Chapter Text
In the magical ponyland of Equestria, you may have heard the story of the legendary Elements of Harmony. Six of the most powerful artefacts in Equestria, each represented by ponies of Honesty, Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Loyalty and Magic. Together, they protected their lands from many foes and became the best of friends, even their dragon friend was of significant help. Using their power of the Magic of Friendship, Harmony continued to reign over their land.
However, after triumphing one of their hardest battles yet against the revived evil King Sombra, plus a near chance at losing their elements and their place of origin; the Tree of Harmony, their leader Princess Twilight Sparkle found a strange book within her castle. It spoke of the legend of five mighty Lions that saved the entire universe from evil, as well as a strange prophecy. Weeks and weeks of research passed and she was about to lose hope of finding more answers, when the six ponies, plus their dragon friend, were called by the magical Cutie Mark Map to a place all the way on the edge of Equestria.
What they found was an old abandoned village, and a strange cave. Within it, a large glowing crystalline wall. When they finally managed to break it, it exploded and dragged them into a light vortex that whisked them thousands of galaxies away into space.
Luckily, seven other heroes were passing by where they landed in space and managed to save them. The Equestrians woke up on a spaceship and their saviors turned out to be seven two-legged creatures which only Twilight recognized as humans, besides the two who had pointed ears and strange marks on their faces, they were all alien to them.
The five humans were the legendary Paladins of Voltron; Hunk, Pidge, Lance, Keith, and Shiro. Pilots of mighty semi-sentient Lions that when combined form the mighty Voltron robot. The other two were Alteans; Coran and Princess Allura, the very last from their planet that was destroyed along with their people ten thousand years ago. The five Paladins had met the two Alteans in their castle/ship when the two were in stasis. Since then, the seven had been fighting back against the Galra and trying to end the war, which led them to their mission of finding the headquarters of a rebel Galra operation known as the Blade of Marmora.
After some more insight on the war, the ponies and young drake had offered to help the Paladins end the Emperor Zarkon's reign and stop the war, to which they reluctantly agreed. Over the next two-to-three days, the Equestrians, Paladins and Alteans had forged a quick friendship, forming bonds with each other that none had expected. Almost like they'd known each other their whole lives.
And finally, after collecting several elements, they were ready to face Zarkon on his home ground, his great commandship. However, things didn't go as planned. Zarkon's witch, Haggar, performed a spell that stripped Voltron of power, and worse, Zarkon himself appeared on the battlefield in a powerful mech suit, the size of Voltron itself!
It seemed like all hope was lost... until the Mane 6 and Spike arrived on the scene. The Equestrians filled the Paladins and Altean Princess with new hope, reminding them of their courage, bravery and special traits that always led them to victory. Even, one by one, the six ponies admitted moments that built a connection to each of them, which filled the hearts of the Paladins and Altean Princess with new determination.
In the rejuvenation of their hope, the Paladins and Allura were taken to a strange nether space, which was the place where the souls of every being in the universe met. And where the five Paladins and Altean Princess fulfilled the prophecy by connecting with the souls of the Mane 6.
In an unforeseen turn of events, each of the twelve received power ups. The ponies transformed into anthro-forms where they still maintain their tails, wings, horns and pony ears as well as rainbowfied form from when they battled Tirek. The young drake gained a bigger and more buff appearance as well as scales that had an orange tint and were more defined than before. For the Paladins, most surprisingly had received pony features such as pony ears, wings and horns as well, plus double streaks of color in their hair.
With their new found magic, the heroes defeated Zarkon with a magical rainbow beam that completely destroyed the mech and Emperor with it... or so they thought. However, one thing was left amiss. When the heroes escaped in the Altean castle after battle, not all made it. Shiro was discovered to be missing. Not dead, not injured, just... gone. His Lion lost its pilot leaving all to wonder where he'd gone, and what new mysteries laid in store for them next...
(Rock Music)
Voltron,
Harmony Defender!
Voltron,
Harmony Defender!
Voltron,
Harmony Defender!
Voltron,
Harmony Defender!
I never knew what friendship could be,
(Voltron)
Until you shared its magic with me.
(Voltron)
When I felt all alone,
(Voltron)
You were here all along
(Voltron)
You've been honest,
(Oh-oh-oh)
(Voltron)
And so kind
(Oh-oh-oh-oh)
(Voltron)
Your laughter,
(Oh-oh-oh)
(Voltron)
Has brought me a smile
(Oh-oh-oh-oh)
(Voltron)
Your generous,
(Oh-oh-oh)
(Voltron)
And loyal heart
(Oh-oh-oh-oh)
(Voltron)
Has ignited,
(Oh-oh-oh)
(Voltron)
A magic spark!
(Oh-oh-oh-oh)
Voltron
Harmony Defender,
And the Elements
Twelve hearts together,
As the best of friends!
As the best of...
As the best of...
As the best of
Friends!
RubyRainbow118
presents...
Voltron Harmony Defender
Volume II: New Unity!
In a familiar part of space, the weeks-old graveyard remained still and silent. Broken pieces of Galra jets and cruisers flew around lifeless. One ship, however, cut through the debris, a trail of cyan light following it. Like a beacon of light in the dreadful gloom. The robotic Lion moved around space, stars reflecting against its red armor, cyan highlights glowing around the outlines and yellow eyes that scanned the area.
From within the mighty beast, its pilot's dark indigo-purple eyes stared intently at the console scanner before him. They belonged to a lean nineteen year old human boy with pale skin. Jet black hair styled in a mullet with long bangs falling over his face, one with a crimson and rose red double streak of color. He was wearing sleek white armor that had some red designs and accents, most prominent on the chest in a "V"-shaped emblem. A jetpack and boosters were installed on his back and ankles, plus dark grey under suit and cyan lines highlighting it. This was Keith, the Paladin of the Red Voltron Lion. A half-Galran who was also the second embodiment of the Element of Loyalty. He was mostly known for his broody and impulsive nature, traits that sadly came from his many years as an orphan.
The Paladin continued to stare at the screen as it beeped in the same constant rhythm. Beep—beep—beep.
After a few moments, Keith leaned back and sighed deeply. His eyes fell and the same memories that had kept him going now felt like a knife twisting in his chest. His mind was flooded with memories of what had occurred two months ago...
Their twelve souls entwining in the nether space—The magic rainbow beam that surged of light—The sword of prismatic fire that stabbed into Zarkon—The screams of Black Paladin—The explosion of blinding light—Himself running to the incapacitated Black Lion. His heart thundering with anticipation, like the drums of war before battle. "Shiro!" His constant cry. Then when he finally entered the cockpit... nothing. Just an empty seat of where there used to be a pilot.
Keith opened his eyes once more, his eyes darkened like a fire that was starting to dim. He spoke to the Altean on the other side of the comms, his voice low and heavy with the weight of hidden grief. "There's nothin' out here, Coran."
"I'm sorry, Keith," Coran apologized sympathetically, to no effect.
"I'm comin' home, " Keith said in finality, piloting the Lion away reluctantly. He felt the pit in stomach grow bigger. Two months since the battle against Zarkon—Two months since he'd lost the only family he had left—Two months since the one he once called brother disappeared—The only one to ever give him a chance, gone.
Each day the possibility of never seeing him grew bigger, like a dark cloud that wanted to swallow all light in the world. But he kept a single thread of hope that maybe, just maybe, fate could lead him back and hopefully it wasn't too late.
On a remote ice giant in space sat the great Altean Castle, home to the Lions of Voltron and its pilots. A fortress of shining metal and cyan light. The last structure of Altea still radiating quintessence after ten millennia. The ancient ship's engines hum softly, filling the empty space of the bare planet.
Within the majestic castle were its inhabitants. Four, one male and three female, in particular were walking in the crystal illuminated hallway.
