Voltron: V4
                               LEGEND
                                
                         part 5: Reunion
                               by Mea

     On the bridge of the Druul ship Charybdis, General Zuir
calmly examined the sensor readouts of the battle on Planet
Telos.  He seemed immune to the surprise shared by his bridge
crew over events below.
     "Contact the remaining three fighters in orbit," he told
one of his bridge officer.  "Tell them to do a full scan on our
new arrival.  Get as close as possible without being detected
and gather as much information as is available, and return
here."
     "It's time we knew more about the target of our mission,"
he added darkly.
     +    +    +    +    +    +
     The silver-white streak that had just exploded out of the
ground slowed enough to be seen, revealing itself to be a
massive robotic bird of prey, nearly as large as the lions
themselves. 
     The robot was a creature of white steel and silver with
wings made of feathers that looked almost as sharp as its metal
talons.  It's glowing eyes quickly surveyed the scene, taking
in the battle, then with another predatory scream, it dove at
the RoBeast's upraised arm. Steel claws tore through flesh and
metal as they raked the beast's limb.  The RoBeast howled in
pain and furiously tried to grab the white metal bird, but the
newcomer was already out of range.
     In the meantime, Lance had managed to restart his power
systems enough to get the fallen Red Lion to its feet and took
shakily to the air.  He could still fight, but there were
warning lights everywhere, thanks to the damage from being
slammed to the ground by the simian RoBeast.  If it turned out
that that bird-thing wasn't on their side and Keith and Allura
didn't arrive soon, he thought, if he and Pidge and Hunk had to
deal with it as well as the RoBeast without the other two lions
to form Voltron...
     A crackle of static popped over his comm, then...
     "Telosian forces and Voltron Force," a female voice said,
"this is unidentified vessel.  Do not fire, I am on your side. 
Repeat, I am on your side.  Please respond and advise me on
your situation."
     That voice, Lance thought, I know her, but... "Mira?"
     There was a pause.  
     "...Lance, is that you?"
     "Mira, I don't believe it!  How-?"
     "Where are you Lance?  I don't see any fighters."
     "Over here," he said and Red Lion roared.    
     "...you're flying one of the Voltron LIONS?"
     "So're Pidge, Hunk and Keith, right guys?"
     He heard Pidge and Hunk's voices in agreement over the
comm.  He couldn't believe it, he hadn't seen her in what...
over a year?  He thought she'd been stationed on Balto
before...  There was no visual; he wondered if she'd changed. 
Something inside him told him "No", whether this was a good
thing or not, he couldn't decide.  He smiled: this would almost
be fun if it wasn't for the giant monster trying to kill them.
     A new voice interrupted their conversation.
     "Unknown Vessel, this is Keith of the Voltron Force. Do
you read me Mira?"
     "I read you Keith, though it's starting to feel like an
Academy reunion around here.  What's the situation?"   
     "I've got the battle on long range scanners.  Blue Lion
and I are on our way, but it'll be a few minutes before we
arrive at your position.  Does your robot have weapons that
might help keep it contained until we get there?"
     "Um... I think so.  Pretty sure."
     "You 'think' so?  Mira, how long have you been flying that
thing?" Keith asked, his voice tinged with dread.
     "...about thirty seconds.  But the controls are like a DS
102," she added helpfully, "...kinda."
     Despite the dire situation, Lance almost laughed; he could
just imagine the expression on Keith's face when she said that. 
Something between shock, amazement, and horror.
     "Mira -"
     "Don't worry Keith, I'll be careful.  It's just the guys
could use some extra cover until you get here.  I just need to
know what's going on."
     "All right," Keith said reluctantly.  "Guys, fill her in. 
Allura and I will be there as soon as we can."
     "Got it Keith," Pidge's voice sounded.  "Mira, I'm
transmitting the tactical we've got so far."
     "Receiving... I think... Yes, it's coming up now."
     "Incoming!" warned Hunk, as the RoBeast launched a barrage
of missiles from its shoulders.  The three lions and their new
ally deftly dodged out of the way of the speeding warheads
which blew up harmlessly in the air nearby.
     "Okay," Lance said as they regrouped.  "That thing's
already got a large hole on it's back.  If we can widen it, we
might be able to take out the internals.  Mira, got any heavy
weapons on that thing?"
     "I think so, but haven't tried them yet."
     "Don't worry about it.  I just need you and you guys to
draw its fire and cover me if you can.  I'm going to try and
give that thing a back rub with Red Lion's claws."
     "Are you sure about this?"  he heard Pidge ask.
     Not at all, he thought, but instead he said "Positive. 
Now let's go guys.  We've got a job to do."
     +    +    +    +    +    +
     "I'll be damned... so THAT'S what she was lookin' for..."
     Owen stared at the monitor displaying the conflict
outside; he'd never seen anything like the silver and white
eagle robot as long as he'd lived, and was pretty sure the
other two with him hadn't either.
     "Take a good look, kiddo," he said to Scott, "That legend
you were telling us about?  There it is, big as life, twice as
solid... and I wouldn't believe it if I wasn't seeing it right
now."
