Hero // Klance

Ch. 6 - Sendak

TW: Gun Violence

Lance looked at his phone, then at the students sitting politely in their desks.

"Okay, kids. Who wants to help me end school early?"

The bathroom had two stalls, tiled floors and walls all in the same shade of what might have once been mint green. The second stall was closed and locked, and a pair of adult feet were visible under the door.

Make things go wrong. Throw him off. He's more likely to make mistakes that way.

Keith knocked on the wall near the door.

"Sir? I'm going to have to ask you to use the faculty restrooms."

He heard rustling inside the stall, the sound of paper crumpling and folding and an old lock being unlocked.

The top of Keith's head barely reached the shoulders of the man that came out of the bathroom stall. Still, he scanned him and noticed several bulges in his clothing. Possibly armed, definitely hiding something.

"My apologies. Where are they located?"

"Down the hall, near the teacher's lounge." It was complete improvisation. He had no idea.

"I'm sorry, I'm a sub and I don't know my way around. Could you show me?"

It was a small school. If he could find the right place and avoid suspicion, he could get possibly get a trap set up-

"Sure."

He motioned for the man to walk beside him.

"No, I'll just follow."

Keith nodded and started walking, pretending to know where he was going. There was no doubt in his mind, this guy was GALRA, and he would definitely attack him at the first opportunity. He fingered the cache on his weapon nervously. They walked through the hallways until they reached one with no doors or windows.

Keith ducked and drew his weapon. A gunshot echoed, probably sending a bullet right through the area where his head was a second ago.

He was right. He sent his blade through the barrel of the pistol, rendering it useless.

Sendak tossed it aside and drew another, grinning.

"Damn it," Keith muttered. Of course it couldn't be that easy.

"Get out of the way, or I will kill you."

"I get that a lot, but last I checked I'm only dead on the inside."

He scowled and shot at him again. Keith stepped out of the way and attempted to get closer, but had to keep dodging shots.

If he could just keep getting closer, he would eventually have to reload...

Sure enough, Sendak pulled a cartridge from his pouch. Keith rushed in and barely dodged being clubbed in the head with the butt of an unloaded metal gun.

"You're quick, but it won't be enough this time."

Suddenly, the pistol exploded, sending Sendak reeling backwards, cursing in pain.

"The school is cleared," Lance reported, still pointing his arm forward.

"Good job."

It wasn't over yet though. Sendak was standing up, now weilding two handguns, one pointed at each of his attackers.

"How many of those do you have?" Lance asked.

"Enough."

The three stared at each other, the tension heavy in the air. If Sendak attacked one of them, the other would come, if one of them attacked, Sendak would attack the other.

Keith met Lance's determined gaze, and then the standstill broke.

Keith charged, Lance stepped out of harms way and aimed at Sendak's arm. Both missed. Keith attacked the weapon and turned to face the perpetrator, but was suddenly shoved to the side as a gunshot rang out.

From the floor, Keith watched Lance's hands fly to a spot of blood blossoming on his shirt as he stumbled.

Keith's vision grew hazy as he stood to attack again. He needed to finish this, he needed to help Lance, but he couldn't, not while Sendak was still standing.

His work was sloppy and he knew it. Still, he managed to back into a corner with a blade against Sendak's chest, and a gun aimed at Keith. It was another standstill, this one much deadlier.

"Vrepit Sa."

A shot sounded.

Sendak fell.

Lance smiled, gun still smoking, and then he collapsed.

Lance woke up to white light, then pain. As his vision adjusted, he could make out the figures of Keith and Allura, who had some significance, though he couldn't exactly figure out what. They were talking, but it took a moment for him to comprehend what they were saying.

"-in here for hours. They'll tell you when he wakes up, you know."

"I know."

"It wasn't your fault."

".... I know."

"Whazz going on?" Lance asked groggily.

"Blue!" Two voices exclaimed in unison.

"Woah. Why so much concern all of a sudden?"

"Red told me you saved his life."

The day's events came rushing back to him.

His head felt a lot heavier all of a sudden.

"Oh yeah. I forgot."

"What happened?"

"Well, Red brought a knife to a gunfight and I saved his butt."

"You came in at the last minute. I was doing fine."

"Whatever you say."

"Two minutes and 3 seconds," Allura said.

"What?"

"You were awake for two minutes and 3 seconds before you and Keith started arguing, and Pidge owes me five dollars." She grinned, and suddenly she looked completely different from the serious commander Lance had met on his first day. She looked like... a person.

A person who had noticed him looking at her.

Quickly, he looked away.

"So.. um.. what actually did happen after I blacked out?" Lance asked, pushing himself stiffly up to a sitting position. "I only remember up to shooting the GALRA guy."

"I neutralized Sendak, and Coalition members came to collect him. He's alive and in our captivity. I... I carried you out."

Lance felt his face heat up.

"Thanks," he managed, staring intently at the sheets covering his legs. They were white and felt like wool.

"We should let him rest," Allura told Keith, then turned to Lance. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot. When you feel up to it, Shiro said he wanted to see you too."

993 words. (Short one)