"Brutal. Absolutely brutal."
"Thanos of the Black Order, the Titan from Titan, the leader of the largest extremist terrorist organization in the universe—the greatest destabilizing factor and error in the cosmos—must be corrected."
"The Mad Titan's goal is to sacrifice half of all living beings in the universe to please some so-called ineffable, illusory god. This is no ordinary terrorist. He must be eradicated—completely eradicated!"
...
This was the Covenant Council convened two days after Selene had sent Star-Lord into the Master Chief's captain's office.
Selene, Esdeath, and the more composed Heroic Spirit Servants such as Karna, Scáthach, and Heracles attended alongside the commanders of the 117th Fleet at this so-called "Universe Counter-Terrorism and Anti-Violence Conference."
Among those present were members of the Shi'ar Imperial Guard, representatives of the Kree Empire's Accuser Corps, Centurions of the Nova Corps from the Nova Empire, as well as hundreds of large and small cosmic factions who, after hearing the 117th Fleet's broadcast of the "Announcement Against the Black Order," chose to connect via video link to the Divine Empress Order.
A formality. To increase persuasiveness.
The meeting was chaired by the cyber-blue beauty, Cortana.
For an AI attendant, multitasking was basic capability.
Selene was not worried about Star-Lord's situation. She could leave it to Master Chief John and Cortana. The Infinity Stones' inherent nature as primordial cosmic energy singularities would help them make proper use of the Celestial bloodline hidden within Star-Lord.
"After more than a thousand spatial jumps, Gilgamesh has led the tugging sub-fleet to the ruins of Ego's planet. Recovery and towing operations of Ego's planetary core remnants have now begun."
While listening to Cortana's dignified and solemn explanation of Thanos' objectives and information regarding the Infinity Stones, Selene flipped through the reports submitted by the Imperial Navy liaison. When she saw the update regarding Gilgamesh, she immediately smiled faintly.
Why were only the more steady-tempered Servants allowed to attend the meeting? Because flamboyant and arrogant personalities like Gilgamesh had been kicked out by Selene and sent on field duty.
If that golden show-off had jumped up midway to hurl a few taunts, opening with "mongrels" and closing with "trash," where would the Divine Empress Order's dignity have gone?
"It's a pity Odin's Destroyer Armor was destroyed by his two fine sons."
Selene sighed with genuine regret.
After determining the direction of Master Chief John's Celestial evolution—and in order to strengthen her Master and extend the duration she could maintain suppression over Thanos—aside from extracting and squeezing Star-Lord's Celestial bloodline, the malformed Celestial Ego's remains, Knowhere, and the treasure vault of the All-Father Odin, who once fought against the Celestials...
All of them were now on Selene's mind.
Unfortunately, according to Asgard's clear records, the Destroyer Armor—crafted by Odin to resist the invasion of the Celestials into the Nine Realms and to protect Asgard and Midgard—had been used by his son, the God of Mischief Loki, against his other son, Thor, the God of Thunder, and was ultimately destroyed by Thor.
What a prodigal waste.
Forged from Asgardian uru metal and countless extraordinary materials, augmented with Asgardian runes, capable of transforming, being worn, and operating autonomously, nearly indestructible, able to annihilate all known matter—even a divine artifact stained with Celestial blood—
And it had been destroyed by the foolish son of the King of Gods.
You truly don't know the price of rice and oil until you run a household yourself.
Don't say the Destroyer Armor was trash that couldn't even withstand Mjolnir. Look at who destroyed it—Thor, Odin's direct heir!
Replace him with anyone else—let Captain Marvel and the entire Avengers charge together shoulder to shoulder—and they still might not win. That was armor built to contend with Celestials.
Without the bloodline of Odinson, do you think the Destroyer Armor would give you face? Would Odinforce not retaliate? Would the countless runes engraved upon the armor not activate?
"...Knowhere is the severed head of an ancient Celestial who died in battle."
Watching with interest as Cortana and the representatives of the Kree Empire, Shi'ar Empire, and Nova Empire bickered, Esdeath shifted her gaze away from the information sent back by the procurement team headed to Knowhere, her expression turning slightly strange.
"So the specialty mineral resources mined in Knowhere are fragments of a Celestial's skull and cerebrospinal fluid? No wonder they sell for such high prices..."
"Not expensive anymore."
With a dismissive wave of her hand, Selene said, "Thanos temporarily killed the Elder of the Universe known as the Collector, who had entrenched himself in Knowhere. Even if he resurrects, his forces—his brokers, exchange houses, and black markets—have all been slaughtered clean by Thanos."
