Shiro eyed the large, powerless ship in front of them. "We've gotta act fast. The power will only be down for 20 minutes. The Blade of Marmora's schematics showed four targets we need to hit. The weapons systems, the engines, the bridge, and the shield generators. Now, let's put an end to Zarkon, once and for all."

"Yeah!" The others cheered in response.

"Form sword!" Their leader commanded. The blade manifested in the robot's hand before it flew toward Zarkon's ship.

Arcadia activates the alchemy cannon and aims it at Zarkon's ship. She transferred her mana into the weapon and fired. A powerful beam strikes the side of the enormous ship, causing a chain reaction of explosions. Voltron used its sword to slice through the hull of the ship, resulting in more explosions.

"Hit the engine systems!" Shiro ordered.

Voltron's boosters activate and it targeted one engine while Arcadia fires the alchemy cannon at the other. Explosions filled the void of space as their attacks were successful. With the mighty defender and the alchemist targeting the ship together, they made quick work and destroyed portions of the spacecraft within minutes of engaging.

Voltron activates its laser and fired at Zarkon's ship alongside the alchemy cannon. The paladins and Arcadia were inflicting as much damage as they could while the ship remained powerless.

"Stay focused," Shiro said. "We've neutralized the engines. Let's target the bridge." Voltron soared toward the bridge of Zarkon's ship, sword grasped in its hand.

Arcadia felt a sudden chill crawl down her spine and through her veins. She analyzed the spacecraft with narrowed eyes. "What is...?" Her eyes widen when she felt a familiar tingle course through her entire body. "Get out of there!" She shouted at the paladins.

"Why? What is that?" Lance asked in worry after hearing the girl shout and spotting the mass of dark energy forming at the base of Zarkon's ship.

Arcadia aimed the alchemy cannon at the dark sphere that was growing as seconds ticked by. She fueled it with her mana and fired, but she was too late. The spell had been casted and a laser propelled toward Voltron, striking it directly in the chest. Arcadia's entire body froze when she heard the paladins scream in pain. She watched as the quintessence that powered the robot was siphoned from it, becoming lifeless.

The alchemist heard Allura scream out from the comms and was able to free herself of her petrified state. She fell back in her seat, watching as Voltron floated aimlessly with gritted teeth. She connected to the paladins and called out to them. "Pidge? Keith? Can anyone hear me? Please respond!"

"I thought the virus shut down all of Zarkon's power!" Coran yelled as his face appeared on the screen in front of Arcadia.

"That blast was not from the ship's weapons," Allura said.

"Allura's right. That was black magic. Draconians never practiced such an art because of how dangerous and forbidden it is," the golden-eyed girl replied.

"It must have been the komar. Zarkon has been trying to develop a device to extract the quintessence from planets. It appears he succeeded," Kolivan explained.

The thought alone was enough to frighten Arcadia. She shuttered, her shoulders scrunching up. "Zarkon could wipe out an entire planet with a single blast, wiping our entire civilizations in minutes."

"If it destroys planets, what did it do to the paladins?" Coran asked the questioned everyone was thinking.

Allura quickly tried to contact the team again in a desperate attempt to learn if they were injured. "Paladins! Shiro! Can you hear me?"

Static fills the comms. Arcadia bit her bottom lip in anticipation, hoping one of the five paladins would respond. Her wish was granted when Shiro's weak voice replied, "Yes, Princess. We're alive."

Arcadia sighed in relief, slumping forward in her chair. "Thank Aethios..."

"Oh, thank the ancients!" Coran chants.

"Is Voltron operational?" The princess asked.

"It's not working," Hunk informed everyone aboard the castle after fiddling with the yellow lion's controls.

Keith grunts as he tries the same. "I can't move my lion."

"You've been hit with some kind of witchcraft that draws the quintessence out of you. You need to get out of there! Another blast like that and you may not survive!" Coran bellowed.

"Wait," Lance spoke up, grabbing everyone's attention. "What's that?"

A hatch on Zarkon's ship gradually opened, revealing a large mech. Arcadia glared at the assailant as its wing-like appendages expanded and it flew out of the hatch toward Voltron. "Looks like another mech," she commented, grabbing the controls of the alchemy cannon. "Guys, you need to get Voltron operational or we have no chance of defeating that thing!"

