ALL MIXED UP | I

22 the trials 22

Almost ten pages, 4K words. Written while procrastinating on math assignments.
 
 

Unlike the rest of the Blade, Krolia was surprisingly gentle. She made small talk with Sage as she got the teen fitted into a dark purple bodysuit, even offering to braid her hair up so that it wouldn’t get in the way.
 
“What did you say in the main hall?” Krolia asked as she pleated another part of Sage’s hair. “Kolivan didn’t seem too pleased.” Sage bit her lip, eyes on the ground.
 
“Just… spoke out of turn. Kinda called him out.” Krolia gave a slight laugh at this.
 
“It’s not funny,” Sage glared. “I just ruined my teams chance of an alliance. Your leader hates me.” The Galran shook her head, placing her hand on Sage’s shoulders.
 
“He’s just not used to people standing up to him,” Krolia assured. “Trust me, it was about time someone knocked him down a peg. As for the alliance, he’d be a fool not to stand with Voltron.” Sage gave a tight little smile.
 
“Thanks, Krolia.”
 
“Don’t thank me yet,” Krolia warned. “You’re about to be in for the fight of your life.” Sage sighed, about to run her fingers through her hair before remembering it was braided.
 
Sage was silent as Krolia finished checking her suit. After the last zipper was pulled up, Krolia ran her fingers gently through the back of Sage’s hair.
 
 “You’re so tense,” Krolia commented. “Nervous?” Sage nodded, earning a light laugh from Krolia.
 
“Don’t worry.” The elder gave a warm smile, taking Sage’s hands in hers. “You’ve got something in you that’s remarkable. You’re going to do great.” Sage found it impossible not to return Krolia’s smile.
 
“You talk like a mom,” she muttered.
 
“I am,” Krolia grinned. “I haven’t seen my son in a very long time, but I can’t get rid of the instinct. Now,” Krolia handed Thace’s blade back to Sage, “show me what you’ve got.”
 
 
 
Several minutes later, after many tips from Krolia, another masked Marmoran agent came to the door. Krolia glanced at the agent, giving Sage one last squeeze on the shoulder before nudging her towards the door.
 
Sage stumbled as the new agent pulled her forward by the wrist, taking a final glance back at Krolia, who was staring into empty space, a look of concern etched into her expression.
 
The next room she was brought to was enormous, a single trap door in the floor and a large door in the wall across from her. A speaker crackled, drawing Sage’s attention.
 
“Whenever you’re ready,” came Kolivan’s voice before the room was left in silence once more.
 
Sage shut her eyes tightly for a moment, taking a deep breath. She opened them once more, staring dead into a camera in the corner.
 
“Bring it on.”
 
The trap door in the floor moved, allowing a single agent to be raised into the room.
 
“You are not meant to go through that door,” the agent spoke behind their mask.
 
“We’ll see about that,” Sage challenged, rushing at the agent, knife gripped in her right hand.
 
Sparks flew as metal clashed over and over. The agent was clearly better than Sage, but she was fueled by spite and determination and not going down easily.
 
Just moments into the fight, Sage was knocked to the ground. As the agent stepped closer to pin her, she swept a leg behind their knees, turning the tide and allowing her to make a dash for the door. As soon as she was through, the door shut.
 
Sage leaned back against the door, catching her breath, head hung low. The quiet whir of machinery drew her attention, and she glanced up to see two Marmoran agents in the room, both holding blades.
 
“They weren’t kidding when they said survive…” she muttered to herself, stepping forward and raising her blade once more.
 
“You are not meant to go through that door,” the agents said in unison. Sage popped her shoulder before running forward once more.
 
And so it continued.
 
In the third room, she had to claw her way out of a headlock. In the fourth, she got hit in the throat and got the wind knocked out of her simultaneously. The fifth room earned her a cut across the stomach and in the sixth she was shoved to the floor so hard she started seeing double.
 
Yet in each room, the message was the same.
 
“You are not meant to go through that door.”
 
When she ran into room seven, she didn’t stop. She dashed for the trap doors. Before any of the agents could attack, she shoved one out of their place, slipping hurriedly into the trap door.
 
The room below was empty.
 
