#human becomes a galra blade vs galra blade becomes a human

[discordiansamba]

spitballing some thoughts about the amnesiac blade AU:

Keith basically keeps his amnesia to himself when he joins the Garrison. He didn't have a choice at his old school- everyone there basically knew about it. But nobody has to know about it here.

James knows, and although he can't stand Keith, he keeps his mouth shut about it.

He still gets periodically pulled from classes to see his doctor, so there is a rumor that he has some kind of medical issue.

It takes him awhile to start actually responding to 'Keith', but he eventually gets the hang of it. 'Cadet Kogane' takes even longer to get used to. Having two names feels weird somehow?

He starts off living in the dorms, but eventually just kind of moves into the spare room in Adam and Shiro's shared quarters. Nobody disputes this.

Actually kind of has more of a social life than he did in canon? Not having any memories leaves him with a desire for normalcy, even if normalcy sometimes seems kind of... weird to him? But that's just the memory loss, right?

(no it's because you were raised in a VERY different environment)

he still self-destructs after the Kerberos failure though and gets kicked out. he feels angry- angry at the Garrison, and angry at himself for some unfathomable reason.

He stays in the shack he and Shiro found out in the desert. There's something about it that feels almost calming.

local amnesiac blade does not know he's returned to his mission when he starts trying to track the blue lion's energy.

once they're up in space, he starts to get... flashes here and there, of memory, but nothing that sticks with him for long. which is weird- he hasn't had any in the past five years. why now?

he doesn't recognize Ulaz's armor- he didn't have his for very long post amnesia- but he sure does recognize the Blade's emblem.

(when Ulaz sacrifices himself, Keith cries without knowing the reason why)

Kolivan believes that Yorak has lost his memories, as Ulaz said in his brief report. But it has been five years since they have last seen him, and he has clearly become someone different in that time. He has no intention of informing him of his past identity.

Keith is a lot more wary of the Blade of Marmora, because even though he doesn't have his memories, he's starting to piece things together and he's not sure he likes the endpoint his thoughts are heading to.

[legendary-defender-of-fandoms]

Avatar Hunk AU Sneak Peek

So, I wanted to have a few Avatar Hunk stories ready for @hunk-appreciation-week , but I bit off more than I could chew & don’t have any of them done. To compensate, I thought I would share some backstory, Headcanon, story ideas, and other stuff that I want to put in my Avatar Hunk AU.

Part 1 - The Premise

Before I get too far, I need to give credit where credit is due. @avatarpabu97 was the one who originated the idea of Hunk being the new Avatar. I thought it was cute at first, but the more they shared about their Headcanon & the more I thought about it, the more I realized how it was a fantastic idea. It fit with the cycle of the preceding Avatar shows, it gave our favorite sunshine boi a chance to shine, and it could lead to some awesome stories that combine the best of Voltron AND Avatar! @avatarpabu97 had a lot of cool ideas for what kind of Bender everyone would be and who would be where, and our ideas might overlap in some spots. But I had a few ideas of my own for how the Voltron folks would fit in the Avatar universe.

Anyway, the Premise. For my Avatar Hunk AU, it would be set in the world of Avatar about 70-80 years after the events of Legend of Korra. The tech levels would be more advanced than what we have (given their access to Spirit Energy, Bending, etc.), but not quite on, say, Star Trek levels. Korra has died (of old age, or at least peacefully in her home), and the world has started to look for the new Avatar. But given the technological advancements made since Korra’s time, this is seen as more of a side quest by the general public. The White Lotus & the New Air Nation dispatch a few teams, and some ambitious mover producers decide to create game shows to find the new Avatar, but for the rest of the world, life moves on. A new research and development corporation, Galra Tech, starts to make serious advances in harnessing Spirit Energy. The CEO, Zarkon Daibazaal, is a suave businessman who started his company to help people. But having all this power at his disposal leads to corruption, and the chief scientist for his company - his wife, Honerva - has been performing more and more unsettling experiments. They may have plans to invade the Spirit World to reap untold power, conquer the world, yadda yadda yadda. So the Avatar will be needed once more to prevent the exploitation of the Spirit World, another Spirits vs Humans war, and possibly the destruction of the planet? Haven’t planned that far yet.

Part 2 - The Characters

Hunk - Born and raised in Zhao Fu, Tsuyoshi Hershel Seidou Garrett is the only son of Tsuyoshi Garrett, an Earthbender (and a distant descendant of Haru from the original series), and Lisa Seidou, whose family immigrated from the Northern Water Tribe after the Earth Empire dissolved. His nickname was a misnomer, since he was a very small baby, but he quickly grew into it. His parents always knew their child was special (Spirits used to gravitate towards him when he was a baby, he took to Earthbending like a turtle duck to water when he was five, he started Metalbending & helping his father in the family Satomobile shop when he was ten, and he’s always been the sort to end disputes & help those in need), but they wanted Hunk to discover his destiny on his own, let him decide if he should let the world know he is the Avatar. Hunk earns an academic scholarship to the Hiroshi Sato School of Technology & Exploration at Republic City University, where he meets a colorful group of friends & discovers the dangers of Galra Tech’s Spirit Energy experiments. When Hunk starts to realize he’s the Avatar, he’s not sure what to think. I mean, the Avatar is supposed to save the world every other week, isn’t he? And the Avatar’s always been some confident badass who can take out armies by themselves & never backs down from a fight. Hunk wants to help however he can, but he’s not sure he has what it takes to be the Avatar. Until he realizes just how much is on the line, in which case Hunk decides it doesn’t matter if the Spirits made a mistake or if someone else should be the Avatar. He has the ability to help others, and he’ll do whatever he can to save the people he loves.

Gyrgan - Hunk’s animal companion, an Armadillo Lion. Hunk saved him from poachers when he was a cub, and the two have been inseparable ever since. Gyrgan is slow to trust new people, but once he has accepted someone in his life he becomes a giant lap kitty. Threatening those he loves, however, can lead to a death more terrifying than failing an Altean linguistics class. Hunk has taught him proper manners, so he’s not a menace & is permitted to be boarded at RCU. Much like Naga and Appa, he’s huge & can be ridden by Hunk, but typically won’t let others ride.