"Remember your training. Remember all the battles you've been through," Allura added.

Shiro tries to move the robot again, but none of the controls respond. "Voltron's still not responding."

"I could—"

"No," Keith promptly silences Arcadia, knowing exactly what she wanted to do. "Stay in the castle. It's too dangerous."

"I know the dangers, Keith, but you and the others are in the most danger if Voltron isn't responding. That mech is heading straight for you and you've no way to protect yourselves!" Arcadia releases her hold on the controls of the alchemy cannon and stood up. "I'm coming out. Voltron needs power and I'm the only source we have at the moment."

"Keith's right," Shiro spoke up, which baffled Arcadia. "It's too dangerous, Arcadia. We'll get Voltron operational again."

The draconian bit her tongue and sat back down. "Fine." She wrapped her hands back around the handles. "If you won't let me leave, guess I'll have to work a little magic from here."

The paladins were confused as to what she meant. As she went to power the alchemy cannon, she heard Shiro groan as the other mech closed in on Voltron. "It's Zarkon."

"Allura," Arcadia contacted her best friend. "I think I'll be able to revive Voltron by using the alchemy cannon. By reversing its output, I could infuse the cannon with my own quintessence and power Voltron."

Allura felt the plan was risking Arcadia's life, but she nor anybody else had another plan. "Alright. We'll buy you time, Arcadia. We'll try to keep Zarkon away from Voltron, but that will require all the power the castle has to offer."

"Do it. I'll be able to power the cannon with my magic," Arcadia replies.

Allura nodded and gave the orders. "Get us in closer. Divert all power to our weapons system."

"What?" Coran gasped. "Princess, we'll be defenseless!"

"It's the only way." Allura turned her gaze from Coran and focused it on the metallic assailant. "Listen to me. You are true paladins now. Connect with your lions, reach out to each other! Fight! This cannot end now! Arcadia will fuel you with her quintessence. Use it to fight against Zarkon!"

The castle picked up speed, heading straight for Voltron and the galra mech. Once they were in range, Allura shouted, "Fire!"

The castle's laser fired, hitting the mechsuit directly. Arcadia powered the alchemy cannon and transferred her own quintessence into its laser. She targeted Voltron and pulled the trigger. The blue laser, instead of being deflected, was absorbed by Voltron as it made contact with its back. She could feel her body becoming weaker and weaker with every passing second. When her consciousness threatened to waver, she pushed through and continued to feed her energy into Voltron.

Suddenly, Arcadia felt a searing pain as the castle shook, causing her to scream. Her hands slipped from the controls just as she heard Allura's own scream. Her vision went dark, her upper body falling and slamming against the console.

<———————<<<<<<

The paladins' eyes widen in horror after watching the laser be redirected back at the castle by Zarkon's shield and hearing both girls scream. The five felt their hearts stop at hearing the screaming and seeing the castle smoking from the impact of the laser. "Arcadia! Allura!" Shiro shouted in fear. He gripped the controls tightly when he received no response. The only thing they had left was Voltron and he wasn't giving up just yet. "Everybody, listen. We have to fight. We have to channel all our energy. Visualize five becoming one. We have to focus everything we have into moving Voltron."

As the group was trying to concentrate, they felt the entirety of Voltron become enshrouded with a comforting warmth. Hunk looked around the cockpit of the yellow lion, noticing a faint turquoise light illuminating his surroundings. "Uh, what is this?"

"I don't know," Pidge said. "Is this Voltron or...?"

Keith felt the familiar warmth and stared out the eyes of his lion. "No, it's Arcadia."

"What do you mean?" Lance asked.

"It's her quintessence," Pidge answered with a smile once she understood Keith's meaning. "With this, we could revive Voltron!"

Shiro wore a determined expression as he felt the warmth encase his entire body. "We are the last thing standing in the way of Zarkon's total universal domination. I'm not giving up that fight! Are you, Hunk?"

Hunk shook his head, his own determination glistening in his eyes. "No." The yellow lion roars in response.

"Pidge?" Shiro inquired.

"Never!" She proclaimed, her own lion coming to life with a mighty roar.

"Lance?"

"Let's go down swingin'," Lance replied, the blue lion roaring in agreement with its paladin.

"Keith?"

