|| Fall of the Castle of Lions || {EDITED}
Arcadia and Keith arrived back at the castle and saw the arusians putting on a performance of the recent battle as their king narrated. "The monster fell from the sky! It was an epic battle, but Voltron and the mighty lizard were victorious!"
Arcadia pouted. "Mighty lizard?"
Keith chuckled. "You are a giant lizard."
The draconian slapped him on the arm, knowing he was only teasing her. "Thanks for the support, Keith."
The arusians who were portraying Arcadia and Voltron fell over, pretending to die. Keith and the girl by his side were confused until the Arusian King corrected them. "No. I said, "Voltron and the mighty lizard were victorious"!"
The actors correct their wrong-doing and the arusians portraying the robeast collapse on the stairs. The aliens who were watching cheered and stuck their hands in the air.
Allura smiled and tried her best to compliment the small creatures. "Thank you, Your Majesty, for that... wonderful production. It saddens me that we must leave tomorrow, but we must continue our battle with Zarkon and spread peace throughout the universe. Your Highness... please accept this gift." She handed him a communication device. "This will allow you to contact us anytime you need help. Arus will be the first planet in the Voltron Alliance."
"Hoorah!" The Arusian King chants as his people followed suit.
Keith and Arcadia walked over to Lance and Hunk, who were watching the arusians with drinks in their hands. "We ought to get something like that," Hunk said.
"Like what?" Lance asked.
"You know, like, a cheer. Like, a team cheer that we do."
"Mm-hmm. Yeah, okay. How about, uh... "I say Vol" and you say "Tron." Vol!" The blue paladin tried out the cheer invented in only a few seconds of brainstorming.
"Uh... Voltron?" Keith responds with uncertainty.
"No! No, no, no. The cheer includes the instructions. I say "Vol" and you say..."
"Vol...tron?" The red paladin was still unsure as to how to respond.
Lance frowned. "We'll work on it." He took a sip of his drink and gags on it, spitting the purple liquid out of his mouth. "Coran, what is this?"
"Oh, this is Nunvill, the nectar of the gods!" Coran walked over and shoved a glass in Arcadia's face. "Try some!"
She stuck her hands up and backed away. "I'm good."
"It tastes like hot dog water and feet," Lance stated.
"Yeah, makes a wonderful hair tonic as well." Coran splashes a small amount of the beverage on his mustache, causing it to become bushier.
Arcadia decided to snatch the glass from Coran and sniff the liquid. She immediately pulled back and nearly gagged from the strange scent alone. "Ugh, it smells like Yamalian feet."
Keith glanced at her. "What the heck is that?"
"Oh, a Yamalian was a creature that lived on Draconia. It had two long ears, curly horns, and short tails. They were adorable, but their feet smelt horrible!"
"Did you... smell their feet?" Keith wondered, a single eyebrow arched.
"No! Dear Aethios, no! Their feet were used in certain spells. That's why I know the stench."
"You cut off their feet?!" Hunk gasped.
"They grew back immediately!" Arcadia responds with a shout. "It's not like we killed them."
"What spell requires feet?!" Lance bellowed.
"A tracking one. Yamalians were know to travel all across Draconia in a few days with how fast they were."
"That... kinda makes sense," Keith said.
"Glad I could make you think I'm not a heartless alchemist like the rest of my people were," Arcadia said. Her eyes traveled around the room and she saw Shiro by himself, staring at the entrance of the castle. She placed a hand on Keith's arm and smiled. "I'll be back."
"Alright," he responds, watching as she weaves through the arusians and to Shiro's side.
The black paladin failed to notice her presence as his attention was solely focused on the arusians who were walking in and out of the castle. Arcadia tapped him on the shoulder, causing him to flinch. "Sorry for scaring you, Shiro. Are you alright?"
The older boy turned his dark gray gaze to the draconian. "Just a bad feeling that something's gonna happen."
Coran overheard their conversation and walked over. "Try some Nunvill. Settles the stomach and brightens your smile."
"Don't drink it," Arcadia whispered to Shiro. "It smells awful."
Shiro smiled at her, but it dropped into a frown. "I'm not sure we should be letting everyone wander in and out of the castle like this. It doesn't seem safe."
