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As Color Fades Away

Chapter Seventy-Six

Coran came to with the odd sensation of something wet and yet dry pressing on his face and the more obvious one of hands roughly shaking his shoulders.

"Merlerggh?" he mumbled intelligently. Blinking open heavy eyes he was greeted with Chuchule sitting on the very bridge of his nose, turning him cross-eyed as he tried to focus on her. She bent down, licked him – and that was that weird sensation – and then scampered off with a chirp.

"Coran!" and that sound was decidedly more articulate than his own. Allura, his brain settled on. "Coran!" A hand tapped against his cheek. "Coran, please, are you awakening?"

Coran's brow furrowed as he tried to recall why he felt like he'd been trampled by a heard of crucoocrans.

"Coran!" the hand tapped more insistently. "I command you to wake up." And although the words were authoritative there was a plea behind them, a fear.

It all came back in an instant.

Coran surged to sitting with a gasp, but the move left his head reeling and sense of balance non-existent and he'd have toppled right back down had a pair of slender but strong arms not wrapped about his shoulders. He could hear Allura shouting his name but it sounded as though very far away. He closed his eyes, concentrating on taking deep breaths. Just a dobash to collect himself.

Allura saw when Coran's eyes closed, his chest heaving with a breath, and she stopped shouting his name directly into his ear. He was awake, she reassured herself. He just needed a minute.

She worried though as she saw the barely there flicker of his orange quintessence hovering directly above his heart and nowhere else. He had nearly had a fatal depletion and she clutched him just a little tighter.

The mice had filled her in on what had happened, their mental chatter what had awoken her.

She had never expected to wake again. She was more than aware that she had suffered a fatal wound from Haggar. Her last moments were hazy but she recalled asking Shiro to save Lance and Hunk and he begging her not to die. Coran had been there, holding her, and reassuring her with soft words even as he cried until she could not remember drifting off.

Yet she had come to to not only find herself alive but fully healed, the only reminder of what had happened a giant scar that took up residence across a large swathe of her stomach and she assumed had a match on her back where Haggar's hand, she shuddered, had plunged through her.

The mice had helpfully explained what Coran had done as well as themselves and Allura had gathered them all to her, crying tears into their pale fur. They had literally given her time of their own lives, the most selfless thing a person – or a mouse, in this case – could have done. She could never repay them, but squeaks all around had told her that they only wished for her to be all right and that was payment enough.

She had cried so much Chulatt's fur had turned crusty with the salt.

Coran too had nearly given his life, only the mice's interference to break the connection halting him before he gave over all of his quintessence and made that fatal sacrifice. She had hugged them all again for saving him, the closest thing she had left to a father and as dearly loved as her own.

The mice had then relayed that Shiro had come down and the threat was over, but they knew little else save that all of the Paladins were gathered in the infirmary. All of them, they emphasized. Allura had cried again. Keith. Pidge. They had made it. They all had. Her family. They were all going to be all right.

Allura wanted to go to the infirmary right away and see them all for herself, but she was not leaving Coran to wake on his own, and doubly so once she saw how low his quintessence levels were. He was technically in no danger so long as he did not try to use them again, and without a rune circle he could not, but worry had kept her rooted to his side.

She had taken the blanket left to her from Shiro and draped it over Coran. She was a bit chilled herself, but the mice had been quick to nestle in her hands and she had been warmed by their concern. Coran had finally begun to stir about fifteen dobashes ago and after repeated callings of his name and the mice assisting by licking him he had come to and now here they were.

"Allura?" Coran murmured, voice thick. His jewel eyes pried themselves open and lifted to meet hers, already lined with tears. "You are… all right?"

Because he had no real idea of what had happened once he activated the rune circle. He had just prayed and hoped wherever he was channeling his quintessence to would be enough.

"Yes," she whispered, "Yes. Thanks to you. Coran, you saved my life."

"I could not lose you."

"Nor I you," she bent down and pressed a kiss to his forehead. "And yet I did. You nearly drained yourself."

