Chapter Text
The Galra soldiers are running after the escaped prisoner. They shoot, but miss their target. Once they take a turn to the right, they're alone in the corridor of the ship. Their prisoner is nowhere to be found. But that won't stop them. They have to bring back the prisoner to Haggar. The one that they call the Warrior. The Warrior who has escaped them weeks ago. But they will find the Warrior. They have to, because only the Warrior knows where the Voltron lions are.
~~~
Someone attacks me from behind and makes me miss my target by two inches. I roll across the floor with my weapon still in my hand. I push myself off the floor and turn around to bring pain to my attacker. I see that most of bodies on board of this ship have gotten up again. But only one of them is holding a weapon; the one with red armor. If they are armed then I have to be a little more careful. I'll have to buy myself some time.
I get into fighting stance and hold the top of my double sided syth in front of myself for protection. "Who are you and what brings you here? Explain!" I demand them.
The tall weird looking being that appears to be a woman speaks up: "We mean no harm. I am Princess Allura of Altea and these are Voltron paladins. When our ship got attacked by a Galra fleet I opend up a worm hole to the nearest galaxy. But instead it send us to the next planet and so we crashed here. We are not here to fight, you have my word."
"Liar!" I yell. "Altea has been destroyed millennia ago, along with it's people. Now tell me who you all are before I end you!"
One of the armored people approaches me. I glare at him with my green eyes. Unlike with the others, this one's helmet is off. It's a human male, for as far as I know for now. The colors of his armor are white and black, just like his hair.
"It's true. She's telling the truth," the guy says. "I'm Shiro. I'm the paladin of the Black Lion and the head of Voltron."
They are telling me lies. They have to be. There are no more Alteans alive. Still, I have to test them. "If you are telling the truth, then where are your lions? And why are these two Alteans still alive? Tell me something only an Altean or galactic historian would know about Voltron!"
The lady is starting to look irritated. "Fine," she says, "When King Alfor had Voltron made he connected my life force to that of the Lions. It's how I will always be able to find them, no matter where my father send them of to. This is something only the paladins and I know about. And only someone who has old records about Voltron would be able to know too. As for why Coran and I are still alive, my father King Alfor put us into cryo freeze chambers for ten thousand years."
It's true. I've seen the records. Classified information. "Alright then. So you were something about being attacked by a Galra fleet? What makes you think they won't come to this planet? I suggest you take your ship and leave."
"We can't," the Altean lady says. "Our ship needs to get repaired. If we go now we won't stand a chance against Zarkon and his Galra empire. We don't ask for much except some time. We'll be gone within a few days."
I keep my eyes on her. She doesn't seem to have hostile motives. The rest of their team seems to just holding their breath about what I'll do next. If they'll be attacked and sent to leave to stand zero of a chance against Zarkon-...
"You're fighting against Zarkon? You didn't betray your lions to fight along side him?" I ask the Altean woman.
"No, of course not. What would make you think that?" she answers. "The lions of Voltron called out to these paladins to protect the universe. We are here to help, not to harm."
She seems to really mean it. Then I look to the guy standing in front of me. The red one. He's still holding his sword. My tighten my grip on my own weapon. I let my protection cloak fall in front of me, shielding my entire body and my orange and pink armor.
I look back at the woman. "Tell your swordsman to drop his weapon and I'll drop mine," I tell her while I keep looking at the guy.
"Alright. Keith, drop your weapon. We need to show this person that we come in peace," she says. Reluctantly, he stands down and lets his weapon return to normal. Can weapons do that? Oh, who am I to talk? My scyths are retractable.
I wait a second longer before standing down myself. They haven't done anything, so it must be safe. For now. I put my scyths behind my back, stand up straight and let my blaster proof cloak fall behind my shoulder. Although the atmosphere may be a bit tense, it doesn't feel threatening.
I chuckle and put my hand against my head with my eyes closed. When I open them again, there's a smile on my face. "My apologies," I say, "it's just that this is a peaceful planet and ever since my arrival here I've promised the locals to protect them against any danger, since they don't know how to fight properly and Zarkon is on a tour of destruction. My name is Naïma, by the way."
