(Previously…)
"What just happened?" Rai asked.
"Who cares?! WORMHOLE!" Shirley practically screamed.
Not wasting this window of opportunity, Allura activated the teludav once more. This time a swirling wormhole appeared before the castle. Allura directed the castle towards it, failing to notice the danger that was erupting behind them.
With a shriek of anger and power, Haggar slammed her hands into the magic circle on her ledge of the Galra base. With a dark flash of light, a beam of black energy shot towards the Castle of Lions and the wormhole they were attempting to escape through.
The castle wasn't hit directly, but the wormhole was not so lucky. As the energy was absorbed into the hole, the familiar blue of the walls twisted into dark, unstable maroon, static electricity flashing across the field as they descended.
"Coran, what's happening?!" Lelouch shouted as he and C.C. felt the shaking from Zen's interior.
"The integrity of the wormhole has been compromised! It's breaking down!" the advisor shouted in fear.
"What does that mean?" Rivalz asked, gripping Polaris's controls.
"It means we have no control over where we're headed!" Coran exclaimed, just as a loud bang shook the castle.
Before either Lelouch, Kallen, or even C.C. could react, the bang shook the castle hard enough that it dislodged both Lions from the bay, causing the passengers to yell as they started spiraling out into the wormhole.
They weren't the only ones; the other five Lions soon followed, all being flung helplessly out of their bays, their Paladins in tow.
"Lelouch! Kallen!" Suzaku shouted as he watched in horror as they both disappeared through the wormhole's wall. Rai and Shirley followed shortly after on the other side. Before Suzaku could shout further, though, he felt something strike Yoru, and his vision turned black.
"They've vanished through the temporal rift!" Allura gasped from the bridge, "The Lions are gone!"
The corrupted rift opening above was the only thing that disturbed the eerie silence of the abandoned planet down below. The Black and Red Lions spun out of it and started descending rapidly in separate directions, both of the Lions unresponsive.
Within Zen's cockpit, Lelouch continued to sweat profusely as he held the wound on his side, which seemed to increase in size over the past couple of minutes. C.C. had hit her head on the back of the seat when they had tumbled out of the castle and was knocked unconscious.
In the complete other direction, Kallen struggled to keep Aka in control as the ground below drew increasingly closer, alarms blaring in her ears all the while.
"Come on, come on, come on!" Kallen grunted just before Aka made impact with the ground, and her vision went black.
Kallen wasn't sure how long she was out when she finally opened her eyes again. Her ears were ringing, and all she could make out was that everything was rather...grey.
She groaned as she felt her head spin a little. She hoped she didn't have a concussion from that crash. After taking some deep breaths to clear her vision, she saw that most of Aka's systems were down, a couple of lights barely giving off any color.
"You okay, Aka?" She pulled on one of the shifts to try and rouse her Lion. There was no acknowledgment, physical or mental. "Okay. We'll fix you up. We had a tough battle," she said softly.
Though most of the internal systems were down or damaged, Aka's upper entrance on her head was able to open fairly smoothly for Kallen to get out. She hoisted herself up until she stood tall atop Aka's head, looking around at the barren surroundings.
"Where are we? Where have we landed?" she wondered aloud. How were the others…?
Kallen gasped as she remembered seeing Zenobia falling towards this same area. That meant Lelouch and C.C. were also here!
"Lelouch. Lelouch!"
Another corrupt wormhole opened up practically on the other side of the galaxy, two more Lions spiraling out of it towards what could only be described as a space version of a garbage dump.
Shirley and Rai both held tight in their Lions as they crashed and smashed through several pieces of debris before finally landing semi-solidly onto one of the more sturdy structures.
The Green Paladin groaned as he lifted his head, shaking it to clear his vision before looking around the room.
"What's the matter, girl?" he asked, poking a few buttons. After seeing that his attempts weren't waking Zerith up any time soon, he looked out the window again and spotted Zinnia not too far from where he landed.
"Shirley?" he called through the comms, "Shirley, you okay?" the response he got was the disgusting sound of someone puking out their lunch.
"Huh?" came the Orange Paladin's weak reply afterward, "What was that?"
"You just threw up, didn't you?" he asked in sympathetic disgust.
"Yeah… maybe a little."
"...Anyway, are you okay? How's your Lion?" he asked.
"Uh… well, I've been better, but Zinnia isn't responding. Where are we anyway?" she asked.
"Well, wherever it is, it looks like there's no gravity here," Rai observed, "It's like a trash nebula of some kind."
"So… what do we do then?" Shirley asked anxiously.
Rai stretched out his legs and sighed, "Well, the only thing we can do right now is wait. That's the best thing to do when you're lost, right? Just stay put until someone comes to find you."
"...Huh," Shirley said.
"What's up?" Rai asked, sensing that the Orange Paladin had a question on her tongue.
"Um… I guess I'm just amazed how calm you are right now, Rai," Shirley admitted, "I mean… during the battle, you got pretty scared. You just froze up, right in the middle of all of it. So… are you really okay?"
Rai was silent for about ten ticks before he answered, "I felt a presence. How do I explain this…? I don't know what exactly was going on, but whatever it was, it felt like the Grim Reaper was breathing down my neck…"
Shirley swallowed as her mind flashed back to the witch lady that was hurting Lelouch. She knew she couldn't prove it, but Shirley had a feeling that she was the one that corrupted the wormhole. But if that happened...
"Oh, man! What do we do?! We don't know where the others are, or even if they are still alive, we don't know if we'll even be rescued or if we're going to die out here-"
"Shirley! Calm down!" Rai ordered sternly, "Take a deep breath, everything is going to be okay, our friends will find us… But I do agree; we should find out where exactly we are."
The Castle of Lions itself was still flying erratically down the corrupted wormhole. Allura struggled to maintain control as it nearly slammed into the outer walls several times.
Coran was furiously typing away at the main computer, trying to get the systems back under control.
"Let's check the Rift Exit Positioning Monitor to see where this wormhole is taking us," he exclaimed.
"Coran, look! There appears to be something on the other end," Allura shouted, sounding frightened, "We're heading right toward it!"
"Scanners show that there's no exit. It's just nothingness," the advisor turned back to the princess frantically. "Find an exit before we run smack into the void!"