He let out a tired chuckle. "I admit I had not a clue as to what I was doing. I believe the mice stopped me before I could do so."

"They did," Allura smiled at the creatures who had repositioned themselves on her shoulders. "They saved us both." She gave Coran's shoulders a squeeze. "Are you up to moving? The others are waiting for us in the infirmary."

Coran's expression turned from relieved to grieved. "Who?" he asked quietly, dreading the answer. Others was plural so at least two of them had made it through this tragedy, and he prayed it was all three that had remained.

"All of them. All five Paladins of Voltron."

Coran blinked.

All… five?

"Pidge and Keith," Allura smiled, tears reforming in her eyes. "They survived. I do not know the extent of the injuries but they are all alive."

Coran couldn't help the noisy sob that burst out of him and the waterfalls streaming down his face. Allura patted his shoulder and let out a tiny undignified oof when Coran sat up on his own power and pulled her into a tight hug that she returned in kind.

He could scarcely believe it. Somehow, against all odds, all of them had made it through.

He sobered a moment later though. "Haggar?"

"I do not know," Allura admitted. "I am hoping we will find more answers upon rejoining with the others. But I imagine at the very least she is not a threat at this moment."

And that was good enough for Coran.

"Then let us go," he said, going to rise to his feet.

Vertigo took hold before he even made it to kneeling and only Allura once more prevented him from faceplanting.

"You are not walking," she informed him. "I will carry you."

"Princess," he protested. "That is not necess-ary!" his voice rose in pitch as he took note of the state of Allura's dress. Or, rather, undress.

"You used to give me baths," she reminded him, holding up what remained of her nightdress across her chest to prevent anything from showing although it did not negate the fact her entire stomach was exposed and her dress was barely hitting at her thigh. He caught what might have been a glimpse of a scar on the expanse of skin but he had already averted his eyes before he could confirm.

"That was different," Coran mumbled, muffled as his arm had plastered itself across his face. "Very, very different."

Allura laughed, a sound so bright and light, that Coran found himself chuckling too out of just the sheer joy that they could do so in the face of all that had happened.

Still, he was relieved when she took what he'd realized was a blanket thrown over him and secured it, calling out a, "I am proper now, Coran," and he tentatively opened his eyes to see she had wrapped the blanket like a towel about her and tucked it in securely.

"Very good," he cleared his throat.

"Now let us see about a lift for you, hmm?"

"Princess, please, I can walk—"

Allura had already bent down though and scooped Coran into her arms as though he weighed no more than an infant.

"This is highly unbecoming of a Princess," Coran sniffed, moustache twitching as the mice used his face as a walking zone to settle themselves on his stomach. "Carrying your advisor like this."

"But you are not merely my advisor," Allura said quietly. Her grip tightened on his shoulders. "You are family, Coran, and beyond dear to me. Please. Allow me to do this small thing after what you have done for me."

Coran could not argue with that and so he did not try.

There was a blood trail leading to the upper level, one that both intrinsically knew belonged to Shiro. The fact that he had apparently been well enough to come down and leave a blanket and message for the mice though reassured them that he was not suffering a fatal wound.

Hopefully.

Allura traversed slowly, careful of both Coran's weakened state and her own as although she had been healed, both her stomach as well as all of the other injuries Haggar had dealt, she felt tired.

When they arrived in the infirmary several minutes later both shared matching fond smiles at the sight of Shiro and Lance sound asleep in the room, Shiro slumped over in a sit and Lance snug in his arms, the latter's head lolled and compressed a bit on Shiro's shoulder.

"Aww," Allura gushed, for the moment choosing to ignore the bandages she could see peeking out and how absolutely exhausted they both were and focus on the actual action.

Shiro wasn't as asleep as she'd thought as a bleary charcoal eye cracked open in her direction. It blinked slowly before Shiro jolted to sit straight up, Lance letting out a sleepy mumble as his pillow shifted.

