Chapter Text
The mission had been a simple one in hind sight. A routine excursion to a largely quiet planet that the Castle had detected a distress signal from.
It was only once the Lions had breached the atmosphere of the heavily forested planet that everything went to hell.
Seven kinds of hell, to be exact.
Keith banked sharply to the left, the very tip of Red’s claws just barely evading the blast of the ion cannon that fired upon him. Four large purple battleships had suddenly appeared in the sky of the planet, the weather rapidly turning to rough winds and storm clouds as the Galra made their move. Keith was recovering quickly from the sudden appearance of the newly-uncloaked battleships but it soon became clear that the other paladins were rattled.
“Where the hell did they come from?” Lance screeched, the piercing quality of his voice making Keith flinch, his sensitive hearing making the note unbearable.
A hastily muffled curse echoed through the com, a string of Spanish profanity coming from Lance’s channel as Blue danced away from the rapidly firing fighters that descended from the battleships.
“It doesn’t matter where they came from. What’s important is that we need to regroup!” Shiro called, a pillar of steel in his voice, “We need to form Voltron.”
“Easier said than done right now, Shiro.” Keith groused, slamming forward on the controls, lava roaring from Red’s maw to eliminate the fighters in front of him, “I don’t think they’re going to give us the time to regroup!”
“We have to try!” Shiro hissed, a dark streak cutting across the sky as Black flew, explosions marking her path across the clouds.
“Is there anything we can use to our advantage?” Lance called, his Lion flitting closer to Yellow, ice coating the battleship he was fleeing, “There has to be something!”
Laser fire filled Keith’s view momentarily and he hissed as Red jerked sharply under the barrage. He growled under his breath as he maneuvered, body pressed back into his pilot’s chair as Red rolled and dove to escape the crowd on her tail. Once he managed some distance, they flipped around, lava annihilating the threat. He paused for a moment, glancing quickly at the screens on his control panel, noting the slight damage to Red’s side.
Above him the clouds roiled, finally releasing their load in the form of heavy rain, lightning sparking across the sky and striking the side of one of the battleships. An explosion rocked one side and Keith suppressed a grin as Lance whooped over the com. “Finally something good!”
“It’s not over yet.” Hunk said worriedly, Yellow staying close to Blue as the two Lions held off the fighters accosting them.
“I have something that might help.” Pidge said, her voice steady even as Green twisted around the side of the exploding ship, “My scanner says there’s a mountain range close by. The storm must have masked it. We might be able to lose some of the fighters in there and regroup.”
“Nice eyes, Pidge.” Shiro grinned, “Alright, paladins, let’s lose them!”
Keith felt a wide smirk stretch his face, hands moving expertly over the controls as he led the way in the direction Pidge indicated, the smallest of the hills leading up to the mountains becoming visible as he rocketed towards the range. Red cut through the air smoothly, her speed leaving the speeders in the dust as she ducked between the hills and ridges. Fighters exploded behind him as missed the sharp turns and twists that he made, crashing hard into the cliffs and valleys of the broad valley.
Keeping an eye on the map to his right, Keith spun through the air with Red, letting himself get lost in the sheer joy of flight for just a moment before he dove deeper into the range, his own red blinker drawing ever closer to the black, blue, green, and yellow blinkers.
He skidded around a cliff side just in time to narrowly miss Blue and he frowned at the com as Lance squawked in alarm. “Watch where you’re going Mullet!”
“Reflexes getting a little slow?” Keith teased, chest lightening at the outraged noises coming from Lance’s end.
“Maybe your piloting’s getting a little slow.” Lance returned, the tone of his voice giving Keith the perfect mental image of his cocky grin, “Galra Keith seems a bit sloppy.”
“Don’t project yourself onto me, Lance.” Keith deadpanned, rolling his eyes at the Galra modifier that Hunk had apparently gotten Lance to start using.
“I don’t project anything but awesome.”
“As cute as you two are, if you could stop flirting, we’d really like to form Voltron now.” Pidge said loudly, her face speaking volumes from where her video screen was projected on Keith’s panel.
