#antok.

Ulaz's breath caught in his throat, hope blossoming in his breast, "Run back and tell the medics that I'll be around with Kolivan in just a Dobash. Quickly."

The recruit nodded and turned around, sprinting the way he came. Ulaz turned on his heel and marched back to Kolivan's office.

He opened the door with a bang. Kolivan just sighed and started harshly, "Ulaz, I've told you--"

"Thace was just brought into the med bay," Ulaz interrupted promptly. Kolivan's head snapped up, his eyes wide.

"...Keith?"

Ulaz's lips pursed, "It wasn't mentioned, but if he isn't with Thace then at least Thace would know where he is."

Kolivan stood immediately, striding past Ulaz. Ulaz walked quickly to match Kolivan's wider steps. "How is Thace's condition?" Kolivan asked.

"I have no idea, I came straight here when I found out," Ulaz replied.

They both came into the med bay like a boom of thunder, Blades moving aside for them. The recruit that had told Ulaz before ran up to them, his face red with exertion, the poor boy. He pointed to the right, "He's being treated in room 4ac-2a."

Kolivan just nodded curtly and moved past him. Ulaz paused for a moment, giving the boy a smile and pat on the shoulder. "You've done well today, have a rest."

Ulaz put gloves on as he stepped up to the bed Thace was lied on. He tried his best not to grimace as the extent of his long-time friend's injuries. "Give me the rundown."

"The worst extent of his bodily injuries are broken ribs and a broken femur, but he's internally compromised. We think he has a punctured lung." One of the medical assistants said. Ulaz could see Kolivan looking at him inquisitively from the corner of his eye.

"Prepare to operate, then. We need this Blade to live."

~

The operation went smoothly as Thace didn't have any complex bleeds, luckily no nicked arteries, and soon he was moved to a bed for observation, soft purple sheets pulled up to the middle of his chest.

Kolivan stared down at Thace pensively, his arms crossed over his broad chest. "When do you think he will awaken?"

"No more than a day," Ulaz promised, knowing that that was still far longer than Kolivan wanted.

Kolivan accepted the answer easily, what other choice did he have? "What vessel did he come on?"

"I believe a cargo ship picked him up on Zorin," Ulaz replied, having heard some of the chatter.

"What was he doing in Zorin of all places? There are no Galra fleets there."

"Maybe that is why he went." Ulaz turned and saw Antok in the doorway.

"What do you mean?" Ulaz inquired, moving so Antok could stand beside Kolivan where he belonged.

"If he and his team were overrun, it would only be logical to evacuate to the nearest uninhabited planet if they couldn't reach the Blade, would it not?" Antok said.

"Do you think Keith went there, too?" Ulaz asked.

"Thace would not have been able to live through the flight back if our kit had passed," Kolivan said, sounding awfully sure. Something in Ulaz warmed at Kolivan calling Keith 'our kit.'

"I agree. From that alone, we can assume that Keith is alive and, by those standards, that the rest of his team could still be waiting for a time to come back or finish the mission." The three of them sat in the quiet for a second, letting Antok's words linger.

"I'm going to go speak to the cargo pilot who picked him up," Kolivan said before exiting, the tarp enclosed around Thace's makeshift room flapping behind him.

After a long moment of just standing around in somber silence, Antok sighed lightly. "Our nest will be cold for more nights yet."

Ulaz watched as Antok took his leave, just as abrupt as Kolivan's. He wished he could go with him, but he glanced at Thace and knew that he didn't want him to wake up alone, especially if their theories were proven wrong.

~

By the next morning, Thace had awoken. Ulaz was asleep at the time, curled under Antok's arm, but Regris had come frantically, saying Thace was practically destroying the med bay and saying that he needed to speak to his packmates immediately and that no time could be wasted, not even for the rest the entire ship knew they needed.

Without even bothering to get dressed, reputation be damned and Antok discluded, the three of them rushed to the med bay where it was taking three medical assistants and two recruits to keep Thace down, and even then it was only because he clearly didn't want to hurt them to get through them. Ulaz knew that he would, though, given enough time.

