What they don't know

Part 23

They hadn't slept more than the few winks Lance had afforded after dinner and, honestly, Lance doubted they would manage more than a sleep-deprived nap snuck in between moments of waiting. 

Lance's eyes were beginning to hurt and Matt's words were becoming slurred.

Their lab had grown deserted in the past few days - his assistants finding work elsewhere while the humans slaved away inside. Colleen had been called away days prior, required in helping to repair a damaged vessel on the frontlines, but they had been updating her every hour with news - or, more often, an utter lack of.

Matt passed Lance a cup, the drink inside having gone cold little more than an hour ago. He didn't glance up, his eyes dutifully trained on the tracker he was remodelling, his fingers sore from accidental, minor shocks and coated in a thin layer of oil. Underneath his fingernails, was a stained layer of grime, permanently blackening the ends of his nails. 

Without the expertise in robotics that Matt held, Lance had been developing his own methods of locating their missing family. 

As an alchemist, he was left with one main use; an understanding of and a sensitivity to quintessence.

Allura had once tracked the lions down using the Castle. Lance just needed to figure out how she did that and replicate the process - with equipment likely far less adapted to such a thing.

So far, he had very little to show for his efforts. 

He could track specific quintessence signatures across perhaps a solar system but that was only when he had an example of that quintessence to base his search off of. 

He couldn't remember being particularly quintessence sensitive the last time he saw the lions in this reality. Even though he could be credited with being the pilot of two lions, he couldn't detail the specifics of their quintessence signatures if his life was on the line. 

He had his existing bond that burned brightly enough inside of him for him to know that Red was at least active in this reality but the bond linking them was akin to a string that thinned with the distance placed between them - it was simply too thin and frail for him to tug along and follow. 

Theoretically, he should be able to feel the bond growing stronger as they got closer to her but the distance was just so great that any possible changes in their location so far was too insignificant to be reflected notably in their bond.

With all that being said, Lance felt close to his breaking point.

After everything he had uncovered and accomplished in the past few years, he had never considered that he could once again be reduced to such a helpless state. He thought he would have at least been more useful after all that time.  

Matt made a small, displeasured sound as he jabbed again at the tracker. 

"Matt..."

"Almost got it," He didn't look, simply changing his angle of entry, "Drink your tea."

Lance grimaced as he took a whiff of the concoction Matt had passed him, "Is that what this is meant to be?"

That finally prompted Matt to flick his eyes upwards with a flat, unimpressed glare before returning to his work.

Lance pressed his hands against his temple, leaning closer to the table until he felt he could merge with it if he tried hard enough. Watching Matt work had always been fascinating even at its most frustrating moments. Now, even as Lance felt sick with the guilt of having so little to offer in the search effort, he took comfort in the ticks and clicks as he rearranged the hardware, checking each miniscule component with the scrutiny of a clocksmith as he ensured every single one of them could perform their tasks in perfect harmony.