The woman smiles back. "Nice to meet you, Naïma. Like I said, I am Princess Allura. This here is Coran, the other last Altean alive. And these are the paladins. Shiro already introduced himself."
The guy with the yin-yan hair puts out his hand for me to shake it. I do. Firm grip, nice smile, soft eyes. He's a good guy.
Then I'm looking at the big guy in the yellow armor. Friendly face, no tense stature, he looks like a big teddy bear. "H-hi there! I'm Hunk. Thanks for not blowing us up or whatever. Or shoot us or worse or-"
I put up my hand for him to stop. "It's okay, I got the message." Next to him is the smaller green paladin. Who, only moments earlier, had been my target. "Listen kid, I'm sorry for trying to decapitate you. I'm just trying to-"
"It's okay," the paladin says. "I would've probably done the same thing if I were you. I'm Pidge."
"Again, sorry Pidge," I say. Then I return my attention to the red one. "And you are the guardian angel I suppose, judging by how fast you were to react to my attack."
"No," he says. "I'm Keith. And I was just protecting my teammate."
"I understand," I say. "I should apologise to you too. It's just a part of my nature to act first, ask later. Shake on it?" I extend my hand, but he doesn't take it. Okay, no offense taken. Maybe he doesn't like to be touched.
My view is blocked by a mop of short-ish brown hair and dark blue eyes. His eyes have this weird half-lidded look on them and he's trying to smile smug. Or he really is giving me a smug smile. "Well hello, Naïma. Pleasure to meet you. The name is Lance, Lance McClain. I'm the paladin that can take you to any galaxy beyond your imagination."
What is this guy trying to do? My eyebrows are raised and then I say: "I think there's something wrong with your face."
He looks confused. "Really? What's wrong?"
"It's too close to mine," I say without missing a heartbeat.
Behind Lance, who is completely shocked and offended, his team is snickering and laughing at my remark. He slowly retreats back to his previous spot. In return, I step up to Allura and look up to her. Really, how tall is this woman?
"As a token of my apology I invite you come stay at my home. There's plenty of room for you all to sleep and eat and maybe get some rest. You all look like you need it. And I kind of busted your window, so yeah."
Allura looks at the others. With my back to them I can't see what they're doing or what their reactions are. But then she looks at me again with a smile and says: "We'd love to join you in your home."
~~~
(Some time later)
We're all sitting on the floor in the middle of my living room. The improvised fairy lights decorating the ceiling are giving us enough light to see since it's already getting dark outside. The light blue walls are plastered in drawings of my own fantasy creatures. On every shelf, table and cabinet are local plants and flowers. They create a pleasant and calming smell in my home. I've traded my armor in for a long over sized shirt. The pillows we sit on are big and fluffy. We're sitting around my wooden table, eating a dish the locals taught me. Our view is the evening setting of the planet Neveah.
"So," Pidge says as they put their empty bowl down, "can you tell us what planet we're on?"
I look at them. Their glasses reflect the upcoming stars in the sky outside. "We're on Neveah. It's a peacful planet, really. But I've come across planets like this before that were brutally attacked. That's why I'm protecting the Neveahens on this planet. They have never been in battle, so they wouldn't survive for a minute. In return for a place to stay, I give them protection."
"That seems fair," Shiro says. "But how did you end up here?"
Chewing on my last bite, I set down my bowl. I keep looking at it and purse my lips in thought. "Well," I begin, "the exploration ship I was on malfunctioned when I was orbiting Charon. I managed to land on Charon, but lost all contact with the Galaxy Garrison. A passing ship picked me up and I think we entered a wormhole. Anyway, we ended up on Destroya. After spending almost a year and a half there I decided to go back to Earth. But when I came across this planet I just kind of... stayed."
Lance drops his bowl and flails his arms in the air. "Wait, wait, wait, hold your bananas for a tick! Did you just say you had contact with the Galaxy Garrison?" He asks.
I look at him. "Yeah. I was one of their youngest exploration pilots. They send me out on a mission to map out the area surrounding Charon for the Kerberos mission. They send others too to map out the other planets, all older than me, tho." I look back at my bowl and furrow my eyebrows. "I wonder if they ever continued that mission. They had been planning it for a couple years already."
