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seldomscilence16 · 2 years

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Whumptober day 24: Fight Flight or Freeze

Fandom: Voltron

Prompts;

Blood covered hands

"I don't want to do this anymore"

Catatonic

Well then, I beat this poor cuban up a lot :/

The doors open and he puts himself in front of his wounded friends. He hated this, hated what they had to do, what he had to do, to survive long enough for help to come… if help ever came. With the team down three members, their two techys… if they had only attacked a moment earlier, when he'd been alone, his team would be safe…

The alien before him is larger than Hunk and taller than Shiro, hes orange with a snout and purplish hair in patches over his exposed torso and arms. His face in in a permanent snarl, and his arm is two times the size of Lances head. Theyd tried to take him down, and it hadnt ended well, but Lance would die before he let them force his friends to fight.

The guy huffs, reaching a meaty six fingered hand forward to grab Lances arm and pull him out of the small cell. He hears a weak protest from Hunk before the door slams shut and Lance is shoved down the familiar hallway. He'd had to fight a few times already, Pidge was injured in their capture and Hunk had fought once but… Lance wouldnt let them get hurt anymore if he could help it. Even if it meant…

The arena hes thrown into is a different environment this time, square pillars of different heights scattered around, the clear dome above showing the crowds of alien spectators. Hes focused on the door across from him though, where an alien- drugged with something to make them aggresive- will be shoved through. If Lance wants to make it out… he has to kill the alien. He'd tried lasting until the other alien dropped or knocked themselves out or even knocking them out himself. They just kill the alien anyway, and send in another, Lance hated it, but he needed to protect his friends.

He needed to protect his friends.

…

Blood

Its pooling around him

His hands are shaking, covered from tips to the bend of his elbow in deep bluish red blood.

Blood

That he spilled.

Another life on his hands.

Quite literally.

Hes dragged back to their cell. A med kit shoved in his hands- dirty slick- before being thrown in. He barely catches himself before he falls on Hunk, smearing the wall, he moves away from his friends, scared to make then dirty. To hurt them. He scrubs his arms off in the small bathroom area, careful to not use too much water.

Only then, when he cant get anymore out from under his nails and his skin is rubbed red and irritated, does he make his way over to his friends. Pidge his watching him with squinted eyes, concussed and her leg injured as well as bruises and the like, keeping her sore and confused at best. Hunk is still unconcious, bandages red and skin taking on an unnatural palor. He gets to work cleaning and redressing, getting some water down his throat. Then he works on Pidge's leg, watches her eyes watch him, as she tries to figure out whatever her brain allows.

Hes not enough though, they need pods, not his sub par work. He needs to get them out of here.

…

He doesnt know how long they've been here. Pidge is more coherant, short sentences, but her leg is worse. Hunk too is concious at times, but in no shape to fight- which is something to be thankful for and worried about, he still doesnt know how they'll get out of this.

Hunk stablilizes him as best he can when hes thrown into the cell again. He goes about his routine of cleaning himself up and coming back to tend to them, though its slower, a little wobbily this time.

"I dont want to do this anymore." Hunk says, voice hoarse and words slow and deliberate as he plans each one out.

"I dont either bud, you guys need pods." Lance says wincing at the sight of Hunks wounds.

"No. See you hurting like this, dont want to anymore."

"Yeah, what he said." Pidge slurs in aggreance.

Lance offers a shaky smile to try and reassure them, but hes sure it falls flat.

"I'll be fine, im more worried about you guys."

"Know about, injuries, youre hiding."

"Well dont worry about that, I'll be fine bud."

He finishes the last one, patting Hunks face before moving to Pidge,

"Dummy." She mutters.

"I know."

If it was anyone else, they'd have gotten out by now…

…

The fight isnt one on one, everything about this one is different.

Theres a child. A little pink alien with three eyes full of fear, and four arms wrapped tightly around themself. They tremble and Lance's heart aches. He will not kill a child, he cant. Three doors open, and three hyped up aliens enter, the arena is bigger, with fakish trees of some kind. Lance is scooping up the child and running before he really knows what hes doing.

