The gentle rustling of waves filled the salty, misty air as Arus’s sun peeked over the horizon. Its light cascaded over land, sea, and castle alike, melting away the thin frost coating the waking world. A peaceful quiet hung over it all. Well, most of it. Within the ancient palace, Hunk’s bear snores rattled both his room and the corridor beyond. His limbs were splayed over his bed in all directions, feet sticking out from under his twisted sheets as he subconsciously scratc

Space created neither light, nor sound, nor warmth. It was a cradle for such things; a void through which they could spread and grow as they pleased. With its vastness, anything could hide in any crevice or crater. The Galra, however, had no need to hide, nor a desire to. None outside their own kind had seen it and lived. An artificial solar system; a testament to their taming of the universe itself, down to the very last atom. The outermost ring held it all together in its

Sleek, white transport vehicles soared through the air, weaving around tall, shining buildings in practiced, perfect lines. Each time one passed, sunlight caught in its pristine metal and reflected through the window screens of a grand, spacious office. Datapads filled the shelves alongside odd knickknacks and artifacts from numerous worlds — rather messy compared to most Alteans’ quarters — while a hologram of the solar system spun lazily in the high, domed ceiling. Near the

The sun shone high over planet Arus, warming the land and letting the flowers know it was time to open their petals wide. In much the same way, the ceiling of the Castle of Lions’ bridge unfurled downward in swirling layers, revealing the giant crystal within. Three rings hovered around and lowered it to the floor, dark and chipped, several hairline fractures making it look like it was ready to shatter at any moment; a stark contrast to the new, shining one waiting to be inst

Dawn on Planet Arus was a stunning sight. Warm sunlight shimmered over the rippling ocean into a broad inlet and illuminated the aging Castle of Lions. Within the great keep, sounds of waking filled the halls as its new occupants made their way blearily to the dining room. Hunk was the primary culprit, his yawns and gurgling stomach mixing into the grumbling of a bear. He wobbled to the long table, his eyes barely open, and flopped into the seat between Lance and Pidge. They,

Space wasn’t something that was supposed to bend. In fact, it wasn’t a ‘something’ at all, merely the void in which other things resided. However, rules, as they say, are made to be broken, and the Blue Lion was more than happy to as she soared through slip-space, physics bending to her will. With the Galra fleet long behind them, the small group within took the opportunity to relax. At least, most of them did. For the past couple minutes of the several they’d been flying, P

Kai hadn’t known what was going on for several minutes. Between the Sword in his hands and the snake on the ground, he was mentally occupied as it was, but then artillery fire started ripping through the air, and then there were jets flying around deafening him with their engines, and still Anguis was screaming. In the end, everything seemed to be helping to drive Anguis away from the city before she had the chance to get further in, but it took every ounce of his concentrati

Kai watched as Jay hugged his parents goodbye. Notes of jealousy were brushing up against him inside, and despite his best efforts, he couldn't help but feel his resentment for Jay growing just a little bit more. Sure, he had been hitting on his sister for a while now, and that was an egregious mistake on Jay's part, but at the root of it all... the true root... was this. Not that Kai was altogether very aware of it. Seeing Jay with his folks, all safe and sound, seeing them

Cole had never felt such a rush of energy before, as if he were a water balloon, full to bursting and could pop at any given moment. It had started slowly, back in Ouroboros. The Scythe had been effecting him for some time, helping him, directing him, but it wasn’t until they went after Anguis that things seemed to change. When he had been needing a way to follow the snake—a way to travel faster than his powers alone could reasonably allow—the Scythe seemed to read his thoug