Taking A Chance

Prison

A cold chill shot through Lance's body, forcing him to open his eyes. His hopes of waking up in his room were dashed when he saw the grey walls of his dingy cell. He sat up and instantly regreted the movement as pain shot through his temple and a wave of dizziness threatened to make him vomit.
He touched his temple, and his fingers came away bloody.
'Shit,' he muttered. 'Keith?'
He looked around his cell to find himself alone. His stomach clenched and he pushed himself to his feet.
Where the hell was Keith?
He turned when he heard someone at the cell door. When it opened blinding light stung his eyes and something was thrown on the floor in front of him. The door closed and he was plunged into darkness.
Lance waited for his eyes to adjust to the dim light and looked down.
'Keith,' he cried.
Dropping to his knees he rolled Keith onto his back and was rewarded with a groan. It meant he was alive.
'Keith, mi amor wake up,' he said. He placed his right hand on the side of Keith's face and stroked his cheek with his thumb. Keith's eyes opened. 'You okay?
'Fabulous,' Keith said, dryly.
Lance helped him sit up. In the dim light Lance could see Keith face covered in blood. Keith held his side as he moved.
'What did they do?' asked Lance.
'Lotor...he wanted me to give him access to Voltron,' Keith said.
'Why would he think you'd do that?' asked Lance
'Because I'm part Galra. He tried to get me to turn to his side,' Keith said.
'As if,' scoffed Lance.
Keith gave a weak laugh and regretted it as pain shot through his side.
Lance moved Keith's hand away and saw it covered in blood. He pulled Keith's t-shirt up and tried to inspect the wound and cursed the poor light. Keith winced as Lance put a hand on his back. Frowning, Lance pulled Keith's t-shirt up higher. There were a multitude of welts and cuts all over his back, he had been whipped.
'Ay Dios mío,' Lance said.
Keith shrugged Lance away and pulled his t-shirt down.
'Don't show anything,' murmured Keith. 'Don't give them anything to use against each other.' He looked over his shoulder into Lance's eyes. 'We're rivals, nothing more.'
Lance nodded his understanding and moved away from Keith. He needed to stuff his feeling right down, pretend they didn't exist, that was going to be a hard ask now that he had finally allowed them to be released. All the pent-up frustration and love had been released last night and he didn't know if he could ignore that if Keith was hurt again.
Time ticked by as the anxiously increased as they waited for something to happen.
Above them, a strange rumbling seemed to vibrate through the cell.
'What do you think that is?' asked Lance.
'I don't know, but I doubt it can be good,' Keith said.
They both stood when they heard something outside the cell door. When it opened, they were blinded by the light, then roughly seized on either side, and dragged from the cell.
They struggled against their captures only to be punched for their efforts and thrown into another cell. This one was bright, and the bar at the front overlooked an arena. The rumbling was louder, and they moved to the bars. Thousands of Galra moved to the seating surrounding the arena, the buzz of voices loud in their ears.
'Oh, mierda,' Lance muttered.
They turned when the cell door was opened.
Lotor stepped in.
'Are you sure you don't won't to reconsider my offer?' Lotor asked, as he walked over to the bars. 'Access to Voltron to save your life?'
'I'm not giving you anything,' Keith said.
'You should know the creature you'll be fighting has never lost in the arena,' Lotor said.
'Fighting?' asked Keith.
'You either join us, or die,' said Lotor. 'Embrace your Galra side...'
'No,' Keith snapped.
'Why do you insist on being so stubborn?' ask Lotor. 'You have the potential to be great and you throw it away for some misguided loyalty to a world that cannot stand against the mighty Galra.'
'Humans aren't as week as you think,' Keith said.
'Really?' Lotor turned and grabbed Lance by the throat. 'What if I snapped his neck, what would you say then.'
Keith shrugged. 'There's always exceptions to the rule.'
Lotor's eyes narrowed, and he squeezed Lance's throat harder. Keith's face remained impassive. Lotor let Lance go and pushed him away.