The Elders of the Universe did not refer to elders of the entire cosmos.
It was merely a self-styled title. Not a violent organization, holding no real power, composed of ancient alien immortals who pursued specific personal hobbies as a means to achieve immortality. They came from a variety of species and were scattered throughout the known universe.
There was no binding force between them—more like a hobbyist club.
"No need to spend money. Have the Punishers leading the team mine more 'ore.' Fill the transport sub-fleet to capacity. Whatever is excavated from Knowhere—liquid or solid—load it all."
Tapping lightly on the armrest's screen panel, Selene could not help but remark inwardly that Thanos was a good man.
She had long wanted the Master Chief to purchase those materials. Unfortunately—no money. No universal credits. What, was she supposed to seize them by force?
That would not do. Too dirty. It would severely conflict with the civilized and righteous image the Master Chief had established. The Elders of the Universe had no power, but they were wealthy and influential.
Killing them—only a mad terrorist like Thanos, someone who had completely given up on mingling within upper cosmic society, would dare to do such a thing.
Now that order in Knowhere had collapsed and it had become ownerless territory, sending people to mine and extract cerebrospinal fluid naturally required no payment.
"In the second campaign, I'll go first."
After a few remarks regarding Thanos, Esdeath, who had been holding herself back for too long, immediately redirected the topic to participation in battle.
The previous fight had not satisfied her at all. If Selene had not restrained her, assigning her as commander and reserve force, she would have long since gone to seek Thanos in direct combat.
She was already eager to savor the exhilaration of a fierce battle—to hear the splat of blood spraying from wounds, the crack of tendons and bones snapping out of alignment.
"Very well."
Selene readily agreed. "But follow our plan. Gradual escalation. Don't get carried away..."
And just as Selene and Esdeath discussed Thanos' habitual methods of attack and intelligence regarding the authority of the Infinity Stones, exchanging remarks back and forth, the atmosphere of the meeting—where partial consensus had been reached—suddenly grew heated.
"What is wrong with the Skrulls? Being evasive on an issue like this. Do they expect the Mad Titan to save them?"
A Kree Accuser slammed the table as he spoke.
"Because you intend to exterminate their empire. Naturally, they are willing to grasp at any lifeline. Perhaps in the Skrulls' eyes, the random death of half the population—regardless of wealth or status—is preferable to being wiped out by you Kree."
The representative of the Shi'ar Imperial Guard began speaking in a tone thick with sarcasm.
"Then we'll exterminate the Skrulls along with them! They've already joined Thanos' Black Order. They are enemies of cosmic justice and order."
"Don't even think about it. Not a single Shi'ar warrior—not one Shi'ar ship or cannon—will become an accomplice to Kree imperial expansion. We oppose including the Skrulls in the joint attack accord."
"Then let me ask the Shi'ar—if the Skrulls choose to throw in their lot with the Black Order and assist in attacking us, will your side simply stand by? Or are you prepared to be struck without retaliating?"
"The root of the Skrull problem lies with the Kree. It should be handled entirely by your side. That would best serve the collective interests of all signatories."
"Objection. That's unfair."
"Unfair? If we're talking about fairness, then you Kree should withdraw from the Andromeda Galaxy—"
"Feathered bastards of Shi'ar!"
...
"Struggles for power and profit. The strong devouring the weak. Even in the interstellar age—even for cosmic empires whose territories are billions of times larger than Earth—they cannot escape it?"
The conference hall was crowded, though most present were familiar faces. As the Kree and Shi'ar devolved into verbal warfare and the Nova Empire and various mid- and small-scale factions attempted to mediate without daring to truly interject, Heracles pressed his lips together, arms folded, maintaining the most solemn posture as he spoke in a low voice.
"Who knows? Such is life. From ancient times to now, it has always been the same. It is the iron law governing intelligent societies—merely rendered more subtle and civilized with material abundance."
The thin purple veil before her lips stirred faintly with her warm breath. Red eyes narrowing as she observed the unfolding drama, Scáthach's mature and captivating voice drifted through the chamber.
"It is only a question of when we, the pieces on the board, will be cast out by the Master and her companions..."
Scáthach's gaze shifted toward Esdeath and 'Gorgon,' seated in the front row.
At that moment—
Hummm—
An indescribable sensation swept through the room, as though every spiritual pathway within their bodies had been injected with a stimulant. The source of magical power within their Saint Graphs pulsed violently. A comfortable warmth flooded Selene's being.