Keith smirked. "I'm all in." The red lion's eyes illuminated as it roared. Arcadia's quintessence seeped into the crevices of Voltron, igniting a new flame. All five lions roared in harmony, the turquoise light slowly fading as the robot was rejuvenated and ready for battle.

Shiro smiles proudly at hearing his team's response. "Then let's get Voltron back in this battle."

Zarkon continued his approach as Voltron's sword manifested. He collided into the defender with his own sword drawn, pushing Voltron back. The paladins activated the boosters to escape the galra emperor, but he kept hot on their tail. Their blades clashed over and over again as they fought. The mechs were at a stalemate as neither parties could damage the other. Zarkon tried to use his boosters in an attempt to overpower Voltron, but his maneuver failed.

The boosters were activated again and Voltron used them to put some distance between it and Zarkon. Like earlier, he was nipping at the defender's heels as he pursued the five paladins.

Opting to switch his approach, Zarkon fired lasers at Voltron in a desperate attempt to land at least one hit. Seeing their opponent using long-ranged weaponry, the paladins switched out the sword for their own laser. Unfortunately for the team, Zarkon easily dodges.

Shiro realizes the battle was going nowhere and switched weapons. "Alright, let's hit him with the big guns. Hunk, form shoulder cannon!" Hunk did as the black paladin commanded and placed his bayard in the indentation in the yellow lion's console. He turns it and the cannon appears on Voltron's shoulder. "Fire!"

The laser fires, branching out toward Zarkon. Before they hit the enemy mechsuit, the galra creates a shield from the metallic appendages located on its back. The cannon was ineffective as the laser dissipated. Zarkon disables his shield once the laser was gone and flew toward Voltron. They dodged, but were immediately caught in the line of fire of the dark magic heading their way.

"Look out!" Shiro shouted.

Voltron dodged the spell at the last second, but were blindsided by Zarkon when his mech kicked the defender. Everyone screamed from the sudden impact and Voltron spinning out of control. Their focus on the fake magic had provided Zarkon the perfect opening for an attack. The paladins tried the lasers again, but weren't able to land a single hit. They switched out the cannon for the sword just as the galra mech drew its own blade and flew toward Voltron. Once again, their blades clashed.

<———————<<<<<<

Coran was the first to regain consciousness and looked around. "Oh... Huh? Princess!" He grunts and makes his way over to Allura. With the artificial gravity disabled, he used his arms and legs to propel himself toward her. "Are you all right, Princess?"

Allura sighs. "I'm fine. How badly is the castle damaged?"

Coran did a quick analysis. "Our power levels are decimated. Communications aren't working. We can't reach the paladins. I'm afraid we can't fight anymore."

"We cannot give up," Allura proclaimed. "What about Arcadia?"

"With communications down, we cannot contact her," Coran frowns. "One of us will—"

"I will check on her," Thace spoke up.

Allura was a little hesitant, but she nodded. "Alright."

Thace, being so thankful for Arcadia giving him a chance to live, wanted to check on the girl after hearing her scream over the comms when the laser struck the castle. He received directions to the alchemy cannon from Coran and left the bridge.

Once he reached the alchemy cannon, the door slid open and he floated inside before immediately landing on his feet in the small but quaint room. Unlike the rest of the castle, the artificial gravity unit was active due to the lingering mana in the room. His eyes drifted to the console located in the center of the room and saw Arcadia slumped over it, her breathing shallow and eyes cracked open slightly. He approached her and peered into her barley opened eyes. He placed a hand on her shoulder, seeing the sweat dripping down her forehead. "You've exhausted your powers."

Arcadia tried to speak, but her mouth opened and closed with no sound. With only a hint of strength left, she weakly pushed her body off the console and wrapped one hand around the controls and gave it a small jolt to reboot it. She saw Voltron was revived but was struggling against the fight with Zarkon. She had a plan, but she was afraid what would happen if she pushed herself over the brink of exhaustion. Disregarding the risks, she wrapped her other hand around the controls.

"Arcadia," Thace called out. He wanted her to relinquish control of the cannon after seeing how weak she was from using her own quintessence to reanimate Voltron. "You must stop."

"N-No," the alchemist manages to mutter, her voice hoarse. "They n-need my help. I will d-do what I can in o-order to help them."

Thace has already received a taste of the girl's stubbornness aboard Zarkon's ship and knew arguing was futile. He nodded, respecting her decision. "I understand. I will inform the princess of your well-being."