     He glanced over at the young archeologist; the boy was
staring open-mouthed like a child in shock having discovered
his parents had really gotten him a pony for Christmas.
     Owne then shifted his gaze to the Defender of the Throne. 
Jared had put on a face of unimpressedness, or tried to at any
rate.  Despite how much the solder was trying to hide it, Owen
could tell he was in as much awe as the rest of them.
     Owen turned back to the battle scene: everything out there
was a miracle of machinery and maybe a little magic.  He wasn't
sure what magic was, but there was so much out in the universe
he couldn't begin to explain, that he wasn't about to discount
it as nonsense.  He'd heard rumors that the Voltron Lions, and
creatures like that gorilla-thing out there had something to do
with magic, and he was sure that the White Eagle robot was made
of similar stuff.  He couldn't help but marvel at that even if
he didn't understand how it might work.
     Scott's voice caused him to snap out of his thoughts
suddenly.
     "OH NO!!  NOT YOU TOO!!!"
     He turned in time to see Jared running towards the
hallway.  He quickly glanced at the pile of former king and saw
that the number of crystals had been reduced to two, with Scott
sagging dejectedly by them.
     "Hold it right there, Defender."
     The soldier stopped and spun around to face him.  "I know
what I'm doing."
     "Do ya' now.  You're going to run out there and fly
something you've never seen before into the middle of a fight,
just like that."
     "That woman did."
     "That woman also flew a Doom Fighter she'd never seen
before through an asteroid field, and don't say she didn't
'cause I saw her do it.  Look... there's already enough
amateurs out there as it is.  Why don't we see what happened
before add any more, hm?"
     "My duty is to Telos."
     "Does your duty include getting in the way, 'cause that's
what you'll be out there.  You'll serve everyone a lot more by
just sitting your butt down until something happens that you
can do something about.  True?"
     Jared looked at the ruby red device in his hand, and
thought a moment.  Then, he stepped over to the nearest chair
and sat down.
     "For now," he said.
     "For now," Owen agreed.  He then looked over at the kid.
     Scott looked the picture of depression; his head was
buried in his hands as he slouched by Solon's earthly remains.
     Owen sat himself by the boy and smiled.  "You know I don't
think that professor of yours would worry about it anymore. 
Damage is done, no sense cryin' over it."
     He picked up one of the two remaining gem keys; for a
split second, it was a burning kind of cold, like liquid
nitrogen, but the sensation passed almost immediately.  Now it
felt like what it was, smooth cold rock and metal.  He turned
it over in his hands, watching the light reflect across the
gold casing, and dance over the black, mirror-like stone.
     "They are beautiful," he remarked.  "Doncha think so?"  He
turned it over once or twice for the kid to see. 
     Scott didn't move.
     "Hey, Defender, Scott here doesn't believe me.  Tell him
they're beautiful."
     "Ummm..." Jared answered, temporarily caught flat-footed.
"...Yes, they're nice."
     "See?  Even he thinks so, and he doesn't like anything. 
Believe me kiddo, you don't know what your missing."
     Scott looked at him as if he were insane, then he turned
his eyes to the key, then back to Owen, and finally let out a
long sigh before picking up the last one.  He seemed to stare
into his own reflection in the golden yellow crystal as he
studied it carefully.
     "That wasn't so hard, now as it?" said Owen.
     Scott shrugged weakly, and began to make notes.
     "Good," Owen muttered as he went back to his position
beside the sensor board, "Let's hope we don't have to use 'em."
     +    +    +    +    +    +
     "Okay guys, I'm starting my run... NOW!"
     Mira barely had to move the controls before the robotic
eagle she was piloting sped down in a steep dive, screaming in
defiance at the ugly RoBeast it was harassing.  She couldn't
explain it; never had a ship felt more natural to control than
this one, at times it felt as if it was an extension of
herself.  Flying it was like an instinct: she knew almost
automatically what each control did and how it would respond. 
How else could she execute the sharp fly-by past the RoBeast's
flailing arms with only mere meters to spare even after a year
of forced grounding to boot?  It was unlike anything she'd ever
flown before, and probably would ever fly again.
     "Looks like we're getting it's attention," she heard
Pidge's voice say over the comm.  "You ready Lance?"
     "Ready as I'm going to be," Lance replied.  "After you,
Hunk."
     "Right," said Hunk's voice.  "Starting... NOW!"
     Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Yellow Lion join
Green Lion and herself in harassment tactics around the simian
RoBeast.  The creature continued to flail at them and fire
missiles in their direction as its eye beams raked the sky. 
Behind it, unnoticed to the creature, Red Lion swooped around
and prepared to pounce.
     There was something wrong, though.  Mira noticed that Red
Lion seemed to wobble in its flight path.  Over the open comm
channel, she heard Lance swear under his breath.
     She wasn't the only one to notice. Over the speaker,
Hunk's voice asked "Hey Lance, something wrong there?"
     "Two of my stabilizers just blew!  That last impact must
have done something... Don't worry about it, I've got it
covered!"
     "You can't fly Red Lion with that many stabilizers out!"
     "Maybe, but don't tell the RoBeast that," Lance joked, but
there was tension in his voice.
