CHAPTER 33

Sven and Lotor fell into the murky waters. Lance was the first to jump into the moat. He wasn’t willing to fail his friend once again. Keith, Hunk and Pidge followed suit, while Bandor and Allura tried to calm down Romelle. They pulled Sven’s limp body out. Hunk laid him on his back and Lance knelt beside him. Sven’s face had a bluish-gray color and there was no rise and fall movement of his chest.

“We need to clear his lungs of water!” Pidge shouted.

“We don’t have time!” Lance yelled and took off his helmet and tossed it a side. He tilted Sven’s head backward by placing a hand beneath his head and lifting upward. He placed the heel of the other hand on Sven’s forehead and press downwards as the chin was elevated. With his hand on Sven’s forehead, Lance pinched his nostrils using his thumb and index finger. He took a deep breath, and then placed his mouth tightly over Sven’s mouth and gave four quick breaths. Then he gave about twelve breaths per minute. He repeated the procedure five times.

Hunk glanced at Sven’s chest and frowned. “Nothing!” he spat. “This is a nightmare!” Allura cried. “Damned you Lotor!” Keith said his voice thick with unshed tears. Romelle unable to control herself any longer, collapsed on the ground and sobbed. “Please Sven! Don’t leave me!” she cried.

Lance couldn’t bear to see her this way and turned to his fallen comrade. “Help me Sven! Don’t give up man! Do it for Romelle!” he whispered loudly. He then continued with the artificial respiration, until Sven’s chest began to expand. He stopped blowing and removed his mouth. He turned his head towards Sven’s chest, so that his ear was over his mouth. “He’s breathing again”. Everyone released a sigh of relief. They were so close to losing him again…

Sven opened his eyes and turned to his side, and began to cough up large quantities of water. Romelle rushed to his side. “Sven! Sven!” she cried. He rolled on his back once again. “Am I…in paradise?” he breathed. She drew back and caressed his cheek. “Oh Sven!” she gasped. He blinked. “Romelle?”. She nodded. “Yes, it’s me”.

Pidge smiled widely. “He’s going to be Ok!” he exclaimed. “We must take him back to Pollux!” Bandor said.

CHAPTER 34

Sven was taken on a stretcher to the Polluxian ship. Romelle was at his side holding his hand. He had survived the fall, but his injuries required immediate attention. The Voltron Force remained in Doom, waiting for Marshal Hazar of the Drule Empire. When they learned about Lotor’s death, the Council decided to take over the planet. They later informed the Alliance that he was going to be buried alongside his mother, in planet Azur. The time for peace had finally come.

The VF arrived in Pollux a few days later. They were welcome by Prince Bandor. “Prince Bandor – how’s Sven?” Keith asked. He smiled widely. “His recovery has been miraculous. His injuries were quite serious, but his body is healing itself at a fast pace. Dr. Gorma said that he could leave the hospital in two weeks. This morning he took his first steps and sat on a chair”.

Allura smiled softly. “Romelle must be so happy”. Bandor nodded. “Yes. She has been at his side all the time. I tried to tell her to get some rest, but she wouldn’t listen. You know how stubborn she is”.

“I would have done the same thing” Allura said while exchanging glances with Keith. “But then Sven intervened and he managed to convinced her. She’s in her quarters right now” he said. “Ok cousin. I’ll go and talk to her”.

Bandor and the rest of the VF went to hospital. They talked with Dr. Gorma and asked his permission to see their friend.

Bandor knocked on the door. “Come in”. He opened the door and peeked in. “Sven – you have visitors”. He was lying in bed. He turned his head and smiled at the young man. “Please let them in”.

Keith and the rest entered the room. “Sven! How are you?” Lance asked. “I’m fine Lance, these two broken ribs are bothering me a bit, but I’ll survive”.

“Sven – you’ve cheated death once again” Keith said. Sven nodded slowly. “I couldn’t have done it without the help of my friends”. He then sat down.

“Hunk – could you give me a hand? I want to sit on that chair”. He nodded.

“Of course” he said. He helped him up, making sure he had his balance before letting go of his arm. Sven sat down and groaned softly. “Thanks Hunk”.

“Sven – when we pulled you out of the moat, you weren’t breathing” Pidge said. Sven turned to Lance and smiled. “I know. Romelle told me that you saved me, thank you”. Lance shrugged and a crooked smile appeared on his face. “Hey – what are friends for?” he said. Sven chuckled softly. “We’re a more than friends, we’re brothers. I love you all, and I’m not ashamed to admit it”.

