Ok I never technically watched ATLA(you dont wanna know), but this prompt was too much fun NOT to do!
Ok lets GOOOOOOOO!!
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Lance would never want to invalidate Shiro. The man had been captured by the Galra, aleins he didn’t know even existed! He was tortured by them, forced to kill for his life.
He lost his arm, and had it replaced by a robotic weapon. And all over the cource of a year! Shiro had been through hell, and Lance would never invalidate that.
But as Lance stood in the center of the Galran Arena with his fists dripping blood and bruises, looking down at his dead opponent with not a single sweat upon his own skin, he had one thought in relation to Shiro: Pussy.
Lance shook his head, trying to rid himself of the thought. That was so insensitive what the hell?!
Galra Gaurds finally entered the Arena to pull the slaughtered alein away, and Lance looked away. He instead looked up at the Arena, which was filled with cheering crowds. Galra or not, Lance was a sucker for attention. He smiled and waved at the crowd. He winked at a few girls, who swooned at the sight of him. The announcer hyped up the crowd even more, declaring the next round. Lance took his position and another fight began.
There was probably a time where Lance felt bad about what he was doing. He thinks it was when he was first captured, how long ago was that anyway? A Deca-Phoeb for sure, maybe two. Lance felt really horrible about competing in the arena, as much as anyone would! Being kidnapped by the genocidal Galra and forced to kill or be killed for their entertainment?! Talk about messed up. He remembered being terrified for his life. And even when he did survive and kill his opponent, he felt a whole new kind of terrified at the fact he had killed an innocent prisoner just like himself. But as the Phoebs(at least he assumed it was months, sure felt like it)passed, Lance grew used to it. He assumed that is was probably what Shiro felt like. Just get it over with, Lance would tell himself. But then even more months past, and Lance was beginning to think he had long past whatever Shiro felt during his time in the ring.
A Long time had passed since Lance's initial capture. He had been fighting in the ring for a very long time, and had become a crowd favorite. When the Galra realized this, they decided they didn't want him to turn out like Shiro had. They could have made Shiro great, an unstoppable force. But he didn't realize his own potential and ran away. They were committed to not make the same mistake twice. So one day after his rounds in the Arena they took him aside.
Lance was led through the ship by two Galran guards. They didn't place him in cuffs, or even grab his arms roughly. They simply stood close to him on either side. Lance was suspicious, and considered using this as a chance to escape. But if just two lowly guards were acting different towards him, a paladin of Voltron, there had to be something going on he didn't know about. He decided to play it safe and just let them take him where ever. They passed the entrance to the prisons and cells, and Lance was led down a much different one. He often saw the guards go down this hall, and even commanders! Lance stayed silent though.
They finally approached a door, and they shoved Lance inside. The room wasn't as dark as the rest of the ship. It was made of a lighter purple (almost pink) tile, and it seemed the florescent purple lights had been brightened. It was quiet and empty. Lance had been tortured a bit at the beginning of his imprisonment, and chills went down his back as he worried it was about to happen again. But then two female Galran servants came in, and started to clean him. They undressed him and he received his first shower since he arrived. He could see months worth of dirt and blood flow down the drain. Lance tried to enjoy the warm water and soft soap, but he couldn't help but wonder why he was receiving it.
Lance was dressed in clean clothes(Still the normal Prison Wear, but it clean)and shoved back out to the original two guards.
They kept leading him down the halls further into ship, until they arrived in the largest dining room Lance had ever seen in his life. The Castle Ship's Dining room was big, but not this big! The table was filled with different dishes, all of which Lance had never seen before let alone tasted. But just looking at his made him drool. But only for a second because he was more interested in the High Ranking Galra who feasted among the table. They looked at him for a moment before continuing their meal. What was going on? Was Lance gonna be killed and served as the main cource or something? Why was he in the Galra's dining room?!
The situation went from confusing to horrifyingly baffling as Zarkon himself entered and took his seat at the head of the table. The others stood and sauluted him with a 'Verpid Sa', before resuming their meals. Zarkon stared Lance down and Lance wondered if he was looking into his soul for a moment. But then Lance was shoved into a chair right next to Zarkon! Lance sent a quick prayer to his family and friends as he was sure this was the end for him.
"So, you are the Blue Paladin of Voltron." Zarkon spoke to him. "I must say, you have impressed the Galra Empire. Much more than the Champion ever did."
Lance just looked up at the Evil Emperor, confused but still openly terrified.
