Warmth (Klance Warmth series Book 1 of +4)

12: Fierce Hope

Shiro was crouching down on the floor of what he thought was the main control center of the Castle. A huge, rough hewn, glowing blue crystal hung from the ceiling like an organic chandelier. It was beautiful and, according to Coran, served as the Castle's main power source.

"Just a bit more," Coran said slowly, working with what looked like tweezers. A thin green wire was pinched between the tweezers Coran held in one hand while his free hand wound the cords together and sealed them. It took a lot of concentration because one wrong move would mean an unpleasant shock. Fortunately, Coran had only experienced one shock since he began and that proved to be surprisingly useful. It had allowed him to find the faulty wire on the second try.

Shiro kept still, holding the heavy piece of machinery on his shoulder. For the first time  in a long time, he was actually glad he had his Galra-made mechanical arm. Coran had not said a single word of disgust or given any indication that the mechanical arm bothered him. In fact, Coran had even complimented it and made use of it in a way that made Shiro feel useful and inclusive.

"Got it," Coran said proudly. "If you could slide that back into place now please."

"Sure thing," Shiro said, standing. His knees creaked a bit from holding that crouch for so long but otherwise he felt fine. He hefted the device back into its slot, sliding it along his shoulder until it clicked into place. "You need anything else?" he asked, half hoping there was more to  do.

"Plenty," Coran said with a smile. "Always will, I think. But right now, I think we've earned ourselves a break, hm? Come on. To the  kitchen we go."

Shiro's eyebrow flew up. "There's a kitchen here?"

He felt slightly dumb for asking that question. Of course there was a kitchen on board. This was a Castle after all. Where was the food  prepared if there wasn't a kitchen? Without pondering that thought too deeply, Shiro fell into step next to the advisor and rolled his  shoulders, pleased when he managed to get a few satisfying pops out.

Subsequently, he all but jumped out of his skin when a klaxon suddenly began blaring  throughout the Castle. Shiro reacted instantly to the deafening sound, falling into a battle pose balancing on the balls of his feet expecting an attack.

"Paladins! Report to the bridge immediately. The Galra have arrived at Arus," Allura's voice said over the speakers. She sounded anxious.

"What?" Coran gasped. "But that's not possible. I calculated the time it would take for them to get here myself."

"Everyone makes mistakes, Coran," Shiro said, placing his mechanical hand on the advisor's shoulder. "It's been 10,000 years after all. I would be surprised if the Galra hadn't found a way to increase their speed and  engine power."

Coran's shoulders slumped and his face looked distraught. "Oh dear, why didn't I think of that?"

"Don't dwell on it right now," Shiro said. "Let's just get to the bridge and figure out what's going on."

Coran visibly shook himself. "Right. Too much to do, too little time to do it. Let's go." And he was off. For such a stick-thin guy, Coran could  run.

Shiro arrived on the bridge a couple seconds after Coran and was promptly greeted by the familiar image of a Galra battlecruiser on the main view screen. It appeared to be slightly damaged, but not enough to be considered substantial. But something about those particular marks...

"Wait a second," he whispered. "Is that the same ship that chased us from Earth?" he asked louder.

Hunk, who was already on the bridge with Pidge, straightened and stared at the screen closely. "I-I don't think so?" he said, sounding unsure of himself.