[ they're always in the medbay, they just live here, super glued here, stapled. but waving at keith as he drops by, though they glance a moment just because. why are voids just in the habit of popping up everywhere?
call them antsy! ]
Good to see you. You just come for a chat or did you hurt yourself out there today?
[ io is already giving kosmo a soft rub around the ruff of his neck, greeting him gently as well. ]
Mmm, let me see if I've anything to help. The locals utilize a plant that helps neutralize the -
[ the voids ARE super fucking real and can hurt you back. because as that gets just totally shot through io's skull, keith will receive a memory as well.
and by the time the void has been through, been fed, io is there, couched by kosmo still just kind of staring a long moment into that wolf dog's eyes before looking slowly up at keith again. the name that leaves his mouth is something that sounds strained, upset... ]
Ganymede... Keith... you... [ you saved him. they don't finish the sentence, but there is a softness that shifts in their eyes as they turn back to just dissociate and pet kosmo softly. ] There's a reason I can never put them fully under for their maintenance... never would...
[ so much happens all at once, all of the time. help. keith doesn't even get to finish processing seeing his own memory, before io's smacks him in the face. leaving him blinking and staring down at them petting kosmo. :tails: ]
Ah, yeah...[ surprise!! frowns. so much. ] He's been through a lot, so...[ glad that io is here to take care of ganymede, because the man sure is stubborn.
shakes his head. ]
Sorry, god, both of those happened so fast, right after the other. My brain is still catching up.
[ a slow shake of the head. no sorry-ing will be accept here, though perhaps they understand the source. each time, it's like being hit head on with a train. they hum. ]
No... no it's alright, it...
[ yeah give them a minute. that really was just crazy action sequence and traumatic action sequence. we love to see it!! still. there is a moment they just place a brief hand on their shoulder, careful to avoid too much pressure, if a bruise is hiding. ]
I am only sorry that the one you saved had to end up in a place like this...
the hand on his shoulder is welcome and even if there is hidden bruises, keith doesn't seem to flinch or care. but he also shakes his head. no sorry-ing!! ]
Not the first time and certainly won't be the last. [ the shiro experience tbh ] It was a shock, at first, that's for sure. And especially with the wetware... but just trying to take it one day at a time. [ he smiles, even if it's small and on the somber side.
looks up at io, now. ] I'm just glad he's got a good crew behind him, especially someone like you, who will make sure he's taken care of. He's ridiculously stubborn and never puts himself first, so... Thank you, Io.
[ oh they... chuckle wearily at that. the wetware is surely an adjustment because like. it's been (redacted amount of time) since io has seen it in all of its stupid glory. ]
He is not the only stubborn one, I assure you... seems between the both of us there's enough bullishness to keep him on course. And safe.
[ their mouth keeps a kind, slight smile. ]
Come, let me make you some tea. I should have something to help with the bruises here as well. Sit...
[ freedom from the void is nice, and io just moves to prepare some tea in an electric kettle, there's a sink here and everything so it's quick work. as they carefully pull some mismatched cups from a shelf and some drying plants from a basket set to the side of the sink, they tilt their head a moment.
hesitant: ]
Yes...
And each time I do, I am punished in some way. I tire faster, nothing slakes my thirst, sickness finds purchase more easily...
Don't worry about it. I'd be mad as hell too, if my life was treated like some show.
[ keith is also kinda mad, like, HELLO. this is so fcked up. ]
No one should have to rehearse their own day to day life, it's never the same. Every day is different, so how the hell do they expect you to "get it right".
More like I meant that I sound insane... I... I'm beyond anger at this point.
[ they'll bring both cups over, handing one to keith before grabbing a small tin off of their desk and nudging their rolling stool over to have a seat nearby. ]
But, it sounds like you've perhaps seen your fair share of crazy things.
