"Let me go take over Arus for you, Father. I believe that I'm ready for the responsibility."

Zarkon stared imperiously down at his son who knelt reverently on the bottom of the steps leading to his throne. Even from this distance, Zarkon could see that the look on the Crown Prince's face was far from reverent. Lotor carried himself as a Prince should, with his head held high and his back straight. Woman had always admired his handsome face and long snow white hair, but they learned, usually to their detriment, of the kind of cruelty he was capable of. Many a time, Zarkon had seen one of his son's conquests bruised and battered, psychologically damaged beyond repair. His son had a temper that led to foolish choices which resulted in whole fleets being lost.

Yet, for all his curses and scoldings, Zarkon could not honestly say he was not proud of his only son. Lotor was passionate about the things he believed in and wanted, and he did what he had to in order to get the outcome he desired. Zarkon did not get to where he was without wisdom and he had learned with time that if he steered Lotor in the right direction, he could use the Prince like a tool. The trickiest part was making sure Lotor did not realize he was being maneuvered.

He had been wanting to foist off Arus onto Lotor for a while, being weary of the fight there. The Arusians proved to be tougher than they looked and though Zarkon was not going to give it up just yet, he needed to step back and rethink his invasion plan. Until he was ready for Arus again, he wanted Lotor to keep the Princess and her rebels on their toes. Of course, Lotor did not know that.

"Give me one good reason why I should other than you're ready to take on the responsibility," Zarkon said lazily.

"I captured Pollux for you," Lotor replied and gestured towards a certain slave girl serving Zarkon another glass of wine. "I even brought home a nice present."

Zarkon looked up at the girl's beautiful face and touched her long blonde hair. She had learned long ago not to flinch or else she would suffer the consequences. She took his touch numbly, forcing herself not to give in to the urge to throw the bottle she held in his face. Zarkon had to admit Lotor had been brilliant in his invasion of Pollux. Perhaps he had some talent yet.

"She was a nice present," he agreed. "Very well, Lotor. But only for a short time and consider yourself on probation. One false move and I won't be responsible for my actions."

When are you ever responsible for your actions? Lotor thought silently, but said aloud, "I will make you proud, Father."

The King laughed. "If you say so, you good-for-nothing..."

Lotor bowed and took his leave. A sneer creased his face and he made his way to his flagship. The first order of business was to attack the Corsicant Continent. He rubbed his hands together in anticipation. The Arusian Rebel Forces would never know what hit them.

Allura, Princess of Arus, looked up at her very first sunrise in over ten years. Her eyes were not sensitive to the light because she had made sure that the lighting in the compound was equivalent to real sunlight and she stared unabashedly into the wonderous colors that filled the sky. Her long legs swung in midair for she was seated on what had been her parents' bedroom balcony, the railings having fallen long ago. She dared not look at the ground beneath it, knowing it would be dead and black where her mother's garden had grown and bloomed.

"I never get tired of watching the sun rise," Pidge said, coming up behind her.

She craned her head to meet his innocent brown-eyed gaze. She thought that he was the sweetest one of the group with his cheery disposition and child-like innocence. His glasses only emphasized his youth and she found she could not yell at him no matter how annoying he could be. It was like yelling at a small child and that was something for which she did not have the heart.

"I've only seen one before this one," Allura said to him. "Before we went underground, Coran took me outside and told me to watch the sky. I had never seen such beauty in my entire life and I kept a picture of it in my head ever since. The colors are a lot brighter than what I remember."

"Memories fade after a while," Keith said, getting down on his haunches next to her.

"Not the bad ones," she said.

Pidge sat on the Princess' other side, his wrench still in his hands. He twirled it idly. Silently, Sven and Lance went to stand behind them as Hunk took a seat next to Pidge. The six young people stared up at the sky as the Arusian sun made its way over the horizon and the sky transformed from purple, to pink, to orange, and finally to the bright blue that Allura could never forget. She saw the same shade in her eyes every time she looked in the mirror. Her bemused expression changed to a sad one when the sun cast its glow over the dead land.

"God," Lance breathed. "How could anyone do this?"

"Far too easily," Keith said.

The Princess stood, unable to bear the sight. This was not the Arus of her birth. It had become a desert of nothingness and Zarkon was the cause. She walked away from the balcony and into the Royal chambers but her steps only quickened because she did not want to see the broken glass or the chair where she used to sit in her mother's lap.

Watching her go, Keith turned to the other four. It wasn't lost on him that Allura was quieter and looking more drawn than usual.

"Too many memories here," he said.

"A therapist would make a fortune off her," Lance said.

"Take it easy," Sven said. "She's been through a lot."

"My point exactly. At least she's a little bit more friendly with us than she used to be."

"She just needed time to warm up," Hunk said. "I get the impression she doesn't have many friends."

"Gee, you think?" Lance said sarcastically.

"She is what Zarkon made her," Keith said. "But once we get these Lions back, she and her people will see that there's hope yet."

"What are you running for King of Arus or something?" Sven teased.

"No," Keith snorted. "I'm just saying they've been underground and on the losing end for way too long."

"Aren't you guys nervous about being the great hope, though?" Pidge asked. "I mean, they're counting on us to save us from Zarkon. Even Allura. She says we're going to save Arus. The Lions might be magical, but they're not...miraculous."

"Someone's lacking in hope," Lance said. "Listen, Pidge, the robot Lions aren't exactly your average Garrison fighter. If myth turns into reality, we're going to be packing a lot of firepower into one little Lion. Maybe we won't save Arus exactly but we're gonna be doing a lot more for her than what the rebels have been doing for the past decade. Worse comes to worse, we add five big guns to the rebels' arsenal, and we're gonna give Zarkon a fight he won't soon forget."

"Who's running for King now?" Keith chuckled.

"The day I become that woman's King, is the day...no, there isn't even a day," Lance said, pointing a finger at him.

"Come on," Keith said, going back inside. "Her Majesty is going to start yelling any second. I can feel it."

Blissfully ignorant of the conversation above her head, Allura was back in Castle Control taking stock of the situation. The chute that would lead to the five Lions was raised and various wires and panels were strewn around the place. They had found it a week before and had just returned to secure the area with the proper equipment. Hunk, Pidge, and Lance installed an area shield, but it was only strong enough to give them time to escape in case there was a Doom attack. They couldn't up the power any more because they were afraid of being detected. So far, there hadn't been a Doom scorpion fighter flying or any soldier patrolling. Zarkon had focused his attention on another continent, though Allura found little comfort in that.

She stepped around the clutter and stood before the raised platform. She heard the others come in and go back to what they were doing before she had distracted them by going upstairs. They were trying to get Castle Control secured so that they could get to the Lions. Keith did not want Zarkon to know they had found them yet, so they had to be very careful. They had sentries posted every hundred meters within a two mile radius around the Castle to warn them of any movement.

"Let's wrap it up, guys," Keith said. "We have reports of heightened movement around this area. I think Zarkon suspects something. We can't waste anymore time."

"Make sure you get everything," Allura said. "I don't want them to find a trace of us here."

"I don't know," Lance spoke up. "I think the footprints and lack of dust will give us away."

Walking past him, Allura smacked him cleanly upside the head. He gasped in surprise while the others roared with laughter.

"Did I do it right?" she asked Pidge.

"Perfectly!" he cried.

She waved her hand in the air. "Let's get going, boys."

Still laughing, except for Lance, they trooped after her and to the shuttle that waited for them in the courtyard.