     "C'mon Lance-"
     "Lance!  LOOK OUT!" Mira yelled into the radio: the
monster had noticed him, turned, and was launching a wave of
missiles at him.
     With his damage, he wouldn't be able to get out of the way
in time.
     Mira didn't even stop to think; she jerked the controls
and forced the White Eagle in between the RoBeast and Lance's
lion, charging the missiles as she squeezed several buttons on
the flight grip activating a series of point defense lasers
along her hull.   The eight beams slashed around her, exploding
missiles about her and surrounding her in eruptions of black
smoke and fire.
     The White Eagle didn't stop.  It burst through the dark
smoke and immediately climbed into a steep arc over the
RoBeast, spiraling in the air overhead, and then hurtling down
at the creature's back.  It slammed hard into its back with its
talons extended, causing the RoBeast to roar in pain.  The
monster tried to catch hold and throw the White Eagle from its
back, but it couldn't reach as the metal bird tore into the
monster's armor with beak and talons, widening the existing
rend in the armor.
     "Heads up!," Mira yelled into the comm.  "Armor breech
increasing!"
     She thought she heard a reply, but she couldn't be sure;
she was concentrating so hard on breaking through the beast's
armor that she was aware of little else.  It was all instincts 
now.  She almost didn't realize that the RoBeast was about to slam 
the White Eagle and itself into the wall of the canyon, but 
before it could, she took to the air again as the beast threw 
itself against the rocky cliffs of the Scar.  Angrily, it surged 
to its feet and charged after the White Eagle, bending low to 
allow its remaining back cannon a shot. The cannon fired but the 
White Eagle spiraled out of the way, turning in midair to face its
attacker and fired a pair of ion lasers at the beast from
either wing.  The creature barely flinched; instead it reared
back and roared, preparing to charge.
     Suddenly, there was a huge explosion that started at the
creature's back and ripped forward through it's chest. The
RoBeast's head jerked back, and slowly, it fell forward with a
tremendous crash and exploded as it's internal systems
completely failed.  
     Her tunnelvision focus on the RoBeast snapped back into a
wider view.   Through the smoke, Mira could make out the shapes
of five lion ships, each one with all weapon ports open, which
explained the explosion.  She was suddenly very aware of the
amount of adrenalin buzzing in her veins and how fast her heart
was pounding.  For the last few seconds, it felt like she'd
been running on pure instinct.  No thought, just action.
     She almost jumped out of her chair with the comm sounded.
     "Mira, this is Keith.  Nice job out there.  We're setting
down at the edge of the Scar and-"
     "Wait, Keith.  There's still three people on the ship down
there.  I'm pretty sure they're safe, but they don't have a way
out.  I have to go back."
     "Mira?" a new voice cut in.  "Can you hear me?"
     "...Yes?"
     "'Bout TIME!  Thought I'd never figure this radio out. 
Mira, it's Owen.  Just tell Telos Control to send a transport
with that professor guy, whathisname... Windum, that's it.  Him
and his team.  They got a couple hundred years worth of
cataloguing to do on this baby.  Me and the Defender'll just
hitch a ride out on their transport."
     "Are you sure Owen?"
     "Positive.  We're fine."  The next was said in a lower
voice.  "'Sides, I want to be here when Scott talks to Windum. 
He took it hard when disturbed everything, and I don't want him
blaming himself in front of his prof.  And having the Defender
of the Throne here might score some points with him as well."
     "Understood."
     "Good.  Now you go shmooze with the Voltron Force."
     "Owen!"
     "Have fun!  Owen out."
     Before Mira could retort further, he cut transmission. 
Over the frequency, she could hear Pidge and Hunk and Lance,
and probably Keith too, all laughing.  Well, it was kind of
funny, she thought.           
     "All right, all right guys," Mira chuckled. "Let's take
care of them first.  Then I'll meet you below."
     "And shmooze?"  That was Pidge, emphasizing the "ooze".
     "Oh, stop that."
     +    +    +    +    +    +
     "Sir, the remainder of the attack fleet has returned. 
What are your orders?"
     General Norak said nothing and continued to glower at the
monitors in front of him.
     "Um... sir?: his bridge officer timidly pressed.
     With a roar, Norak lashed out at the nearest screen.  The
glass shattered against his fist and left a smoking hole where
the image had been.  He didn't feel the pain of the cuts and
burns that covered his knuckles, all he felt was anger.
     The officer took a step back.  Obviously, his commander
was not in the mood.
     He tried to back slowly back to his post, but bumped into
the communications officer, who seemed even more nervous than
he did.
     "Um... sir?  There's a communication -"
     "_NOT_NOW_!!!" Norak snarled.
     "But sir, it's King Zarkon."
     Norak gave him a burning scowl. "Fine.  My ready room."
     The general got up and stomped into the next room where
the scaled face of his ruler stared back at him.
     "So, Norak," said Zarkon in an unctuous tone, "how goes
our operation?"
     "There has been a... minor setback," Norak began, biting
back the loathing in his soul.
     "Minor?" the king retorted.  "Why must every failure refer
to it as a 'minor' setback?  You lost half your fleet, nearly
lost a very expensive excavator ship, and wasted a perfectly
good RoBeast, and for WHAT?  You're as big a waste as that
loser Yurak!"
