Princess Allura [Voltron: Legendary Defender]

Player
Name: LWP
E-mail: lonewolfprincess@hotmail.com
Preferred Contact: LoneWolfPrincess, PM character journal
Timezone: Mountain Standard Time
Current Characters in Victory Road: N/A

Character
Name: Princess Allura
Series: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Timeline: Between Seasons 4 and 5
Canon Resource Links: Series Wikipedia, Episode List with Summaries, Voltron Wiki Article

Personality: While Shiro and Keith are the leaders of the Paladins, Princess Allura serves as a commander and guide for Team Voltron at first, and later as a capable and dedicated Paladin of Voltron in her own right. As the daughter of King Alfor, the man who created the Lions and the first Red Paladin, Allura feels Voltron's duty as "defender of the innocent" as both her father's legacy and a personal responsibility. She has always been a brave and determined soul, begging Alfor to fight Zarkon even as he decided to hide her and the Lions away, and near immediately resolving to bring down the Galra Empire after learning of the destruction of her family, her planet, and her entire civilization. She is nearly implacable when she feels the right thing needs to be done or when lives are on the line, and will urge others around her to hold on to hope and keep trying until they reach victory. Off the battlefield, Allura tries to emulate her father’s gracious and diplomatic precedent, offering kindness and patience to potential allies and those in need, and doing her best to be a wise and assured mentor to the other paladins at the beginning of her journey.

Despite the strong, composed persona and noble, dedicated heart, however, Allura is not without her weaknesses. She feels her connections to Team Voltron, the war, and to her lost planet Altea keenly, having a strong case of survivor’s guilt at having lived while the rest of her people were destroyed, and often caring little whether a strategy or heat-of-the-moment choice would risk her being captured or killed. So many have died- ARE dying- because she feels she didn’t do enough to stop Zarkon when he first attacked Altea; why shouldn’t she be willing to lay her life down too? This also heavily shapes her relationships with the Paladins at first; she feels she must “portray strength” in order to properly guide the Paladins: pushing herself in her efforts to help and command the team to the point of exhausting herself multiple times, trying to keep a stiff upper lip even when deeply upset about destroying her father’s AI or being rejected by the Red Lion, even concealing Zarkon’s past as the first Black Paladin for Shiro’s sake. Her compassionate heart, her headstrong desire to act quickly, and her yearning to preserve Altea’s past have also been turned into weak points by adversaries, with Commander Hira of the alternate reality’s Alteans and especially Lotor appealing to these traits in an attempt to gain her aid while keeping her in the dark about their true intentions. When she realizes she’s been betrayed, however, Allura can reveal a temper that alternates between hot, scathing words and even physical violence, to cold, ruthless disdain and distrust, and she can be VERY stubborn about holding onto grudges formed this way. Thankfully, when she does realize she’s in the wrong, she’s quick to admit it and try to make amends, even to the point of being too hard on herself. Most of the time she is able to pick herself up and move forward despite the lingering guilt, but other times she needs the help of others- especially her best friend Lance- to realize she’s a vital member of the team and a valued part of their lives, and that all is not lost just because she makes a mistake or two along her journey.

While never fully overcome in canon (thanks, DreamWorks…), most of these scars and rough edges begin to heal and smooth once Allura is chosen by the Blue Lion of Voltron. She had already started slowly opening up to the others- especially Keith- but for a while, the only ones she could truly trust to be vulnerable with were Coran and the mice she formed a telepathic bond with while in the stasis pod together. When Shiro disappears and Keith takes over the Black Paladin, however, she encourages Lance- whom at this point she’s never really interacted with deeper than him hitting on her and her rebuffing him- that he IS worthy of being chosen by the Red Lion- her father’s Lion, the one she had hoped to pilot herself and has just been rejected by- with genuine grace and faith in him. It’s at this moment that the Blue Lion chooses HER as its new Paladin, and in turn Lance begins to mentor her in being a paladin and piloting his former Lion. This opening up becomes even more important to her new role; it’s only when she stops trying to control Blue and admits to needing help and guidance too, to this being an equal partnership, that their bond reaches its full strength and Blue allows her access the full extent of its power.

While she's still very dedicated to their fight and can still be stubborn at times, being flexible and trusting others are new forms of strength that she’s more willing to tap into now. She slowly feels more comfortable opening up to the others, asking Keith if he’s alright after losing a fellow Blade during an intelligence mission, confiding her doubts in herself and crying openly in front of them, or even acting like a normal, even playful teenage girl while partaking in a game of Monsters and Mana with the team, something she only did around the mice before. This is especially clear in her relationship with Lance, which evolves from annoyance at him, to genuine respect, friendship, to deep support and eventually mutual love.

Overall, Allura is a driven, strong-hearted young woman dedicated to giving the universe peace and freedom again, and has been slowly learning to practice what she preaches: "we are always stronger together."

