Thanks for your request! I was so excited to start this that I finished it! This is the best power writing I’ve done it a long time! I hope you enjoy!
(Reminder: solid blue means current prompt, hollow blue means done already)
Word Count: 2.5k
Warnings: violence, blood, torture, near-death, begging
AO3 Story Link
As Lance was dragged down the cold metal hallway by two galra sentries, he only had one thing on his mind: escape. His head pounded with every patterned step the galra machines took. It made him almost grateful for the black cloth tied too-tightly to his head. On one hand, it was blocking the harsh purple light from attacking his sensitive pupils. But, on the other hand, it kept him from using his surroundings to form an epic-sneaky-cool-ninja plan so amazing it would knock Keith’s socks off.
Not escaping was not an option for Lance. Lance could call himself the team’s sharpshooter all he wants, but he isn’t a fool or delusional. Lance knew he didn’t stand a chance with her. Her empty laughter echoing in the back of his mind. As the sentries turned another corner, Lance could feel his chances of escape slipping away the same Keith’s hand had hours earlier.
Lance twisted his head towards what he thinks is the galra soldiers who are dragging him by his left arm. “Listen, buddy, if you don’t let me go, there will be a price to pay. Not sure if you can afford it.” Lance turned to face the soldier with his right arm. “My teammates are on their way right now, and when they do-” Lance doesn’t realize they pass through a doorway.
“They’ll what, red paladin?” A chilling voice asks, making Lance’s blood run cold.
Lance forces his shoulders back. “They’ll break me out of this dump and-”
The voice lets out a sharp laugh before cutting him off. “No one is coming to save you, little one.” Her frozen, boney hand ghosted over his greasy hair. “Forget any idea of the damsel being saved, you’re my thing to play with now.”
Lance tries to ignore how his throat starts to close up. If he can’t see her than he doesn’t have to worry about her noticing some stray tears. “You don’t know anything about my friends.” He spits back.
The woman simply laughs again. “You’re are mistaken, little paladin.” She laughs again. “I know all about the pitiful paladins of Voltron.” Her hand trails his chin, sharp nails nicking the end.
Lance pulls his face away from her grip harshly. She grunts in anger before pulling her hand back and slapping him, hard. His face jerks from the force, surely bruising his tanned skin, and he accidentally bites his tongue. He holds back a groan and swallows the metallic taste in his mouth.
“I know of the strong but broken former Black Paladin, The Champion. I played with him for over a deca-pheob. But, I’m sure you already knew all about that.”Her voice is slow, like molasses coming out of the glass jar, but the edge is as sharp as ever.
For a moment, a buzz hit’s Lance’s ears, and the air feels as if it’s been electrified. Then it hit Lance, starting at his left shoulder. The hot purple lightning made lance’s muscles stiffen and contract all at the same time. Lance convulsed harshly on the ground as the pain engulfed his whole body. Lance’s vision went completely, blinding white and static filled his ears over someone’s screams. After what felt both like less than a second and hours, the electricity stopped.
Lance gulped in the air with a newfound greed. The woman then chose to speak again “I also know of the small but fierce Green Paladin. How sad is it that she is looking for her family. It will be crushed when it hears of the unfortunate fate of her family. Such a formidable opponent will be brought to its knees by the sight of their family’s corpses.” Lance would gasp then if he could control his breathing at all.
Then the lightning is back and somehow it is so much worse than before. It feels as if every one of Lance’s very cells is being crippled with this sick electricity. The static is louder in his ears like a broken radio is blasting in the room. The white that floods his vision is even brighter, even more blinding. Apart of himself that Lance ignores is screaming to dive into the white static, to let it carry him away.
Lance slumps to the ground when the lightning stops again. The woman continues.
“I know of the large but cowardly Yellow Paladin. You’d think a creature with that amount of raw strength wouldn’t be so useless.” The woman chuckled coldly before returning to lance’s torture.
The more the lightning burned Lance’s skin, the more it felt like lance’s brain was frying. He couldn’t think over the roar of static in his ears. The white hurting his eyes worse than acid. The woman would stop electrifying Lance for a moment, just for a moment’s breath. Then she would return to it quickly. Lance wanted to fall over the edge, to lose himself completely from the pain. But something held him back.
