Catch the Stars ||Keith Kogane||

56

By the time Keith appears above the green planet of Olympia, he started to wonder if someone had been told he was coming. Surely the big red lion would be enough to show that he wasn't an enemy, but would they let him approach without Trip's word.

When he started to lower into the atmosphere, two ships appeared beside him on opposite sides, and a voice came through to the red lion.

"Red paladin," the voice spoke in broken English and was not a familiar one, throwing him off, "we're here to escort you."

Keith looks at the two ships that were flanking either side of the lion and says, "the commander, is she okay?"

No reply. He wasn't entirely sure they had heard him. Had he even spoken loud enough to be heard? He couldn't tell anymore with his mind going in and out of reality as he flew. They probably weren't allowed to give him any kind of information over a radio frequency that anyone close enough could get into. Or they couldn't give him the bad news.

His heart had dropped into his stomach a long time ago. It wouldn't crawl back up for a while, he was sure. With the guilt of leaving Shiro and the unknown of Trip, there was nothing positive enough to lift it back up. Not on his own, at least.

The ships guided the lion down into the clouds of Olympia, where he could see the mountain. It had always seemed too small when in the village. But he understood now that it was because of how far it was. It was massive in height and made of what looked like marble and not rock like on earth. No wonder they used this as their base. It was indestructible.

The back looked normal, but as they approached, a door made from the same substance as the mountain starts to open. A hangar door for something the size of a lion to make it through. It seemed they had cleared a spot for him to land. Someone had known it was only him coming.

When the feet of the lion touched down and it sat back, Keith looks down. Olympians had crowded the edges of the space cleared for landing, eyes staring up in awe at the creature they were seeing. He realized they had never seen one up close like squad 11 had. A thing of legend until now.

Among them, and in the front, is Harron. With his arms crossed over his chest and a look that could kill. It gave away nothing about what Keith was here for. Even from the cockpit, he could see the state Harron was in. Covered in dried blood, his armor missing and his hands tapping. He was restless.

Keithtried not to run from the lion, gripping the helmet in his hands as if it would keep him grounded if the unthinkable had happened.

"Keith," Harron says when he finally reaches the ground. They had moved on from the name 'paladin' it seemed, "i can keep the crowd away if you dont want them near...it."

He was also looking up at the lion. Confused, Keith looked back over his shoulder. The crowd had gotten a little closer to inspect it, but he wasn't worried. Most of them seemed genuinely curious. Plus, he wasn't worried about the lion. He was nowhere near worried about his lion in this situation. Not when he thought he would puke if he stopped to think for too long.

"What?" He shakes his head and then turns back to Harron, "no, I don't care. It won't let anyone else in. Where's Trip? Is she okay? What happened? Allura said--"

"It's bad," is all Harron gives him before nodding his head in the direction of the door behind him, "she's been in operations for three hours, now. That's all we know."

Keith grits his teeth. That wasn't enough. He needed to know that she was alive. That she was breathing. He needed something that would untwist the knot inside of him.

"You're second in command!" He says a little too sharply for the liking of a few surrounding soldiers who give him glares, "can't you order them to tell you something?!"