Arcadia managed to smile at him. "Sugarcoat it a-a little."

Thace nodded again and left. He went back to the bridge, where the others were waiting for the news of Arcadia's well-being. "She's fine, but she's barely conscious."

"At least she's alright," Allura sighed in relief. "She's always been one to push herself in the toughest of times. I admire her for it even though it's reckless. But for now, we must focus on aiding the paladins." The princess eyes her trusty advisor. "Coran, you and Slav do what you can to get the castle functioning again. Kolivan, can you get me to the komar?"

Kolivan turned and faced the princess. "It will be dangerous, but I know a way."

"You and Antok come with me," Allura said before her attention fell upon Thace. She decided to do something she's never done before—place her trust in a galra. "Please, watch over Arcadia in our absence."

"I will, Princess," Thace reassures the azure-eyed girl.

Allura didn't show it, but she was grateful for Thace. Now she could focus on her mission while someone watches over her best friend. "We're going to have to attack the witch directly if we hope to stop that thing. Coran, the bridge is yours."

"No!" The royal advisor yelled in protest. "You've been weakened by operating the teludav. You can't face Haggar directly!"

Allura was determined and wouldn't back down. "We don't have a choice."

<————————<<<<<<<

Voltron fires another laser at Zarkon, but he protected himself with his shield. Once the blast subsided, he flew toward the mighty defender with his sword in his grasp. Voltron's sword clashed over and over with his. Zarkon delivered a powerful blow, forcing the paladins back. They used the boosters to stabilize Voltron. None of their plans were working and they decided to avoid more confrontation with Zarkon by putting distance between them and the galra mechsuit.

"We've never faced anything this powerful before," Pidge said.

"One way or another, this may be our last battle. We've got to give everything we have," Shiro stated. "Dig deep and fight!"

Voltron ceased the game of tag and turned to face Zarkon. Their weapons clashed in another barrage of swings from their swords. The paladins tried long-range attacks, but the assailant easy dodged or blocked each laser skillfully. When the blades met once more, a ring of light ricocheted outward.

Shiro grunted as he felt the familiar tug on him and the black lion. "He's trying to control my lion. I can feel him in my mind."

"Fight it, Shiro!" Keith bellowed.

With a violent tug, Voltron pulled back from Zarkon and tried to stab his mech with the sword. The mechsuit grabbed the blade with ease and it didn't even leave a scratch on its outer shell. Now vulnerable, Voltron was unable to counter. Zarkon gripped the sword more tightly as a chainlink weapon from the mech shocked the paladins. They screamed in pain at the powerful shockwave, which disassembled Voltron. The five lions floated aimlessly as they were torn apart.

Keith immediately contacted the black lion, knowing it was Zarkon's intended target. "Shiro!" He yelled but received no response. The red lion turned toward the black lion, trying again to contact its paladin. "Shiro!"

Silence.

"Something's wrong with Shiro. Guys, we can't let Zarkon get the black lion," Keith proclaimed.

The remaining four lions were determined to protect their leader. They were adamant on keeping Zarkon away from the black lion and Shiro. The blue, red, yellow, and green lions were soon targeted by Zarkon as he flew straight for them. The lions alone weren't enough to stop Zarkon, their attacks being useless in an attempt to stop the assailant.

Pidge yelled over the comms. "Keep Zarkon away from the black lion!"

"Come on! We can't give up!" Keith shouted.

"I'm running out of strength, man," Hunk confesses in an exhausted tone.

"Look out!" Lance yelled.

Zarkon used his lasers to target the four lions. They hit their targets, causing the four paladins to scream. They quickly recovered and tried to use their own lasers against the mechsuit, but the attacks were futile. Zarkon continued his assault on the lions, earning even more screams and grunts of pain from the paladins.

When Zarkon targeted the lions with his sword, his mech was suddenly hit with a blinding laser. The paladins watched in confusion, following the laser to find the origin of it.

"It's coming from the castle!" Lance pointed out.

They watched as familiar spikes protrude from Zarkon's mech. Pidge's eyes widened when she recognized the spell. "It's Arcadia. It's the spell she used on the robeast from the Balmera!" She sounded excited to see the spell and how it incapacitated the galra mechsuit. "But it's different. I wonder..."

