Taking A Chance

A Life In The Balance

‘Pidge, get us out of here,’ Shiro ordered.
The masks from his, Lance's and Keith's Blade uniforms disappeared. The mission had not gone well, it was as if they knew they were coming, but they had managed to retrieve the information they were looking for, the day and time of the attack on Earth, and the location of the teledove.
Jumping into the pilots seat, Pidge pushed Green to go as fast as she could.
Lance sat on the floor with Keith in his arms. Shiro knelt next to them and they removed to top part of Keiths uniform to reveal a stab wound.
‘We have to get the broken blade out,’ said Shiro, ‘but the piece is in deep and there's nothing in the med kit we can use to grab it.’
‘You're just going to have to grab it with your fingers,' Lance said.
Shiro looked at him horrified.
Keith was feverish and becoming more delirious by the second, and they wouldn't meet up with the Castle for another fourty minutes when they were out of Galra space.
‘Shiro,’ said Lance, breaking him out of his thoughts, ‘we have to do something.'
‘He needs to stay still,' Shiro said, in dismay.
Lance suddenly Iay down and pulled Keith on top of him so they were chest to chest. He then wrapped his arms around him pinning Keith’s arms to his sides, then wrapped his long legs around Keith's.
‘No,’ groaned Keith, as he struggled against Lance's hold.
‘Do it,’ Lance said to Shiro.
Shiro shuffled forward on his knees. He looked at Lance who nodded.
Steeling himself, Shiro pushed his fingers into Keith's wound.
‘NO,' screamed Keith, as he struggled against Lance. ‘NO, LET ME GO, STOP.’
‘I'm sorry, baby but this needs to be done,’ Lance muttered.
‘NO, PLEASE, STOP,’ Keith sobbed.
Lance tightened his hold on Keith as he fought against him, screaming in pain.
‘Shit,' swore Shiro. Sweat ran down his brow as he struggled to grasp to broken piece of blade. ‘Got it.’ He held the blade up, as Keith sagged against Lance weeping.
Lance felt warm blood soak through the Blade uniform he wore.
‘Sit him up,’ said Shiro as he pulled gauze and bandages out of the med kit.
Lance on untangled his legs from Keith's. ‘Keith, mi amor, bring your legs forward and around me.’
Lance sat up and crossed his legs as Keith struggled to do as he'd asked. Finally, Keith sat in the middle of Lance's crossed legs and lent against him in exhaustion.
Shiro pressed a gauze to Keith's wound making him groan. ‘I'll be finished soon,’ Shiro muttered. ‘Lance hold him away from you a bit.‘
Lance did as he was asked, and Shiro started wrapping a bandage around Keith's abdomen. He was worried about how much blood he was losing. When Shiro was finish, Lance pulled Keith back to him.
'Lance,’ mumbled Keith against his neck, ‘don't let me leave, I'm not ready to go yet.’
Lances heart thumped. ‘Keith, what do you mean?'
Keith slumped in his arms. ‘No, no, no, Keith, stay with me. Shiro, somethings wrong.’
Shiro felt the puIse at Keith's throat, and found it thready and weak.
‘Pidge, we need a healing pod, now,’ Shiro said.
They were still in Galra territory, but Pidge opened a line to Allura.
‘Pidge, you're not meant…’
‘Open a wormhole and get here now,' Pidge said.
‘But…’
‘No but's,’ she snapped, ‘just do it.’
Allura was shocked at the way Pidge spoke to her.
‘On our way,’ Allura said.
Less than a minute later, a wormhole opened and the Castle of Lions came through.
‘Open a hanger,’ Pidge said, ‘we're coming in hot. Have a healing pod ready to go.’
‘On my way,’ Coran said.
A hanger opened and Pidge shot towards it. ‘Hold on tight,’ she yelled.
Shiro put his arms around Keith and Lance. When they cleared the hanger door, Pidge reversed thrusters, and the three men in the back slid across the floor.
As soon as they stopped, Shiro scooped Keith up and ran from Green with Lance beside him.
Adam and Hunk watched wide eyed as they ran past, Keith limp in Shiro 's arms. They hurried after them to the healing pod.
Shiro put Keith in the pod. The pod closed but it didn't activate.
‘Why isn't it working?’ Lance demanded.
‘Lance,‘ said Coran, gently, ‘the pod doesn't work on the dead.'
‘No,’ cried Lance, ‘no, he's not dead.’ He slammed his fists against the pod. 'No, don't you dare leave me.’ He hit the pod again. ‘DON'T YOU DARE.’
‘Lance, he's gone,' Coran said, taking his arm.
‘NO HE'S NOT,’ yelled Lance, wrenching his arm free.
He slammed his fists into the pod again.
‘Lance, please,’ Pidge cried. Tears fell down her checks in waves as Hunk held her to him.
‘FIGHT, DAMN IT,’ he yelled as the continued to slam his fist against the pod door.
The pod beeped and the display panel turned green.
‘He...he's alive,' Coran said, his face a picture of shock.
Lance dropped to his knee's, curled forward and sobbed.
Shiro stopped Pidge and Hunk from rushing to Lance.
‘Please,' he said quickly and looked at the door.
They nodded, and left with Coran who mumbled something about informing the Princess about what happened.
Adam went and sat next to Lance, his back against the pod and slowly rubbed Lance's back in comforting circles. With is free hand, Adam removed his glasses and wiped his own tears away, his heart still pounding in his chest.
Shiro moved around to Lance's other side an knelt next to him.
‘You saved him,’ he muttered. ‘Everything you did for him today saved his life, but now it's time for you to look after yourself.’
Lance couldn't talk, he just shook his head and couldn't contain his sobs. He was exhausted physically, mentally, and emotionally, and didn't have anything left for himself, not yet.
But Shiro wasn't having any of it. He took the top of Lance's arm and hauled him to his feet.
‘Adam, can you get Molly, we'll have her in with us tonight,’ Shiro said. Adam nodded and left ahead of them. When Shiro and Lance got to the bedroom Molly, and her cot were gone.
‘Get that Blade uniform off,’ Shiro said, as he disappeared into the bathroom. Seconds later, Lance heard the shower running. He removed his top and stared at the blood that covered his torso. Keith had lost so much.
Shiro came back and he swallowed hard when he saw Lance covered in Keith's blood. Only then did he look down at his own hands to see them covered in red.
Taking the top from Lance, he threw it in the hamper and steered Lance into the bathroom.
‘You can either shower yourself, or I’ll throw you in there and do it for you,’ Shiro said.
When he was sure Lance had gotten into the shower, Shiro went next door to his own room. Adam sprang to his feet when he saw Shiro. Molly was asleep in her cot.
‘What happened?' asked Adam, as he followed Shiro into the bathroom.
Shiro washed the blood from his hands, giving him a moment to get his thoughts together.
Taking a steadying breath he told Adam what happened, and what they had to do on the way back to the Castle to save Keith.
Adam pushed his glasses onto his head and rubbed his face. ‘Oh my god,’ he said. ‘Stay here and have a shower, I'll go see how Lance is.’
Going next door he found Lance sitting on the bed with a towel around his waist, eIbows on his knees and hand clasped together behind is head.
Adam sat next to him. ‘How you doing?'
Lance half laughed, half sobbed, and shook his head. He could stop crying, Keith's screams still echoing in his ears, and the pod not turning on haunted him when he closed his eyes.