     Norak bristled, but before he could respond, Zarkon
continued his rant.
     "To think I'd actually let such a pathetic excuse of
slimemold be in change of a mission like this!  I should send
you back here and let Hagar turn you into something useful."
     "Your highness-" Norak began, a slight sneer evident in
his tone.
     "No excuses, Norak.  Either get me that prize, or I'll
find someone who can!"
     With that, the screen went dead.
     Norak stewed in silence.  Humiliation burned inside him,
further fueling his hatred of Zarkon.
     Soon he would fly that silver white eagle-ship in an
attack on Zarkon's palace, have the old fish groveling at his
feet, he could feel it.
     First, he needed a plan...
     +    +    +    +    +    +
     "Sire, are you sure you trust him?"
     Zarkon settled back in his throne without looking at the
old witch at the base of his dias.
     "Of course not, Hagar," he said.  "He's an ambitious power
hungry idiot who'd betray me the first opportunity he got."
     "I see," the old witch said bemusedly.
     "Even an idiot can be inspired, though." he continued. 
"Hopefully, I've made him mad enough that he'll stop at nothing
to get the weapon until he succeeds or he's dead.  Either way,
I win."
     "Suppose he does succeed?  What's to stop him from using
the weapon on you?"
     "I've already thought of that," he replied, tapping a
small button on his arm rest.
     A woman appeared out of the shadows of the throne room as
if they had spawned her.  Her skin was green and smooth, and
her eyes were yellow and reptilian and cold.  Her long black
hair was tied down her back in a long braid that reached her
waist.  She wore red under black and gold armor with a large
blue gem set in the chest.  She stopped at the edge of the dias
and bowed deeply.
     "Yes my king," she said in voice like velvet.
     Hagar seemed to recoil slightly in revulsion, a fact that
was not lost on Zarkon.
     "Ah, Zarha, how is my right hand today?"
     "Awaiting your command, my king."
     "Good.  I have a special job for you..."
     +    +    +    +    +    +
     The White Eagle settled effortlessly on the ground near
the pride of metal lions, and inside, Mira shifted nervously
stood up and reached for the hatch. Her stomach was a tense
knot as she he climbed out of the cockpit and clambered down to
the ground.  She hadn't seen Lance or Keith or Hunk or Pidge
since graduation at the Space Academy, and she realizes she had
no idea what she was going to say as she trotted over to meet
them.
     There they were, dressed in white uniforms with colored
accents, and they'd hardly changed at all.
     "Um... Hi." she managed.  It was a start.
     The looks on their faces suddenly made her aware of how
she had changed; how thin and gaunt her slavery had left her. 
Her loose clothing made it only feel more obvious.  And there
were the stitches on her forehead.  And the bandages. And the
small scars, souvenirs of her time with Doom.  And...
     "Mira, that was AMAZING!!!" Hunk interrupted her thoughts.
He was smiling a huge grin, and before she knew it, he caught
her up in a huge, friendly bearhug.  "That ship, and your
flying... are you SURE you've never flown it before?  You were
great!"  
     "Hunk!" she laughed, "put me down! Come on!"
     Even after he released her, she kept smiling.  This was
familiar territory, she knew them, they knew her... for the
first time in so long, she felt that things were right.
     "Was that on the ship?  The buried one?" Pidge asked. 
"How did you know it would still work?"
     "I...I didn't.  I just had a hunch."
     "That must have been some hunch.  I'm not sure I would've
tried it, not with equipment that old."
     "I wasn't thinking about that, I guess.  I..."
     There was the sound of someone clearing their throat. 
Pidge and Hunk turned and stepped aside to reveal Keith
standing in a textbook attention stance.  Mira stepped forward
and matched his pose.  He snapped her a crisp salute, which she
returned.
     "Hello Mira," he said and relaxed.
     "Hi Keith," she said, giving him a hearty handshake.
     "How's my best wingman?"
     "Doing a lot better than I was a week ago."
     "You're going to have to tell us what happened."
     "You too," she said, gesturing to the uniform he wore.
     "This is her highness, Princess Allura," he said,
gesturing to the blonde woman to his right dressed in a similar
uniform.
     Mira bowed.  "Your highness, it's a pleasure."
     "A pleasure for me as well," the princess replied.  "Keith
said you went to the Academy with him."
     "I did."
     "You must tell me..." she trailed off, her eyes looking
past Mira.  Keith did the same.
     Mira turned.
     Lance was standing behind her.  His expression was...
strange.
     "Hi Mira," he said quietly.
     "Hi," she softly answered.
     They looked at each other in an awkward silence, then Mira
stepped forward and embraced him.
     "I missed you," she whispered.
     "I missed you also," he murmured as he held her close.
     For that one moment, everything that had happened in the
past year melted away, everything was perfect, and then...
     "...you should have stuck to the plan, you know."
     Mira's thoughts came to a screeching halt.  She pushed
away from Lance and gaped at him.  "What?!"
     He shrugged.  "I'm just saying I had everything under
control..."
