Don't Ask About My Demons

Lotor's Plan

"Prince Lotor!" The soldier bowed immediately upon entering the room. "Orders from your father."

Lotor straightened up, sword held with its point to the sky as he saluted his opponent. He allowed his sword arm to relax at his side before sheathing it. "You are dismissed, Acza."

She nodded and stepped out of the room.

He turned to the newcomer. "My father?" His stomach turned as the words left his lips but he tried his best to smile pleasantly. "What could he possibly want from me?"

"He put you in charge of the front lines to help deliver the black lion to him personally."

He scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Now that does sound like an honor..."

The soldier nodded. "High honors, indeed, Sir."

He grinned. "My father is depending on me... such an important task... and it will be quite a challenge..." his eyes gleamed.

"You are correct, Sir." He nodded.

"Working for my father..." He pondered for a moment longer. "No thanks." He turned away.

"Wh-What?! B-but he's the emperor!"

"Yes, I am aware. He's also my father. Your point?"

"Sir, it's.... it's an order from Emperor Zarkon! You can't refuse him!"

"My father never looked to me for assistance before... never looked twice at me for all the decaphebes I've been alive. I've always been such an inconvenience to him. He's obviously desperate, that much I know..."

"You don't talk about the emperor that way!"

"And you don't speak out of turn!" His voice boomed. More and more like his father every day.... He breathed. "I refuse to work for my father..."

"I know but--"

He held up a hand. "Shut up, if you please." He continued. "I want this to go under record that I'm not doing this for my father..."

"Sir..."

"I'm doing this for the Galran empire. After all, am I not meant to rule over it one day; or did my father put an end to that too?"

"Oh no, sir! You're still in line for the throne!"

He smirked. "Perfect." He turned back to the soldier. "Tell the emperor that I'll be delighted to take on the challenge... just as long as I get to do it my way. Understood?"

"Yessir." He nodded and bowed slightly before leaving.

He grinned maliciously as he watched the soldier go. "Won't this be fun?" He mused. "Acza! I hope you've been listening! My dear father has come to me for help!" He laughed.

She returned to the room. "I know you're planning something... what could it be?" She said it rhetorically.

He allowed his features to fall to a satisfied grin. "Acza, things are gonna change around here! After I take the lion for myself, even my father can't stop me!"

She looked to him with a growing smile.

"And I want to see his face when I strike him down! His own flesh and blood causing his demise!"

"You'll make things different around here."

"Of course I will! You, Zethrid, Narti, and Ezor all have a place in my court. Never again will you be ridiculed. Together, we'll take my empire and reshape it to what it was meant to be. Voltron will never know what hit it."

"But I've been hearing word... Voltron is rallying together an uprising... it may even turn out to be a full revolution."

"That shouldn't be a problem with us. Revolts are most often made up of mere citizens; not a warrior bone in their body. We'll make quick work of them. However..."

"What is it?"

"I'm interested to see this... hybrid they keep talking about. Part galra, part human... intriguing, don't you think?"

"I always thought so."

"Yes. Such curiosity. The hunger can only be satisfied by answers... which is why I think I shall like to have him."

She cocked her head to the side. "What could you be thinking, Prince Lotor?"

"He'd make a fitting addition to our team, no?"

She nodded.

"However..." he held up a finger as his voice fell slightly. "It may take some... convincing."

"He's already went through that process... electrical shocks did nothing."

"Oh, no, no, no!" He shook his head with a knowing grin.

"I know that look..."

"A mind can be easily molded when given the right... push. Therefore, our best course of action would be to break him." He said the words as if he was simply commenting on the weather or what he planned to eat for lunch.

"How So?"

"Even the best warriors have their weaknesses. Get to the ones they love, and the warrior turns to clay to be molded as you see fit."

She considered his words.

"Bonds are a difficult thing to break..." he continued. "More so between mates. But... it happens all the time... war does that to people...."

Her eyes lit up with understanding. "Prince Lotor, are you suggesting--"

"--not only suggesting it, but planning it. The only course of action that could ensure that his Galra state takes control is if we take away his ties to Voltron... his ties to the one he loved most..." he chuckled. "How stupid to fall in love during wartime, wouldn't you agree?"

"Wholeheartedly."