Immediately flushing, Keith sent a look at her screen before dragging a hand down his face in exasperation. Grumbling under his breath, he opened one of the private lines to Green and flicked the switch to mute himself in the group com, Lance’s laughter echoing over the line. “Pidge, you are not helping.”
“How am I not helping, Casanova?” She chirped, blinking her eyes innocently, “I only tried to get you two back on task.”
“I wasn’t flirting.”
“Oh really?” Pidge smirked, “Goodness. That crush must have gone away pretty fast.”
“I don’t know why we tell you anything.”
“You wouldn’t know what to do without me.” Pidge cackled, “But trust me, Keith, I’m doing you a favor. Did you hear him deny that you were flirting?”
Keith paused for a moment before his eyes widened. Pidge nodded at him before giving him a wink. “You’re welcome.”
Momentarily stunned by the information, Keith flipped on the group line almost absently, jumping when Shiro’s voice roared through the com. “Come on! Form Voltron!”
Keith leapt into action alongside the others, reveling-as he always did- in that remarkable, almost ethereal feeling that came along with being joined into Voltron with the others.
He felt whole as if a part of himself had been missing for so long, the slight brushes of the other minds of the paladins putting him more at ease despite the overwhelming danger that they currently found themselves in.
After so long in space together and the battles they fought, forming Voltron was nearly effortless. In a matter of moments, the Legendary Defender of the Universe stood amongst the mountain range, the pour of the rain nothing to the colossal robot.
“Alright guys, let’s go take care of this.” Shiro encouraged, his energy along the bond strong and comforting, a breeze at one’s back on the way home.
“They won’t even know what’s coming.” Lance snarked, his mind making Keith think of the mischievous waves of Earth.
“We gotta be careful with this storm.” Pidge cautioned, the solemnity and peace of the forest in her section of the bond “We saw what the lightning did to that battleship. I’m not sure what would happen if we were struck.”
“Plus, it would be awhile before we could get anything fixed. I can’t really reach Allura or Coran right now.” Hunk added, a feeling of tremulous but steady earth emanating from Voltron’s left leg.
“Then we’ll just have to take care of this fast.” Keith said confidently, feeling Red’s fire blaze through his veins, driving his adrenaline higher.
They nodded as one, flying from out of the mountain range under the cover of the storm. As they drew closer to the battleships, Keith plunged his bayard into its slot, the sword of Voltron forming in his Lion’s grasp. “Let’s take down the battleship that got struck first. It’s already weakened so it should be an easy target.”
“Yes sir.” Keith answered, gripping the controls in front of him with relish.
The rain and clouds covered their approach, letting them hover over the damaged battleship before the first of the fighters noticed them. With a wild cry, Keith pressed forward on his controls, Voltron’s sword whistling through the air as they descended. The blade bit into the scorched side of the ship, cleanly slicing through it and sending it crashing to the empty forest below.
In another swift movement, Voltron turned, a graceful change in direction pushing the sword through the mass of fighters that attempted to bring them down. Keith could feel Lance at the back of his mind, pride in their accomplishment and it made his stomach flop.
Maybe he could try talking to Lance a little more when they made their way back to the Castle.
The blistering screech of an ion canon pulled Keith back from his reverie and he shook his head dismissively, mumbling curses under his breath. Damn Lance and his distracting….everything.
“Keith, focus.” Shiro called, “Two more battleships to go. We aren’t going to be able to sneak up on them.”
“I got it.” Keith snapped, adjusting his grip on the controls in front of him.
Voltron pressed forward through the fray, blade and shield alternatively slicing and bashing against the fighters that drove against them. “The Galra have entirely too many fighter ships.” Lance whined, “Like seriously? How many could they possibly have? They have to run out sometime right?”
“They’ve had ten thousand years to build up their arsenal. Maybe they have some kind of factory?” Hunk mused, the two legs beginning to engage in a heated debate over their theoretical factory.