Pidge widened his eyes. “Geez Sven, I think you spent too much time underwater. You have never been this…open about your feelings” he said.

“Like I said before, my priorities have changed. Life is too short. You must open your heart, if you want peace and happiness. I want to leave the past behind and start a new life with Romelle”.

“Have you talked to her?” Keith asked. Sven shook his head. “Not yet. I'm waiting for the right moment”.

Lance chuckled softly. Keith turned to him and said, "What's so funny Lance?".

"That I was right all along, our assignment has changed our lives. I remembered that you said…it will be like any other mission". Keith nodded. "Yeah – you’re right".

"You were still bitter about your breakup with your girlfriend Ally. You believed that she never really loved you. But you never imagined that you would find her again, and that she was Her Royal Highness Princess Allura of Arus”.

“I still can’t forget that day. That was almost two years ago” Keith said.

Lance then turned his gaze to Sven and said, “You went through hell, but fortunately your found Princess Romelle. She’s a wonderful girl”. Sven lowered his eyes and smiled. ~If they only knew that Allura was part of the equation~.

Lance then glanced at Hunk and Pidge. “You are admired by everyone, and loving every minute of it”.

Hunk narrowed his eyes at him. “And what about you Lance?” he asked.

“Me? Well maybe I didn’t found a princess like these two, but SHE has found her PRINCE” he said with a smug smile on his face.

Pidge winced. “Poor Rachel! She doesn’t know what she’s getting into” he quipped.

Hunk frowned and said, “But now that Zarkon and Lotor are gone, the Alliance is going to give us another assignment and I don’t want to leave Arus”.

“I feel the same way” Lance sighed.

“Me too” Pidge said.

Keith smiled at them. “I have news for you. I talked with Space Marshal Graham. Our job in this part of the universe isn’t finished. Our allies need our help. The Doom Empire is gone, but there are other enemies lurking in the shadows, waiting for a chance to strike. Graham has decided to leave you here indefinitely”.

Their faces lit up. “That’s great!” Pidge said. “We’ll take care of them” Lance said. “Right!” Hunk said.

“And I’ll stay here in Pollux, but you can count on me” Sven declared.

“Thanks Sven, and you can count on us. You’ll always be a member of the Voltron Force. But there's something else, why don't tell them what it is?” Keith said with a mischievous smile on his face.

A slow smile appeared on his face. "My friends - you're looking at CAPTAIN Sven Asbjörnsen".

Three mouths dropped open in disbelief. “Congratulations Sven!” they said in unison.

“Thank you”.

"After all you have done they should promote you to Admiral" Pidge said.

Sven chuckled softly. "I'm working on that" he replied.

Lance smiled wickedly at him. "You don't care about the military anymore, you want to be King of Pollux - admit it!".

He glared at him. "Let me talk to Princess Romelle first all right?".

Dr. Gorma and Bandor entered the room. “I think the captain needs some rest”. A collective gasp rose from the young men. “Come on doctor, five more minutes, please?” Pidge said. Gorma shook his head. “Sorry – Lieutenant. You can see him later, after lunch”. Hunk smiled widely. “Lunch…hmmm...I’m starving”. Lance rolled his eyes at him. “Really?” he said. “Let’s go back to the castle, I’ll ask the cook to prepare something for us” Bandor said. "Excellent idea! Lead the way!" Pidge said. “See you later Sven” Keith said. Sven nodded and then closed his eyes. “Ok”.

Allura was on her way to Romelle’s chambers when she saw her in the royal gardens. The Polluxian princess was carrying a bouquet of freshly cut blue roses. Allura smiled softly. ~Those flowers must be for Sven~.

“Romelle!”.

She jerked her head up and then smiled widely at her. “Allura! Oh! I’m so glad to see you” she gasped.

“Romelle – those blue roses are beautiful!”. She nodded. “Bandor brought me this bush from Terra. Blue is my favorite color”. Allura smelled the bouquet of flowers. “Hmmm…nice. I know of a certain space explorer who likes that color” she taunted. Romelle blushed furiously. “Allura! You’re a tease!”. Allura giggled softly. “Well…I was taught by the best - you”. She glared at her. “If you say so” she snorted. Allura then moved closer and kissed her on the cheek. “I’m going to look for Keith” she said.

Romelle nodded. “All right. I’m going to take these flowers to Sven”. Allura winked at her. “You do that. Please say hello to my cousin Sven for me” she replied and hurried off. Romelle shook her head ~Did she say cousin Sven? She’s hiding something from me~. She then gazed at the roses and sighed deeply. “I hope he likes them” she whispered.

