Lost and Found

In the Night

Shiro ran through the halls of the Galran ship. There were prison cells on both sides of the hall, but, as far as he could see, no one was in any of them. That's strange, Shiro thought quickly as he kept his goal in mind. His brother had to be here somewhere. He just had to be. Shiro noticed in front of him that the hall he was running down was coming to a dead end.

Shiro was about to make a quick turn around, but stopped as his eye caught the shape of something, or someone in the back of the last cell to the left. Shiro turned on the comms, about to signal the other paladins, "Guys?" No response.

"Hello? Lance? Hunk? Anyone there?" Again, no response, just a quiet, eerie static buzzing in his ears.

Shiro turned off the comma and looked back at the direction from which he had came. He froze. The lights in the hallway had all blacked out, all except the ones illuminating the cell in front of him. His breath caught in his throat, he was beginning to panic. His eyes were wide with the fear of the unknown that darkness brought. He quickly turned back to the cell, trying to take the panic from his head. This isn't right. Somethings not right. Just stay calm.

He turned back to the cell door in front of him, and stared at it, confused and scared. It had changed into a more earth looking metal door, with a glowing purple door handle. Cell doors don't normally do that, do they? The purple light in front of him was the only thing illuminating the space around him now. It pulsated in the dark, almost daring him to open the door. After a moment of hesitation, he slowly moved his metal hand up, and grabbed the nob. He hesitated again before opening the door cautiously.

The room was pitch black, but he could make a form lying against the farthest wall of the cell. He slowly stepped into the room, preparing for any traps that might be present. Suddenly, all the lights sprang to life, illuminating the room. He squinted due to the sudden brightness, covering his eyes with his left arm.

Removing his arm from his eyes, he turned to look at what he assumed was a prisoner. He stopped moving. His heart stopped dead. No. No it...it can't. NO.NO. His hands were shaking, and his face was pale.

The prisoner that was in the cell, his brother, was lying against the cell wall. There was blood. So much blood. It was on the white walls, on the white floor, and all over Keith. His left arm was missing, and he was wearing a customary prisoner outfit. His face was covered in bruises and blood. His eyes were closed, and his mouth was slightly open. He had a stream of dried blood from his mouth to his chin. He was thin, and pale. Shiro couldn't move. He couldn't breathe. He...he needed to...he had to...

"KEITH!"

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Shiro sat up in his bead, his breath heavy and panicked. His sheets were a messy pile on the edge of his bed, and his pillow was lying on the floor, a few feet away from him. His hand had been activated, glowing the same shade of purple as the ones in his nightmare. He quickly deactivated it, not wanting to think about what could be happening to Keith, the last remaining family he had.

It had been eight months since he had been captured, only four months shorter than the time Shiro had been held in a Galran prison. He didn't want to think that Keith could be dead. He had survived, and he was willing to bet that Keith could find a way to survive. His brother was strong, and he didn't want to know what the Galra had done to his little brother that he loved so much.

Tears streamed down his face. He wanted to see him safe, more than anything in the world, he just wanted his brother back. He didn't care about how stubborn, shut-out, and irrational he might have been. And, even though it was hard to deal with at times, he would still be crushed if they took his fighting spirit. He didn't care about any mistakes Keith might have made in the past. He just wanted him home, safe.