"Oh, these arusians won't hurt anything..." The altean advisor tried to reassure the paladin. Then, an arusian jumped onto a floating tray close by and the dishes clattered. "Much."
The dishes fell to the floor and shattered, earning a small grimace from Arcadia. Coran looked away from the small aliens and looked at Shiro. "Besides, it's only fair to let them see the inside of a castle that's been sitting on their planet for so long."
"But who knows when Zarkon will attack again? I'm going to do a perimeter check, just in case. Will you join me, Arcadia?" Shiro offered.
She nodded with a smile. "Sure."
<——————<<<<<<<
"Look at them, the new Paladins of Voltron. The fate of the universe is on their shoulders. I think Arcadia made a good choice and the lions seem to agree," Allura said as she chatted with the mice.
From the second floor, the princess saw Keith take a swig of Nunvill and immediately spit it out, splashing Hunk in the face. The yellow paladin screams out and covers his face. "My eyes!" He faces Keith and reveals the delicious treats that shielded his eyes with a smirk. Both boys laughed, making Allura smile. She then remembered the reasons all five paladins were here. "I must portray strength, so no one can tell how concerned I am about the fate of our mission."
The mice squeak and the princess responded. "Let's keep that a secret." The little critters began squeaking and made gestures. Allura leaned against the railing with a small smirk. "Who else has secrets?"
The animals squeak and gesture to the biggest one. Allura was puzzled. "Hunk tried to eat what?" She then giggled at hearing the secret. "That is rather amusing. What other secrets?"
One of the mice crosses their arms, messes with the fur on top of its head, and pouts. Another one stood beside it and made small horns with its fur by twirling a few strands together. "What is this about Keith and Arcadia?" The mouse who resembled Keith turned to the one that portrayed Arcadia and stared at it with gleaming eyes. Allura's eyes widened and she gasped. "Keith likes Arcadia?! Oh, this is most wonderful!"
The mice then impersonate the blue paladin. "That seems like Lance." Finally, they portrayed Pidge with more squeaking. "Pidge is a what? Hmm... Are you sure?" The mice squeak in confirmation. "I'm getting to the bottom of this."
<——————<<<<<<<
Lance sighs as he stares into his cup of Nunvill, his once cheery mood falling flat. "I guess we should get use to this space juice. Who knows when we'll get back home again?"
"Yeah, if ever," Hunk shrugs.
Lance was surprised at hearing the yellow paladin's words. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, if this Zarkon guy has been ruling for ten thousand years, how long do you think it will take for us to fix it? You know, if we live."
Lance's expression dampens even more. "Right. That."
"Hey, what do you think the chances are of us landing on a nacho planet?" Hunk pondered, his mouth watering at the thought.
"Well, there's only one planet with Veradera Beach, pizza shack looking over the water and the garlic knots and my mom's hugs..." The boy sniffles, trying hard to hold back his tears. "I'm sorry. I think this Nunvill is getting to me. I gotta go."
Without even looking up, Lance had failed to notice Arcadia as she returned from patrolling with Shiro and was approaching him. When she saw the tears in his eyes, she quickly followed him to the bridge. As he sat down in the middle of the room, Arcadia called out to the melancholic boy. "Lance, what's wrong?"
"I know your home was destroyed, but if it wasn't, would you want to return?" Lance asked the Draconian.
Arcadia sat next to him. "Honestly, no. The beauty of my planet is what I miss, not the people. You couldn't pay me a million bellions to return to Draconia if it wasn't destroyed." Lance gave her a confused glance and she explained. "That was the currency we used on Draconia."
"Did you have a family?" He asked, too deep in his own sorrow to remember what she told them just this morning.
"I did, but like every other alchemist, they only cared about themselves and their powers. I've never felt a mother's gentle touch or a father's kindness. My life was devoid of love until I met Allura and King Alfor. And now, I've met you and the others."
Lance's mood perked up at her words. Then, Coran entered and eyed the duo. "Mind if I join you both?"
The blue paladin met the altean's gaze. "How far away from Earth do you think we are, Coran?"
"Let's take a look." Coran opens the celestial map. "Earth is over here. And we're all... the way over..."
"You ever notice how far the planets are from each other, Coran, Arcadia?" Lance asked, interrupting the ginger-haired man.
Coran was ignorant of the paladin's feelings as he replied. "Yes. Haven't you been paying attention?"