“Lance, Hunk. Not the time.” Shiro sighed, directing Voltron through the ebbing tide of fighters to the second battleship, “Keith, on three!”
“One.”
“Two.”
A sharp crack of lightning drowned out the sound of Shiro’s voice and Keith screamed as Red’s cockpit immediately lit up with blue light, the screens and panels sparking dangerously. His body felt like it was on fire, electricity shrieking through the metal of the pilot’s chair.
The feeling passed as soon as it happened and Keith shuddered in his chair, limbs still jerking erratically from his electrocution. “Keith! Buddy, answer us!” Lance yelled, the com blazing back to life in the wake of the strike.
Red pressed at his mind insistently, her end of the link awash with pain, confusion and worry. “I’m okay.” Keith gasped, trying and failing to get his limbs under control, “Just, just give me a minute.”
“I don’t think we have a minute.” Hunk hissed, “That ion cannon is about to fire.”
“Keith, we’re gonna pull back.”
“No!” Keith roared, “We can do this. I can do this. I’m fine. Keep going!”
He could feel their worry at the back of his mind but he pressed forward, slowly regaining the sensation in his hands. He jammed his controls forward, the sword in his grasp slicing into the ion cannon with wild abandon. Keith’s shaking hands jerked along, the sword darting into the battleship once more and retreating when the ship burst into flames.
“One more.” Keith panted, his body screaming at him as he continued to cling to consciousness, “We only need to take down one more.”
“We need to pull back.” Shiro said sternly, “You just took a lightning strike. We have no idea what that did to your lion, Keith.”
“Red and I are fine, Shiro!” Keith growled, “We need to take of this threat now. The more battleships we take down, the more we hurt Zarkon. Let’s finish this.”
Keith could sense Shiro’s disapproval over the sheer wave of worry coming from the others but he set his jaw firmly, waiting. Finally, Shiro sighed in resignation. “Fine. But we are going to talk about this when we get back to the castle.”
Voltron flew forward, the fighters mostly decimated by this point and the final battleship all but defenseless underneath their assault. The blade brought the ship to a swift end and Keith breathed a sigh of relief as Hunk and Lance whooped at their victory. He cast a glance to his screen, frowning when he could see Pidge staring at him in worry. “We really need to get back to the castle and get you and Red checked out. You’re not looking so good.”
Keith turned his head, stalwartly not looking at Pidge as the familiar wholeness of Voltron came undone, the one returning to the original five. Red floated silently for a moment before perking up at last, flying alongside her sisters towards the atmosphere of the planet.
“So is it safe to say that yet another distress signal turned out to be a trap?” Lance said dryly, a wry look on his face as Keith looked at the screen.
“I know the Paladin Code or whatever says we have to go help every time, but there’s gotta be a better way right?” Hunk offered, “You know a way that doesn’t end up with us ambushed?”
“Maybe that’s something that we can bring up to Allura? Get eyes on the situation first?” Pidge suggested, “We could put together some kind of scout bots maybe? I still have some scrap left from that trash planet we found.”
“Let me know how that works out.” Shiro said approvingly, “It can help us act quicker in real emergencies too.”
Keith let the voices of his teammates wash over him, feeling woozy and tired now that the adrenaline from battle was beginning to wear off. He could vaguely see Blue from the corner of his eye and Lance’s worried face soon came to dominate his screen. “Lancelot to Mullet. How is everything? You’ve been pretty quiet.”
“I’m good, Lance. Just got struck by lightning. Feeling a little tired.” Keith deflected, letting himself stare at the screen in front of him.
Lance’s oceanic eyes looked him over searchingly before crinkling as he smiled. “We’ll get you some time in the pod when we get back. You feel like sparring when you’re back to 100%? I’d hate to kick your ass before then.”
“Were you the one struck by lightning? Because last time I checked, you’ve never beaten me.”
“First time for everything fly boy.”
Keith chuckled at that, wryly noticing how Lance’s face lit up at the sound.
Maybe he had a chance after all.
