Chapter 1: The Deceitful King

A/N: I do not own Voltron: Legendary Defender.

I just own Ziera, Colran, Sephiras, Janze and any other OCs mentioned in this fic that isn't canon.

WARNING: Contains violence, death, implications of sexual acts, Lance's flirting, and other things that may cause some readers discomfort.

Hey guys, finally brought you chapter 1 of my Forgotten but not Lost fic! I'm actually surprised this took me so long, but at least I've managed to get it out now! I'm honestly terrified of writing this fic, because I've never gone so far out of canon before, but with how Voltron actually ended, I think we all can agree that I can't do any worse than that.

If you liked the ending by the way, I don't mind, everyone is entitled to their own opinion, I just believe it could have ended in a way better way.

I can't say how, because it'll ruin the fic.

Enjoy!

The sun was setting slowly in the familiar forests of Olkarion, where Ziera, the amnesiac Tylyrion stood, hidden behind a tree as she observed the sentry bots of the Galra Empire making their usual patrol rounds. It had been many years since she had crash-landed and met Ryner, and she had done nothing but prove her loyalty ever since. Though it had been difficult at first, she even managed to make friends with the Olkari sentries that once distrusted her, and both Colren and Janze would chat with her often about even the smallest things.

She felt like she had a home here, even if it was not her birthplace, and she swore she would protect it until the end of her long, long life. However, despite being here for some time, and exposing herself to many different things in hopes of reclaiming some of her memories, there were only a few serious things she remembered that would stick with her forever.

She had a passion for technology and spent as much time as she could coming up with new inventions, which never seemed to work out when she tried to create them alone, in the end, she would always need advice and assistance from an Olkari citizen. Of course, she had succeeded in one invention, if the memory was correct. On her feet she wore a pair of pink, black and white hover-shoes that assisted her already boosted speed in battle, and she remembered that she had called them Skate-Overs.

She was also a suitable warrior and remembered a few situations where she could use her skills in battle, however, she had to be taught how to use a gun when she was appointed as a guard for the village she had once inconvenienced. Apparently, Tylyrion preferred blade-like weapons or even their own claws and teeth, going by what little combat she could recall engaging in.

Ziera quickly moved her hand to her ear as she ducked behind a tree to avoid a sentry bot that glanced in her direction for a moment, before walking off. She lifted her hand to an itchy com device in her rather large, thin-skinned ears that drooped like a dog's. "Melrak, do you read me?"

"I read you, Era. What's your status?"

Ziera smirked at the nickname and glanced out from behind the tree, to where a giant mechanical device resembling a cube was being created within the beautiful, futuristic city the Olkari once called home. At the sight of the many Olkari citizens being forced to work non-stop using threats of violence towards their King, Lubos, her stomach sank, and she felt disgust rise in her gut. "I'm just outside the city limits, at the edge of the forest-"

"Era, you know we're not meant to go that far!"

"I needed to see what the Galra were planning, I promise you, I haven't been caught!"

"...You're so reckless."

"You can scold me later." She stated, narrowing her eyes as the image of King Lubos faded and the Olkari worked harder than they did before. "Could you report to Ryner for me? The sentry bots and Galra soldiers are guarding this huge mechanical structure I've never seen before, using the Olkari left in the city as their own personal slaves."

"Tch, those bastards!"

"Language, Melrak. Those words offend the Divine Beings."

"...You really believe all that?"

Ziera rolled her eyes as they started going off topic, again, and she sighed, holding a flower-like gun in her other hand as she went silent. Another guard had heard a sound from around her area and paused to see what it was.

When nothing moved, apart from a bird, the machine continued its patrol.

"Don't start now, Melrak, just relay my message to Ryner...We need to come up with a plan to rescue your king and your people!"

"Copy that. Come back to the camp, you're already putting yourself in too much danger being there."

She giggled and nodded, slipping her gun back into it's holster before she pulled her black, pink and white goggles down to cover her eyes, both the shoes and accessory matching the spacesuit she wore on a regular basis. "Alright, I know when I'm crossing a line~!"

"Do you really?"

Ziera turned the com off as a rebuttal before she flicked a small switch on her right boot, and started lifting off the ground when a blue glow emanated from the bottom of the soles. With a kick backwards, like an ice skater would in the rink, she shot forward with incredible speed, skating through the brush like a professional.

It had taken her so long to get used to them again, but as the old Tylyrion saying went, 'You can teach something twice, but it only takes one success to retain the memory,' so she knew she would get the hang of it before too long.

'Funny...' She thought as she looked at the surroundings blurring past through the dark glass of her goggles. 'I've been here for so long, but all I can remember is a few important facts and silly little details that don't really tell me a lot about myself.' Her ombre eyes narrowed as a frown curled against her cat-like lips, her fang poking out on one side. 'Maybe there's only so much I can remember on this planet...I should start thinking about going home soon, even if it's just to visit and reclaim some of my identity.' She sighed. 'The guys are going to be so crushed...'

Suddenly her thoughts were interrupted when she heard the sounds of space engines and skidded to a halt, floating slightly off the ground as she looked up to see the Olkari shoot arrows at five flying mechanical lions, which were being tethered down to the encampment. Letting out a rather cat-like hiss and gritting her sharp teeth, she crouched slightly and kicked off again, angled in a way that would increase her overall speed.

'Are we under attack, did the Galra see me and have sent some new, powerful weapons to wipe us out?!' Fear and panic made her usually quick heart beat faster and her eyes turned to slits without her knowledge, something that happened often during times of stress.

After a moment of rushing through the woods and maneuvering around branches, rocks, and other obstacles, Ziera finally reached the opening that lead to the village she now called home. However, as she broke through the barrier of the trees, she once again skidded to a halt as Ryner and the others stood there, cheering excitedly at the sight of the lions and five unknown pilots standing before their leader.