"I'm sure you're wondering why a valuable prisoner such as yourself is sitting at my side. At dinner." Zarkon turned to him and narrowed his eyes. It wasn't out of sudden anger, his mood hadn't actually changed at all.
Lance managed to calm his face, and give a nod.
"The Champion was quite the fighter in the Arena, and entertainment for the ages. But despite all we could have offered him, he still ran away. Escaped us, and all he could have been. We will not make the same mistake twice."
"You tortured him," Lance said. "Took his arm, his friends and family! That would make anyone want to run away no matter what you offered him!" Lance expected Zarkon to kill him right then and there.
Zarkon didn't kill him, but he did take a large swig of whatever was in his goblet. "That was what we did wrong, yes." he nodded. "But as I said we will not make the same mistake twice."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Lance glared.
"We were cruel to the Champion. And with his lack of knowledge its no wonder he didn't believe us when we said we would make him great. But surely you Blue Paladin are smarter. You know everything that lies in the universe. You know that we will make you great. Greater than you could ever be with Voltron."
"Your vile, I would never join you!" Lance spat.
Zarkon let out a large roar of laughter, which prompted the others at the table to laugh as well.
"Do you truly think you could join our ranks?" Zarkon laughed. "You might have once been a paladin of Voltron, but even then you were the weakest among them!"
Lance was getting angry. That wasn't true! He was a good pilot and paladin, and he earned his place on that team! And yet...it had been so long since he was captured. He had almost forgotten there was a chance he would be rescued from here.
"So what?" Lance sneered. "If I'm so weak, what do you want with me?"
"I want entertainment." Zarkon said, simply.
"Excuse me?!"
"You have become a crowd favorite among the Galra. You could never be great among the empire, but among the Arena you will shine."
"I'm already being forced to fight in the Arena." Lance said. "Why am I here, What are you trying to offer me?"
"The Champion ran away, because we did not treat him correctly. He was valuable for the Arena, but we did not treat him as such. He could have been great, and he never even knew it because we never bothered to tell him." Zarkon shook his head sadly. "You will be different."
"How so?" Lance raised an eyebrow.
"You will be given luxuries. You will be given a room, to rest and bathe in. You will have access to a training room, to hone your craft and skills. You will be given food, water, and proper medical attention. In return, you will continue to fight in the Arena. You will entertain us, give us a show like none other. You will be great."
Lance had to make a decision, and he had to make it quick. He could continue where he was now, fighting in the arena with little resources. He could continue to fight and return to his cell with no food or medical attention. And if he did Zarkon would surely throw in some torture for denying his request. OR he could take Zarkon's deal. Fight in the Arena with Training and Food to ensure his vicotry and life. Be given a room and not a cell. Zarkon didn't want Lance as a solider, something to use against Voltron. No, he wanted him for entertainment; it felt degrading. But Lance would rather degrade than die.
Lance looked back up at Zarkon. "I accept your offer."
"Good." Zarkon said. He gestured to the table. "Eat, rest. For tomorrow you will be the new Champion."
"No."
"Excuse me?"
"You will not call me the Champion. You will call me the Victor."
And so thats what happened. Lance willingly continued to fight in the Arena, as 'The Victor". He trained harder than he ever did with Voltron, and became very strong. He had as much muscles as he body type would allow, and still managed to look as handsome and graceful as ever. The people in the front rows could hear his quips and jokes that he would call to his opponent. Eventually they became so popular that Lance was given a Mic during his fights. He did indeed entertain, the crowd loved him.
And overtime, he loved the crowd. The men would scream his name when he entered the ring. The women would swoon as he plunged his sword into his enemy. Every once in a while, Zarkon himself would attend a match. He would give him a smirk and clap as Lance won as usual. Lance loved the Arena. The cheering fans and the rush of the action. It made him feel worth something. Lance did not like killing. No sane person would! He was not a monster, and never would be. But you can't be a Gladiator Star without doing so. So Lance had developed a special type of fighting style: fast as fuck. Lance would kill his opponent in under a minute, a swift and painless death for the innocent prisoner.
Zarkon had said he wanted entertainment, so at first he had been displeased. But it turned out that the crowd loved it. They loved to see Lance go rapid-fire on tens-twenties of prisoners in record time. Zarkon watched a few matches, and learned to enjoy it too.
In the end, it seemed everything was working out! Lance killed his enemy swift and painlessly, the Galra got their entertainment, and Lance got stay out of the cells.