One was a humanoid mare, the leader of her group of fellow Equestrians who were in the Voltron Harmony team. The anthro-alicorn was a slender eighteen year old girl with a lavender coat. A straight mane and tail with a deep indigo base and a triple streak of violet, raspberry and sandy yellow running vertically through both. Styled with most running down her back with straight-cut front bangs and two more long ones framing the sides of her face. On her head were a pair of fluffy pony ears and a beautiful unicorn horn stuck out from her bangs. Two wings of violet tipped feathers sprouted from her back, ruffling slightly as they flexed behind her. Her bright amethyst eyes shimmered with an unending hunger for knowledge and a mark of a six-pointed magenta star with five white smaller stars surrounding it was on her left cheek. She wore a magenta-pink sleeveless dress that reached her mid-thighs with purple running central at both front and back. A gold belt hangs snug at her waist with a teal crystal buckle in shape of 'V' emblem. Long navy blue arm-warmers covered her arms fully to the wrists. On her lower body she wore dark indigo tights with tight dark violet knee-high boots with hot-pink soles. From her neck was the magenta six-pointed star gem of her Element of Harmony hung by a thin black lace. She was Twilight Sparkle, a former unicorn and gifted prodigy at magic, driven by a deep love of books and an unrelenting pursuit of knowledge, later recognized as the Element of Magic—and ascend as the Princess of Friendship. While she was the pony most used to her humanoid form, she was noticeably different than when she was in the mirror world. Her head wasn't as large and was proportioned to the rest of her human body.
The second was another humanized mare. She was a slim, eighteen year old anthro-pegasus with a pastel yellow coat. A soft pink slightly curled mane and tail that had streaks of mulberry, light rose, paled turquoise and opal, styled with a long grown out front bang that curled gently over her face and the rest in a loose big braid that fell over her shoulder. Two wings were folded neatly behind her back and her two pony ears flapped absent-mindedly as she walked. Her kind aqua eyes hid shyly partly behind her hair and on her left cheek was a mark of three butterflies with pink wings and blue bodies. She wore an oversized forest green knitted sweater(cardigan) with loose sleeves with tight wrists, a tight waistline end, a wide v-neckline and two low buttons. She had a dress underneath with a plain white top and pink skirt with a design of three white butterflies on the left side. On her feet were a pair of fuchsia colored slippers with long laces that wrapped around her legs up to her knees like ballet shoes, mini-flowers in white adorning the laces. She had a tiny blue 'V'-shaped broach at the center collar of her dress top and a necklace with a thin pink lace and the pink butterfly-shaped gem of her Element. She was Fluttershy, and like her name she was a shy pony with a deep love for helping animals that by coincidence made her the Element of Kindness.
The third was the oldest anthro-mare of the group at twenty-two years with a strong build and a coat of light gamboge. A blonde mane and tail with streaks of brilliant amaranth and pale rose, both styled in thick low ponytails with green hair ties at the ends, plus slightly curled forelocks that fell over her calm emerald eyes. She was also quite muscular on her arms symbolizing her hardworking character. Her signature brown Stetson hat sat proudly atop her head, pony ears poking out from the sides, and the orange apple-shaped gem from her Element was buckled at the center of the hat. Her cutie-mark of three identical red apples sat on her left cheek. The anthro-pony dressed in a kind of modern country style. She wore a bright orange cropped jacket with ruffled sleeves rolled up to her mid-forearms to reveal brown under color, a propped up collar and some fringe on the waistline hem. She also had a plain white shirt, blue jeans and brown knee-high leather boots with embroidery of green leaves and apples around it. She also had a black waist belt with her rope clipped to the side and a red 'V'-shaped buckle. She was Applejack, proud apple farmer from her home at Sweet Apple Acres and Element of Honesty.
Last, was a lean, older man with a light skin tone. His orange hair was short, slicked back, with a small curled tuft dangled on his forehead and on his face a bushy mustache of the same hair color. He has pointed ears and small blue sickle-shaped marks under his wise yet optimistic diamond-shaped blue eyes with purple pupils. He wears a distinguished dark blue jacket accented with light blue shoulders and high neck collar, white front center, and yellow design on the waist sides. His sleeves are tucked into his white gloves accented with a lighter blue. Underneath his jacket, he wears a dark gray shirt. Dark gray pants covered his legs, padded at his knees then tucked into his dark blue boots that reach his shins and are accented with yellow on the ankle collar. He was Coran, one of the only last surviving and the Altean Princess' royal advisor.
The four approached their destination, shoes clicking softly against the floor. The double doors slid open with a smooth shift. Inside was a room filled with color. Several bundles of fabric were stacked neatly by a wall, looms of thread lined the shelves and sketches of different garments were plastered all over the walls. A rack of uncompleted articles was pushed to a corner and a desk with a sleek sewing machine sat beside a full length mirror. On the table were a quartet of different colored mice, two sleeping on each other while two others explored the inside of a box with assorted beads. At the very center of the room were two other women.
One, was a nineteen year old anthro-unicorn with an hourglass figure and an ivory coat. A beautifully curled royal purple mane and tail with streaks of cerulean, pink and pale yellow; her mane styled with the side parts tied back into a half bun that ended in beautiful curls down her back, with one long curled bang framing her face. Her brilliant deep azure eyes had a cat's sharpness for finesse and a tailor's eye for color with light blue eye shadow and long delicate eyelashes. A pair of two fluffy ears emerged from her head and a sharp ivory horn sat on her forehead. Her cutie mark was that of three blue identical diamonds glistening like real gemstones on her cheek. She wore a plain purple dress with a full turtle neck, long tight sleeves and mini-skirt along with dark grey tights. She wore a white loose high-crop over shirt with a wide neckline and flowing sleeves that reached just above her wrists. On her feet were white, purple heeled ankle boots with two diagonal squares on the forefoot parts. A thin blue ribbon was tied around her waist with flaps falling at her left and gold bracelets adorning her wrists. The royal purple diamond-shaped gem of her Element with a gold outline held as a broach at her neck. She was Rarity, a famed clothes designer with a sophisticated accent that matched her royal-like personality, ironically her being the Element of Generosity.
The second was an eighteen year old humanoid woman with warm-brown skin. Curly and voluminous silver-white hair with only the two front bangs tied back while two side parts fell over her shoulders. Meanwhile the majority of it flowed down her back to her hips and a double streak of magenta-purple and cherry blossom pink wove delicately down the back and left side bang of her hair. On her head was a thin gold circlet with a v-curve at the bottom with a teal embellishment filling the gap. From her back, two majestic wings were spread with feathers pink-tipped at the edges. On her cheekbones were a pair of pink sickle-shaped marks and purple earrings dangled from her pointed ears with no drawn attachments. Her two diamond shaped blue eyes sparked like crystal and lavender pupils currently twinkled with slight displeasure. She was currently being fitted into a gorgeous dress with a magenta pink top, white slightly puffed shoulders and light blue sleeves. The pure white skirt flared out partially at the bottom to the ground, with gold V-lining at her waist and soft pink at the hem. She wore a gold bracelet on each wrist and a blue cape lined with gold snugly wrapped around her shoulders and flowed behind her back, reaching her calves in a split, winged design. The inside of her cape was light blue and lined with white, and the collar of her cape was decorated with a diamond jade mark on each side. On her feet were tight knee-high white boots with gold ankles. She was Princess Allura, the only other surviving Altean and daughter to the late King Alfor, most recently made second embodiment to the Element of Magic.
The unicorn stylist was currently finishing the seam of Allura's dress, crouching down as the needle weaved delicately through the fabric. The Altean Princess stood at the center, clearly uncomfortable staying in the position with her arms spread to the sides as Rarity worked. The other four entered the Altean's room and Allura's face softened slightly.
"Hello everyone. Sorry, but I'm a bit occupied at the moment," she said with mild annoyance.
"We can see that," Twilight chuckled, much to Allura's dismay. The unicorn finally looked up from her work with a smile.
"Oh, I didn't hear you come in," Rarity greeted before turning back to the needle, her brows furrowed in concentration. "Don't worry, I'm almost finished... There. Perfect!" She cheered, cutting the thread with a pair of shears. The Altean Princess sighed in relief at the final click of the blade, her arms falling to her sides, shoulders slumped.
"Wow, Rarity. It's beautiful," Fluttershy complemented, admiring the stunning but not over-the-top gown. Even the earth pony let out a low whistle.
"Definitely some'v yer best work." The unicorn shrugged in response, pinning the needle to a soft cushion on the desk with an array of others.