She could not have been more lost if she tried.

Ryner saw movement from the corner of her eye and looked over, smiling and waving Ziera over, who obeyed the request and switched off her Skate-Overs, walking towards the strangers and her fellow forest-dwellers. "Ah, Ziera, I'm glad you came back unharmed. Melrak told me about your findings and that you ventured too close to the city."

Her tone turned sharp at the end of her sentence and Ziera flinched like she had been scolded, then glared at the strong Olkari sentry stood at Ryner's side, who smirked back at her. "Did he now?"

"You told me to report to her, Era, that includes your location~."

"Ugh, you always take what I say too literally!" Ziera complained but did not dwell on it too long, instead, her focus returned to the new beings that had joined them, wearing odd armored spacesuits of various colors. "That aside, who are these people? I saw you bring them down and thought we were being attacked!"

"Oh, my manners are slipping." Ryner started, turning and gesturing to the group of people. "These are our saviors, Ziera. They are the Paladins of Voltron!"

Ziera looked slightly confused as she blinked and looked over at the humans, one of which, who wore black, stepped towards them. "Paladins of...Voltron? What's that, some kind of vigilante group?"

The man stopped before them and let out a soft laugh, removing his helmet and tucking it under his arm. His hair was black and shaved down with a white tuft sticking out in the front, and he had a scar slashed horizontally over his nose. "I guess you could say that." He held out his free hand for a formal shake. "My name is Takashi Shirogane or Shiro, we picked up your distress signal on our way through the star system and came to assist you in your emergency."

"Oh! That's awesome!" Ziera's energy seemed to bubble through then and she grinned excitedly, surprising the man greatly as she took his hand in both of her's and shook it. "My name's Ziera! I programmed the spores you saw! You must have some excellent technology to be able to decipher it so easily!"

"You programmed the spores?" A short female wearing green armor called out from the group of Paladins. She quickly rushed forward and pulled off her own helmet, revealing her short brown hair and brown eyes framed by a pair of round glasses. "They were ingenious, how did you program them to begin with?!"

Ziera shook her head and let go of Shiro's hand, quickly making her way over to the lions standing by. "Nevermind those simple devices, where did you get these beautiful space crafts?!" She stroked the leg of the blue lion with an excited gleam in her ombre eyes. "They're like nothing I've ever seen!"

Ryner cleared her throat again and Melrak smiled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. "My apologies for Ziera's rather forward behavior...She has a strong fascination for technology and engineering and sometimes it clouds her manners and judgment."

"Sounds like someone we know," Shiro said playfully, placing his hand on the green paladin's head, while the blue paladin went over to where Ziera was admiring his lion and started flashing her a flirtatious grin she did not pay attention to, his helmet under his arm. "But it's no problem, really."

"Yes, but...She should at least attempt to learn your names." Ryner looked to the Tylyrion woman and called out to her, making her freeze in her tracks like a child who had been told off by her mother. "Ziera, you must show our guests some kindness! You haven't even asked their names!"

"O-oh yeah!" Ziera said softly, looking a little embarrassed as she blushed and scratched at her head. "Ah, ha, ha...Sorry about that~" She turned to Lance, who was still flashing his trademark smirk at her, and held out a hand. "My name is Ziera, and you are?"

"Hey there, the name's Lance, but you can call me Darling~" Lance stated, dropping a line on her immediately as he flashed her a grin. She did not blush like he wanted her to, instead she just stared at him with confusion and slight discomfort.

"Wh-wha...?"

"Nevermind him." The red paladin said as he walked over and pulled off his helmet too, his black mullet-style hair flipping back behind his head as he looked up at her with his helmet tucked under his arm. "His name's Lance, and I'm Keith."

"Nice to meet you...?" She said with a questioning tone, unsure how to process this without it becoming awkward. "I'm assuming the person's armor color matches the lion they pilot, yes?"

"Yup!" The yellow paladin piped up, lifting off his helmet, where he had his hair pinned back by a sash around his forehead. He was the largest of the five, but the most fun to be around. "Name's Hunk, I pilot Yellow over there." He pointed his thumb at the second largest lion of the five, which had far more armor than any of the others.

"So that means, Keith pilots the Red Lion, Lance the Blue Lion, You the Yellow Lion, Shiro the Black Lion and..." She pointed to each paladin individually as she went through her little list, however, she stopped on the young woman wearing green. "Uhm, I never got your name." She stated, laughing shyly and scratching her cheek with a silly grin.

The girl smiled and turned, waving her hand sheepishly at the bold, yet strangely awkward alien before her. "Hi, I'm Pidge, and yes, I pilot the Green Lion. It's nice to meet you, Ziera."

"No, no, please! Call me Era, all my friends do~!" Ziera's tail swished happily behind her, covered completely by her spacesuit, even the tufts of fur on the end were hidden behind a teardrop-shaped dome to keep the air in. "So, did you build these lions, they're like nothing I've ever seen, and if their outer structure is anything to go by, I can only imagine what the inner mechanisms look like!"

"Uh, I don't think this is the time to be talking tech." Keith pointed out, everyone only now becoming aware that the sun had nearly set, leaving them in near darkness. "If we don't get out of here soon, whatever lives in these forests will start showing up."

"Yeah, and I don't plan on being forest alien food!" Hunk said with anxious jittering movements, looking around for any of these forest-dwelling creatures Keith was talking about.

"Nothing in this forest will cause you any harm, I have the best people guarding our home at all times," Ryner explained, then gestured in the direction of a faint glow in the distance, the lights from their little village. "But please, follow me, our small encampment is but a short walk this way."