Arcadia was slightly angered as she saw the frown reappear on Lance's face. "Coran," she grumbled.
Lance ignored Arcadia and sighed. "Yeah, but I mean, like, they're really, really far away. Like, say, Earth. It's so far, I can't even see it. The... The blue oceans, the white clouds, green grass... I... I can't see any of it."
"You miss Earth. I understand. I miss Altea," Coran said, his own frown making an appearance.
"So do I, Coran," Arcadia mumbles sadly.
"I know we're supposed to be brave paladins and Defenders of the Universe or whatever, but honestly? I just want to go home," Lance mutters, tears in the corners of his eyes.
Arcadia sat on her knees in front of the boy and cupped his cheeks, wiping away a few tears that broke free. "Don't cry, Lance. Once this is all over, you'll be able to return to Earth and see your family."
Lance smiled and felt his cheeks burn with embarrassment at feeling Arcadia's touch and her closeness. "Thanks, Arcadia."
She smiled and removed her hands from his cheeks. Coran closed the holographic map and gazed out the window. "If I could go home, I would."
The blue paladin stood up and joined Coran. "I miss rain and splashing in puddles."
"Rain?" Coran and Arcadia asked.
"Yeah. It's water that falls from the sky."
"Oh, we had that on Altea. Only, it wasn't water, more like rocks. Razor-sharp and boiling-hot. Oh, they could knock a hole right in your head," Coran explained.
"Oh, dear Aethios, I remember that. I was out shopping when I got stuck in one. A rock nailed me on the forehead and I had a bump the size of my palm!" Arcadia said, lifting her hand up.
Lance chuckled as he pictured the image. "Sounds fun."
Coran wistfully sighs. "Yeah."
<——————<<<<<<<<
"Pidge, no," Shiro said, trying to stop Pidge from leaving.
"The download from the galra ship was enough to at least get me in the right direction to start my search. I have a pod all ready to go," the small girl responds.
"You can't leave," Keith steps forward, irritation present on his face and in his tone.
"You can't tell me what to do!" Pidge snaps at the red paladin.
"If you leave, we can't form Voltron. And that means we can't defend the universe against Zarkon. You're not the only one with a family. All these arusians have families. Everyone in the universe has families."
"Yeah, I have a family. They live on Earth. I want to be with them. Is that, like, a thing that can happen?" Hunk asked, intervening in the conversation.
"You want to leave, too?" Allura gasped.
"Of course I do! Look, Voltron is super-cool, don't get me wrong, but I never signed up for a lifetime in space, fighting aliens."
"You're putting the lives of two people over the lives of everyone else in the entire galaxy!" Keith shouted in anger, causing Pidge to step back.
Shiro quickly intervened and gently pushed Keith away from Pidge. "Keith, that's not how a team works. People have to want to be a part of it. They can't be forced. If you want to leave, we won't try to stop you. But, please, just think about what you're doing."
"I'm sorry. You're going to have to find someone else to pilot the green lion. Maybe Arcadia could become the green paladin. She deserves a more important part on this team, anyway," the young girl said. Rover beeped unhappily as the machine floated beside Pidge, following her as she walked away.
Allura stared at Pidge's back. "I can't believe it. This team is falling apart. How will we ever form Voltron?"
<——————<<<<<<<<
"Wanna head back to the party?" Arcadia offered Lance as Coran left the room.
"Yeah, let's go." Lance followed the snowy-haired girl. Just as they were leaving the bridge, Rover entered the room and floated by. Lance greeted the piece of galra tech. "Hey, Rover."
The drone beeps and flies towards the crystal. Arcadia eyed the small robot with narrowed eyes. "Something's wrong."
"Wait," Lance mumbled. "Where's Pidge?"
The beeping intensifies and Lance gasps. "Arcadia, look out!" The boy tackled her to the ground and shielded her from the explosion. Both teens fell unconscious after the blast, pain radiating through their bodies.
<——————<<<<<<<
The arusians scream as the castle shook from the explosion. Hunk whimpers at the loud noise and Pidge gasped as the lights began to extinguish. "Huh?"
The paladins and princess dash to the bridge to see what caused the explosion. "What happened?" Shiro questioned as they enter the bridge.