"They did." I look up at Shiro. He's sitting next to Coran, who's sitting across from me. His face doesn't look that happy. "I was one of the crew members," he quietly says.
And then it clicked together in my mind. "Oh my stars," I say, "You're Shiro, as in Shirogane, as in freaking Takashi Shirogane?!"
He looks at me with a raised eyebrow. He's obviously surprised at how I know. "Yes. Why do you ask?"
"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" I squeal like a pig from excitement. "OH MY STARS! TAKASHI SHIROGANE IS EATING MY FOOD! HE'S SITTING IN MY LIVING ROOM! OH LORD TAKE ME NOW!" The squealing continues. I clutch my chest and rest the back of my hand against my forhead before falling backwards. I close my eyes for a moment. Is it possible I just died and went to heaven?
When I open my eyes again, I see the faces of Shiro, Allura, Pidge and Hunk above me. Allura looks kind of worried, but Pidge looks like they're trying to figure me out.
"Are... you alright?" Shiro asks.
Suddenly I'm aware of my little moment just now. My cheeks go as red as my undercut. My blush completely drown out the color of my freckles. How embarrassing! I sit back up again and don't look anyone in the eye. My fingers fidget with the strings of my shorts before I speak up again: "Yeah, I'm alright. Sorry for my fangirl moment just now, but when I was a student at the Garrison, I just... Well, you were like my idol. Because you were the first student to make it as a commander at your age. It made me believe that my own dreams could come true too, if I just worked hard enough."
"So," Pidge begins, "that's why you applied to be one of the explorers?"
"Yeah, I'm pretty smart" I say. I don't know what else to say. I don't know what else they want to know about me. There isn't really anything interesting about me to tell. They probably have way more exciting stories to tell. They are the paladins and team of Voltron for crying out loud! They are taking on Zarkon!
"So how close are you to defeating Zarkon?" I blurt out of my big mouth. I swear, it's gonna get me into trouble some day.
Everyone is sitting back in their own place. Hunk speaks up. "Not that far, actually. We always get close enough to literally fight him, but he has these witch ladies-"
"Druids," Keith corrects him.
"Yes, druids, thanks Keith. And he's like unbelieveably strong. And every time we fight him, he's stronger. I mean, like new gadgets and stuff from those druid witches. So yeah, not that far actually."
His face, along with those of the rest of his team, turns into a sad and frustrated expression. There are bags under their eyes, tense bodies. And I'm pretty sure their faces should show alot more color than it does right now.
"I see," I say. "Listen, I don't know how long you've all been trying to get rid of Zarkon, but you all look like you all need a break. So I suggest that while you find a way to repair your ship that you all start repairing yourselves too. None of you look that great, so a well deserved rest is in order. You can stay here, plenty of rooms. And as for your ship; there are alot of old wrecks of ships on this planet. I'm pretty sure some of them have what you'll be looking for."
Keith stands up. "Sorry, but we're gonna have to decline."
Allura speaks up. "Keith, we could-"
"No!" he says. "She tried to attack us like some crazy and wild lunatic. She's out here on her own. She says that there are locals here, but the whole walk over to this place we saw no one. She could be lying for all we know! I'm not gonna stay here with a possible psychopath."
His words anger me. How can he say something like that! He doesn't know anything about me or this planet. Although my face remains neutral, on the inside I'm destroying him. "Trust me, not even the Galra Empire contain psychos like the ones I've seen. I understand if you don't trust me; trust is something that needs to be earned. But for now, shut your hole and get some sleep. You look worse than a turd with funges."
Beside me Lance bursts into laughter. He wheezes for air, but it looks like he finds my comment very funny. I'm getting the feeling that I won't ever fully understand what's going on inside his mind.
~~~
The night has begun. Most of my guests have settled in for the night. I think Allura and Coran are still up. I doubt it will long before they'll get some sleep too. Everyone has their own room and some clothes I scraped together over my time here. I hope they'll fit them. And that they'll have a pleasant stay here on Neveah.
