Chapter One

 

 

It was five in the morning and Bethie stared at the black helmet sitting on her desk.  It was the original her father had used but had been refitted to better suit her head.  The Black Lion key sat next to it and she just stared at them both, still not fully believing that she was really the leader of the legendary Voltron Force.  It went without saying that the pilot of the Black Lion was but it did not intimidate her.  What did intimidate her was filling the rather large shoes of her just as legendary father.  Arusians who had been around long enough to live through the war put Keith on a pedestal that embarrassed him to no end.  When he became their King, he was practically raised to god-like status.  As much as she loved her father, Bethie wanted to break free from his long shadow but taking his place as the pilot of the Black Lion only made that particular goal even harder to attain.

 

She had known from the moment the Lions had roared back to life that they were going to be in for a bumpy ride but the message that had been broadcast that morning had been a cold shock.  The importance of Voltron and the five Lions became more clear to her as she considered the possible motives of the Lotorians.  Arus was high, if not first, on their hit list and Bethie knew they would have to defend Arus now against an enemy more powerful than they had faced before—but led by an enemy who knew them better than she liked.  Lotor was a more dangerous adversary than his father because of the technology he had at his fingertips.  The Lions had stood up to Zarkon, but how would they stand up to faster, better ships and bigger, more dangerous ro-beasts?  From what she understood, the Lions’ engineering, while mysterious, was not exactly cutting edge technology.  That would have to change if they wanted to be a force to be reckoned with. 

 

Her door chimed and she shook herself from her thoughts, bidding entrance to her expected visitor.  Her brother peeked in, smiling when he saw her sitting on her bed, facing her dresser.  His surprise appearance the day before had resulted in a gathering that went late into the night.  They probably would not have gone to bed had her mother not reluctantly sent them off.  Bethie still felt she needed more time with Ethan and they had an unspoken agreement to meet as soon as they rose.  She and Alana got along very well, but when it came to matters involving Arus, she and Ethan turned to each other.  Between the two of them, they could turn an issue inside out and present their parents with a convincing argument.  She was not ashamed to say that he was not just her brother but also her friend and she knew that he felt the same way about her.  So, he had come and he sat next to her, propping one foot up on the trunk at the end of her bed and turned his sky-blue eyes on her focal point.

 

“It’s nice,” he said.

 

“You like yours?”

 

“It needs to be let out a little,” he admitted.  “Mom’s head is smaller than mine.”

 

They laughed and she gave him a push.  It had been a year since she saw him last as his first assignment was on an exploratory vessel.  That ensured his inability to visit home more than once a year if they were lucky.  He had not changed much in that time except he had allowed his dark blonde hair to grow longer than the regulation inch he usually allowed it.  It flopped over his forehead and she tugged at a lock, smiling.  He pulled away and ran a hand through his hair, but it stubbornly flopped back.  He gave it a very Keith-like glare and Bethie was reminded just how much like their father Ethan was.  Not only in looks, but in temperament as well.  It was probably why they got along so well.

 

“So…what do you think?” she ventured.

 

“Can’t say I disapprove,” he answered, hair forgotten.  “It was a surprise but we need the Lions and they seemed to know that.  Arus’ destiny will always be tied with Voltron’s and because of that, so will our family’s.  Flying those Lions is in our blood.  If Alana had been more inclined to fly, she would probably have gotten one of the Lions herself.”

 

The picture of their youngest sister turning in her gowns for a flightsuit was amusing and far from reality.  Alana had no shown no interest in flying and though she had joined in the lessons their father gave them, she had not taken it any further than basic knowledge.  Bethie and Ethan were the ones who continued on while Alana’s feet resolutely remained on the ground—which was a relief to everyone in the family after an incident that ended in an overheated engine and their mother nearly passing out from the experience.

 

“I thought that Dad would give you the Black Lion,” Bethie confessed after a brief hesitation.

 

Ethan’s eyebrows rose and she saw that he was genuinely surprised at her statement. 

 

“Why?  You’re the oldest.”

 

“That’s no reason to fly the Black.  Dad got the position out of merit and Mom didn’t try to squeeze him out when she was able to fly because it was his.  You’re the golden boy, the one that makes them glow with pride.  It just seems fitting that you lead the team.”

 

“You can’t say they’re not proud of you,” he said, nudging her with his elbow.  It was the first time he’d heard Bethie voice her own self-doubts and she could not be further off the mark.  “You’re the heir and even though mom sometimes threatens to have you beheaded, I don’t think she means it.  You challenge them and you stand up for what you believe in.  I know they both admire that even though it drives them—and everyone else—nuts.  You’re the leader, Bethie.  You always were.  I am more than happy to follow in your lead.”