"Allura!" he whisper-shouted, eyes wide, even as he readjusted to tilt slightly back so Lance was settled comfortably again, arms still snug around the slender boy. "Coran!"

"Shh," she smiled back, stepping both her and Coran over to him. "How are you?"

"How am I?" Shiro sputtered, voice low. "Allura! You—"

"I am fine." There was more to it though and her eyes grew soft as they met Shiro's. "I am fine," she repeated. "Truly."

She frowned as she drew closer, seeing the shallow cuts and bruises he had not covered along with the huge swathe of thick bandages she could slightly make out from beyond Lance that Shiro had wrapped about his middle and shoulder. Lance as well had numerous bandages that the blankets did not entirely obscure. "But you are hurt. Lance too."

"Lance can't go in the pods yet," Shiro said quietly. "And I couldn't; not yet." He looked guiltily at her then, a look she was not entirely familiar with on Shiro. "I'm sorry, Princess. I haven't checked the defenses once or—"

"Shh," she cut him off again. "You were looking after our family, Shiro. And besides," her expression turned more grim, "had we been attacked anyway we are not in any condition to launch an effective counter attack. We would have been… what is the Earthling phrase, sitting dorks?"

"Ducks," Shiro absentmindedly corrected. "But Allura—"

"I am fully healed," she interrupted. "I will check on the status of our cloaking and shields. Despite Haggar's entry our position has not moved outside of the planet's atmosphere so our signals should be cloaked still. I will doublecheck and make sure all shields are operating at whatever strength left in the interim. But…" she hated to ask when Shiro looked so worn but it was necessary to know. "Haggar?"

"Dead. The Galran too."

Both Alteans sucked in harsh breaths.

"The Galran is in the kitchen," Shiro continued, wincing at the thought of their secondary gathering place now beyond splattered with blood and pain. "Haggar is in the storage hall adjacent."

"Alaraan," Allura breathed. She looked to Lance's sleeping form. Had he…?

Shiro read her mind as surely as the mice and added quietly, "Lance killed the commander. I don't know the details but… it was messy. I killed Haggar."

"Are you all right, my boy?" Coran asked from his perch, casting appraising eyes over him. The bandages wrapping about his shoulder were from an injury he did not recall him receiving in their earlier fight, but more than that it was the exhausted lines to Shiro's face. He knew the battle between the witch and Shiro would not have been easy, in more ways than one.

To his surprise though Shiro nodded. "Yeah. I… I think so. Lance," he cast his gaze down to the dark head, "helped me. We talked. And I… I feel okay."

And both Alteans believed him, sending him small, relieved smiles, and that being enough for right now.

Coran brought them back to a query he'd had as soon as Shiro had spoken. "Why can Lance not go into a pod?"

In answer Shiro shifted and placed his hand about Lance's left wrist and lifted it very carefully up.

"Oh Alaraan," Allura moaned as she took in the sight. "What…?" She knew though as soon as she saw it. Haggar.

Damn that witch.

"But his right hand," Shiro settled the left back very carefully against Lance's leg where it had been resting under the tented blanket. "It's healed."

"Come again?" Coran blinked.

"Haggar healed it," Shiro repeated. "I don't know why. But I saw it myself. Lance…he has full mobility now of it. It's completely healed." He let out a bitter laugh. "She healed one only to ruin the other. Irony at its finest, huh?"

"I will take a look at it in just a few ticks," Coran said. "But first, Princess, could you assist me over to the pods? I wish to make sure they are functioning correctly."

"Of course," and Allura crossed the stretch of space.

"Keith," Coran identified the first pod, bringing a shaking hand out to reach for the keypad. He cursed the tremble still to his limb but if what Allura had diagnosed was correct he was indeed suffering from severe quintessence depletion and only time could restore it. He was just going to have to power through as best he could.

Coran flipped through the screens slowly. He could see how there were still some settings for the Tloán he had programmed it for – he lowered his eyes for a brief moment in respect for that life that had been lost – but most had been overridden.