"Thace!" Kolivan's voice boomed across the bay, everyone feezing in their tracks. Thace was the first to recover, pushing those who restricted him away and limping as fast as he could to them where he fell, his fall cushioned by Ulaz's arms.

"You shouldn't be moving--" Ulaz started to scold, but Thace cut him off with a rush of frantic breath.

"Was Keith picked up with me?" Thace asked, looking into Ulaz's eyes desperately for only a moment before looking at Kolivan and Antok who both looked at each other before shaking their heads.

"The cargo pilot who retrieved you said nothing of seeing another Blade near you," Kolivan said, his timber calming.

"He was with me," Thace said vehemently. "How did the pilot not see him, he never left my side!"

"He might've wandered off to find help whilst you were unconscious," Antok murmured in thought.

"No..." Thace whispered, "I told him to stay."

They all shared concerned glances.

Ulaz started to stand, taking Thace with him, "Come, let's get you back to bed and then we can discuss what happened in detail. You just underwent surgery, you shouldn't be moving so much."

Thace let him assist him back onto the ransacked bed, leaning back against the pillows. Everyone who had been standing amidst the chaos had dispersed back into their duties.

Ulaz quickly fixed Thace's pillows and covered his lap with the sheet before standing up straight. It was Kolivan who started the questioning.

"Did you fail your mission?" His face was hard and unreadable.

Thace met his gaze evenly and his voice did not shake, "No. It was a success."

Ulaz let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, the relief immediate. At least this trouble wasn't for nothing.

"Then why were you found in Zorin, two planets away from your target?" Kolivan pressed.

Thace's gaze shifted to his lap, "It was a success, but there was much loss. Nix and Uvren were captured by Galra forces, Keith and I barely managed to escape before we, too, were taken. We were far too weak to even begin to fight off their forces. They managed to nick our onboard air canisters as we flew and, as neither of us had any knowledge in how to repair our air supply, our choices were limited. Zorin was the safest option for our emergency landing."

"So the rest of your team was lost?" Antok asked patiently.

Thace's lips pursed, "Yes."

Kolivan opened his mouth to speak, but the question that had been itching at Ulaz begged him to open his mouth. "How was Keith? Was he terribly injured?" Kolivan frowned at the interruption but said nothing, a grace of being the leader's pack, Ulaz supposed.

Thace's hands fisted in the sheets and his ears drooped, "He was in much worse shape than I, but his breathing was unhindered so he took it upon himself to try to heal me, I could do nothing for him."

Antok rested a hand on his shoulder, "He is a Blade just as any of us are, he will be fine."

"If we were to host an extraction, where would best be suited?" Kolivan asked, surprising those around him.

"We're...going back for him?" Ulaz asked hopefully.

Kolivan looked almost embarrassed, "Of course. You mustn't forget that he is a paladin of Voltron and, therefore, the universe's top priority. I will make an exception on the rules just this once."

Ulaz silently pressed his arm to Kolivan's in thanks. Thace chuckled, "I knew you wouldn't be able to last long without becoming fond of the kit."

Kolivan's cheeks went a deep shade of purple. "It's only natural," he defended, "anyone that shares your nest is bound to become important."

"Then let us do our best to ensure that we leave no spots empty in that nest," Antok piped in, reminding them of the purpose of their conversation.

"Indeed," Kolivan agreed. "I shall lead the expedition myself. Antok, get into contact with the paladins of Voltron and inform them of our quest. Let them decide whether or not they find him expendable to their cause."

Ulaz's ears flicked uncertainly, "What if they deem his rescue unnecessary because they have another black paladin?"

Kolivan turned to walk away, "Then I will slaughter their black paladin and empty a seat to make his rescue necessary to the universe." The three of them stared, eyes wide as he left.

Antok gave a single nod. "Shall I inquire about the current black paladin's whereabouts before they make a decision?"

"That's...not necessary, Antok," Thace said, a small grin pulling at his lips.

"Call the paladins. Regardless of their stance, we will be going to Zorin for our kit. Prevent Kolivan from making any hasty, universe-altering decisions in the event the paladins disagree with our choices," Ulaz said, halfway amused and halfway in disbelief. When Kolivan cared for something, he cared for it intensely.

