he'd let his guard down?
"We rescued you," he heard Hunk say as if sensing his confusion. "It's going to be all right."
It was too much. He couldn't think straight. Clarity was bleeding away as pain battled to the front and he groaned, closing his eyes against the darkness. It felt like everything was spinning, even though he was pretty sure he was standing still. Sitting still. Hunk was standing.
"Lance," Hunk sounded scared. "Hey, stay with me. Eyes open. Come on, you can do it." Lance blearily managed to raise his eyelids even though nothing changed. It seemed to appease Hunk though. "Good job. Good job, hermano. Can you keep them open for me? Por favor?"
Lance found he could not. They were drooping on their own accord and he vaguely heard Hunk curse. That startled him enough into trying to see, even though he could not. Hunk never cursed. Ever.
Coran said something then and then Lance was aware he was being moved again and he whimpered as the new arms touched on a variety of different wounds. "I've got you, my boy," murmured the new person, and Lance had to remind himself that that must be Coran, even as the address had him freezing.
My boy.
My Lance.
He shuddered.
The voices were going in and out and he vaguely realized he was losing the battle with his eyelids again, with exhaustion. .But unlike past times he did not want to fall unconscious, for even if this was a fever dream he found comfort in it.
"You've got some saliidda in you," Coran continued, voice a lilting cadence that reminded Lance of a song. He tried to focus as Coran was still talking, but the words were fading and sounds were taking their place. They were nice sounds though. Comforting. Soft.
He was so tired.
Then he was moving again and he tried to remember if that meant anything. He felt like it should. Something else wrapped around him now and despite the pain it caused he butted his head against it. It was warm. He'd forgotten what warm was. Warm was nice. Warm was good.
Hot though. Hot was bad. He shuddered at the memory and all of a sudden he wasn't sure if the warmth was so good. It came before hot. Still though, this was not hurting. Not more than anything else. He rubbed his cheek against it, the warmth smooth to the touch and soothing.
But then there was the feeling of something odd touching his toes and a second later he recognized it as water. He gasped, trying to free himself from whatever was holding him.
Not water. Not again
Please no.
He tried to speak, but the words were becoming lodged in his throat and all he could manage were little breaths that stabbed his chest in pain.
"Lance, estás bien," came Hunk's voice from directly above him. Lance did not stop his pathetic struggles. "It's just agua. Agua. You're okay," Hunk pleaded. "Estoy aquí. I won't let you go. Okay? Lance, it's okay."
The water came again, rising above his chest now and Lance whined. Any second now he was going to go under. The water was going to drag him down and they wouldn't let him up until he was choking and couldn't breathe. And they'd do it again and again and again and again and again and–
The voice was saying something again and Lance tried so hard to listen to it over the beating of his heart and the panic threatening to swallow him. It still sounded like Hunk. And the water was still there, but it wasn't over his face. They weren't drowning him. He could still breathe. He took in a big gulp of air to make sure, in case they changed their minds, in case this wasn't real, but that only set fire racing through his chest and he coughed out what he'd inhaled.
The voices were murmuring now. He couldn't make out anything in particular, but it was comforting. He closed his eyes, letting the tones wash over him. They weren't hurting him. Even after struggling they weren't doing anything. Theodek – and the name conjured up the image of a dark grin – would surely have punished him by now.
But Theodek was not here.
He was not there.
He was in the castle.
Why was that so hard to remember?
He was so tired.
He felt the water shifting, rising up to cover his chest now. He tried not to cry out, keeping his lips firmly sealed. Just in case.
But then the water stopped. It did not go any further. And to Lance's surprise, the constant screaming pain that had become his world was starting to fade. A little bit. There was still pressure, particularly on his back and shoulder where he could still feel hands – Hunk's hands, he had to remind himself, not Haggar's – supporting him.
But the pain.
It was becoming bearable.
He could think.