Allura pulled up the coordinate and navigation panels and attempted to enter something into them. But the red warning lights continued to flash, accepting nothing the princess put into them, "I can't. I've lost control of the castle!"
"Brace yourself! We're about to hit it!" Coran warned as the Castleship disappeared into the black void and faded away...
...The Castle of Lions was erratically flying down the wormhole, struggling to stay on course.
Coran was furiously typing away at the main computer, trying to get the systems back under control.
"Let's check the Rift Exit Positioning Monitor to see where this wormhole is taking us," he exclaimed.
Allura, having closed her eyes when they ran through the void, opened them and blinked. She looked around confused, but was relieved to see that they were all still alive.
"Coran, we're okay!" she exclaimed happily.
"What are you talking about? We've lost all the Lions!" the advisor argued, turning back to look at the princess.
"We've just smashed into a black void. Don't you remember? Hmm?" the princess suddenly felt a pressure on her shoulder. She turned, and to her shock saw a small squirrel-looking creature had hopped on. The squirrel was pink, just like...
The princess gasped, "What happened to the mice? They've transformed!" She looked down from the teludav pedestals and saw that all four of the mice were now squirrels.
Allura looked towards Coran, hoping to get an answer, only to gasp again. "Coran?!" It was indeed still Coran, but his uniform was a little different, and his hair was slightly longer, tied in a low ponytail, and a small lock was hanging by the side of his face.
Coran turned to Allura, concerned, "Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked, twirling his mustache, "Do I have a boogie stuck in my mustache again?"
"No. You look... younger!" Allura exclaimed. Before more questions could be asked though, the castle shook again, the same warnings appearing as the void from before approached closer.
"Scanners show that there's no exit. It's just nothingness!" Coran shouted with a grunt.
"You said that already!" Allura yelled.
"Find an exit before we smack into the void!" he exclaimed, unknowingly, for the second time.
"I'm entering coordinates to get us out of here," Allura said, trying to type into the screen, only for it to beep red back at her in error. "The castle won't accept an endpoint!"
"Just enter any coordinates!" Coran ordered desperately.
"I tried, but the system is locked," Allura explained, still furiously typing the screens, "I can't get a signal out or receive a signal in."
The princess froze in her movement as the void came once more upon them.
"Allura!" Coran shouted, terrified, as the Castle of Lions was sucked through once more…
...And just like the time before, the Castle of Lions was erratically flying down the wormhole, struggling to stay on course.
Coran was furiously typing away at the main computer, trying to get the systems back under control.
"Let's check the Rift Exit Positioning Monitor to see where this wormhole is taking us," he exclaimed. This time his hair was cut very short and he was in a uniform in short sleeves, clearly showcasing his muscles. He smirked and swiped his hair back before pointing forward at nothing in particular.
"Oh, no! You're even younger now!" Allura groaned. This was starting to get ridiculous.
"What's the matter? You look confused," Coran asked, striking several strange poses to showcase his lithe form in the process. "Don't worry, Princess, I'll get us out of here."
Allura sighed in exasperation, only for a small growl to make her jump in surprise.
The mice that had previously been squirrels had been transformed once again. This time they seemed to be some mini form of Altean cow-hippo creatures.
"We appear to be in some sort of time loop that's affecting everyone but me," Allura deduced as one of the mice-hippo-cows licked her along her back, causing her to yelp. The other three were crowded closely around her.
"Scanners show that there's no exit. It's just…"
"Nothingness, I know," Allura finished for him, getting more irritated, "and we can't find another exit point."
"Don't just stand there. We've got to find a way," Coran proclaimed, pointing at the princess before spinning. He then struck another dramatic pose, his eyes sparkling like stars, "I'll never give in to nothingness!"
Coran didn't have time to say anything else as the castle vanished into the void once more.
Lelouch jolted awake as he felt someone dragging him under his arms. He groaned and blinked. One side of his world was tinted dark from his mask, and the other he could see a grey sky and rocky, barren walls.
"So, you're still alive after all," C.C. quipped as she came to a small stop. She helped Lelouch sit up more fully as the Black Paladin looked around. A short distance away, he spotted Zenobia, lying brokenly to the side of, what he assumed, was a large canyon. C.C. must have got him out of her while he was still unconscious.
"C.C., where are we?" he asked, warily looking around.
"I haven't the foggiest idea. If I did, I'd tell you," the immortal responded.
Lelouch groaned as he staggered to his feet. He winced and clutched his side. The glowing wound that Haggar had inflicted on him earlier hadn't ceased its throbbing. Fortunately, Lelouch was able to focus enough to remember that he saw the Red Lion had landed on this barren planet as well.
He activated his helmet to try and contact Kallen, who he prayed was all right.
"Kallen, are you there? Kallen?" he asked, hoping he didn't sound too desperate.
"I tried contacting her earlier," C.C. informed him, "but I couldn't get a signal. We'll need to get to higher ground."
Lelouch nodded mutely, and the two started struggling towards the upper walls of the canyon.
"Lelouch, can you hear me? C.C.?" Kallen called into the comm link as she continued to run towards the canyon that her helmet told her was where Zen was located, "Lelouch, are you there?"
All Kallen received in reply was static on the other end. She grit her teeth as she continued to sprint across the landscape, which she found had quite low gravity itself. She panted as she came closer and closer to the canyon.
C.C. and Lelouch managed to make some pretty steady progress along a canyon path. Lelouch continued to groan in pain from his wound but knew they wouldn't be able to do much about it until the castle found them, so he didn't voice his discomfort. Though he was confident that C.C. was well aware of it already.
"Lelouch are you there?-" Kallen's scratchy voice broke through Lelouch's helmet at last, "Answer me!"
Lelouch gasped in surprise but quickly responded, "Kallen, I'm here. Kallen!" Lelouch then cried out as the wound to his side flared up, causing him to lose his balance. He would've fallen had C.C. not been there to lower him to the ground.
"Lelouch, it's Kallen!" the Red Paladin exclaimed through the comms.
"Kallen, we hear you," Lelouch responded once he was on the ground, "We're okay."