Pokémon Information
Affiliation: Trainer
Starter: Alolan Vulpix
Password: Atomic Fireball

Samples
RP Sample: Re-introductions and ADORABLE Poffin munching in the background.

Victory Road Sample: Allura glanced at the Pokédex again, grateful that the guide gave her a list of moves that Coressa knew. Even with knowing time in her reality was essentially frozen and she didn’t need to worry about the war, suddenly being in possession of a cute little white fox creature was a bit daunting. It wasn’t like with the mice, being able to understand them through a random accident, all four of them independent and competent and being more equal companions than her caring for them like pets. If anything, they were often her caretakers, making sure she wasn’t completely alone before she started befriending the other paladins and reminding her to relax in the small spaces she could. Sure, Coressa was intelligent and had a good temperament, but she was still young and soft and adorable and more dependent on Allura for care. Of course she could be responsible; as the crown princess of Altea and her territories, she born, bred, and raised to be responsible even before this blasted war. She just wished she’d been given better preparation than just being dropped in the middle of all this.

"All right, Coressa… Powder Snow."

A chipper bark, and the Vulpix took a deep breath, blowing out a stream of glistening wind and thick, heavy snowflakes. Very pretty, Allura thought… and as the air cleared, she saw that the rock Coressa used as a target was encased in a quarter inch of clear ice. That actually got a smile out of the princess: beautiful and effective.

"Impressive." Coressa’s tails waggled in response. "Now show me… Tail Whip."

This was supposed to lower an enemy’s defenses, the guide said. Was it supposed to brush against pressure points or--

Coressa barked and gave a deep play bow in the said, swishing her six floofy white tails in the air in a fan.

"… Dear sweet Ancients, that is adorable…"

⌈ PLAYER SECTION ⌉
Player: LoneWolfPrincess
Contact: Journal PM/LoneWolfPrincess
Age: 26
Current Characters: N/A


⌈ CHARACTER SECTION ⌉
Character: Princess Allura
Age: Chronogically 10,000+ years old (thank you, stasis sleep); biologically a young Altean adult
Canon: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Canon Point: End of Season Two, Episode 13

Background:
Voltron Wiki Entry

Personality:
While Shiro is the leader of the Paladins, Princess Allura serves as a commander and guide for Team Voltron. As the daughter of King Alfor, the man who created Voltron, Allura feels Voltron's duty as "defender of the innocent" as both her father's legacy and a personal responsibility. She has always been a brave and determined soul, begging King Alfor to fight Zarkon even as he surrendered and hid her and the Lions away, and near immediately resolving to bring down the Galra Empire after learning of the destruction of her father, her home, and her entire civilization. She is nearly implacable when she feels the right thing needs to be done or when lives are on the line, and will urge others around her to hold on to hope and keep trying until they reach victory. Allura's lost more than enough to Emperor Zarkon, and she'll do everything can to make sure others never have to know that feeling.

Off the battlefield, Allura is calm, polite, and always willing to offer kindness. She treats Klaizap, the bravest of Arus's warriors (even though only knee-high to her, outnumbered, and VERY under-armed) with courteous respect and patience, and insists that the team divert course in order to answer a distress beacon. With the Paladins, she's an encouraging but serious teacher and leader as they master their lions and begin engaging the Galra empire. Although at first balancing these traits was a challenge; her driven nature, a strict teaching style, a grueling training regiment (especially by human standards), and a need to have the Paladins combat ready as soon as possible led to a day of her acting like a particularly forceful drill sergeant. Fortunately, food fights are magical.

In battle, she can quickly assess the situation and start issuing commands. And whether it's going down to a planet's surface to evacuate its natives, revitalizing said planet at the potential cost of her own life, or insisting she infiltrate a Galra ship despite others' protests, Allura's never been afraid to throw herself into a fray. She also won't hesitate to take on Robeasts or Galra battle ships with the Castle of Lions' hundreds of lasers. (Or use them on the paladins, see "drill sergeant phase." Won't happen again. Probably.)

That's not to say she's all business, however. In the very few breaks between saving the universe, she's revealed a relaxed, even friendly and playful manner, usually with the aid of the mice. She eagerly engages in gossip with the mice at a victory party, and whenever the paladins and Coran can't take her along for a minor mission, she can be found racing her hover chair like a bumper car through the castle halls or letting the mice style her hair. It's rare that she allows this side to show around the paladins and Coran- given the near constant nature of their mission and her status as their commander- but it's been known to happen on occasion. She's allowed and even participated in a food fight in order to let the paladins bond and practice teamwork, approached and tried to gain Pidge's friendly confidence in order to make the Green Paladin admit to a particularly juicy secret, and even tried to charm Coran into taking her to a space pirate market by saying she "wanted to buy something sparkly."

And even if she can't always afford to show it on a more affectionate level, Allura deeply cares about Coran and the Paladins and would do anything for their sake. An AI created from King Alfor's memories had been a source of comfort and wisdom for her since waking up and starting their mission, but when the AI becomes corrupted and is about to send the Castle and all its inhabitants into a sun, despite crying and grieving losing him a second time, she only pauses to give her father one last hug goodbye before destroying his memories to keep everyone safe.