A layer of pale-blue magical radiance emerged from her body. With a single steady breath, one could feel the swollen rush of abundant magical particles surging through the circuits, almost painfully so.
Selene and Esdeath exchanged a glance.
John's evolution had begun.
Master Chief John was undoubtedly accelerating toward the path of a Celestial.
All Servants present rose to their feet. Each of them felt the unprecedented abundance of magical energy. The sheer fullness of power within their bodies made it feel as though they might burst apart—it was the quality of a Master capable of allowing them to unleash their Noble Phantasms to their hearts' content.
"Scáthach, remain here," Esdeath commanded, speaking with the authority of a former High Governor of a supreme stellar domain in the Type-Moon composite great world. Then she looked at Selene with bright interest. "Shall we take a look?"
"Have the Caster-class Servants proceed to the Master Chief's captain's office. Establish a magical workshop and seal the aura of a Celestial's birth. We mustn't alarm our allies."
Selene turned her head. "It seems it's time to conduct a new round of Servant summoning... Do you have anyone in mind?"
Esdeath: ...
You truly won't let the Master Chief rest for even a moment.
As for candidates... they were Servants. They wouldn't truly die. Yes. She had someone.
The Ice Storm General smiled mysteriously.
...
Tap, tap...
When Esdeath and Selene arrived at the Master Chief's captain's office, they happened to encounter Star-Lord being pushed out by two intelligent mechanical units.
Peter Quill's condition was poor. His complexion was pale. He had gone from slightly plump to gaunt, coughing intermittently like a consumptive patient, his body weak and frail.
The moment he saw Selene—the contractor—he forced himself upright.
"It's you. My condition—you agreed to it. Kill Thanos... cough, cough..."
He spoke agitatedly, but before he could finish, another fit of coughing wracked him. His body went limp, his head spinning. Darkness swallowed his vision, and he collapsed unconscious once more.
"How foolishly obsessed love makes people."
Shaking her head, Selene stepped forward and bent beside Star-Lord's stretcher. Dulling her claw blades, she touched his forehead, then his temple.
Humm—
Strands of golden light flickered and flowed through his entire body. After a short while, the unconscious Star-Lord stirred as though in a dream, murmuring softly.
"Consider it incidental weight loss."
With a soft laugh, Selene straightened and waved to the mechanical attendants. "Take him away. Keep him on nutrient infusions. Feed him well. Assign a private physician and have him recover his mobility as soon as possible."
Selene sensed it clearly. Within Star-Lord's body, his Celestial bloodline had diminished to a negligible trace. With the death of his malformed Celestial father, Ego, and the severing of his divine power source, its disappearance was irreversible.
Next time, if Star-Lord dared to pick up an Infinity Stone with his bare hands, he would most likely disintegrate into ashes on the spot.
Of course, if his will proved sufficient, he might endure. After all, his Celestial bloodline had not completely dried up. Had it truly vanished entirely, he would certainly be dead.
As for whether his Celestial bloodline might recover in the future—whether, once Master Chief John matured into a new Celestial, he would repay the favor and restore what Star-Lord had lost—that lay beyond Selene's concern. It would be the Master Chief's choice.
She pushed open the door—creak—
What greeted her eyes—
In the center reception area of the office sat a humanoid being clad in silver-gray metallic armor. He could be described as a Titan god.
Even seated, he exceeded five meters in height. Had the captain's office not been constructed with palace-grade ceiling clearance, structural alarms for hull damage might already have sounded.
The living energy-metal shell still bore faint traces of power armor. Twin eyes burned like plasma torches. The massive power pack had fused seamlessly into the living energy-steel body. Aside from the double-headed aquila and lightning insignia, layers of quasi-divine sigils intertwined and wrapped around the Master Chief's form.
Under the light, those patterns seemed alive, shimmering with mysterious luster. They were no mere decoration, but symbols of power and wisdom.
A postnatal evolution—a nascent Celestial, not one born naturally but forged through transformation.
"Master Chief, it seems you are prepared to face the second campaign."
Though still far weaker than a true orthodox Celestial, he had crossed the threshold—from the constant accumulation of quantity to a qualitative transformation, using Celestial blood as the wedge.
The remaining nourishment—the remnants of Ego's planet, the ancient Celestial cerebrospinal fluid and skull fragments from Knowhere—surely would provide sufficient sustenance.
"Cortana, bring up the meeting minutes. There were some disputes, but faced with the temptation of the Infinity Stones and the threat of losing half their populations, they have ultimately resolved to exterminate Thanos' Black Order."
"You initiated this. The site of the final battle—you will decide it."
—
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