As Lance coughed and tried to get a breath, Keith folded his arms and rolled his eyes.
'The rivalry between the red and blue paladin is true,' Lotor said. He watched Keith thoughtfully. 'You would be the perfect Galran soldier, heartless and emotionless.' He grasped to top of Keith's arm.
The cell bars next to them vanished and Lotor threw Keith into the arena, and the bars reappeared and Lotor walked out.
Turning Lance grasped the bars and stared at Keith in fear.
Over the other side of the arena, a massive metal door opened and a creature that stood there time the height of Keith, with four arms green skin and a single eye in its ugly misshapen head. It Iet out a roar, showing rows of jaggard teeth.
'Oh, fuck,' Lance said.
The crowd roared their delight and stamped their feet in approval.
Keith scanned the arena. There were no weapons, the walls were fifteen foot high and sloped outwards at a twenty-degree angle, making it impossible to climb.
The creature moved with unbelievable speed and descended on Keith before he was ready. It swung its large hand, hitting Keith and sending him crashing into the wall of the arena, The cuts on his back left bloody smears down the wall. The creature roared and ran at Keith, who rolled out of the way just in time. He scampered to his feet, he turned to the creature, spread his feet, hunched down, and balled his hands into fists.
'Shit,' thought Lance, 'he's going to try and fight that thing.'
His knuckles turned while as he gripped the bars. Keith was fast, light on his feet and quick with his punches. The creature was becoming frustrated with him and swinging its arms on the off chance it would hit Keith, and the crowd started to get restless as the creature failed again and again to connect with its prey.
Lance was concentrating so hard on the fight; he didn't hear the cell door open. The bars disappeared and Lance was pushed into the arena. He fell to the floor with a thud.
The creature spun around and its eye fixed on the new prey and ran at him.
Jumping to his feet, Lance dodged the first attack with the creature's fists, but was unprepared for the kick that connected with his ribs and sent him flying across the arena.
He tried to push himself to his feet, but pain stabbed him in the side, and he couldn't take a full breath. He had definitely broken some ribs.
Keith appeared at his side.
'I hate to say this,' wheezed Lance. 'But I think you will have to go Galra on that thing.'
'That's what Lotor wants,' Keith said.
'I know, but without the strength of your furry purple arse, we won't get out of this alive,' Lance said. He coughed and blood dripped from his mouth.
Keith stood and Lance watched him change into a Galra.
The creature charged and Keith met it head on, jumping and slamming a fist into its stomach and knocking it backwards. It roared and charged again. Keith jumped and landed on its shoulder and swung onto its back and sunk his sharp fangs into the creature's neck, piercing a vein.
The creature cried out, grabbed Keith and threw him at the wall. Keith turned and hit the wall with his feet and spring down in front of Lance and waited for if to make its next move.
From the corner of his eye, Keith saw Lotor watching him with interest.
Without warning, the alarms sounded through the ship moments before the ship lurched sideways.
The arena started emptying as the soldiers hurried to get back to their posts.
'Sir,' it's the Voltron lions,' Keith heard one of the solders say.
Keith turned to Lance. 'We need to get out of here,' he said. He pulled Lance to his feet and looked around. Part of the arena seating was now empty. He turned to Lance. 'This will hurt.'
Keith grabbed Lance and with all his strength threw him towards the top of the wall. Lance hit the wall and managed to grab to top and pull himself over into the seating. the flopped to the floor and held his side and groaned, as stars burst before his eyes.
The ship lurched and the creature fell into the wall. Keith ran and jumped and pushed off the creature's head. The extra height allowed him to make it to the top of the wall.
Without wasting time, he pulled Lance to his feet and out the closest door, picking up a discarded blade along the way.
'STOP THEM,' Lotor yelled.
Keith fought his way through any guard who turned their way. He had cut down another guard when Lance saw Allura round the bend in the corridor.
She raised her weapon and shot.
'NO,' Lance cried, holding his hands out in front of him. The blast hit Keith in the stomach.
The sudden movement caused sharp pain to knife through Lance and blackness pushed in around his vision.