"Sorry about keeping you in such an uncomfortable position for so long, darling," she said, putting a hand on the Altean Princess' shoulder.
Allura's cheeks flustered in embarrassment. "No, Rares, it's fine, really. It's just been a while since I've had to look presentable."
"Part of being a princess," Twilight sighed, knowing full well what it was like having to be dressed-up as part of her 'royal image.'
"Still wish I could've added more flare to the ends though," Rarity muttered to herself.
"Well, the Cubserions just declared independence after a thousand years of oppression so they probably won't notice," Coran reassured.
Allura frowned. "Then why am I getting all puffed up like a Trufalian meringue?" She turned to eye herself in the mirror. She did admit the dress looked stunning, better than the same one she'd had for ten thousand years, but that didn't mean she liked wearing them. "This is going to be a serious diplomatic meeting."
"Remember, Princess," Coran perked up, airing the skirt of her gown as he continued. "70 percent of diplomacy is appearance. Then 29 percent is manners, decorum, formalities and chit-chat. It's really only one percent..." He trailed off, the Princess scowled in mild irritation.
"-Serious business about fighting for the freedom of the universe?"Allura finished.
"Yes. That. Oh, and I forgot hor d'oeuvres. Oh, that's at least two percent. So I'll have to recalculate my..."
"Well, he's not wrong," Rarity agreed, the other four rolling their eyes. And, now there's another two to worry about.
Finally, Allura sighed, turning to the older Altean. "We just freed these planets. Do you really think they're ready to come together to fight the Galra?"
"Allura," the anthro-alicorn stepped forward. "It's not a question of wanting to fight back, but of believing that it's possible. It's up to you to give them that faith."
Once again the Altean let out a sigh, carrying something that held more weight than responsibility. Grief. "It should be Voltron."
The same sadness spread to the others in the room, faces falling to the ground. "We can't always put the fate of the universe in the hands of a giant weapon," Coran said gently. "At least... that's what your father believed."
Allura frowned. She missed him. She wished those words came straight from Alfor's mouth. Even after death, his words of wisdom still find their way to her—Like an everlasting echo that never left. One of which she was thankful for. She looked back to Coran, her father-figure since even before the death of her late parents, a ghost of a smile spreading on her face.
"You're right, Coran. Thank you," She said, grateful.
"Besides," Applejack put a hand on Allura's shoulder. "You're not alone in this. We're all here to help you."
The other ponies smiled at her in agreement and a genuine smile spread on her face. What would she do without these girls? Hard to imagine it'd only been two months since they'd met each other but being with them had given her a sense of home she hadn't realized was missing. She wasn't sure what it was exactly but she loved it. Loved her friends. Especially Twilight Sparkle, basically her soul sister ever since they'd bonded . It was surreal… Although, there was another thing.
"Hey guys!" A voice called from the hall. The doors opened and the voice's owner entered. It was a short dragon with lavender defined scales coating his body and lime green spiked ones protruding from the top of his head down his back to his tail. He had a broadish chest and shoulders and a slightly smaller torso. His build was like that of a young teen but his height reached mid-torso of the other girls in human form. His only clothing was a violet jacket with a green propped up collar lined with orange and folded sleeves of the same color, twin holes at the back for his wings. A hexagon-cut green gem with two spikes of gamboge and purple emerging from the left clipped to the left collar. He was Spike, a dragon raised in Canterlot by his sister-figure, Twilight and her family.
"Pidge's back!" He stopped before them, taking a second to catch several breaths. The unicorn fashionista let out an excited yelp.
"Finally!" She cheered in a sing-song manner already heading to the door, patting the young dragon on the head as she passed. "Thank you, Spike."
The drake's heart jumped, his eyes staring at the exiting unicorn completely love struck. The pegasus and two princesses giggled while the earth pony shook her head at the dragon's actions. It definitely didn't take a genius to see Spike's obvious crush on the unicorn, Allura could admit that.
Applejack, Fluttershy and Coran then eventually proceeded to head out the door, Spike hastily following after them. The anthro-farmpony then stopped at the door when she noticed the two Princesses stayed back. "You guys comin'?"
The anthro-alicorn nodded, "Yeah, just give us a few." Applejack gave an understanding nod before exiting, the door shutting behind her.
Twilight finally turned to the Altean with a concerned but sympathetic smile. "So... are you finally gonna tell me what's wrong?"
Allura gasped then frowned in realization. ‘Right, I'd forgotten about that.’ Ever since she and the others had been bonded to their counterpart Element, they'd discovered that they could feel each others emotions, meaning that if one of them felt down their other bonded could know without even saying a word.
She sighed in defeat. "I guess I'm just confused. About what my role is exactly."
Twilight raised a confused eyebrow, "What do you mean? As an Element of Harmony? The face of the Coalition? Or..."
"I guess... everything." Allura sat down on the chair at the work desk. "Ever since the battle with Zarkon, I've been wondering about why I was made an alicorn. If anything, why I was able to take out Haggar despite having no experience with any spells."
"Well, you were able to tap into the Element of Magic within you for the first time. So, usually bursts like that cause the most unexpected outcomes," Twilight answered, tapping a finger to her chin in thought. "As for being turned into an alicorn... I'm not sure. At first I thought it was because it was mirroring me as your bonded pony. But after finding out that Lance turned into a pegasus and Hunk an earth pony, despite their counterparts not being the same, I guess it has something to do more with personality.
"For Lance and Keith made sense why they got wings since they have adventurous and daring traits like pegasi. Pidge became a unicorn because of her talent in advanced tech and natural intellect which basically translates to a gifted unicorn in Equestria. As for Hunk and... Shiro, they're naturally grounded and are strong-suited just like earth ponies. Maybe being the embodiment of Magic made you an alicorn, 'cause it recognized your hidden connection to it?"
Allura shook her head. "I don't know. Even if that was true, why do I still have my wings? Why only keep them and not a horn and pony ears? Why only me and not the others? I just want to understand why I of all people would be chosen as worthy of being an alicorn. I didn't earn anything to deserve it. And it doesn't help that we can't even communicate with the Princesses in Equestria to get some answers," she looked down at her hands. "I wish my father was here. He'd know what to do."
Twilight frowned, feeling the heaviness that weighed in the Alteans heart the more she spoke. It was both a terrible yet comforting feeling. It made knowing exactly what the other Princess felt without having to say anything at the same time felt like an insatiable feeling that couldn't be filled until the other's spirits lifted once more.
The anthro-alicorn crouched beside the Altean Princess. "I get it. But we can't dwell on the past forever. You know you can't blame yourself for Zarkon's actions. It wasn't your fault then and it isn't now. You have to move forward, that's the only way you'll be able to have peace. Please... If not for me then for your father."
Allura finally turned back to the pony who was looking at her with pleading eyes. Something scurried on her lap and two mice; one round and yellow, the other light blue and tiny, curled into her hands. Two others; one light jade and skinny and another lavender and medium sized, squeaked from inside the box.
She smiled lightly, a ray of light to her previous gloom. "You're right. What would I do without you?"
Twilight chuckled softly. "What are friends for?" She stood up, letting out a hand to which Allura happily took. The two mice on her lap crawled up her arms and rested on her shoulders. The other two on the table jumped off and were caught in Twilight's hands. She smiled warmly, carefully placing them on her own shoulders. The two girls walked out the room together, the Altean much lighter than before. Twilight was right, she had to realize that at some point she couldn't carry the weight of responsibility by herself. The best thing to come out of this war was the friends she'd made—The family she'd discovered and loved more than anything. Even though one of them was currently missing...
Allura fiddled with the wire bracelet on her wrist, feeling the cold weight of its heart shaped gem. A gift from the six ponies, one that was meant to hold a sense of belonging—Belonging with them, with the Paladins but it has only brought more questions. Something kept scratching at her mind, something she'd never felt. Like an ant slowly burrowing to the front of her mind like it was trying to resurface. She wasn't sure if Twilight felt it but she didn't want to burden anyone so she never asked. She didn’t want to lie to Twilight but what could she do? Answers seemed short supply right now, ‘and besides, there were more pressing matters’ she’d remind herself. Hopefully, it wouldn’t blow up in her face.