He opened his mouth to respond when a great hulking mass filled his view, the sharp purple edges drawing his attention away from Lance. The view screen collapsed immediately and Keith stared at the massive ship with trepidation.
It was similar in size to the great flagship of Zarkon’s fleet but the designs were more elegant, an emphasis on aesthetic over sheer terrifying power.
The ship was beautiful in a warped, horrifying way.
A view screen opened abruptly, static filling it before it melted away to reveal an unfamiliar face.
They were undoubtedly Galra. The sharply pointed ear, lavender skin and viciously serrated teeth left no doubt to that part of their heritage. But unlike the Galra they were familiar with, this one had long pale hair and striking crimson lines tracing patterns on their face, eerily similar to the witch, Haggar.
“Greetings, paladins of Voltron.” They said smoothly, voice deep and sibilant in a way that made all of Keith’s survival instincts shriek.
Whoever this was, they were bad news.
“I apologize for the delay in our introductions. Father has been quite selfish in keeping you to himself.” The Galra purred, “I am Prince Lotor, heir to the Galra Empire and High Commander of the Eastern Territory. And never fear paladins, there’s no need to trip over each other to show yourselves to me. I already know all about you.”
Keith flinched as he made eye contact with the Prince, Red’s unease growing with every moment the flagship hovered in front of them.
“When I discovered you had strayed into my humble corner of the universe, I simply couldn’t resist coming to meet you myself. Especially when I learned you have a half-breed among you. I must insist upon a chat. We are a rare breed after all. Not many races survive birthing a half-Galra. We are quite special. What do you say, Red Paladin?”
Rage flooded Keith and he gripped Red’s controls so hard his knuckles creaked, Red’s growls answering in his head. “I have nothing to say to you.”
“That really is too bad. But as I said before, I really must insist. We are kin, you and I. You don’t belong with the Paladins of Voltron.”
Old doubts threatened to rear their heads at Lotor’s words but he squashed them mercilessly, weight in his chest lifting when he heard Lance scoff.
“You must be as dumb as you are pretty if you thought that would work. Voltron is exactly where Keith belongs.”
“A pity then. I’ll have to do this the hard way.”
A high-pitched whine was the only warning they received before a wide beam shot from the front of the flagship, the searing light catching both Red and Blue despite their best attempts to dodge it.
Both paladins screamed as they caught the psychic backlash of their Lions’ pain, Red’s systems flickering as the damage she had sustained earlier was compounded by the newest hit. She abruptly tilted and Keith swore.
The heavily forested earth of the planet below rushed up to greet them, Keith frantically pulling on the useless controls in an effort to level out his freefall, Lance’s swearing and the cries of their teammate’s flickering through the com.
“Hold on you two. We’re on our way!” Shiro yelled, the Black Lion diving after her damaged sisters.
“Shiro! They’re going to fire again!” Hunk relayed, Yellow trying her best in incapacitate the heavily armored cannon. “I can’t take it out!”
“Shiro, you have to move!” Keith roared, “Lance and I can figure it out!”
“Damn it, Keith! I’m almost to you!”
“Shiro, Keith’s right.” Lance groaned, “Just keep Prince Fancypants busy. Once we crash, we’ll keep a com open and find a way to get out of here.”
Precious seconds ticked by as Shiro hesitated, the high pitched whining beginning to ring in Keith’s ears once more.
“Protect each other.” Shiro said at last, Black turning on a dime to return to the flagship, jawblade gleaming in the flashes of lightning.
Keith let his breath out slowly, Red’s controls sluggish under his hands. “Come on girl. We have to slow down.”
Weakly, Red responded, her efforts aided as Blue flew closer, shielding her smaller sister with her larger, less damaged body. Despite their actions, they crashed through the trees with bruising force and the sounds of screeching metal.
Their final impact rocked both Lions and Keith jerked forward hard, slamming his forehead off the panel in front of him. His head spun from the hit, black spots dotting his vision as something hot trickled down the side of his face.
“Keith, my man, please talk to me.”