Oh, thanks. [ so he isn't being rude, he'll take some of the salve and rub it on his shoulder. he's not getting nakey, so just...shoves hand under shirt. it's fine. ]
It's a lot of things, really. Probably the hardest thing I've ever done, with having to defend the universe and what not. But we have a good team, which has grown into a whole coalition, that stretches to every edge of the universe. [ he smiles fondly. ]
I don't mind at all. [ sips tea, then proceeds to stare down into it. ]
That was Lance, Pidge, and Hunk. With Shiro and I, the five of us made up the original paladins of Voltron. [ tilts head to the side ] Well not the original, original, but kind of like the second generation of paladins.
[ proceeds to tell him about who pilots what lion, then after a moment goes quiet, like he's debating on if he should talk about something a bit darker. ]
We did have to change up our positions, which is how I ended up piloting the black lion. Allura joined us then, taking over for Lance, while he took over for me.
[ speedruns voltron, but he's listening attentively, sipping his own tea, holding it carefully in both hands. their head tilts a little as they process this. shifting a little in position in their seat. ]
What happened to cause that?
[ theyyyy have a feeling they know the answer already. ]
still staring into the cup. ] We lost him. [ looks up at io, an expression that isn't necessarily pain, but something just under that. like it's still something that stings, when he remembers it. and he's been doing a lot of that this week. ]
It was after a huge fight with Zarkon. They went head to head and whatever happened... he wasn't there when we got black back to the castle. [ looks elsewhere, sighing. ] And after a while we had to move on. I was stubborn and refused, at first, even if it was something Shiro wanted for me... I was just in denial.
[ oof. closes his eyes. ] But it all worked out, in the end, after a bunch of insane things happened. And I've gotten used to the whole leader thing, I guess. [ gives io an apologetic look. ]
That... was a lot. Honestly surprised another void didn't pop up to save me from having to explain it all. [ that would've been too easy. but stay tuned. ]
[ sadge actually. he's listening, but it's clear this is also pretty fucked up, and it's hitting in a way that makes his brow twitch and draw a little tightly. like oh.... oh that's my friend, that's my best friend. fuck. but uh in any case haha.
just lets him finish and shakes his head. ]
We'd only be so lucky to be swallowed up when we have to explain difficult things... I...
Thank you for sharing. Truly a trial... and now you've been brought all this way.
[ i didn't realize this is the thread this tag was for and now i'm sad, reading it back. cries so much. picks io up and runs away.
yeah yall have A LOT IN COMMON BUDDY, hateful........ ]
Hah...[ tiredly ] Thanks for listening. I guess it is, even if our realities don't quite line up. That's been the hardest part of knowing we're both here.
[ like on one hand YIPPEE!! but also... he wonders how this will all affect things back home. and of course how it'll affect gan's end of things. ]
[ just sighs and nods. and after a brief pause, looks at him with a smile. ]
Thanks. I hope everything works out for you too, Io. Seems you've got a lot to do, when you get back.
[ he means that, genuinely, even if he doesn't fully understand what io has going on back home. and just as he was about to ask... boom. another void. (it's w5, but we're still living the memshare dream)]
the blade of marmora. a secret organization comprised of individuals who oppose the galra empire and are working on taking it down from the inside out. the voltron team has located one of their many secret bases, thanks to ulaz, an agent they met well aboard a galra curiser some time ago. it was thank to him that they made it out of there alive, even if he did not...
the base is smack dab in the middle of two massive black holes and after coming into contact with it, they are to only send two people and to come unarmed. shiro and keith will be those two. and with the help of the red lion, they are able to travers the push and pull of the two black holes, safely landing and being met with several blade members.
kolivan. the leader of the blades. he is sharp with his words and also his senses, as he realizes keith did not in fact come unarmed. and it's not the red lion that is the weapon in question, but a knife that keith has had since he was a child. something his father gave him, before he passed.
shiro thinks they should leave and kolivan agrees, but keith refuses. he must find out what this blade means. who is it that once possessed this blade and how did it end up on earth, with his father.
perhaps there is a way to learn... but only by trial.
