Voltron: Tales of the Valkyrie (Voltron Legendary Defender fanfic)

Divided 3

"No!" Keith charged. 

His older self stopped advancing.

Keith rammed his shoulder into the man's chest, sending both of them backward. They collapsed on stone.

The quintessence rippled and twisted into a form. Slender legs and arms attached to an hourglass frame. It had no mouth, voice echoing around the walls. "Quite pathetic, dear Keith."

Lance and the other paladins raised their weapons. "I'm guessing you're Quin."

"You guess correctly. Now leave us."

"No can do."

Quin sighed. "Always the same response. Oh well, I don't mind stretching my legs a little." She directed a burst of quintessence at the paladins. Star's personalities shied away while they fought.

The future Keith stood and ran for Star, knife in hand.

Present Keith blocked his path. "What are you doing?"

The older one grunted, "Saving the universe. Star's already lost."

Keith unsheathed his bayard and imaged a sword. "No she's not. Unless you kill her."

"It's difficult to explain, but believe me, better I do it than you." He moved to charge. Keith launched forward. The man sidestepped around him and ran for Star.

Keith ran and swung, catching the inside of the man's knees.

He growled, falling to the floor. As Keith stood above him, weapon trained on his back, the older one turned and pushed it aside with his elbow. He grabbed the blade and pushed Keith to the ground. Having ripped the sword from his grasp, the bayard clattered onto the stone.

The two struggled, rolling and punching closer to the pool of water.

Allura and Hunk took cover behind a chunk of rock Quin had created in her graveyard. Quin moved fluidly, changing the environment so the paladins couldn't find a clear path to Keith and Star. Lance fired from behind a tombstone until Quin changed the field and he knelt in a pond. At least, before the depth took affect and he fell into the water.

Pidge ducked by a tree before using her grappler to trap Quin. She pulled the being into Hunk's fire. 

Quin screamed and broke the bounds. The area filled with fog, impossible to see anything. Allura moved carefully, keeping Hunk in her peripheral. "I do not enjoy being toyed with."

Hunk jumped at every sound. "How are we even walking through all of this? Weren't we in a temple or something?"

Pidge came out of the fog. Hunk screamed. The green paladin rolled her eyes. "Calm down. We're still in the temple, but we have to get passed Quin if we're gonna be any help."

Lance squealed. The smoke billowed and collected into a larger version of Quin, white spheres marking its eyes. Lance dangled by his leg, caught in Quin's grip. He fired on its face, screaming all the while.

Keith ignored the screams and gun fire. It all scorched the walls either way. No concern to him or his future self. The older Keith had more strength and experience. Wrestling him proved challenging and nearly impossible.

They fell into the water. Older Keith pushed him under. "I can't kill you, but you need to let me do this."

Keith struggled, losing air. Future him loosened his grip in order to reach for a weapon. 

Keith took the opportunity. He launched out of the water and pushed his older self in face down. He couldn't hold him under forever, all of his body weight barely keeping the man in. He searched the gray rock for something. Anything.