He was well aware of both Shiro and Allura's eyes boring into the back of his head as he worked, no doubt waiting for a diagnosis as he read through what the pod scans were showing.

It was not good.

"He appears to have suffered major burns over the majority of his back," Coran interpreted quietly. "No doubt from the explosion. They are much worse than his previous foray here, I am afraid. They should heal, but it will take time. His right leg appears to have suffered multiple fractures and heavy burns as well and there are contusions and smaller cuts over the majority of his body."

"God," Shiro whispered, clutching Lance slightly tighter to him. He'd assumed it would be bad given the fact Pidge had apparently first brought Keith to a pod rather than he rejoining the battle, which Shiro had no doubts his stubborn younger brother would have attempted to do.

He still couldn't believe they had survived. It was a miracle.

"I'm going to estimate about three quintants," Coran continued, "possibly even half a movement." He brought his jeweled gaze to Shiro's horrified one. "But he will be fine, Shiro. I promise."

Shiro breathed out. Not fully though. Not yet. Not until the rest of his family was accounted for.

Coran tapped Allura's arm. "Onwards, Princess."

He could hear her smile, as tight as it was. "You are enjoying this."

"Now that you have insisted you take no offense, yes, yes I am." Still, he was aware his voice sounded weary and his arm was visibly trembling from the small movements.

"Coran, are you all right?" Shiro asked as Allura brought him to Hunk's pod.

"I am perfectly peachy, my boy."

"He used nearly all of his quintessence," Allura spoke over him. "To save my life," she said quieter. "He is as exhausted as Lance was following our trip to the mindscape, but his body will restore it in due time. He needs rest, but…"

But there was no real rest to be found right now.

Coran meanwhile had his attention solely focused on Number Two's pod, his expression grim. The number output indicated that nearly thirty percent of the human's blood had drained. Much more and Coran knew he would have died. As it was his body was already displaying symptoms of hypovolemic shock from the amount it had lost and it was only likely due to Hunk's size he had managed as long as he had.

That was to say nothing of the injury itself, slicing over halfway through his stomach and disrupting the organ and exposing his innards to outside elements and contamination, along with signs of also being in an explosion, of some sort although not to the extreme Keith's had been, but still enough to melt the underarmor in places. Coran had a sad feeling both boys were going to end up with some scarring on their backs as the cloth had not been removed prior to going in and the healing would be working around it.

But, like Number Four, Hunk should make a full recovery and his vitals were ticking towards stable. Coran relayed this to the other occupants of the room, quietly adding it would be a minimum of a half movement, three quintants, but more likely four until he was ready to come out.

Number Five was almost a breath of relief compared to her fellow Paladins. She had a broken left wrist which would heal with no problems, along with a spattering of bruises and small cuts all about her, and very light burns on her right hand. Her lungs were the largest concern, inflamed, along with her face and when Coran murmured in confusion Shiro had mentioned Pidge saying something about breathing in space. Ah.

Still, whatever she had inhaled would not cause any long-term effects and her face should heal with no scarring whatsoever. Number One had let out a deep sigh of relief at that.

She also shouldn't be in the pod for more than another five or so varga, Coran estimated. It would certainly be a boon to have another perfectly healthy member outside of Allura up and about, but based on the scene Number One had described he wasn't sure he wanted her really about the castle. He had no doubts the young girl had seen enough horror already.

Coran had insisted then that Allura bring him over to Shiro and Lance and she had acquiesced, lowering him carefully down to the blanket pile and making certain he was capable of sitting on his own power before letting go. Coran was both embarrassed and touched by her care.

"I am going to report to the bridge," she said, adjusting her blanket turned dress. "I will be back in no longer than thirty dobashes, I promise."

"Allura—" Shiro tried but she cut him off.

"I must assure some measure of safety," she said. "You understand the necessity."

"Yes," Shiro grumbled, but he didn't have to like it. The last time he'd seen Allura she had been dying and he had been begging her to live and now she was going to go stroll around the castle turned battlefield on her own.

