Sven's Story

by: Karen Millett

To refresh the memory, as painful as it may be...

"Sven!" Keith cried as he and Lance ran toward Sven's limp body. Sven was face down on the ground. Lance stood back slightly to the side as Keith turned Sven over and held him in his lap, there was quite a bit of damage. Lance couldn't believe this was happening. Such a great fall for, in his opinion, a great pilot and friend.

Sven's majestic blade that had aided him in his valiant battle, his pureness and strength to fight evil and protect the good and innocent draining out of it, fell to the ground, its glow gone, with a light thud.

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Lance pulled out his communicator and tuned it to the Castle of Lions frequency,

"Coran?"

"Yes, Lance, this is Coran. I am reading you loud and clear." Came Coran's reply.

"This is an emergency. Send a transport with a stretcher and medics to the ruins of the village of Dania, northeast of the castle. Sven's been critically injured by a robeast. Extensive and heavy bleeding. Have a shuttle craft prepared and ready to take him to Ebb."

"Understood."

A few minutes passed like an eternity but the medics arrived. Keith and Lance helped them wrap heavy bandages around the wound and packed it to stop the bleeding. They knew they had a battle to get to but they wanted to make sure their friend was going to be well cared for before they left him.

Sven was unconscious as he was strapped securely to the shuttle and the medics loaded up to go back to the castle.

"Get him back to the castle for transport to Ebb," Lance snapped, "quickly but carefully. We've got a battle to win."

As the Voltron Force teamed up and broke for their Lions, the medics took Sven back to the Castle telling him that everything was going to be all right.

When they arrived at the Castle of Lions, the medics loaded the stretcher onto the waiting shuttle craft. Coran helped to cut the blood soaked bandages and jacket off Sven and replace them with clean, dry ones. The bleeding had eased considerably but Sven had still lost a lot of it.

Princess Allura, princess of the Planet Arus, took Sven's hand. He gripped it slightly and opened his eyes slowly.

"You're going to be all right. The doctors on Ebb will take good care of you." She whispered.

"Feel so weak." Sven voice was barely a whisper.

"You've lost a lot of blood. It's making you weak and tired but you've got to try and hold on. Try and stay conscious. You should never have gone after her alone, the price you're paying is too high, Sven, too high"

"My duty to you and this planet is first and foremost."

At that the pilot came back to make sure that Sven's stretcher was well secured before closing the shuttle craft's door. He knew he could wait no longer, Sven's life was a stake.

Allura stepped back out of the way then went back into the castle, tears slid down her cheeks as she prayed the pilot would get Sven to Ebb on time.

As the shuttle took off Sven could feel the pressure in the cabin change and press down on his body stopping what little bleeding there was left from the wound.

The pilot turned, putting the ship on autopilot, got up and sat down again on a crate beside Sven.

"How you doin'?" He asked, checking the bandages to see if they were holding.

"Hard to breathe, can't move." Sven whispered.

"Don't try." The pilot said. He took Sven's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze; "we're not far from Ebb now. Can you make it?"

"I think so."

The pilot, feeling reassured, once again took control of the ship just as Ebb appeared on the viewscreen.

Sven, his thoughts clouding, could hear the com.net crackling and snapping.

"Unidentified spacecraft, identify yourself and your mission."

"I'm from Planet Arus. I have a man who is badly wounded."

"State the nature of the wounds, as we receive your information we can better prepare for your arrival."

"Thank you. He is a Space Explorer from Galaxy Garrison, Earth. He is a member of the Voltron Force. He was slain by a robeasts' scythe down the length of his back. It looks pretty deep and he has lost a substantial amount of blood."

"Clearance granted. Land at docking bay four. Medics will be waiting for you there."

The pilot landed the ship and the medics quickly took charge of the situation. The pilot returned to Arus as the medics took Sven to receive the proper medical care that he so desperately needed.

A week passed before Sven awoke fully. He ached from head to toe. He was on his stomach and a nurse was wiping a light sweat from his forehead. His fever had broken early that morning but he was still hot. He had, also, finally stopped shaking from the fever chills that had gripped him for the last few days.

He opened his eyes and tried to move but couldn't.

"Don't try to move, you back is in a very fragile state. You lost a lot of blood, we weren't sure if you were going to make it."

"Keith?"

