Chill (Klance Warmth series Book 2 of +4)

23: Fear

"Pidge! What's your ETA to the core?"

"Not sure, Shiro," the green paladin said.

"Just a dobosh or two more," Allura supplied from the Castleship.

"No Galra on the radar?" Pidge asked.

"I... Radar?"

"BLIP Tech," Pidge clarified with an eye roll. "Are there any Galra on the BLIP Tech?"

"Oh. No," Allura said. "None that I can see."

"This just doesn't make any sense," Shiro said. "How on Earth did the Galra know we were coming here?"

"Rolo," Hunk said, joining the group's communications. "I bet those losers told Zarkon we were coming."

"As much as I hate to admit it," Pidge said, edging her way down the Balmera's tunnels, "I think I have to agree with Hunk."

"Why is that a bad thing?" Hunk asked.

"Because I was halfway hoping those guys weren't that bad," Pidge said.

"Is this you talking or your technophilia talking?"

"Are they really separate things?" Pidge teased.

"Touché," Hunk said after a moment.

Pidge  snickered, then fell abruptly silent when she heard soft footsteps up  ahead. "Hey, Katie," she whispered urgently, drawing her bayard and  activating it just in case. "You said there weren't any Galra ahead,  right?"

"Yes," the princess confirmed. "Why?"

"'Cause  someone's in front of me and if it isn't a Galra, I need to know what  it is," Pidge said, pressing herself against the Balmera's earthen wall.  "Like ASAP."

"Alright, hold on."

The footsteps  continued to get closer. Pidge couldn't tell from the sound what or who  they belonged to, but she somehow knew it wasn't one of her team, and  she trusted Allura's declaration that it wasn't a Galra. Could it be a  Balmeran, maybe?

Hesitantly, Pidge held her bayard at the ready  and waited until the footsteps were close enough that she could attack  if she had to. There were multiple people, but they didn't have the  distinctive metallic clank of Galran sentries. They also sounded lighter  than an adult's footfalls. Or at least they did from what Pidge could  remember. What if they were kids? Did Balmerans have kids? Or did they  just spring up out of holes in the ground?

"Pidge! Don't attack!" Allura cried loud enough to make the green paladin wince. "They're Balmerans."

Huh.  Well, what do you know? Pidge lowered her weapon and stepped around the  corner and was surprised to see honest-to-God rock people. Considering  they were short and skittish, Pidge assumed they were children. Three of  them to be exact. She hesitantly raised the hand that wasn't holding  her bayard and waved.

"Hey," she said. "Don't be afraid."

The  leader of the group was holding a lantern with a tiny flame that cast  meager shadows on the Balmera's walls. It stepped forward slowly, its  yellow eyes gleaming in open wonder. As far as Pidge knew, she could be  the first human the Balmeran child had ever seen.

"We need to get you to the surface," Pidge said. "Can you spread the word?"

"Leave?" the Balmeran asked. It sounded female. "These ones have never seen the surface before."