     "I don't believe this!  Well.. FINE!  Next time I'll let
Mr. Happy Monster-thing stomp all over you.  Is that better?"
     "It was just a stabilizer."
     "You said two."
     "One, two.. I was fine."
     "Sure you were."
     Pidge looked at his watch, and nudged Hunk.  "Less than
five minutes. Pay up."
     Lane and Mira started at them.  "What was that?"
     "Nothing," Pidge said innocently.
     "Pidge bet me you two would start fighting again in less
than five minutes," Hunk shrugged. "I figured you'd last at
least ten."
     "...You were betting on us?"
     "Well..."
     "They used to date," Keith said to Allura, as if that
explained everything.
     Mira started to laugh.  It was a combination of disbelief
and catharsis, and she couldn't stop. It was a laugh that had
been waiting a year to be released.  Pretty soon the others
were joining in, even the princess she noticed, and it felt
good.
     She was still giggling a bit when a small delegation of
Telosian troops arrived.
     "Your highness," they said, addressing the Princess
Allura, "Lord Kyr would like to request your presence at
tonight's ball in honor of the day's discovery and your
victory.  He also wishes to extend the hand of welcome to the
members of the Voltron Force, and to Miss Mira Astrii as well,
all of whom made this possible."
     Mira's jaw dropped.  A royal ball?  The day's
impossibilities were endless.
     Princess Allura nodded her head graciously.  "Tell Lord
Kyr that we are greatly honored by his invitation and look
forward to seeing him this evening."
     "Thank you your highness.  With your permission, we have
an honor guard ready to escort you back to the palace."
     "Of course.  It will be most welcome."
     A thought suddenly occurred to Mira. "Oh wait, I don't
have-"
     "Prime Minister Lynn is already making preparations for
your attire," the royal guard said.  "She thought it best."
     "Oh!  Well, um.. Tell her thanks for me," said Mira.  She
was still feeling very overwhelmed.
     "Okay team," Keith announced to their little group, "
looks like we're done out here.  Ready to head back?  And Mira,
would you care to join us in the new ship?"
     "Mira smiled.  "Sure.  I'm ready."
     In moment, five glorious metal lions and one majestic
metal eagle flew across the sky flanked by the finest of the
Royal Telosian Fleet as they made their way to the Palace of
Lord Kyr.  Everyone who saw it said it was like watching legend
come to life in the skies over Telos, an appropriate way to
mark such an important day.
     +    +    +    +    +    +
     Just out of scanning range of Telosian Space Control, a
small group of Druul ships loomed.  On board the lead ship, the
Charybdis, its commander was pondering recent events from the
confines of his room.  It's decor was spartan, but it suited
the owner extremely well.
     There was a knock at his door.
     "Yes?" he asked.
     "General Zuir,"a voice muffled by the door answered.  "I
have the sensor reports from the squad here."
     The general opened the door and accepted the data chip
from the young officer who he then dismissed.  He popped the
chip into a reader and began to study the data from the earlier
battle.  He sat there for several hours, hardly moving,
digesting the data, turning ideas over in his head.
     It would not be easy, gaining this objective, he knew
that.  But it was not impossible.  The key was to strike at the
weakest link.  A direct assault would be suicidal; even if the
Voltron Lion's left, there'd still be the actual weapon to deal
with.  The data showed what one part of it could do, and if the
information he remembered from the archives was correct, he'd
soon have to deal with far more than just the white eagle ship.
     He skimmed the transmission logs again.
     He needed some way to disable the target without
destroying it.
     There was something in the communication logs.  He skimmed
them again.
     There it was.  Their weak link.
     Perfect.
     He had his link, now he just had to use it.
     +    +    +    +    +    +
     The main ballroom of the Palace was lit like a crystal
dream accentuated by splashes of color from the exquisite gowns
and fine suit of the Telosian nobles as they gathered in small
groups to converse or as couples to dance to the elegant music. 

     It was every storybook grand ball brought to life.
     The activity was interrupted only by the arrival of
Princess Allura escorted by Keith in his full military dress
uniform.  Behind them followed the rest of the Voltron Force
also in the navy blue formal uniforms of their posts.  As they
entered, there was a ripple of applause from the guests which
was graciously acknowledged by the five.  Lord Kyr descended
from his throne at the head of the room, and with his Prime
Minister and his Protector, came over to greet them.
     "Your highness," he said, giving a slight bow as he kissed
the princess' hand, "You honor me by your radiant presence."
     "And you honor me by your kind invitation and words."
     He smiled, then turned his attention to her escort. 
"Commander Keith, I must thank you for you and your team's
gallant efforts today.  I'm afraid I was a bit... short with
you earlier."
     "A little?" Lance muttered sarcastically, only to get
elbowed in the ribs by Hunk.
     "No," said Kyr, "he's right.  I'm afraid I have much to
learn about being a gracious host... and defending my people. 
It seems today was quite an education for me.  You and your
friends are very brave, Princess. I only hope I can find a
fraction of that for the times ahead."
     "Arus will always be ready to help you should you need it,
Lord Kyr."
