Today Zarkon was going to be defeated. Right now, Allura was giving a speech. You held onto Ulaz' hand, trying not to cry.

"Thank you, Ryner, for all you and the Olkari have done to assist us. Once we defeat Zarkon, it is my hope that we can continue to unite our forces and rebuild the once great coalition that my father, King Alfor, began. Allura said, loud enough for everyone to hear.

Everyone cheered at her words. After ten thousand years everyone was finally going to be free.

"Princess, it's time." Coran told Allura.

"Everyone lock into position. We're taking this thing up. Princess, we are go for launch." Shiro told the Paladins.

You, Ulaz, Slav, Kolivian and Antok followed Allura and Coran into the castle. Allura started the castle and took off. The Paladins followed while carrying the teludav with their lions.

       _________________________________

"Commander Thace, you have sent encrypted messages to outside forces. Of this, we are keenly aware." A druid said.

"Encryptions can be broken, just like you." A second druid said, shocking Thace.

Thace screamed loudly as electricity ran through his body. The druids just stood there and watched. Thace stopped screaming when the electricity stopped.

"It was you who destroyed the sentries and powered down the solar barrier. You allowed Voltron to escape. You betrayed Zarkon!" The second druid accused Thace.

"Who else is part of this conspiracy?" The first druid asked.

Thace refused to answer any of their questions. The second druid used the electricity to shock Thace again. Thace screamed loudly as the electricity ran through his body again. If this kept up he would never see you or Ulaz again.

       _________________________________

"All right, guys, listen up. I'll use the Black Lion to lure Zarkon's fleet to our current location and make sure he's within the teludav's area of effect. Keeping the teludav hidden behind the space-fold until the last possible second is essential. We can count on you, right, Slav?" Shiro asked Slav.

"Absolutely. I'll be fine. I'm not sure about the gravity generator, though." Slav replied.

"What? What was that last thing?" Hunk asked Slav.

"Hiding a ship is one thing, but I've never had to build a gravity generator for something this large before. I know it'll work, but I'm not really sure for how long." Slav said as he rubbed his chin.

"Well, that's a risk we'll have to take. Once Zarkon's ship is in position, Kolivan and Antok will coordinate with Thace. Together, they'll take down Zarkon's security system and upload the virus." Shiro said, looking at the hologram of Zarkon's ship.

"And then, he'll be a sitting du-flax. What? A du-flax is an Altean creature with a beak and webbed feet." Pidge said awkwardly.

Everyone just looked at Pidge as she explained what she just said. She was thinking of something that looked like a duck when she said it.

"We'll wormhole Zarkon 500 million light years away, and he'll be in the Yggiz Galaxy before he knows what's hit him!" Coran said, leaping up onto the platform.

"What about Thace?" Ulaz asked Kolivian.

"He should be getting into position now. We received his last communication three quintants ago. We should hear from him soon." Kolivian told Ulaz.

"Then let's do it." Shiro said.

       _________________________________

Once again, the druids were giving Zarkon quintessence. They stopped when Haggar walked in.

"Why do you disturb me?" Zarkon groaned.

"My apologies, sire. I fear your singular focus has-" Haggar started to say, getting cut off.

"Has what?" Zarkon asked, cutting her off.

"I've overstepped my bounds. We've apprehended a spy within our ranks. He plans something with an outside force. I suspect an attack is imminent." Haggar told him.

"Let your druids find out what he knows. You will stay here. The only thing that matters to me is getting the Black Lion. I need the power you possess to search the galaxy." Zarkon said as the druids started giving him quintessence again.

       _________________________________

"Zarkon took the bait. He's got my location. Is everybody in position?" Shiro asked from the screen.

"We've not yet heard from Thace. He was supposed to contact us two vargas ago." Kolivian told Shiro.

"He could've been captured." Ulaz said, fearing for the worst.

"Or killed. We need to abort the mission immediately." Kolivian said.

"Abort? No! We cannot back away now." Allura said angrily.

"The Blade of Marmora does not take chances. It's how we've survived for so long." Antok told Allura, growling a little.

"It's held you back. Your caution is the reason Zarkon is still in power." Allura told Antok.

"We would rather wait than jeopardize everything. Besides, it's too late to get someone else on the inside." Kolivian told Allura.

"I'll do it." Keith told Allura.

"What?" Allura asked Keith.

"I'll sneak onto Zarkon's ship. I'm Galra, so I'll be able to interact with their technology. Pidge, you can rig up one of those pods with a cloaking device, right?" Keith asked Pidge.

"Well, yeah." Pidge said, looking at Keith.

"Going onto Zarkon's ship is a suicide mission. I would never command someone so inexperienced to go on a mission so dangerous." Told Keith.

"No one's commanding me. I'm doing it." Keith said seriously.

"Pidge, get that pod ready. Keith... Let me know when you're on your way. I'll give you cover." Shiro told Keith and Pidge.

              __________________________

"I'm in!" Keith said over the comm once he got into Zarkon's ship.

