Chapter Six

The walk to the castle felt like a walk to the gallows to Bethie. She could see her home towering over Voltronia, its proud spires and gleaming crest shone in the cool winter sun like she always remembered. Hatred burned in her chest as she thought of who was now in control of it. The sadness she had felt at Skech's death had been replaced with an emotion blacker and more dangerous--whether it was more so for her or for enemy remained to be seen.

"I want her head on a plate," Jack said, voicing her very thoughts.

"You'll have it," Bethie said. "Though I think that my mother will beat you to it."

"She's more than welcome to."

They walked in tense silence, both feeling like coiled springs. Neither were afraid of who they were going to face despite what they had seen and experienced. The south entrance could not come fast enough and they were surprised to see that there was no one there to greet them. No phalanx of Drule soldiers or robots with weapons pointed to meet the pilots and that was enough to have Bethie reaching for her weapon. Jack did the same.

The tall double doors opened and Merla stood in the doorway, a welcoming expression on her face. There was no ignoring the chill that went down Bethie's spine as she met the other woman's yellow eyes. Seeing Merla's face on a viewscreen did not prepare her for the real thing and she knew then what it felt like to look into the face of evil. There was nothing threatening about the way Merla stood there, but Bethie knew that if she made any move to strike, Merla would hit her back with all she had...and Bethie was sure she would lose.

"I'm glad to see that you've accepted my offer," she said. "Please, come in."

"I'm not used to being invited into my own home," Bethie said coldly.

Merla smiled but it was not warm and Bethie felt it all the way down to her toes. Next to her, Jack stiffened.

"You're very much like your mother, Princess. You may have the piloting skills of your father, but you are your mother's child."

She turned and they followed her down the silent and empty corridors. The Castle of Lions had been untouched as far as Bethie could tell and that was a small relief. It was just the stillness of it made the knot in her gut already tighter.

"Where is my mother?" she demanded.

"All in good time."

Merla led them into Keith's study and Bethie was struck with how unchanged it was. There was even a cup of coffee on the desk that Keith had left there. Merla did not go behind the desk but stood by the windows. She gestured for them to sit, which they did after a moment's hesitation.

"You can consider this a sort of truce," she said easily. "You will not be harmed today."

"What about tomorrow?" Jack inquired just as casually.

"That remains to be seen. I asked you here to day because I do have an ounce of mercy in my soul despite what you may think. I let your father go without giving chase. Think of that as a sign of my goodwill."

"He escaped you didn't let him go," Bethie shot back.

"A mere triviality. I'm sure you know by now that I have an ally amongst the Voltronia refugees who would prefer that we negotiate an end to hostilities. Aguste Cital is far from an honorable woman but she has taken a step in the right direction."

"That's up for debate," Jack retorted.

Merla crossed her arms and looked for all the world as if they were discussing the weather instead of the fate of an entire planet.

"You and the Lions, as well as the group that Lance Branegan leads have started to move against me, but I don't think I have to tell you that it is a losing battle. You are outnumbered and outgunned. Your people will die if you continue on this path because if you refuse me, I will no longer be so lenient with them or with you. I know your positions, I know your weaponry. You may have gained some headway in discovering how to effectively fight against my robots, but there is plenty more where they came from."

"You're asking us to give up our freedom and our home. You have to realize that this is an impossible request," Bethie said, her blue eyes shooting lasers at Merla.

"Your parents surrendered in order to give you a chance to fight back. They knew the cost of going into a full out war and now that you have seen what I can do, you have to realize that the cost is even greater now. They had it half right--I want you now to go the rest of the way."

Bethie stood.

"We're wasting our time here, Jack," she said. "I'll hold you to your word that today we are at a truce so that we won't be shot in the back when we walk out of here."

Merla arched an eyebrow and as if on cue, the doors slid open. Allura came in, her eyes lighting on her daughter and Jack for a moment before she looked to Merla. Bethie was shocked at her mother's appearance, at the sallow and empty expression on her normally animated face. Her blue eyes were dull and her mouth turned down at the corners. Bethie's first thought was that the lights were on but nobody was home.

"You called, Mistress?" Allura said in a flat voice.

"Mistress?" Bethie repeated, shocked. "What has happened to you, Mom?"

Allura turned her head slowly to face Bethie.

"Arus is lost, Elisabeth. We can't win this war. We have to give up."

"NO!"

Bethie rushed to her mother, putting both hands on her shoulders. She gave Allura a shake, but the Queen merely blinked.

"Mom, please..." Bethie begged.

"What have you done to her?" Jack demanded, taking a step towards Merla.

Bethie heard him gasp and fall to his knees, his hands at his neck. Her gaze shot to Merla, but she did not seem to be doing anything, just standing there idly watching Jack choke.

"What are you?" Bethie exclaimed. "Stop it, whatever it is you're doing."

Merla shrugged and Jack took in a deep breath, falling forward and catching himself before he landed face first on the carpet. He coughed violenty as Bethie put an arm around him.

"That is but a fraction of my power. You've heard stories of Hagar, Zarkon's witch. I am greater than she ever was. My ro-beasts are more powerful, my mind more cunning. You are out of your element. See what I have done to your strong-willed mother. She is nothing but a slave to me now and it would be wise for you to accept what I am asking of you. Give me Voltron and you will be able to live in peace again."

"In peace yes, but for what price?" Jack gasped, glaring at her. "If you are so powerful, why do you need Arus? Why do you need Voltron? Is this planet so powerful that you fear it can rise up against you? That must be it. For all your big words, Merla, you're nothing but a witch with an attitude and a huge ego problem."

Temper flared in Merla's eyes and Bethie felt a wave of dizziness hit her. She swayed where she sat and would have fallen if Jack had not straightened and steadied her with a hand. Merla caught it and her anger was quickly replaced with curiosity.

"Well, isn't that interesting," she said. "I considered the fact that perhaps your mother passed on her talents to her children, but it is common knowledge that the more children borne, the smaller the magic within them. Perhaps, this was a misconception."

Bethie wanted to ask what Merla was talking about, but something in the back of her mind told her to hold her cards close to her chest. She clamped her mouth shut and rose. Jack followed suit, his shoulder brushing hers and she felt that much stronger with him next to her.

"You fear what we can do to you," Bethie said. "As powerful as you say you are, Jack's words were on target. Voltron and Arus are greater than you are and though your arrival caught us off-guard, you still fear what we can do to you. Arusians lived in fear once and they won't do it again. Voltron will defend them. We will defend them."

Merla crossed the small distance between them and stared down her long, straight nose at Bethie. Bethie tilted her chin up and met her gaze without flinching.

"Your ignorance shows, Princess. Once upon a time, Arus might have been able to defend herself against me, but not anymore. You do not know how to tap into her power and there is no one but me who can show you. Your bravado will fail you and on that day, I will stand on your body and finally take what is mine."

"Give me my mother."

"That is not on the table."

Bethie started to reach for her weapon, but her hand froze as if on its own accord. Shocked, she glared at Merla who was smiling, satisfied.

"Bravado kills, Princess. Bravado kills," she purred.

Then, an expression of surprise crossed her face and she laughed long and hard.

"Go back to your father and tell him of what was said here today. While you're discussing what you're going to do next, consider whether or not you want your child to have a future under my rule or none at all."