quiznak × klance

ii.

ii. Week two of the aftermath of our Galra conquest is the same as it was in week one: lifeless and blatant. Allura and Coran have been touring different galaxies and stopping to keep statuses on more planets' denizens, but everyone else has been lazying around in the bunkers and taking walks on foreign lands. They haven't made us train as a group in a couple days; all my muscles are mush. I've been trying to cram some exercise in my schedule, though.

Today, we're back at the Balmera. Hunk insisted we stop by so he can keep tabs on Shay, and it's not a totally bad idea because the people here are defenseless and bound to be ambushed. We Paladins have exited the ship by now and are out to explore the caverns; there's been no trouble here in a long time -- not since the Robeast.

"Lance, I'm going to pay a visit to Shay. Wanna come with?" Hunk offers after he notices I'm by myself. He's standing at the edge of the cavern where Shay and Rax are probably waiting. Some of the elder rock people have greeted us with a warm welcome and lots of unnecessary bowing, which, I admit, makes me feel quite holy.

"Sure," I shrug, jogging to meet him. We take a leap onto the closest level in the depths of the trench, which goes about five or six meters below the rocky surface. A cloud of dust puffs around our faces; more so mine than Hunk's because he's a few inches taller than I am.

Balmerans peek out of every nook and cranny as soon as we make our entrance. There are a few lighted blue spots on the walls of the cavern because of the Balmeran way of communication, and they're getting the word out that we're back. Some on the very bottom level start climbing ladders and crawling through passageways to hail their previous rescuers, and with them come Shay with her brother.

"Hunk! Lance!" the girl cheers, making a dash for Hunk. I smile as she tackles him in a huge embrace, but I pretend to look offended as soon as they untangle so that she'll hug me, too.

"How are you?" I ask.

"I and my people are thriving thanks to you!" says Shay. Her luminescent eyes are yellow beams of light; they're narrowed down to chinks because of the size of her grin, which will never fail to amaze me. Before recently, her kind were daft and scared after having been locked in the Galra's keep -- but things have been different, in a good way, for a while now.

Hunk and Shay gallop off somewhere further in the caverns, leaving Rax and me on this small, dusty cliff. "Hey, Rax."

"Hello, Lance!" he exclaims. "It's nice to see your face once more."

"Yours too, man. We've been super bored after closing our case with Zarkon and all," I say, brushing it off lightly. Rax laughs as our feet skid across the dry surface of the Balmera, skipping over bluish crystal pebbles.

A silence passes before he notes, "You seem afflicted."

"What?" I look in amazement at the guy's greenish complexion, my brows drawn together.

"My people, we're able to detect when ill is within others. You have a stress crease that tells me that there has been trouble among the Paladins."

He's a smart one. "Wh-- am I aging?"

"No; perhaps I can help you solve your problems," Rax offers. "What happened?"

If anything, I close my mouth tighter. I don't want to mention it. My brain never crosses paths with the thought of Keith's astonishing incident except for the times I see him in person, but since we have been eating, sleeping, and breathing on opposite sides of the castle for a week, it's hard to bump into him. Now that Rax is really digging my case, I start to remember the cozy quality of Keith's fragrance and the feeling of his muscular forearm trapping me against the cold metal wall of my bunk.