~FbnL~

"When the Galra attacked, only a few of us escaped the cities..." Ryner started as they walked up a winding ascending path to a balcony that looked over the city built from trees and foliage. Ziera was stood by her friend's side as they stopped and looked out at the beautiful lights illuminating their homes, while the Paladins mirrored their action in awe from behind them. "We were forced to flee into the forest."

"How long have you lived like this?" Shiro asked, peeling his eyes from the view to look at the Olkari tribe leader.

"Many deca-phoebs, but as you can see our people are resilient!" Her tone turned from intense and serious to light and proud. "We never stopped evolving. Instead, we adapted our skills to the environment." She turned to them with a polite smile. "Now, follow me, we should make our way into the city, this is but a sample of our home."

Pidge, who had been captivated by the use of technology through plant life, followed as she and Ziera lead the group down the slope once again. "So that's how you were able to programme the spores!"

"Yes, our people created the spores but had no way to integrate our distress signal into the fibers it was made up of...Ziera had an idea of using our way of communicating with nature and machines to send a binary encoded message into the spores like injecting medicine into a patient. She then used that code, and a computer we manufactured to bind this message into the organic matter for others to decode and find." Ryner explained, confusing everyone but the young tech whizz and her trusted Tylyrion friend.

Ziera blushed and giggled, scratching at her cheek gently with her fanged grin gleaming softly in the blue/green lights of the city. "It was nothing really, just something I thought up when I noticed how the fibers reminded me of a wired substance I'd seen somewhere before that allowed code to be transferred from one machine to another."

"I wouldn't say that's nothing," Shiro stated as the youngest paladin almost shined with awe and excitement. "It's thanks to your quick thinking that we found your distress signal to begin with."

"Well, I'll do anything to help my friends." The aspiring engineer glanced back at her new human friends, looking shy, but proud at the same time. "I owe a lot of the Olkari, it's thanks to them that I've learned so much about myself and the world around me..." She looked up at the leafy roof of the forest, watching the stars glint through the gaps in the foliage. "I'll see to it that they reclaim their home from the Galra."

Though the sentiment could be taken as a metaphor of sorts, they weren't aware that she was being completely literal. She only knew this much about herself thanks to the friends she had made here, and the many interactions she had with them as a result. Thanks to them, she was a person again, whether she had all her memories or not.

The group finally reached the center of the city, where a large orb of light was positioned within the winding branches of a tree trunk which illuminated the entire area. The two who had seen this many times before watched as Pidge made a sound of amazement and ran past them, stopping by a member of the tribe who used sticks to create a dragonfly drone to scout out the city without them being caught.

The drone was then sent off to do its duty, stopping by Pidge's face to scan it for a second before it continued on its way. "Coran was right, Ryner." She started as she watched it vanish from sight. "You are the most incredible engineers in the universe! To be able to switch from working with precision machinery to a bunch of sticks..!"

Ryner smiled and followed her gaze, despite the dragonfly drone no longer being in view. "Nature's designs are far superior than any we could devise."

Pidge's smile turned into a smirk as she imagined herself working with sticks and leaves. "No offense, but I'll take my computer over a tree, any day!"

Ziera giggled and covered her mouth with the side of her gloved finger, closing her eyes as she did so. "I know that feeling~ I much prefer an interface created by man, rather than one created by the wind." She glanced at the youngest pilot, who shot her a knowing smile. "Especially during the colder seasons, when the greenery is harder to manipulate in its dead state."

Though Shiro was glad Pidge found someone to converse with over her love of technology, he interrupted with more pressing matters. "You three can talk science later, let's assemble Voltron and get rid of these Galra invaders."

Both Ryner and Ziera sombred up when the invaders were mentioned, but it was the Olkari tribe leader that spoke. "It's not that simple, I'm afraid." She started, and Ziera nodded silently. "The Galra have our leader, Lubos."

At that second, every member of the Olkari race within hearing distance echoed the name of their leader, as if praying for his safety.

Ryner didn't react to this, it was a regular part of their tradition and respects towards their superiors. "If you attack, who knows what they'll do to him!"

"Well then, we'll just have to rescue him." Shiro proclaimed, his words and expression displaying more conviction than any words could have expressed. Ryner was surprised by the level of determination in his tone, and both she and her beloved Tylyrion friend believed his words with all of their hearts, sharing a look and a nod.

"If that's the case, you should follow me," Ziera said, smiling with a cat-like curl of the lips as she gestured for them to walk with her. "You can't go in there without collecting some data first, and we have just what you need to do that~!"

~FbnL~

"Uhm...Ryner?" Keith started as they stood in the deeper section of the forest, where many different types of plants grew and thrived, more so than in the village itself. "Where are we?" The trees were far taller here than in the part of the forest they had originally landed in, but not as tall as the ones altered for their homes to grow out of.

"This is the armory," Ryner informed them, while Pidge leaned to the side to see from behind the older Olkari leader, watching as a female member of her species put her hand into a flower and using her engineering powers, turned said flower into a gun connected to her by the arm.

Ziera grinned excitedly and proudly as the laser shot into the darkness of the forest and the youngest tech-head paladin squealed excitedly, while the others had wide eyes filled with surprise.

"Hey, Janze!" The Tylyrion shouted, looking over at another Olkari male, who was short and slim, and working on a full set of flower guns in the background. He looked up when he heard the familiar voice and waved to his friend who lifted her arm high into the air and waved back. "Come and meet my new friends! They've got the best ships I've ever seen!"

Janze's eyes gleamed with scientific curiosity and he placed his newest flower weapon down before he ran over to them. "Wh-what kind of ships are they?!"