They heard Kallen chuckle humorlessly on the other end, "Looks like we made it."
"Oh, you know, I can finally check off 'getting sucked into an unstable alien wormhole and crashing onto an unknown planet with a heavily wounded companion' off my long list of new ways to die. But how are you, Kallen?" C.C. answered back with a wry smile.
Lelouch shivered. C.C.'s dark humor scared him at times.
"Not good. Aka's busted," Kallen answered as she leaped down from a ledge and across a couple of floating rocks. She then stopped short when C.C.'s words registered, "Wait, wound? What wound?"
"It-It's nothing Kallen," Lelouch told her hurriedly. His wound, however, was the least of his worries right now. His mind kept flashing back to his encounter back at the main base. He still remembered Haggar searching through his mind and memories that he had wished he could forget flashing before his eyes.
And what terrified him most was that Zarkon, the Emperor of the Galra Empire himself, possessed a Geass of his own. Lelouch didn't know how, but it seemed that the origin of this power dated back farther than even C.C. initially believed. But he had used it to overpower him and take the Black Lion from him so easily.
Yes, he was terrified.
"Hang on. I'm coming!" Kallen exclaimed through the radio.
A moment later, however, a different noise caught the pair's attention. Looking back at where they had left Zen, Lelouch and C.C. saw what looked like some sort of alien lizards. There were about three of them, their bodies and physique looking similar to Earth's komodo dragons. They were stalking around the Lion and growling menacingly. They sounded hungry.
"Kallen… on second thought, you need to hurry!" Lelouch whispered urgently.
Rai grunted as he leaped off of another piece of space debris. He and Shirley had been sitting in their Lions for about an hour when he started to get bored. He told the Orange Paladin that he was going to try and find something to help jumpstart their Lions. Shirley was far too scared to be left on her own, however, and decided to stick close to him. Very close.
Rai was eventually able to grab onto what looked like an old antenna from one of the ships and propped himself on top. It wasn't by much, but he did get a slightly better view of their surroundings.
He gasped when he saw a pair of what looked like blue eyes staring at him in the dark debris.
"What's that?" he whispered.
Shirley heard him and immediately got spooked. She leaped back with a small shriek and hid comically behind him, holding his jetpack tightly. As she did so, more eyes seemed to light up in front of them.
"Wha-is it gonna eat us?! Does it have teeth?!" She demanded in a shrill tone.
Rai calmly held his arm out protectively in front of her and reached for his Bayard with his other hand, holding it in front of him.
"Who's there?!" he shouted into the darkness, though his arm trembled in slight fear as well.
Rai felt his blood run cold as about twenty more eyes opened to stare at him and Shirley.
However, their fear was misplaced, as the creatures finally emerged from the wreckage. They weren't monsters at all, but what appeared to be little, fluffy pill bugs with large googly eyes. The first to approach them was pink, but blue, yellow, green, and many other colors floated towards them in a cluster, chittering curiously.
"Oh… my… GOSH!" Shirley squealed, stepping out fully. She wore a massive smile on her face, and her eyes resembled large, beating red hearts. "These are the cutest things I've ever seen!"
"Hey, little guys," Rai greeted kindly as a couple came up to him as well. He held up his palm as the one in front to sniff, "You're too cute to be found in a dump like this. Are you guys the only ones living here?"
"I hope our rough landing didn't disturb your day," Shirley added while swooning over two that hovered by her face. "Don't worry, we'll only be here for a little while."
"Yeah, we're just waiting for our friends to find us. We were separated during a wormhole jump," Rai explained, though he thought for a moment if these creatures even could understand them.
However, he was proven wrong when five of the creatures suddenly lined up in front of him and Shirley in a straight line. They chittered happily.
"Yeah, that's right! Friends!" Shirley nodded in confirmation, a pleased smile on her face.
Despite the light atmosphere, Rai couldn't help but frown and turn to look towards the expanse of space, "I sure hope they find us soon."
The Castle of Lions was erratically flying down the wormhole, struggling to stay on course.
"Let's check the Rift Exit Positioning Monitor to see where this wormhole is taking us..." an emo-teen version of Coran said indifferently before sighing dramatically, blowing a long strand of hair from his mohawk out of his face. "This is so boring."
"Coran, please! I don't need any of your attitude right now!" Allura exclaimed with a cringe as the mice, now snails, crawled up her body.
"You don't understand me at all!" teen-Coran pointed at her accusingly,"You have no idea what I'm going through! I'll be in my control area! Hmmph!" he said grumpily and turned his back to her, his earring hoops dangling from the abruptness.
Allura still desperately tried to plug in coordinates into the castle's systems, but just like the last several times, it wouldn't accept any endpoints.
"I can't manually enter coordinates," Allura sighed. Her eyes then suddenly brightened, "But the castle will automatically lock on to the Lions' whereabouts if we can locate them," she immediately turned off the manual coordinate panel and brought up the star chart, sensing for where the Lions may have landed. To her shock, though, error signs appeared on the map too, and she couldn't detect any of the Lions whatsoever! "It's not working! I'm unable to hone in on their location."
Allura then jumped slightly as opera music started blaring throughout the bridge. Flabbergasted, she turned to the culprit, Coran, who continued to turn up the volume.
"Coran, turn that down! Our lives are at stake!" she shouted.
"I can only express myself through music!" he shot back defiantly.
Allura growled and gripped the edges of the teludav, a dark aura surrounding her as her anger rose dangerously high. The mice-snails seemed to sense her ire and hurriedly tried to slither as far from her as possible, which wasn't very fast for them, "Coran, if you don't turn that down, I swear I'll turn this castle around and-"
"And what?" he asked, a large amount of sass in his tone, "We're just gonna run into this void that's coming up here. I hate everybody!"
His shout was the last thing heard before the castle disappeared into the void once more…
...The Castle of Lions was erratically flying down the wormhole, struggling to stay on course.
"Let's check the Rift Exit Positioning Monitor to see where this wormhole is taking us… whatever that means," the voice of an adolescent Coran said as he leaned excitedly against the controls.
"We've tried everything, and nothing's worked," Allura exclaimed, sounding scared now. And the mice had now seemed to converge into one giant, four-headed creature that looked similar to a small Earth dinosaur. "A few more trips down this wormhole and you're going to disappear. We must find a way out."
