Chapter 7 -
Reunion
The waiting was driving him crazy! Pollux still hadn't answered his radio for help. Keith drummed his fingers on the arm of his chair impatiently. He would be pacing if he could but his injuries prevented that. It had been a full two days since his message was sent and still no reply. He was beginning to think all was lost.
"You would think they would have given me an answer at least. I hope the princess is okay. If not, Lotor will pay." the wounded captain whispered to himself. Black Lion (or what was left of it) was slowly beginning to fall apart. Much longer and there wouldn't be any oxygen left for him to breath.
It was then that he heard it; a ship! Keith struggled to his feet to get a better view of his view screen. A Polluxian ship was just appearing out of the stars. A very familiar voice came over his com.
"Keith?!" Hurriedly, he switched on his radio.
"Sven, is that you?" There came a sigh of relief from the voice on the other side.
"Thank the Gods! Everyone thought you were dead!"
"I will be if I don't get out of here soon. Black Lion's beginning to fall apart and I'm losing oxygen fast." His reply came in the form of the ship's cargo bay opening and the ship approaching at a fast pace. The next thing he knew he was inside the massive ship.
Sven entered the lion through the top hatch and made his way to Keith's side. His worry was evident to his friend. He bent down and slowly helped Keith out of the lion and was greeted by a mob of doctors. They ushered him away and toward a vacant room where they would tend to his wounds.
About an hour later, the doctors let Sven see Keith. He was in bad shape but feeling better than he did before. As Sven entered, Keith opened his eyes and gave his old friend a small smile. He took a seat next to Keith's bedside and tried to gather his thoughts and was about to speak when Keith interrupted him.
"It's nice seeing you again, Sven."
"Yes, it's been a long time hasn't it?" He was still slightly uncomfortable talking about the past. The former pilot still felt guilty for the people who died so many years ago when Zarkon attacked. Of course he was in an infirmary because of what witch Haggar did to him, but he still felt that causality was his fault. Keith sighed.
"What about the others? Any survivors?" Sven shook his head sadly.
"There was nothing left of the lions except scrap metal. Yours seemed to have held together while the others were completely destroyed." There was yet another uncomfortable pause. "What happened out there?"
Keith explained everything he knew to Sven but that still wasn't enough. He couldn't help but wonder what happened to the princess but he had a pretty good idea. Cossack worked for Lotor, that was a fact, and Allura's lion had disappeared in the same area as that of the Drule's slave ship. Keith had a hunch that Lotor had her. But the question was where.
"Sven, have you heard anything from Allura?" His comrade gave him an astonished look.
"You mean she's alive?!"
"I think. Her lion was knocked down by interference before that monster attacked us. Lotor may have her and no one knows where he is at the moment." Keith paused thoughtfully. "Princess' ship went down in the same area that Cossack's slave ship disappeared in. There may be something down there that we don't know about, and that something could very well be Lotor."
"You have the coordinates?" he nodded. "Then we will think of a plan to find and rescue the princess. But first you must rest and let those wounds heal. There would be no avail if we went through all this trouble for nothing you know? It would make the doctors quite mad." Sven smiled teasingly. Keith smiled as well and closed his, eyes happy to oblige his friend's suggestion.
Sven looked back as he exited the room with head bowed. What a horrible, horrible, thing to have happened. The entire Voltron Force gone except for Princess and Keith and he's out of commission and Princess is who knows where with that poor excuse of a prince. I hope that we find her in time and that the rest of the universe does not fall to Zarkon while we look for her. He shook his head sadly. When Voltron had been around every one of the rebels and slaves that had been under the oppression of Doom had hope. Now that he was gone, what little hope they had left diminished. Even Sven had a sense that this was the end and that everything was going to go downhill from here.
If Zarkon gained control of the Universe there would certainly no longer be such a thing as peace and happiness. And if the Dark Prince was ever to carry out his intents with the princess she would be lost to them. The next step would most likely be a clash between the two rulers, a last bloody battle for superiority. Either one would be a disaster for the universe. Sven heaved a heavy sigh.
"I hope Keith has a plan or else we are certainly doomed." He gave a cruel laugh. "How ironic that I used that word in such a phrase!"
The doctors insisted that Keith rest for a couple of days at the least before he would even be allowed to get out of bed. Of course he didn't like that at all and considered getting up and sneaking out when the chance presented itself. No such luck. Instead, Sven came to visit him every morning to talk with him about their plans for finding Lotor. Allura had to be found as soon as possible while at the same time they had to figure out how they were going to get rid of Zarkon. The deranged tyrant would strike Arus next and the planet needed to be protected at all costs. If Arus feel the rest of the universe would soon follow and all would be under his control.
"Well, I've managed to find those coordinates that you gave me. It seems that there is actually solid ground below the quasar but the radar won't pick up anything else. Do you think that's where the princess is?" Keith nodded.
"I'm sure of it, or rather I have a feeling that it is. Lotor was probably hiding out while the lions were destroyed by Haggar's new play thing. Man, that was an ugly monster! The thing looked like a giant squid crossed with a crab." He shuddered at the thought. "So when are you going to let me out of here?" Sven held up his hands in defense.
"I'm not in charge in that matter. You'll have to ask the doctors if you want to get out. But our main concern is coming up with a plan first anyway right?" He nodded angrily.
"If we sit around here much longer it will be too late! Zarkon will head for Arus and Lotor will have Allura so far away we'll never find her! I'm not going to stay here while that happens; I couldn't live with myself!"
"All right, Keith, all right. Relax, and I'll make sure you get out of here soon. Now...what are we going to do? Lotor's somewhere down there below the quasar and he's got the princess. His radar is sure to pick us up if we go with much fire power, but who knows what else he has waiting down there."
"It'll be risky but we've got to get down there and find him. Without Allura there's no hope for peace anywhere. Lotor is going to be a problem; he's not going to give her up without a fight. Now how long do I have to stay in here?" Sven looked at him with an annoyed look in his eyes. Struggling to keep from strangling his friend, Sven tried to calm himself down.
"Soon. Maybe a month, maybe two. Three at the most." Keith scowled. "Keith, I can't let you leave until you've healed! That would be suicide! Especially if we ended up having to fight Lotor in hand to hand combat! You know how dangerous he is, so why be willing to take such a chance!?"
"I'm sorry, Sven, I didn't mean to act so stupid. It's just that I can't stand being here when I know that he may have her." He shook his head slowly. "It's all my fault." It was Sven's turn to scowl.
"No, it wasn't. No one knew about the trap and you fought the best you could."
"Yeah, but I should have known it was a trick. It was the slave ship that we chased but I never considered the thought that a robeast would be waiting for us in that void. Those tentacles just came out of nowhere; the lions were thrown all over the place."
"It's all right, Keith; just get some rest okay?" He nodded as Sven pulled the covers up over him gently. The commander sighed and tried to block the thoughts of the battle out of his head but they just wouldn't go away. He knew that tonight his dreams would be plagued by ghosts of the past.
Chapter 8-Repercussions
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