I had an idea for something and I kinda really want to write it but I'm not starting anything new so for now I'm just gonna write this lol. The likelihood that anyone who will read it will also happen to find this is very unlikely and maybe it will entertain ya'll that follow my trash??

Please note I've only watched up to S2 so I know that like the Castle of Lions was destroyed and Keith left to become a Blade of Mamora and Shiro was a clone for like 3 seasons but since I don't ACTUALLY know what happened I'll just stick to what I know for certain

Quick summary: basically AU where Lance has a robot body but his human mind because Altean magic and Pidge's genius after a freak accident killed Lance's human body but Pidge managed to save his mind. Lance's robotic body was corrupted by the Galra and team Voltron thought he was dead for real and Lance doesn't remember who he actually is. Admiral (which is a shade of blue) is the name the Galra gave him.
———————

Every time Admiral walked a certain hallway in the Castle of Lions, he could hear whispering.

He knew that the Paladins had no real reason to trust Admiral. He was a droid- an intelligence droid no less. An intelligence droid that was coded to understand human and Galran emotion and knew that he was being used by Zarkon, but also an intelligence droid coded to understand human and Galran emotions that could easily double cross the Paladins by playing their feelings.

But why would they not answer his question about who was whispering?

He had asked different Paladins several times. The green one told him that no one would talk about him behind his back- there was no reason to. The yellow one told him that no one ever went into the area he was describing. The black one went with the droid to the area and said that he heard nothing.

But the whispering was always there.

It was just background noise, really. Admiral could not make out what words were being said. But they were always there, steady and consistent, and the only time they went away was when the Paladins were out in their Lions for whatever reason.

Admiral had not told any of the Paladins this variable in the equation. The Lions were giant robotic felines with incredibly complex coding that allowed them to measure the amount of Quintessence an individual had and compare it to the ideal amount that a Lion would need for their ideal pilot. The bond that the Paladins so often talked about strengthening was nothing more than the Lions measuring the Quintessence levels to make sure that the Paladins were still ideal for them.

Despite that what logic and computing and analyzation told Admiral, it never felt like the correct answer. Something echoed in the back of his memory core, just out of the ranger that the droid could go back and pull up long-term information. The uncanny feeling always seemed to pull stronger when the Altean with the orange moustache- Coran was his name. Whenever he was in sight.

"The Castle not only had advanced technology the likes of which have never been seen but is also powered by things that science alone cannot explain."

But where did this memory come from? Who said it? The lack of sufficient information to satisfy Admiral's curiosity bothers him.

"There it is again! He remembers, just the slightest! Wake up, my Paladin! Return!"

Admiral's deep purple skin had goosebumps raise as he heard that voice. It was so familiar... But from where? No voice matched in his memory core from a quick scan he did.

"Hush! How many times must we tell you? Your Paladin might never return, you know that. He is most likely gone for good."

This was a different voice. It was deeper and held much more authority than the first. Admiral almost would have shivered if he were human.

"But you do not feel the pull to him! He is there, just beneath the surface! ———, tell her you feel it too!"

Admiral had more confusion bubble as he heard a phrase he could not understand. It did not sound like English, or Altean, or Galran, or any other foreign language in his database. It was a name, no doubt, that seemed to hold some sort of power and refer to a separate individual than the two arguing.

"...I am not sure. You have the strongest bond to your rightful Paladin. He was my second choice and I am bonded to my first. I feel... something. Occasionally. I cannot take one side or the other in this argument."

"You are useless, ———"

"That is not correct, ————! Do not say such things!"

The last individual to speak was a new voice. All four of the introduced were female, making Admiral even more confused. The only females on the ship were the Green Paladin and the Altean Princess?

"I can FEEL HIM. My Paladin is ALIVE. None of you care because you have your choice pilots! None of you are stuck with a second-rate princess who if things were favorable would not be a Paladin at all! She may have the Quintessence and may be the ruler of the Castle of Lions, but she does not have the empathy needed to be the pilot of the Blue Lion!"

A shock went through Admiral's system. Princess Allura should not be a Paladin? He was aware that there had been a previous Blue Paladin before her that had been terminated, and the others missed him very much, but he was not aware that the Lions had such inhibition towards their owner. Not only did the superficial detail surprise Admiral, but it touched something deep within him. He could only describe it as his heart, although he was a robot and had no beating organ or emotional reserve.

"He feels. He stirs, just barely. I wonder if you are listening, Lance? Please, my Paladin, return. For me, my true pilot. For your friends, your space family. For the entire quiznaking universe, who needs someone with much more emotional understanding than the princess!"

"———— language! We are the Lions!"

"Yes, and that means something, ——."

A fifth voice spoke for the first time. Admiral smiled at the immediate sass, which reminded him of Pidge talking to Shiro in many conversations.

"————, hush. —————, you are just as bad as your Paladin! All of you should power down before we waste our energy reserves and not be fully operational the next time our Paladins need us!"

"Yes, ——..."

"Of course."

"Fine."

The silence seemed heavy with an expectation. Finally the voice that had been upset sighed in a defeated tone.

"Yes, ——. Farewell, Lance..."

Then the voices quieted. Admiral released a breath (for lack of a better word) that he had not realized he had been holding. His machinery started to whirl again as he relaxed from a perfectly still pose that he had frozen in. He was unsure of what had just happened and had a feeling that the Paladins would not be able to explain it to the constantly confused droid.

As Admiral retuned towards the Castle common area, he reviewed the data that he had just collected. It had a sense of familiarity, yet strangeness at the same time.

He realized with another jolt through his system that that entire conversation he had just overheard had been in his head.