Lance McClain - A Waterbending mischief maker from Whale Tail Island, Lance and his family move to Zhao Fu when Lance is 12 years old. The two instantly bond over their love of “Nuktuk, Hero of the South” (who, much like Captain America and Wonder Woman, has evolved past his propaganda origins into a pop culture hero with multiple reboots, spinoffs, and Saturday morning cartoons). Lance isn’t quite the scholar Hunk is, but he does manage to get into RCU on a Probending scholarship & is excited to go to his sister Veronica’s alma mater. Until he finds a certain big-eyed mullet boy is on his Probending team & in his classes (not sure how far the Klance stuff is going to go, because I have little writing experience & even less experience with LGBT+ rep. But I want it to keep true to the 30+ years of Klance sexual tension that dates back to GoLion.) Still, when the world starts to fall apart, Lance won’t be left out of the action. (Might also make Lance a descendant of Sokka and Suki, but not sure how to work that into the story)

Katie “Pidge” Holt - The daughter of the head of the Technology department at RCU, Pidge is a child prodigy when it comes to computers. She manages to skip a few grades & get into the Hiroshi Sato School of Technology at the age of 15. Pidge has a pet Owl Cat named Rover who becomes instant besties with Gyrgan. Pidge’s mother was the daughter of Air Acolytes, and Pidge is a skilled Airbender. However, Pidge doesn’t really connect well with others. Until she gets to Computer Algorhithms class and meets Hunk, the first person close to her age who not only understands her techno jargon, but contributes with his own tech knowledge instead of scoffing & calling her a nerd or teacher’s kid. She’s not so sure about his buddy/roommate Lance, but he kind of grows on her & they eventually bond over their love of Space Sword video games. Pidge’s brother Matt was interning at Galra Tech when their experiments in the Spirit World started to spiral out of control, and Pidge will do whatever it takes to bring him home. Even if it means fighting the entirety of the Spirit World.

Keith Kogane - You know how Mako & Bolin had it rough, growing up on the streets after their parents were killed by a Firebender? Now imagine if either one had to do it alone & never knew what happened to their mother because she took off when they were babies. After Keith’s father is killed in a freak industrial accident, the young Firebender falls in with the Blade of Marmora Triad. He’s caught during a raid by Detective Takashi Shirogane and his partner Ulaz, a former Blade, but instead of putting him juvenile detention Shiro decides to give the kid a shot at a new life (maybe he shows mercy to someone the Blades ordered him to kill, or he has impressive Firebending skills, or Shiro’s a sucker for mullets). Keith starts channeling his aggression into Probending, playing against a certain hotshot from Whale Tail Island over the years, and he eventually gets into the Lin Beifong School of Criminal Justice at RCU. He’s less than thrilled to be on the school’s Probending team with Lance, and after Shiro disappears Keith considers dropping out. But when Shiro reappears (backstory below), Keith will put aside his petty rivalry with Lance and help Shiro with taking down Galra Tech once and for all.

Takashi “Shiro” Shirogane - A skilled Metalbender & brilliant detective, Shiro is everything Hunk thinks an Avatar should be. Intuitive, compassionate, a great leader, skilled in a fight - is there any chance Raava can pick this guy to save the world? But one night, Shiro & his partner Ulaz (not sure if they’re just platonic partners or if they’re also partner-partners, also not sure where Adam & Curtis will come in if they exist at all) are sneaking through a Galra Tech laboratory after receiving anonymous tips that Honerva was capturing Spirits to experiment on, an explosion destroys the building. Shiro loses his partner, his arm, and six months of his life (which Honerva May or May not be responsible for). When he finally returns to his Republic City apartment, he’s visibly distraught by the lost time & a vague memory of something horrible coming. Pidge & Hunk work together to make Shiro a prosthetic he controls with Metalbending, at which point Shiro realizes Hunk is the Avatar & warns him about the Spiritpocalypse. Hunk isn’t sure what Shiro expects him to do about it, and Shiro promises to stand by his side in the coming war to defend humanity & avenge Ulaz.

Allura & Coran will also be part of the story, but I haven’t quite figured out their motivations or backstories yet. Allura will be a powerful Healer from the Northern Water Tribe (not sure if she’ll be a Princess or the daughter of Alfor of Altea Industries, a company that was bought out by Galra Tech through shady deals, corporate espionage, and some old friend backstabbing), and Coran will be Varrick’s grandson & heir to Varrick Industries.

Part 3 - The Stories

I’ve only got a couple of plots right now, but more are coming.

1) A New Beginning - this will be a prologue for the series, confirming the death of Avatar Korra & introducing everyone to baby Hunk. We’ll also get to see Tsuyoshi, Lisa, and a bit of their extended family. Expect maximum cuteness. This is the only story I’ve started so far, and I have it all figured out in my head. I just need to transcribe it.

2) The Boy and the Armadillo Lion - this will be how Hunk meets Gyrgan & when he starts to suspect he might be the Avatar. There will be some tough stuff in here regarding poaching, but most of the animal torture will be implied. One of those “this guy needs to be returned to his mother/oh, don’t worry, he’ll be with his mother soon enough” situations. We’ll see “a boy and his future pet” bonding similar to Hiccup & Toothless, lots of fighting & chasing, and Baby’s First Avatar State. Also debating if I want Old Man Meelo to make a cameo. I love the idea of Meelo deciding to be a hermit in the Swamp because the Avatar’s going to need a cooky wise old mentor in the swamp, but it may raise too many questions if he watches Hunk fight off the poachers without doing anything to help. Maybe Hunk will ride through the Swamp on his way to RCU while wrestling with his insecurities about being the Avatar, and after fighting a few Swamp Hallucinations in the form of past Korra baddies Meelo will pop out of nowhere like Rafiki saying something like “You forgot to be the leaf!”

3) A series of vignettes about young Hunk developing his Bending skills. Earthbending sand castles with his dad, figuring out Metalbending while watching him work on his uncle’s racing Satomobile (oh, he has an Uncle Filo who races Satomobiles professionally), thinking he’s using Lavabending to weld a broken pipe (but Tsuyoshi realizes it’s Firebending), healing his friend Lance when he gets scraped up after trying to pull off a Nuktuk dive while their families vacation at Lake Laogai (which, without the Dai Lee hideout, is a fairly popular vacation spot), that sort of thing.