"They're ships shaped like lions and each has a different color that portrays their pilot!" Ziera exclaimed, making erratic, happy gestures. "Like, if Shiro's wearing black armor, he pilots the black lion! It's super cool and I can't wait to ask them more about them!"

Ryner cleared her throat as Janze went to respond with the same energy as their dear ally. "Though I agree that the Paladins of Voltron and the Lions themselves are quite marvelous, we should get to work if we plan on saving King Lubos."

"O-oh yeah..." The cat-like female mumbled, rubbing the back of her head with a shy grin, her cheeks darkening with a black-ish tint as she became embarrassed. "Heh, sorry~!"

Ryner chuckled and walked over to a tree, placing her hand against the bark, they all watched with awe as a glowing light consumed the trunk and forced a giant fruit to grow on it's highest branch. After a moment, the large nut-like shell fell and hit the floor hard, before it formed arms and legs. It was a mech-suit made of wood.

"Cool." Lance squeaked out.

"Uh, can I...Get one of those?" Keith asked.

Ryner stepped over to a blue flower and waved her hand over it, opening its petals and revealing some strange forehead crown-like devices inside. "Of course, you can each have one." She said kindly, taking them and handing each of the paladins their own, and even one to Ziera, who seemed a little hesitant, despite her love for technology. "Now, the key to operating it is understanding that the nano-cellulose responds to electrical impulses from the neural pathways connected through this."

The blue paladin looked at the device in his hands, lost and confused as the technological talk wrecked his rather arrogant brain. "Do what now?" He asked as Hunk licked his and caught Lance's attention with a hum.

"Makes my tongue itchy." The yellow paladin slurred as a result.

"That's your interface?" Pidge asked curiously as she slipped the device onto her head, Ziera doing the same thing.

Ryner nodded. "Of course all commands must come as Binary coded messages." She explained as she watched the shortest and youngest of the Voltron heroes walk over to a tree and place her hand on it.

"Sooo...Like this?" Closing her eyes as she did just as the Olkari tribe leader suggested. The headpiece suddenly glowed and sent power into the young girl's hand, which then traveled up the tree and into the hard fruit above, which fell and became the same type of mech that Ryner herself had created.

"Yeah! That's it!" Ziera said brightly as she walked up to a different tree, wearing the wooden headpiece with her goggles now hanging around her neck, and placed her clawed hand against the surface. Doing the same thing that Pidge did, she closed her eyes and quite quickly managed to draw power into the trunk and up to the fruit. However as the fruit fell to the ground, instead of becoming a mech, it shattered on impact, making the attempt a failure. "Oh come on..." She sulked, pouting as she turned to the wrecked fruit. "I don't get why this keeps happening, I understand code like I do the universal language!" She sighed and let go of the tree, taking the headband off and adjusting her goggles back into their original position. "I must have missed something in my Binary coded message that caused a fault in the creation process."

Ryner frowned from within the cockpit of her mech suit. "I'm sure you'll get the hang of it eventually, Ziera. After all, you're far more suited to the theoretical side of science than the practical."

"Yeah, but I don't want to be a theoretical scientist, I want to be in inventor..." She looked at Pidge who was attempting to climb into her mech which was a little too high for her. "Hey, Pidge?"

The girl stopped her attempt and turned around with a curious gleam in her eyes. "Hm? Something wrong, Ziera?"

"After we save this planet from the Galra, could you give me some pointers on using that headpiece, it might be easier for me to learn if someone who has just learned to use it too teaches me the trick behind it."

"Oh, yeah sure! It'd be nice to learn more about this device anyway, maybe we could both help each other!"

"Yeah, that sounds great!" Ziera grinned excitedly but was interrupted by Lance's voice.

"I think mine is just a tree." He stated, his hand against the trunk, nothing happening for any of the other paladins.

Ryner nodded in acceptance and turned to Pidge who had just been helped into the mech suit by Shiro. "You must have a deep connection with nature."

Pidge shrugged. "Not really, my allergies and pale skin don't mix with outdoor living."

Shiro, now turned to face the older Olkari leader, crossed his arms with a smirk. "Pidge is our resident tech expert."

"Heh, that explains everything then!" Ziera butted in from beside Ryner's mech, before she pressed the button on her shoes and lifted from the ground, hover skating her way over to the other techie. "I'd love to find time to pick your brain for some invention ideas! I might not be as big an expert as you, but I love technology and you must have seen some incredible things out in space!"

"Hmmmm, alright, but only if you tell me your process for inventing your hover shoes, they look so simple, yet the mechanics behind them have to be complicated for them to be so accurately controlled without any form of remote handling!" Pidge replied, eyes gleaming as she looked at the Skate-Overs.

Ziera hummed and looked at her shoes, then grinned and spun around on the spot, placing her hands on her hips when she came to a halt. "I'd be glad to! It may take me some time though, I can't remember how exactly I made them to begin with."

"How is that possible? You invented them, right? You should be able to remember the basic process behind their design."

"Ah, ha, ha..." The cat-like female awkwardly toyed with the goggles that rested on her muted cyan locks, sweat sliding down her cheek. "You'd think so, wouldn't you?"

Silence met the two in confusion and Ryner decided to reclaim the conversation, she understood why Ziera was not explaining her lacking memory, considering their circumstances and the other task that awaited them. "Like the Olkari, you understand that at the deepest level, trees, metal, you, me...We're all made up of the same cosmic dust, all arranged by the laws of mathematics."

With her words directed at Pidge, she watched as the poor girl's expression dropped, slightly confused by her words, because she barely understood nature. "Does this mean I should start gardening?" She asked, reluctant for an answer.

"It means you're going to need to give your friends a ride." She stated, looking over at the other paladins, who had given up trying to get their own mechs to fall. Even Shiro had not succeeded, not that it mattered, he was fine with being a passenger.