Sage gave a relieved laugh, falling to her knees and letting her blade clatter to the floor. Exhaustion took over, forcing her down. The room swam around her as Sage rolled onto her side, curling into herself.
 
“I did it,” she breathed, before the world went dark.
 
 
 
 
 
“Is she okay?” Shiro demanded, watching both teens from a separate room. Keith was on his sixth room, and didn’t seem to be faring well either.
 
“She is fine,” Kolivan dismissed. Shiro stood, turning towards the door, but was blocked.
 
“Let me through! She’s done. That’s my little sister out there.”
 
“The Trials are not over,” Kolivan glared. “You will not interfere.” Shiro glanced back through the window.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Sage’s eyes fluttered open to the sound of approaching footsteps. She glanced up, amber meeting familiar grey. Sage smiled tiredly.
 
“T’ashi.” Shiro returned the smile.
 
“You did so well Sage,” he said, kneeling down next to her. “I’m so proud of you.” Sage pushed herself up painfully, spotting Keith coming up next to her as well.
 
“C’mon, Clary Sage. Let’s go back.” Shiro stood and offered a hand. Sage didn’t take it.
 
“What do you mean, go back?”
 
“To the Castle.”
 
“But I haven’t gotten my answers yet. N-Neither has Keith.” Shiro eyed her oddly.
 
“Sage, you already know where you come from,” he said. “We’re your family. Do you really need to know more?”
 
“Yes!” Sage replied. She turned to the younger of the two. “Keith, you’re not actually going to leave without answers, are you? They could know something a-about you, about your knife.” Keith gave a little shrug.
 
“It’s like Shiro said, you guys are my family. I don’t need to know every secret to be happy.”
 
Sage couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
 
“You… I thought you two were supposed to be on my side.”
 
“And we are,” Shiro assured, holding his hand out once more. Sage hit it away this time, tears building in her eyes.
 
“I am so tired of this!” she yelled, finally exploding, desperately blinking back tears. “You still try to protect me from everything! I’m not the ten-year-old that fell climbing the flagpole anymore! You can’t ‘protect’ me from who I am, okay?” Sage took a deep, shaking breath, staring up at Shiro defiantly.
 
“I’m staying.” Grey met amber one last time before Shiro turned on his heel, walking out of the room with Keith right behind him.
 
As soon as they were out of sight, Sage let herself break down. She pulled at her hair hard, tears finally making their way down her face. It wasn’t long before all went dark once more.
 
 
 
 
“You’re back soon.” A woman sat at a table sipping at a hot drink of some variety. A toddler rolled around next to her chair, giggling and swiping cookies from the table above her. White marks stood out against her dark skin, and curly brown hair was gathered into a messy bun on top of her head.
 
A Galran man stood in the doorway, smiling gently at the two in the room.
 
“The prince had an assignment for me. I couldn’t be here without visiting you two.” The woman stood and went to embrace him, which the tiny girl squealed at, wanting some attention too. The man laughed, picking her up and swinging her high.
 
“Don’t worry, Seraphine, I didn’t forget you,” he grinned. The girl – Seraphine – pinched his nose and then settled into his shoulder contentedly. The two adults shared a quick kiss and then went to sit down, Seraphine playing with the hair on the back of the man’s head.
 
“Anything new happening?” the woman asked. “How’s the new colony going?” A note of hope rang in her voice. The man shook his head.
 
“I’m sorry, Astra,” he said. “I haven’t been able to find anything out.” Astra nodded, a small sigh escaping her mouth.
 
“What about you?” he asked. “Has anything been happening lately?” The woman smiled at this.
 
“Seraphine made a friend,” she smiled. “A little girl just a bit older than her named Romelle.” Seraphine, who by now had slipped onto the floor and was executing clumsy somersaults, peered up upon hearing the name.
 
“’Melle!” she shouted. “Where ‘Melle?” Her parents laughed at this.
 
“She’s not here, sweetheart,” Astra said, to which Seraphine pouted. She was over her disappointment rather quickly, as she took to changing the colour of her hair and laughing at each new shade.
 
“She’s got the whole shapeshifting thing,” the man commented. Astra nodded.
 
“It’s a handful,” she laughed. “Yesterday she figured out how to change her ears.” The conversation carried on and soon faded, as did the scene.
 