"Just blast your way out! Duh!" kid-Coran said before he began to run around, gleefully making airplane noises, his arms stretched out to the sides.
"I suppose it's worth a try," Allura nodded, willing to try anything to get out of the time loop, "The castle defenses might have enough firepower to destroy the tunnel."
"Yeah! And it'll go ker-plooey!" Coran exclaimed as he enthusiastically jumped onto the four-headed creature.
Allura immediately activated the ship's cannon, aiming right for the center of the tunnel. She gasped in shock as the blast was absorbed by the tunnel's end, and fired right back at them.
"It's not working! It's like we're shooting at ourselves!" she shouted, maneuvering the ship around the deflected blasts.
Kid-Coran blew a raspberry, and asked, "Where's Voltron?" before the castle was once more absorbed into the void.
Kallen grunted as she jetted herself across the landscape as fast as she could.
"Lelouch, what's happening?!" she shouted into the comm.
"There are several creatures," he said before cutting off again.
After Kallen's next jump, where her foot had been a moment ago, a large pillar of water erupted, shooting several meters into the air. Having felt the tremors, Kallen took a moment to look behind her, and her eyes widened when she saw the geyser.
Meanwhile, back in the gorge, C.C. and Lelouch attempted to put more distance between them and the creatures, backing away slowly so they wouldn't be noticed.
They failed to see that another one had snuck up from behind until it roared loudly at them, alerting its comrades in the process. The two that had been sniffing around Zen quickly ran up the path that the two had taken earlier, and the Paladin and witch soon found themselves surrounded.
Lelouch hissed in pain as he tried to stand protectively in front of C.C. as the creatures closed in on them.
Kallen gasped in shock as more geysers suddenly erupted around her.
"Uh oh!" she exclaimed before running in the only direction that hadn't exploded from just before one erupted where she'd previously been standing.
The momentum of her jump carried her a reasonable distance as more erupted in her wake. She started to try and run in zig-zag to try and dodge around where she thought one might explode. Finally, she used her jetpack to propel herself into the air and away from the geyser minefield. But the moment she landed again, more began erupting behind her.
With a shout and gasp, she barreled forward as she dove forward, narrowly missing one from behind her again, only to go tumbling over the edge of a cliff with a yell.
As the reptiles surrounded them on the cliff edge, Lelouch spotted probably their only hope of safety. A small crevice in some rocks down below.
Lelouch nudged C.C. and pointed towards the cave. The immortal turned and saw it as well. This, however, cost her, as the moment she turned her back, one of the creatures leaped forward and sliced its claws deeply into her back. C.C. screamed in surprise and agony.
Lelouch, adrenaline kicking in, grabbed C.C. around the waist and rocketed towards the cave opening with his jet pack. The creatures chased after them, but the two managed to make it inside safely before they could get caught.
Lelouch gasped in relief as the creatures attempted to slam into the opening, struggling to get to them.
"Kallen? Kallen, are you okay?" Lelouch asked into the comm, having heard her scream earlier. "What happened?"
Kallen panted as she clung for dear life on the side of the cliff. Just as she began falling, she had ripped out her Bayard and slammed her cestus into the side of the rock wall.
"Minor delay," she replied, "but I'm on my way!" With a grunt, she managed to propel herself upwards with her jetpack, using her Bayard as a crutch to do so. She rolled with a huff back onto the surface, sitting for a moment to catch her breath.
"We're all right for now," Lelouch said, "but we're trapped in a cave, and some nasty-looking creatures have us cornered. One of them got C.C. pretty good. She's okay, though."
Kallen breathed out slowly before getting back to her feet, "Stay put. I'm on my way... I just have to figure this out," she sighed as she looked across the chasm that nearly claimed her life.
"Whoo-hoo! Yay!" Shirley giggled as she slowly flipped through the air. She had about a dozen of the small aliens following after her, squeaking all the way. "This isn't too bad. Not so long as you cuties can keep us company!"
Rai stifled a laugh. He was glad that Shirley was remaining cheerful, remembering how terrified she'd been back at the base, and when they had landed. Watching her smile and laugh made him feel warm inside.
Though, now that he didn't need to worry too much about the Orange Paladin, it gave Rai a few precious moments to think. His mind kept wandering back to the battle, mainly when he felt Haggar's presence in the back of his mind. Ever since Milly and Lelouch found him wandering the streets, Rai had hoped that he could eventually regain the memories he lost, but from the few recovered, whether on his own or through the help of others, Rai wasn't sure he wanted to know anymore. Just picturing the witch, her glowing eyes and purple skin, made his skin crawl and his stomach turn.
He swallowed back bile once more when the creatures around them started squeaking urgently.
"What is it?" he asked curiously before following their gaze. Shirley had also stopped to look at what was causing such a fuss.
They were both pleasantly surprised to see that both Zerith and Zinnia's eyes were lighting up again, and their particle barriers cascading around them.
"All right! You're working again!" Rai exclaimed, waving his arms excitedly.
"Welcome back!" Shirley called over. She attempted to jet pack over to Zinnia, only for her foot to suddenly get caught on a thick wire. She yelped in alarm as she was accidentally yanked down and slammed face-first into some debris.
"Shirley! You okay?" Rai exclaimed as he propelled himself towards her.
The Orange Paladin shook her head with a groan as pieces of junk floated away from her impact. Rai sighed in relief to see that Shirley wasn't hurt.
One of the green creatures glided over to them and squeaked, sounding concerned.
"No, sorry, it's not our friends," Shirley sighed, still laying where she landed, "just an old, rusty satellite."
Rai scowled, but then his eyes lit up, "Wait! That's it! Maybe we can find our friends before they find us!"
"Huh?" Shirley asked in confusion.
"Come on, Shirley, I'll need your help!" Rai said, before propelling towards another trash island and digging through parts. Still confused, but now determined, she followed after him.