Antok left and only Thace and Ulaz were left, shaking their heads. "He would commit genocide for his pack, if need be," Thace said thoughtfully.

"Yes," Ulaz sighed, terribly fond, "he would."

~

The paladins of Voltron were frantic once they heard the news. Much to Kolivan's surprise, the black paladin, in particular, was concerned.

"I'd heard Keith say that he was something of a brother to him, but I didn't really believe it given how he acted towards him the last time they met," Thace said speculatively.

As it had turned out, however, they were galaxies away from Zorin and it would likely take them decapheobes to reach the small planet, the Blade could not rely on their assistance for this. It would've been a great help to have Voltron with them if they ran into any trouble as they were people of stealth, not confrontation, but they would take what they could get.

And they couldn't get very much, in all honesty. They had themselves and a questionable account from Thace who was absolutely not going.

Much to his dismay.

The day they were going to wormhole over to Zorin, Ulaz gave Thace a checkup. Thace did his best to grin and bear any aches he had. Ulaz wasn't buying it.

Ulaz squinted suspiciously at Thace's charts. "How strange."

"What is it?" Kolivan asked, stepping beside him to peek at the charts.

Ulaz frowned at Thace, "You did something to these."

"No," Thace said resolutely, completely straight-faced.

Ulaz hummed lightly, putting down his chart. In a swift move, he pinched Thace's still-healing ribs. Thace immediately crumpled, his arms going around his ribs, releasing a whine mixed with a hiss.

"You're not healed," Ulaz said with a tone of finality.

Thace lifted his head to look at Ulaz, his teeth still gritted together with the aftershocks of pain, "Please let me go." A shadowed look fell on his face.

Ulaz frowned, this time with sympathy. Kolivan straightened his back before saying, "You'll be of no use to anyone as you are, you'll just be a hindrance."

Thace's jaw ticked and he looked ready to argue, but then his shoulders slumped in acceptance, "I know that, I just feel that I am to blame."

Ulaz smiled reassuringly, "No one blames you." Thace still looked dubious.

"We will bring him back," Kolivan told him, his voice surer than anything Ulaz had ever heard.

And they would. Bring him back, that is. They just prayed it wasn't in pieces.

Antok stepped forward, "We should leave immediately if we plan to make haste."

Kolivan nodded at Antok before turning back to Thace, "Make a swift recovery, we will contact you once we've safely retrieved our charge."

The three of them started walking out of the room and Ulaz stayed behind for just a moment, putting his hand on Thace's shoulder, "Don't do anything reckless while you're injured. Have faith that we will bring him back."

Thace said nothing, but Ulaz hoped that he took his words to heart.

~

It took them a quintant and a half to reach Zorin's atmosphere and, upon entering, they received a transmission.

"Did Thace say anything about such an interaction?" Kolivan asked as the pad in front of him blinked and blipped, asking him to make a decision on whether or not to put the transmission through.

"No, he mentioned nothing of the sort," Ulaz said, knowing he would've remembered something that important.

Kolivan accepted the transmission and a hologram of a crouched figure in a hood appeared. The figure quickly straightened and flipped their hood back, revealing a species Ulaz had never seen. It was pink and bloated with gray eyes and hair.

"Greetings, inhabitant of Zorin," Kolivan greeted, his voice the very embodiment of power. "we come to retrieve one that we lost on your planet some quintants ago, we mean to bring you and your people no harm."

Rather than the caution citizens usually regarded them with, this creature looked ecstatic. "Of course! Our king awaits your arrival!"

Ulaz shared a glance with Antok. Kolivan, ever collected, said, "We appreciate the hospitality, we will be sure not to linger or cause your people distress."

The pink creature hopped up and down in a show of something, Ulaz was sure, but it wasn't a gesture he had seen before. "Stay as long as you want! We are happy to have you! My king awaits!"

The transmission cut out suddenly, but it didn't seem as if it was an accident. There was a silence that followed that made Ulaz slightly uncomfortable.

"Do we move forward?" Antok asked.

