Sven looked up at Romelle as she spoon fed him some runny oatmeal. He still couldn't consume even half of what he used to, but it was a start. He had regained his appetite three days before, when she had told him she contacted Castle Control on Arus.

"Do you tink dey got it?" he asked for the hundredth time.

"I'm not a technical genius, but I can send a message," she replied with an indulgent smile.

He grinned tiredly at her. She was an amazing woman and he respected her immensely. She had risked everything to send that one message, and still came back with an apple to give him. She appeared to be a weak and broken woman on the outside, but he knew now that her spine was made of the strongest steel. She was also very intelligent and they had spent hours talking about everything in their corner of the universe.

He learned all about her life before she came to Planet Doom, about her evil father. About how she had been looked down upon and put down as a child because she was not the strong son her father needed and wanted. In her culture, women were only used for breeding and were not seen as useful for anything else other than that. Her own brothers treated her as a slave and he railed at fate for making her out to be nothing but a slave when he knew that she was so much more that that. He told her of his childhood and his loving parents. He had grown up in a house filled with children, there were six of them, and love wherever he turned.

Romelle envied him that and told him so. He wished he could have been there to see her father perish. He was not a violent man by nature, but after hearing the atrocities her father had done to her, he knew he would enjoy watching the man die. She told him of what she had endured under Lotor's fist after some cajoling and he wanted to get his hands on the Prince. She was what Lance would have called "used goods", but it made him admire her even more for keeping her sanity and her heart through it all.

But when she smiled at him, he forgot all of that and all he could think about was how beautiful she was. In another place at another time, he would have charmed her for all he was worth. Now he wanted nothing more than to protect her. For the rest of both their lives.

Because sometime between when he had first woken up and the present, he had fallen in love with her. Lance and Keith would be shocked to learn their playboy friend actually wanted to settle down, with a Doom slave no less, but it was true. Sven's heart was now filled to the brim with love for her, though she never gave a hint to how she felt about him. He had decided to say nothing about his feelings until they were free. He did not want to complicate her life any more than it already was.

Sven took her hand suddenly and pressed his lips to the back of it. She gasped in surprise, a pretty pink staining her pale cheeks. She looked away from his intense black gaze.

"Tank you, Romelle," he said in a whisper. "I don't know vat vould haf happened to me had you not been here."

She put her hand to his cheek and leaned in close. "Just promise me that you'll take me out of here when they come for you."

"I vill put you before myself," he said, raising his head slightly.

They heard a loud clang and Romelle pulled away abruptly as the door to the cell slid open. Sven closed his eyes and his face went blank in a split second. Hagar entered the room, an evil smile on her face.

"Lotor wants a word with you," she said. "Give me a moment with our patient."

Romelle nodded, averting her eyes. She felt sick to her stomach at the thought of leaving Sven under Hagar's attentions. Something about the witch's voice and the suspicious glimmer in her yellow eyes told her that she had something up her sleeve, but Romelle didn't dare say anything. She couldn't compromise either of their positions, Not when they were surrounded by nothing but evil. So she did as she was told, not even looking back. If she had, she would have seen Hagar leaning over Sven, her staff in the air and an ominous green light covering them both.

Keith and Lance stormed into Castle Control, the other three at their heels. Coran swiveled around in his seat to face them.

"We want to see it," Lance said.

Coran pushed a button on the control panel and a young woman's face appeared on the screen. The others were surprised to see her remarkable resemblance to Allura. Even Allura saw it. Coran's lips thinned and his brown eyes were clouded with deep thoughts. Keith recognized her instantly.

"She helped me when I was there," he said.

Romelle's sand on satin voice echoed in the cavernous room.

"Your friend, Sven, is not dead as you believe. I have been caring for him these past months and he has just woken recently. You must save him before Zarkon learns that he is conscious. Please hurry."

The transmission ended there. Keith rested both hands on the back of Coran's chair. Lance clenched his fists at his sides. He was trembling slightly with barely concealed emotion. For once, he was at a loss for words. Hunk put a hand on his shoulder.

"What are we going to do?" Pidge asked.

"Isn't it obvious? Sven is going to be rescued," Allura said.

"Was it sent over a secure channel?" Keith asked.

"It wasn't completely secure," Coran replied. "It is quite apparent that the message was sent with someone unfamiliar with frequencies."

"Keith?" Lance said, stepping to his side. "I'm going. I don't care whether it's an obvious trap or not. I have to know. If Sven's alive, I'm going to bring him back."

"I'm with you," Hunk said.

"Me, too!" Pidge cried.

Allura looked at Keith. His face was wiped clean of any emotion. Only his eyes told another story. He met her gaze.

"Lance and I are going to Doom," he said. "You three stay here and man the fort. I think that they do have Sven. I met Romelle and I believe that the person on that transmission was her."

"But, Keith," Pidge protested. "You might need us!"

"Not this time, Squirt," Lance said, exchanging a look with Keith.

"We can't leave Arus unguarded and out of all of us, Lance and I are most qualified to do this," Keith explained.

Hunk opened his mouth to point out that he had the most experience with undercover work from his days with the elite Seal force, but Allura threw him a silencing look. Keith and Lance needed to do this. Sven was like a brother to them and neither of them could sit still while there was a chance that he was alive.

"We have to go now," Keith said to Lance. "We don't want to keep them waiting."

"Good luck," Allura said.

"You're going to need it," Hunk said.

The two men ran out of the room to gather what they needed. Ten minutes later, they were in the docking bay, loading their supplies into a small fighter. It was sleek and powerful, exactly what they would need. Hunk and Pidge were there to see them off and to make sure they had all they needed. Pidge gave them a bag full of gadgets he was sure would come in handy.

"Don't get dead," Pidge said.

"That's part of the big plan," Lance said with a touch of humor.

"Don't let your guard down," Keith said.

"You too," Hunk said.

They boarded the ship and readied it for lift off.

"See you soon," Lance said lightly.