BOOM!
On a planet named Puig, shards of metal exploded in a cloud of smoke and hot debris. From the haze, two ships speeded out, glowing yellow eyes that still saw even in the dark cloud. They were large mechanical Lions, one blue the other yellow, both flying closer down the atmosphere to the planet. Sleek metal shaped exterior under-armor as well as the interior cockpits, where monitors beeped rapidly and blasts fired from the jaws at other attacking fighter jets.
From within the Blue Lion, its pilot flew the ship with a confident and determined expertise that suggested much knowledge, except in this case to which was simply cocky mannerisms. He was a lean, eighteen year old human with olive skin. Short brown hair with short-cut front bangs, one which included a double streak of azure and baby blue. The rest flared out the sides to frame his cheekbones. His deep blue eyes held a playful gaze that matched his flirtatious, cocky and care-free personality. He wore fitted armor of white base with blue accents on the shoulders, joints and most prominent the V-shaped emblem on the chest. A jetpack and boosters were installed on his back and ankles. He wore a dark gray under suit, cyan trails that highlighted it and a matching helmet with a transparent blue visor. This was Lance McClain, formerly a fighter pilot cadet from the Galaxy Garrison and current Paladin of the Blue Lion and second embodiment to the Element of Laughter.
The Paladin continued to maneuver, narrowly missing a rocky cliff while expertly dogging lasers coming from the fighter jets tailing him. He opened a communication channel and spoke to the people on the other side. "About 30 ticks to the drop zone. You ready, guys?"
"Affirmative," a male voice answered.
In the belly compartment of the Blue Lion, several people filled the room, each gripping the railing support on the roof. About a dozen wore identical armored suits in dark blue, grey and black with glowing purple markings on their chests and masks and dark blue hoods over their heads. They each had distinct dark swords with a glowing 5-shaped symbol at the guard held across their backs. They were agents of the Blade of Marmora, a secret organization of Galra that fought against the Galra Empire
Another individual was their leader, Kolivan. He wore a Marmora suit with a ninja-like robe in black on top, with blue at the shoulders, grey from the waist down and reached his knees, cut at the right thigh lined with white. He had a grey belt with his Marmora blade hoisted on the right side of his waist with a full mask with eyes and purple markings.
The last two were humanoid ponies. One was an anthro-seventeen year old female pony that had a light pink coat. Poofy and coily cerise hair with streaks of baby blue, corn yellow and apricot. Her mane styled in two mini half buns that ended in a coily bunch along with a shortish front bang of hair that fell over the left of her face, and a pair of fluffy ears flapped excitedly on her head. She had spirited baby blue eyes full of childlike innocence and a cutie mark of three balloons; one yellow, two blue, resting on her cheek. She wore a sleek, dark navy armored suit with a V-shaped symbol across the chest in pink, color strips of blue-fading-to-yellow going around her neck, waist and down the outer sides of her legs and a jetpack and ankle boosters attached. She wore a matching helmet with a dark visor and her sapphire blue balloon-shaped Element gem sat just below her neck. She was the very enthusiastic party planner and baker extraordinaire; Pinkamena Diane Pie, better known as Pinkie Pie.
The other was an eighteen year old anthro-pegasus mare with a sky blue coat. A mesmerizing rainbow mane and tail in vibrant red, amber orange, sunny yellow kiwi green, vivid blue, and violet; her mane styled with messy forelocks and the rest tied back in high unruly ponytail. She had fluffy ears that flicked with anticipation and wings that flexed behind her. The pony had jaunty magenta-red eyes like that of someone who stares fear with a grin directly in the face and a cutie mark of a cloud with a red/yellow/blue lightning bolt on her cheek. She wore a suit that matched Pinkie's except the V-shaped symbol across the chest was blue and the color strips were of rainbow fading from red all the way to violet. She wore a matching helmet with a dark visor. A Marmora dagger with a curved edge, rainbow glowing insignia on the guard and lines on the blade, clasped to the back of her waist and the crimson lightning bolt Element jewel sat just below her neck. She was Rainbow Dash, a bold dare-devil pegasus with a big ego and even bigger speed range who happened to be the Element of Loyalty. She's a member of the Wonderbolts and newest member—besides Keith—in the Blade of Marmora, due to her recently revealed Galra heritage like that of her human counterpart.
The pink pony couldn't resist bouncing slightly in excitement. "Oh! I can't wait. This is going to be so fun!"
The pegasus rolled her eyes in amusement. "Yeah, fun."
Suddenly, they all felt a crash and they grunted as the room shook. Several laser blasts could be heard coming from outside.
"Hold on, evasive action underway," Lance said over the comms.
Outside, the Blue and Yellow Lions maneuvered past several blasts, sparks flying across the armor plating. From below, several turbine-looking cannons blasted them in rapid succession, each one missing the Lions by hairs. The two swooped down, flying just over the ground and shooting massive lasers that obliterated the cannons in a single blast. They banked left through the smoke, more fighter jets trailing behind them.
From within the Yellow Lion, its Paladin looked back with worried brown eyes. He was a heavy-set eighteen year old human boy with a mahogany skin tone. Short dark hair with long front bangs, which included a double streak of gold-yellow and soft pink in one. A strip of orange cloth tied around his forehead that reached his mid-back, keeping his hair out of the way but allowed his bangs to frame his face. He wore a similar suit and helmet to Lance except his was accented with yellow. He was Hunk, former engineering cadet at the Galaxy Garrison and current Paladin of the Yellow Lion and second embodiment to the Element of Kindness. True to his element, he was a kind and friendly person who was also a wizard in the kitchen.
The Paladin spoke to his teammate with a slight tremor in his voice. "Lance, I think we just missed the drop zone."
"We're under heavy fire. There's no way we can stop here," Lance answered. "Kolivan, any ideas?"
"Open the hatch."
"We'll take it from here."
The compartment bottom opened, wind rushing into the room as the ground blurred under them. Rainbow and Pinkie shared a nod, a dim flash of light covering them as their bodies morphed. Arms and legs turned to hooves, normal bodies turned horizontal and their heads shifted to one of a horse-like figure. It happened in a second, when the light cleared, the two Equestrians now stood in their normal pony forms. However, they were noticeably different. Their heads were slightly smaller, more proportioned to their body.
"Go! Go! Go!" Kolivan ordered, the Blades following with no hesitation, releasing their grip from the railings. They jumped out the hatch in rapid succession, then Kolivan followed. The two ponies close behind with Pinkie ecstatic and grinning, Rainbow smirking as well. Then they jumped out, the wind flipping their tails wildly and would have done the same for their manes had they not been in their helmets. Heads first, hooves—and wings for the pegasus—pulled close to streamline down to the surface. The Blades dropped to the ground, rolling forward to catch the impact then proceeded to a Naruto sprint. Rainbow spread her wings while Pinkie activated her boosters inches before they touched down. They ran on all fours, catching up to the Marmora agents.
The group charged into the ruined town, its streets overrun with Galra sentries. Kolivan moved first. His Marmora blade flashed with lethal precision, cutting through the machines with the disciplined efficiency of a master swordsman. The other Blades fell in beside him, mirroring his skill—flipping, striking, and dismantling the robots with silent, practiced agility forged through years in the field. Rainbow followed close behind. With a single powerful beat of her wings, she launched into the air, her pony form shifting seamlessly back into anthro. Her dagger ignited into a full blade mid-motion, and she drove downward with controlled force, cleaving through sentries in a fluid, momentum-driven strike. Pinkie on the other hand, or hoof, morphed into her human form handling a blue shoulder cannon with a thin barrel, white and pink accents and perpendicular handle at the bottom that released explosives. She bounced around the sentries, bursts of energy landed in random yet uncanny accurate shots as she giggled giddily after every jump.
From above, a large multi-shot cannon began to charge up from its place in an overhanging cliff, the eyes glowing violet as it whirred to life.
Meanwhile the Blue Lion was being tailed by a trio of fighter jets, each raining down red blasts that missed by inches. When Lance put some space between him and the jets, he banked left, shooting a laser of frost from its jaw. The blast hit the wings of two jets, causing them to crash into each other. The last jet followed after the Lion as it started sprinting up the cliff.