EPILOGUE

Romelle entered the room and saw Sven sitting on a chair, sleeping. She looked at him for a long moment. ~He’s truly beautiful~, her mind whispered. She placed the blue roses on a vase and then walked towards him and sat down on the floor, next to him. She then laid her warm cheek on his lap. Her long hair spilled to the floor, like a golden array of cascading waterfalls.

“Sven – I was so afraid…I thought I was going to lose you, I love you so much”. She bit her lower lip and wondered briefly, if he was listening to her confession. She did not notice how still he was, until she felt his hands on her hair. She felt his fingers pushed away her hair to reveal her neck, briefly grazing the skin where her neck and pulse beat rapidly with each breath she took. His fingers lightly touched her chin in almost a caress, before lifting her face up to him. She stared into those dark eyes and her heart began to pound faster. He brushed the tips of his fingers over her cheeks, closely grazing her parted lips, noting how they trembled with his touch.

“And I love you too…Romelle” he murmured huskily, his fingers moving back and forth against her chin, his burning gaze centered on her lips.

She immediately stood up and stepped back. Her breath exploded from her chest. “Oh Sven! Why didn’t you tell me this before?” she demanded. He slowly rose up from his seat and walked up to her. “I couldn’t do it. I needed to redeem myself, and the only way was make Lotor pay for what he did to you”. Romelle’s eyes filled with tears. “He could have killed you” she whispered.

He wrapped his arms around her, drawing her close against his hard frame. “Don’t think of all that’s been before…leave it all behind you, remember?” he said, his gaze alternating between her parted mouth and her dark blue eyes.  “Yes – I remember”.

Sven lowered his mouth over hers. His lips touched her like a whisper. She quivered under its agonizing tenderness. He worshipped her lips slowly until he couldn’t stand it any longer. “I love you…” he whispered against her mouth and then he kissed her again. She parted her lips, to welcome the warmth of his kiss. She laced her fingers around his thick dark hair and lost herself. They stayed like that for an eternity, unaware of anything but each other. He then drew back and looked at her with such love, it made her heart grew tight within her.

He smiled softly. “It took so long so find you, but now I know that we can last forever and more”. vThe sound of his voice made her happy. She reached out and caressed his cheek. “My savior…my love”.

“Romelle – I offer you my heart, my soul and my love”.

“And I accept them, I’ll treasure them forever”.

“Will you marry me?”.

She placed her hands on his chest and looked into his eyes. “Ja Sven min {Yes Sven mine}”.

His heart felt as if would burst with happiness. He wanted to protect her. He wanted to share his thoughts with her, and have her share hers with him. He wanted to tell her how much her approval meant to him. He felt vaguely embarrassed by these feelings after all he was a man. Should a man be so tenderly inclined toward a woman? The warm smile she gave him was the answer…yes!

She stood on tiptoe and wound her arms around his neck. She closed her eyes and kissed him gently, with a tantalizing promise. He whispered her name, sending shivers of delight to her. When they finally parted, he leaned his forehead against hers. She noticed that he was wearing her ring and her face lit up. “You’re still wearing my ring”.

“Your ring, was the only thing that kept me going. I never lost hope what I would see you again”.

“My dear cousin played Cupid for us”.

“I fell in love with you through her words. And then she gave me the ring. I guess she never expected that we would meet again like this”.

“It was fate” she said while placing her arms around his waist.

He rested his chin on her head and closed his eyes, and his lips curved into a slight smile. “Indeed”.

And so they began a new life together filled with love and joy…a princess who had suffered at the hands of evil and a fallen hero whose quest was redemption…and found it.

fin

Asia – Don’t Cry (1983)

“Hard times you had before you
I knew when I first saw you
You girl you've always been mistreated, cheated

So leave it all behind you
It took so long to find you
I know that we can last forever
Ever and more, more, oh

DON'T CRY NOW THAT I'VE FOUND YOU
DON'T CRY TAKE A LOOK AROUND YOU
DON'T CRY IT TOOK SO LONG TO FIND YOU
DO WHAT YOU WANT, BUT LITTLE
DARLING PLEASE, DON'T CRY

I knew I'd never doubt it
I was so sure about it
Don't think of all that's been before

I'll hear you when you're calling
I'll catch you when you're falling
Don't worry I will always be there
Like never before, or, oh”


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