The water feels warm against my brown skin. Sometimes having a pool made by nature itself at your own home has its benefits. It's basically a big pit close to one of the many heat sorces of this planet that holds the water that falls from the sky. But I see it as my own pool. The stars and moons of Neveah are reflected in the water. Bathing in the light of the stars and the moon is something I never expected to have the pleasure of experiencing again after Destroya. The oil from the local plants are soothing my muscles as I rub the oils on my shoulders. For my black and red, curly hair I use oils from the Dena-trees. They're big and strong and decorated with flowers of all kind of colors. They remind me of Earth during spring time.
My bathing is interrupted by light footsteps coming from behind me. I turn around and Shiro coming my way. He still looks exhausted. There's still tension in his shoulders. But the look on his face tells me that he doesn't see me as a threat.
"Hi, mind if I sit beside you? I'm having some trouble sleeping," he says quietly.
"Sure, there's plenty of space," I say waving my hand around the pool area.
I take my arms out of the water and rest them next to myself on the ground. He sits down on the dry spot of ground next to me. He's wearing boxers and a white t-shirt. And for the first time ever I see his right arm. It's artifical. It looks better than any prosthetic I've seen before. Than again, I have been gone from Earth for some years now. The metal looks smooth and shiny.
"Where did you get the arm?" I ask bluntly.
Shiro looks at it and then looks ahead, probably at the horizon behind the blue mountains. "I don't know how exactly. All I know about it is that I got it during my imprisonment with the Galra Empire."
"You were one of their prisoners?"
"Yeah," he says, "At one point I was their Champion. I've fought and defeated alot of other prisoners. Every now and then I remember bits and pieces about my time there, but that's all."
He looks a bit uneasy talking about it. Can't blame him, tho.
"How long have you been living here?" he asks suddenly.
I think for a moment. How long have I been here? How many blue moons have past? About three, they come once a year.... "About three years now," I say. "I don't mind it. It's better than the planet I was at before and there's nobody on Earth for me anyway, so I'm free to do as I please."
"Nobody on Earth? What about your family?" he asks with a questioning look.
I look at him like it's pretty obvious. "I'm an orphan. My parents left me at an all girls-orphange when I was a baby. I was raised by nuns. After I applied for an education at the Garrison, I was let go. Didn't keep in touch with the nuns. Believe me, it was for the better."
He looks at me with pity in his eyes. "So you don't have any family? Not even any contact with a foster family?"
I shake my head. "Nope. None of the families that came in wanted me. I had the nuns and the girls at the orphange. But most of them found families or just went their own way. So I did too. I had a lovely childhood, don't get me wrong. The nuns were kind and loving. They told us of God, but respected the fact if He wasn't in our lives just yet. I hold great and fond memories of my childhood. I don't feel like I missed out on anything."
Thinking about the orphange brings a smile to my face. It wasn't the best way for a child to grow up, but I turned out alright. Until the ship crashed, of course.
Shiro's voice brings me back to the present. "If you feel like your childhood was a happy one then it sounds like those nuns did their job right. But what about Destroya? What happend there?"
I chuckle at him and look up at the sky. "Those are stories for another time, Shiro. Right now I just wanna dry off and head to bed." I stand up and let the water droplets fall down my body and hair and back into the water. I turn around to walk past Shiro and get inside to dry myself with a towel. But Shiro is all different shades of tomato red and trying to get up without opening his eyes. Which causes him to trip over my old and dirty clothes.
BAM!
I walk over to him and hoist him up by his arm. Yet he still won't look at me. "Watch where you're walking," I say with a giggle.
"Yeah, yeah, well... Kinda hard- I mean, difficult w-when you look like th-that," he stammers.
I look down to see if there's anything sticking to me, but no. Full naked beauty. I look back at Shiro, who went redder than my hair. "I don't see anything wrong. I'm not wearing anything."
"W-well, that's the thing..." he trails off.
What does he- Oh, wait. I know. He's probably brought up with the idea to hide your body. "I see," I say. "That's too bad for you, tho. I was taught not to be ashamed of my body, of what the Lord has given me as the nuns would say. So you better get used to seeing a whole lot of my brown butt 'cause this is my home and I will not hide myself for anyone."
And with that thought for him to chew on, I leave. I push the curtain aside to let myself back inside and call back to Shiro: "Goodnight!"