"The plan is working. Keith is on board and Zarkon's fleet is on the way." Allura said as she looked at a screen.

"The Castle of Lion defenses are up and ready to go." Lance said.

"Starting gravity generator now. Commencing cloak." Slav said, starting the gravity generator.

As Keith made his way through the hangar he was careful not to run into anyone. He had one shot at this and he was going to make it count. Keith put his hand on a scanner and opened a door. Meanwhile, Thace escaped.

"Okay, you've made it to the lower communication deck. Head left down that corridor." Kolivian said through Keith's comm, giving him directions.

"Based on the schematics from Thace, there should be a large door up ahead. This is the central hub for the Galra fleet." Antok told Keith.

"I see it." Keith said as he ran.

             __________________________

The Paladins flew and dodged Galra fighters and ships. They destroyed as many as they could.

"I'm two minutes out. Is everybody ready?" Shiro asked over the comms.

"No, Keith hasn't made it to the hub yet. We need more time." Kolivian told Shiro.

"How much more?" Shiro asked.

"I hope not much because my gravity generator is not going to run forever!" Slav told Shiro.

"Well I don't know how much longer I can hold Zarkon's fleet in this position by myself!" Shiro said loudly.

"You won't have to." Pidge said as she and the other Paladins came to help Shiro.

"Good timing. Okay, we've got Zarkon's ship right where it needs to be. We gotta keep it here until that virus is uploaded. Let's do it!" Shiro said, glad that the others had his back.

"All right!" Lance said enthusiastically.

"We got this!" Pidge added.

      _________________________________

The druids watched the camera feed as Thace escaped. They saw him running down one of the hallways. They went to go stop him. Meanwhile, Keith got to his destination.

"Kolivan, I'm in. Now, what?" Keith asked Kolivian.

"Now, you need to reset the system, using the codes that Thace obtained. It'll be down for a dobosh. That's when we'll upload the virus." Kolivian told him.

Keith typed on a screen. When he heard a rapid beeping sound he knew that it didn't work.

"It doesn't seem to be working." Keith told Kolivian.

"Try it again." Kolivian told Keith.

Right as Keith was going to try it again the door beeped. He gasped as he hid behind the console.

"Keith, are you there?" Kolivian asked through his comm.

Keith peeked out from his hiding spot and saw an injured Galra walk over to the computer. Thace walked over and began typing.

"And now, we know you were attempting to shut down the system." A druid said as he and his friend entered the room before flying towards him.

"You're too late." Thace said, making the druids stop.

"No, Thace. You're too late. We already changed the code." The second druid said.

Thace's eyes widened when the computer started beeping. Right as the druids were about to strike Keith came out of his hiding spot and killed one. The second druid tried killing Keith and Thace, they killed him too.

"Thace, I'm Keith, a Paladin of Voltron." Keith said, introducing himself to Thace.

"And a fellow Blade, I see. I guess we haven't failed." Thace said, noticing Keith's blade.

"This is getting hairy. How are you doing, Keith?" Lance asked over the comms.

"The Galra switched the codes. We're trying a work-around." Keith told Lance.

"'We'? Who's 'we'?" Lance asked Keith.

"Thace. I found him. I'll explain later." Keith said over the comms.

"Copy that." Shiro said.

"What exactly are you doing?" Keith asked Thace curiously.

"I'm using the main power to overload the system." Thace told Keith.

"You're turning the room into a bomb?" Keith asked, clearly shocked.

"It's the only way." Thace said darkly.

            __________________________

"Thace has barricaded himself in the central hub. We believe he's trying to shut down the system" A druid told Haggar.

"He's working with the paladins. It was a trap." Haggar said.

"Get the spy. I will end this firefight." Zarkon told Haggar and the druid.

Haggar and her druids and some sentries went straight to where Thace and Keith were. Thace fired at the sentries before firing at a giant computer mainframe, causing it to fall.

"That solves one problem, but now we're trapped in here." Keith said once the entrance was blocked.

"No, we're not. There's an exit through the main power conduit. It leads to the second deck. Go, now." Thace told Keith.

"What? No, I'm not gonna leave you." Keith said seriously.

"You must. I will shut down the system. Paladin, this is where my journey ends, but, as a member of Voltron, you have a bigger mission. You must understand that." Thace said, thinking that this was the end.

"It was an honor to meet you." Keith said softly as the blockade was destroyed.

"Go! Now!" Thace urged Keith.

Keith hesitated before he jumped. He gave Thace a blaster before he left. Thace pressed something on the console before jumping behind it. More sentries shot at him as he did so. The computer mainframe charged up. Right before the explosion happened Thace closed his eyes, accepting that he was going to a better place where he didn't have to suffer anymore.

Right as the mainframe exploded something hit his head, making everything go dark. He was unconscious, so he didn't feel Keith's grappling hook snag him and pull him down. Keith flew as fast as he could, taking Thace with him. Thankfully, he got out before it was too late. Red came to pick Keith and Thace up before the Blade suffocated.