Lance grumbled in agitation. "Think you're pretty good, huh? Can you handle this?" He pulled his control sticks back and the Lion backflipped off the rock face, blasting it into pieces with no effort. He smirked, satisfied.
"Didn't think so." Something whizzed behind him that caught his eye. He saw the Yellow Lion, a fighter jet following close behind. "Hunk, you got a fighter right on your six!"
"Yeah, and I'm about to teach this sentry a lesson about tailgating." The Yellow Paladin pulled back, smashing into the jet as it crashed.
Rainbow's urgent voice suddenly came through the comms, "Guys, can you hear me?"
"We hear you, what's up?" Lance answered.
Below, a barricade of blasts rained over the Blades and two ponies—The ground shattering after each attack landed from the large overhead cannon. The group hid behind different ruined structures of the town as stone and dirt exploded everywhere. "We're pinned down by heavy artillery," Kolivan responded. "We need air support."
"I see it. I'll take it out!" The Blue Paladin went to fire, but the cannon beat him to it. He moved out of its line of fire before the blast could land. "Uh oh! I can't get a safe angle of attack!"
"Maybe not from the front." Hunk banked, flying behind the cliff point where the cannon was on. In a flash of yellow, a pair of large double-clawed attachments appeared on the Lion's fore feet. The Yellow Lion spun claws-first, drilling through the rock and the cannon was destroyed to pieces. The Marmora agents and two ponies revealed themselves as large boulders fell from the cliff, crushing remaining sentries on the ground.
After that, the battle was basically over. Numerous Galra ships can be seen fleeing from the planet, and the two Lions hovered just above the rest of the team.
Kolivan looked to the sky at the receding ships as they left the atmosphere. "It appears the Galra forces are evacuating."
"Yeah, and stay out!" Pinkie and Hunk exclaimed simultaneously.
From the cockpit of the Blue Lion, its Paladin leaned back, arms behind his head and smiling smugly. "Let's set 'em down over there and get ready for the parade." Pinkie's face immediately glowed.
"Party Time!"
They did just that. The two Voltron Lions sat just outside the town as the planet's residents gathered together. They were humanoid aliens with brown skin and dark horns wearing unique conical flat-topped hats on their heads other than their colorful robes. Music filled the air, a melodious sound that brought about a bright mood to the newly freed Puigians. The ponies and Paladins were completely immersed in the celebration festivities(helmets removed). Lance was busy taking selfies with three Puigian girls. "Now this is the kind of world-saving that a Paladin can get used to!" He said grinning at his camera.
Hunk was basically drooling at multiple platters of food being offered to him and the pink pony by some older people. "Whoo! You got that right!" He agreed, then looked at one with a crab-like creature. "Oh, me thinks I'll try this one with all the legs." Before he could grab it, it growled angrily at him, nearly pinching him with its claws. "Nope! Still alive!" He yelped.
"Aw! So cute!" Pinkie cooed. She then took a slice of a pink fruit, assessing the texture and taste like a professional food critic. Before letting out a content moan. "Hmm. So good!"
Hunk looked at the tray. Those definitely look better... and less violent. "Can I have one?" In the blink of an eye, another Puigian brought a new tray of pink fruit slices. His eyes immediately lit up. "Uh-ho-ho!"
Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash sat on a rock, narrating a—slightly modified—story of another space mission, with several people surrounding her. "So, there we were. Completely pinned down. Sentries everywhere. I, obviously, being the fearless pony I am, dove straight in..." She continued, as the younger Puigians stared at her with starry eyes.
The largest crowd that they had saved gathered below the two Lions, looking up at them in awe. One of the elder people looked over to the Blade of Marmora and growled in suspicion, a few others following suit. The Marmora leader's hood was currently pulled back, his mask removed revealing his sky blue skin with white around his mouth plus a small braid of white hair went over his shoulder. He also had big, furry ears with orange at the pointed top and white on the inside, and fully yellow eyes that looked down from the gazes of the Puigians. Kolivan was more disappointed than anything by their obvious distrust for him and his men. Before he could dwell on it too much, Hunk walked up, chewing on a weird blue food on a stick.
"You know, based on our recent battles, it seems like the Galra Empire is kinda just falling apart," he said, mouth half full of food.
"It's more than that, look." The Marmora leader gestured to the wall behind him. The other ponies and Blue Paladin looked curiously and gasped in awe.
"Whoa!"
On the mountainside, an image of Voltron was carved into the rock, above it a six-pointed star with five other gems that circled like a halo. Lance even took a quick picture of it. Kolivan, "Word of Voltron and the Elements' triumph is spreading."
"Totally, cool!" Pinkie said, tracing her finger over the outlines and grooves of the stone.
The blue pegasus' face crumpled. "Yeah, I guess the only problem is that we can't form Voltron anymore," she huffed.
Kolivan shook his head. "That cannot stand. The universe needs Voltron." They all looked back to the carved image, faces hardened. Kolivan was right. Without Voltron, the universe's only symbol of hope (besides the Elements of Harmony) was gone. And in every war, without hope, there was no spirit to fight. Even with the Galra in disarray, they still needed as much help as they could to win the war. Every ally counts.
The crowd behind them suddenly made room for someone to pass. It was a middle-aged Puigian man with a medium body-type, bushy blue beard, light blue face marks and purple eyes. He wore a dark jade hat and white clothes with short sleeves accented with blue and yellow and an olive green ruffled collar. White bandages were wrapped around his legs, partially hidden by brown ankle boots. He was the Puigian leader. Two other older Puigians stood behind him. The Paladins, ponies and Kolivan finally turned as they heard him speak.
"Lions of Voltron, Elements of Harmony, the people of Puig thank you for delivering us from the evil hands of the Galra Empire."
Rainbow stepped forward. "Don't forget the Blade of Marmora. We couldn't have done it without Kolivan and his team," she added.
"It was our honor," Kolivan said.
"Yes..." The man and everyone surrounding him is shrouded by a look of distaste as they mildly glare at the Marmora leader. Then he looked back to the Paladins and Elements, all smiles. "I want to pledge to you that every able-bodied Puigian will join Voltron and the Elements in the fight against the Galra." Well, that was easy. "Speaking of Voltron, where is it?" Dang it
The crowd then began to cheer, calling out for Voltron. It turns into a full on chant, and not the good kind. Lance, Rainbow and Pinkie smiled nervously, while Hunk leaned to his fellow Paladin in a discreet way.
"I think this might be a problem..."
Back in the Castle of Lions, in a tall, narrowish room, the beeping of monitors and typing could be heard. At the very center, a figure sat before a large console in an executive chair. Her intelligent hazel brown eyes tracked the video on screen, searching for missing details in the ever-twisting puzzle. Illuminating light from the screen reflecting off her round, wire-rimmed glasses.
The human girl was a slim and short fifteen-year old with fair skin and short, caramel brown hair that flared out at the back and long unruly bangs framing her face, the central one holding a double streak of royal purple and grass green. She wore a light, oversized lime green hoody with white baggy sleeves and pulled down hood, and a print of a darker pixelated Green Lion head layered over a teal V-shaped symbol. She also wore grey cargo shorts and orange, white-capped shoes. She was Pidge(/Katie) Holt, a quirky genius and tech-whiz, with a sarcastic and sharp-witted personality. She's a previous cadet at the Galaxy Garrison and current Paladin of the Green Lion and human embodiment of the Element of Generosity.
She continued to watch the footage of Matt's escape from the Galra prison she'd retrieved from Beta Traz on loop, the sound of the explosion playing endlessly. Pidge was so immersed in the video that she didn't hear someone come in. Suddenly the Paladin's vision was obscured by a pair of hands covering her eyes.
"Guess who~?" The voice said in a sing-song manner.
Pidge smiled. "Hey Rares."
The anthro-unicorn went to the side of the chair and gave the young teen a side hug. "Good to see that you came back in one piece, Katie," Rarity quipped. Pidge smiled warmly. Rarity was probably the only person, other than her family who called her by her real name. Which somehow, didn't feel strange coming from her, probably being bonded Elements contributing to it partially. Pidge, however, had also genuinely grown to love Rarity like an older sister and definitely considered her one, other than already being friends. The unicorn gave the Paladin that comfort of having an elder sibling she'd missed ever since her brother and father disappeared. Something she was greatly grateful for.