 

She smiled at him.  “I appreciate that.”

 

“Just don’t tell anyone alright?”

 

“I missed you, bro,” she said playfully.

 

Ethan put an arm around her and kissed her temple.  “I missed you, too.  It’s good to be home.  I was dying out there.”

 

“Exploration not as interesting as you thought?”

 

“Not at all.  It’s all running diagnostics and scanning weird looking lights that turn out to be planetary gases.”

 

“Well, flying the Blue definitely beats that assignment.”

 

He laughed.  “By about a thousand to one.”

 

“We should probably be getting to Castle Control,” she said, standing.  “I’m sure they have information about that message that was sent out this morning.”

 

Ethan’s smile faded and his expression turned somber.  “The Lotorians won’t know what hit them when we get the Lions back out there but I gotta say, I’m not especially excited to know how Mom and Dad feel about this”

 

“Lotor has been a specter hovering over them since before I was born,” Bethie said.  “To have him come back now…I’m surprised Mom let you have the Blue.”

 

They walked down the corridor towards the conference room, running into Jordan and Matt on the way there for all the pilots were now housed in the Castle of Lions.  Jack was already seated when they entered and he nodded in greeting.  They saw that Keith and Allura were facing the viewscreen, their attention focused on Romelle.

 

“Was that broadcast on every major station?” Allura was saying.

 

“We’re getting a million messages a minute,” Romelle said tersely.  “I don’t suppose I have to point out that Arus was singled out.”

 

“No.”

 

“Have you received their demands?” Keith asked.

 

“They just want Arus,” Romelle answered. 

 

Keith frowned.  “Want Arus to do what?”

 

Romelle’s expression tightened.  “The Lotorians want control of Arus.  Once they get the planet, they’ll collect their pods and leave the rest of the Alliance alone.”

 

It was a ludicrous demand and Allura snorted.  “There’s no way we’re going to do that.”

 

“I’m going to try to keep that quiet for as long as I can,” Romelle said.  “But the Senate is going to come under pressure to release the demands and I can tell you right now, that some Senators will be disappointed that they can’t inform their constituents right away that Arus is the only thing standing between them and safety.”

 

“I’m going to have to trust you to do all that you can, Cousin.  We need time to mobilize.”

 

“What are you going to do?”

 

Allura had to fight to keep control of herself.  It felt as if her head was going to break open and she pinched the bridge of her nose.  She hadn’t felt anything like this since Keith had been held prisoner by his father all those years ago.  She had let herself believe that Lotor was no longer a problem they had to worry about, having not heard a whisper about him ever since he had disappeared.  Keith ran a covert search for five years before they finally gave up looking for Lotor.  The Prince did not want to be found and they were more than happy to comply. 

 

It was the biggest mistake they ever made.

 

 “I don’t know,” she muttered. 

 

“Skech, alert the bases,” Keith said into his communicator, putting a hand on Allura’s back.  “We’re going to Code Omega.”

 

“Do you have any history on these Lotorians?” Allura asked.

 

“Nothing yet.  It’s like they came out of nowhere,” Romelle said.  “IAF intelligence is putting all their resources on finding more, but they have few leads to follow as of now.  Nothing worth mentioning.”

 

“Great.  That’s reassuring.  Just keep us updated.”

 

Romelle looked beyond them at the seated pilots.  “Good luck,” she said, her eyes resting on her daughter.  “And take care.”

 

“Romelle,” Allura said hesitantly and Romelle gave her a sharp look.  “You be careful too.”

 

The screen winked out and Keith and Allura faced the assembled group.

 

“Should we start practicing how to form Voltron now?” Bethie asked, her hands fisted on the surface of the conference table.

 

“After we announce to the populace what we plan to do,” Keith said.

 

“And what is that?” Ethan asked.

 

“We’re not going to surrender by any means,” Allura said, pounding a fist on the table.  “Voltron is going to protect Arus like it always has and we’re not going to go down without a fight.  Lotor tried to do this to us before and he sure as hell isn’t going to have his way this time around.”

 

“That sounds about right,” Jack said calmly.  “Do you want us to be standing behind you while you give your announcement?”

 

“No, that’ll be for another day,” Keith said.  “We don’t want to overwhelm them with information.  Tomorrow, you’ll be introduced to the people but keep in mind that we don’t want you speaking to anyone outside of this chain of command about your duties.”