 
 
 
“This is Admiral Kwan, open the door please.” Astra was in what looked like a living room, with Seraphine (perhaps a year older than previously) stumbling her way through a book of basic words. Kissing her daughter’s head, Astra stood, going to the door.
 
She opened it, revealing the same Galran man from before. Her green eyes held a bewildered look.
 
“What’s going on?” she whispered. Kwan slipped through the door after making sure no one was watching.
 
“The other colony,” he said. “It’s not what the prince has been telling everyone.”
 
“What do you mean?” Kwan took a deep breath.
 
“He- He uses them. He siphons Altean quintessence. It’s not a colony, it’s a lab. And you’re on the next list. But I can get you away from here.” Astra glanced back at her daughter.
 
“What about Seraphine?”
 
“We’ll take her, of course we’ll take her.” Astra sighed pinching the bridge of her nose.
 
“It’s too dangerous,” she said, shaking her head. “Don’t you think they’d suspect something if I went missing the day before I was supposed to leave?”
 
“It’ll be fine,” Kwan urged. There was a rumbling outside, and the two glanced through the windows. A familiar ship touched down in the field toward the center of town. Kwan’s eyes widened.
 
“They’re early. Why are they early?”
 
“Kwan, it’s going to be okay,” Astra soothed. She went and took Seraphine from her spot on the couch. The little girl, not quite understanding what was going on, shouted defiantly, reaching toward her dropped book, though her attention quickly switched to playing with her father’s badge.
 
“Take Seraphine somewhere safe. I’ll give them the slip once they have me on the ship and find a way to contact you.” Kwan tried to protest, but Astra was already shoving him out the door.
 
“Please.”
 
A long, silent pause.
 
“Fine.”
 
Astra smiled, kissing Kwan and Seraphine before hurrying off. Kwan ran to a small ship not far from the house, stepping inside and pulling up all of the controls.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
A blue and green planet spun on the screen, statistics surrounding the image. It seemed good enough, and Kwan had found that it wasn’t inhabited by any hostile species. He set course for the planet called Earth, Seraphine in his lap.
 
He’d managed to get her to remove the Altean markings from her face, telling her that she wasn’t allowed to shift anymore. Seraphine looked disappointed, but nodded.
 
While they flew, he searched the ship’s databases for names more reminiscent of the new planet. Most were odd, at least to him. But one caught his eye.
 
Sage.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Kwan touched down in a forest clearing, not too far from what seemed to be a small park. He hoped that there would be enough commotion to distract Seraphine and enough inhabitants to notice her before anything happened.
 
Leading the small girl onto a nearby forest path, he gave a set of hurried instructions, promising that he would be back and reminding her of her temporary name. Seraphine, still not quite understanding what was going on, simply skipped down the path, yellow dress swaying.
 
She soon came to a very interesting place. Colourful structures stood in the middle of an open area where children climbed and played. Seraphine paused for a moment, looking at the kids. All of them had rounded ears and no markings under their eyes. Other than that, they looked just like the Alteans back in the colony.
 
Not wasting any time, Seraphine ran to the group of children, rather quickly getting caught up in a game of chase. A small blonde girl reminded her of her friend back home, but she didn’t dwell on the thought. It was fun here, and that was all that mattered.
 
Seraphine must have been there for hours before anyone noticed the absence of a parent. The sun was lowering in the sky when a young woman noticed the small girl’s lack of supervision. She’d just taken a tumble out of a small tree and the woman found it strange that no one came to her aid.
 
Seraphine glanced up from where she sat in the dirt, knees and shins scraped up, though there were no tears in her eyes. A kind looking woman knelt in front of her. Seraphine smiled.
 
“I like your hair,” she smiled, pointing up at the woman’s dark, thick hair. The woman faltered.
 
“Thank you,” she said slowly. “Are your parents around, Honey?” Seraphine shook her head.
 
“Well, do you know where they could be?”
 
“Up there,” Seraphine said, pointing up at the sky. “But my Papa is gonna be back. Just as soon as he finds my Mama.” The woman bit her lip, silent for a moment. She turned back and said something to a man about her age. He nodded, concern in his gaze.
 
“How about I take you home and get you cleaned up, and then we can find someone who can help you, okay Honey?” The young woman held out a hand which Seraphine happily took. Once she was on her feet, the woman picked her up, setting her on her hip. She had very pretty earrings.
 