"Shiro," and he had no other warning as Allura gently lifted his hand from where he had it resting lightly against Lance and lifted it to her face, pressing a kiss to it. He felt his face turn pink. "I promise I will return safely."

Shiro managed a nod.

Allura shifted her hand then to lightly cover Lance's right, propped up on his thigh. She gave it a small squeeze, face unreadable, before she stood. She turned her attention to the mice, who had settled themselves on Coran's legs. "I will communicate to the mice if there is trouble and they will alert you. But I promise, I will return soon without incident.

And with a whirl of her blanket she strolled quickly out of the infirmary. The mice squeaked and scurried off Coran's leg to curl up instead in the blanket nest, out of the way but still watchful.

"You saved her."

Coran startled slightly at the comment before he inclined his head. "I did."

"Did… did you know you could do that?"

"No," was a barely there whisper. "I did not. I had believed…"

The two men shared a moment of silence for the what could have been. If Coran hadn't possessed orange quintessence, if he hadn't had the rune circle, if the mice hadn't donated some of their own life force through their connection…

Allura would have been dead.

"I know you know this already, but thank you," Shiro said, voice thick. "I'm sorry I snapped at you too."

"Shiro," Coran placed a hand on his knee, "there is no need to apologize. I more than know how you felt. And thank you to yourself as well. You have ended this nightmare for us all."

"It's not over yet."

Coran followed Shiro's gaze to Lance's left hand. "No. No it is not. But let us see what we can do, hmm?"

He carefully eased the hand out by Lance's wrist, the boy shifting slightly at the movement, but so exhausted he remained asleep. Coran was thankful. He already knew this was not going to be pleasant later and Lance needed all the rest he could.

Ignoring the fused cloth for the moment, Coran examined the actual wound, noting that the hole was much, much larger on top of Lance's hand than the palm although it did go all the way through. A knife, was his guess, although both wounds were larger than a mere stab would have generated.

Lance had pulled against it, he summarized. Meaning that it had likely been embedded. His stomach clenched at the brutality of the Galran commander for he knew without a doubt it had been he who had caused the initial wound.

The top of Lance's hand though was torn open, even with the botched healing job. Almost as though something had burst out of the skin.

The knife hilt, Coran realized faintly. Lance had dragged his hand up and over whatever blade it was that had held his hand hostage. The kind of pain, the mental fortitude to do such an action… Lance had been beyond desperate to inflict such a wound to himself. It physically hurt Coran to think of how scared he must have been and he regretted that he had not been there to save him from it.

But he would save him now. Somehow.

The rag had been jammed into the wound, likely, Coran thought given the bloodied kitchen towels he was spotting in a pile on a tarp, to try and prevent blood loss and also possible contamination if Lance was trying to tend to Hunk, as he was certain was the case. It would have been a painful move all in its own but the witch had somehow gone and fused parts of the cloth to Lance's hand.

Coran honestly was not sure how to quite remove it. He didn't dare try and let it disintegrate in the cryo-pod as the pods were more likely to heal the flesh atop it and seal it in. That, and based on the cut of the injury…

Coran's eyes shuttered. Lance had likely torn through several ligaments in his hand and with Haggar's interference and twisting it was not something the cryo-pods would correctly align. She had indeed healed one of his hands only to destroy the other.

Tragic irony indeed.

However…

The pods might not be capable of saving Lance's hand but… Coran was pretty sure he could attempt to do so. If he could somehow regenerate all of Allura's missing organs and flesh then redesigning a hand should be a simple enough matter.

Although, his head swam, he knew he was not capable of such a feat right now. Any attempt to use his quintessence would more than likely kill him. He also still needed a way to remove the cloth first, but every option he could think of involved high measures of pain for the boy he considered his son.

But there was no other way.

He relayed his thoughts to Shiro, who looked at him with sheer awe.