[ i love getting to rewatch voltron in bits and pieces again YIPPEE! well io is suitably on the fucking edge of his seat because of this. it's a literal fucking nightmare, watching keith just go through this over and over again, watching ganymede stubbornly try to step in only to have himself used against keith in this particular way. he's biting his tongue the entire time and it's luck he doesn't just clean bite it right off. ]
Fuck - that was a hell of a trial they put you through... and for you to... [ awaken it anyway, despite all of their doubts, for you to finally rise to meet that which you have been seeking. he wants to praise him for his stubbornness, but also tell him what an idiot he is for challenging such odds.
he knows he'd have been just as stubborn. it's lucky, keith has the kind of heart he does.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
W3 WEDNESDAY
call them antsy! ]
Good to see you. You just come for a chat or did you hurt yourself out there today?
[ tough worms!!! ]
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gives them a wave back, kosmo trotting right in and up to io, greeting them with a sneef. ]
I probably got some gnarly bruises, but that's nothing compared to the layers of goop I had to scrub out of my hair. [ and other places... oof.
speaking of the hateful voids. one appears next to them, as they speak, keith looks at it and rolls his eyes. ah shit. here we go again.
before them plays out a (2:38) memory, featuring a familiar face.]
no subject
Mmm, let me see if I've anything to help. The locals utilize a plant that helps neutralize the -
[ the voids ARE super fucking real and can hurt you back. because as that gets just totally shot through io's skull, keith will receive a memory as well.
and by the time the void has been through, been fed, io is there, couched by kosmo still just kind of staring a long moment into that wolf dog's eyes before looking slowly up at keith again. the name that leaves his mouth is something that sounds strained, upset... ]
Ganymede... Keith... you... [ you saved him. they don't finish the sentence, but there is a softness that shifts in their eyes as they turn back to just dissociate and pet kosmo softly. ] There's a reason I can never put them fully under for their maintenance... never would...
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Ah, yeah...[ surprise!! frowns. so much. ] He's been through a lot, so...[ glad that io is here to take care of ganymede, because the man sure is stubborn.
shakes his head. ]
Sorry, god, both of those happened so fast, right after the other. My brain is still catching up.
no subject
No... no it's alright, it...
[ yeah give them a minute. that really was just crazy action sequence and traumatic action sequence. we love to see it!! still. there is a moment they just place a brief hand on their shoulder, careful to avoid too much pressure, if a bruise is hiding. ]
I am only sorry that the one you saved had to end up in a place like this...
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the hand on his shoulder is welcome and even if there is hidden bruises, keith doesn't seem to flinch or care. but he also shakes his head. no sorry-ing!! ]
Not the first time and certainly won't be the last. [ the shiro experience tbh ] It was a shock, at first, that's for sure. And especially with the wetware... but just trying to take it one day at a time. [ he smiles, even if it's small and on the somber side.
looks up at io, now. ] I'm just glad he's got a good crew behind him, especially someone like you, who will make sure he's taken care of. He's ridiculously stubborn and never puts himself first, so... Thank you, Io.
no subject
He is not the only stubborn one, I assure you... seems between the both of us there's enough bullishness to keep him on course. And safe.
[ their mouth keeps a kind, slight smile. ]
Come, let me make you some tea. I should have something to help with the bruises here as well. Sit...
[ they rise, nodding towards the cots. ]
Think we both need a break, hm?
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Sounds like it. [ a small smile to match... nodding. ]
After everything today, yeah, definitely. Thanks.
[ worms... goop... voids... it's rough out here man. takes a seat and waits for them, while thinking back to the memory he saw.]
So, in your world, you can't die? Or I guess, you do, you just come back afterwards?
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hesitant: ]
Yes...
And each time I do, I am punished in some way. I tire faster, nothing slakes my thirst, sickness finds purchase more easily...
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keith watches as they move, kosmo following their movements from where he's settled on the floor. ]
That's pretty intense... [ he couldn't even begin to imagine how that must feel. ]
I know this is a loaded question, but. Why? Why do you have to go through all that, every time?
[ keith keeps replaying the memory in his head and just cannot piece it together. me too man. ]
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I'm told that I must... run my lines until I get them right. As though my life is some godawful play.
[ a tch leaves them ]
I'm a doctor, not an actor... not a faceless thing... but it always returns to that. To that damn theatre...
[ pouring hot water. the scent from the tea is fragrant, bright and almost spicy-scented. ]
I sound mad. Sorry.
no subject
Don't worry about it. I'd be mad as hell too, if my life was treated like some show.