The child is crying into his neck, and Lance is fighting harder than he thought he could. Hunk and Pidge keep flashing in his mind, of whats going to happen, when he refuses to kill the child. He doesnt know what theyd want him to do.

Hes taken down two, and hes panting heavily as he continues to run, child clinging oh so tightly to him. Hes trying to formulate some kind of plan, he couldnt even get his teammates out, how would he save a child??

His answer comes when the ship their on shakes and tilts, Lance stumbles into a tree and shields the kid as best he can. An attack? A rescue? Galra? Astroids!?

"Its okay, its okay, I got you. Its okay" he mutters it over and over, unsure if the kid can understand, and hoping hes not lying.

The next few moments happen in slow motion. The kid screams, and Lance cant react fast enough as the ship jerks again, a blade slashes through his thigh, and a blaster goes off, and hes on the ground. The last alien attacker falls with a hole in his head. The child is still trembling against him, his thigh hurts like a quiznaking garble whatever, and the ship is still taking hits from something. He sits up, one arm holding the kid, the other going to clutch at his leg.

Theres already a puddle, a large one, and he gags at the wound itself. Theres a knick on the childs own leg, but theyre otherwise alright. Maybe they were never gonna kill them maybe-

Another blast sounds and the ship practically flips, the child slipping from his grasp-

When hes finally righted himself enough to not puke, and the pain is more managable, he scans his surroundings, and promptly expells everything he has in him.

The childs chest is smoking, their eyes blankly staring right at him. Theyre dead.

Useless Lance couldnt even protect a child. What kind of protector of the universe was he?

"Lance!? Lance oh my gods, its gonna be okay we're here now!"

"Thats a lot of blood, quiznak, we need to go!"

"Why isnt he responding!?"

"I dont know! Maybe hes in shock??"

"Quiznak, he needs a pod!... They found the others, and the prisoners too!"

"Sorry buddy, this might hurt, but we have to go."

…

"That robot… it looked like a kid." Keith stares at the pods, three of their teammates inside.

"I know… it was an arena of some kind. They probably played mind games to keep it interesting." Shiro responds, disgust in his voice and anger.

They had taken too long. This was gonna effect them for a long time, these kids in a war, that shouldnt have to go through this kind of stuff.

"The Blade and Rebellion are gonna take over for awhile." Allura says gently, entering the room with Coran, grim looks on their faces.

"Good, and the coalition?"

"Wishes them a swift recovery, their supports have not been swayed."

They turn to look at the pods once more, guilt falling into their guts like stones.

"We'll get through this. Together."

…

Lance hasnt responded to anything.

Hunk and Pidge were tight lipped about what went on, but said Lance had done everything he could to protect them.

Shiro had told Lance the child had been a android of some kind, but he knew the experience must have felt too real for that to help much right now.

Hunk, Pidge and Coran had gotten to work as soon as they were able. They'd already had plans in the works for Prosthetics, to help Shiro and others in the war efforts. But they were fast tracking it now, hoping to get Lance back to health.

His leg had been… too far gone. Between the injury itself and what had happened after, the limb had been dangling as it was. There hadnt been much of a choice, even the pods could only do so much.

Still, everyone took time to talk to Lance, even if he seemed elsewhere. Occasionally he would pace, make loud exclamations out of nowhere, would echo sounds the ship made, or grunts and hums the others would do. They kept a close eye on him, had found him in the kitchen once when theyd left him alone, staring at the stove burner.

But mostly, Lance would sit and stare. At his hands, at his leg, at the wall, at space. Its only when Hunk and Pidge bring him to the hangar with them, and sit him at the foot of his Lion, that they get anything from him. Its been weeks, so theyre not really expecting much, but then they hear humming. A familiar song, one theyd learned of in the Garrison, a comfort song Lance sang when he missed his family.

Theyre by the cubans side in an instant, Lances eyes are closed, head swaying a bit to the song he hums,

"Lance?"

His eyes open, looking right at Hunk instead of through him,

"Hermano, Lo siento, did I disturb you guys?"