The first things that they retrieved were long wires and chords they could use to drag some of the junk. Rai then went digging through several other junk piles to find the parts he needed. With each item he brought back, he had Shirley tie the cord around each of them. Once Rai determined they had everything they needed, he tied the end of the rope around his waist and started space jumping back towards Zerith. Shirley and the creatures trailed right behind him. Due to the almost zero-gravity, it was easy to move the heavy equipment. After getting the first trip of equipment set up by his Lion, Rai and Shirley went to find more parts and tools.
"Wow, Rai," Shirley commented at one point as he retrieved what looked like a makeshift wrench, "you're super smart! I never would've thought to use a satellite, much less know how to make one.
"I'm not sure how to explain it," Rai admitted sheepishly, "I guess it just kind of clicks with me, you know? Who knows? Maybe I was a scientist before this."
Shirley chuckled before looking at him, concerned, "Have you remembered anything else? About your past?"
Rai frowns, "Not much more. All I can recall is my mom and sister. Their faces and names anyway."
"Nothing else?"
He shakes his head with a frustrated sigh, "No, nothing. I-I don't even know how we got captured in the first place."
"...What about your dad?" Shirley asked, recalling that the Green Paladin had never even brought his father up before.
This caused Rai to pause, "...No idea. If I do have a dad, I don't remember him," he confessed with a grimace.
Shirley bit her lip and looked at him sympathetically. She couldn't imagine not remembering her dad. Deep down, she hoped that Rai's father was still alive. Then once they found his mom and sister, and defeated Britannia and the Galra, they could be a real family, and not have to worry about evil aliens or corrupt leaders.
Shirley then spotted a small tool that looked like pliers and went to retrieve it. On her way back, though, her foot got tangled in a cord. With a yelp, she tripped in the air and fell right on top of Rai.
"Oh! Sorry!" Shirley yelped and tried to roll herself off of her. But she miscalculated the zero gravity, and accidentally pulled Rai on top of her.
With their faces just barely inches apart from each other.
Before either Paladin could adequately process the position they were in, the little creatures started squeaking excitedly, and several of them formed a large heart around their flailing bodies.
The Green and Orange Paladins blushed harder than the paint on Aka's metal.
Rai, still blushing, coughed, "I should... you know... go check on the... the thing."
"Yeah, I'll... check on the other... thing," Shirley answered before the two scrambled away from each other in opposite directions.
Despite the small mishap, though it took some time, eventually, Rai was able to construct a makeshift satellite. Now they would just need to power it on.
"Okay, okay, think," Kallen muttered as she paced around cautiously, not wanting to disrupt any more of the geysers. "How can I get across this… what would… what would Zero do?" she asked, forgetting for a moment that the comms were on.
She heard a faint chuckle in her helmet, causing her to freeze for a moment.
"Well, at the moment, Zero can't do much stuck in a cave," Lelouch joked lightly.
Kallen scoffed before a small trickling crack caught her attention. She walked towards it and slammed her heel down on top of it. Moments later, an enormous geyser erupted.
"You know, Lelouch… I guess I should thank you. If it weren't for you, I'd probably be six feet under in Shinjuku right now," she suddenly said, staring up at the water that showed little sign of stopping.
Lelouch chuckled, on the other end, "It's interesting how a few weeks ago, we were part of the Black Knights in Japan. Now we're Defenders of the Universe of all things. What we were doing back on Earth seemed tiny compared to now, huh?"
"Say, Kallen," C.C.'s voice comes through this time, "Tell us. How'd you feel about finding out your high and mighty leader is the prince of an empire you loathe more than anything else?"
Kallen scowled a little before answering, "...I'll admit when Lelouch first spilled his guts, the first thing I wanted to do was punch him in the jaw. Maybe knock out a few teeth. That would've felt good."
She could almost feel the grimace that Lelouch had on his face at that moment.
"But…" she paused, "...after hearing what you went through, I understand why you're not only fighting Britannia but why you had to hide your identity."
"...Yeah. I doubt any of the Black Knights would have considered joining forces with a Prince of Britannia. Even a disgraced, banished one."
Kallen couldn't help but chuckle at the dark humor there. Because it was so true. Then a thought hit her as she turned away from the geyser.
"Wait a second, while we're on the subject, what about the bathroom? I got a phone call from Zero in there, but you were the one that gave me the phone!"
"Oh, that…" Lelouch sounded quite embarrassed on the other end, "Um… I just used my Geass on Sayoko to play that recording at a certain time. That's all. Sorry I had to deceive you like that, but I didn't want to risk Nunnally getting dragged into it. I honestly still don't."
Kallen nodded instead of retorting, "It's fine, I get it. Naoto was the exact same way. The only reason I joined their group was out of sheer stubbornness to help."
"...So, how exactly was the view, Lulu?" C.C. suddenly asked, rather seductively. Kallen heard Lelouch squawk on the other end, and she felt her cheeks start to burn up. "I mean, it's not every day you get the gorgeous view of a woman's naked body."
Kallen growled as she heard Lelouch sputter incomprehensibly.
'I'm so kicking that witch once we're out of here!' she thought furiously as she withdrew her Bayard in its cestus form. It wasn't the claws that she was interested in, though. She stared down at the small hatch at the center of the glove. She still couldn't put a name to what exactly it did, but it would probably serve her needs right now just fine.
Lelouch then started coughing hard through the link, and Kallen's stomach dropped. She had to hurry.
Without wasting another moment, the hatch flipped open, and Kallen slammed it into the ground, right near the edge of the cliff.
The result was precisely what she expected. From where the glove's force hit, water burst from the side of the cliff, propelling Kallen on a small rock ledge over halfway across the canyon. She laughed at her apparent success at first, before the ridge suddenly crumpled beneath her feet and she was once more free-falling into the canyon below.
With a scream of fear, Kallen disappeared into the mist below, before she forcibly activated her jetpack as hard as she could. The force was strong enough to propel her to the other end of the canyon, where she latched onto the edge with a grunt and groan, and held on for dear life.
"Kallen?!" Lelouch shouted suddenly, sounding terrified, "Kallen, you okay?"
"I'm fine," she answered, reshooting her jetpack to propel herself to her feet, "I'm on my way."
"Well, put a rush on it!" C.C. exclaimed, sounding somewhat frightened herself, as she and Lelouch tried to scramble farther into the cave. They soon found their backs literally against the wall, "Because these things just started digging!"
