𝙷𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚃𝚊𝚔𝚎𝚜 𝚃𝚒𝚖𝚎 - 𝙺𝚎𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝙺𝚘𝚐𝚊𝚗𝚎 𝚡 𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚛

Chapter Thirteen - The 'Great Escape' and Return

Your P.O.V

"There's no point in debating it any further. Zarkon is tracking us through me,", Allura spoke sadly, eyes fixated on the ground.

Now that we had all returned to wearing more casual attire, the entire team had gathered in the control room, trying to console Allura. The majority of the group had gathered around her, Coran kneeled at her side with a comforting hand placed on her shoulder, while the others stood around the two. Well, everyone but Keith; he was leaning against his chair, one foot pressed against the base of it. 

There was a chorus of responses, all refusing to believe her bizarre statement. Hunk's reply, however, was by far the most creative in regards to wording, considering he had said, "Aw, that's space baloney,". Allura herself seemed pretty frustrated with everyone's lack of belief in her words, her eyebrows knitting together. 

While I did agree that Allura wasn't the cause of this, I also didn't feel it was my place to say anything, considering I hadn't known her for as long as the rest of the team, and she may not want to hear my opinion on the situation. Instead, I simply stood back from the main circle of the group, standing a few feet behind Lance and Hunk.  

"Why would that be so hard to believe?", she fumed. "Zarkon's forces showed up on Arus only after I awoke,", her tone returned to one of a softer sound, and I swore I could see her eyes glistening with what may soon be tears. 

"She does have a point,", Lance admitted, but I got a feeling something was up when I noticed the smirk growing across his face. "I would travel across the galaxy to find you,", he bowed at her slightly, and I felt a laugh bubbling up in my throat. My breath hitched, however, when Keith finally opened his mouth. 

"It's not you, Princess. It's me,", he said, but his voice lacked its usual sound. Instead of sounding playful or stressed, he just sounded numb - emotionless. Everyone turned to face him, eyes wide in shock and confusion. I also looked his way, biting my nails as I did so. 

"Because?", Hunk questioned. 

"I, I just think Zarkon must've... imprinted on me during our fight or something,", he explained his train of thought, though I could tell he was struggling to explain himself. Moving swiftly over and standing next to him, I placed a hand on his folded arms, a gentle smile on my face in reassurance as our eyes met. His eyebrows furrowed, though, and he tensed at the touch, most likely still deep in thought. 

"Look, the fact is, we don't know how Zarkon is tracking us,", Pidge broke the silence. "It could be through the black lion. Every time Zarkon gets close to it, Shiro has to fight him for control,", but her point didn't sit well with Coran, as he stood up, a hand on his hip. I shivered at the name, stomach twisting uncomfortably as it rolled off of Pidge's tongue. 

"That's only when Zarkon is nearby. No paladin has ever been able to connect with a lion over a vast distance,", he counteracted. Now having his interest peeked in the conversation, Keith moved forward, standing just behind Lance and bringing me with him so that I was now standing on the other side of him. 

"So what are we gonna do?", Hunk asked on behalf of the entire team. Shiro, being head of the team, was quick to address his concerns. 

"Look, it doesn't matter how he's tracking us, because we're gonna take the fight to the Galra soon enough. They've been chasing us from galaxy to galaxy. The last thing they expect is for us to come after them,", he mused. I nodded, understanding his logic in the situation, and Lance seemed to catch onto what he was saying, too. 

"The hunter becomes the hunted, hmm? Awesome! That's a tagline from like six of my favourite movies,", he rambled, smirking in the same direction as Keith and I were standing. Ignoring Lance's words, Pidge moves onto the situation at hand, now sat in her chair with her holographic computer out.