[theorangestar]

Things I want to see in VLD S8

~ The return of Lance’s Altean blade.

~ Romelle becoming a major character (this seems likely with Haggar and the Altean colony taking center stage, but she hasn’t appeared in the trailers so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ .)

~ Matt’s alien girlfriend gets a name.

~ Someone commenting on the mismatched paladin armor. Ideally this would be a fun gag, and would involve Griffin storming off because why don’t they match?! Bonus points if this somehow involves the joke about color-coding because “what are we, animals?”

~ Shiro making a Star Trek reference as Captain of the Atlas.

~ Acxa doing something. Perhaps becoming a Blade?

~ Kinkade speaks.

~ MFE pilots and Voltron paladins working together.

~ An explanation about Shiro and the White Lion.

~ Please tell me how Haggar got past the White Lion? HOW?! WAS IT SHIRO? JUST HOW!?!?!

~ Lotor childhood backstory

~ Allura, Coran, and Romelle experiencing Earth culture.

~ KOLIVAN experiencing Earth culture.

~ Hunk meeting with the rest of his family.

~ Shay. Just Shay.

~ More paladin/lion bonding.

~ Hunk being fucking awesome.

~ Shiro making at least one dorky face.

~ Keith and Shiro having fun. We know the other paladins can have fun anywhere, but these two specifically need more fun in their lives. 

~ Lance, Pidge, and Allura unlocking their Voltron weapons. (Like Keith’s Sword and Hunk’s shoulder cannon) EDIT: Never mind about Pidge. She unlocked her wrist cannon in s7e13.

~ Haggar vs Allura magic fight

~ Shiro getting a Win.

~ Paladin matchups for individual scenes we haven't seen yet: Shiro & Hunk, Allura & Hunk, Keith & Pidge.

~ Shiro and Lance have a Talk. I think Lance is still feeling guilty about the clone thing, and I’d like them to just talk things out. 

~ Pidge’s, Lance’s, and Hunk’s family adopting Keith, Shiro, and the Alteans. 

~ Keith’s galra eyes.

~ Diplomat Hunk. I want him to speak alien. 

~ Whatever that freaky quintessence monster was that Krolia was guarding.

~ Krolia being A Mom.

~ Actually, you know what? Paladin parent bonding. Lance’s Mom, Hunk’s mom, Colleen, and Krolia being super friends, and Lance’s Dad, Hunk’s Dad, Sam, and Coran telling dad jokes. Bonus points if Coran doesn’t get any of their jokes, and the humans don’t get his. 

~ The return of Keith’s L’Oreal hair.

~ Shiro having fun with his floaty arm. If he doesn’t pull at least one prank then what was even the point?

~ What happened to Rolo?

~ So... how’s Arus? 

~ Varkon and Sal have started a Hunk fan club. Shay is president.

~ Veronica

[terraaurea]

A note on Keith’s Galra Heritage: a Galrapological analysis nobody asked for

This is my excuse not to work on writing a syllabus. 

I do hope that Voltron someday elaborates even further, either on screen or in interviews/podcasts/comics/etc., about the pre-destruction cultures of Daibazaal. I also REALLY hope the VLD writers do not cop-out and incapacitate Keith by claiming that his Galra genes make him inherently evil or malicious. A few notes from your friendly neighborhood Anthropologist (we’ll see if my knowledge of humans can connect anywhere with alien sci-fi nonsense...)!

1a. I am sure a ton of people have already talked about this, so I won’t go into it too deeply. The main important part is that Galra genes are in fact probably incredibly recessive or at least highly compatible with other species. The Galra species at the time of VLD has an extremely wide range of characteristics, though they tend to share their purplish color scheme. Their body size can range from small, to broad and tall. Sometimes they have tails, furry ears, sharp canines, and eyes with or without irises/pupils. It is difficult to tell whether this is reminiscent of the intergalactic expansion of their Empire over more than 10,000 years, but I would think that has a huge part in it. Lotor shed a lot of light on the subject, since he advocated originally for the fair treatment of Galra with mixed heritage. 

Arguably, however, the Galra phenotypes were far more gracile before Daibazaal’s destruction. There was variation of course, but in general even the broadest of Galra maintained a sleeker facial structure with minimal fur, and no tails. For example, one may be able to see so-called ‘pure’ (scare-quotes) Galra phenotypes in Zarkon by comparing his characteristics to Galra from 10,000 years ago. It is for this reason (in addition to other propaganda) that nobody questions Lotor gracile face, despite his mother being Altean. He appears as a visionary for mixed heritage Galra then in the way that he pretends to be the ‘pure’-blooded savior of the oppressed. Remember, too, that thousands of years of history have been excluded from our knowledge, so there is likely no way to really know for sure what the original phenotypes of the so-called “Galra nation-tribe” were (according to Dayak’s teachings). Dayak does believe though that gracile facial features are signs of more dignified Galra (to Hunk: “That doughy face of yours is very un-Galra”). Cf. these lovely folks to a younger Zarkon pre-Quintessence exposure: 

(To be honest, I still cannot decide whether his supra-cranial ridges are biological/organic, or part of his armor. It does not help that we cannot see his ears)

1b. With all of this said, we learned that in the modern-day Galra Empire there are several shared cultural norms. As a student of cultural change and impact, I have to stress something which I believe is applicable (hopefully, please) to our world and this sci-fi universe: culture and genetics are not explicitly linked, and culture is an acquired characteristic, not an inherited one.

Hunk’s training with Lotor’s childhood governess Dayak tells us a lot. Bless this beautiful boy, realizing that knowing about one another’s culture is important for understanding each other! Up until the destruction of Altea, the Alteans were skilled in this, and even used their ability to shape-shift to work with others when appropriate.

