WARINING!!
Graphic depictions of violence. Viewer discretion is advised
These will be in bold so anyone who wishes can skip over them.
I felt like I looked suspicious. In a large crowd, I was the only one wearing a hood over my head and purple skin. It was a busy corner, packed with Alteans buzzing about. Today is Prince Lance’s coronation. He was to be crowned king of a small kingdom.
While everyone was busy watching the ceremony, I was to sneak into the castle and find some information about where the Voltron lions were located. I was not to let anyone get in the way of the search. If someone did, I was given specific orders to kill them.
Hopefully, I wouldn't end up like the last person who went on this mission. When the king before Prince Lance died, someone was sent to find the same information on the day of the funeral. He forgot to disable the security cameras and was caught and killed. I had already disabled the cameras last night from my ship. That way, I wouldn't forget. At least I wouldn't have to worry about that part.
Trumpets started to blare. The crowd went wild. I snuck closer to the platform they would be walking down. From there, I would enter a side door and make my way down to the computer mainframe.
Prince Lance walked out, full of sophistication and grace. His white hair was wild, but neat somehow. A long, dark cloak billowed behind him as he gracefully stalked down the catwalk. A priest walked behind him with a tall hat and some Altean bible thing.
Now was the time to go. But why couldn't I move? My legs were glued to the spot. I grabbed the sides of my hood so it wouldn't fall off.
The prince looked at me. That was it. My cover was blown. His dazzling blue eyes locked with mine. Oh man. I failed already. He winked and puckered his lips at me. I felt my cheeks get warm. No, not just warm. Hot. I ran off towards the side door.
Holy fuck. That was terrible. I better get this done fast before he tells someone there was a Galra in the crowd. There was a hand scanner to get in. The scanner obviously wouldn't accept my hand. Good thing I came prepared. I pulled a small blade out of my pocket and pried off the scanner. A few small crystals were floating in the control board. One of these crystals was the key to opening the door, but which one? There was something significant about it, but what? Was it the biggest? The smallest? I racked my brain, trying to remember. Nothing came to mind. Without thinking, I
snatched one of them and stuffed it in my pocket. Once I had placed the scanner back on the wall, the door slid apart. Access was granted.
That was nerve wracking. I quickly jumped through the door and shut it gently behind me, careful not to make too much noise and draw attention to myself. So far so good. Now, I just needed to find the central control bridge.
Obviously not wanting to end up like the last guy, I had come prepared for this. In another one of my pockets was a map of the castle's layout. The control bridge was about 500 metres away from where I was currently standing. I had better hurry I don't know how long the coronation would last. Going as fast as I silently could, I raced down the corridor. The bridge was nearing fast.
Only 100 metres.
50.
I had made it to the door and no one had yet spotted me. This was unbelievable. My luck was never this good.
Never.
It wouldn't get any better just standing around, though. Before opening the door, I looked up and down the long narrow hallway, like a toddler about to cross the street. No one from the left. No one from the right. The coast was all clear. I slipped into the bridge, opening the door as little as possible.
There were was one guard. He heard the door shut and turned around. Upon seeing me, he yelled, “Halt!” However, I had already pulled out my dagger and was charging him when he said it. Within seconds, the knife went from pointed it at him to jabbed it into his abdomen. He was stunned for a moment. I used this opportunity to sneak behind him and slide the blade across him throat. The guard choked on the blood bubbling in his throat. He fell to the floor, bleeding out from his neck and abdomen.
“Ugh,” I grunted. I didn't want to kill anyone, but it was part of my mission. I kicked the body over the side of the catwalk leading up to the main computer. The body fell into the void, going where no one would ever find it. I rushed down the catwalk to the computer and jammed in my hard drive. This was already taking me longer than I had anticipated; I didn't want it to take much longer.
My fingers flew over the buttons, like I had rehearsed hundreds of times. I searched up and through files and files, saving all the data to the hard drive. A loading screen popped up, showing how long it would take to transfer all the data.
It was much slower than I was hoping. The bar stayed at 0% for quite a while.
“Hurry up!” I whispered urgently to the machine. I didn't want to be here longer than I had to. It would increase my chances of getting caught and decrease my chances of getting off this planet.
Of course the data transfer was not affected, as it is a machine. It cannot hear me and has no grasp on the concept of “hurrying up” or the fact I will die if it doesn't finish any sooner than it is currently.
I buried my head in my hands. It was going so well until this point! This could ruin the mission. The King will order me dead. He'll march through the streets with my head on a stick! I looked back at the screen. It had climbed up to 1%.
I let out an aggravated groan and turned around, lean on the computer. This was going to take forever. On top of that, I was starting to get bored. I stood up straight again and turned back to face the computer.
1%.
I dropped my head onto the computer. Dear Lord Zarkon, I thought, please finish before I get caught.
My mind began to wander. Somehow, I started thinking about the new King. He was so…… what's the word?
I like his eyes. They were sparkly. They were full of life. They were the most beautiful blue I've ever seen in an eye.
His skin looked so soft. There wasn't a dimple or imperfection anywhere on the surface of his body. It was smoother than the tusk of an Haldgeravian elescantium. I wanted to trace my has over his arms and feel how perfectly smooth they were.
His hair was so perfect. Every strand must feel like silk. Running my hands through his hair would be paradise.
The new King, Lance, he was so….. beautiful.
What and I thinking? He's a king! I'm just an ordinary soldier. Shit, he's Altean! I'm Galra! openly saying I loved him? I would be asking for a public execution.
I looked back up at the screen.
8%
I sighed heavily and leaned my palms on the mainframe. “Hurry up, hurry up, hurry up!”
Once again, my attempts were in vain. the computer would not hurry up. How long had it been since I started the transfer? How much time was left of the coronation?
Panic crept over every inch of me. My hands and legs started shaking. My lungs shrunk. It was getting harder and harder to breathe. There was a bunch of air pushing against the top of my stomach. Pressure squished both sides of my tongue. There was a large lump in my tight throat.
Fuck! I thought. The word repeated in my mind. It swirled around, filling up every cubic inch my brain. I couldn't think of anything else. Why was I here? What am I doing? Why is there blood on my hands?
I looked back up at the screen in desperation. Please almost be done, I thought. My prayers were left unanswered. It was still at 8%.
I slammed my head against the mainframe again. A small, red stain was left when I pulled my head back up. Shit. I don't have anything to wipe that up with. I'm leaving behind a trace. I quickly clawed at it with my already bloody hands. If I he blood on my hands mixed it in, it would be harder to find me.
There computer made a noise. Fuck. I didn't like the noise. I looked back up at the computer.
A large error message took up most of the screen. I looked at the percentage.
0%
Someone had found me.
My panic level rose. The pressure on my tongue increased. The bubble in my stomach was ready to pop. I couldn't breathe. It was getting harder to stand. My mind went blank. The only thought was small. It was so small it almost wasn't there. I need to get out of here.
But before I could even turn around, a hand clamped over my mouth.