Being Awake (Klance) [Voltron WA 2017]

Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

"Now, listen up everyone," Allura said. "This planet is extremely dangerous. Don't touch the water."

Shiro was now in the lead with Allura behind him, followed by the other Paladins in the back. The planet they were on looked very similar to Earth, but the earthling Paladins knew the differences: the plants on this planet were three times bigger than the plants on earth, the sky was purple, and lastly, the dirt was a light blue. Other than that, the planet had the vibes of being on Earth. They were on a mission to find an artifact for the locals which apparently, their enemies needed for an energy source of some kind. If they got this for the locals, their enemies wouldn't get it.

As usual, Lance had to ask a question. "But what's wrong with the water? It looks like normal Earth water to me."

"If you touch the water, even with gloved hands, you will be put into a sleep like trance and be given vivid dreams," Allura explained. She looked over her shoulder to see the Paladins. "We're following the map the locals of this planet gave us. We don't know if it is a trap or not, so please be careful of any puddles of water or anything dripping from above. We don't need anyone sleeping on this mission."

They walked for a few minutes more.

"What kind of dreams do you get if you make contact with the water?" Pidge asked.

Allura sighed. "According to the information Coran sent me, the water on this planet tricks you into dreaming of what you truly desire. It makes you live in your ideal world or remind you of what you miss dearly, so you never wake up. That's why I said that this planet is full of traps."

"So..." Hunk said next, "What do the locals drink if the water is a trap?"

Before Allura could answer, Shiro held out his arm to stop the group. "Wait. The map lead us to this pool of water. What should we do?"

"I'll go talk to Coran," Allura said. She walked away to get some space and stood next to a tree to get a read on the pool from Coran.

As Allura talked to Coran, the rest of the group sat down on the blue dirt and looked down at the pool of water below them. They were near the ledge to look down. Several feet below them was a huge body of water. It almost looked like a crater hole.

"This is pretty creepy," Hunk said. "One touch of the water and you'll be out like a light!"

Lance scoffed, "The water just puts you to sleep for a while! How bad can it be? If the artifact is down there in the water, we need to touch the water, right?" He looked around and found a small puddle. "Look, I'll prove it." He scooted over to get closer to the puddle of water and reached out with his hand.

Shiro grabbed his wrist. "Lance! Don't mess around! We don't know what mind tricks this water can pull."

Lance tugged his hand free from Shiro's. "Hmph, whatever. I just wanna get this over with."

Shiro relaxed. He had to keep his team in check. As he scanned the terrain, his eyes landed on Keith. Keith had been silent this entire time and Shiro picked up that something must have unsettled him. "Keith, you've been awfully quiet today. Are you okay?"

Keith jumped a little as he was talked to. Pidge, Hunk, and Lance had their eyes on Keith as well and Keith felt a pang of embarrassment. He cleared his throat, "I—I'm fine."

Lance, who was sitting closest to Keith, reached over and put his hand on Keith's shoulder. "You're just scared of the water like some kitty cat. Am I right?"

Keith roughly shrugged his shoulder to get Lance's hand off. "Stop it! I'm not scared! How about I push you off this ledge so you can go head first into that water!?"