Chapter Two
Allura listened as her stomach rumbled again. She hadn’t eaten a full meal in a couple of days but she couldn’t bring herself to partake now as she stood serving the masses of Altair as they too slowly wasted away. The shipments of supplies had stopped over a month ago. When they had sent Voltron to investigate, all they discovered were people too scared to continue trade with Altair, or any kingdom on Arus.
Allura ladled thin broth into a bowl for a young woman with a child on her hip. Allura tried to look cheerful but somehow knew that she wasn’t able to pull it off. The woman accepted the bowl and moved onto the next server in line for a slice of bread.
Allura had hoped that the crops would have alleviated the food shortage but one by one the crops failed. Everything that they tried to plant in the Arusian soil failed to thrive. No fresh vegetables and no ripe fruit for the masses.
Then the electrical storms had swept the planet; taking down most of the systems that they relied on. Defense systems, weaponry, even the basics such as electricity were scarce now that the storms were finally done.
“Allura.”
She turned to see Coran, his face grim and worn. Allura left her station, another volunteer taking her place, and approached her long time mentor and advisor.
“What is it, Coran?” she asked, almost a whisper as she noted his distraught countenance.
“The council is in an emergency session,” he said and he motioned her into the Castle of Lions.
The council was a new entity on Arus to help all the kingdoms work together as one central government; one for all and all for one. Each sovereign ruler was on the council from Arus’ seven different nations.
Allura followed Coran to the central command office. Allura noted that the command controls were blinking, indicating the incoming transmission. No one else was in the room, the normal rotation of military staff having been relieved of duty to accommodate the emergency meeting. Coran opened the transmission once Allura had taken her seat in front of the large display screen.
Familiar faces illuminated the large screen; her aunt Orla was among them. Orla didn’t look pleased to be out of bed at that particular hour. It was two o’clock in the morning in her kingdom.
“Princess Allura, Chancellor Coran,” greeted Queen Orla. “I’m sorry to have to bother you at this hour but we have received a transmission that requires our immediate attention. I am sending you the documents now.”
Coran was busy at the console as a file was sent to central command. He opened the transmission to see the documentation.
“This is from Planet Doom,” Coran grumbled. Allura brought the document up on a screen closer to her so she could read it but she only had time to read the first few lines before someone on the council started to talk again.
“Drastic times call for drastic measures,” said a not so masculine voice from the screen. Allura looked up to see King Cordaid, ruler of the southern kingdom of Castor, looking very determined. “We should accept,” he insisted.
“The princess hasn’t even read the terms,” Orla cautioned, her mouth pressed shut in a thin line. “Allura, this is a treaty offered by Prince Lotor. He’s offering the easement of sanctions on all trade with Arus as well immediate aid by means of food, water, medical supplies, and building materials.”
Allura didn’t have to ask what Lotor wanted in return; he wanted only one thing.
“This is not an option,” she heard Coran saying as she just sat where she was, numb.
“I don’t like it either, Coran,” Orla was replying. “But we have little choice. He’s already seen to it that we are crippled. None of us have enough power to run our systems for a full twenty-four hours. Voltron has no villian to fight as all of the merchants refusing to trade with us are still our allies. And Lotor himself has been impossible to capture.”
Allura felt Coran’s hand on her shoulder but she couldn’t bring her face up to meet his gaze.
“The perfect strategy…” Allura whispered, feeling as if her world were ending at that very moment.
“We will review the full terms and reconvene in twenty four hours,” Coran said and she knew that he was ending the emergency session. He flipped a switch and the teleconference was over. They were alone again, just Coran and Allura once more. No longer Crown Princess and Chancellor.
“Allura,”Coran called again as she couldn’t bring herself to move or speak. “Allura, get some rest. The hour grows late. We will review this treaty in the morning.”
Allura found the strength to stand then and walked to out of the command center. Pidge sprung away from the automatic door as it opened at her approach. The teen looked like he was trying to listen through the door, even though they all knew it was sound proof.
“What’s going on, princess?” he asked, trying to look innocent of any eavesdropping. The expression made him look even younger then his mere sixteen years.
“The princess is retiring for the evening,” Coran answered as Allura moped past Pidge. She couldn’t bring herself to make eye contact with the boy knowing it would give away too much of what she was feeling at the moment. All she could do is walk past the boy and down the corridor and let Coran run interference. She could make it to the lift and to her room with out letting a tear roll down her cheek.
Thankfully, the lift doors opened right when she pressed the call button and even better still, the lift was empty. She was almost able to sigh with relief at the sight of the empty lift. She rode the lift to her floor and made the quick jaunt to her room where she locked herself in. She leaned against the closed doors as the events of just a few moments ago came crashing to the forefront of her mind.
Lotor was behind everything; the missed shipments, her starving people, and undoubtedly the electrical storms. That witch Haggar was more then capable of such a feat but how had Lotor been able to keep from gloating over his plan? Why wasn’t there a robeast involved?
Because Voltron can fight a robeast, Allura thought. His plan was so tactical, so strategical that it took them all by surprise. It was cold and concise and now her people suffered because they hadn’t seen it coming.
Allura fought back tears and marched to her desk. She brought up the file that Orla had transmitted during the meeting and started to read. The wording was in legalese but not so hard to comprehend and it didn’t mince words. In just the second paragraph, Lotor started his demands.
The document offered peace between the Drule Supremacy and Arus in exchange for Allura’s hand in marriage.
Allura gasped.
It also outlined the terms of the marriage. How much time she was to spend in Lotor’s company, how often she was to share his bed, down to the number of children he wanted. In return, their shipments would resume, they would be protected by the Drule fleet, and receive immediate aide by means of medical supplies and food.
Allura had supposed that it would be bad. She knew he would want her hand in marriage but she hadn’t imagined that he would get so explicit with what he wanted. She had to take a moment to calm herself.
Allura rose from the desk, not willing to waste anymore thought on the issue at the moment. She went to her bathroom and changed from her pink jumpsuit into her pink jogging suit. She grabbed her personal console, pushed her ear buds into her ears, and headed for her door.
As the corridor started to fly by her as she ran, her favorite playlist being worked through, she knew what she would do. She knew she could do it because she loved Altair and Arus so much. She could do it because she was strong and level headed.
She could do it, because she wasn’t going down without a fight.
