Heavens Flare

Distress call

"Food incoming!" Hunk called as keiths wolf went around letting everyone grab as many breakfast burritos as they need as it teleported from lion to lion.

"Aw what a good wolf... fella guy," hunk smiled softly as he sat with Lotor in the bunker.

"We really gotta come up with a name for this wolf," he told the others as everyone got their breakfast.

"Not gonna happen," Keith said flatly.

"Oh come on, I vote kosmo," hunk smiled brightly.

"I like kosmo," Allura agreed.

"Kosmo is cool," lance commented.

"Yea it's nice," Pidge hummed.

"We're not calling him kosmo," Keith groaned.

—

"We have to call him something!" Hunk whined.

Lance took two burritos as he handed one to Axca as she leaned against the controls as she took her breakfast.

"I figured when hes ready he'll tell me his name," Keith told them all with irritation in his voice.

"So kosmo, got it," lance shrugged and took a bite of the burrito.

"Mm hunk this is delicious man!" He hummed happily.

"Thank you lance! I made it by collecting fungus paste from the dung of the beetles on the last planet we stopped at to pick up supplies," hunk elaborated as lance paused with wide eyes.

"Don't... don't tell me the ingredients please, I don't wanna know what it is," lance gagged a little but ate anyways.

Pidge looked up seeing she was able to pick up a signal as she and shirt seemed surprised due to them hearing nothing for so long as it covered over her blue prints she was working on in her spare time for Lotors prosthetics.

"Got a signal," she swallowed her bite.

"Really? How?" Allura asked confused.

"I've been running a passive scan so I wouldn't give away our location, trying to look for any signs of communications," Pidge explained to them on the overhead. "I finally picked up something,"

"Well what is it?" Keith asked.

"I'm patching it through now,"

Everyone turned on their screens as they waited to see what would show up finally after having nothing for a while.

"Shh Shh, what's that noise?" Hunk asked narrowing his eyes. He pulled up a device in between them to see the shared screen.

"It sounds like some interference, I'll try to tune it out," pidge huffed a little. 

"No wait," krolia stopped her quickly. "Can you amplify that signal?"

Pidge agreed and did so as krolia watched and listen, focusing on the sound to hear what she thought it could be. Closing her eyes to listen better.

"Judging from the intermittent sound structure it's just deep space interference," pidge leaned back as shiro stood by to see what it could be.

"Most likely a radiation pulse from a nearby star,," she shrugged.

"No, that's just what it's suppose to sound like," krolia corrected.

"Listen to the sounds in between the pulses, there's a unique pattern, it's the blades, before they were unified we could use this crude way of communication with each other," she explained as they started to be able to hear the sound patterns that weren't normal.

"Not many blades know this code, it must be a senior member," she narrowed her eyes tightening her grip on keiths seat.

"Kolivan?" Her son asked hopeful.

"Possibly," she nodded.

"What does it say?" Shiro asked.

"It's a distress signal, whoever is sending it is in trouble," krolia recognize the pattern, there were few but she could figure out which ones were which.

"It looks like it's coming from this sector," Pidge showed them all on a shared screen in front on the map.

"Do we know anything from that section of space?" Shiro asked next to her.

Lotor perked up as hunk had the map up on his own small hologram for the two of them. Hunk looked at him confused but Lotor obvious knew what it was. They looked at each other as Lotor couldn't form words afraid of everyone speaking to him again, he looked down quickly shaking his head.

"Without the castle of lions, we have no available information," coran cut in as hunk sighed a little being stuck with the galra.

"Are we risking it then?" Lance asked quietly.

"We're going to have too," krolia nodded.

"That's a pretty severe detour from earth," hunk gulped.

"If Kolivan is there then maybe there will be more blades, we need all the help we can get to reach earth," Keith told them seriously.

"What about lotor? He's going to be wanted by many galra," allura pipped in and almost everyone's stomach dropped at the name and statement.

"Maybe they can take him in for a trial," she offered.

Lotors eyes widen as he clenched his fist, he covered his mouth a little as he focused on breathing so he didn't show his panic.

"That's not happening, they're not taking him," Lance defended in a dark tone.

"He's a criminal," romelle rolled her eyes.

"And we'll deal with that when we get to earth, the blades won't fucking touch him," he barked at them as the Alteans gasped a little.

"We're also wanted, you turn Lotor in and you're going to lose your Paladin," axca sighed from the lion. "Lotors going no where,"

"Fine, but he better be restrained," Allura glared a little.

Hunk looked at Lotor hearing nothing from the man, his eyes were closed as he had his one hand across his chest with his head tilted up.

"Please do tell Lance I say thank you, I appreciate that he still.. cares," Lotor whispered as hunk frowned a little, he felt sad for the warrior that's fought his way through life until that strength was taken from him.

"Your lucky he cares, but don't confuse his compassion though, he's always had a kind heart," hunk let out a deep breath remembering how Lance always had his back, in every fight, on earth and in space.

"I know, its never going to be the same," Lotor nodded.

"No it's not," hunk agreed.

"But your stuck with me, and out of everyone at least I'm going to make sure you don't die," he smiled gently hoping to get Lotor to show a little more emotion than remorse and grief.

"I'm going to bed," Lotor slid down in the bed and rolled to his side so his full arm was under him and his amputation was above. Keeping his back to hunk without another word.

"Stay down here while we're gone, you don't have anyone's trust but if you try to escape they will kill you," hunk stood up to go back up to the controls. Lotor didn't respond but it was enough to be left alone.

He touched his torn shirt as his heart ached, everything hurt, his body, his wounds, his soul, his chest aches like it was about to break from the weight that settled sickenly in his gut. He missed Lance so much, he missed his love, the first person in his life that didn't want anything from him in return for everything he was given and taken. He missed him. He knew he was never going to earn that love again... and that's what hurt him the most, he'd get rid of his remaining limbs if that meant he got Lance back...