The water too wasn't anything like before either. Now that he wasn't flailing to get out of it he noticed the difference. It wasn't cold, but it was not quite hot. Lukewarm, he decided. It wasn't so bad. So long as his head didn't go under. He stiffened at the very thought. He couldn't go under. He couldn't he couldn't he couldn't. The water lapped at his chest and he whined, pressing himself more against Hunk. Hunk would protect him.
"Lance, it's okay. See? Estás bien," Hunk murmured. "I've got you. I won't let you fall."
And Lance let himself slowly relax. He pressed his head again against what he was figuring out now was likely Hunk's chest and the source of the warmth. It smelled like Hunk too; a mixture of honeysuckle and oil.
And blood.
A lot of blood. Lance's eyes widened.
"S-sangre?" he whispered, trying to move his hand to figure out where it was coming from. But that only sent lightning racing through the mutilated limb and a soft scream tore from his ravaged throat. He could taste the blood now too and he coughed more, trying to clear it.
All that did though was send icy stabs through his chest and lungs. He couldn't stop though. He was aware of Hunk murmuring and one of the supporting hands ever so gently raising him up so he was more or less in a reclined position rather than lying down, the water receding. It hurt, but he could breathe again. A little.
"Hey, hey, it's okay," Hunk comforted, holding him close. "I know everything hurts. But we're going to make it better."
And Lance believed him. He knew, felt, that this was Hunk. Hunk always made everything better. And so Lance gave the barest nod of his head.
"Pidge said she didn't think you could see right now," Hunk continued. "So I'm going to tell you what we're doing, okay? Will that help?"
Lance gave another tiny nod, that action alone exhausting him. His eyes closed again and he tucked his head against the crook between Hunk's arm and chest.
"You have saliidda in your system," Hunk explained. "That's really bad. Being in the water will help with it since it is touch based. Are you feeling any better? Even just a little bit?"
Lance couldn't move his head anymore. He was finally almost comfortable and if he moved he was going to wake all the dulled pain back up. So he rasped out a "Sí."
He could almost feel Hunk smile. "Good, good, bien. Okay, so that's why we're in the water. I've got you though. I promise. So next we need to get some fluids in you. Coran said that's the only way to really flush the saliidda out."
There was the sound of a slight splash further away and Lance instinctively shrank back against Hunk. "So sorry," came the contrite voice of Coran. "The Princess' bath is deeper than I had anticipated. You rather are quite tall, Number Two."
The sloshing came closer, but it did not resemble the metal enclosure's jets starting up at all. Coran, Lance told himself. It's just Coran.
"Lance, I've got some water for you to drink," Coran said, voice very close. "We'll help you, all right?"
Then there was the rim of a glass pressed against his chin and without meaning to Lance recoiled, slamming his head against Hunk's arm in the terror that the feeling of the water brushing his lips created. "No," he whimpered. "No más."
"Easy, easy," Coran crooned, the glass withdrawing immediately. "It's all right. It's just water."
"I think water is the problem," Hunk said quietly, the comment directed at Coran but Lance heard it anyway. He could almost feel shame dripping off him at the observation. He almost wished the pain was so overwhelming again so that he couldn't be bothered by such things. Yet here he was. Embarrassed by a glass of water.
"There now," Coran said gently. "It is all right."
Lance weakly shook his head, feeling the flush on his cheeks. It was as Haggar had said. He was weak.
Pathetic.
"Lance, it's okay," Hunk comforted. "Estás bien."
"How about a farkledapple?" Coran suggested. "I think I've got one right over in my things. Just a tick!"
"A farkledapple?" Hunk repeated under his breath, clearly confused. Lance was too and once upon a time he might have made some comment about how all Altean things had such weird names. But he said nothing now, just closed his eyes again and tried to ignore the water still lapping gently around him. Any second now it could turn. It could turn into a roaring wave and there was nothing he could do. He felt his breath pick up tempo and buried his face more against Hunk as if that could make it stop.
"And here we are," Coran said, this time making his way over with nary a splash.
"That's a straw," Hunk deadpanned.