Silence reigned for a moment as Keith tried to gather his thoughts, a groan escaping him at first. “I’m here, Lance. I smacked my head off something but I’m okay.”
“So says the guy who just got electrocuted. I’m coming in. Have Red open up.”
Keith sighed heavily in response, reaching out to Red gently. His lion purred at him, a weak jibe about his crush directed into his brain before she opened her mouth, allowing the Blue Paladin inside.
Footsteps echoed across Red’s interior and Keith tried to pull himself to his feet, eyebrows furrowing in confusion when he couldn’t quite keep his balance.
Lance ducked into the cockpit just as Keith stumbled into the back of his chair, dizziness and nausea urging him to curl over the side.
“Jesus!” Lance exclaimed, rushing to Keith’s side and throwing one of his arms over his shoulder.
“Nope. Just Keith.” Keith said dryly, looking at Lance with what he hoped was a deadpan expression.
The Latino boy only gave him an unimpressed stare before snaking his arm around Keith’s ribs, his tight grip making Keith very thankful for the darkened lights of his lion. Lance wouldn’t be able to see how badly he was blushing.
“Come on, mullet. Let’s get you outside so I can do some damage control. Blue is still good to fly so if we need to, I can carry Red long enough to get back to the Castle. She’s not looking too hot right now.”
“Are the others doing okay up there?” Keith slurred, growing increasingly alarmed by his own sluggish thoughts and delayed response.
Lance looked at him in concern before pressing the com on his helmet. Keith stared for a moment before absently looking around the cockpit for his own helmet. He opened his mouth to ask Lance about it but quickly grew distracted at the intense look in Lance’s eyes.
“Shiro says that the flagship seems to be retreating. They ended up pushing quite a ways from where we crashed. They…why are you staring at me?”
“Why are your eyes so pretty? It’s distracting.” Keith mumbled, his own eyes narrowed and not entirely sure if he said any of that out loud.
“Seems you hit your head harder than we thought.” Lance smiled, pulling Keith with him as they made their way out of the Lion.
Keith immediately flushed but his muddled thoughts pushed him on. “You didn’t answer my question,” He groaned, “Why are you so pretty?”
“Good genetics.” Lance winked, “And a good skin care routine.”
“S’not fair. Too pretty. Makes me all stupid and stuff when we fight.” Keith admitted quietly, his head throbbing and making his thoughts further fragment.
“You’re starting to worry me, Keith.” Lance said seriously, “We need to get you back to the Castle.”
Lance peered at him in the light of the Blue Lion, fingers gentle as he pushed Keith’s fringe away from the wound. The rain quickly soaked the two of them and Keith let out a happy sigh when Lance slicked his bangs back with a chuckle.
“It’s not as bad as I thought. You were bleeding a lot but it looks pretty small. Now I’m just worried about your concussion.” Lance murmured, eyebrows furrowed in thought.
Keith reveled in Lance’s attention, a quiet purr rumbling in his chest at the gentle press of Lance’s fingers in Keith’s hair.
Lance looked confused for a moment before an indulgent smile crossed his face and he petted Keith’s hair more insistently. “I love your little purr.” Lance said lowly, enthralling eyes half-lidded and his face much closer than it had been a moment ago, “It’s cute.”
“’M not cute.” Keith argued, the haze brought on by his injury making him bolder and almost floaty.
“Hate to break it to you, mullet, but you’re the cutest.”
A small smile fought its way onto Keith’s face and Lance chuckled. “Come on. Let’s get back to the castle and meet up with the others. You need to get your concussion checked out.”
Keith whined at the loss of Lance’s fingers in his hair and shivered in the downpour. “Are you gonna forget this bonding moment too?”
Lance’s immediate laugh made Keith’s stomach flip, his tiny smile growing in magnitude. “At this point, I’m more worried about you forgetting it. Besides, I’d be upset if I couldn’t remember as you are right now.”
Lance’s voice deepened as he spoke, the timbre of it sending a shiver up Keith’s spine that had nothing to do with the rain or the cold.
Abruptly, Keith panicked, mind going blank as his face flooded with color. What was he doing?