"We have no choice," Kolivan said heavily, "not going now could be seen as an act of war."

"I thought this planet was supposed to be uninhabited..." Ulaz mumbled, the planet getting closer and closer.

Kolivan didn't seem to have an answer for the sudden appearance of life on a planet that had previously shown none, and so silence fell once more.

Anxious energy filled Ulaz. He didn't have a good feeling about this, but Thace always said he was too much of a worrier.

~

They were regarded with only warmth once their ship landed, something the group of Galra were unfamiliar with. Entirely unfamiliar, in fact. So unfamiliar that Antok seemed twitchy, threatened by the kindness he had only received from other Blades.

The king was something akin to a creature Keith had shown Ulaz years ago, a 'slug,' if Ulaz remembered correctly, a giant pink slug with a tiny, smiling mouth.

The king had no air of wariness that told Ulaz that his kindness was any kind of farce, so Ulaz let his hand stray from his weapon, if only briefly. He still didn't like the feeling this place was giving him.

"Hello, space travelers! We're very happy that you decided to land on our humble planet!" The king greeted jovially, stepping- slipping?- right up to Kolivan.

If Kolivan was bothered by the king entering his space so freely, he didn't show it. "Yes. We just need to search your planet for our lost one, we don't wish to burden you or your people with our presence."

"Nonsense, we've prepared you and your party rooms in the castle." The king turned his back to them, "Follow, space travelers."

Ulaz and Antok shared a look before moving to carefully cover Kolivan, their eyes roaming around them. Usually, hospitality was nice.

But hospitality that came from a planet their kit was currently missing on? Not as nice. Especially when it was taking so much time. If Keith was injured as badly as Thace had claimed, he needed to be found sooner rather than later.

The thought had him twitching, eager to leave the prying eyes of these creatures.

The king led them, humming a quiet tune under his breath. A happy tune, but it sounded haunted once they started walking the halls of the castle, echoing and empty. Eerily empty.

"Do you not keep servants?" Ulaz inquired carefully after seeing a distinct lack of any working folk.

"We don't partake in servitude," The king replied simply, offering no other explanation.

The king stopped in front of large, pristinely white doors, pushing them open. "This is one of the castle's housing compartments, we hope you find it to your liking."

Kolivan and Ulaz stepped in, Antok lingering in the doorway. The king seemed to realize that they would not relax their backs until he left. "My attendant will keep herself available to you, should you need something. feel free to call upon me at any time."

"Wait a tick," Ulaz said suddenly. The king stopped, smiling patiently. "would you mind terribly if we questioned your people on the whereabouts of our lost one? We'd also like permission to roam your planet without repercussions."

"You can," The king said pleasantly before slipping off and out of sight.

The three of them waited a second before stepping inside of the room offered to them and shutting the door.

"We'll leave through the window," Kolivan said suddenly, not even bothering looking through the room in detail.

"Why?" Antok asked.

Kolivan looked back at them, his nose scrunched with a snarl, "I don't trust these creatures."

"Do you think they did something to Keith?" Ulaz asked immediately, protectiveness for the kit flaring up in his chest.

"I do not know," Kolivan said, his gaze pointing to his toes, "But I will find out. We will leave without them knowing. The less they know, the less they can lie to us about."

They slipped out the large, partially stained glass windows and scaled down the walls, taking advantage of the planet's natural darkness.

"Should we search the castle?" Antok asked once their feet hit the ground with soft thumps.

Kolivan shook his head slightly, lowering his voice, "No, we will not assume their guilt until necessary. We are outnumbered, here."

Antok pulled a datapad from his pocket, pulling up a GPS. He showed it to Kolivan, pointing to the white dot blipping on the screen. "This is about where Thace said they crash-landed. Keith shouldn't have been able to stray far from here with the injuries Thace said he had."

"Lead the way," Kolivan said, moving aside so Ulaz could take the head.

They started off, soon realizing that there was an odd lack of life outside of the castle, a stark difference in comparison to the reception they had received upon landing. Ulaz wasn't surprised that they had never known that there was a species that occupied this planet, he was nearly convinced that all those creatures he'd seen were the after-effects of some brand of fever dream.

