The Silver Paladin

Launch Date

"You asked her, didn't you? Oh, and she said no." Hunk said, "Oh, oh no. Here I am rubbing your face in it."

"She didn't say no. I..." Lance said, looking down at his cup, "Well, I never asked her."

"You chickened out?" Hunk asked.

"I was going to ask her, but she's been spending, like, every day in the med bay. Maybe-- Maybe this just isn't the right time."

"No, Lance. What? It's the only time."

"Hunk is right, Lance." I said, "After tomorrow, we'll be back in space fighting the Galra. We don't know what'll happen while we're out there. If you don't ask Allura today, then you might not have this chance ever again. Better to do it now then never."

"Yeah, what Saoirse. You're asking her today, and that is final, young man." Hunk said in an almost fatherly tone.

Lance still looked uncertain, but I could tell that he knew it was his last chance.

I placed my hand on his shoulder, making him look at me with his uncertain expression.

"You can fight hordes of Galra, but you're afraid of asking a girl on a date?" I chuckled, "Come on, Lance. If you don't ask her now, then how are you supposed to tell her how you feel?"

Lance gave me a small smile, but in his eyes I could tell he was still a little nervous and uncertain. However, I know he can do it. After all, I know how it feels to confess long term feelings to then one you love.

~~~~Keith~~~~

We were called to the conference room for one last briefing before launching tomorrow. Saoirse, Shiro and Veronica stood at the front of the conference room, ready to go over the last minute details about the launch.

I just couldn't stop staring at Saoirse. Now that she was Admiral, she had a lot of pressure on her shoulders, and soon, we would be going back to the fighting and battles in space.

Looking at her now, seeing how professional she looks in the Admiral uniform, she had become so much stronger than she was before. I smiled, seeing her stand proudly in front of the people in the room. I really fell hard for a strong woman.

"Everyone, welcome to our final briefing here on Earth." Shiro said, "It's been several months since we began to rebuild, and tomorrow we launch and continue our liberation efforts across all planets still under Galra rule. Commander Holt, what's the latest from your team?"

"We've comfirmed that there's still no Galra activity within several galaxies of the Milky Way. It appears Earth was Sendak's only target." Commander Holt explained.

"Where are we with Earth's defenses?" Saoirse asked.

"I've finished my check-in with all the Garrison facilities around the globe. All defenses are up and running. Earth has everything in place to keep itself safe." I explained.

"Great. And Atlas preparations?" Shiro asked.

"Repairs to the IGF-Atlas were completed early last week and it has since passed every test protocol we've put it through." Veronica stated.

"Good. Any updates on the Altean pilot?"

"She's stable, but still unresponsive." Saoirse informed.

"But she could wake any day now." Allura added, "Perhaps if we had a little more time, we could find out who sent her."

"There's no way to know when or if she'll regain consciousness." I said, "We can't wait any longer. We need to get back out there and end this war before the Galra can reorganize."