For one, the concept of a ‘blood emperor’ has existed since before the Galra “were a star-faring race.” Lotor appears annoyed by Dayak’s use of the term, but it is clear that her belief in its solidarity remains, and can be seen elsewhere in the discrimination shown to Galra of mixed heritage. Lotor obviously wants to come off as progressive to the paladins, here. From her lessons, which she is pleased to give Hunk, we learn that historic Galra customs held strong weight in: defeating your enemies, absolutes (”victory or death”; alt. Blade of Marmora “knowledge or death”), enlightening pain (palen-bol), and the belief in a singular “killing thrust” (vrepit sa) that put the Galra above all other tribes on Daibazaal. If anyone has studied history before, it becomes clear that this singular event was likely instead a series of hundreds, or thousands, of years of combat, diplomacy, and the like (cf. ancient Mediterranean/Mesopotamian/Indian flood myths, fictive kings [like the original monarchy of Rome/Romulus and Remus], etc.). This belief in a singular event reinforces the modern Galra preference for absolutes. This is also why there is no error in violence, as it is the “searing light” that “burns away all imperfections” on both societal, and personal levels. There is no in between. Regardless, the most important takeaway is that Hunk learns these tenets from Dayak and is then able to apply them when working with Galra. Young Galra, like Lotor, were not born with these ideologies, but instead learned them (acquired them) from their ancestors, teachers, and families. 

Now that we have addressed basic Galra phenotypology (for funsies), and that culture and genetics are not inexplicably linked, we can cover the reason why it is in VLD’s best interest not to cop-out and give Keith a specific weakness on behalf of his blood heritage. (Also, where there are small links at the most basic level between the human propensity for culture/social interaction on a genetic level is impossible to address here and would be far too anthropo-centric for our purposes, are highly contested, and ultimately inconsequential. Nobody DM me quoting Richard Dawkins and the ‘selfish gene,’ please I beg you). 

2a. I can already sense this possibility: Keith loses control because his ‘Galra-side’ takes over. He cannot help it, becomes openly violent, and regrets his parents having met. He regrets his mother being Galra, and wishes he could either be human or not exist at all. I SINCERELY HOPE THAT VLD DOES ITSELF A FAVOR AND AVOIDS THIS ROUTE. I have faith, because VLD has expressed a decent amount of intuitiveness when it comes to cultural race vs biological species. There are far better ways to go about this, both for the sake of narrative and accuracy! 

At the very most, Keith’s Galra genetics should provide him with a few unique attributes: physical strength and acuity, and at the very most a different level of hormonal sensitivity, leading to increased or decreased moodiness or impulsiveness. Ultimately, the Galra across the Empire are not violent on account of their genes, though. Moody? Perhaps. Bloodthirsty? No. They are violent because of their upbringing. Keith’s impulsiveness is almost certainly more rooted in his difficult childhood, and his discipline issues are mirrored in other human children and adults who have faced similar losses (absent parental figures due to death, bullying, etc.). There is a reason why Shiro appearing in Keith’s life has lead him to slowly improve his self-control. There is a reason why Keith’s experiences with the Blade of Marmora (and likely his mother, Krolia) have had similar effects on his self-control. These situations have provided him with teachers who guide him. Human or Galra, he would have the same issues if he was left unattended for his entire life.

What, then, could give Keith troubles on account of his genes? Simple answer: power.

2b. We saw in the fight between the Black Paladins that in times of intense stress, Keith’s Galra phenotypes show through, making his face purplish and his sclera yellowish. This is interesting because it reminds me more of Altean shapeshifting abilities. Whether this happens in other mixed heritage Galra is hard to discern, and it is equally viable that Krolia is of mixed heritage in the first place. Keith in general has heightened strength and visual acuity, which can already be attributed to his hard work. But, the two years with his mother may have contributed to his growth spurt: Galra lifespans are longer, so he may not have reached physical maturity yet. Being with a parental figure of Galra descent for an extended period of time may also have helped this on some hormonal level.

Keith has worked hard to tame his impulsiveness. Patience yields focus! But, once one has been patient, has grown, and can focus--there are still mistakes to be made. Humans are physically weaker than Alteans and Galra. Should one give the strength of an Altean or Galra to someone like Lance, Hulk, or Pidge, they surely would struggle to reconcile their strength with their ability to overcome enemies, or manipulate others. All suffered in the Quintessence Field while fighting Lotor, because power flowed through them, and their inhibitions were severely lowered. Not because they are bad people, but because it was a physical feeling of something different, imbuing them with pure energy, which Quintessence is. One of the only examples we have of someone successfully doing this is Shiro, whose Galra-tech arm renders him incredibly strong. But, we also now see from the Black Paladins battle that, if not for Shiro’s mind, he would be difficult to beat as an enemy, and could even become cruel on power. When he exclaims, “Now that’s the Keith I remember!” he refers to the boy before he learned control, and whose recklessness paired with his acuity (see his piloting skills at the garrison) made for dangerous situations for himself and others. These are weaknesses not of the body, but of the mind. The body is strong, and the mind falls victim to greed if it has not trained properly to handle it.

Keith may need to come to terms with the power he is awakening, and very well may accidentally hurt someone he cares about without realizing. It should not be because Galra cultural mores are violent and absolutist, though! It should instead be because he does not know his own physical strength. In this way, perfectly good intentions can end very, very badly, very quickly. With the help of mentors (there are many options!) he can overcome this. He is not evil because he is part-Galra, and his Galra genes should not incapacitate him as though he were a soulless robot. It would be an excuse, a cop-out, and low key a reason for the entire galaxy to warrant wiping the universe of Galra genes. Trust me, it would not be good.

This was my TED talk...

[blonde-batgirl]

Day Three: Sacrifice and Day Four: Selfishness

Technically, these are supposed to be separate, but I wanted to go really in-depth on Keith and Pidge’s conflict in Fall of the Castle of Lions (Season One, Episode Four) and Tears of the Balmera (Season One, Episode Five) so here we are.

First of all, let’s take a look at where Pidge and Keith are as characters after the first three episodes.

Pidge

Has her own agenda – her father and brother went missing in space and she wants to save them. However, she currently has no real leads beyond them being sent to a labour camp. The universe is a big place. The Galra probably have a lot of labour camps.

Is hiding her real identity from everyone on the castle except Shiro.

Is the tech person.

Her temper flares when she feels frustrated or cornered (Some Assembly Required, Season One, Episode Two).

Can be blunt to the point of being insensitive (Some Assembly Required).