The crash site was a good distance away from the castle and it took them a couple of vargas to get there whilst sticking to the shadows of the overgrown flora scattered around.

The three suns that orbited the planet had switched and, by the time they got to the crash site, the planet was tinted in a dark red.

They stopped, the three of them standing in a triangle to protect each other's backs as they scanned the area around them. Kolivan's eyes glowed as he leaned down by a tree-like plant. His nostrils flared. "This is his blood."

Ulaz felt something inside of him seize. "Is it fresh?"

Kolivan reached two fingers down to swipe at it, his fingers rubbing together. "No." he straightened, his nostrils flaring once more. "Spread out and search, he mustn't be far."

They spread out through the forest and, while they found plenty of dried blood and even one bloody bandage, they didn't find their kit.

Once they met up, Ulaz holding the bloody strip of cloth in his hand, Antok whined a small, pained sound. Ulaz wrapped his hand around his arm in a gesture of comfort, he knew it had to have been hard to work as well as Antok had whilst staying composed underneath the worry that had built up to an insurmountable level. "He's okay."

Kolivan was frowning. "Let us not disillusion ourselves. This brings down his chance for survival...considerably."

Ulaz felt his ears try to flatten themselves against his skull, waves of pain blitzing through his chest. He clenched his fists.

"We must keep trying," Antok said, his voice not as sure as it had been previously.

"Of course. We would do nothing else," Kolivan assured him.

"I propose the castle to be the next place we search," Antok spoke. Kolivan readily agreed.

The three of them started walking once more, Ulaz falling behind a bit as if slowing down would make Keith magically appear.

It didn't.

It did, however, earn him a sharp jab in the neck and a cold blanket of darkness.

~

Ulaz woke abruptly to a yell. This yell stirred up something rabid in Ulaz's chest, his mind fine-tuned to the sound of his kit in distress. He was up in a second, snarling and searching for whatever had brought harm to his kin. He was met with the surprised but still pleasant face of the king. "Oh, you're awake."

Ulaz ignored him, his fangs pulsing in his gums as he set his gaze on his kit, who was being held by his hair. His kit was barely struggling, his body obviously weakened from the various wounds Ulaz could see through the silken pink garment he'd clearly been forced into. Ulaz's snarls renewed with vigor.

"What did you do to him!?" His voice was animalistic as he started tugging at the metal bindings restraining him. The king's smile seemed to dampen, flinching at Ulaz's action.

Good, be scared, bitch.

"Well...you certainly are an enthusiastic bunch, but don't worry! This is for the benefit of us all," The king said pleasantly, taking a step or two back from Ulaz.

Keith's eyes fluttered open, glaring at the king as strongly as he could in his weakened state. "How...the hell?"

Ulaz whined at the sound of his kit's voice, why wasn't he holding him? He wanted his baby, kidnapping be damned. Keith's eyes flashed over to him in an instant and he seemed to think of something.

Yes, that's my smart boy, try to escape.

Realistically, Ulaz knew there was no way for Keith to escape in the condition he was in.

But then Keith opened his mouth, a high-pitched mewl coming out of his throat. Every muscle in Ulaz's body tensed; it was the sound kits made when their lives were being inarguably threatened, a sound that, friend or foe, no Galra could ignore.

Ulaz's fangs started slicking with saliva and every ounce of his strength went into pulling at the restraints, pure force bending the metal. His toes were being crushed under the weight of his desperation within his boots, but he didn't care.

The king shrieked and his men dropped Keith roughly in their surprise. "Restrain him!" The king exclaimed, "He's going to ruin everything!"

One of the chains that had been dug into the ground snapped and Ulaz had one hand free. He used that hand to give extra leverage to pulling his other free as well. His eyes never left Keith who had gone silent after he was dropped.

"Quickly! Do something before the beast breaks free!"

The chains creaked, but somebody grabbed his jaw and stuck a needle straight into the meat his neck, filling his veins with fire. He slumped with a choked cry, his body trembling.