"I'm not sure," Coran said, untouched by the explosion as he had left the bridge before Arcadia and Lance.
Allura gasps once she sees the crystal was destroyed. "The crystal!" Her eyes fell to floor and spotted two people. "Lance! Arcadia!"
"Lance?" Shiro called out to him as he lifted the blue paladin's body off of the draconian's. He cradled his injured body in his arms while Keith took ahold of Arcadia and checked her breathing. He placed a hand against her cheek, wiping away some soot that was on her face.
Slowly, her eyes opened and Keith sighed in relief. "Are you okay?"
"Y-Yeah, I'll be fine. Just a few scratches and bruises, nothing life-threatening." Lance groans beside her and she looks in his direction. "Oh, no!"
"We have to get Lance to the infirmary!" Pidge shouted with worry.
"Without the crystal, the castle has no power," Allura informs everyone.
Keith helped Arcadia to her feet and kept an arm around her waist to keep her from collapsing. Shiro kept ahold of Lance as he examined his wounds. "He doesn't look good."
The Arusian King suddenly entered the bridge, a bead of sweat running down his forehead. "Lion warriors, mighty lizard, our village is under attack! We need help!"
"Let's get to the lions!" Keith shouted, his grip on Arcadia tightening.
"You can't. They're sealed in their hangars. There's no way to get them out. We're defenseless," Allura said.
"Will you not help us?" The Arusian King questioned with concern.
"We'll help you. We just—" Keith trailed off, his words failing him.
Lance groans in pain and Hunk glanced at the injured paladin. "This is bad."
"We have to get a new crystal to get the castle working again. But, to get a new crystal, we need a ship," Coran said.
"The pod I was loading, we can use that! I left the bay door open," Pidge stated.
"I can use the scanner in the pod to see if there's a Balmera nearby. Hunk, you come with me. I'll need someone big to help me carry the crystal."
"A Balmera?" The yellow paladin inquired.
Coran nodded. "It's where the crystals come from. I'll tell you about it on the way!"
"I'll go see what's happening at the arusian village," Keith said, laying Arcadia down gently in a chair.
"I'll go with you, Keith. I brought this on the poor arusians," the princess said.
Before Keith could leave, Arcadia grabbed his hand tightly. The boy stopped and faced her. "I want to go, too. You'll need backup."
Keith kneeled in front of Arcadia and placed a hand on her knee. "No. You're staying here. You're injured and you'll only make it worse."
She stared into his gray eyes and begged in a soft tone. "Please, Keith."
The red paladin broke under her sincere gaze and sighed. "Alright. Let's go." He helped her up and steadied her on her feet before releasing her.
"I'll tend to Lance and stand watch over the castle," Shiro said.
"Let's head to the village," Arcadia said.
<——————<<<<<<
Coran typed away on the keyboard as he and Hunk sat in the shuttle. "It's our first bit of luck. There's a source not too far. We won't need a wormhole to get there, thankfully."
Pidge leaned over the side and glanced at the screen. "I made some modifications to the shuttle. The first change is a cloaking device that I reverse-engineered from the invisible maze on the training deck. The second is a tank of booster fuel that I mounted on the fuel line." She pointed to each upgrade as she spoke about them.
"Using that during flight would turn the whole pod into a bomb!" Coran shouted at hearing about the second modification.
Hunk whimpered at the Altean's words and Pidge fixes her glasses. "Okay. Maybe you shouldn't use that modification after all."
Hunk glanced at Coran. "We ready to hit it?"
He nodded. "Right. Let's go."
"Good luck," Pidge said.
<——————<<<<<<
Keith, Arcadia, and Allura ran to the village and saw the flames from a distance. The princess gasped at the sight as they arrived at the arusian village. "What's happening?"
"Look! Attackers!" The Arusian King pointed to a few sentries within the flaming village. An explosion rang out and Arcadia wobbled on her feet at the intensity.
"I'll go in for a closer look. Stay here with them," Keith said to Arcadia as he noticed she was about to follow him.
"Keith!" Arcadia and Allura shouted as he slid down the slope and entered the burning village.
The red paladin felt the heat all around him as he weaved through the flames and the rubble of the arusian village. He reached the attackers and gasped as he realized they were destroyed sentries that were lifeless. "What? Oh, no. They tricked us!" Keith contacted Arcadia and Allura once he discovered the truth. "It was just a diversion to separate us and thin the castle defenses!"
