Ocean Blue

Untitled Part 30

(If Dreamworks won't give me purple Keith, then I'll do it myself)

Pidge paced the deck. "There's got to be a reason for this. An explanation. At least a clue! Are you sick?"

Keith shifted uncomfortably, and Shiro noticed that he was positioned in a way that hid the most purple possible. "I don't think so."

"I hope you enjoyed the purple sunset," Allura breathed, "Do you think this is Haggar's magic?!"

Shiro frowned. "Could be. How do we reverse it?"

Hunk raised a hand. "Lotor knows a lot. Maybe we could ask him?"

Allura shook her head. "That's a three-month journey! Does Keith have that kind of time?!"

"You make it sound like he's dying," Lance stated, "Relax. He's just turning purple. It's not going to kill him."

Pidge shrugged. "You don't know that, though. That's the thing. We don't know what this is. It might just turn his skin purple, or it might make him keel over and die one day. We just don't know! It's a risk to wait until we can get to Lotor's island again, but it might be our only option."

Shiro cleared his throat. "Lance? Is there anything you know of?"

"Well, sure, there's plants underwater that will turn you purple- Keith, did you eat any weird plants while you were looking for me?"

"No."

"Well, then."

"And you didn't see it earlier?" Pidge questioned.

"I mean- I think it started on my chest. But I just assumed it was bruising and didn't really think anything of it until it started to spread."

Pidge sighed. "Of course. Did anything happen earlier that you noticed?"

"I ran into Haggar that one time, but that's it."

Allura's fists clenched. "That's it. This is clearly Haggar's work."

"Right, so, Lotor?" Hunk suggested.

"Lotor," Allura agreed, "And then, once he's reversed whatever it is that Haggar has done, we'll track her down and hit her with as much lightning as possible."

Shiro held up the map. "Aren't you forgetting something?"

"What? Oh, yes, we'll find and destroy the amulet. Then we'll find and destroy Haggar. Happy?"

"Yes."

Pidge raised a hand. "Uh, guys? We're still missing a key point! What if this is deadly?! What if we can't make it to Lotor in time?!"

Keith paled, and the purple blotches turned a pale lavender. "That won't happen," he said confidently, more confidently than he felt, "If Haggar wanted me dead, she would've killed me while I was on her ship." He eyed his purple-hued hands. "I think."

Xxx

Shiro pulled Keith over after he refused dinner. "Keith? Are you okay?"

Keith winced. "My mouth is kind of sore, and my canines are kind of loose. I already lost them, though, Shiro. Am I just not eating right? I know that old people lose their teeth- am I just losing them sooner?"

Shiro frowned. "I don't know." He squinted at Keith's head. "Um- it looks like you've got a couple of lumps on your head."

Keith's hand flew to his head. "Huh. Must have hit my head on something."

Xxx

Keith bit into a fish that Shiro had caught. Hunk looked appalled. "You realize that you're supposed to cook that, right?"

Keith shrugged and opened his jaws. His canines had come out into the fish. He yelped, putting his hand to his mouth as the gums began to bleed. He winced. "Sorry- I've just got this weird craving for raw fish."

"Yeah, that's weird, man. Also- um- you've got some weird lumps on your head."

Keith touched the odd lumps that didn't hurt and seemed to be getting bigger rather than shrinking. They were... fuzzy when he touched them. He shuddered. His ears had been flattening into his head, and he didn't like it.

Hunk grabbed his hand. "Um... Keith... your nails..."

"I know. They're growing at a ridiculous rate. I keep cutting them, but they grow back."

"The purple... It's covering an awful lot."

Keith sighed, rubbing his nose, which was one of the few pale blotches of skin that were left on his face. "I know. And I- I don't know, my eyesight- I can't see very far, and the colors are getting dimmer."

Hunk frowned. "Do you think that you need glasses?"

Keith shrugged. "Might be a side effect of whatever this is. I'm sure that we can fix it." He squinted at the opposite side of the deck, where Shiro was a blur. "I hope so, anyway."

Xxx

Keith felt over his newly growing canines with his tongue. They were sharp, like a carnivore's teeth. The lumps on his head had grown into fully-functional ears that were covered in a purplish-black fur. There wasn't a sector of his skin that wasn't that purple color, and his craving for fish intensified.

"We're here!"

Keith pulled a hood up to hide his face and ears. Everything got a little less distinct as his hearing was muffled, and he hissed. He didn't like this. He went down the gangplank and all of them made their way towards Lotor's cave. There were no guardians, and when they reached the cave, Keith realized why. All four guardians were eating lunch, Lotor with them.

"Ah. This is awkward."

"You eat?!"

"Of course. I am human." His eyes fixed on Keith. "Although I sense that one of us here isn't."

Keith felt his hair rise. "I'm human! Haggar got me with some kind of- some kind of transformation spell!"

Lotor shook his head. "I'm afraid she hit you with a spell that reverts you to your natural state."

"What are you talking about?!"

"You're an Illimu, Keith."

"I'm not! I've got a brand, but I'm not an Illimu! I'm human!"

Lotor shook his head. "I'm sorry, Keith. But you're dead."

"Wh-what?!"

Lotor's eerie eyes locked onto him. "Keith Kogane was kidnapped by pirates at age twelve. He was branded with the pirate mark, a sign among the Illimu that he was to be consumed. One day he was consumed, and the animal that consumed him took on his shape and his memories, save the memory of the consumption. The animal lived in his shape, continuing on as if human without even knowing that it was all a lie. I'm sorry, Keith. But you died. Seven years ago. You're not human. And you never will be."