Klance: Truth or Dare

Part 17

The room went quiet for a moment, everyone frozen to their spot, unsure of what to do next. The only one still moving was Lance, struggling against his captors, groaning at the dark spots dancing before his eyes. Some part of his spinning mind realised he needed to get to the healing pod soon, or there would be permanent damage. A human only had so much blood in their body, of course, and his was slowly seeping out of him, dripping over his armour unto a growing puddle on the floor below him. 

The paladins stood still, desperation to do sómething, to help in their eyes, but held back by the fear of endangering their teammates. It was too dangerous, they could kill Lance and Keith before Shiro had raised his blade to strike. 

Condo limped forward, using his blade as a walking stick, and adressed his soldiers. 

"You idiots!" he shouted, all cool reason gone from his voice, replaced by a seething, uncontrolable rage, and carrying the look of a crazy person. "We outnumber them. Fight!"

This seemed to activate the soldiers, a few of them pullig Lance further back and the others adapting a fighting stance, ready for the paladins. At that same moment, Keith gave a grunt and pushed himself up, catching the Galra holding him off guard and managing to throw one off. The other attemped to get back control over him, but a loud bang made him stumble a few paces back, looking from his chest where the armor had been blasted away, to Hunk's still smoking blaster, and the wide eyes behind it. And with that, the battle started once more. 

Shiro threw Keith his bayard, which the boy immediately used to slice at the Galra behind him, making him yelp in pain as blood poured from his side. The boy fought with a ferocity never seen before, more violent and unforgiving than ever, which was saying something. Keith's bared teeth let through literal growls, near feral noises as he slices and cut and hit every enemy in sight. Because how dare they?  How dare they hurt his Lance? He had promised to hurt them for this this, and he would. 

The other paladins followed him, vorming a v-formation behind him, barely keeping up with his pace. In front of him, he saw a flash of panic in Condo's eyes, and he quickly took Lance over from his soldiers, who stormed forward to join the fight imeediately. A quick glance told him Lnace was still alive and conscious, but unable to stand on his own feet, making him hang awkwardly in the commanders arms. A trickle of blood flowed from the corner of his mouth, making Keith's heart clench in desperation. Lance wasn't gonna die here. He couldn't, Keith wouldn't be able to live if Lance died because of him. Because he wasn't able to save him in time. 

He heard Pidge groan behind him, but didn't look around nor stop. He thrust his blade forward, right into the leg of a soldier, and ran past him. He barely heard the soft clang as Shiro knocked out the last soldier, only one enemy left. The red paladin slid to a half just inches from the two, clenching his teeth and holding his blade high, ready to strike. But he couldn't risk Lance. Not again. 

Condo laughed a high, maniacal laugh, which echoed off the metal walls of the room. He pulled Lance back a few paces, trying to put some distance between himself and Keith's awfully sharp blade. Keith glanced behind himself as he felt Shiro close, and saw Hunk support a minorly injured Pidge, both of them looking at Lance with worry. 

"Let him go," sounded Shiro's surprisingly steady voice, a little out of breath due to the previous fight, and balling his glowing hand into a fist. "Now!" screamed Keith, when the man didn't obey. But Condo barely seemed to hear them. He just looked at Lance, whose eyes fluttered open and closed, his face paler than even Keith's, his lips pale and eyes glaced over. The commander seemed to find this funny. He trailed his free hand over Lance's chest, smudging the trails of blood and then moved his hand to grab Lance's chin and pull it up to his face. "No one ignores me and gets away with it," he growled. But what he did next, no one could have predicted. 

The man pulled out his dagger and swung it into Lance's side, a soft, flesh-piercing stab seemed to fill the entire room, booming into Keith's ears. The boy wished himself to be deaf, for he would rather die than hear that sound again. Lance's half-lidded eyes widened once more, but no sound escaped his lips. So when Condo pulled out the blade, a cascade of blood following it, and let go of the boy, Lance slumped to the ground, unable to keep himself up. Condo's laugh ringed louder than ever, until a second stab was heard, and the man looked down to find a long, red-lined sword sticking out beneath his ribs. And when he looked up, he found violet irises flooded with tears and still bared teeth. Commander Condo let out one last 'oh', and then fell to the ground beside his victim, the blade still burried in his body. 

Keith fell to his knees, which immediately stained red in the pool of blood puddled beneath the boy. His tremblind arms pulled the non-responding body close to himself, hoping to save him, needing to protect him. Lance couldn't be... No, that beautiful, lively, incredible being couldn't be gone. But even in his desperation, Keith noticed the clear lack of a heartbeat in Lance's chest. The red paladin heard Shiro behind him, asking him something, and then yelling at Pidge and Hunk that they needed to get back, back to the castle, back to safety. He didn't dare loosen his grip on the boy, afraid to see that pale face once more, but now with dead eyes, still open and staring at him. Afraid to see how Lance's chest didn't go up and down with every breath. Afraid to see whether his lips still carried that characteristic grin, or if there was no more humor anymore, now that he was dead. 

Keith didn't feel anything anymore, not even when Shiro pulled the body out of his arms, not when Hunk pulled him along through the long corridors, back to the lions. He barely noticed himself piloting the red lion back to the castle. Everything seemed to blur together, punctuated by the flashed of how Lance had looked, how that still body had felt against him. He didn't hear anything, until Shiro ran to him in his lion's bay. 

"The healing pod has detected a heartbeat."

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Hey y'all. 

I hope you don't hate me yet for literally being the worst updater ever, and I hope you'll believe me when I say my life is a very hectic place and I tend to forget about at least a few things at a time. I also hope you guys enjoyed this chapter as much as I did writing it. :) Comments and votes are still very welcome, they motivate me to write more and help other people find my stories too!

I wish you all a wonderful day.

Love, 

Me,