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It had been a year since Lance was captured and killed by the Galra. Team Voltron mourned him deeply, as he was the first casualty among them. But they vowed he would be the last. They trained harder, and protected each other more than ever. Voltron improved, gained more allies, and was winning the war. Alurra and the coalition finally decided it was time to attack Zarkon head on, and end the war once and for all!
Alurra had become the Blue Paladin after Lance died. At first she felt a deep self hatred, because the only reason she was a paladin was because Lance was gone. Lance, a fun and happy teenager, was dead because he was forced into a war he had nothing to do with. Over time however, she finally accepted her place as a Paladin of Voltron. And that she had to work with her team to save the universe. Make it a better place, for Lance.
Overtime, everyone had to come to terms with Lance's death. They all found new motivation for ending the war on his behalf. And no one had more motivation than Keith. All Keith had ever done was fight with Lance, over the silliest of things! Keith wondered if Lance knew that he really did care for him, that he really was Keith's friend. That Keith really didn't hate Lance. But Keith was stupid, and never told Lance any of that. And Lance died, thinking Keith didn't care about him at all. Keith spent longer than anyone recovering from that guilt. Keith never wanted anyone else to go through that: Your friend dying and the misery that resulted.
So when Alurra announced the attack on Zarkon, the Final Battle...Keith was ready. He was ready to do whatever it took to defeat him.
Alurra explained that even if Voltron defeated Zarkon's mothership, Zarkon could still easily escape in an escpae pod. They had to kill him, blood on blood. Not to mention all the prisoners that would be killed if they simply blew up the ship! The plan was to have Hunk, Shiro, and Alurra fight Zarkon's ship in their Lions with the help of the Coilition. Meanwhile Pidge and Keith would infiltrate Zarkon's ship with the Blade of Mamora. The Pidge would go with Half the Blade and free the prisoners, while Keith would go with the other half and try to take out Zarkon.
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Keith, Pidge, and the BOM made it into Zarkon's ship undetected. The outer attack would start in ten Doboshes.
"Alright," Anok, one of the Blades, said. "We're arriving at a perfect time. Currently a long awaited Galdiator Event is taking place in the Arena right now. According to our Insider Spy, Zarkon himself is attending. Once the frontal attack begins, Zarkon will exit the Arena from this exit, right behind the 'Royal Booth'. And We'll be waiting."
They all nodded, and split up. Pidge to begin freeing the prisoners and Keith to get in position.
As Keith and the other Blades got closer and closer, the roars of the crowd could be heard. They cheered and chanted, loving whatever was happening in there. "Vic-Tor! Vic-Tor! Vic-Tor!" they chanted passionately. Keith pitied whoever this 'Victor' was. Sounds simalar to the nickname they gave Shiro. The announcer was crying out commentary as 'The Victor' was getting closer to defeating his enemy.
"This is quite the fight!" the announcer said. "The longest The Victor has ever had! While we all love his rapid fire shows this is surely the event of a lifetime!"
The crowd cheered.
"Surely The Victor has many things to say about this battle! How about it, lets turn on his mic! Hear some of his classic 'burns' as he calls them!"
The crowd cheered even louder.
There was a sudden bunch of garble over the speakers until 'The Victor' began to speak.
"Well damn! I knew I would be giving a longer show today but you're just making it boring!"
Keith froze mid run. Keith knew that voice. It rang in his head every night for the past year. It couldn't be, could it? Keith told the others to go up ahead, that he would meet them there in time.
He rushed to the doorways of the Arena, and climbed his way to a little nook in the ceiling where he wouldn't be spotted. He looked down into the Ring. Shiro had described the ring as a huge circle of blood-stained sand, only filled with dead bodies. The ring looked very different now however. There were large concrete blocks and obstacles now. There was a huge jumbo screen which showed the fight.
Down below in the ring, was Lance. He was alive?! He was ALIVE! Keith was so shocked and happy all at the same time! But oh crap, Lance was in the rings! He had to save him--
Lance walked leisurely to his opponent, whom was cowering behind one of the large walls of concrete. It was obvious they had been spotted, but they looked too exhausted to move.
He made it to the poor alien, and knelt down in front of it. His sword rested against his shoulders, and he smirked.
"P-Please!" The Alein could be heard begging through Lance's mic. "Just kill me already!"
On the Jumbo Screen, Keith could see just the slightest bit of sadness on Lance's face before his normal facade returned.