Two others entered the room, the Altean advisor and dragon. "Hey, Pidge!" Spike greeted.
"Number five, good to see you back. How was your mission?" Coran asked.
"I talked to some members of the desert tribe on Planet Kythra who have these same large feathered ears. They're not friendly to Zarkon, but they couldn't help me identify the person in the footage. So, that's a dead end," she explained, zooming on the figure with the large ears. She then changed to one of knee pad-looking things "Now, these flappy, loosey, pant-thingies..."
"-Are skort pantaloons," Coran finished. "Very breathable."
"Right. They're traditionally worn by the Tando people." She supported her chin on her hands, elbows on the table.
"Yes, in the Valurian quadrant," Coran further explained.
"Right, that's on the other side of the galaxy. And what's this mask thing that they all have on their faces?" Pidge zoomed in on their masks with two eye holes and air filters on the sides for breathing.
Coran tapped his chin thoughtfully, "Hm, no idea. But it appears to be the perfect blend of fashion and function."
"Okay, so, my brother was either taken by intergalactic fashion pirates," she internally cringed, "or... maybe the outer reaches of these galaxies are occupied by freedom fighters that are starting to work together against the Galra Empire."
"Like the Blade of Marmora? Cool." Spike commented.
"You know, I don't mind telling you this, but I was considered a bit of an intergalactic fashion pirate in my day." Coran started, then jumped onto the table. Oh no. "I used to have a bogwaggle cape that I trained to sing my theme song whenever I entered a room." In his imagination, he was wearing a flowing large jacket-cape hybrid and extravagant star-shaped shades. He chuckled gleefully while the others shared a look of deadpan disbelief. Pidge simply turned back to the screen, indifferent.
"Maybe this will help. While I was gone, I had the system analyze the sound of the explosion from the prison break," The Paladin played the sound, which is then quickly analyzed by its sound anomalies. An image of a round-looking explosive metal. "Huh. Nanothermite titanium-boron. Hey, maybe we can track that!"
"Good idea." Coran said, already off the table. "While you do that, I'm going to check in with Lance, Hunk, Rainbow and Pinkie and see how things went on Planet Puig." The Altean left along with Spike, leaving the two embodiments of Generosity. The screen switched back to the prison video, paused on Matt's face. Rarity put a reassuring hand on Pidge's shoulder, needing no words to know what the Paladin was thinking.
"Don't worry, Matt. I'll find you," Pidge whispered to herself.
"Now, how about we go meet up with the others," Rarity suggested, morphing into her pony form, which like Pinkie's and Rainbow's was different from before. With a smaller head, and the fur on her body was more visible, most prominent on her under belly and ears and a tuft of fur at her chest in pale white. Her clothes had disappeared as she morphed. In natural circumstances, they would have stayed, however, the ponies had settled on them being uncomfortable and rather restricting. Surprisingly, even the fashionista unicorn had agreed that they were rather impractical and harder to move around in, only their space suits that would morph with them.
The Green Paladin jumped out of her seat and walked beside the pony out the room, though she took one last glance at the screen with the image of her brother before exiting.
In the lounge room of the Castle which consisted of a conversation pit, everyone was gathered on the circular sunken couch, besides Coran who stood behind. Keith was now out of his Paladin armor, having arrived a while ago. He was now wearing a dark blue-gray t-shirt with a red V-shaped symbol on the front, underneath his signature red cropped jacket with white and yellow accents, white rolled up cuffs and propped up collar. He had black pants and white, black and red boots. He also wore black fingerless gloves that expose the back part of his hand and a brown utility belt with his Marmora knife strapped to the back. Lance, Hunk, Rainbow and Pinkie however are still in their Paladin armor and suits having just arrived from Puig.
The four had taken the liberty of explaining what had happened on the newly freed planet, Hunk and Pinkie especially. "They haven't figured out their flatbread situation yet, but what they do with those centipedes is just out of this world," Hunk expressed with a chef's kiss.
"And even better fruit platters. Imagine that in cake," the pink pony fantasized, her mouth already watering at the thought, sitting cross-legged between him and Fluttershy. "Mmm, cake."
"And they're totally ready to join the fight against the Galra," Lance added from the other side of the couch beside Pidge, Rarity (back in anthro-form) and Applejack, all to his right and Spike to his left.
"Nice," said Pidge.
Rainbow Dash perked up from the other side sitting on the top of the couch backrest between the Red and Yellow Paladins. "Yeah, we brought back a few of their leaders to join the coalition."
"That's great!" Twilight said, approvingly.
"Excellent work!" Allura congratulated from where she was at the center of the sofa between Twilight and Fluttershy.
"You know, I gotta say, this is what it's all about..." Lance started, showing the Paladin and ponies beside him the photos he's taken, "Freein' the people, lovin' the ladies, then bombin' down the road again looking for adventure, Voltron style."
"Yer sayin' it as if that's the only reason you're a Paladin," Applejack responded slyly, to which the Paladin caught himself, flustered.
The Yellow Paladin's face suddenly crumpled, remembering the problem they'd experienced on Planet Puig. 'The chant'. "Which brings up a little issue. They all want to see Voltron, only we don't really have Voltron anymore."
Keith, who sat with his arms crossed, finally spoke up—his pony counterpart already feeling the pit in her stomach from the Paladin before he even finished. "We don't have Shiro anymore, either. Everyone seems to have forgotten that."
Their faces fell in sorrow, then Allura spoke, heavy yet resolute. "It may be difficult for us all to accept, but it is time to think about finding a new pilot for the Black Lion." Her voice carried a weighted truth that all had been trying to avoid, especially Keith. They all looked up at her in surprise. The Red Paladin stood up abruptly, his voice shaking with a mix of stubborn hope and resolve.
"No! I'm gonna find him! Shiro is the one person who never gave up on me, I won't give up on him." He walked off before anyone could speak, the door closing behind him leaving the room in heavy silence. They all looked down solemnly, a feeling of something like mourning weighing in their hearts. Even as Keith walked further and further away, Rainbow felt the increasing pain and anguish stirring within him. The pegasus caught the downcast gaze of the farmpony across the room, another person who'd taken the disappearance of the Black Paladin heavily.
Although said pony didn't say it, Applejack was greatly affected by Shiro's absence, but kept it to herself for the sake of the others. While her ten friends had discovered the empathetic bonds with their counterpart, she'd never experienced it. She thought she would, that space couldn't do that, but all she felt was... an emptiness—Like a half of her was missing—Like she was trying to reach for something while blindfolded—Like she was tied to a rope that was connected to an unclear and hazy end. Something close, yet unreachable. It was a terrible feeling, worse than feeling nothing at all. Because what she felt wasn't nothing, it was... an endless gap. Empty space where something was supposed to be.
And she hated it!... but, she hoped that all it meant was that at the very least, Shiro was alive, even if she didn't know where he was.
In a far part of space was a large and ever intimidating floating fortress—Galra Mothership. Inside a certain chamber was the frail body of the once mighty Emperor, Zarkon was lying on a bed. From the roof many large tubes were administering quintessence into his comatose body. A hooded figure stood across the room, yellow glowing eyes hard and unreadable. Purple light illuminating off her blue skin and red face markings—Haggar. The Emperor's witch and high priestess to her followers to the dark arts known as Druids. She watched over him, the light rising and falling of his chest—The way his purple skin turned slightly paler everyday over the last two months. She sighed lightly, before leaving the room.
On the other side of the double doors, a Druid waited, wearing a similar robe to the witch, besides the long, pointed white mask over his face. When the doors closed to conceal what was within, the witch spoke to the Druid. "No one is to be allowed in Emperor Zarkon's chamber," she ordered, her raspy voice adding to her superior authority.
The Druid bowed his head, putting an arm over his chest, the universal salute for the Galra. "Vrepit sa," he said, leaving to inform his fellow Druids.
"Excuse me."
