Becoming Human (A Voltron Fanfic)

Optimism

Alone again. Korrin knew the feeling all too well. Her time with the paladins had been nothing short of adventurous. The necklace that hung on her chest allowed her to connect with the memories she had made with all of them. She was finally able to attach feelings to those experiences: fear and happiness, joy and anger. She furrowed her brow at the thought of feeling angry. While all the other emotions felt new, anger didn't feel like a stranger to her. But she couldn't figure out why.

That would be a question that would wait to be answered. She punched in the coordinates for the nearest system and put the pod into full speed. Thankfully, Pidge had the pod modified so she could go long distances in a matter of minutes. It wasn't quite the same as jumping through a wormhole but it did the trick. Soon, Korrin found herself on a small planet by the name of Jatten.

Jatten was small, but a busy trade hub. There were ships from all over the galaxy that constantly came and went. The people were diverse as well as their goods. Korrin explored the crowded, narrow streets of the bustling city, unsure of where to go. She overheard numerous conversations of people trading their items with the local vendors. The street became really crowded and Korrin struggled getting through. She was bumping shoulders with nearly everyone, trying not to push. She suddenly tripped, stumbling onto the ground as people inconsiderately walked over her. After several failed attempts, she finally found her footing and was able to stand upright only to be pulled out of the crowd.

"Hey!" she exclaimed as a someone firmly gripped her arm. "Let go!" She wrenched her arm out of their grasp and turned to look at the person. He was a tall Jattenese with their characteristically long limbs, large eyes, and antennae on top of their head. It had been a while since Korrin had seen any; most of the ones she had seen were on the pirate ships she had once looted.

"You must be new around here," he said, in a gravelly tone. "You nearly got yourself killed."

Korrin dusted the dirt off her clothes. "I admit I haven't been here before. Thank you for pulling me out of there."

"I didn't do it for you," the Jattenese said, his eyes flicking over her from head to toe.

Korrin gave him a confused look, suddenly a little uncomfortable with his presence. "What do you want then?"

The Jattenese smirked and closed the distance between the two of them and pointed a long finger at Korrin's necklace. "That's quite a trinket you got there."

Korrin instinctively clutched it in her hand, holding it close to her chest. "It's not for sale if that's what you mean," she snapped.

The Jattenese chuckled mischievously. "There's more to that than meets the eye...and I think you know that. I can help."

"For what price?" Korrin frowned, her guard up.

"I just simply want to know more about it," he put his hands up innocently. "I'm a scientist and I've seen a lot of things go in and out of here. Knowledge is all I'm after." He started to walk away. "You coming?"

With one glance over her shoulder, Korrin followed the strange Jattenese.

"By the way," he said, "The name's Slang."

"You sound more like a street hustler than a scientist..."

He shrugged. "I'm full of surprises. This way." They turned left down a near empty street. It was quiet and only the sound of their footsteps could be heard.

"It's deserted back here compared to before."

"That's because this week is the week when we have the most traffic. Everyone from everywhere comes here for rare items and...information."