The Forgotten Paladin

Chapter 22: an awakening

SHIRO: "What?"

CORAN: "Allura's right, a pod left last night."

SHIRO: "Who was piloting it?"

ALLURA: "We don't know, everyone seems to be here, so no one is missing."

SHIRO: "Then it left on its own?"

I backed away from the conversation, bumping into Keith on my way back.

KEITH: "Where are you going?"

Y/N: "Uhh, no where."

Keith tugged at my arm, pulling me gently to the corner of the bridge. His hand gently pressed against my shoulder, he looked at me solemnly, I could see the look in his eyes.

KEITH: "What happened when you took that pod out last night?" I look at him in shock, lost for words. " Don't try to deny it, I saw you last night, I saw the way you looked when you returned."

Y/N: "how did you-"

KEITH: "The training deck looks into the bay you left from, I heard the door open."

I look away from him, not really knowing what to say, my heart beating faster as I turn back to face him.

Y/N: "I went out to look for someone, I came back as fast as I could."

KEITH: "Who were you looking for and why wouldn't you tell us you were going?"

Y/N: "I uhm, well-"

CORAN: Come on paladins, time to start fixing the castle defences."

The paladins head out to fix the defences, I stay and help with Allura and Coran, they seemed to have left the pod conversation alone which was a relief. 

CORAN: "Alright paladins, head up to the top of the castle, and get started on those repairs."

I grab the tools Coran left for me and begin heading down to the core chamber, the big ball of energy I had to refuse. As the door to the bridge opens and I start walking out, Allura grabs my arm, gently pulling me back.

Y/N: "Uhh Allura what are you doing?"

ALLURA: "I never knew you had these marks, where did they come from?" I'd been walking around without my jacket all morning I'd forgotten. It was beginning to become second nature now.

Y/N: "Uhh I think I was born with them, why?"

ALLURA: "I think I've seen them somewhere, but I can't remember..."

CORAN: "Indeed, I haven't seen those marks in decafeebs, but I can't quite remember. I'm sure it'll come to me eventually, in the meantime, Y/N, I need you to fix the panel in the core chamber, it somehow got fried during the galra invasion."

Y/N: "On it Coran." Allura lets go of my arm and I head down the hall. I take out my ear piece, enjoying the company of the silence in the core chamber; the slight humming of electricity from the core  providing a comforting background noise while I get to work. 

Once I finish it, I sit on the ledge sticking out of the wall, looking over at the core. Taking the stick from my pocket, I inspect it more closely, finding an inscription on the end of it. 

'Knowledge or death.' 

What the hell does that mean?

I turn it over and over, expecting something to change. Nothing does, no answers, no nothing. Just the strange inscription staring back at me, I place it back into my pocket. I sigh, looking down at my hands. I've started to learn a few things about my powers over the time I've spent here, small crackles of lightning ignited between my index and thumb, this time I was controlling it, small steps at a time.