“What about the beautiful new Blue Paladin. Such a cheap replacement for her pitiful father. So naive make her make her world’s only hope a group of children of a native species. Stupidity is genetic.” She growls out, tugging Lance’s face of the ground for a moment. She drops him just as fast when his saliva dripping down his chin touches her. “Disgusting.”
Lance can smell his skin, connected to the metal handcuffs, burning off. His muscles ache and burn from the spasms. The static is excruciating and the bright white continues to blind him. He feels a wetness in his armor but is in too much pain to comprehend why.
The woman tsked in a patronizing sweet but gravelly voice. “Now what would the brave and beautiful Black Paladin think of you wetting yourself? What would he think that the sight of you?” Lance’s wet cheeks burn from the shame of the idea of Keith, his Keith, seeing him like this. “What would he say at how weak you are? The former red paladin must be so ashamed to have someone so pathetic to be the current Red Paladin.” Lance feels his tears dampening the black cloth.
With no warning, the thick cloth is pulled off his face and bright purple lights flood his vision. Lance closes his eyes tightly to try and escape the lights but the woman growls at him. “Open your eyes, you pathetic animal.” She pulls his head up harshly, nails sinking into his soft flesh.
The second time he opens his eyes, Lance sees her. Haggar, Head Druid of the galra empire. Their most powerful and evil foe. She has a cold, dead look in her yellow eyes. Her grin was twisted like dead vines across her face.
“Beg, little creature.” Her voice is like venom.
Lance tries to pull his head from her grip, but she holds on, her rough brown ropes blocking the room from his view. She twists his face to the side of him before he settles on a screen beside her. He gasps at what he sees.
Their on the galra’s screen was his team. Pidge and Hunk were crying and gripping each other. The Princess was standing at attention, her fists clenched at her sides. The tears streaming down her face despite her best efforts to be strong. Shiro and Coran were out of sight, no doubt trying to help in the background. Most surprising of all, was Keith. Keith was standing in the center, closest to the screen. His knuckles were gripping the sides of the video console, Lance thinks the metal is dented from the force. Tears threatened to fall from his purple eyes. God, he has such beautiful eyes. Beautiful, beautiful eyes.
The witch digs her nails further into his skin. “I told you to beg. Beg me not to kill you right here, right now with your friend watching.” Lance chokes on air, not caring as her nails slashed the delicate skin across his cheek.
His team only goes in an uproar from panic, Keith screams at the screen, eyes searching Lance’s face frantically. No sounds fills the room to Lance’s dismay. Lance feels panic fill his own lungs, forcing him into action.
“Please,” He starts, trying to look at the witch. “Please, don’t do this! You-You, don’t have to do this. Please, a Dios, por favor, don’t. Don’t make them watch!” His chest heaves with sobs. “Don’t make them watch, please! Please!” Lance begs, shame pooling in his gut.
The witch laughs in a frenzy. “Tell them, creature. Tell them your last confession before I cut open your throat.” Lance freezes at her wording. “That’s right, little paladin, I can see how your feel for the pretty one. Your pathetic little feelings are easy to read. As easy as child galra read battle reports.” Keith freezes on screen, staring like a petrified animal.
Lance forgets the tears streaming down his bleeding face. He forgets the aching muscles or the burnt skin. He stares into Keith’s desperate eyes and lets out a soul-crushing sob. “Keith, I-” Lance stops himself.
The witch laughs louder. “That’s it, little one. That’s it, go on and say it.” She twists his arm, straining his shoulder.
Lance lets out a cry of pain. “Keith, I remember! I remember the bonding moment! I’m sorry, I remember and I always remembered and I couldn’t say anything. Keith. Keith.” Lance can’t get himself to say it. Of all the times and places and ways, he never imagined he would say it like this.
“So sad,” The witch strokes his hair in false comfort. “To see love end in such a tragic and painful way.” She twists her fingers in Lance’s hair and tugs hard. “Say goodbye, little one.”
Keith continues to scream on the other end, but no sounds reach Lance’s ears. Lance shuts his eyes tightly, not wanting to see Keith see this. After a moment, nothing happens and the witch cackles. When Lance opens his eyes, the screen is black.
“I’m not done with you little one. I have plans for you. Keep these two occupied while I’m gone. You are such fun to play with.” Her cold laughter followed her out of the room.