A voice spoke from her right. Haggar turned to see a Galran commander, dressed in dark grey armor with orange accents, purple skin, and yellow eyes approaching. She scowled. "What is it, Commander Throk?"
"Would it be possible to speak to Zarkon today?" Throk asked. "Another planet was lost to rebellion and I feel he must be informed."
"Zarkon is fully briefed on all imperial matters,” she lied smoothly. “He certainly doesn't need your input."
"Of course. It is just that I fear if we do not take decisive action soon, the Empire will crumble completely. Rebel activity should be crushed with our full might before more planets are inspired to fight against us," he continued. The witch was starting to get annoyed by the commander, He wanted something.
"Lotor has arrived at headquarters at Zarkon's request to take command of the Empire," Haggar answered. "Under Zarkon's guidance, of course."
Throk's eyes widened in surprise. "Lotor? Why is he not at his father's bedside?" he asked carefully.
"Zarkon needs no one by his bedside, least of all you!" Haggar snapped with finality, walking off through the middle corridor of the three-way fork. The commander growled from behind her, agitated, but he bit his tongue. He was smart enough to know when to stop and it was definitely ill-advised to challenge the witch, and so, he walked off to the right hallway.
As the two walked their separate ways, a figure hiding behind a pillar in the third hallway uncloaked from some sort of invisibility or camouflage. She was a slim, scrawny alien with a female humanoid body of pale vermillion skin. Yellow and indigo markings on her face, reaching down to the end of her nose from crowning her eyes (with yellow sclera and emerald-blue irises). She had pointed butterfly wing-like ears and a long skinny tail protruding out of the back of her head covered in colorful spots of teal, yellow, blue, and indigo. She wore black armor with blue and orange accents that covered her entire body from the neck down except her hands and under her biceps, plus a grey under suit visible at her torso and waist.
The alien grins before disappearing once more...
Back in the Altean Castle, everyone sat at a long table in the dining room. All the Paladins and ponies(sans Twilight) were now in their armor and space suits—without helmets—sitting on one side of the table along with Coran and Spike. (AJ's, Rarity's and Fluttershy's suits were similar to the other ponies except the 'V' emblems on their chests in light orange, white, and pastel yellow along with color strips of orange-to-green, purple-to-light blue, and pink-to-teal respectively. The purple anthro-alicorn was now wearing a version of her dress with long indigo sleeves instead of arm warmers, the same boots and belt, and her Element was now in its crown form atop her head.) On the other side of the table, were multiple alien ambassadors including the Puigian leader. The Altean Princess and Marmora leader sat at opposite heads of the table as well.
With everyone settled, Allura took her chance to greet her guests. "It is our honor to have you all here together."
"I had the biggest bunker back on Puig, but it wasn't nearly this nice," the Puigian leader said in awe, admiring the large dining room, even the glimmering chandelier above.
"Well, I spent the last decade sleeping in a spiny thistle thicket," a green-skinned ambassador with a long mustache perked up, wearing a simple, sleeveless black robe with some orange accents. "You look wonderful though, Princesses. I'm glad I put on my best tarp."
Allura smiled gratefully, and Twilight playfully nudged her. "Well, it was made by a talented friend of mine." Rarity smiled back at the Altean with a knowing wink.
The Yellow Paladin then emerged from a side door and behind the visitors, wearing his Paladin armor covered by an apron and carrying a tray of food. "Welcome, everyone, welcome! I've prepared a few Earth canapés for our distinguished guests to enjoy while we talk galactic diplomacy." He placed the different delicacies in front of the ambassadors, each dish garnished and cooked to perfection. The anthro-pink pony suddenly came out from the kitchen after him, carrying a tray of a variety of sweet treats and pastries also wearing a pink apron over her space suit.
"And after that—Dessert! The best of both Earth and Equestria," Pinkie said, placing the tower of baked goods at the center of the table, several of the diplomats mouth watering at the heavenly aroma wafting in air from the food.
As the delegates took their first bites, tongues practically bursting at the exotic food flavors, Kolivan stood and got straight to business. "The Blade of Marmora has gathered this intelligence," he started, a large, violet glowing hologram of the entire universe hovering above the center of the table, even tiny Equestria could be seen at the very edges...That is, if you had microscopes for eyes. "As you can see, the Galra Empire is still the most massive ruling force the universe has ever seen. The sheer size of it is almost incomprehensible. It seems like it could rule another 10,000 years."
The delegates stared wide at the hologram, faces pale as paper, the all familiar crippling feeling crawled up their spines. A smaller man tried to eat, but his spoon froze halfway to his mouth, and his body shook in fear. Lance and Pidge leaned towards one another, both frowning.
"Not the way I would have started this pep talk, but okay," the Blue Paladin said, then the blue pony beside him leaned to them.
"Tell me about it," Rainbow said, rolling her eyes.
"-However," the Marmora leader continued, "we are beginning to see increased rebel activity from within the Empire." The holographic map lit up with various rebel locations in cyan across the universe, the representatives' faces shifting from fear to awe. Allura stood.
"We have a strategy to bring these forces together, free more planets, grow our numbers and accumulate an army than can defeat the Galra in major battles," she said with an empowering voice as the holograph faded. She turned back to the delegates, "but without your help it will be impossible."
It was a simple decision to most... However, there was still one problem. One of them, a female purple alien, spoke up in a peculiar electronic voice. "The forces will all fight behind Voltron and the Elements, right?"
"Yes, where is Voltron?" The Puigian Man asked.
Allura's eyes flickered slightly with alarm. "Th-the people you see before you are in the Paladins of Voltron. Together, they pilot the mighty lions that form the great warrior. As well as the wielders of the Elements of Harmony, citizens from the long forgotten planet of Equestria," She said, gesturing to the Paladins and Equestrians, each either passing a smile or a wave, with the exception of Lance and Rainbow Dash who both flashed cocky grins.
The Puigian smiled. "Excellent! Can they form Voltron now?"
The Princess once again shifted uncomfortably in her seat, biting her lip. When she spoke, what came out was but a croak compared to her previous confidence. "Uh, well..."
"We can't form Voltron okay?!" The Red Paladin cut in, agitated. "We can fly the lions, but Voltron is not happening." The representatives gasped, faces disheartened by the outburst.
Allura smiled weakly. "What he means is that right now they can't do it but-"
"But nothing. Shiro is gone. He was the Black Paladin. And until we find him, there is no Voltron." Her chances to salvage disappeared when she was once again cut off by the impatient Paladin, the delegates' faces settling back to their dispirited state.
Then, Kolivan stood, a solution forming in his mind, "The Lions are still a substantial fighting force and this castle is also a considerable weapon. The Blade of Marmora can lead you."
The Purple alien raised a finger, almost nervously, like she was afraid to ask. "My people have been enslaved for centuries by soldiers who look exactly like you."
The Puigian nodded. "Yes! Our people have heard the legend of Voltron and the Elements how they defeated Zarkon. That is what gave them hope. What are we supposed to tell them now?"
The abrupt slamming of palms on the table broke the argument. Keith stood, nerves practically bulging. "Tell them to stand up and fight for themselves! Voltron is gone!" And with that, he stormed out. The doors opened and shut behind him leaving a tense atmosphere in the air.
Hunk then cleared his throat gently. Chuckling weakly, he held up a plate of food. "Pizza roll? Pig in a blanket," The yellow pegasus beside him turned pale.
"Vegan edition," Pinkie added quickly, the ponies quietly sighing in relief to themselves.
The Puigian Man glanced at the plate. "I'll have a pizza roll."
Meanwhile, elsewhere in another structure of metal—The Galra arena. The alien coliseum was filled to the brim with Galrans excited for entertainment. The crowd was in an uproar as a beast in the center of the ring roared and charged at his opponent, one who was a significantly smaller fighter wearing dark blue/grey armor with accents of orange, lighter blue and black with a matching dark visor helmet.
Two among the tens of thousands of bystanders were conversing, one, the familiar Commander Throk. "I tried to speak with Lord Zarkon today but the witch stopped me again."
The Galran beside him, blue skinned and buffer than Throk, grunted in understanding. "I fear the Emperor's condition may be worse than she is telling us. I'm not sure he will ever return to the throne."