“Are you flirting with me?” He blurted, blush intensifying when Lance barked out a laugh.
“Have been for a while, thanks for noticing.” Lance said softly, sliding a hand through his own hair.
“But….why?”
Lance frowned at that, expression becoming worried. “Was I reading it wrong? Am I making you uncomfortable? Keith, I’m sorry, I can stop. God, I’m so stupid…”
“No!” Keith cried, the word leaving him almost involuntarily, “No, I was definitely flirting back, please don’t stop. I just…I don’t understand? First we were rivals and I was pretty sure you hated me but when we lost Shiro and found him again, you’ve been different. Just why me? Why now?”
Lance’s eyes darkened with understanding and he slid a hand up along Keith’s jaw. “Why not you? I don’t think you give yourself enough credit, Keith. When Shiro disappeared, you did your best. You led us and we found Shiro again. Yeah. At the beginning, I was pretty awful to you but I don’t think you understand how amazing you are. Your flying, your fighting…Keith, I wanted so badly for someone to notice me the way I noticed you. It wasn’t until we lost Shiro that I really started to understand how I feel about you. You’re beautiful, mullet.”
Keith choked on the sudden lump in his throat, his eyes burning as he leaned his face into Lance’s hand. “We’re stupid.”
“I’m pretty awesome.”
Keith glared at him, heat fading from his eyes when he saw the soft gaze Lance was giving him. “Lance, I really like you. I like your jokes, even if some of them still go right over my head. I love how pretty you are, how your eyes remind me of Earth.” Keith said quietly, placing one of his hands over Lance’s, holding Lance’s gaze resolutely and ignoring the roiling of his stomach as he blurted his feelings, “You’re probably the best marksman I’ve ever seen and there isn’t anyone I trust more to watch my back.”
“You were doing so well until the end.” Lance chuckled wetly, blinking quickly.
“What was wrong with the end?”
“You brought up fighting together, you perfect little soldier.”
“We are literally in the middle of a war, Lance.” Keith said dryly, frowning at the beautiful idiot he had managed to catch feelings for.
“I’m well aware of that, cariño. All the more reason to take advantage of every moment we have together.” Lance whispered, pressing his forehead again Keith’s gingerly, the very tips of their noses brushing.
Keith felt his breath still in his chest, his heart beating so fast that he was convinced that it was going to rattle its way out of his ribcage. He was so close to Lance that he could see all the different shades of blue that made up his eyes, the icy crystalline color that hugged the edges of his dilated pupils and the deep midnight that made up the furthest part of his iris. Those eyes pulled him in and Keith wanted nothing more than to drown in their depths.
Neither moved for a moment, caught up in each other, barely breathing as they each waited for the other to make a move. At last, Keith’s impulsive impatience made the decision and he pushed forward, pressing his lips to Lance’s.
He silently reveled in the sensation of Lance’s impossibly soft lips against his own, Lance’s long fingers coming to tangle in Keith’s hair, pent up emotion urging them forward.
A tiny groan pulled itself from Keith’s throat when Lance pulled just slightly at the roots, their kiss breaking long enough to register the absence of sound and rain around them.
Alarm immediately flooded Lance’s face and he looked up, eyes going wide in fear. “Looks like they didn’t fuck off after all.” He breathed, eyes returning to Keith’s face with an intensity that rattled Keith to the core, “They aren’t getting you.”
Keith looked up as well, blood going cold as he registered the flagship hovering above them, lights homing in on where both Lions were crashed. He looked back to Lance, barely registering Lance’s determined expression. “What happened to the others?”
“They’re on the other side of the planet, convinced that Prince Fancypants ran off. They won’t make it in time.” Lance hissed, looking at his Lion intently.
“What are you doing?” Keith said slowly, thoughts still moving too slowly but a pit in his stomach warning him that something was brewing in Lance’s head.