The two watched in horror as the lizards, their four beady red eyes eying them ravenously, threw back dirt and stone effortlessly, continuing to slam into the structure to catch them.
Kallen continued to fly towards their location, and her eyes widened as she caught a familiar sight.
She laughed in relief, "Okay, you two, I got visual on Zenobia! I'm almost there!"
Lelouch and C.C. didn't have time to respond, as one of the lizards finally managed to squeeze its head into the hole it had dug, and bit down hard on C.C.'s leg. As the immortal cried out in pain, the creature reared back, tossing her and Lelouch, who attempted to pull her away but got pulled with her, out of the cave toward the clearing where three other reptiles were waiting.
The two of them struggled to their feet but were immediately forced to dodge as one of the creatures slammed its clawed foot down where they had been laying moments ago.
After recovering, the creature turned in C.C.'s direction, but the immortal managed to swing a kick that landed in one of the creature's four eyes. It roared in agony before collapsing, temporarily stunned.
Lelouch was then slammed forcibly to the side by another creature when his attention was temporarily on C.C., watching when she had sucker kicked her opponent. The force of the impact was so strong that it sent him tumbling over the edge into an even deeper gorge. As he rolled roughly down the slope, his helmet went flying off his head, losing any form of communication with Kallen. C.C. joined him shortly after, also losing her helmet.
Lelouch's side throbbed as he struggled to get back to his feet. Though the pain was nearly blinding, his fight-or-flight instincts won over, and he forced himself to run as the creatures started to give chase once more. C.C. paused to glance over at their helmets before joining him. Though she wouldn't technically die if these lizards caught them, she wasn't looking forward to the pain that she knew would follow.
Plus, she couldn't let Lelouch die, no matter what!
"Lelouch?! C.C.?! What happened?!" Kallen exclaimed after hearing their cries of distress.
When no reply came, Kallen growled, and forced her legs and jetpack to go faster, sprint-hopping towards Zen as quickly as she could.
"Let's check the Rift Exit Positioning Monitor to see where this worm goes," Coran, now a toddler, exclaimed as he stood on top of the control panel. His little stomach then let out a gurgle. He looked down and held it lightly. "I hungry." He then started screaming and throwing a tantrum, jumping up and down on the panel forcibly.
"Coran, no! That is not a toy," Allura shouted, pushing past the mice that had now turned into floating, blob-like creatures, to get to the Coran. She picked him up as he continued to struggle and scream, "You're going to break the castle, and everything will stop!" Allura then blinked and gasped. "Wait a second. Perhaps we can simply stop the castle from moving."
She bent over the panel and started pressing some buttons, but apparently, Coran didn't like that very much and started pulling forcefully on her hair.
"No! Mine!" he screamed and growled before chomping down on Allura's arm.
The princess screamed before being forced to kneel on the floor to try and control the toddler. With a desperate grimace, she pressed down hard on one final button. The lights dimmed, systems shut down, and all life seemed to leave the castle. But that did nothing!
"I've shut down all the power. Why are we still moving towards the void?" Allura asked, curious and scared at the same time.
She then jumped when Coran started to bawl quite hard.
"Waaah! My control panel! Waaah!"
Coran's cries were the last thing to be heard before the castle disappeared once more into the void.
When Allura came to again, she saw she was standing at the teludav once more, and now had Coran, as a baby cradled in her arms. She barely noticed the mice, now flying around as winged birds, pass her by.
Coran started crying, and Allura gently cooed at her advisor, "I know, I know. Who wants to check the Rift Exit Positioning Monitor to see where this wormhole is taking us? You do, that's who."
Coran seemed to quiet down at Allura's gentle words, but the princess was now anything but calm, "We have to get out of this loop before the only thing left of you is your mustache!"
Allura blinked in surprise when she saw Coran's pacifier fly out of his mouth. Looking down at him, the advisor uttered one word.
"Poopies!"
Allura groaned in disgust, her eyebrow twitching. Now of all times?!
Kallen, with a huff of relief, finally managed to land at Zen's resting place. She didn't stop to check the Lion and rushed towards the edge of the cliff. She gasped at what she saw. The four monsters were chasing Lelouch and C.C. across the gorge, and Lelouch was holding his side tightly.
She knew that if she rushed in, she'd just get trapped too. There was no way she could take all of those things by herself. Unless...
She turned towards the down Lion at last and ran towards her muzzle.
"Zen, I know I'm not Lelouch, but he's in trouble. We need to help him," she pleaded, laying her hand on Zen's nose, looking desperately into her dark eyes.
Lelouch and C.C. slammed against the face of a rock wall and immediately dodged to the side as the creature at the front came and jumped, missed, and hit the wall instead.
Lelouch had just rolled to his feet when a tail slammed hard into his side. The side where his wound was located. He screamed in agony as he turned blindly into the middle of the group.
C.C. rushed to his side, standing protectively over him. She held her fists up defensively, but without a proper weapon, the situation didn't look good for either of them.
"Mauled by a giant, alien lizard. That's a new one," she muttered humorlessly as she defiantly stared the largest one, the leader, down.
Lelouch coughed violently next to her, and her eyes wandered back to him. If she wanted Lelouch to live, she had to figure out something fast; make herself seem more appetizing or easier to catch. If she had to endure being their next meal for Lelouch to escape, she'd do it.
For a split second, she blinked as to why she was so concerned about his safety, and a little voice in the back of her head told her it couldn't just be because he was a contractor.
Lelouch groaned as the pain finally subsided enough that he could think. He pushed himself to his knees, his right arm softly crackling with electricity. The four creatures surrounded them on all sides, and the Black Paladin grit his teeth and narrowed his eyes at the one in front of him. If he was going to die, it wasn't going to be lying down.
"Watch out!" C.C. shouted, jumping in front of Lelouch, just as one of the lizards behind them leaped in for the kill.
The lizard's bite never landed. A giant metal claw slammed down nearly on top of the lizard, causing it to fly forward over them. The two gasped and covered their faces as the dust and dirt flew everywhere.
Kallen growled as she thrust down on the controls and swung Zen's head to the side, where another creature was trying to sneak up on the pair down below.