     "Thank you , Princess.  I hope I won't need to test that
new part of our alliance, but now isn't the time to be
discussing such thing.  Please, enjoy yourself; there are many
here from the older houses who are looking forward to finally
meeting you."
     With that he bowed and gestured to the main floor. Hunk,
Pidge and Lance trailed behind the five in the lead, slowly
wandering over to the buffet table.
     "Some party, huh," said Hunk.
     "I think this one could give the ones back on Arus some
competition," Pidge replied.  "Look at all the people.  And I
think they're all nobles too."
     "Probably.  Hey Lance, what do you think?"
     Lance didn't hear the rest of what he said, for at that
moment, he saw someone else quietly entered the ballroom.  She
wore a simple but elegant, long, deep red sheaf that appeared
to be made of velvet yet clung like silk.  Her brown hair was
fastened to one side and shot with strands of small pearls that
looked almost like stars in her hair.
     He couldn't take his eyes off her.
     In his entire life, Lance had never seen Mira look so
beautiful.
     +    +    +    +    +    +
     Mira wobbled slightly as she made her way into the Great
Hall of the Telosian Royal Palace.  The shoes she wore had
narrow raised heels, which she wasn't used to at all (not that
she'd worn that style much before her time in Doom's slave
camps). She told herself that now would not be a good time to
fall on her face, not with all the people around.  If only
she'd had more time to practice with them, but the shoes, like
the dress, had been given to her at the last minute,
compliments of Prime Minister Lynn, and Mira had to admit, the
woman had very good taste in clothes.  If the fight before
seemed hectic and chaotic, Mira decided that it was nothing
compared to the preparations for the ball that evening which
had blurred into a flurry of people measuring her, her trying
on clothes, a quick bath, a stylist, a hair dresser, and
several other people who just ran and fetched thing at Prime
Minister Lynn's direction all going on at around light speed. 
After all this, she wanted to collapse.
     So far, the only person that noticed her entrance was
Owen, though she almost didn't recognize him, as he had dressed
for the occasion.
     "My goodness, doncha clean up nice!" Owen remarked,
walking up to greet her. She had thought he'd look out of place
in a tuxedo, but the man had a unique talent to be  comfortable
in any situation.  It was a talent she wished she had.
     She smiled "Look at yourself.  I never thought I'd see you
without that jacket of yours."
     "Sometimes, you gotta make sacrifices, but I think I'll
live," he said and adjusted his tie.  "Not often you're the
guest of honor at a royal party."
                                        "I'm glad they invited you."  
     "They didn't have much choice," he grinned.  "When the
troops came to get us out, that soldier boy that was with us
told them the whole thing, made us all out to be heroes.  And
Scott... oh you should have seen his face when that prof of his
got there.  I don't think he's stopped talking yet."
     He looked over to another cluster of people centered
around Professor Windum and his young protege both dressed
appropriately (if not conservatively compared to the other
guests).  It was obvious they were enjoying the audience to
expound on their archeological discovery.  As Scott went about
his animated explanations, it was obvious that he was in utter
bliss.
     "Those two haven't stopped talking since I got here," he
smiled.  ""Specially the kid.  I'm starting to think he doesn't
breath."
     Mira laughed.  "Me too.  But I'm glad he's having fun."
     Owen glanced across the room. "'Scuse me Mira, there's
someone I need to catch."
     "Go ahead.  Have fun," she said as he moved away; maybe
she could use this time to fade into the scenery.
     She backed towards the edge of the floor; her mind was too
tired to want to mingle with the other partygoers. 
Unfortunately, as Owen had said, they were the guest of honor,
the heroes, and no one would have liked it if one of the guests
of honor skipped the party just because they wanted a nap. 
Thankfully, no one except Owen seemed to have noticed her yet,
which was fine by her.  She could use the peace.
     She saw Owen walk up to Prime Minister Lynn, give a low
sweeping bow, say something that made the woman smile, and then
the two of them made their way to join the others dancing in
the ballroom.
     Owen was a interesting character, no question about it. 
Like one of those crazy uncles some people have. 
     "Care to dance," a familiar voice at he shoulder said.
     Lance was there in a military dress uniform which made him
almost look respectable.  In fact, Mira thought it made him
look incredibly dashing but she decided not to say anything
about it.  Why give him something to gloat about, she reasoned.
     "I thought you didn't dance," she smirked.
     "Well... with all the royalty I've been hanging around
lately, I had to learn something."
     "I'm a little out of practice."
     "I'll lead."
     "And that's supposed to convince me?"
     "Hey, if you want to lead, that's fine.  Just let me get
my reinforced shoes first."
     "All right, all right," Mira smilingly conceded and took
his offered hand.  "You can lead."
     Once on the dance floor surrounded by other couples, she
felt incredibly awkward.  She had never been much of a dancer,
and she still didn't feel comfortable in her shoes, and of
course there was the tiredness of the day...  But as the band
played a waltz, she let Lance guide her across the floor, and
she felt her awkwardness slip away.  Apparently, he hadn't been
joking when he said he had learned something around all that
royalty.  It actually felt... nice.
     "Is that Keith with the Princess?" she asked him motioning
to another couple on the floor.
     "Mm-hm.  They make some couple."  