The purple commander frowned in agreement. "Agreed. And now Prince Lotor is taking over? We've fought by Zarkon's side forever, and we are passed over by this exiled brat," he spat.
"I've heard rumors he fights along his enlisted men like a lowly private," the Blue Galran added.
"Worse than that, his top generals aren't even pure Galra. They are half-breeds at best. He has no honor," Throk said in disdain.
"Some say he allows the planets he conquers to continue to rule themselves. Can you imagine?"
Throk could almost cringe in disgust. "Clearly he's a dangerous lunatic." Then his voice dropped low. "I've already spoken with the other officers in my sector. They've all agreed to back me if I fight for the throne. Normally, I would never think of such a thing but..."
The Blue Galran looked to the other commander in slight surprise before saying, "What choice do we have?"
Throk looked at him, "Then you'll support me?"
The Blue Galran takes a second before answering, "Yes." Throk smiled wickedly at the response. 'One more person on my side,' he thought to himself. The clang of clashing blades in the background gained their attention as they turned to the fight.
"Who's this little fellow?," the Blue Galran asked the other commander.
Throk shrugged vaguely, "I don't know. I've never seen him before."
The 'little fellow' dodged another sword-club strike. The slim coliseum fighter flipped over the much taller opponent, and landed dodging and rolling out of the way of sword-club swings. The beast swung again, before noticing his opponent was gone, until his opponent appeared from the other side, disarming him. The warrior fell to the ground as metal struck flesh. As the crowd cheers, Throk and his accomplice leaned forward in interest as well as others to the mysterious fighter. The victor then took off his helmet, revealing his long and luscious silvery-white hair and his unmistakable light purple face.
Throk eyes widened in horror and shock. "Lotor!" Lotor drew his fallen sword from the ground, pointing upwards directly to the commander, and looked at him with his blue-purple eyes with yellow sclerae.
"Throk. You wish to challenge me? Then come down and claim your crown." The crowd gasped and whispers drifted through the air, each Galra eyeing Throk with either disdain or surprise. Throk turned, noticing the plenty of people that were side-eyeing him.
"True Galra do not take the throne by stirring up insurrection in darkened chambers—They rise through honorable rite of combat. Defeat me here and the throne is yours." The Galran heir challenged with a smirk, authoritative but not cocky.
The Galra audience cheered in approval before three of the audience members reached for their cloak and took them off; revealing four half-Galran women in the same unique armor as Lotor. One, a large muscular woman with light teal skin, large prominent furry ears(pink on the inside, dark blue on the outside), yellow eyes with slitted pupils. Another, has a light blue reptilian face, her scalp dark blue with a red-purple stripe running from her forehead down to her mouth but no eyes and a tail prehensile tail with darker purple and blue spots lining it, a dark gray hood shrouds her face and a black cat (with blue and orange forelocks and tail tuft) rests on her shoulder. Next, a lean, young humanoid woman with light blue skin and dark blue hair cut short, with long bangs swept over the left side of her face, pointed ears and blue eyes that feature yellow sclerae. Lastly, a familiar chameleon-like woman with red skin that uncloaked from camouflage.
Throk was surrounded by them, each general giving him challenging glares. He growled, cursing under his breath, before he stood.
"I gladly accept your offer. Now all will see who is the rightful leader." After a few moments, Throk stepped into the arena with his sword in hand, confidently held over his shoulder.
"I have fought thousands of battles and left many enemies much more fearsome than you wasting on the battlefields." Lotor responded by raising his blade. Throk swung his sword and charged at the Galran Prince with an aggressive yell, striking with violent swordplay. Lotor parried and dodged calmly, seemingly unruffled. Lotor dodged another strike, sliding Throk's blade over his head, which took a few locks of hair.
"You have flawless technique, that I'll grant you. Still, you must realize at some point that your repetitive attacks are getting you nowhere," Lotor commented to the panting and exhausted commander. Throk charged again with an angry yell, igniting another fierce clash of blades. Lotor finally attacked with an elbow jab, knocking the wind from him. Then sliced Throk's sword in two with his own, ending with a rather dramatic finish. Throk tumbled to the ground, groaning, and Lotor stood over him triumphantly, leveling his sword at his throat.
"Your tactics are stale. And in the end, your own aggression is your undoing."
The crowd burst into an uproar of cheers and began a repetitive chant of, "Lotor! Lotor! Lotor!"
The Galran Commander closed his eyes in defeat, prepared for his fate. Suddenly, Lotor withdrew the sword, surprising Throk. The crowd's chants died down and the Prince spoke.
"My father built our empire on the bones of his enemies. But the time has come to change the old ways and inspire not fear from those we rule—But loyalty." The word spoken by the Galran Prince was definitely a head turner. "We must not waste our energy fighting to keep our subjects down but rather multiply by allowing those worthy to rise and join our ranks." Lotor offered a hand to the fallen commander, whose eyes were wide in disbelief. "The Universe can no longer doubt our strength. Each ally gained only makes us stronger. While those who continue to stand against us... will be crushed."
Surprisingly, Throk accepted his hand and Lotor pulled him up. After a second for the commander to move past his shock, he spoke. "Lotor, we pledge our loyalty to you. Vrepit Sa," he said, saluting with right arm fisted over the left of his chest. Lotor's generals did the same, and slowly, the entire arena was standing and saluting in solidarity. Reluctantly, the blue-skinned commander followed. The crowd once again erupted into applause and cheers.
"Lotor! Lotor! Lotor! Lotor! Lotor!"
In the corridor that led to the arena exit, the four generals were waiting for their leader's return in calm silence. The only noise being the soft purring of the black cat as it was being pet by the eyeless general, Narti. The cat suddenly raised its head, sensing footsteps approaching. Lotor entered, the Four Generals stood at attention, saluting to their superior. The Galran Prince walked down the steps with a calm stride that silently commanded attention, smirking in satisfaction.
The reddish general, Ezor, grinned, "That went well."
"The masses are easily manipulated," he said simply, walking past the half-breeds. He turned back to the other two generals; Zethrid the muscular one, and Acxa. "Have Throk transferred out to the Ulippa System immediately. Let him rot with the ice worms," he added coldly, his pleasant mask falling. The generals smirked.
And with that, Lotor walked out—Completely unfazed by what had just transpired, internally laughing at the dim-witted Galrans of the arena. All muscle, no brain. Not that he was surprised, he had mastered such manipulation that it was basically second-nature. And he knew how to make it sound 'sincere and empowering'. Hm... He sighed contently, and smirked. These fools have no idea what's in for them.
Back in the Castle of Lions, Keith, now in civilian clothes, stood before the once mighty Black Lion which was now lying sprawled on its side. He looked up at the metal giant, worry etched across his features, arms crossed tightly over his chest. The others stood some distance behind him, all in lounging clothes. They awkwardly looked at each other with vague glances pushing someone to move up. Surprisingly, Lance stepped up. He stood beside the Red Paladin, gazing at the Black Lion as well.
"Hey man... listen. We all miss Shiro. I remember what a thrill it was just to meet him for the first time when the two of us carried him out of that Garrison hospital." He reminisced, the memory now bitter-sweet in the moment. Slowly, the Green and Yellow Paladins stepped forward on Keith's other side.
"I grew up with my dad and Matt telling me stories about him. He was a legend at our house," Pidge joined.
"The guy taught me everything I know about being a pilot! Which isn't much, but that's more on me," Hunk added from his perspective.
Lance turned to Keith, eyes searching him. "You're not the only one hurting, man. We're all right there with you. But you know that he would be the first one to tell us that we have to move on." The Galran Paladin finally looked at him, face stiff, like he wasn't even sure how to react.
He then felt an arm on his shoulder, and looked to the face of its owner—Applejack. "Keith, I know exactly how ya feel," she started gently. "It can be hard to accept when someone is gone—Someone who knew you bett'r than anyone and would always be there for you. But our mission is bigger than any one individual. Even those who are completely irreplaceable. No matter how... empty it might make you feel."
"I know you're right," Keith sighed, heavy and tired, but his gaze was now replaced by something certain and hard—Resolve. "It's time to figure out how to reform Voltron."