 Keith

Knew Shiro pre-Kerberos.

Implied to have nobody on earth. I mean, he’s living alone in a shack in the middle of nowhere.

Easily provoked (looks pointedly at how easy it is for Lance to rile him up in episodes one and two).

Seems to be quite goal-oriented. Maybe he just likes to have something to focus on? First, there was the weird energy in the desert (The Rise of Voltron, Season One, Episode One), and then there’s the whole issue of trying to form Voltron in Some Assembly Required. He’s the one who suggests stacking the lions like a cheerleader pyramid and the one who got mad at Pidge when the mind-meld exercise wasn’t working.

Keith and Pidge come into Fall of the Castle of Lions from opposing positions. We know that Pidge had a loving family on earth up until a year (and a bit) ago. We know that her father and brother have been in the hands of the galra ever since the failure of the Kerberos Mission. We know that she’s actually a girl called Katie. Conversely, we know nothing at all about Keith’s past. All we have is a vague inference that he is alone. (There are also some hints that he knew Shiro before the Kerberos mission too – “Good to have you back,” The Rise of Voltron – but at this point most of Shiro’s screentime has been with Pidge and so that hasn’t really been expanded upon.) The clash they have in these two episodes is very much about duty. It’s Pidge’s duty to her family vs the duty she has to the universe as the Green Paladin.

The conflict begins when Pidge tells the group that she’s leaving Voltron to find her family. The fact that she’s telling them instead of just simply sneaking off suggests that she doesn’t feel like she’s doing anything wrong. Keith thinks she’s being selfish: “You’re putting the lives of two people over the lives of everyone else in the entire galaxy.” There’s a cold logic behind this statement because is afforded the same value with no allowances made for emotional attachment. He might think that she is being selfish for wanting to leave, but there is also an argument to be made that he is being selfish in expecting her to stay. The implication here is that Keith does not understand the unconditional attachment that exists between family members, but season two and three show us that this isn’t true. In The Blade of Marmora (Season Two, Episode Eight) Keith describes Shiro as “like a brother,” from which we can infer that their friendship is entirely unconditional on his side. Throughout the first three seasons, it’s made clear that Keith’s judgement is clouded when Shiro is involved. Even going to Zarkon’s base would be stupid until Shiro’s in trouble, when fighting Zarkon suddenly becomes a sensible life choice (The Black Paladin). Giving up the blade isn’t an option until Shiro says he’ll leave, which makes Keith try to chase after him (The Blade of Marmora). In Changing of the Guard, he’d rather there be no Voltron than replace Shiro. I think Keith’s a very idealistic person. He’d like to think that the universe – the greater good – would always come first. We’re shown that he feels guilty about his personal quest for identity in The Blade of Marmora, when holo-Shiro, a projection of his own mind, tells him “you’re only thinking of yourself, as usual.” Admittedly his personal quest is jeopardising the alliance at that point, but that’s because of his lack of communication (if he’d told the others about his blade, they could have warned the Blade of Marmora ahead of time). Wanting to know where you come from is a basic human instinct, not a sign of being self-centred. “As usual,” implies that being selfish is a constant fear for him. Keith’s reaction to Pidge is therefore based on the standards he holds himself to, which are arguably impossible.

What we are not entirely privy to at the beginning of this conflict is Pidge’s past. We know that she is really a girl called Katie, but we don’t know why she was hiding her identity. Over the course of Fall of the Castle of Lions and Tears of the Balmera, we learn how much she has sacrificed to get this far. Pidge left her mother – her only remaining family – and gave up her identity to find her missing father and brother. There’s also a vague suggestion that she gave up her dream as she tells Shiro in The Rise of Voltron, “I’m not a pilot, even though I’ve always wanted to be.” Pidge has already given up so much, and leaving Voltron would mean going alone off alone into a part of space uncharted by humans. She doesn’t know where she is, and she only has the vaguest idea of where her brother might be (the Galra must have tonnes of labour camps), but she’s willing to leave everyone she knows just to try. That’s dedication. When it comes to her family, Pidge is utterly selfless. However, leaving Team Voltron would render them vulnerable to attack as they would be unable to form their greatest weapon. There would also be the issue of them having to find and bond with a new paladin when everyone they know is either millions of miles away on earth (Shiro, Keith, Lance, and Hunk) or dead (Allura and Coran).

There’s a lot of talk about how we haven’t seen Keith and Pidge interact a lot. And we haven’t. I’m not disputing that. However, I do feel that what we have had is frequently overlooked. These two episodes contain an entire relationship arc. A small one, granted, but an arc nonetheless. It starts with the conflict mentioned above. With Keith telling Pidge, “You can’t leave,” and Pidge snapping back, “You can’t tell me what to do!” Here, we have two stubborn, determined characters at loggerheads. This argument is put to an end when Keith steps towards Pidge, she steps back, and Shiro grabs his arm. I don’t personally think that this would have evolved into a physical confrontation if Shiro hadn’t have stepped in. Keith might have a hot temper, but we’ve yet to see him raise a hand to anyone on the team. But he’s a lot bigger than Pidge, not to mention really angry. Still, I don’t think she steps back because she’s intimidated. Fall of the Castle of Lions is the first time Keith really loses his temper. We’ve seen him irritated, of course, in the first two episodes, and there’s the food fight in Some Assembly Required, but that’s in defence of a teammate (Pidge, amusingly enough) and he’s not angry the way he is here. He’s just sick of him and his teammates being pushed around. Up until now, he’s come across as quiet and maybe a little moody so I think she’s startled by his reaction rather than intimidated. Shiro’s intervention ends the argument, and the next time we see them interact the Galra have taken over the castle. When Pidge contacts him over the comms, Keith says, “Pidge, is that you? Where are you?” In spite of their argument earlier, he sounds concerned. In Tears of the Balmera, they briefly fight Sendak together, before Allura and Keith put their plan to trap him into action. At the end of Tears of the Balmera, when Pidge decides to stay, the focus is very much on her and Keith as he tells her that it’s, “Good to have you back on the team,” and they smile at each other. The wording is similar to when Keith talks to Shiro in the desert in The Rise of Voltron. In fact, it’s identical save for the fact that when he says it to Pidge he adds, “On the team,” emphasising the fact that they didn’t know each other prior to Voltron. Keith was Lance’s rival (not that he appears to have known it) and Shiro’s close friend (as close as we can guess), and Pidge knew Lance and Hunk at the Garrison, and is connected to Shiro through her missing father and brother, but the two of them are teammates first. I would therefore argue that the purpose of this two-episode arc is as much to establish some sort of relationship between Keith and Pidge as it is to make Pidge choose between her duty to her family and her duty to Voltron.