"No can do buddy!" Lance said. "We gotta give these folks a show! Don't you wanna give them a show?"
"No! I don't!"
"Well! Too bad!" Lance stood back up. "Get up! C'mon." he nudged them with his foot.
The Alein didnt move but continued to cower and cry.
Lance grabbed the Alien by the shirt. "Or did you want the Galra to come and convince you to give them a show? I assure you I'm a lot more gentle~"
Lance winked at the cameras and Keith could hear many galra girls swoon.
The Galra began to chant. "Longer Show! Longer Show!".
Lance finally let the Alein down on its feet. "Ten second head start. Go!"
The Alein ran away, and the minute that ten seconds were up Lance attacked. He drove his sword straight through its chest, and the crowd went wild.
Keith couldn't believe what he was seeing. Keith remembered what Shiro had said about the Arena. That neither he or his opponent could hold back their tears as Shiro killed them. That Shiro would forever regret the lives he took. But Lance didn't look distraught at all, hell he called this a 'show'! He had a name just like Shiro, and he grinned when the crowd cheered it. He taunted his innocent opponent with no mercy. Who had Lance become? No, this wasn't right. There had to be more to this! He had to find out--
"Red Paladin, it is almost time." a BOM member said through his coms. "Get into position."
Keith reluctently joined the other blades. But not before alerting Pidge that Lance was one of the prisoners.
...
Pidge told the other Blades to continue freeing the Prisoners while she ran off. Keith said he saw Lance, fighting in the Arena, but had to get into position. It was up to her to find him. A minute or two into running, the alarms rang signaling that the attack had begun. The ship fell into total chaos. Galras rushing to the escape pods like cowards, and robotic sentries mindlessly attacking. Pidge rushed to fight off anything and everything in her way, desperate to find Lance. She didn't expect Lance to find her.
An enemy was about to strike her suddenly, when Lance bashed its head off with his bare fist. She looked up at him in shock, it was really him! He looked really different: His hair had grown a significant amount, and his body was covered in scars. However he had really buffed up, his muscles looking very strong and handsome. He was also oddly clean, any dirt and blood clearly fresh. However he looked down at her with familer blue eyes and a large grin as he realized whom he had just saved.
"PIDGE!" he cheered. Lance swept her up into his now stronger arms happily.
"Lance!" Pidge couldnt help but let her tears fall. "Oh god we thought you were dead!"
"Heh," Lance wiped stray tears of his own. "Its gonna take a lot more than that to take me out!"
"Follow me," Pidge said, and they began to run. "We're freeing the Prisoners right now. I seperated from the Blade to come find you."
"How did you know I was here? You said you thought I was dead?"
"Keith said he saw you the the Arena or something."
"He...he did?" Lance seemed very concerned suddenly. "Oh Crap, thats so embarrassing!"
Pidge pulled Lance into the Green Lion as the Blade/Priosners and them made their escape.
"Why? Were you getting your ass kicked?" Pidge chuckled.
"No, thats not it..." Lance had lost his familer cheer and was very sad now.
Before Pidge could question, they had made it out into the battlefeild.
The Green Lion had to guide the Blade's ship through the chaos. Take hits before they could hit the BOM and shoot down threats.
"Is that Blue?!" Lance gasped. "Who's flying her?!"
"Oh, uhm, Alurra..." Pidge said nervously. They all feared how Lance would react to learning he had been replaced before they had accepted his death.
"Thats so cool!" Lance cheered genuinely.
"What?"
"Look at her! She's doing great! GO PRINCESS GO!"
Pidge smiled.
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The battle was a success. Keith and his team had managed to take down Zarkon head on. Of course there had been casualties just in that small squad alone. The battle outside many lives had been lost. But for a noble cause, because Voltron had formed and ended the Galra Empire once and for all. They say in space, no one can hear your scream. But in that moment everyone in the Universe could be heard cheering.
Lance stood in the Castle of Lion's hanger, waiting for the Lions to return and see his team again. He couldn't believe he was really here! He thought he would be with the Galra forever. Forced to Kill for Entertainment for the rest of his life. But here he was: Home, with Corran by his side, waiting for the rest of his family.
The Lions eventually returned and landed in the Hangers. The Paladins rushed out of them and straight to Lance.
"LANCE!" Hunk screamed, tackling him to the ground.
Well, at least he could have. Lance had learned to keep a steady stance, and even though he knew it was just Hunk instincts made sure he did not fall. He wrapped his arms around his best friend, letting Hunk's tears soak his prisoner clothes. Pidge joined in, hugging around his legs and waist.
