Chapter 3: The Way Forward(Lance's POV)

Lance moves his body across the walls of their prison cell, trying to see if their are any secret passageways to help them get out.

"What are you doing?" Hunk asks.

"I'm looking for a secret passage." Lance responds, still moving across the walls.

"You've watched too many movies, Lance. Deus ex Machina is hard to come by in real life,"

"Oh yeah? Then why is there a secret passageway right here?" He kicks the wall and a tingling hurt feeling rushes up his leg. Dang it!

"Told you," Marinette comments.

"I just can't believe we ended up being captured. And things were going so well for us too."

"Me neither. Shiro's plan of using the ice planet's elements against those Galran were brilliant. But I still wonder why they attacked you when we went out to meet them. Our alliance hasn't been severed." Lotor surmises.

Lance sighs, yeah that wasn't fun. Especially since they really couldn't do anything against the attack with their lions power cores not fully replenished.

"They hit us with that blast out of nowhere, we had no idea they'd send a ship to the exit tunnel so they could capture us." Shiro says. "But Coran isn't here, meaning he managed to escape. Hope isn't lost yet."

"Coran? That's who we're hoping saves us " Romelle comments doubtful Coran can pull it off.

"Coran has come through for us in tough times before. Sure he's a goofball but…."

"But nothing, Lance. All he's ever done is goof things up, be a comedian." Pidge says scathingly.

"Coran has his good points. He reminds me of my partner, Chat Noir. Chat can be a goofball at times, but he always comes through in the end and we manage to save the day."

"That doesn't give me a lot of confidence. Lance, I'll help you look for that secret passage."

Coran's POV

Coran looks down the corridor. So far so good. No Galran's in sight, yet. The mice tread behind him as he continues to walk. He spots two Galran guards talking and decides to join them in their conversation. Do a bit of reconnaissance to figure out where the Paladins are being held.

"Greetings fellow scallywags. How's the booty?" Coran asks. The two Galran immediately stop their conversation, paying full attention to him. Then they give each other a look before one questions, "Booty?"

Nervously, he switches topics, "Anyhow, uh… How about capturing those Paladins eh? Remind me where you'r…. I mean we're keeping them?"

But instead of answering his question, one of the Galran's, who is female, eyes shoots wide and gives him a questioning look. "Wait a second. Isn't that Blofar's scarf?!"

"Yeah it is. He stole it from that Valdostian before we flushed him into space." responds her companion.

The female makes her gun fall more securely into her hands and starts walking toward him.

In a panic he says, "And I won it from Blofar in a game of Gorblonthain checkers."

The female responds angry, "But Blofar hates Gorblonthain checker's"

"Yes that's right, which is why we used the Melmakian rule set."

This time the male responds, "Did you just say the 'Melmakian rule set'?"

"Did I, what I meant to say was….."

"Who are you?" The female responds, holding her weapon closer to him. Suddenly a portion of the ceiling falls off hitting the Galran on the head. Jumping out of the ceiling and onto the ground is a female who is wearing a yellow space suit with black and a helmet, looking kind of like the helmets the paladins have, except you can't see the person's face as the face shield is pure black. She also has crystal-like wings shooting from her back. She takes out the Galaran almost instantly, using a combination of kicks and punches.

He lifts up his helmet, "Who are you?"

"Chloe." The female says, her helmet shimmers until it is gone completely, letting a flow of blonde hair release to the woman's shoulders. Coran gasps, she's a human. "Now come with me, it isn't safe."

Back at the Prison Cell: Lance's POV

"No dice. Seems like there isn't a passageway that can lead us out of here." Lance mutters, falling back onto one of the walls in defeat.

Suddenly the door to their cell opens and two guards walk in. They take opposite positions as two… He recognizes them, but before he can confirm his suppsions, the pink skinned alien smirks. "Look who's here, it's Voltron and Lotor."

"Axca, Ezor, it's been a long time." Lotor says.

"Yes indeed it has been a long time, and we're going to have a little chat."

"You're the ones Zethrid shot into space." Lance says, realizing where he's seen them before. He tenses as Pidge says, "And the ones who were trying to kill us."

Yeah they did try to do that. A lot, considering they were Lotor's generals once a upon time.

"Sure, yeah, but now we're all good now, right? I for one am glad you survived."

Resisting the urge to facepalm himself, because this is not an appropriate situation to do so. He tenses as the pink one replies with a smirk, "I'm glad you survived too. It's no fun torturing a dead person." A chill races down his spine, and his breath picks up. He forces it back to the normal amount but his heart is still racing.

"Oh so maybe not…" Hunk responds.

"Where have you been all this time? And what happened to Zethrid?" asks Axca calmly, but her voice still has an air of violence attached to it. He forces himself not to shudder.

"What are you talking about?" asks Kuro, confused as the rest of them are.

"We're talking about your little disappearing act," responds Ezor.

"Now answer the question. How did you survive that explosion?"

Hunk shrugs, "Don't you know? You were there."

Ezor frowns and says, "I think there's some confusion about the whole we ask questions you give us answer scenario works."

Axca sweeps her hair to the side and with thinning patience asks again. "Enough of your games. Where is Zethrid?"

"She's dead. We had to leave her in the Quintessence field," Shiro responds.

