Taken Away (Book one in the Taken Away Triolgy)

When the Dust Clears

The paladins had been looking for Pidge well over a varga, and there had been no sign of her. Coran and Allura searched camera feeds from the bridge, trying in vain to find her.

"Guys." Hunk broke the silence. "I found something. I'm two hallways down from the sleeping quarters."

Quickly everyone converged on his position. Sitting in the quiet hallway was Pidge's empty wheelchair, and the device she had been building. Hunk soundlessly pointed to to orb that had been placed on the back. The blue-purple swirling orb had faded to a desolate gray color, empty of life. The edge of the material that had contained it has cracked and broken, shattered beyond repair. The paladins stared in horror.

Hunk frowned flatly. "Pidge described using the machine as receiving sort of a 'shock.' She used it on you," he said, pointing to Keith, "then she probably went through the vents." He pointed up to the ceiling, where the panel for the vent entrance was dangling on its hinges. Scorch marks marred the area around it, patterned in the shape of her bayard. The paladins stared at him in horror, Keith sitting hard on the ground with a thump.

"So she wasted her one chance to walk again, on me?!?" Horror flooded through him. This could not be happening. He sank to the ground, head in his hands, mute with horror. They sat there, staring at the vent. Until the explosion hit.

~~

The castle shook, and alarms blared. The hallways went red with emergency lights. "Paladins, to your lions! A Galra fleet is attacking!" Allura's voice left as quickly as it had come on. Quickly, the 4 boys made their way to their lions, and took off.

Floating in front of them was a massive fleet of ships, a rag-tag collection of what looked like most of the remaining Galra. In front floated a ship that they had never seen before. It looked like one of the Zaiforge cannon ships, but larger, and more elegant somehow. Hunk said it first.

"Guys, they finally made it. It looks like that cannon is the same one that destroyed the Nadexhdian fleet. The same technology they used on Pidge."

Lance frowned. "That means we can't get hit at all. One blast, and we're stuck in a lion that no longer works. It will easy for them to pick us off after that."

"Guess we can't let them hit us then," said Shiro grimly.

Keith switched to a private channel with Shiro.

"Shiro, we have no idea where Pidge is. If we don't have the Green Lion, we can't form Voltron, and if we can't form Voltron-"

Shiro cut him off.

"Keith, we'll be fine." His voice was calm and reassuring. Everything a leader should be. Quietly though, he wondered if they would make it.

~~~

The vent was she was in was cold and calm. It was safe, hiding her away from the noise and chaos. The storm that was brewing outside.

Pidge had been curled up in the intersection of the training room vents, and the vents that led to the ledge in Green's hanger when the alarm went off. She heard Allura's voice echo through the castle. She pulled on her helmet, confident that her team would take care of this without her, but wanting to listen to them all the same. She dialed into the comm link, then froze.

"-ance, on your left!"

"Hunk, can you take care of these guys?"

"We need to get to that cannon!"

"Somebody help! I've been surrounded!"

She listened in horror as her teammates were surrounded by Galra fighters, and, one by one, were left floating, their lions dead in space, their energy gone. She gritted her teeth. If she went out their, she would end up like them, but if she didn't-