The two soldiers who had dragged him there suddenly reappeared. Their smiles were sickening. Every crack of their knuckles made Lance’s stomach flip. Out of nowhere, one of the galra kicked him in the stomach. The force of the kick making him dry heave. A nasty mixture of blood, drool and tears pools under his head.
The two soldiers don’t slow their beating, no matter how loud Lance screams and begs them too. All hopes of keeping his dignity were out the window when he dealt with that much pain. Lance doesn’t know if he heard or felt his ribs cracking more. Everything blurred together. Lance almost wishes for the static to return. At least then he has a distraction from how much he hurts. He does wish that someone was there, that someone could just make it stop.
Lance was too occupied with his thoughts and pain to notice the ship quake from the force of a hit. He was too occupied to notice the sounds of gunshots and yelling from galra soldiers. He does, however, notice when the soldiers beating him suddenly stop. He hears the sounds of swords clashing and hears the garbled yells of someone he thinks is familiar. Suddenly that stops too and it’s finally quiet.
A quiet gasp, broken even, comes from next to him. “Lance?” It asks almost silently like it couldn’t tell if he was real.
Lance cracks his swollen eyes open. Hovering next to him, hands almost touching his chest, was Keith. Keith with the beautiful, beautiful eyes.
Keith springs into action again. “Oh god, Lance. I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry. I shouldn’t have let go. I’m so sorry.” Keith cradles Lance on his knees like he’s made of glass. Lance thinks he might be.
Sorry. Keith kept repeating the word over and over. Flowed out of his mouth like a fountain of water. Sorry. Lance wanted to tell him to stop, that it wasn’t his fault. Two full galra would always be stronger than one half-galra. It wasn’t Keith’s fault when the soldiers ripped him from his grasp and dragged him into a different ship. God, he hoped Keith knew that.
Lance coughed, trying to get the words out. “It’s not… It’s not your fault. Keith… Keith I-” Lance tries to get it out but Keith stops him.
“Stop it,” Tears are streaming down Keith’s pale cheeks. Beautiful eyes. “You don’t get to say it now. Tell me when we’re off this ship. Tell me when you’re okay.” Don’t tell me when you’re dying.
Lance smiles softly, ignoring the dried blood on his cheek flaking off. “You’re always cradling me. I always wanted to get a turn.”
Keith laughs through the tears. “I’m going to hold you to that.” Keith puts a finger to his ear before looking back down at Lance. “Hunk is coming, Lance, you’re going to be okay. Just hold on till he gets here.” Keith brushes some of Lance's hair away from his forehead. Lance wishes he would keep doing it.
Lance feels his eyes drooping shut and dreads what it means. He wouldn’t make it that long and he knew it. “Keith, I… Keith.” He tries to get out, but the darkness is too powerful. Not even Keith frantic sobbing keeps him from drifting off into the black.
When Lance awakens again, he feels cold. He feels really cold, it cuts through him to the bone. For a moment, all there is is the cold. But then something gives, a swosh meets his ears, and then he’s falling. Before the ground can meet him, arms wrap around him. Lance’s heavy and gritty eyes snap open. Keith lifts him up and onto his feet, not taking his wide eyes off him. Lance stares back, a smile spreading across his face.
“Always saving me, huh, Samurai.” Lance says, voice hoarse from either his screaming or his time in the pod.
This triggers Keith out of his frozen shock. He pulls lance into a tight hug. “God, Lance,” Lance’s stomach clenches at his heartbroken voice. “I thought I lost you. You scared the shit out of me.”
Lance ignores his burning eyes. “I’m okay, Keith. You saved me, okay. I’m okay.” Lance hugs Keith back, just as tight.
Lance and Keith continue to clutch onto each other, too scared to let go. Eventually, Keith holds lance out from him, looking directly into his eyes. “Lance, I love you. I didn’t say it back and I was scared you’d die and I didn’t get to say it. I love you, Lance McClain. I love you so much I think it’ll crush me.” Tears drip down Keith’s cheeks slowly.
Lance smiles, not caring for his own wet cheeks. “God, Keith, I love you too. I love you so much. I wanted to say it. I love you so much.” Lance pulls Keith into a tight embrace lowering them to the floor.
The couple sits in silence. They held each other tightly against the healing pod. Neither ready to let go of the other and face the universe. They just wanted to be with the other.
Everything else was unimportant.
Where to read other prompts My Writing My Ask Bingo Card My AO3