His claws ached to tear through his neck and it was only the pure instinct of self-preservation that prevented him from wounding himself mortally. "Strap a muzzle on him, too." a voice said to his right.

Abruptly, his head was drawn back, a metal and leather muzzle being strapped around his head and digging into his fiery skin. He heard a whine and knew it was Keith.

I'm so sorry, my kit.

It felt like a lightyear before the flames left his veins and he was left panting on the grimy, now sweat-slicked floor below him. Both of his hands were unchained, but his strength had left his body and he could do nothing as his wrists were shackled anew and he was drawn to his knees as someone attached his cuffs to the ceiling, making it nearly impossible to get free as he had.

He'd tear the bolts from the ceiling with his very teeth if he had to.

If he was able to.

His eyes opened and they met Keith's who was looking upon him worriedly, his blood-crusted eyebrows scrunched in a mixture of pain and worry. Ulaz tried to tell him with his eyes alone that everything would be okay, but Keith was pulled roughly to the side, their gaze breaking.

"We should make haste before their comrades come looking." A new person, definitely not native to this planet stepped forward.

"Did you not take care of them well enough?" The king asked, terribly trusting of this one. Maybe the king just thought he had control over them, but Ulaz knew their type; he was just a pawn.

"There was time to do little more than restrain them to a few trees in the Zroov'bah forest. It won't take them long to break free," They said.

The king hummed and waved a hand at the ones holding Keith, "Put him up, we can start."

Ulaz tried earnestly to move, to call out, to tell his kit something, but whatever he'd been injected with had sapped out all of the energy in his bones. He watched, prone on the floor as Keith was brought to the stone table erected in the middle of the room where he was then strapped down with leather that seemed to be cushioned with fabric.

The king's smile got a bit more genuine as he looked down upon Keith, "There, that shouldn't be too uncomfortable. I've had my subjects make your bindings soft so your first blood isn't drawn by accident before we start." The king reached down and caressed Keith's cheek, ignoring his flinches, "You're going to do everyone a lot of good, little one."

Keith snapped his teeth at the man's hand and the man flinched back, a frown crossing his face for the first time, "Ungrateful."

The king turned away, looking down at Ulaz, "Did you raise this one?"

Ulaz growled as strongly as he could, snapping, "What do you want with him?"

"Your boy is going to save my people. The purple one promised he would, he just has to give us his first blood," The king said, "It's a noble cause, I assure you, your little one's sacrifice won't be in vain."

"You just need his blood?" Ulaz asked, almost daring to be hopeful.

The king nodded, "Yes, all of it. His virgin blood is valuable, here."

Ulaz's hope was replaced with unadulterated horror. They were going to kill his kit. They were going to drain his small, not even fully-grown body of all of his life. Ulaz screamed at his muscles to move, but they were sluggish and had no strength.

Keith started struggling as best he could, clearly panicked. One of the goons held him still as the king cooed, "Oh, no, no, no, little one. We can't have you thrashing your head around like that, we already went through so much trouble to stop the bleed you'd had earlier from treated so recklessly by ones who obviously didn't know your value, we can't have you ruin this."

One brought a needle to his neck and though Keith strained his neck as far to the left as he could, the needle went in and Keith went limp. Ulaz crooned softly, hoping it would soothe his kit.

"Let us start."

Ulaz watched with growing horror as one of their captors picked up a dagger. Keith's dagger, Ulaz realized as he saw the Blade emblem on the guard.

They drew his arm to his side, pulling a silver bucket beneath it. They shifted something under his shoulder to raise it, constricted by the bindings.

"May this virgin's first bleed bring us prosperity for decaphoebes to come," The king said pleasantly, watching as one his goons dug Keith's -Keith's mother's- own dagger into his forearm, cutting much too deeply.

Tears burned Ulaz's eyes as he watched Keith's face twist in pain, his finger wriggling fruitlessly as they tore the dagger down his forearm, blood gushing from his supple skin and splashing into the bucket below. "First blood has been had!"

Keith met Ulaz's eyes, tears dripping down the sides of his face. Help me.

Ulaz whined for he could not. He couldn't help his kit, he was so useless. Useless to do anything but watch as they tore him apart.