"He's on Arus. We've been keeping them appraised of your condition. They are eager to talk to you. I think you're strong enough to talk for a few minutes, just to put their minds at ease."

"Thank you."

"Sure." The nurse smiled as she set up a communications link. She brought up a small screen and set it on the table within Sven's line of vision. She tuned it to the frequency of the Castle of Lions. Coran responded to her hail with a few seconds.

"Castle of Lions, this is Planet Ebb. I am Nurse Arlise. I have a progress report on Sven."

"This is Coran responding from the Castle of Lions. Go ahead."

Sven shifted his head slightly and responded before the nurse could.

"Coran?"

"Sven, it's good to hear from you. I'll call the team, they'll be glad to hear from you. Princess Allura has taken over your position in Blue Lion, against mine and Nanny's better judgment, until your return."

As the nurse relayed Sven's condition to Coran, he called the Voltron Force. Allura was with them when the entered the Control room, she stifled a giggle as Lance attacked the com.

"Sven! How are you feeling? Good, I hope. When you gonna be back with us?"

"Slow down, Lance." Sven chuckled, "I'm fine but I won't be back on my feet for quite awhile. I'm still pretty weak. But one thing you can do to pass the time is teach Allura everything you know then when I get back I'll teach her everything you forget to mention."

"Thanks a lot, Sven, just you wait," Lance's voice trailed off when he heard a moan from Sven, "Sven? What's wrong?"

The nurse came back into view of the com.

"I'm afraid he won't be able to talk anymore, he's really still very tired and needs his rest. He's finally regained full consciousness but he's got a lot more sleeping to do before he'll be ready to talk for any length of time. The blade just missed his heart and lungs.

Nurse Arils gave them a sweet smile.

"I must go, I have other patients to attend to, but feel free to call anytime."

"Believe me, we will." Lance enthused, as the link was disconnected, glad to see his friend on the mend.

A month passed uneventfully as Sven slowly got stronger, until...

Nurse Arlise was checking her other patients when she heard a rumbling. She ran into the room where Sven lay, his magnificent black eyes darting back and forth seeking out some kind of explanation. She went over and stroked the hair out of his eyes.

"Everything's going o be all right." Then to herself, she whispered, "I hope."

Then one of the doctors came running in, he was panicked.

"We're being attacked. It's the forces of Doom. We are a peaceful planet with no weapons of war. Nurse Arlise, we've got to start evacuating the patients. Reports coming in say its King Zarkon himself."

He lowered his voice as he quickly checked Sven over.

" You're not able to travel, you can barely walk. We've got to get you out of here.

Sven closed his eyes and tried to fight off the fear that was threatening to overtake him.

"I cannot defend you, nor can I help you." Sven pushed himself up, "but you have done so much for me, I must try. I would be dead now if it wasn't for your efforts."

"No, Sven, don't." Nurse Arlise gripped Sven's shoulders to get him to lay back down.

Just then King Zarkon burst into the room with a flourish. A couple of robot guards were at his side. The doctor and nurse back away from Sven with the feeling that they knew what would happen next.

Zarkon went over to Sven, he had seen the man trying to get up off the bed but hadn't paid much mind but as he looked closer he came to realize who it was. Recognition appeared in his eyes and he smiled his evil smile.

He had attacked this planet because of its lack of defenses and easy slaves but he had no idea that this was where the slain Voltron Force member had been taken.

Zarkon brought up a hand and smashed Sven across the face, laughing loudly. Sven hit the bed on his stomach. Sven screamed in agony, a writhing white-hot pain ripped through his entire body. As the pain faded his whole body felt numb, he knew there was no escape now. He was sure he would die.

"Guards," Zarkon snapped, "take him to the slave ship and throw him in. Make sure he walks, if he's going to try and stand up to me he had better make sure he is able to stand on those two feet first. Walking will do wonders for the leg muscles, if it don't kill you first. You'll learn that no one stands up to me now, or ever, and lives. Do you hear, no one? No one! You'll die first, you'll die first."

"Sire!" The guards snapped to attention. They go over to Sven and pull him to his feet. They drag him toward the slave ship but made sure to keep him on his feet.

Blood started to stain the back of Sven's loose shirt and the pain started to intensify, if it were possible, blackening his vision and threatening to make him pass out.

Zarkon walked out of the room laughing, yelling at his guards to round up the rest of the people for slaves.