"Aw man..." Lance whined as he and the others started climbing into the two mechs. "I wanted to drive."

Pidge was just about to close the door to the machine when she spotted Ziera slipping on her goggles. "Hey, don't you need a lift too?" She asked, getting a bright smile in response.

"Nope~ I'll be able to keep up with you guys on foot!" She stated confidently, causing the younger tech junkie to arch a brow skeptically. "Ryner, do you have your communicator activated yet?"

Ryner nodded as she typed on her large control monitor. "Yes, I've patched it into your own communication device, you should be able to hear me once I close the hatch."

"Excellent, thanks." Ziera rolled her shoulders and kept herself balanced in the air as she watched the doors close, Pidge taking slightly longer as she tried to think of what her hover shoes were capable of if she did not need a lift, before doing the same. Then the two mechs took off at a rapid pace towards the forest's edge.

The Tylyrion's goggles gleamed as a smirk crossed her fanged lips, then she crouched and kicked off into an ice-skating motion, shocking everyone as she caught up to them with ease, even going so far as to salute at Pidge's mech.

Once Ryner saw Ziera's figure alongside them, her spirits rose with motivation and she shouted gleefully. "This way, to the edge of the forest! To save our king!"

"I'll lead the way!" The tech-savvy feline called out, speeding up so she was in front of the two. "I know a spot we can scout from without being caught!"

And with that, they followed her to the edge of the forest, where they would hide away and get a feel for the situation.

~FbnL~

It did not take them too long to reach the forest's border, and Ziera tucked away behind a tree while the two mechs situated themselves behind some large bushes and shrubberies, since they could not pull off the slim tree, hiding position with their round shapes. However, they had managed to cloak themselves pretty well, despite this obstacle.

Ziera had her goggles on, looking at the small screens that showed u on the right eye, closing the left so she could examine the images Ryner was showing them all, each of which was different sections of the city and the sentries that guarded that area. "Their headquarters are impenetrable from the ground." The Olkari tribe leader started, while the vision shifted from the lower quarters to a large tower situated right in the center of the metropolis. "But there is one way in. A small opening in the roof." A smaller picture of the hole gaping at the center of the large roof appeared, which Ziera had to squint to see. "It goes all the way down to an open courtyard."

"That's quite a drop," Keith stated.

"But there, you will have total access to the building. The hard part will be getting onto the roof, undetected."

"That won't be a problem," Shiro confirmed with a smirk, having the utmost confidence in his small, green comrade.

However, Hunk, who had been silent this whole time, leaned forward curiously. "Hey, hey, what's that?" He asked as Pidge zoomed the focus of their shared sight onto a large cube on the side of the landing bay near the tower, it was simple in appearance, with purple markings pulsing on its surface. "Is that part of the building?"

"That's the structure I spotted before during my patrol!" Ziera pointed out, leaning forward slightly as if that would increase the size of the image, it did not. "I don't understand what it is, or what it does, but they were forcing the Olkari left in the city to work their fingers to the bone to complete it..."

"My Lubos!" Ryner gasped, eyes wide as she stared at the familiar structure. "It can't be!"

Pidge blinked as the appearance of the odd design sparked a memory. "Hey!" She started, sharing a small video of herself to the other two interfaces. "That looks like the cube Coran gave me!" To prove this, she pulled a small black cube with a green line around its center out of her pocket, and indeed, it looked exactly like the cube before them, apart from the green hue.

"I haven't seen one of those in many deca-phoebs!" Ryner said as nostalgia blossomed in her heart. "We used to play with those as children!" She returned her gaze to the large replica of the toy. "But this...? Only King Lubos could have designed one that size!"

"Why would he do that?" Keith asked.

However, it was Ziera that responded. "I saw them showing an image of this Lubos to the Olkari they were forcing to build that thing...Maybe they tortured him and got him to not only reveal his designs but recreate them as weapons for the Galra to take advantage of..." Her expression twisted with disgust and she yanked her goggles up and onto her forehead. "Those monsters..."

"...Indeed." Ryner spoke softly, anger in her eyes. "And from the looks of it, it's almost finished..."

The entire group went quiet for a moment as the heavy situation settled in the atmosphere between them. However, it was Shiro that broke through the silence. "Okay we need to act fast, Everyone back to base...I have a plan." He looked down at the older woman steering the machine. "Ryner, can you take us back to our lions?"

"Of course." Ryner turned her mech around and Pidge followed, both setting off back towards the camp that Ziera called home, while the woman in question turned on her Skate-Overs and followed behind with fluid movements. She had no intention of letting them go alone, even if she no longer had a functioning ship, she could still be of use.

"While we're heading back, I'll explain." The veteran pilot began, looking ahead as he spoke. "First we'll need to get to the top of that tower. Since the Green Lion has stealth capabilities, Pidge, you're the dropship. You'll take Keith, Hunk, Lance and me to the roof, then drop back to a safe position."

"Got it!"

Shiro nodded with approval. "After the drop, we'll use a sensor to scan the building for any Olkari bio-rhythms. Pidge will then go through the information and send it to our helmet visors. From there we can safely find Lubos and rescue him without getting into any possible fights along the way."

Just after he finished explaining the plan, they arrived at the camp and the mechs opened to Ziera flying out in front of them and skidding to a halt facing the two drivers and the rest of the paladins, her eyes hidden behind the dark goggles, but determined non-the-less. "Wait!" She started, turning off her boots so she could land safely. "I want to come with you."

"What?" Shiro started, but it was Ryner who continued, standing up in surprise, almost crushing the two stood behind her.

"Ziera, you can't! You haven't been in a fight since you arrived here, you're bound to get hurt, you're safer here where you can protect my people!"