As she walked, the woman asked a few questions about where she lived, her face growing more and more confused with each answer.
 
“What’s your name again baby?” Seraphine paused. She remembered her dad’s words.
 
“I’m Sage,” she replied. “What about you?” The woman gave a smile.
 
“My name’s Trisha.” Seraphine nodded.
 
“You’re very pretty, Miss Trisha.” The young woman gave a small laugh.
 
“You sure are a wonder, Sage.”
 
 
 
 
At Trisha’s house, she cleaned off Seraphine’s scrapes and placed band-aids over any places the skin had broken. She helped her into a change of clothes which she said belonged to her little boy. Seraphine didn’t mind; after all, the shirt had some very cool creatures on it and the blue shorts had lots of pockets.
 
After this, Trisha took her to an odd place. People bustled about in white clothes, wearing blue gloves and masks. One of the people checked her eyes and ears and made her stand on a platform with numbers on it before finally sticking her finger and drawing a bit of blood. They told Trisha to go to some sort of office.
 
A man in blue met them there, smudging Seraphine’s hand with black ink and flashing a light at her. He asked what her last name was, which confused Seraphine. Was she supposed to have more than one?
 
“She’s not coming up in the system,” the man finally told Trisha. “It’s like she doesn’t exist at all.” Trisha rubbed the back of her neck, biting at her lip once more. Seraphine tugged on her hand.
 
“Miss Trisha, what does that mean? “Not in the system”?” The young woman crouched down to her level, cupping her face in her hands.
 
“Nothing bad, baby,” she assured. “We’re gonna figure this out, okay? You’re gonna be all right.”
 
“Okay.”
 
 
 
 
Sage shot up with a sharp gasp. The pain from her previous fights forced her back down onto the white floor of the room. She was still in the same violet bodysuit from the Trials, which told her that everything she’d seen had been in her mind.
 
A portion of the wall opened and Shiro rushed in, immediately gathering her into a firm hug. He pulled back after a moment, cupping her face and looking her up and down for injuries. His eyes settled for a moment on the cut in her side, but upon realizing it wasn’t too serious, he pulled her close again, one hand going to her hair.
 
Sage gave a tired laugh, resting her head on her brother’s shoulder. She didn’t stop the tears escaping from her eyes.
 
“Are you okay?” Shiro asked, shifting so that he could look at Sage properly.
 
“I’m fine, T’ashi,” Sage smiled as Shiro brushed her tears away with a gloved hand. “Where’s Keith?”
 
“Still in his mindscape,” Shiro answered. “It took him a few extra rooms to figure out the door thing.”
 
Sage managed to get to her feet with Shiro’s help. Kolivan was waiting for them right outside the door. He held a Marmoran blade, slightly smaller than Thace’s.
 
“You should have this,” he said, holding the knife out. “It was Kwan’s. He’d be proud to call you his daughter.”
 
Sage took the blade, studying it in silence for a moment, noting each detail of the symbols and wrapping. She glanced up at Kolivan.
 
“My father was part of the Blade?” Kolivan nodded.
 
“He initiated about twelve years ago. He was one of our best recruits.” Sage’s face broke into a grin.
 
“That means you know where he is! C-Can I talk to him?” Kolivan’s expression became more somber than before. He tapped the symbol on his own blade. Sage noted that it was glowing slightly, just like Thace’s and every other agent’s.
 
Her father’s symbol was not.
 
“Oh.” She stared at the floor for a moment before her gaze snapped up once more.
 
“What about my mother? She said she was going to contact him. Is there a transmission or something?”
 
“I’m afraid neither your father nor the Blade ever received correspondence from her.”
 
Sage bit her lip, not wanting to cry again. She managed a shaky smile.
 
“That’s okay. I mean, at least I know where I come from now.” Kolivan nodded, handing her a sheath for her father’s blade. As she was adjusting it on her waist, the base suddenly shook violently, nearly sending her to the floor. Shiro grabbed her arm to steady her.
 
“Your Red Lion is attacking our base!” one the agents yelled.
 
"It has a link with Keith,” Shiro explained quickly. “It knows when he's in danger. It's coming for him."
 