     She wasn't sure, but she thought she heard a small note of
disappointment in his voice.
     "That's good.  That he's seeing someone, I mean.  After
that thing with Emily back at the Academy..."
     "I told him she was bad news.  But did he listen to Old
Lance. Course not."
     "Well, you know how it is.  You know, I heard she resigned
Garrison just after graduation."
     "Good."
     The music changed; now the band played a cheery two-step.
     Mira chuckled.
     Lance gave her a bemused look.  "What's so funny?"
     "I was just thinking, I'm so glad Ginger's not here to see
this.  She'd say something like 'Oh I just KNEW it!  You two
were just DESTINED to be together!' or 'Don't you two look so
SWEET! You're so PERFECT together!"
     This time Lance laughed too.  "That was good. You sounded
just like her."
     "I had to live with her for two semesters.  I swear, she
was the bounciest, happiest, person I've ever met.  I was about
ready to strangle her at the end of the cycle."
     She looked away for a moment.  "Besides, she'd be wrong.
It'd never happen anyway."
     "...Yeah, you're right.  You were always too stubborn."
     "...I was stubborn?  No, YOU were the stubborn one."
     "Me?"
     "Yes you.  Stubborn, and you never took anything
seriously."
     "Well, at least I didn't turn everything into a
competition."
     "I did not!"
     "Yes you did."
     "Well that's better than...than... having the tact of a
cactus."
     As they danced, they glared at each other in mock anger,
both trying not to smile.  Mira broke first, and they both
laughed.
     "'Tact of a cactus?'" he asked, still chuckling.
     "It's all I could think of," answered Mira, still smiling. 
"Oh, we're doing it again, aren't we."
     "Mm-hm."
     "Think we can make it to the end of this dance without any
more arguing?"
     "...Probably not.  But let's try anyway."
     "Agreed."
     "What are you going to do now?"
     "Hm?"
     "Uh, your future. You know. After all this."
     "Oh, that.  Well, now that I have a few giant robots on my
side, I'll probably try and go back to Balto and see if I can
liberate it.  That is, if you guys didn't beat me to it.  Then
I'll probably settle..."
     She noticed Lance's face change; it became more somber as
the joviality drained away.
     "Lance, what is it."
     "You don't know?"
     "Know what?"
     He seemed reluctant to say anything.  "Balto... It's gone. 
They... Doom blew it up."
     Mira felt very cold.
     "They... blew it up?"
     "We came to answer the distress call, but by then it was
too late, Zarkon had already won.  There was nothing left.
Everywhere... everything was dust.  And then... then, he blew
it up."
     She couldn't look at him.  
     Balto... it was gone.  
     Completely gone.  
     The weight of the revelation hung heavy on her mind like
the weight of the lost planet itself.
     "Mira, I'm sorry..."
     The room was a blur now with too many bodies around her,
too much noise, and everything just pressing in on her.
     Lance tried to continue.  "I didn't mean to -"
     "Excuse me Lance, I think I need some air."
     She didn't see where she was going, she moved on instinct
for the glass doors that opened into the gardens, and from
there she kept walking until the noise of the party died behind
her.  In the warm night, she shivered as a million emotions
crowded in on her brain.
     There was a footstep behind her.
     "Mira?"
     It was Lance.  She could tell without turning around.
     "Don't worry, " she managed, her voice breaking on the
edges  "It wasn't you.  It was something else... Something I
have to deal with myself."
     For once, he didn't say anything.  However, he didn't
leave.
     "I just..." Mira tried to begin, "I should have known...
I..."  
     She pulled her arms around her chest and drew into herself
before she could continue. "When Balto fell, most of me just...
shut off.  But a small part of me, deep inside me, kept saying
that one day I'd come back and fix everything that went wrong
and I'd make sure that Zarkon or any of his bastards never set
foot on Balto again.  Sometimes I think that's all I had, that
little voice.  The world I was supposed to defend had fallen,
my squad... I think they're all gone now.  Just like Balto."
     She breathed a ragged breath, trying not to cry. "You
remember Boyd?  From the Academy?  That crazy tatoo of his, the
smiley face with the lasershot through it?  He... They... they
sent me to a desert world to work for a while, and he was
there, and I barely recognized him.  They'd staked him out in
the sun for I don't know how long, but his skin was like
leather.  He'd been dead for...  I didn't recognize him except
for that tatoo.   You could barely see it, but it was there. 
It was Boyd. They'd staked him out there and left him to die as
some kind of example to the rest of the slaves.  I don't even
know what he did to deserve it either. Or if he did anything. 
Sometime, they'd just grab someone for no good reason, and use
them as an example to the rest of us, whether they did anything
or not. 'A warning' they said, keeping everyone scared.  You
have no idea what it was like, you...you just can't know. You
just survive; you can't worry about if you're going to eat that
day, or if you can make yourself do the work one more hour, or
if the person you got assigned to is the next one to be used as
an example... There were days I expected I wasn't going to wake
up the next morning.  And there were times I thought about
ending it there, but during that whole year, through all the
work and pain and everything... that little part of me inside
that kept saying I was going to put things right, for Boyd, and
Terry, and Chan, and...and... and now Balto... it's..."