The Black Lion turned and roared, her paw slamming down towards the creature. Her tail slammed down with a thud by Lelouch, where another creature tried to leap at him.
The duo down below struggled to sit up and gasped as Zen's tail swished over their heads.
With one final roar of warning, the last creature scrambled away. Realizing that it wouldn't be getting past the Lion, it wisely chose to retreat.
Rai, Shirley, and the space animals all lowered the final piece of the structure into place of the satellite itself.
Once it clicked, the two leaped down and descended slowly towards the bottom where Zerith was located, the creatures following right behind them. Upon landing on top of Zerith's back, Rai attached the final piece of wire at the base. The satellite buzzed to life.
"That ought to do it," he grinned as blue energy began to spread along the surface and edges. "Now, let's see if we can get a hold of the castle."
At the top, the satellite began to glow and almost seemed to send the signal they needed. But seconds later, the energy disappeared, powering back down.
"No, no!" Rai shouted in frustration.
"What's wrong?" Shirley asked, concerned.
Rai wasn't listening, though, as he clutched his helmet angrily, "We need to get out of here! We need to find our friends! Come on!" With a final shout, Rai threw his head back, staring up angrily at the sky. What he didn't notice was a familiar red insignia blinking to life in his left eye, causing Shirley to gasp.
Suddenly, beneath them, Zerith's eyes flicker open, and she roars mightily. This managed to provide the power that they needed for the satellite as the structure shot a thin blue beam into the atmosphere.
"Heh, thanks, Zerith," Rai grinned as he and Shirley flew into the mouth of his Lion. Once they were inside, Rai started typing in some algorithms and coordinates into the consoles, "Now, let's see if this thing works. I hope the signal is strong enough to reach the castle."
As systems started flickering to life inside, Shirley finally spoke up, "Rai, so you do have a Geass?"
"I-I do?" he asked, looking back at her, surprised.
"Yeah, I saw it activate for a second when you were shouting."
"...Huh. I don't know. If I really have it, C.C. wasn't the one that gave it to me, as far as I know anyway," he confessed, though his frustration over his own amnesia was still evident.
"I don't think she did either," Shirley replied, "I mean, C.C. would've said something back at the castle if she had, right?" she asked.
"That's true…" Rai admitted with a frown. However, one unanswered question spiraled in both of their heads. If C.C. hadn't given him Geass, who did? And why?
"Coran, what are we going to do? If we hit the end of the tunnel again, you'll cease to exist," Allura lamented, watching in fear as the void approached closer and closer once more. Nothing she had tried worked. Even when the castle was off, it was still pulled in. The outcome seemed inevitable. Tears gathered in her eyes as she held the infant Coran close, "I'm sorry. You were like a second father to me."
A sudden beep caused the princess to open her eyes again, and they widened with a gasp when she saw what the screen was showing.
"Coran, look! The castle has locked onto a coordinate," she exclaimed, and hurriedly started typing in instructions onto the screen, "Come on. Come on!"
Just before the castle could slam into the void again, a wormhole, a real one, opened up right in front of them, and the castle disappeared into it.
On the other end, Allura was relieved to see the starry universe around them as they flew towards the blue beacon that had summoned them.
"We made it!" she cried for joy.
She then frowned when she heard the unmistakable sound of snoring. Looking down, she saw that she was still holding Coran in her arms. However, he was no longer an infant, but a grown adult Altean, the exact same age he was when they first entered the void.
He smacked his lips and opened his eyes blearily.
"...Mum?"
With a huff, the princess dropped her advisor from her arms, causing him to hit the floor with a yelp. The mice scurried up to Coran and squeaked in amusement, also back to normal.
Down below, Rai and Shirley, who had exited Zerith upon seeing the wormhole, grinned, happy to see a familiar sight.
"Rai, Shirley, you saved us! We were stuck in a time loop!" Allura explained, relieved to see two of the Paladins alive through the castle window. Their faces were clear to see on the monitors.
"You got us out with this giant trash pile!" Coran added, though he still winced from the pain of the large bump on his head.
"It's nothing," Rai said humbly, "It's just a make-shift communications link that sends out the Green Lion energy. It's similar to the energy that guided the Blue Lion home."
"Rai, you're a genius!" Coran praised.
"Heh, heh, thanks," he smiled, "though we did have some help."
Rai glanced over at Shirley. She was currently cuddling two of the creatures up to her chest, hearts in her eyes.
"Can we keep them?" she asked giddily.
"Hmmm…" Coran scratched his head as Allura giggled.
"Let's go get the rest of the Paladins."
"...Thanks for saving us, Kallen," Lelouch said tiredly as he and the two women sat together by a fire they managed to make. They had managed to find not necessarily wood, but items that proved to be flammable with help from their jetpacks. Now they were all resting, with the two Lions standing guard over them.
"You'd have done the same for me," Kallen replied, "How's your wound?"
"Oh, my wound's great. It's getting bigger all the time," Lelouch said sarcastically, still holding his side where it was.
"If you're trying to lighten the mood Lelouch, I'm afraid you're failing miserably," C.C. told him bluntly.
"Hey, didn't hurt to try," Lelouch retorted tiredly.
"Just hang in there. When Allura and Coran find us, they'll fix you right up," Kallen said, trying to sound confident.
Lelouch's eyes then suddenly locked with Kallen's. She blinked in surprise. There was almost a… desperation behind the purple eyes of the Black Paladin as he spoke.
"Kallen… if I don't make it out of here... please… look after Nunnally."
She gasped a little in surprise. She didn't know why Lelouch was acting like he was on his deathbed. This wasn't the leader that she knew.
"Lelouch, don't talk like that, you're going to make it," Kallen told him, a determined frown on her face.
Lelouch sighed, exhaustion clear in his features before his eyes glazed over, and his body slumped against the rock he had been propped against.
"Lelouch!" Kallen gasped as she caught him as he nearly fell on his side. She and C.C. managed to maneuver him so that his head rested on C.C.'s leg. Probably not the most comfortable pillow, but better than nothing.
C.C. held her hand against his forehead and frowned, "His fever's rising. If he doesn't get help soon, he'll be in trouble."