"It is a farkledapple," Coran countered. "A most excellent device for drinking the thick nectar of the kumiwi fruit."
More gently Coran said to Lance, "How about we try again? Just take a sip when you are ready."
Something poked against his mouth then, but it didn't really hurt. Just startled him. It wasn't water though and apparently to his messed up mind that made a huge difference.
Neither Coran or Hunk rushed him and the straw remained stationary. After a few ticks Lance gingerly opened his mouth and pulled the straw between chapped and bleeding lips. It hurt a little bit, but it wasn't intolerable.
He took a cautious sip and promptly choked at the sensation of water sliding down the back of his throat. That little trickle turned into a wave and he could feel his head being forced under while laughter sounded above, distorted. He coughed and gasped as air returned and he expelled what little bit he'd swallowed.
"Oh Lance," he heard Hunk murmur, bringing him back to the present. That's right. He wasn't with Theodek. He was with Coran and Hunk and he'd just lost to a straw.
"L-lo siento," he managed, feeling his eyes grow hot even though he had no tears left to shed.
Pathetic.
That time it sounded like Haggar's voice in his head and he couldn't help the shudder that ripped through him, resetting each nerve back on fire.
"Don't apologize," Hunk admonished with no heat.
"We'll just try something else," Coran said brightly. "In the meantime though, would you be all right with a vein valve? I can get one set up in just a few dobashes."
An IV? That… that might not be so bad. Couldn't hurt worse than anything else. He nodded after a moment.
"Alrighty then, hang tight. I'll be back before you can say hunkledorp."
Seconds later the sound of a door closing sounded and then it was just Lance and Hunk. And Hunk, true to form, did not pressure or ask any questions that Lance was not ready to answer. Wasn't sure he was ever going to be ready.
Hunk instead began to hum, the vibrations echoing down his chest and rumbling against Lance. It reminded him of a kitten purring and it was made all the more vibrant thanks to the saliidda.
This was a good feeling.
Lance relaxed into it, barely even tensing as Hunk shifted slightly and the water moved with him, rising an inch or so higher. Despite the still constant pain he was in, this was the most comfortable and safe he'd felt in forever.
Lance blinked.
Safe.
He felt...
He felt safe.
He wasn't a prisoner of the Galrans anymore; some toy for Theodek to break over and over. Haggar wasn't here, prying into his mind and threatening his friends. And he… he hadn't given her anything. His friends were safe. The Lions were safe. Black was safe. Blue, and his heart jumped at the thought of her. Blue was safe.
He was safe. No more shock collars. No more torture. No more cold and thirst and hunger. No more laughter and taunts and jeers. No more Haggar. No more touches.
No more drowning.
A sob tore at his throat. Then another. And another. It hurt so bad, but the sobs would not cease. Hunk had stopped humming at this point and he felt his friend pulling him closer, in as much as a hug as they could get right now.
He cried harder, lungs seizing and chest burning, and still he cried.
He wanted to stop. He couldn't. Relief warred with shame and that battled against shock and hope and all of the pain.
They'd come for him. They hadn't left him, as weak as he was, there to die. They'd rescued him. They'd saved him.
They'd saved the pathetic boy who had tried to kill himself to escape.
His shoulders heaved. They'd find out. They'd see and know and then they wouldn't want him anymore and they'd have wished they didn't save him and that they'd found a new Blue Paladin instead because this one was weak and didn't deserve the title at all and they would be better off with a different one who wasn't so pathetic to have tried to take his own l—
"Lance, estás bien. Estoy aquí," Hunk breathed and Lance felt another tear drip onto his face. "You're safe. I promise you're safe. It's okay, hermano. I've got you."
He buried his face against Hunk's chest, as if that could hide him from himself. Breathing was harder this way, but Lance couldn't find the energy to move. He just wanted to stay here, where no one could see him, forever.
"I've got you," Hunk repeated quietly. "You're okay, hermano. Just breathe. It's okay."