They dug the dagger all the way down to his wrist, cutting through tendons, hardened muscle, and soft flesh. His arm was coated in thick, dark blood that made too-loud plops as it dripped into the bucket.

Keith's chest was rising and deflating with pained pants as they finished with his arm, but his eyes never left Ulaz. He'd never looked smaller in Ulaz's eyes than he did then, and it hurt.

Stars, did it hurt.

They left the bucket where it was and drew another one out, moving to the side of Keith that Ulaz couldn't see, Keith's gaze still didn't falter. He didn't even move as they cut into that forearm too, baring Keith's insides to the world.

"No, no, no." It was a quiet chant, one Ulaz started once he saw Keith's eyelids droop. "Please, kit." He didn't know what he was begging for; he knew enough about human anatomy to know that no human, not even a Galra halfbreed, could survive such wounds, not after so long.

They finished with his wrist and moved on and Keith blinked slowly, "'laz?"

"Yes, kit?" Ulaz whispered, pained.

"...L...ove...love 'oo," Keith mumbled near incomprehensibly. Ulaz pushed forward desperately, wanting nothing more than to hold his kit.

"I love you my kit, more than life itself, I love you so much," he cried.

Keith gave him a sleepy smile, one that stayed on his face even as they turned his head towards the ceiling. "We're almost done, little one," The king said. They put another bucket down below a groove chiseled into the stone. Ulaz's heart fell once they put Keith's dagger to his neck and Keith didn't move, Ulaz could only see his eyes slip shut.

"No..." It was a harsh whisper, nearly cut out by the sobs that collected in the lumps inside of his throat. "Please...Please!"

The king looked at him and smiled sadly. "It seems sad now, but...it's a good thing, I promise."

"Good...?" Ulaz repeated weakly to himself. This was good? No...no this wasn't good. His kit, his baby was good. Keith was the best and this...this was taking the stars away from their galaxies-- this...wasn't good. This was horrid.

He felt oddly numb, tears streaming down his face as he watched the tip of the dagger dig into Keith's neck, eliciting a weak choke from his kit. "Please..." This time, he was ignored.

The dagger cut and it dragged and it took, drawn straight across Keith's delicate throat and staining it red.

They all watched, briefly, as Keith's blood stopped coming out in spurts and started slowing to a trickle. Then, everyone but the king quietly packed up and left, taking his kit's blood with them. The king looked at Ulaz and pressed something on the wall that lowered him. He didn't react, staring numbly at his too-pale child. "I'll leave you to say your goodbyes. This was all for a good cause, I promise."

The king left and all was silent. Ulaz stood slowly, stumbled a bit on his shaky legs, and dropped by Keith's final resting place. A shaky hand came to rest on his kit's cheek. "Kit?"

Keith didn't move, didn't reply, he stayed prone and silent, unaware. Ulaz put an ear to his lips, trying to feel his breath, but he felt nothing.

He broke. His cries were loud and desperate, sang to the heavens and his chest hurt with the heft of his sobs, he cried and he cried and he cried, animalistic wails mourning the loss of his kit, so young and loving, light and happy. Ulaz knew many would mourn over him.

Nobody would miss him as much as he would though, no, he was the one who made pastries with him every Saturday, laughing when Keith went cross-eyed to see some flour on his nose. He was the one who hosted Keith and Thace's annual race through the ship's corridors, much to Kolivan's dismay.

He was the one....he was the one who--

Ulaz cried over his cold body, tears dripping on Keith's face. He was the one who tucked his kit in every night and made sure he had his lunch. He didn't know the last time Keith ate, and that made him feel worse.

It seemed as if hours had passed before the doors slammed open, Antok and Kolivan rushing in and freezing at the heavy scent of their kit's blood that wafted around. Antok fell to his knees, questioning whines thrumming through the air. Kolivan's ears flattened and he stalked forward.

He gently tapped their kit's cheek, gasping at the chill before clenching his fists, pain shredding his features. He stalked out of the room and Ulaz could hear his roar.

The Blades lost the brightest kit they'd ever had that day, taking with him the hearts of their leaders who led only in body.