"Where the hell are they?!" Kallen exclaimed, frustrated. Allura said the castle could track the Lions anywhere in the universe. So why hadn't they been picked up? Unless… was the castle damaged? If that was the case, then they really were in trouble.
"You seemed rather concerned about him," C.C.'s voice startled Kallen out of her mental crisis. She looked up at the immortal in surprise.
She then frowned, "You really think this is the time for teasing?!"
"What makes you think I was teasing you? I was quite serious," C.C. said calmly, "If you had a way to help him right now, you would, wouldn't you? As well as the others."
Kallen stared at C.C. before she narrowed her eyes, "What are you getting at?"
C.C. turned fully to face her, but was careful not to disrupt Lelouch's slumber, "I'll get right to the point, then. Do you wish to form a contract with me?"
Kallen gasped, stunned. Any words that she had to say died in her throat. Was C.C. really offering to give her that Geass power? Why?
"You don't have to if you don't wish to," C.C. continued, "all Geass have risks and limitations. Some are more dangerous than others."
Kallen scoffed, "You say that as if it's more dangerous to have one than not."
"As I said, it's your choice," the immortal said with finality, turning her attention back to the gray sky.
Kallen frowned and looked down at the ground. From what she could tell, the Geass did indeed have advantages. Shirley was able to quickly get them into the base unnoticed, and Lelouch was able to easily convince a Galra guard to surrender without a fight. But there were still mysteries and questions about it, some that C.C. admitted that she didn't even know about.
Kallen turned slightly in C.C.'s direction, "If I said 'yes,' what kind of power would I get?"
"That depends," C.C. answered, "and I don't have the answer, unfortunately. Geass manifests differently from person to person. Two people could have the same ability but can only use it in certain ways. Some could use their Geass in the same way, but the ability is different. All I know is that it depends on a person's desires and personality."
Kallen went silent again. Her mind was racing. If desires came into play with it, her thoughts immediately went to not just her new team in Voltron, but to the Black Knights that were still waiting for them on Earth. She really hoped that they hadn't done anything too reckless while they'd been gone. She knew that Ohgi was likely keeping a cool head, but she wasn't so sure about Tamaki and some of the others.
Her thoughts also floated to her mom, who was currently being held for twenty years in prison for using the drug Refrain. Had she gotten wind that she was missing? How long had it been anyway? A few weeks? A month? If Kallen was honest, she had completely lost track of time being out here in outer space.
She knew if her mother found out, she would be devastated. She had already lost Naoto and endured terrible abuse from Ms. Stadtfeld for years just to be near her. Would this be too much for her?
But Lelouch said he had accepted Geass to protect his sister, to fight Britannia. And Shirley had taken it to save Shay and her family, and them in consequence.
Though it seemed dangerous, they needed all of the help they could get.
Her mindset, she turned to C.C. and held out her hand, "Let's do it."
C.C., in response, grasped Kallen's hand firmly, and the Red Paladin gasped. Just like how Lelouch and Shirley described, images flashed through her mind, the tunnels of light, and other people and places.
She felt a slight burning in her left eye just as C.C.'s hand released hers. She instinctively held her hand up to it, grimacing slightly. As she pulls away, the Geass sigil is seen briefly before fading away.
Before Kallen could ask any further questions, a light above the camp caught her attention. As she and C.C. looked up, they saw to their relief that a wormhole had opened in the sky. And out flew the sleek shape of the Orange Lion.
Upon seeing the Lions and three figures on the ground, Shirley smiled in relief and flew down to greet them.
Help had finally arrived.
Though the emperor seemed to sit calmly on his throne, inside, he was enraged. The Black Lion and Voltron had been within his grasp, and it had slipped through his fingers once more. Had the barrier not suddenly gone down, Voltron would've been in the hands of the Galra Empire now.
He glared menacingly at Prorok, who he had summoned with his squad immediately after the battle, demanding an explanation.
"Explain to me how you let Voltron escape!"
The commander sputtered fearfully, "Perhaps it was a mechanical failure, sire. Haggar boosted the solar barrier's power beyond its normal limits."
Haggar in question stood loyally by her emperor's side, also glaring at Prorok as well, "This was no mechanical failure. The two sentries that were guarding the barrier control were found destroyed. This was clearly sabotage."
Upon hearing this, Prorok raised his head to look at his emperor, Thace kneeling close by as well, "Lord Zarkon, I will start an investigation immediately. I will not rest until the perpetrators are captured."
"Perhaps I can save months of investigating," Zarkon answered darkly, sending a chill down Prorok's spine. "Who has been trying to chisel Voltron away from me this entire time? Who sent his fleet out without my orders to get Voltron?"
Prorok's eyes widened in fear when he realized what Zarkon was implying, "Sire, no! I-I would never do that."
Despite his begging, however, two sentries came up behind Prorok and began to drag him away.
"Get rid of him," the emperor ordered.
"No! I'm innocent!" Prorok screamed as he was dragged away into the darkness.
"Before we dispose of him, the druids will find out all that he knows," Haggar promised with a scowl, "Then, he will receive a punishment worse than death."
Satisfied with Haggar's response, Zarkon turned his attention to the other Galra in the room, "Lieutenant Thace. You are now in charge of the investigation, Commander."
Thace in question gasped softly before lowering his head in a bow, "Vrepit sa."
As Thace stood to leave, something else also occupied Haggar's mind, The memories she had managed to extract from the two Earthlings before and during the battle. Particularly the red symbols that marked them and the ones that inhabited their eyes. A similar symbol that occupied her emperor's.
The witch's eyes narrowed. Something else was at play here. And she was determined to discover what it was.
AN: Hey everyone! Sorry for the longer wait, but I had a couple of weeks between semesters as my 'summer break', and I was using it as a time to relax. Due to that, I temporarily lost motivation to write in general. But I'm back! And don't worry, I'm not planning on abandoning this fic anytime soon! This thing is my baby and I'm raising it into a masterpiece!
Now, I know a lot of you are wondering why no one is back on Earth yet, and I promise that that is coming in the next few chapters, and it's something that I've been waiting to write for a while! I'm just as excited as you! So, strap in! A few more chapters and things are going to get crazy!
R&R and see you next time!