The black lion suddenly flies by the other lions, it's wings on its back enshrouded in a brilliant blue light. The light vanished, the black lion's wings expanding as it flew toward Zarkon. It released a powerful roar as it sped past the mechsuit, flying back to its fellow lions as its wings return back to normal.

Lance was in awe and confused as to what had just transpired. "Whoa... What did you do?"

"I've got Zarkon's bayard," Shiro informed his comrades.

"You mean you've got your bayard," Keith corrects him.

"We've only got a few minutes left before—"

Shiro was interrupted by an enormous explosion. All eyes fell back onto Zarkon, his mech in the center of the fiery eruption.

"That was one heck of an explosion," Lance commented.

"Do you think it was enough to stop Zarkon?" Keith asked.

Shiro shook his head. "No, but it's given us the chance to take back this fight. Now, let's form Voltron!"

<———————<<<<<<

Coran and Slav gasp before screaming as they ceased floating and fell to the floor. They grunted from the impact before the royal advisor recovered quickly with a hopeful gleam in his eyes. "We're back!" He laughs as he contacts the others. "Hello, paladins!"

"Yeah!" They all cheered once hearing Coran's voice.

"You're alive!" Hunk yelled happily.

"Is everyone okay?" Shiro asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine!" Slav promptly spoke up. "Don't worry, guys!"

"Oh, great," Lance grumbled. "Slav made it."

"What about Arcadia?" Keith inquired. "That was a pretty powerful spell she just used."

Thace decided to check on Arcadia once more after witnessing the immense explosion. He ran out of the bridge and down the hall. Entering the small room, he was greeted not by the sight of Arcadia, but the sight of something else.

<———————<<<<<<<

"The power on Zarkon's ship is returning!" Coran shouted. "We need to get out of here! I'm going to get Allura!"

Voltron and Zarkon, once again, entered the heat of battle. The mighty defender wielded its sword and swung it at the mechsuit. The blow was met with the opponent's own sword, the force pushing both parties away from one another.

"This is our last chance! Let's finish this!" Shiro shouted. The paladins pushed the controls of their lions forward at hearing their leader's chant.

Voltron's and Zarkon's blades collide, but the defender was able to strike the mech's body. Zarkon reached out and grasped Voltron, sending a dark pulse of lightning through the robot's head. Then, Voltron's sword was engulfed in flames as Keith activated his bayard. With the elemental weapon in its grasp, the defender impaled the galra mechsuit. The paladins screamed as the fiery blade was yanked from Zarkon's suit.

From the area where the blade pierced the mechsuit, a blinding light emanated as the cracks in the outer hull of the mech webbed out. Zarkon's suit crumbled as the white light tugged on Voltron and disbanded the five lions. Now floating, the metallic felines stared at the spot where the mech once was and watching the pieces of it float around them.

"Did we do it?" Lance asked after a few exhausted pants.

"Is it over?" Hunk inquired.

"I have Allura and Kolivan. We need to go!" Coran informed the paladins. The lions began their return to the castle.

Keith looked around at his teammates and saw the black lion wasn't moving. He gasped and flew over to it. "Shiro!"

"We need to tow him back onto the ship!" Pidge yelled, guiding her lion to Shiro's.

With help from the red and green lions, the black lion made it back to the castle. Once all lions were aboard the castleship, Pidge informed Allura. "Princess, we're all onboard."

Seeing the black lion lifeless, the paladins, Coran, and Allura ran to it. They entered its slackened jaw and headed into the cockpit. Keith was the first inside and called out to his friend. "Shiro!" He received no response and approached the pilot's seat. "Shiro?"

Everyone gathered around the seat and saw it was empty.

"He's gone," Lance gasped.

"How is that even possible?" Hunk asked.

"Paladins, come to the bridge immediately," Kolivan informed the team.

Keith was hesitant to leave the black lion, but he followed behind the others and headed to the bridge. Once arriving at their destination, the group saw Kolivan and Thace standing side by side with their backs turned to them.

"What seems to be the problem?" Allura asked in confusion.

"It's Arcadia," Kolivan stated, turning to face them.

Keith pushes himself to the front, his violet eyes wide with concern for the girl. "What happened to her?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out."

Thace turned around and showed them what he was carrying in his arms. Everyone gasped, eyes wide at the sight. Pidge stared at it in utter shock. "What happened?"