The last place Hunk wanted to spend a lovely, peaceful spring day was deep in the dank, steel walled bowels of the Castle of Lions, but somehow that’s exactly where he had ended up.

Normally he enjoyed the rare times he was recognized for his talents in mechanical operations, but today the recognition had carried a curse. Thanks to his thorough knowledge of the digital and hydraulic systems in the Lion launch chutes, he had been assigned by Keith to run a series of routine diagnostics. Normally he wouldn’t have objected to the tedious task- after all, he also prided himself on being a team player- but doing the diagnostics this time meant missing out going with Sven, Lance, Pidge and Keith to a picnic at a school that had been rebuilt near the castle. He had been looking forward to going for the last two weeks, and it had been a real blow to find out he was needed elsewhere at the last minute.

It wasn’t so much the thought of missing out on the scrumptious food being served as much as it was the knowledge that his absence would surely disappoint the children, who he visited as much as his responsibilities allowed, and who held very special places in his heart. Even if he wasn’t as dashing or well known as Keith or Lance, he was always treated like a hero by the children of Arus, who didn’t care if he had movie star looks, or could pop off witty one liners at the drop of a hat. No matter what, the children always loved him ...big appetite, gravelly voice, plain face, clumsiness and all.

It also didn’t help knowing that the Princess herself had been unable to go, due to Coran’s last minute change in plans. ~At least she gets to relax in peace and quiet somewhere there’s sunlight, a great view, and climate control. I wonder why she looked so upset when Coran told her she couldn’t go after all? I can’t imagine that a picnic with screaming, boisterous kids would exactly be a Princess’ idea of fun.~

After setting down the bucket of tools and laptop he carried, Hunk’s massive shoulders lifted and fell in a sigh, the harsh exhalation bouncing off steel walls and into the five corridors branching off from the chamber in which he was standing. ~Well, like Keith said, however tedious it is, this testing is vital. A mechanical breakdown during an attack would be disastrous. We have enough problems dealin’ with Zarkon without adding sheer lack of preparation to the list. The Skipper is right- just because it’s a routine job that may go unnoticed, doesn’t make it any less important to our survival.~

With renewed resolve, he knelt down and eyed the tracks beneath his transport and then walked to the other four now empty tracks in turn, taking visual inventory for signs of obvious stress or wear. ~Looks pretty good so far, but appearances can be deceivin’- the internal circuitry could be still be compromised. Better get to work on it... if I concentrate and do things right the first time, I might still be able to make the start of the soccer game after the picnic.~

High in the ramparts of the castle, Allura, Crown Princess of Arus, sat on a lavishly cushioned window seat in her bedroom, looking wistfully out upon the sun-drenched landscape far below.

~It just isn’t fair!~ She thought, a mutinous frown marring the sweet perfection of her face. ~I would have been perfectly safe going to an all- school picnic with the boys! It wasn’t like we were going out into desolate wilderness for lion’s sake, so what does it matter if Coran found out he couldn’t accompany us at the last minute? The boys are always polite and careful with me and besides, the children would have made the best chaperones of all-they never want to leave the boys alone for a minute!~

Still grinning at the mental imagery of dozens of sweet faced but boisterous children loudly vying for the attention of five overwhelmed Space Explorers, Allura rose from her seat. The skirts of her voluminous pink dress billowed softly around her as she began to pace the length of the luxurious sanctuary that had begun to feel more and more like a prison to her.

~How am I supposed to rally my people and help bolster their morale if I am constantly stuffed away in my chambers? How can I convince them that I am serious about protecting them and maintain my credibility as their sovereign, if I am always safely holed up inside the walls of this castle while they continue to take their chances on the outside of it? Coran thinks he’s acting in the best interests of the people in keeping me out of the public eye, but my title will mean nothing if the people start to question my fortitude and ability to look after them. I must find a way to get to that school...~

Allura strode over to the window and looked out, her wide blue gaze unerringly picking out the stucco school building nestled at the foot of the hill and the outlines of only four of the five lion ships. Her heart leapt in excitement. ~Not all of them are there- Yellow Lion is missing. I could catch a ride with Hunk if he hasn’t left- the poor man’s so shy around me, I bet he wouldn’t argue about taking me along!~

Without any further thought on the matter, the Princess ran for the control panel for her door. After tinkering with it for only a few moments, she managed to manually override the lock function that had been engaged from the outside by the overzealous Royal Advisor as a precaution.. As the panel slid back she bolted from the room and headed straight for Castle Control, filled with a fierce determination to locate the Yellow Lion pilot before he could leave the building.

Hunk whistled tunelessly to himself as he completed the last diagnostic on the propulsion systems below the transport tracks. So far everything had checked out and was running at optimum efficiency, and he could feel his spirits rising with each additional stellar maintenance report he received. The last test was no exception- every launch pod system was in top notch condition.

