Voltron: Legendary Defender // Keith Kogane

Chapter 031.

It seemed like forever they waited. Forever that no one said anything, everyone focused on their screens in front of them and not on each other. Cira didn't know what anyone else was doing, but she played a game on her screen to pass time. Her head rested on her fist while she used her left hand to play with a bored expression. She jumped only slightly when something light poked her in her head. Cira leans off her fist to look around, confusion planted on her face. She looked on the ground to see a piece of paper shaped as an airplane. Cira picks it up and leans back in her seat, unraveling the paper to look what it said.

Forgive me?

Cira sighs quietly. After reading it, she knew exactly who it was from. Cira glances at him to see him already watching her. She held a "really" face and then took the paper and ripped it into pieces, never breaking eye contact with him. Her gaze turned into a glare and then she turned away from him to go back to her game. Keith looked down, his eyes saddening from where he sat behind her.

Everyone seemed to jump when an alarm blared. Coran turns around to everyone, "There's an intruder in the castle!"

"How could someone just sneak aboard the ship?" Lance exclaims over the alarm. Cira's body goes stiff and she sits up in alarm, pulling up the security footage in the castle.

"I knew coming here was a mistake!" Allura growls and then turns to Cira for answers, "Cira?"

Cira was silent, her eyes scanning over each camera. Her eyes snapped to the camera on her right when she saw movement. It was a figure dressed in heavy black armor. He was masked. Cira was lucky to have saw him because he was so quick she almost missed him, "There he is. Level five." Cira announces to everyone.

"Everyone," Shiro stands, "suit up."

While each of the Paladins left to go confront the intruder, Cira lifts her left leg to her seat, her eyes trained to the screen. She bit her lip while she focused on Lance on the security cameras. He was the closest to the intruder's location. Lance turned a left corner and raised his rifle to the masked figure, "I got him."

The intruder stood still at the end of the hallway, his back to the Blue Paladin, as if he was waiting for Lance to arrive. "Keep your eyes on him, Lance. We're all headed towards you." Shiro calls into the radio.

Cira narrows his eyes at the intruder, who took the shape of a tall, lean man. From the security camera, the only thing Cira could initially spot was the blade on his back. It was long with a strange glowing symbol on the hilt. Cira knits her brows in confusion, watching the scene unfold before her. The intruder turns around slowly to look at Lance, who lifts his rifle with a yell, "Hold it right there!"

Then, he charges, running faster than Cira thought possible. Quick to fire, Lance couldn't seem to get a shot on him as the intruder flipped over his head and sped off down the hall.

Coran had moved over to where Cira sat, watching with Allura and Cira as the Paladins tried to capture their intruder. "Careful," he calls into the radio as if he was narrating, "he's faster than an angry klanmüirl! But he can jump like a sprightly globinheffer!"

"Coran, you're not helping!" Lance yells, taking off after the intruder.

"Oh, somebody's as mad as a wet chüper."

Cira ignores Coran's narration in the background and scans over the cameras to see Pidge running down a hall, "He's coming your way, Pidge!"

Pidge stops in her tracks and narrows her yes just as the intruder slid in front of her. She rolls when the intruder ran towards her and then flipped over her, taking off. Pidge shoots her arm forward and her grappling hook fires towards him, but he stops and turns around to grab it. Pidge grunts, "I got him!" Cira's eyes widen when the intruder pulls on the grappling hook and drags Pidge with him as he takes off down the hall. Pidge holds onto her bayard, sliding through the hall with a yell, "I don't got him!"

Coran gasps from Cira's right side, "He's dragging Pidge away!"

Cira sighs and facepalms, "Seriously?"

Pidge grunts and pulls on her bayard, "Come back here!"

Cira watches as the intruder runs past the hallway where Hunk his, taking him by surprise. He lifts his cannon to shoot, squeezing his eyes shut, only stopping and opening them when Pidge yells, "Hunk!"

He opens his eyes to realize he almost shot Pidge, "Huh? Sorry!"

Hunk watches as Lance runs past the hallway, following after the intruder and Pidge. He follows Lance to hear Coran speak through the radio, "Oh, Hunk failed the team, guys."

"Hey!"

"Keith, he's coming in on your right." Cira informs him, watching him through the camera. His bayard transforms into a sword and he runs to his right, answering back, "Copy that. I'm ready."

"Ooh, this is exciting! He's got a sword. One young Paladin, one seemingly indestructible foe."

Cira leans forward, her eyes trained to the screen. Keith ducks and stumbles a bit after he almost ran into their intruder. Keith sprints after him, running beside the screaming Pidge, still holding onto her bayard with a tight grip. He speeds up and manages to catch up to him. Keith swings at him, but misses. "Swing and a miss!" Coran announces. As the intruder turns a right, Keith lunges toward him and swings his sword, but misses again and rolls, landing on his two feet. "Oh, another swing and a miss! He can't touch him! He's too fast!"

Keith runs after the intruder and catches up to Pidge. He nods at her and she nods back before shooting her feet at the ground, attempting to slow him down with her weight. Getting enough leverage off him, he was tugged to a halt and Keith lunged at him. The intruder lifts his blade to catch his bayard. Caught in a small standoff, Keith flinched suddenly. Startled by something Cira was unsure of, he was caught off guard when the intruder tugged on the grappling hook and threw Pidge at him.

All in all, they kind of sucked.

That was the moment Allura had enough. She stood with a grumble and left the Bridge in a sprint. Cira watched her leave and stood, running after her, "Allura!"

Cira turned the corner where Allura went. She had only been chasing her for a few ticks before they arrived where the Paladins and the intruder were. Shiro was able to show up and gain the upper hand and corner the intruder. Glaring at each other, the intruder suddenly straightened and lowered his weapon. Removing his hood, the mask seemed to evaporate—pffft! His ears lifted, popping out of the helmet in a flourish. Shiro lowered his hand, startled, "Ulaz?" His voice was quiet. He recognized the Galra.

And out of nowhere, Allura barreled, slamming Ulaz against the wall with a single hand, pinning him there with her strength alone. Cira came in fast behind her, her breath coming in pants, as was Allura's. "Allura!" Cira yells, moving towards her sister. She places her hand on her shoulder, but Allura pushes her back with her free hand, demanding, "Who are you?!"

"Stop!" Shiro leaps into action, "It's him! This is the Galra that set me free!"

Ulaz pays no mind to Allura and simply looks to Shiro, "You've come."