Vol-tron?

Their upturned noses as they took in the lions with a sort of that's it? expression. It had been enough to fill Lance's heart with this sinking dread until it was heavy enough to drop into his stomach.

The Oyhirian's were a hostile species, sporting sharp horns that curled above their heads, smooth lilac skin, and pitch black eyes. They were stunning in a way that had nothing to do with their features and everything to do with the fear they instilled in you. They were not known for showing any sort of kindness to others, but rather for their ruthless hostility that had prevented any alliances being formed on their own soil for thousands of years. 

At least until now. To the Oyhirian's, Zarkon was nothing but a thorn in their side. Which, in Lance's opinion, said a lot about them. They didn't see the Galra as the danger that they were, and the paladins had come, hoping to open their eyes to the threat that was staring them directly in the face. If they could get the Oyhirian's to join the Voltron Coalition, then they were adding another solid force that would solidify their chances of defeating Zarkon when it was finally time to take the fight to him. 

Unfortunately, they were not being easily persuaded... 

They had been on this planet for what felt like an eternity and they were no closer to convincing Gagn, the leader of this planet, to join their forces. He had an argument ready for each statement they made, and it was obvious to everyone present that this negotiation was going nowhere. Lance just wanted to go. Get out of there while they still could. His heart was beating steadily against his chest, that feeling of unrest that wouldn't shake. Their confidence was unwavering in words, but in reality, it was a thin veil between uncertainty and optimism.

"With your help, our forces would grow undeniably stronger," Shiro was saying, "We would be just that much closer to being prepared to take this fight to Zarkon,"

Gagn seemed to consider this with a slow nod. He sat at the head of a large table where they had escorted the paladins to upon their arrival.

"But not close enough, hm?" He said with a cruel sort of twitch to his lips. Lance sucked in a breath. He wasn't sure how much more of this he could take. It was bad enough when he heard the civilian Oyhrian's make snide remarks about how 'underwhelming' the paladins were as they walked past, now they were getting it from their ruler...

"We're stronger in numbers. With all our forces unified it would guarantee our success. We don't want to go in there with any doubts," Shiro countered calmly, but Lance had spent enough time on these diplomatic missions to see the tight line set to Shiro's jaw, to see the slight twitch of his brow, and he knew their leader was at his breaking point just like the rest of them. Gagn nodded again.

 "So you do have doubts then?" Lance rubbed his temple and judging by the looks of his friend's face's he wasn't the only one who'd had enough. Keith was glaring so hard that Lance thought he was going to pop a vein soon. Hunk was looking at Lance with a can you believe this guy? look on his face. Pidge's face was slowly turning a deep shade of red... "Where do these doubts lie? Your fellow paladins? Lack of skill?" Gagn continued.

 "We have no doubts in any member of our team," Allura cut in sharpy, "Our paladins were chosen for a reason, and they all contribute greatly to the cause."

"All of them?" Gagn questioned, eyes moving to all of them. They landed on Lance, and Lance quickly averted his gaze. There was something unsettling about Gagn. his dark eyes seemed like they could see into the inner workings of Lance's soul and he hated every part of it. Gagn hummed a laugh, and when Lance looked up, he saw Gagn's gaze still fixed on him. He swallowed a lump rising in his throat. Maybe Gagn was right to question the skill of the paladins... 

After all, they were a bunch of kids... Weren't they just kidding themselves that they would be the ones to take down Zarkon? Maybe the Oyhirian's were just seeing them for exactly what they were. 

"Yes, all of them," Allura said, pulling Lance from his thoughts.  "We don't have any doubts in them. We just want to be cautious. Zarkon has ruled for ten thousand years. We need to rally all the forces we can to take back what's ours."

"Well, that is something I can agree with. If you are to take down Zarkon, you will need all the help you can get," Gagn said, "I feel confident that we will be able to reach some sort of agreement." He said snapped his fingers at a few guards and made an intricate signal to them before standing. "Now please, join me in the gallery and we can draw up a contract."Lance exchanged glances with everyone. 

This was the last thing he'd been expecting to hear. But still, Lance was just glad that the hard part was over. He stood, along with his teammates and made to follow Gagn out to the gallery. Lance was just a few paces behind his friends when he noticed that someone was standing very close to him. He glanced over his shoulder and noticed that three of the servants had closed in around him.

"Make one sound, and we slaughter you all right now," one of them whispered in his ear.