What makes Pidge stay, I think, is that the team needs her. If she had left, the Galra would have taken the Castle of Lions. If she had left, there wouldn’t have been a pod set up for Hunk and Coran to go to the Balmera and find another crystal. If she had left, Keith and Allura would be stuck on Arus for the conceivable future. When she first said she was leaving, she told them, “You’re going to have to find someone else to pilot the Green Lion.” This reduces the roles of the paladins to piloting the lions, when they all handle other important responsibilities too. Shiro’s the leader. Keith and Lance are skilled fighters, the former in melee and the latter in long-range combat. Hunk is the mechanic and the cook. Pidge is the tech expert and also skilled in reconnaissance. The team could not have taken back the castle if Pidge hadn’t been there to crawl through the vents and stop the ship from launching because there wouldn’t have been a castle to take back. She might care about her family, but she cares about the people on the Castle of Lions too. She can’t just leave them defenceless.

[phantoms-lair]

Voltron AUs part 2

 Here’s my second AU. This one is way more serious. It also contains some spoilers for Season 3, So I’m gonna put it under a cut.

This is based on a theory I had about ‘Shiro’ in Season 3 that was thankfully debunked in episode seven. Like everyone and their cousin, Peter and I didn’t believe Shiro was really Shiro (both of us think Shiro’s been Yui Ikari’d, though I’m beginning to think he’s in a different reality). But, as Black reacted to him, at the same time Peter and I had a terrible thought.

What if Shiro was Zarkon?

Like, the most important thing to the Galra Empire was to take down Voltron, So while Haggar’s tending to his wounds, they hatch this scheme to use her magic to make him look like Shiro down to the arm. Then she creates a copy of Shiro’s mind (using the same method as in the clone theory) and makes Zarkon’s mind and personalty dormant so ‘Shiro’ will be more realistic.  Then at the perfect time, she’ll break the Spell, and Emperor Zarkon will be in the perfect position to destroy the Paladins.

Seeing Zarkon in episode seven proved this wasn’t the case, but this AU goes with ‘But what if it was’. The infiltration was a success and at the crucial moment, Haggar releases the spell and Zarkon’s mind is free.

The only problem? It’s actually free. For the first time in ten thousand years his mind if free from the effects of the Ooze’s corrupted quintessence. And he’s aware of what he’s done. What’s he’s turned his people into, what he’s done to his closest friends.

Zarkon is horrified. 

And to make matters worse, the ones he’s meant to betray to their deaths are children. Of the Earthlings, only the one he replaced was fully grown and Kaity’s just barely into adolescence. This is wrong. Beyond wrong. Not to mention Shiro’s mind is still there, he still feels what Shiro felt towards them. And he makes his decision.

Emperor Zarkon is dead. He’s not worthy of the Black Lion, and now he understands why. But of Being Shiro is what they need, he’ll be Shiro. He’ll fight against the corrupted mass his empire has become and remove it’s cancer from the galaxy.

Meanwhile Haggar doesn’t know what went wrong. Why did her spell fail? Why is her Emperor still that pathetic Earthling? She needs to get him back and fix what went wrong.

To which Zarkon doesn’t have enough Nopes.  He avoids Haggar and the druids at all costs, something none of the other castle residents think twice about, since he’s been their prisoner twice.

There is one other person/entity aware of the deception. The combined consciousness of real Shiro/Black Lion. Though broken there are still scraps of the bond to Zarkon. He could sense him which was why he wasn’t allowed to pilot.But through the bond he could sense the genuine remorse and regret. Since he is doing his best to help, he’s giving him a chance, but if he reverts he’s going to be so much space dust. Until then, this is hilarious.

He’s going to get revealed at one point as not the real Shiro. Either eh’s forced to give himself away, or the guilt overcomes him. He doesn’t tell the whole truth of who he is, but that he was sent to infiltrate and turned sides.

 He tells them everything he knows about the Galra Empire's working (verbally if forced to give himself away and if overcome by guilt he write several reports to give to them) and how the Galra with the most power are puppets of the Quintessence Ooze. He doesn’t give his real name, but asks to be called Kuro instead. He also tells them Zarkon is dead or good as. “Haggar’s the one who exiled Lotor in the first place. She doesn’t like or trust him. She never would have recalled him if there was any chance of Zarkon recovering.” 

Absolutely no one trusts him, but the fact that he would willingly die if that was their decision helps (his only stipulation is the Earthlings not watch. he still has the face of one of their friends and they don’t need to see that.). One of the Blades tests that by going into an executioner's stance and attacking. It's a test, but one that draw blood, basically leaving a shallow cut on his throat rather than taking his head off. But Kuro didn’t run or even try to fight back. He would calmly face his death if that’s what was wanted.

He had the exact opposite reaction when Allura made a snide comment about ‘leaving him somewhere for Haggar to find’. It’s only lucky that the Paladins find him in the process of spacing himself, and he still has to spend time in the healing chamber for the damage done. But yeah, the mere thoguht of being reclaimed by the Galra is enough to send both Siro and Zarkon’s tactical minds into a panic

Hunk is the first to start trusting Kuro again, followed by Lance. Both because they didn’t have as strong a personal emotional bond as Pidge and Keith to Shiro and because they’ve both been controlled by the Bakku. They know what it’s like to not be in control of your actions and have far more sympathy towards him. If any of his intel helps find the Holts, that would be a good in route to Pidge.