Ziera smiled gratefully at the older woman who gave her a home and a name when she had nothing. "I can't, Ryner...I know I haven't been in a fight for a very long time, but...I'm a warrior, I know I am." She gripped the odd pendant hanging around her neck as if it was her heart. "You gave me a place to call my own when I had nothing, and I can't just keep relying on you for everything anymore...Please, let me repay you for everything by bringing your leader back safely."

"Uhhh, no offense, but if you're rusty, you'd only slow us down." Lance pointed out, looking a little skeptical. "We can handle this alone."

"You want to avoid a fight, right?" The Tylyrion asked, looking at Shiro as she pulled her goggles up to her forehead, revealing her strong will for them to see. "The Tylyrion have large ears like this for a reason." Her floppy ears lifted up, resembling that of a large cat's, twitching at any noise she could hear, all the way up to the edge of the forest. "I can detect sounds all the way to the city, take me with you, and I can guide you away from sentries and lead you down the safest route to where they're keeping Lubos."

"Whoa." Hunk said simply, pointing at her. "Those ears are cool."

"Thank you!" Ziera blushed with a bright smile, but it fell when she looked at their leader again, who was contemplating her request. "All I ask is that you give me the chance to help, if I believe I'll be a burden, then I will back off and go back to the Green Lion...I may be a little energetic for most people, but I know my own limits."

Melrak laughed in the distance and her ears drooped, her blush darkening before she spun around. "Melrak, you're not helping!"

"It would be useful to have a sound radar too." Pidge chimed in. "If we scanned for bio-rhythms then I won't be able to locate sentries, combine that with her hearing, then you'd not only be able to avoid enemies, but would also be able to plan an ambush if Lubos is heavily guarded."

"Hmmm..." The black paladin hummed thoughtfully and stroked his broad chin, looking down at the ground as he mused his friend's words. "You have a point...Being able to tell how many enemies there are, and where they're coming from is a valuable asset...Alright."

Ziera's expression brightened while Ryner's turned to horrified shock. "I must protest, Ziera you've already lost so much, if you get hurt, you could lose even more of your memories!"

The paladins shared a look of confusion as Ziera's expression twisted with discomfort before she sighed and walked over to the older looking woman who hopped out of the mech to stand at eye-level with her friend. "I know you're worried, Ryner, but I'll be fine. Not only am I fast, but I have the Paladins of Voltron on my side! The Galra won't know what hit them!"

Ryner still seemed reluctant, but as the paladins all hopped out of the mechs, Shiro placed his hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, we'll keep her safe."

"...Alright. Promise me you won't try anything reckless."

Ziera nodded and pulled her flower gun out of its holster, showing it off. "Don't worry, I'll be careful, but if anything does happen, I know how to use this."

"I know you do, come back safely, whether you can save our king or not."

"I will, and I won't be returning alone, I can guarantee that."

With a nervous, but grateful wave, Ziera followed the Paladins to the Green Lion, her heart hammering in her chest, this would be the first time she had engaged in anything other than scouting duty or tech support since she arrived, and she would be lying if she said she was not even a little bit scared.

Of course, all of those fears and 'what-ifs' were forgotten the moment the Green Lion lowered its head and opened its mouth, revealing a doorway that lead inside. She immediately switched back to nerd-mode and excitedly clapped her hands together with a bright grin. "I can't wait to see how your beautiful ship works, Pidge!" She exclaimed as Pidge smiled and walked ahead of her, behind the others, so she could lead Ziera through the lion, as it could be complicated.

"Yeah, when I first got her, I was exactly the same! She's a beautiful piece of machinery that can do so much more than anything Earth has invented over the past century!" The younger tech-expert said, stroking the inside of the lion's cheek as she walked up the tongue and opened the door, with her Tylyrion friend following behind. "The best part is, she's not just a machine, she's alive, I can feel her heart, hear her soul. That's what makes her so special."

"Whoa..." Ziera breathed softly, turning and walking backwards as the mouth closed and the two joined the other Paladins on the elevator to the main section of the ship. "No wonder Ryner was so excited when you guys arrived if you're able to do this much with only one of the five lions!"

Of course, Lance had to butt in with another lame attempt at flirting. That irritating, unwelcome smirk on his lips as he eyed the cat-like woman. "If you think Green's impressive, I should take you on a ride in Blue! You won't find a smoother ride anywhere in the universe!"

"Yeah, because we all know you're such a good pilot," Keith stated, arching a brow as he remembered his first time in the Blue Lion.

Before Lance could retort, Shiro butted in. "Alright, that's enough." He said, stepping back as the two females were pushed in his direction due to the elevator doors closing. "Once we get to the main hangar, Pidge'll head to the control station so we can get ready for the drop into the tower." He looked down at Ziera who hummed when she felt eyes on the back of her head, turning. "Do you have a jetpack or anything that will slow your decent?"

"Hm? Oh yeah!" Ziera smiled and lifted her leg slightly, pointing to her beloved boots. "My Skate-Overs act as my jetpack too, if I flick the switch just in time, it'll slow my fall. I can't use them for conventional flight, but I can use them as a parachute, in some ways, though parachute is a very primitive word for lessening the velocity of my decent."

Shiro smiled and nodded as the elevator opened and they shuffled out, relieved to be out of the small space made for one or two people, not a group of six. Pidge, however, didn't leave the small space, waving at them as she stayed situated inside. "I better get to my station, give me the signal when you're ready to drop, okay?"

"Yup," Hunk confirmed, waving back as the elevator closed and Pidge ascended towards the head of the lion. "Sooooo, where's this hangar then?" He asked, getting strange looks from the other paladins. "What? Every lion is different right, so maybe the hangar's in Green's butt, I dunno."