Despite her many virtues, Allura is not without flaws. She can be stubborn about making sure a goal is achieved, especially if the lives of others are at stake. This can lead her to expend her energies towards her mission to the point of fatigue or even facing the possibility of self-sacrifice, such as offering her physical energy to revive the dying planet-being of Balmera, or to power a massive wormhole generator. In addition, the loss of her people left her with a strong hatred for the Galra and a blanket belief the whole race is untrustworthy, even though this clashed with her own self-stated belief that Voltron is the defender of all the innocent. This leads her to coldly dismissing a Galra rebel sacrificing his life to save the Team from a Robeast, nearly rejecting vital help from the Blade of Marmora resistance cell, and treating Keith with disdain when it's revealed he has Galra ancestry. It's not until Keith volunteers for a mission which may result in his death- yet another potential loss after facing so many- that she realizes how much he means to her as both a paladin and a companion. She apologizes, figuratively and literally embraces him, and asks him to come back alive before he departs. After this, she also becomes much more appreciative of her Galra allies, treating them with respect and willingly fighting alongside them during the assault on Zarkon's battleship.

All in all, Allura's heart is dedicated to doing what's right and protecting and helping those around her. She, Coran, and the Paladins of Voltron have a long road to freeing the universe, but there's no doubt she'll put her all into every step.

Abilities:
As the heir to the Altean throne, Allura is well trained in a number of skills, which have been further honed during her time alongside Team Voltron: diplomacy, etiquette, armed and unarmed melee combat, firearms training (even if she sometimes holds unfamiliar weapons backwards), and military strategy. She's also the pilot of the Castle of Lions, and extremely skilled at operating its navigation, weapon, shield, and wormhole generation systems.

Her Altean biology also lends her several superhuman abilities, such as superior physical strength (enough to ram an enemy combatant hard enough to embed his helmet in a metal wall) and minor shape shifting. Allura has been seen able to increase her height and change the color of her skin to infiltrate a Galra ship as a guard. She cannot change more defining features, though, such as her facial/body structure, hair, eyes, or voice, and needed a helmet to disguise the upper half of her face for the infiltration. Given her skin can only be one color at a time, she can also not turn invisible or camouflage herself this way. Per the game's rules, Allura would not be able to increase her height beyond the cap of eight feet tall.

Allura is an empathic person by nature. Along with her link to the space mice, Allura's energies are also linked to the lions of Voltron. This allows her to locate them using the Castle's navigation systems after they'd been hidden for 10,000 years, match them perfectly with new paladins after only knowing the humans a short time, and to receive a beacon from the Green Lion while trapped in an unstable wormhole. She's also able to communicate with and through the living planet of Balmera, asking the Balmera to provide energy-supplying crystals, assure and give hope of escape to all the Balmerans at one, and to perform a revitalization ceremony. At the cost of her own energy, performing the ceremony was able to help restore the Balmera's life force from the brink of death to flourishing on a global scale, allowing it to spread new vegetation and grow new crystals. (Obviously she'll have to settle for amulet telepathy and healing this world through emotion drops while in game, though.)

Shortly before arriving, Allura also learned she can control Quintessence, a powerful form of life energy present in all things. In her battle with Haggar, Allura was able to withstand multiple Quintessence blasts from the witch until Allura manifested a protective pink aura, after which she was able to resist and push back Haggar's attacks, as well as counterattacking with wild strikes in the form of pink lightning. However, this is a very new, untrained ability with a lot unknown about it from both Allura's and the audience's perspectives. It will likely not be used until Allura has a canon update with access to more knowledge/experience, and may be capped or changed into an innate talent for Dunamis at the mods' discretion.

Alignment:
Peromei. One princess believing she, her advisor, and five strange humans can master the universe's greatest weapon and take on the single most powerful empire in the universe AFTER learning said empire literally wiped her home off the face of the map? It might be bravery that keeps her going, but it's hope that brings her back to her feet to begin with.

Other:
Along with her jumpsuit, circlet, and earrings (which serve as a communication device on the same frequency as the paladins’ helmets), Allura will also be arriving with her four Altean mice: Platt, Chuchule, Chulatt, and Plachu (currently unknown which is which). These mice were sealed in Allura’s sleep chamber with her, and as a result they’ve developed a telepathic link with the princess. They’re also intelligent, able to have full conversations with Allura via a combination of thought and pantomime, follow her instructions to help save the Castle of Lions from being hijacked, gather intelligence read: gossip and report it to Allura, and choreograph trick routines on their own. Aside from these traits however, they’re more or less normal multicolored space rodents with mischievous streaks and a collective devotion to the princess and her happiness.


⌈ SAMPLE SECTION ⌉
General Sample:
February Test Drive

Emotion Sample:
Allura's bright spots in the universe.
Her Highness's fall from grace.

Questions: No thank you!