 

“That goes without saying,” Jordan assured him.

 

“I guess Lotor wasn’t ejected into the vacuum, huh?” Bethie said, toying with the sleeve of her flightsuit.

 

Allura tensed but no one noticed except Keith.  It was the imperceptible clenching of her jaw and hardening of her eyes; but he had been expecting it, wondering when she would say anything about Lotor.

 

“We’d have been better of if he had,” he said when she stayed resolutely silent.  “It wouldn’t be too farfetched to say that Hagar is still at his side, if these pods are any indication.”

 

“That old hag got away before I could shoot her head off,” Allura muttered.

 

Bethie straightened in her seat and after sparing her mother a brief glance, she switched topics.

 

“Lotor aside, I was thinking maybe we should try to make some improvements on the Lions,” she said.  “These Lotorians have shown us that they have the technology to sneak around Alliance space without setting off any alarms and who’s to say that Lions’ sensors are any better than the ones we have?”

 

“We never really tried to upgrade the Lions,” Keith said, leaning against the wall and crossing his arms.  “But I can think of two people who can make it happen.”

 

“My dad’s going out of his mind with boredom,” Matt said.  “With his retirement last month from an Alliance defense contractor, he’s driving mom nuts with his crazy gadgets lying over the house.”

 

“What about Uncle Pidge?” Jack asked.  “Where’s he?”

 

“Last he wrote, he was on Juno Base troubleshooting their central systems,” Keith said.  “He’ll be easy enough to track down.  Matt, have you been able to take a look at the Lions’ blueprints?”

 

“No.  I’ve been focused on practice since we got here.”

 

“Come with me,” Keith said.

 

“I’d like to come along,” Bethie said, standing.  “I’ve got a couple ideas that I want to run by Matty.”

 

Keith nodded and the three of them started out.

 

“We can help, Mom,” Ethan said, coming to stand next to her.  “What do you need?”

 

Allura looked up at her tall son and managed a small smile.  “I need you to practice and get even better than we ever did with those Lions.  If there was ever a time when Voltron was most needed, it’s now.”

 

“Guys, can we have a second?” Ethan inquired politely, turning to the two pilots.

 

“Of course,” Jordan said with a reassuring smile for her aunt and she followed Jack out the door.

 

“How bad is it?” Ethan asked when the doors slid shut behind them.

 

Allura rubbed her eyes.  “Not as bad as we thought, but below average.  We let it slide for too long and no amount of revamping will get the ARF back to workable levels in a month.”

 

“What does Uncle Lance think?”

 

“He has good, solid recommendations, but we can’t possibly meet them…most of them anyway.”

 

“Dad?”

 

“He wants to focus attention on the more critically positioned bases and beef up our defense satellites.”

 

“You?”

 

Allura smirked.  “Don’t tell your dad, but I agree with him.”

 

Ethan rubbed his chin thoughtfully.  “Can I add something to that?”

 

She nodded, gesturing for him to talk with one hand.

 

“We put most of our attention on the critical positions but we can’t just abandon the other bases.  We can’t give ground before this even starts.  For all we know, it’s a bluff and they’re all flash and no substance.”

 

“We can’t deny that they have advanced capabilities because of their ability to drop those pods practically on our front door.”

 

“From what you’ve told me and what I’ve read, Lotor is no military genius.”

 

“That doesn’t mean he doesn’t know any,” Allura pointed out.

 

“I know, but I’m just saying, don’t sell Arus short.  We’ve fought back a powerful enemy before and we’re going to do it again.”

 

His words sounded naïve to Allura’s ears, but she could not help but be comforted by them.  She looked up into the earnest eyes so like her own and patted his cheek.

 

“Hope is the one thing we’ll need in abundance as well,” she said.  “Go on.  I think the Blue’s waiting for you.  Take care of my Lion, will you, Ethan?  The Blue was mine after all.”

 

He kissed her cheek.  “That’s one of the reasons why I won’t be flying her into the side of a mountain.”

 

Allura chuckled and he left her to her thoughts.  Stretching out her tense back, she sat down with a datapad and began to write what she would say to her subjects later that day.  As she got to the word ‘Lotorians’, her hand stilled and her jaw clenched of its own accord.  There was one secret that the people of Arus did not know and she was going to keep it that way.  Even her own children did not know that the man who had once been Arus’ great enemy was also their half-uncle.