"I have the vein valve," came Coran's voice, and Lance startled out of his hiding spot. He hadn't even heard him come back in. He desperately wished he could see. His throat seized up at the thought he might never get it back. More invisible tears pricked his eyes and he swallowed harshly to push them away.
"Whenever you're ready, Lance. I'm just going to place it…" he felt a finger very gently tap his left forearm, which still sent shivers through him thanks to its proximity to all of the gruesome injuries. "Right here."
Coran had to place it there because his hands weren't an option anymore. Lance bit back the new sob that threatened him then at the state of his hands. He wasn't even sure they could be fixed.
He managed a tiny nod and a tick later he felt what felt like a small knife stabbing him and he inhaled sharply.
"There, all done," Coran said after just a few more moments. "Excellent job, lad. Those fluids should start doing their job in a matter of dobashes."
Lance slumped back against Hunk with a muffled, exhausted whimper.
"Rest now," Coran said lightly. "You are safe."
The words were like a spell. Each one seemed to increase his desire to sleep. Hunk was humming again and Coran was speaking softly, but the words were indistinct now. It was a comfortable thrum.
He was safe.
He was.
And he allowed himself to slip off into the world of nothingness.
Author's Notes:
And the flangst and hurt/comfort begins. I was actually really excited to start this chapter off with Blue's POV as I've never written from a Lion's perspective yet and she is one of my main characters. And then we go to Lance who is so deliciously confused and scared and it was so much fun to write. As predicted, he did not like the water. :p
Since I used a bit of Spanish in here, the gist of what Hunk is saying at any given point is "It's okay, you're okay, I'm here, it's Hunk, your best friend, your brother, and water." Nothing too crazy, because my view of Hunk's fluency is that he does best either hearing it or seeing it written down (just like me) rather than speaking, but having grown up around Lance when he was learning English and being in Lance's family home he has picked up some but doesn't practice it hardly ever to keep it fluent. Still, he knows the basics and is going to be the go-to translator here.
Given the rapid updates the last two weeks, we're just going to plan for an update next Friday and skip Tuesday. Lo siento. BUT: I do have something else planned for Monday! I've been getting a number of questions via reviews and PMs and figured it might be fun to have an actual Q&A session about Color, writing,and anything else you guys can come up with. Maybe I'll even post a few sneak snippets too :p There is a link on my profile under an August 31 update to a googledoc; it is an editable googledoc so you are welcome to post questions ahead of time if you have one and I will answer them at the Q&A. I'm setting it for 1600 CST for about two hours on 09-04-17, but we'll see if anyone shows xD If you like the idea but can't make it, please do let me know and I can always try and schedule another one :)
Trying for the link here too - just replace the dots and spaces :): docs dot google dot com /document/d/1BotLhp9FqndcFR51Vuobg_kpBvmlwCgiLC7Q7j2AJzM/edit?usp=sharing
Muchas gracias to the lovely reviewers. I love you guys so much! Hugs to: Sirrius The Moonblade, Pheonixwarrior123, CrispyFics, Alexa, NeverUnderestimateWords, KarleighH, Finnesotan, wingedflower, Cynthia of the Wallflowers, Shadow Gray, Guest, Fireflame159, DoctorMerlinReid, Oliviadbell, AIMa, Jadegem02, Jennyfish26, luminoslight1313, llamamoose23, Fantasygirl1329, JinsTales, DawnoftheShadows, Wolf of the Demise, Lasagna, LishaChan, WindGemini, HetaRosFangirl, Stargirl720, 3, vickydd, cara, Cats and violin, BlueCookiesforRick, StrawberryFever3, Guest, Justanangryfangirl, PaintedWings45, Rookblonkorules, dragoscilvio, ShadowWolf, SonoSvegliato, Arivoctix, sally3015, Spacenerd7 and sierra steinbrecher!
As always, I super appreciate your comments! We're turning a new page with this chapter so I'd love to get your initial thoughts on how saga: hurt/comfort and fluffy angst is an go! Thank you all! Perhaps "see" some of you on Monday!