“I wouldn’t be able to escape them while carrying Red and there’s no way in hell I’ll leave either of you here.” Lance reasoned, a strange expression on his face, “Lotor seems pretty fixated on you. Probably some weird ploy to get you to ‘switch sides’ so there’s no way he’d let Red get away and she needs repairs.”
“Whatever you’re thinking of doing, don’t you dare.” Keith growled, taking a step backwards, realization making him feel cold.
“You can yell at me later, hermoso. But he’s not getting you. Especially not with how bad your head is right now. I’ll have a better chance of getting away.” Lance said earnestly, trailing his fingers along Keith’s jaw, “I’m sorry.”
Before Keith could respond, Lance shoved him backwards roughly, making Keith stumble backwards into Blue’s mouth, her teeth closing with a sharp click. “Get him out of here, girl!”
Keith scrambled forward, slamming him fists against the metal that made up Blue’s jaws. “No! Lance, no! Don’t do this!”
“This was all I could come up with.” Lance replied, “Get back to the Castle. Get him out of here!”
Blue stood abruptly, her hesitance clear in her movements. “Please. Blue. Don’t let him do this.” Keith begged, feeling as Blue lifted into the air, “We have to go back for him.”
Keith skidded through Blue, shoving himself into the cockpit and falling into the pilot’s chair as Blue wove to avoid the flagship. He pulled at the useless controls desperately, trying to convince Blue to go back, begging her with any words he could manage.
When they were no longer under the shadow of the flagship, Blue turned at last, a desperate roar echoing through the forest as they saw Red caught in a tractor beam, eyes dark and jaw clenched shut.
Keith stared at the steadily rising form of his lion, knowing that Lance was hiding inside. “Blue, we can’t leave him. I won’t leave him like this.”
Blue growled in response, a mixture of anger and sadness emanating from the lion around him. “Take me to him, please!”
A moment of silence reigned before the coms clicked on, the other paladins becoming audible to him. “Lance! Finally! We thought something happened to you and Keith.” Hunk said cheerfully, “The creepy Prince guy ran off after we chased him around. Managed to break his crazy cannon and everything. He won’t be bothering us for a while!”
Keith’s breath hitched in an aborted sob at Hunk’s exuberance, the chatter of Hunk and Pidge going oddly quiet as Keith tried and failed to control the rage and grief welling up in him.
“Lance? Lance what’s wrong?”
A view screen popped up and Keith buried his face in his hands as Pidge badly stifled a gasp. “Keith? What are you doing in Blue? Where’s Lance?”
“He-He’s in Red.” Keith huffed, black spots returning to his vision, “He locked me in Blue and made her take me away. Lotor has Lance.”
A hoarse sob ripped its way from his chest and he gripped his hair in his hand, dizziness and darkness fading his vision.
“Keith! Keith stay with us!” Shiro yelled, “Pidge, I need a status on Red. Where is she now?”
“Red is in the flagship.” Pidge responded, a distinct edge of panic in her voice, “Shiro, they’re taking off!”
Static filled the coms for a moment before Allura’s voice filled the cockpit, weariness evident in her tone. “Paladins, there is a fleet approaching the castle. I need you to return immediately. The Castle defenses will be enough to hold them off briefly but not forever.”
“One of the Lions is in the possession of the enemy, Princess. We can’t leave yet!” Shiro said desperately, “Lance is on one of the Galra ships.”
The blackness in Keith’s vision grew darker and he swayed in the seat, his earlier electrocution and current concussion not helping him as he worked himself into a fury over the beautiful, selfless moron he had just kissed in the forest of a strange planet.
“Please. We have to get him back.” Keith whispered, his voice reedy and weak.
A huge burst of static made all the paladins flinch before blaster fire was audible through the coms. “Why are you all still here?!” Lance yelled through the coms, “Keith needs a pod right now. Go!”
“Lance we aren’t leaving you!” Hunk said, his voice thick through the coms.
“Keith is injured. I’m not.” Lance replied, a note of finality in his tone, “If something happens to him…..Just, please, I need him to be okay. I can wait for him to be okay. Besides, Prince Fancypants doesn’t scare me. Just hurry, okay?”