     She felt a gentle hand on her shoulder.  What inner
resolve she had left crumbled and she started to sob. Tears
that she'd held in for years flowed freely down her face.  As
she sobbed, she felt Lance's arms wrap around her and draw her
close. She buried her head in his chest and cried.
     He stroked her hair and said nothing.
     There was nothing to say.
     +    +    +    +    +    +
     He saw her leave, and he could tell she was upset and part
of him want to run after her and comfort her and hold her safe. 
     He'd never met anyone like her, someone with such fire...
a free spirit so alive... so stubborn, but it was her strength
as well.  And now that he saw a chink in that armor, he wanted
so badly to help, to defend her and comfort her....
     Instead, Jared stood his post by the throne.  It was his
duty to stand watch over his lord even in a peaceful place like
this.
     He was Jared Vendarris, Royal Defender of the Throne of
Telos.
     And for the first time, he regretted this fact.
     +    +    +    +    +    +
     Her tears spent themselves quickly, and after a few
minutes, Mira started to regain her composure.
     Slowly, she pulled away from Lance's embrace to collect
herself. Deep down she was feeling slightly embarrassed and
still a little vulnerable.
     "I'm sorry about that," she began. "I don't usually...
well, you know."
     "Yeah, I know," he nodded. "Here."
     "What's this?"
     "A handkerchief.  It came with the uniform."
     She managed a fraction of a smile, took the small token
and used it to daub her eyes.  
     "I guess I'm tired," she said after blowing her nose. "I
mean, I haven't cried like that since...since..."
     Lance didn't say anything.
     "...since my dad died." 
     Mira thought a moment.  "...You were there for that too. 
When I got the call about the heart attack, you were there, I
remember."
     He gave a weak shrug.  
     "I started crying, and you didn't say anything, but you
hung up the phone for me and stayed there until I stopped..."
     He still said nothing.
     "Like now."
     They looked at each other in a silence that spoke volumes.
     "What are you, some kind of bad news magnet?" she finally
asked, and suddenly they were back on familiar, far more
comfortable ground.
     "I dunno," he smiled back, the swagger returning to his
step, "Some people might think you enjoyed it."
     "Yeah, right.  I just love going through an emotional
wringer just to get your attention.  Makes a ton of sense."
     "You never know.  You'd be surprised at what some girls
have done to get close to a member of the Voltron Force."
     Mira rolled her eyes and laughed.  They both laughed.
     "Whatever," she finished. "I guess we should go back in. 
They're going to wonder what happened to us."
     "No," he answered, offering her his arm, "They'll probably
think we ditched the party to finish that race."
     "Oh yeah, I forgot."  Mira grinned as she took his arm. 
"So how does tomorrow sound.  Early morning?  I bet my new ship
can fly rings around that little kitty yours."
     "Oh, you wish!" he laughed, and together they trotted back
to the festivities.
     Already most of the guest were gathering around the throne
area, as they slipped back in the glass doors. It looked like
Lord Kyr was about to make an announcement.
     The young ruler stood at the edge of his throne dias and
raised his hand for quiet.
     "Today... today we learned that the wars outside that we
have shied away from, have finally come here to this world. 
But this is not something bad.  On the contrary, Telos has long
isolated itself from the rest of the Galaxy Alliance and now it
is the time for us to begin a new, more active role in the
affairs of the galaxy.  With this alliance with Planet Arus,
strengthened by our shared history we do not yet fully
understand, both our worlds become stronger and better able to
aid in the cause of peace.
     "Today, I feared for my planet's safety... and obviously
my own skin," he joked, getting a few chuckles from the
audience.  "But it turns out I had little to fear, thanks to
the bravery of the Voltron Force."
     The room broke into applause as people offered their
regards the Voltron Force members scattered throughout the
room.
     "These pilots showed both courage and skill, both in and
out of their ships, and to them I say 'Thank you'."
     There were more applause from the crowd.
     "They were not alone.  There were others who showed great
courage in the light of adversity.  Our own Defender of the
Throne, Jared Vendarris, Scott Odarri, student at the Telos
Academy, a visitor to our world, Owen McKay, and last but most
certainly not least, Mira Astrii, a woman who arrived on our
world a few short days ago, who was instrumental in today's
victory.  To you, I say, 'Thank you' and offer you the
gratitude of a planet, and for you who are not from this world, 
a place on Telos, should you choose to stay.
     "This is a new age on Telos, one that promises to be very
bright.   It will not be easy, but like our sister planet Arus,
we can be strong, and with that strength, I have little doubt
we may achieve a new golden age.  And now," he concluded,
smiling, "I believe there was a ball we have to finish?"
     The room exploded in applause as the young lord descended
back into the crowd of partygoers and the music began again.
     The rest of the evening was a pleasant blur to Mira; everyone
wanted to congratulate her, shake her hand, offer thanks, and none
of it stopped until far past midnight.  It may have gone on even
further, but it was then that Mira quietly excused herself, went
back to the room that had been prepared for her in the palace,
and promptly collapsed face first on the bed and fell asleep.

END OF ARC 1