Once Zarkon was well out of sight the doctor opened a com. link to Planet Arus. He had to tell them what was happening.

"Castle Arus, please come in, this is Planet Ebb."

"This is Planet Arus, go ahead." Coran's voice came back over the transmitter.

"We were just attacked by Zarkon. He took Sven. They were treating him very roughly, it could reopen his wound. It took a very long time for that to heal over and it is still very delicate. I don't think it would take too much to reopen it.

"I saw a touch of blood on his shirt as they were taking him out. I hope it don't lead to anything. He could bleed to death if the wound is reopened and he does not receive immediate medical attention. I'm sorry. I truly am."

At that moment, in the slave ship, Sven felt soft, feminine hands working at his back. Pressing any material she could find on his back she quickly stopped the bleeding. Sven lay on the ship's floor; it felt cool on his fevered body.

"Nothing is damaged, the wound is not reopened, it is just a bit of oozing. You should be fine for the moment." Sven heard no more as he lost consciousness.

It had only felt like a few moments when he felt feminine hands lightly shaking him.

"What's wrong?" He managed to whisper.

"We're almost to Doom."

"I can't move well."

"I know." She replied.

Another of the slaves came over and Sven could feel big but gentle, masculine hands picking him up. Once Sven was cradled, unhurt, in the big man's arms the ship landed in the spaceport on Planet Doom.

The ramps lowered and guards seemed to crawl out of the metalwork to herd the slaves toward the prisons to await their fate. A guard, seeing that someone had the nerve to help Sven, forced the man to drop Sven to the floor.

Sven felt himself being pulled to his feet and a firm hand pressing him in the back to keep him on his feet and keep him moving.

He forced his tired eyes open to see Zarkon moving toward him. He closed his eyes as he felt Zarkon's massive hands turning him around to check the wound, then lift him several inches off the ground to hurl him into a nearby guard.

"Dispose of him. He's no good to me. What good id a slave that can't work? I don't care what you do to him, throw him into the Pit of Skulls for all I care. Just get him out of here."

After what seemed like an eternity of walking, Sven felt the guards letting him slump to dirty, dusty ground not far from the edge of the Pit of Skulls.

He could hear the roar of the robeasts in the arena and could, almost, feel the ground shaking underneath him. It filled him with a horrible fear that he had never felt before, he had to get out of there.

Sven, slowly, pushed himself up into a sitting position and looked around. He crawled to the edge of the Pit of Skulls and looked down. He could find shelter there but the fall alone would, probably, kill him.

The only way he would be able to move around was after dark. He crawled behind a pile of rocks and curled up. There, he would be out of sight and, somewhat ,protected until he could figure out what to do.

He thought if he could make it back to the spaceport, he could steal a ship. He would get back to his friends and leave this horrible place behind.

Sven closed his eyes and relaxed, when he opened them again it was dark. He must have fallen asleep. Now he didn't know how long it had been dark, he had to get moving if he was going to make this plan work.

He got to his feet and, slowly, made his way back to the Castle of doom. He managed to get past the guards and into a ventilation duct. He lay there for several minutes, catching his breath. He wasn't sure if he was going to make it after all. This was really zapping what little strength he had left.

When he felt he could go on, Sven pushed himself and continued on. He had no idea of where he was going, he wasn't sure of himself anymore. When he looked out one of the grates all that he could see were prison cells.

When he came to a dead end he started to turn back but the duct was weakening under his weight. These were old ducts, seldom used and in desperate need of repair.

Sven gave a short cry when the duct let go and he went crashing to the floor. He shook his head slowly as he looked around, he was in a large room with two doors. He tried the first one but it was locked. He tried the other door and it creaked open under his gentle touch.

The room was a small armory, containing shields and swords. Sven grabbed a sword, he was sure he would need it. There was another door to this room. He pushed its release button and it slid up. Sven stepped through and it slid shut behind him.

Sven felt a touch of fear rise in his throat when he realized that the door couldn't be raised from that side and that fear turned into panic when he realized, as he looked around, that he was in the arena. He had to get out of there but the only way out of there was death.

He saw gates on the far side and started to run towards them. He knew he shouldn't be running, especially in this place, but he had no choice. He had to see where went and if he could get through.