His thick fingers flew nimbly over the keyboard as he quickly severed the connection between his laptop and the control panel beneath the tracks. Once the interface had been terminated, he sat back on his haunches and smiled in satisfaction. ~Now all I have to do is check the controls for deploying the chutes, and then I can join the others!~ He wiped away the trickle of sweat that trickled from under his headband as his dark eyed gaze quickly zeroed in on his next objective. ~All right, those wall panels are always the easiest to get at-and this is gonna be a piece of cake!~ He bent down to grab his tools and the laptop and then hurried over to the blinking control boxes that ran the chute cylinder and five trapezes lifts the pilots used to quickly get to the transports below the castle-and what Sven referred to as the ‘equivalent of sliding down a firefighter’s pole.’

~Rats, this one is gonna take a while. There’s a weird lookin’ glitch here.~ Hunk thought, his exuberance fading as he studied the complex circuitry with a practiced eye. ~Have to do a super thorough check on this one- it would be a long, deadly fall from that trapeze bar if somethin’ goes wrong. Better check that the manual safety features are workin’ first, just in case there’s a problem with the hydraulics.~

Allura ran as fast as her high heeled slippers and full skirts would allow, which, she had to admit, wasn’t very fast at all. ~I wish Coran would let me wear boots and that pantsuit I have and allow me to save the dresses for formal events. It would make getting around so much easier.~ She stopped briefly to kick off her shoes, heedless of where they landed, smiling in satisfaction at the extra speed the lack of heels gave her.

After slowing down to brave the gauntlet of admiring stares of a few castle guards that had opted to return to royal service, she continued her dash to the nerve center of the Castle of Lions, breathing a silent prayer of thanks when the guards saluted but did not attempt to waylay her with questions as to her destination or her barefooted state.

Soon the heavy titanium doors of the operations center loomed in front of her. Skidding to a halt, Allura rapidly punched in the keypad code that would open the portal. The massive doors slowly parted, and she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that Coran had stepped out, and the chamber was presently empty, due the current shortage of staff. However, her jubilation quickly evaporated as she spotted the raised cylinder that indicated that all five of the lion shuttles had already been deployed.

~Oh no...I’ve missed him! Now what am I going to-~ Allura’s despair-filled thoughts were rudely interrupted by the sound of a booming voice filled with exasperation rising from one of the chutes. ~What on Arus is he saying...~ Allura listened intently, and then blushed and giggled at the colorful terminology reaching her ears, recognizing several words as pithy and vulgar curses from several different Earth languages. ~Hunk’s still in the launch area! He hasn’t left!~ She thought excitedly. ~He might be getting ready to blast off at any minute though. I must hurry and get his attention!~

Heart pounding from excitement as well as from her mad sprint to Ops, the Princess hurried over to the opened chute marked with the number 4, and grasped the side of the doorway as she gazed down into the shadowy depths below. She grinned as a new spate of curses pinpointed Hunk’s location. ~He has to be checking the main computer-and he doesn’t sound happy...hope there’s nothing seriously wrong. Unfortunately with the racket he’s making right now he certainly won’t hear me if I yell from here. I suppose I could run next door to the lifts, but what if he fixes what’s wrong and leaves in the meantime~

Allura’s eyes lifted to the trapeze bar that was a tempting arm’s reach away, then back down the to the faint point of light far below her feet. She gnawed at her lip, contemplating the pros and cons of the wild plan that had popped into her mind . ~Ooh, it’s so far down...and Coran will have my head if he finds out I rode down there on one of those things. But there’s no other way ...and I’ve seen the guys do it a million times without a single problem, so hard can it be? I’ll just shut my eyes, and before I know it, I’ll be at the bottom.~

Not giving herself any time for second thoughts, Allura reached out and tightly grasped the bar in front of her with both hands. Taking a deep, calming breath, she balanced on the tips of her toes...and then launched herself into freefall.

Even before the monitor started flashing, Hunk’s sharp hearing had picked up the unmistakable sounds of an unauthorized trapeze launch from one of the tube entrances high above him. A quick look at the monitor showed him that the person was in chute number four-the one designated for the Blue Lion transport.

Quietly setting down his computer, he drew his blaster and cautiously moved to the base of the chute where he would have a clear shot, but be just out of sight of the person descending. His formidable looking biceps tightened with anticipation as he waited for a body to come dropping out of the chute. A moment later he had relaxed again as a grinding, screeching noise told him the person was not going to reach their destination. With a grim smile, he moved underneath the tube to get a look at the person who was now dangling helplessly thirty feet above the ground.

“HELP, I’M STUCK! SOMEBODY HELP ME!”

Hunk’s smile disappeared as soon as he heard the very familiar, feminine shrieks and the sound of tearing material from above him... and then the entire world disappeared as a silken cloud of pink descended around him.

End of Part One...coming up: The Rescue!