"You could do that? Fix his hand? Could you…" Shiro made a quick glance at his own prosthetic and Coran's heart clenched.

"I'm sorry, my boy," he said gently, placing a still shaky hand on Shiro's knee. "I do not believe it works it like." For while he had in a sense created pieces of Allura, the wound had been fresh and her body had been cooperative and eager to restore it. It had been a wound that needed healing and his quintessence had responded to it. Shiro's arm was long, long gone and Coran had healing quintessence, not one that was regenerative.

It would not work.

Shiro let out a sad sound mixed with laughter. "I figured. I just…"

He looked down at the metal limb again, too easily able to picture Haggar speared on it, her last words a sick caress and use of his moniker. Even though he had come to terms with the title in some ways, it did not mean the horror and memories were not still there.

"Perhaps myself and Numbers Two and Five could fashion you a different model though," Coran mused. "We had considered as such for Lance should his hand be lost… I am certain we could find a way to replace yours, dear boy."

Shiro had to admit he'd considered the idea. An Altean prosthetic to take the place of his Galran one. But he shook his head. This was a part of him now, for better or for worse. That, and he knew it would not be a simple matter of simply removing his arm like a part of a machine; it was fused to him through Druid magic and as powerful as Coran's healing abilities apparently were, they were not going to be able to fix this. Not if they couldn't even separate the cloth in Lance's hand.

And, to be honest, he had no desire to go back under the knife so to speak, even if it was among his family. The idea of being laid out on a table, unconscious and unable to fight back, shook something deep inside him and he knew it was going to be one of those demons that he might never fully destroy.

"Thank you for the offer, Coran," he said quietly, "but…"

Coran squeezed his knee, no more needing said.

"Let us get some rest," Coran instructed after a few moments. "When the princess returns we can set you into a pod—"

"No," Shiro interrupted. "No pod. Not until Lance is…" Because he refused to leave him until Lance's hand was set right, until that pain and terror was over as much as it could be. He knew Coran and Allura would be there, but, his arms tightened around Lance, while he hadn't been able to protect him before and be there for him in his fight against both Theodek and Haggar, he could certainly be there for him now.

Coran nodded. "Very well. Still, let us all lie down. I know you are exhausted, Shiro. It will be some time until I am able to use my quintessence again anyhow and we may as well take advantage of the time to let our bodies recuperate."

Saying so he tilted sideways and landed somewhat uncomfortably on the pile of blankets, but was too tired to stretch out and find a better spot. Shiro more carefully maneuvered Lance to lying down and made sure the blankets were snug about him, before settling himself along Lance's side, flesh arm draped loosely over Lance's torso in a light hug.

Now that he was lying down the exhaustion from before seemed to double and Shiro moaned softly, closing his eyes.

"Sleep," Coran intoned from Lance's other side, his own voice suggesting he was just about to do that. "The mice will stand guard."

A few proud squeaks sounded and Shiro felt his lips quirk up.

Lulled by Coran's already reverberating snores and the steady rise and fall he felt coming from Lance, Shiro allowed himself to fully give into the welcoming darkness.

Everything was going to be all right.

He could just feel it.

xxx

Author's Notes:

How long can Icy drag this fic out for? Watch me. ;p Haha, in all seriousness, we are very close to wrapping up now. I just want to make sure I don't rush through this "recovery" section because although Haggar was the Big Bad and she has been defeated, this fic has never been about just defeating the villain. It's about family and coming together and supporting one another and we still have quite a bit of that to go (and more gorgeous man, who am I kidding? ;p). I'm excited to finish this journey out with them and all of you.

That said, the update schedule is shifting next week due to season seven. Normally I would skip a week but I *really* wanted to finish publishing this fic by the end of August so Color will still update next week, but on Wednesday, August 8 instead. I do hope to see you there and please, as always, no season seven spoilers now, then or the update after. Thank you!

Please do leave a comment on the chapter if you've enjoyed it. I love hearing from you. Thanks so much to everyone who left one last chapter; I appreciate it so!