All of a sudden, something reached out and grabbed Sven by the ankle. Sven felt to the ground, his sword skittering out of reach. When Sven looked down, it was a person that had grabbed him. When he looked around, Sven saw more bodies. He wasn't sure if they were dead or alive.

Sven knew his resolve was almost gone, he let a small scream escape his lips as he knocked the hand away. He jumped to his feet and swung around to run but as he did he slammed into the side of the arena. He had been closer to the wall than he thought.

Sven felt himself losing consciousness as he slumped to the cold floor of the arena, just feet from the gate that would save his life.

When Sven regained consciousness, it was morning. He could hear the robeast roaring, almost in his ear, wanting their breakfast, their daily dose of slaves Sven supposed. He could hear the people screamed and wanted, desperately, to make it go away but couldn't. When he sat up and looked around, bloody bodies were everywhere.

Sven felt himself ready to vomit, but the lack of food only resulted in dry heaves. When he could look again , he could only watch for a few minutes before turning his head away. As he did he saw a man beckoning to him from the gate. The same gate he had been trying to get to when he had knocked himself out instead.

Sven slowly started top crawl towards the gate, he took his time. He had stiffened up considerably and found the short trip long and painful. He wanted to go quick but slow, desperate not to attract attention.

Sven crawled up to the gate, the man pulled him through and took him away from there.

Sven lost track of the time he spent in the caves of Doom recovering and allowing his wounds to heal. He was soon able to walk without a limp and had, almost, all of his old strength back. The other slaves were very kind in helping him, taking care of him and showing him what was safe to eat and what wasn't.

He went often to the gates of the arena and watched, from the shadows, the brutal murders of so many innocent people. As his spirit was slowly being destroyed by the insanity that he witnessed everyday and was unable to help or do anything about, Sven was slowly being destroyed.

He turned to look at a fellow slave that had gotten away, the man shrunk back avoiding Sven's insane eyes.

Relighting his candle, Sven picked up a rock, dripped a little wax on it and laid it on the little pile of rocks that was shaped like a pyramid leaning against one of the blood stained bars. The man moved up beside him, still avoiding Sven's gaze.

"Sven's dead now, isn't he?" The man asked, "he can finally rest from the pain of his wounds, can't he?"

"Yes, he can, my friend. Sven will no longer need to feel any pain." he snarled, walking off.

Suddenly, Sven could hear a scream from a woman from deep within the caves. He stopped up short then started to head in the direction of the scream.

As he came out at the mouth of the Pit of Skulls, he saw a beautiful young woman lying there in a tattered dress. She looked familiar and something deep within his heart stirred. He, suddenly, knew that he needed to help her, that he would be doing right and that some good would come of it.

Sven went over and gently helped her to her feet. The woman seemed to understand that he was trying and to help her, despite the insane look in his eyes, and didn't resist him.

He quickly started to pull her down into the deep tunnels when he heard Lotor and his guards chasing after her, wanting to make sure that she was really down there.

Sven pulled her into a small side cave and pushed a huge boulder in front of the opening to cover it up, making it look like part of the cave wall.

As soon as Lotor and his guards had gone by, unaware that they had already lost her, Sven turned to face her.

"Now you're safe, so why don't you get out of here?"

Try as he might, she would not leave him. She knew who he was and started to tell him things that he had tried to block out when he put his past behind him, when he lost his mind believing that Sven was another part of his mind and was dead.

Sven was dead because he was a failure, he had not been able to save himself on Ebb nor had he been able to help the people there. He was a failure because he had not been able to escape Doom. Sven was a failure because he was not the man he used to be. Sven, the failure, was dead.

Unfortunately, he had never thought that he, someday, would encounter this woman.

The more she talked to him the more the tameness returned to his eyes. Sanity slowly started to return but his fear still kept him wary of her.

She gave Sven her communicator and he took her up to the surface. It took a little coaxing but she talked him into calling castle Arus. She told Sven her name was Princes Romelle of planet Pollux, her cousin was Princess Allura.

Sven knew that's why she looked familiar, she looked like Allura. That's why he knew he had to help her, she knew Allura, she could get him home.

Once they were off Doom and out of danger, Sven swore he would do anything to protect her. Anything to protect the woman who gave him back his sanity and his life.

The End

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I chose not to go into detail of Sven's rescue of Romelle and vice versa. I have chosen to summarize from his point of view, because, from his point of view the worst was over and should be left in the past.

The author