[ keith is also kinda mad, like, HELLO. this is so fcked up. ]
No one should have to rehearse their own day to day life, it's never the same. Every day is different, so how the hell do they expect you to "get it right".
[ angy ]
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More like I meant that I sound insane... I... I'm beyond anger at this point.
[ they'll bring both cups over, handing one to keith before grabbing a small tin off of their desk and nudging their rolling stool over to have a seat nearby. ]
But, it sounds like you've perhaps seen your fair share of crazy things.
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takes the cup with a nod, in thanks, and sighs. ]
You'd be right, there. Ever since I left Earth and joined Voltron, it's been nonstop insanity. But it's not always terrible.
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For those bruises—arnica, dandelion, comfrey. Should alleviate some of the pain, by the way.
[ before they settle back, a little smile curls on the edge of their mouth. ]
There's always a little good, in among even the worst hardship. Voltron... what's it like?
no subject
It's a lot of things, really. Probably the hardest thing I've ever done, with having to defend the universe and what not. But we have a good team, which has grown into a whole coalition, that stretches to every edge of the universe. [ he smiles fondly. ]
We've come a long way.
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Would you mind? Telling me about it more? Those people in your memory... were they part of this Voltron you've been talking about?
no subject
That was Lance, Pidge, and Hunk. With Shiro and I, the five of us made up the original paladins of Voltron. [ tilts head to the side ] Well not the original, original, but kind of like the second generation of paladins.
[ proceeds to tell him about who pilots what lion, then after a moment goes quiet, like he's debating on if he should talk about something a bit darker. ]
We did have to change up our positions, which is how I ended up piloting the black lion. Allura joined us then, taking over for Lance, while he took over for me.
no subject
What happened to cause that?
[ theyyyy have a feeling they know the answer already. ]
no subject
still staring into the cup. ] We lost him. [ looks up at io, an expression that isn't necessarily pain, but something just under that. like it's still something that stings, when he remembers it. and he's been doing a lot of that this week. ]
It was after a huge fight with Zarkon. They went head to head and whatever happened... he wasn't there when we got black back to the castle. [ looks elsewhere, sighing. ] And after a while we had to move on. I was stubborn and refused, at first, even if it was something Shiro wanted for me... I was just in denial.
[ oof. closes his eyes. ] But it all worked out, in the end, after a bunch of insane things happened. And I've gotten used to the whole leader thing, I guess. [ gives io an apologetic look. ]
That... was a lot. Honestly surprised another void didn't pop up to save me from having to explain it all. [ that would've been too easy. but stay tuned. ]
no subject
just lets him finish and shakes his head. ]
We'd only be so lucky to be swallowed up when we have to explain difficult things... I...
Thank you for sharing. Truly a trial... and now you've been brought all this way.
[ and have found him again. haha. hahahaha. ]
I suppose it's fate in a way, yeah?
no subject
yeah yall have A LOT IN COMMON BUDDY, hateful........ ]
Hah...[ tiredly ] Thanks for listening. I guess it is, even if our realities don't quite line up. That's been the hardest part of knowing we're both here.
[ like on one hand YIPPEE!! but also... he wonders how this will all affect things back home. and of course how it'll affect gan's end of things. ]
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Well. It's over my head. But... I hope that we can make it work out for the both of you. After everything you've been through, it sounds...
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Thanks. I hope everything works out for you too, Io. Seems you've got a lot to do, when you get back.
[ he means that, genuinely, even if he doesn't fully understand what io has going on back home. and just as he was about to ask... boom. another void. (it's w5, but we're still living the memshare dream)]
[ pls enjoy this 8:53 clip<3 ]
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Fuck - that was a hell of a trial they put you through... and for you to... [ awaken it anyway, despite all of their doubts, for you to finally rise to meet that which you have been seeking. he wants to praise him for his stubbornness, but also tell him what an idiot he is for challenging such odds.
he knows he'd have been just as stubborn. it's lucky, keith has the kind of heart he does.
he's about to say more, but here's one for the road.
haha. ]
(no subject)