bye bye leg au
So basically they’re in a meeting. Lance and Pidge do not like James or Garrison, current griffkade but lowkey, Iverson and Shiro r tired of their kids fighting. Mfe and paladin are not always friends.
“We’ll be going to Arcturus for a summit meeting. Iverson and I will be acting as representatives for the Garrison, and the paladins as representatives for the Coalition. The MFEs, Blade, and other various military factions will be guarding the summit. While Arcturus is in a relatively peaceful system, there’s still some territorial disputes between some of the groups meeting. Krolia is coordinating with them, and will be in charge. She’ll brief you when we get there.” Shiro explained.
“Arcturus was a warzone just a year ago, what makes it safe to be now?” Hunk asked.
“The Blade and Garrison conducted a joint mission 9 months ago, effectively removing the insurgents.” Iverson explained. “That being said, Griffin, I understand if you’d rather sit out on this mission. There’s plenty to do here. I’ll extend the same offer to Zethrid when we have our video conference with the Blade later.”
“And by ‘removing’ you mean killing, right?” Pidge deadpanned.
“No, I mean removing. They captured the insurgents, then transported them to their respective system to face the consequences of their actions. We don’t go out looking to kill anyone.” Iverson states.
“So no one died?” Pidge asked, crossing their arms.
“Several people died, including Sergeant Pascual. As in all armed conflicts.” Ryan adds.
Pidge opened their mouth to speak again, but Shiro cut them off.
“Pidge, that’s enough. People die in almost every battle. Each paladin has killed more than anyone at the Garrison has, so we have no room to be interrogating them on casualty counts.”
“Okay, fine. But why does Griffin get an out from this? None of us want to.” Pidge questioned.
“Because last time I was on Arcturus, I lost my leg.” James answered bluntly.
“Bullshit. I’ve seen you run.”
James pushed his chair back from the table and pulled up his pants leg, propping his boots on the table. He gestured to his left leg, which was composed of silver and black pieces of metal, the familiar BOM symbol embedded in it. “Zethird and I were running, they fired on us, and I got caught under part of a building. Instead of leaving me to die, she cut my leg off and carried me out.”
The room was silent as he took his feet off the table and stood. “And I’m tired of my team having to defend ourselves to you. I understand that you’re pissed at the Garrison because of Kerberos, but that doesn’t give you the right to insult and interrogate us every chance you get. And I get that life out in space was hard, but you were only there for a year.”
“That's not fair, we-” Pidge started, but James continued.
“Life’s not fair. We spent three years fighting aliens we’d only just learned existed. Aliens who only attacked us because you guys pissed them off. Sendak killed 8 billion people in the first wave alone. At least another quarter billion were killed or captured. Earth, and a good chunk of the universe, has gone to complete shit and everything is fucking awful. But that’s not ours, nor is it the Garrison’s fault. So be mad at the world all you want. Just don’t take it out on us.” With that, James turned on his heel and left, the rest of the MFES following.
“You deserved that.” Shiro said, looking pointedly at Pidge and Lance. “Both of you. I expect better from the paladins of Voltron.”
“The Garrison told us you and my family were dead, hid the fact that my father was alive from my mother and kept him prisoner for a year. They- they kept your prisoner! How are you not angry with them? How can you not hate them?” Pidge snaps.
“That was Sanda’s decision, and she is dead. Those were generals who have since retired. People who no longer work here. Or they were people just following orders. And they've apologized, multiple times, for what they had to do.”
“Apologies won't fix anything! They don't erase any of the suffering people went through.
—-
“Lance, look out!” Keith shouted as the wall began crumbling.
“Oh shit.” Lance mumbled, freezing as he saw the debris falling towards him.
James tackled him as the rocks fell. Once the dust cleared, they saw Lance beside the rubble, and James’s leg caught under it.
The pilot was sitting up, seemingly unscathed, but had gone pale, staring at their leg. “I’m gonna need some help taking this off.” James said dryly.
“Keith, give me your knife.” Ryan ordered.
When the Black paladin didn’t move, Ryan took his knife from his belt and went to James, sitting on the ground and cutting open his pant leg. The knife scratched against his prosthetic, revealing the smooth metal.
James reached for it with shaky hands, fumbling with some buttons before Ryan intervened. He pressed against some pieces, causing a small hatch to open, and took out a blue crystal. The leg hissed, and James pushed it off, letting out a shaky breath and closing his eyes.
Ryan took his hand and whispered something to James, and he shook his head, gripping Ryan’s hand tightly. Ryan whispered some more and James nodded numbly.
He waited another moment before letting go of Ryan's hand and putting his arm around his shoulders. Ryan stood slowly, cradling James in his arms. “Let’s go.” He told the others.
They were silent the rest of the way to Green, and the rest of the ride back to the Atlas.
“It was almost exactly like how I lost it. Just without blood, and without pain.