Keith gets captured at some point and without him they can’t form Voltron to save him. Kuro thinks of a way to save him. Problem is, it’s a suicide mission. Keith would escape, but whoever went in would die. Kuro doesn’t mention this to anyone, just starts gearing up. The life of a paladin of Voltron vs ‘Evil Emperor Zarkon’ is no contest in his mind. And even if Keith hates him, he still cares for him. It’s as he leaves he’s feel a purring in the back of his mins that’s familiar to both Zarkon and Shiro and he almost cries. Black’s forgiven him, at least enough to let him pilot him to save Keith. (Which is what brings Keith and the Alteans to at least grudging respect)

I also want to do a bit where they get brought into the Lion’s mindscape and Kuro’s convinced the jig is up. They’ll see who he is in his mind, that he’s Zarkon. Only when he get there he’s still looking like Shiro. Black Liojn/Shiro greets them all and explains to his confusion “In here, you’re who you truly are. And no matter who you were, you’re Kuro now.” And maybe as an aside only Kuro can hear “You weren’t lying when you told the Emperor Zarkon was dead”

Also Kuro’s feelings on Allura are complicated. He remembers being her favorite Uncle and wants to spoil her rotten. But that has to contend with memories of killing her father and destroying her home, which leaves him wracked with guilt. If you combine that with Shiro possible having romantic feelings for her, that is a landmine of emotions that Kuro is terrified to touch.

Snippet bits:

"Even though I was controlled, I still did terrible things. If you must call me something, call me Kuro. In his language Shiro means white and it's fitting. He was the light of hope for the universe. I'm the opposite. A black mark on it. But I would rather die right this minute as Kuro then spend another second as who I was forced to be"

"Why is that witch obsessing over you?" Allura demanded. "She knows you've turned traitor by now. Why is she trying to recapture you instead of killing you?"

Kuro gulped. "It's difficult to talk about - I'm trying alright?!" he exclaimed at the looks Allura and Coran were giving him. He buried his face in his hands. "She is...she was.... She was my wife, okay?"

The silence around the table was deafening.

"In case you've forgotten, Alteans and Galra were allies. She was strong and smart and...kind. So very kind.  We...we even had a son." He hated that he could feel his human eyes tearing up. He wished he was strong enough to hide his feelings, but he couldn't help but think about when Lotor was born and how different he'd have grown up to be if everything hadn't gone so horribly wrong.

"And now, I don't know how real any of our relationship was. Looking back with clear eyes, she was being manipulated by the Ooze long before the planet exploded. She was one of the Altean alchemists working on it and well, the ones that survived are the druids if that tells you anything."

Allura let out a little gasp.

"I made many bad decisions before things went wrong, and I thought I was doing them for her sake. But I was a tool long before I was being controlled. And now I don't know is that's some small part that's still my wife trying to get her husband back, or if the witch doesn't want to loose her favorite tool. But either way, if she gets her hands on me, she'll use the tainted quintessence at her disposal to turn me back into a monster. One worse than any of her robeasts."

"Anyone sitting here?" Coran inquired

Kuro shook his head. "You know there isn't." Kuro was well aware he was the single least liked person in the castle. He was a spy and an infiltrator after all. One who had gotten there by impersonating someone they loved dearly. And they didn’t know the half of it. "I miss it though. The closeness"

"From before you were outed?"

"Then too, but I also have all of Shiro's memories of before that. And with the Holt's before even the Paladins. And on the other side of things, my team before the corruption happened. Three bands I was proud to call my brothers. Now one's dead, one's missing, and one hates me. All of which is my fault."

"They don't hate you. Well, Lance and Hunk don't hate you, and I think Pidge is coming around. Keith's a bit, well, Keith."

"And Allura hates anything connected to the Galra, and rightfully so."

"Not rightfully so." Coran shook his head. "The Galra did many terrible things, yes. But She was just as venomous at the ones who's who risked everything to save us. And how she treated Keith was beyond the pale." he sighed. "I wanted to say something, but didn't know how, not with what she's been through."

"What you've been through too." Kuro gently reminded him. "The Galra cost you so much. I cost you so much"

"You were controlled and manipulated," Corna reminded him.

"That shouldn't have mattered!" Kuro clenched his fists. "I should have been strong enough to resist it."

"I can't tell you how often Lance and Hunk think that about the Bakku. They've gotten past it, mostly. Still a few nightmares." More than a few honestly, especially on Hunk's part.

"In the end they still saved the day though. I destroyed everything."

"Someone helped them. No one helped you."

"Someone tried. And I killed him for it." Kuro said bitterly.

"Perhaps. But I think Alfor always knew it wasn't really you. He knew his best friend wouldn't start a war like that."

Kuro's head whipped up. "You know who I am?" he asked, fear in his voice.

"I know who you used to be." Coran corrected. "You told us yourself, didn't you. There was no way for Zarkon to still be alive."

Kuro...Zarkon flinched. "Are you going to tell Allura?"

"No, at least not until she can handle the reality that we were just as much to blame as the Galra."

"But-"

"It was an Altean Alchemist who convinced everyone to keep the rift open. It was the same Altean who manipulated the Emperor who loved her into ripping it wider. And it was the King of the Alteans who destroyed the Galran home world."

"Only because there was no other choice." Zarkon growled.

"Perhaps, but an interesting thing I realized. We never told the Earthlings, when we explained things in the beginning. If it was so forgivable why not mention it? Allura's put Altea up on a pedestal. And until she can accept our hands aren't completely clean," he sighed. "She still has some growing up to do."

"So what now?"

"Nothing changes, though would you mind indulging me in a curiosity."

"Certainly, I told you before, any knowledge I have is yours."

"Well this is a bit personal. 'Emperor Zarkon' would never have agreed to be permanently turned into another species. But if Haggar, or should I say Honneca-"

"Haggar, please." Zarkon pleaded. Foolish is might be, he wanted to keep the memory of his wife separate from what she became.

"Right, if Haggar could change you back, she would have long ago."

Zarkon grinned. It wasn’t friendly.  "We decided that I should have sole control of turning back, once I regained my memories. That way we wouldn't have to worry about her changing me at the wrong time. The control was a glyph of tainted quintessence." He rolled up the sleeve of his right arm, past the prosthetic to reveal faded purple markings."

"Huh, Thought a glyph would be more glowy."