"Oh, no..." Arcadia gulps.
Keith returns to the girls and they dash back to the castle. Every few seconds, Keith would look over his shoulder and check on Arcadia. She noticed and sent him a reassuring smile.
When they were closing in on the castle, the particle barrier was being activated. Arcadia pushes through the pain and ran as fast as she could. She passed Allura and Keith, her goal only a few feet away. Just as the particle barrier blocked the entrance, she skidded under it and made it to the other side just as the barrier sealed the entire castle. As she laid before the castle's entrance on her side, she heard Keith and Allura shouting her name. Groaning in pain, Arcadia got to her feet and brushed off the dirt from her outfit. Keith placed a hand on the particle barrier and stared at Arcadia. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah. I'm gonna go find Shiro and Lance."
"It's too dangerous, Arcadia!" Allura shouted at her best friend.
"You're injured," Keith added.
"Listen, we don't know what's going on or where Shiro, Lance, or Pidge are. I can still fight, but it'll be difficult," Arcadia said.
"You can't go in there!" The red paladin bellowed.
"I can and I will."
"We've no way of communicating with you, Arcadia. Please, stay here with us," Allura begged, placing her hands on the particle barrier.
"I'm sorry, Keith, Allura. I need to do this." Arcadia turned her back to them and ran of.
"Arcadia!" Keith shouted, banging his fists on the barrier. Just as she vanished into the castle, Keith couldn't help but worry about her safety. "Can't we break through the barrier?"
Allura shook her head with a frown. "No. And whoever has taken the castle has a crystal, which means they'll be able to fly the ship. We have to stop them."
Hearing that only made Keith's worry escalate for Arcadia and the others. "How are we going to do that?"
Their conversation was interrupted as they heard Pidge over the comms. "Keith, can you hear me?"
"Pidge, is that you? Where are you?" The red paladin questions, hands still resting on the particle barrier.
"I'm inside the castle. Sendak has taken over and he's preparing for launch. He's got Lance and Shiro."
"Arcadia was able to get into the castle before the particle barrier sealed. Try to find her and make sure she doesn't do anything crazy. She's still injured," Keith said.
"I'll look for her."
"Pidge, listen. If they've started the launch sequence, then we don't have much time before liftoff to stop it," Allura spoke up.
"What do I have to do?"
"You have to get down to the main engine control panel and disconnect the primary turbine from the central energy chamber. If you can do that, Sendak will have to reset the whole system. That might give us enough time to find a way to stop them."
Pidge followed Allura's instructions and forced open the doors that led to the main turbine. Rover floated beside the small girl as they entered the large room and contacted Allura. "Okay, Allura, I'm near the turbine. I think it's started."
"Then you'll have to hurry. Cross the catwalk to the main column in the center," the princess informs over the link.
"Okay."
"Now, open the hatch. Find the central computer control hub and enter the following sequence..."
"Wait, wait, wait, wait! Which one is it? All the labels are in altean!" The engine starts up and Pidge stared at the altean writing. "I can't tell which one it is! Allura? Allura?" She lost connection with the princess and continued to try to make any sense out of the altean letters.
The door behind Pidge opened and she immediately turned around with her bayard at the ready. When she saw a familiar face, she dropped her weapon. "Arcadia! What're you doing here?"
"To stop the engine. You wouldn't happen to have connection to the comms, would you?"
"I did, but I lost connection when the engine started. And now, I can't stop it because I can't read altean!" Pidge shouted.
"I can read it," Arcadia said. She went over to the console and inputted the correct sequence, the engine now slowly shutting down. "There. Now they can't take off."
"If you hadn't came when you did, I'd probably enter the wrong sequence and cause the engine to combust."
"I think you would've been fine. You're a smart girl," Arcadia smiled sweetly at Pidge. "Now that we've delayed their take-off, I'll head to the bridge and see if I can sneak in. Is there anything I should know?"
"Shiro and Lance have been taken prisoner. Maybe if you free Shiro, he can help you if he isn't injured. Don't take any chances, though. Your injuries haven't healed yet."
"Alright. I'll see what I can do. Stay safe, Pidge."
"Yeah. You, too, Arcadia."
Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: AzTruyen.Top