“Lance, don’t make us do this!” Pidge roared, “Don’t make us choose between you!”
“There’s no choice, Pidgey. Just take care of him for me. We have unfinished business.”
“I’m going to punch you right in your pretty face.” Pidge sobbed, Green materializing in front of Blue.
“I wouldn’t expect anything else.”
“Lance.” Keith breathed, voice hoarse, “Why?”
“Because I love you.”
~~~~
Lance flipped the com off after his confession, heart pounding in his chest.
He was so scared. Here he was trapped in Keith’s unresponsive Lion, currently holding off the waves of droids that had forced Red’s jaws open in an effort to recover what they thought was the Red Paladin.
There were so many of them.
With a deep breath, he steeled himself, bayard firing almost constantly in his hands. Droids piled up by the mouth of the Lion, their destroyed remains funneling the droids in one at a time, making it easy for him to pick off their numbers. Eventually, they stopped coming and silence reigned.
Footsteps echoed and Lance tensed as they came all the way to the other side of the droid barrier. “I’m rather impressed with how long you’ve held off my droids, paladin.” A darkly familiar voice crooned, “But it’s time to give up the fight. There are several high powered cannons currently aimed at this Lion. Unless you wish for it to be destroyed, surrender.”
“How do I know you won’t destroy it anyway?”
“Because I have no use for a destroyed Lion.” The voice sighed dramatically, “I do not wish to draw my Father’s ire for such an ill-advised plan. However, if you do not cooperate, I will risk it.”
The fear returned with a vengeance and Lance had to readjust his shaking grip on his bayard. “Do not keep me waiting, paladin. I am not known for my patience.”
Lance rose from his crouch at the back of the cargo hold, each step closer to the mouth of Keith’s lion feeling like the steps to a funeral march.
How would the Prince react when he realized he had the wrong Paladin?
Willing his bayard back to its original form, Lance stashed it in one of the cabinets before emerging from Red’s mouth, meeting Lotor’s eyes defiantly.
The prince’s face curled into a smirk, one pale eyebrow lifted in amusement. Lance took a few more steps forward, a tension he didn’t know he was carrying relaxing when Red’s barrier blazed into life.
“I will have to admit, I did not foresee this.” Lotor chuckled, “But I don’t think you understand what you’ve done.”
“I won’t let you have Keith.” Lance said proudly, lifting his chin as he stared Lotor down.
“You have prevented nothing, lovely Blue Paladin. You have delivered yourself as a prize and only added another reason for this ‘Keith’ to come to my side.”
“Prize?” Lance scoffed, “I don’t think so.”
Lotor was in Lance’s face before he could blink, clawed hand resting around Lance’s throat. “Prizes don’t think.”
Lance had a moment to pray that the others had gotten Keith to the castle before his world went black.
~~~~
Lotor watched dispassionately as the Blue Paladin fell at his feet, Haggar and one of her druids standing behind the downed warrior. “That was unnecessary.”
"I think you underestimate the paladins. They managed to defeat your Father once before.” Haggar said haughtily, her eyes gleaming under her hood, “Give him to me. I can break him and use him against the others.”
Lotor looked at the human at his feet carefully, a clawed finger tapping at his chin almost absently. He was attractive, for the most part. Certainly a lot of raw potential. Perhaps with the right shaping, the Blue Paladin could become an ornament worthy of the Prince of the Galra Empire.
Decided, Lotor lifted the paladin by one slender arm, his limp body almost disgustingly light in his grip. “I think not, Haggar. I claim this one as a prize. I’ll do with him as I wish. I don’t think I’ll need your assistance in breaking my new toy. Although, a druid to assist in the reshaping won’t be turned away.”
“Toy? This is a paladin of Voltron.” Haggar hissed, “Cease with this foolishness and give him to me!”
“You couldn’t even hold on to the Champion before he became a paladin. Why should I relinquish my prize to you?” Lotor smirked, turning his back on the fuming witch with a flip of his long hair, “Crawl back to my father. I have no need for you.”