"Oh it would be," Zarkon's grin was downright ferocious. "Remember how different the Galra crystal was from the standard Balmeran one? It takes significant time to corrupt them to the point they won't actually purify our systems. Last time we visted the Balmora, before I was outted, I asked for a small bit of Crystal. Just a sliver broken off from the battle, not enough to power more than a toy, but enough to disrupt a glyph."

Coran could see a small scar through the center of the glyph, now that it was brought up. "But that would mean-"

"I can never revert to my old form. I will be in this human body till the day I die."

“Does that make you human then?”

“I don’t know. I don’t know what I am. I don’t now who I am.” He leaned back.  Shiro’s mind isn’t gone from my own. And I know his thoughts and experiences influence me, but I have no clue to what degree. Am I truly a clone of Shiro with some Galra memories? Am I a traitorous Galra, trying to escape my own guilt by pretending I’m human? If I’m not Zarkon and I’m not Shiro, who am I?”

[briarjay]

Keith vs the Forces of Evil

like bro, i am so obsessed with Star vs the Forces of Evil that i thought about this. if no one has made this before then please spread this shit like wildfire because i need klance SVTFOE AU’s.

keith is a galra-human hybrid and is the son of the blade of marmora leader (his galra mom). 

he is sent to earth when he is just a teenager who is angsty and stubborn about being part of his mother’s resistance group

let’s say his human, texan, cowboy dad is apart of the blade of marmora too!

Keith is forced to go to earth to become more “human” and get in touch with his human side and then eventually will learn responsibility and to appriciate all life, especially his fellow human.

KEITH PINNING HARD OVER LANCE THE HUMAN BOY

this lovely fan art: http://yaboybokuto.tumblr.com/post/151472717518/if-any-of-you-thought-i-wouldnt-go-here-i-just

and then idk who jackie would be, but they would have to be super chill and supportive of lance, but at the same time be friends with keith too! 

i’ve been listening to “Just Friends” a lot too and i can just imagine the whole klance thing. pinning keith is real, y’all. 

EDIT: only reblog this updated post because i sourced it. 

[ganymedesclock]

Why do you think the marmora blades magically change form? What exactly triggers it? Keith's blade activated when he learned to quit (one of his biggest challenges) so does the knife magically sense when you somehow become marmora material™ by overcoming you challenges???? Explain!

*adjusts glasses* it’s space magic, my dude.

More specifically what I think is going on here is like... so quintessence is given two different descriptions in the show. In one sense it’s raw life energy, and that’s usually how we’ve heard it described.

But in the other we here allusions like Allura’s “The quintessence of the Lion is mirrored in his pilot.” And how specifically Altean energy is needed to make the wormholes work.

We also have the thing of how the Lions can sense their particular paladin, across the void of space, when said paladins aren’t carrying or wearing anything that transmits their location.

And more generally, the druid in s1e10 was able to do that funny owl thing and know right where Keith was- which we’ve also seen Keith do on several occasions, telling someone is there, or sensing Blue and Red.

So what I think is: quintessence is energy but there is basically a “soul frequency” to an individual person’s quintessence that contains information about them, and this kind of... broadcasts out of them.

And this can be picked up on, with varying levels of finesse.

The first level is roughly “is someone there.” This is where Keith seems to operate and the s1e10 druid did as well. It just picks up any living presence in the area. If you’ve ever played Skyrim, it’s like the Detect Life spell. 

Of course, it might be more general than that, since s2e9 also talks about entire planets having quintessence and various mentions of the Komar speak similarly- Voltron’s universe adheres, seemingly, to a philosophy that life is sort of the continuous underpinnings of the universe and the space between realities appears saturated with it. 

This might explain the way we see Keith effortlessly dodging his way through asteroid fields, or knowing exactly when to hit the brake on his hoverbike to not crash nose-first into the ground; because he would have an intuitive map of his surroundings, the quintessence of even seemingly inorganic stone and sand still reading clearly to him.

The second level is “what is there.” We see Haggar doing this- she senses a “resurgence of Altean energy”, and, as mentioned, both the teludavs and luxite respond only to specific species. Arguably the galra biometric locks may well work on this as well, since they also respond to the explicitly quintessence-driven mechanical drones, and Shiro’s arm.

This gives us the interesting information that life gives off a species-specific, or perhaps planet-specific ‘aura’. In Keith’s case, his ‘aura’ is more galra than human, so the locks on the ship respond to him, the knife responds to him.

While we don’t really know the full properties of luxite, or the technology behind the luxite blades, what we can gather from Kolivan’s response is that it reacts to galra, and only to galra. You couldn’t have a galra use a teludav and you couldn’t have an Altean awaken a luxite blade.

As far as luxite itself, I’d split hairs here and say that Keith awakening the blade wasn’t really about giving up. It was about identity. It doesn’t light up when he’s about to hand it off to Kolivan. It lights up when he says “I know who I am.” Thematically it becomes accessible to him at the same time as new information about his heritage.

If the awakening of the blade was about Keith pushing past his boundaries when it comes to knowing when to fold ‘em, we’d expect the luxite blade to have responded later, when he struggles with this exact problem on Thayserix vs. Lotor.

So if I had to guess, the ‘requirement’ for being able to awaken the luxite blade is kind of a “know thyself” exercise which is probably why the Blade, who are not a particularly vindictive organization, have an initiation ritual that involves the initiate in question facing personalized inner demons. When you’re exhausted, hurt, and desperate- who are you, really? What’s the crux of who you are as a person?

Getting back into what I’m talking about with levels of soul information, it seems like the luxite blades respond to a little more than just “what species is this”. Because if it was just a Galra Detector, Keith would’ve awakened it a long time ago, as soon as it passed into his hands. His blood has always been there, after all. But while the baseline seems to be, you do have to be a galra to have the capacity to awaken luxite, there’s a threshold you have to push past- reliant on the third level of energy.

The highest level of quintessence information seems to be no two people are identical, energetically, and that comes down to levels of personality. When we see Allura saying the quintessence of the Lion is mirrored by their pilot. And this is how we see Keith finding specifically the Red Lion, and the various times Lions have come to fetch their paladin. Basically each person has an energy ‘fingerprint’.

So roughly, to summarize, the levels of energy reading seem to be:

1. is something there

2. what is it

3. who is it.