"That doesn't make sense. If you survived then shouldn't have Zethrid also?" Ezor asks.

"Because of the power of teamwork," Hunk nervously tells them.

Axca sighs putting her hands on her hips, "My patience is running thin. I'm going to ask you one more time, and if you don't give me and Ezor a concrete answer we'll have to take a more extreme approach. Where is Zethrid and where have you been all this time?"

Coran's POV

Coran leans in close to this Chloe person and she turns his way he asks, "What are you doing here?" Chloe jumps a bit and then tells him, "Me and my teammates picked up the signal you were transmitting to Earth. I assume that's how these Galran's found you and captured your friends."

"Shouldn't you be on Earth instead of helping us?"

Chloe sighs, "We don't have time for me to explain that. Your friends are being held several floors below us. We need to find a way to free them, get their stuff and escape."

"That'd be difficult. The Lions aren't in the best condition to fly."

She groans, "That makes things more convoluted. We'll need a distraction…."

"And a foolproof escape route."

"Once you free your friends, get Marinette to transform into Ladybug, she can connect to me and my teammates that way. We should have something by then."

"Wait you're a…"

"Yes I am, as well as my teammates. But I'm afraid I don't have time to explain. Good luck."

"Good luck."

Coran sneaks off and stalks through the corridors, making sure he isn't spotted. The last time he was, it did not go well. It was only thanks to Chloe that he managed to survive that encounter.

Quiznak! Coran shouts in his mind as he remembers the helmet he's supposed to be wearing. Oh well, time to do it the old fashioned way. He quickly changes the color of his skin to purple and continues down the maze of corridors.

Then he sees a door and wonders if it could be the one where the Paladins are being kept. Suddenly the door opens to reveal a red armored Galran. Quiznak! Coran thinks and quickly says in a panic, "Looks like your shift is up. I'm here to replace you."

The hulking brute responds, "My shift just started." Then his eyes shift to his neck area. "Isn't that Blofar's scarf?"

He huffs, "Fine I challenge you to a battle of Fisticuffs!"

Doing some chants and warming up his legs he punches the mid-section of the brute only for his arm to be met with excruciating pain. He screams and the brute walks towards him. "Easy there big fella. There's just been an issue with scheduling, a minor conflict really…"

Too busy with the brute in front of him he doesn't notice the mice continue to go down into the hallway the opened door made way too.

After taking a few hits from the brute, Coran manages to get away from him a bit. Shaking the blurriness of his vision he laughs, "Joke's on you! I got you right where I want ya!"

He tries to throw a punch, but ends up twisting himself away from the brute. Trying again he ends up with the same result. So instead he jumps forward ready to take another hit, when the brute falls down right in front of him.

Collapsing in pain he feels two strong arms catch him. Smiling despite the pain he says, "See you got lucky."

"Coran, where's Chloe?" He hears Marinette, or was it Lance the one asking.

"I don't know. Where am I?"

"Are you okay?"

"Never better. Now let's get our melmards and belmets." Coran says.

"Don't worry we got you."

He turns and sees Princess Alurra. "Why thank you Princess Allura."

Lance's POV

Lance helps Marinette drag Coran to a room where their bayards and helmets might be held. He peeks inside the room along with Shiro doing the same on the opposite side. "Our bayards."

"They have weapons and we don't. Any suggestions?" He asks.

Suddenly Coran shouts very loudly, "Unhand those bayards you scallywags!"

He pushes Coran back and holds his mouth closed with his hand.

Pidge sighs, "So much for the element of surprise."

Yeah there goes their number one advantage. He sees Shiro close his eyes in concentration. What the heck is he doing? Shiro then disappears from sight and he hears surprised screams coming from the two guards.

He looks in and sees the two guards are unconscious and Shiro is putting on his helmet.

"Alright let's go get our lions."

"But we don't know…."

"Yes we do. Remember the mice said that I have to contact her. Meaning she's probably a miraculous user. Tikki Spots On!"

Once the red glow around Marinette has faded, she takes her yoyo and contacts Chloe.

"Marinette! You're okay and you managed to escape with your friends, thank goodness. Listen, the Lions are now outside of the ship. My teammates are already on a planet where you can lie low for a bit. I'm with the Lions, all you guys need to do is get to them and I'll tell you where we're meeting my team."

The transmission abruptly ends.

"That's a relief that she managed to get the lions out into space, considering we don't even know her," comments Lotor.

"Yeah…." Marinette says, trailing off.

"Come on team, let's head back to our lions!"

Chloe's POV

Chloe looks around the vast expanse in space. Where are they? She realizes her transmission with Marinette was only minutes ago. But dread fills her stomach. They should be able to make to their lions, who are floating in space near her. Should. She admits she doesn't know much about Team Voltron except from what she's heard from Keith.

And what she heard has been great, it's just they went missing for three years! Three years! How does that happen? How could they just vanish?

She takes a deep breath calming herself. It doesn't matter. What matters is that they are here now.

Relief overcomes her when she sees the Paladins flying towards her with their friends. She only recognizes them because of their space uniforms.

"You guys made it!"

"You doubted we would?"

"No…" She lies.

"Well we need to destroy that ship so they can't hone into our location."

"My teammates and I have made home on an uninhabited planet not too far from here. It should be enough shelter to let you guys rest and recover for as long as you like."

"Thank you."