Shiro chuckled and started walking towards their required location. "I highly doubt that."

"You don't know, we could be dropped out of Green's butt!"

"Would you stop saying that?" Lance asked, grimacing at the unsightly image of being dropped like a heavy pile of...Lion droppings.

Thankfully, that was not the case, as the hangar was in the lion's chest, as it was with all the others.

~FbnL~

It took less than ten minutes for the five waiting in the small room with the sealed floor to finally hear from Pidge, who's young voice echoed through the speakers in the corners of the room. "Infiltration successful, we're heading up to the tower now, let me know when you're ready and I'll open the floor for you!"

"Alright team, you know the plan." Shiro started, standing and slipping his helmet on, while the others did the same and Ziera slipped her goggles over her eyes. "We go in, set up the sensor, get Lubos' location, and secure his safety without engaging the enemy and escape unharmed, is that clear?"

"Crystal," Keith confirmed, looking far more ready for this than any of the others, he was a true soldier.

"Ziera, are you ready?" The salt and pepper haired leader glanced over at her, and she hummed, looking back with surprised, hidden, eyes.

"Uh, yeah! Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, we're about to drop from a dangerous height into a small hole at the top of a building." Hunk pointed out, gesturing vaguely with his hands. "I've done this before, and even I'm a little nervous!"

"Oh!" Ziera giggled and shook her head, her ears rising slightly, showing her lack of fear. If they had been tucked back, she would have been frightened. "Nah, don't worry about me! For fun, I'd zip line across trees with Melrak and the others, and we'd be really high up with no safety net or anything! I'm not scared of heights at all!"

Quite amusing, considering the reason for her memory loss involved crashing from an unimaginable height.

"Right, that's good to hear." Shiro chimed in, holding onto the handle above his head as the others followed suit. "Pidge, we're ready, open the hatch."

"Roger!"

They all watched as the floor beneath their feet hissed and opened slowly, first Hunk, Lance and Keith were left suspended in the air, holding the handle above their heads as their feet just hung there, no longer supported by the steel plate. After a second, Shiro and Ziera were in the same position, and finally, it was at that moment that the opening to the inside of the tower lined up perfectly.

"Alright team, let's rescue their leader," Shiro called out to them over the loud, whipping wind, and with that, they all let go and fell rapidly from the lion's chest, into the tower and down towards the ground floor. About halfway into the decent, the four paladins activated their jetpacks and slowed their fall while Ziera turned on her Skate-Overs and did the same, all of them landing softly without any injuries.

The group made no noise as Shiro took out the small sensor and activated it, watching as the tiny device opened out into a medium sized scanner that lit up the room as it took the information it could read from the entire building. Once it was done, and the information had automatically been sent to Pidge, Shiro turned the sensor off and put it on his belt once more.

A moment later, their visors and Ziera's goggles lit up with the location of Lubos' prison, and they all kicked off in the direction they needed to head towards to reach it. Ziera lead the way, and more than once she halted them and held up her hand, listening as sentry after sentry walked past their location without detecting them.

Eventually, they came to the room that was lit up on their visors and switched off the images as they heard loud, traumatic crying inside that echoed through the vast halls. "What are they doing to him in there?" The cat-like tech junkie whispered, grimacing at the very idea of what kinds of torture he had been through.

"I don't know, but he won't have to live through it anymore," Keith stated, and Shiro nodded, unlocking the door using his robotic hand before the group slipped inside and snuck over to a nearby wall to see exactly what was going on.

Not one of them expected the sight that they were met with. Lubos was sat on a large, comfortable chair with food on a platter nearby, one of his loyal people stood at his side, cuffed and suffering, while the king lounged with a tv show projected on a large screen right in front of him. "Oh, betrayal!" The rather dramatic ruler cried out, sobbing away, unaware of their presence. "She loves you!"

They all shared a look of disbelief, and Ziera stepped out first, with the others following behind. "King Lubos, right?" She asked, getting both the servant and the king's attention.

"Yes, who're you?" He asked, looking at the paladins who had their weapons out in case of unknown sentries nearby. "The jesters I requested?"

"Uhm..." Lance started, looking just as confused as the others. "We're here to, like, rescue you...?"

The rotund ruler's expression when from curiosity to intense in a matter of seconds, and while his servant seemed pleased about their arrival, he, on the other hand, pressed a button under his throne to alert the Galra that his rescuers were here.

While he stood, the wall on the opposite side of the large room opened up and several robotic soldiers rushed out and stood in line, pointing their guns straight for the paladins and the Tylyrion that had accompanied them, now brandishing her weapon as well. "You could've just said 'no thanks!'" Hunk whined, not wanting to get into a fight.

A living soldier stepped out from behind the sentries, the commander in charge of the Galra that had taken over the planet, he stood before them, confident he could win as a large smirk stretched across his purple lips. "Looks like someone came to rescue you, Lubos." He jeered, enjoying this situation far too much to be considered normal.

Ziera's expression went from serious to pained anger as she gritted her teeth hard and clenched her fist around the handle of her gun, finger poised on the trigger as Shiro shunned the cowardly King. "You turned your back on your people to save your own skin..."

"I'm doing this for my people!" Lubos argued a blatant lie. "They wanted to fight the Galra, but they're too powerful! The Galra could destroy us..."

"You let your own people be enslaved and forced to work on some super-weapon...To save them?" Ziera asked, shooting a vicious glare to the man she had heard so many great things about, only to find them all to be false. "Don't even go there! Your people are suffering, and you've only made this worse by selling them out to your enemy!"

"Don't make me the bad guy!" The king pointed viciously at the commander of the fleet. "He forced me to do it!"

"Did he force feed you too?" Lance quipped, silencing the ignorant ruler.