When they finally let go Shiro got his turn, embracing Lance carefully. But Lance could feel his hands grip him hard, as if he would vanish at any moment.
Lance looked at Alurra, who stood aside awkwardly. She wore the Blue Paladin armor, and hung her head in shame.
"Alurra!" Lance ran up to her and gave her a big hug. "I saw you out there! You were amazing!"
"R-Really?" she gasped.
"Yeah! Princess, you kicked ass!"
Alurra began to cry.
"Crap, Princess No! What's wrong?"
"N-Nothing," she wiped her tears and hugged Lance back. "You just...You have no idea how much it means to hear that."
Lance finally turned to Keith. Keith looked even more ashamed than Alurra if possible.
Lance chuckled and shook his head. "After all this time, your still so emo."
Keith looked up at Lance, shocked.
"Get over here already!" Lance opened his arms.
Keith ran into them, and hugged Lance like a Koala. He openly sobbed into Lance's shoulder.
"I don't hate you!" Keith cried out. "I don't hate you at all! Your my best friend! And I thought I lost you forever! And I--"
"Keith, Keith! Calm down!" Lance said, letting Keith down. "I know you don't hate me. You're one of my best friends too!" he smiled.
Keith cried again, this time into Lance's chest.
Shiro placed his hand on Lance's shoulder.
"We all thought you were dead and....and he..." Shiro sighed, letting out a sad chuckle. "Keith missed you the most."
Lance looked up at Shiro, and nodded. He continued to pat Keith's back.
...
"OK I gotta ask," Pidge spoke up at dinner that evening. "How did you get so ripped?!"
Lance laughed.
"Ok yeah I was wondering that too." Hunk chuckled.
"I saw you in the Ring," Keith said. "They were treating you like...like a..."
"Like a monster..." Shiro finished for Keith.
"No!" Keith corrected. "Like a...like a sports star!"
"I never thought those words would leave your mouth--"
"Its uh, Its a long story." Lance said nervously.
"I woukd like to hear it," Alurra said.
"Yeah! I wanna hear about Lance becoming The Rock!" Pidge laughed.
"Ok! Ok!"
"Well, I started out like Shiro." Lance said. "They would just throw me in there, and I'd fight to survive. Then I'd be thrown back into my cell until next time."
"Thats horrible," Shiro said. "I'm so sorry you had to--"
"But it got better!" Lance smiled.
"....What?"
"Around the time I was first captured, they didn't take me back to my cell one day."
"Did Haggar...?"
"Thats what I thought was gonna happen too. But no, they took me to this big room where they cleaned me and gave me clothes. And then they took me to a dinner table."
"You had dinner with the Galra?" Alurra asked.
"Next to Zarkon himself."
"WHAT?!" The entire team screamed.
"He basically offered me a deal, going on and on about 'We won't make the same mistake we made with the Chamion with you'" Lance imitating Zarkon's low voice.
"What was the deal?" Hunk asked.
"They said that I was really entertaining them in the ring. So they offered me a room and proper medical attention in return for a good show every time."
"So you...willingly went to the rings?" Keith asked.
Lance saddened. "I guess, yeah. But killing people always sucks, no matter what. So I trained so I could get really strong and really fast. Give my opponents and quick a swift death."
"Oh my god..." Pidge gasped.
"Look I did what I had to do--"
"No No, sorry." Pidge said quickly. "K-Keep going."
"Well, turns out the Galra liked these 'rapid rounds'. So that kinda just became the routine. Admittedly I...I began to like the crowd."
"Are you serious?!" Keith yelled.
"Look, I took the best deal for me at the time!" Lance said. "And they wanted entertainment, they wanted a star. So I became who I had to!"
"When I saw you, they said this was your 'longest fight' yet. That doesn't sound like a quick and painless death." Keith glared.
"I was still a prisoner Keith. I didn't get to chose. I was lucky that they enjoyed me getting things over with quickly. But in the end, I had to give them what they wanted. And they wanted a longer fight today."
"Everyone Calm Down!" Alurra declared.
Alurra placed a hand on Lance's shoulder.
"Lance," she said. "You did what you had to do. No one is going to judge you for that, ever. You may have hurt people, but you stayed true to yourself. And I am proud of you."
Lance looked shocked for a moment, before he smiled softly. "Thanks Alurra."
THE END
wooo this was LONG! But it was fun! HEHEEHE!
