Paraplexis

When Lance was a little kid, he was told that he was going to die young. Not in those exact words, it was broken to him gently. His mother told him that there were times that he wouldn't be able to move very well and that was about it. It wasn't until he was in middle school that he learned just what he actually had.

Paraplexis.

He never really knew much about the disease until his parents decided to sit him down and fully explain it to him.

Paraplexis was a neurological disorder that resulted in the paralyzation of the lower exterminates at times of high stress. Eventually, the paralyzation would travel higher and higher until he wouldn't be able to move at all at those times. They were optimistic though and told him that at these times as long as he took his medication he would be able to move again just fine, or he could wait for feeling to return to his limbs. They didn't mention that the disorder was slowly killing him either.

He already knew that.

They took him to see people that would help him keep calm during times of high stress before he attended the Garrison since he was adamant about going. His parents were against it but he didn't want to die while doing nothing with his life. He was actually so good at handling the stress that no one in the Garrison had ever witnessed one of his attacks. He was able to use the warning white spots in his vision to his advantage and escape to his room before he collapsed on the floor or on his bed.

The first time any of his friends had actually seen Lance collapse was during a training exercise on the Castle.

Shiro brought up the military type training they had gone through at the Garrison specifically the CQB tests they were required to take. Coran thought that the idea was splendid and quickly whipped up something that looked eerily similar to the Garrison's setup.

Now normally, Lance would have no problem taking a CQB test at the Garrison. He was used to the instructors yelling and insulting them as they got into each position. It was different when his friends were the ones screaming abuse at him.

"LET'S GO CADET NEXT POSITION!" Shiro hollered, fully engrossed in his Iverson position. From the sidelines, he could hear Hunk, Pidge, and Keith jeering at him as well. He sprinted to the next spot, opening fire at the gladiators and watched them fall to the ground, he spun when he felt a hit connect on his shoulder and hit the gladiator in the face with the butt of his gun.

"YOU'RE FALLING BEHIND, NEXT POSITION!" His heart was hammering in his chest as he spun towards the next mark. His stomach clenched with nerves, at this rate he would have the slowest time. Again.

He sprinted to the last mark and fired on the bots. As they fell to the ground, he turned to look at Shiro. He was holding a ticker in his hand and pushed the button to stop. Shiro sighed and turned it to show Lance.

Exactly fifty ticks.

They decided on the minimum of forty ticks for the time limit and everyone else had gotten that time in one or two turns, except for Lance. He had gone through the course at least five times now and his best time had been forty-five ticks.

"Go again," Shiro said dismissively, resetting the ticker. Lance nodded glumly and jogged back to the beginning. As he stood ready to start he couldn't help the thoughts that ran through his head. He shook his head trying to keep focused on the exercise and aiming at the bots as he ran through the course.

If he couldn't even get through a training exercise in enough time; how was he supposed to save people? He would be too late to help them. People were going to die because he couldn't run fast enough. He wasn't quick like Keith or Pidge and he wasn't strong like Hunk and Shiro, he didn't have anything to give to the team.