Keith had, had enough. "You're no king!" He kicked off towards Lubos, who attempted to run away from the advancing red paladin, only for his cuffed servant to shove into him, sending the larger Olkari stumbling back and into Keith's grasp, the older teen now holding his Bayard to Lubos' throat. "Okay, we're walking outta here! Anyone tries to stop us, and Lubos gets it!"

His threat was not well received by the others on his team. "Whoa, K-Keith!" Shiro started.

"That came outta nowhere!" Lance chimed in.

"L-L'sai, what're you doing?!" The cowardly leader asked, too scared to move out of fear of being killed.

The other Olkari male stood in the room glared at Lubos "You betrayed our people. I can't live this lie anymore."

Keith pulled the large Olkari male closer and lifted his Bayard a little higher. "You don't want me to hurt your genius engineer, right?" He stated, trying to find any and all ways around a deadly situation.

But he underestimated his enemy. "Oh, be my guest." The vicious commander said, his large lower fangs gleaming with his cruel smile. "His work is done, the cube is complete."

"What?!" Lubos cried out, sweat pouring down his forehead as his fear tripled instantaneously. "B-but, I thought we had a deal?!"

"Guards, put them all out of their misery!" The commander's order was all the sentries needed to lift their weapons and take aim. Ziera panicked and as a reaction, she looked down the sight and was ready to fire if necessary.

However, that was not needed, as a large beam of blue light shot through the room and tore a hole into the wall, where the Green Lion's adorable features came into view, and Pidge's lighthearted voice called into their comms. "Ride is here~!"

The Galra commander sneered angrily, his metallic, red eye glowing brighter with his rage. "Engage the cube, take down Voltron!" He roared, as his sentries shot at the paladins and their 'guests.' Ziera went to fire back after a shot just missed her ear, but Shiro shoved her away from the line of fire, keeping her and the L'sai safe from oncoming lasers using his shield.

Once they managed to get to the edge of the building, Hunk and Lance grabbed the king, while Shiro took L'sai. The group then used their jetpacks to launch all of them over the gap and onto the back of the green machine. Ziera launched in time with Shiro using her Skate-Overs to glide across the gap, just making the distance before her weight affected her flight path. Then she and Hunk took aim and started firing at the sentries as the lion flew upwards and into the sky.

But that was not the end of it, they all heard a soft rumble and looked to where the cube had been situated, it had been activated and was currently lifting off the ground. "The cube is operational! We've got to get back to the other lions and form Voltron!"

"On it!" Pidge called back through their earpieces, picking up the pace as everyone slipped into the top hatch of the lion's main hangar, before the youngest pilot hit the thrusters and shot off towards the secret camp Ryner commanded.

They landed quite quickly, with said tribe leader and the others waiting below, and when the mouth of the lion opened, Ziera looked down with regret before she shoved Lubos to the ground outside of the feline's jaw. "Ziera, what is the meaning of this?" Ryner cried out, stepping forward with concern, but halted when Ziera shook her head. "What's going on?"

"While your countrymen starved, King Lubos was well taken care of by the Galra." Shiro stated, looking at the large 'ruler' with disgust lacing his black eyes, while said ruler just lowered his head with shame. "He willingly helped them build that cube, willingly helped to enslave his own people!"

Horrified gasps and cries came from the Olkari surrounding them, and Colren looked sickened and ashamed to have called Lubos his king, while Melrak was furious and Sephira was on the verge of tears. Janze could not quite believe it and stood there, shaking his head with shock written across his features.

To think their king would be so cowardly and selfish, when the Olkari way was of peace, courage and kindness...It was a devastating turn of events, to say the least.

"I know you're devastated..." The leader of Voltron continued. "But it's time to be strong and use your Olkari spirit to fight alongside Voltron and take back your planet!"

Ryner's own soft horror wiped away when the words Shiro shared became passionate, wanting them to be free as much as they did. "Lubos!" She snapped, glaring at the king who flinched back in fear. "How could you?!"

"I-I was only trying to-"

"Enough!" Ryner watched as he jumped back in surprise, but she dared not give him any more of her time, instead, she turned to the others surrounding her. "We must free our people!"

Ziera listened as everyone cheered, before she stepped towards the woman who had given her a name, and placed her hand on her shoulder. "Ryner...Lubos is no longer fit to be called 'king...'" She started, ignoring his complaints as she gave Ryner a soft, gentle smile. "While he gorged himself, you remained here, protecting what was really important...I might be an outsider, but I think I speak for all of us when I say you are the rightful leader the Olkari need."

"Wh-what?" The elderly woman gasped with wide eyes, turning her attention to the others of her tribe, who were nodding and agreeing with similar smiles on her their face. "I'm sure there are others far more qualified than myself."

"Qualifications don't matter...You have everyone's trust, and you put them before yourself, I'd say that makes you a great leader."

Ziera looked to the paladins, who also nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly to the words the young Tylyrion uttered. Ryner considered the request, then nodded.

"Alright, I will take command...However, Ziera, you are no outsider, and we need your help to bring back peace to our home." The newly-appointed Olkari leader stated, placing her hand on Ziera's shoulder with a smile of her own. "Will you help me?"

"Do you even need to ask? I will stand by you for as long as I live, and we both know that I'm not going anywhere for a long time~!"

Ryner chuckled and nodded, then turned her attention to Shiro and the others. "What should we do?"

It was finally time to take back Olkarion and bring about an age of peace and kinship, at long last.

Without Voltron, this change would not be possible.

A/N: Whew, this was a long one! Please review, every comment or piece of criticism helps me become a better writer and I appreciate you all!

Voltron Time

Deca-Phoeb = Year

Phoeb = Month