The ceiling began to collapse, debris raining on everyone in the room. Shiro quickly elbowed past the agents in the room, pulling Sage closely behind him.
 
Keith was just waking up when they came into the room he was in. Shiro went quickly to his side, pulling him to his feet.
 
"Keith, are you okay?" Keith didn’t have time to answer before Kolivan yelled, “Stop what you're doing!" Sage quickly took Shiro’s place supporting Keith while Shiro stepped in front of them, his right arm begging to glow. Both teens held their blades, though they knew they wouldn’t be of much real use in a fight at the moment.
 
"What are you talking about?” Keith asked, confused. “ What's going on?"
 
"Call off your beast!"Kolivan ordered. Shiro paid him no mind.
 
"Move out of the way! We're leaving!"
 
"You're not leaving with that blade,” Kolivan said, standing his ground. “It does not belong to you. You failed to awaken it!"
 
"What does that mean?" Keith asked. Another Blade simply charged at him.
 
Shiro stepped forward, the agent’s sword meeting his arm. Keith looked on with wide eyes.
 
"Wait!” he yelled. All  eyes shifted to him. “Just take the knife." He stepped forward with Sage’s support, holding out the blade.
 
"It doesn't matter where I come from,” Keith said. “I know who I am. We all need to work together to defeat Zarkon. And if that means I give up this knife, fine. Take it."
 
The symbol on his blade began to glow faintly, growing brighter by the second. Soon, a blinding light filled the area, forcing Sage to shield her eyes with her arm.
 
"You've awoken the blade!" an agent yelled as the knife shifted into a Marmoran sword. Kolivan studied Keith carefully.
 
"The only way this is possible is if Galra blood runs through your veins.”
 
 
 
 
 
Once back at the castle, Sage dragged Keith down the hall to the med bay. There was no protest from the older teen, exhaustion evident in his eyes. Sage glanced up at him.
 
“You don’t look so great,” she commented as she helped him onto one of the tables. Keith rolled his eyes.
 
“Well, I did just fight a group of highly-trained warriors, sift through my parents’ memories, find out I’m Galran, and pilot the Red Lion through a deadly path, so forgive me if I look less than perfect.” Sage gave a small smile. There was the Keith she knew.
 
“Yeah, well, maybe if you’d figured out the door thing a little quicker you wouldn’t be this beat up,” she teased. Before Keith could reply, Sage warned, “This is gonna sting.”
 
Keith hissed as the Altean disinfectant made contact with the cut on his shoulder. Sage gave a hurried apology before continuing.
 
While one of the many machines finished up Keith’s arm, Sage moved to the smaller scrapes and cuts across his face. Keith hit her hands away.

“What are you doing?” Sage rolled her eyes.
 
“I’m taking care of your reckless ass, that’s what.” Keith seemed to take this as a fair answer and fell silent, letting her work.
 
The two lapsed into silence for a while, the quiet whirr of the castle’s inner workings being the only sound in the room.
 
“I’m sorry,” Keith finally muttered, breaking the silence. Sage glanced up.
 
“What for?”
 
“For what happened at the mall.” Keith ran a hand through his hair. “And for snapping at everyone. And bringing the knife even though we were told to go unarmed.” Sage gave a slight laugh, pushing herself up to sit on the table across from him.
 
 
“It’s fine. I should apologize, too. I didn’t have to escalate the argument. And you’re not the only one who brought a knife to the base.”
 
Another moment of silence.
 
“So, we’re good?” Keith asked. Sage smiled.
 
“Of course we’re good.” She punched him in the shoulder. “Idiot.” Keith shoved back.
 
“Dumbass.”
 
From there the conversation dissolved into a compilation of swear words and insults, the two laughing harder with each word.
 
 

 
 
Woo, okay! That was a loaded chapter. Super quick announcement:
 
I want to do a pretty large skip and I feel like it would be better if I started another story.
 
I really need to move this along because I’ve been at this for about a year and I’m only on season two. I have lots of plans for this story but they’re all in later seasons (e.g. when with Lotor, aboard the Atlas, the final battle, and even after the show technically ends).
 
The new book (OUTSIDERS) is already up though it’s just the intro and disclaimer and will start with the battle against Zarkon.
 
Thank so much! Love you guys!!