The ceremonial hall pulsed with cold Kree grandeur, crystalline chandeliers blazing down. Stakar lifted his goblet with the confidence as if this were just another day at court.
"To unity between our peoples," he declared, smiling.
Martinex translated smoothly, his crystalline face showing no emotion.
Charlie-27 muttered loud enough for only Aleta to hear, "Unity better come with a buffet."
Aleta smirked, sipping her drink. "Try not to drool on the table, big guy."
Then a blaster shot rang out, and a ball landed in the middle of the table as smoke billowed from it.
The laser cracked across the hall, sizzling past Stakar's arm.
"Aw, come on," Stakar hissed, whipping around, still unarmed because of diplomatic rules.
"Traitor!" a Ravager shouted, hurling into a whirlwind of confusion as he grabbed Stakar and hauled the captain toward the balcony.
"Target secure!" the Ravager bellowed.
The Kree commander shot to his feet. "Protect the ambassador!" he barked , finally out of his stubbornness, flinging his troops toward the balcony.
The room descended into chaos. Blasters flashed, chairs overturned, and boots thundered as soldiers rushed after the kidnappers.
Martinex leaned back in his seat, murmuring to Aleta with a grin. "That should thin the herd."
"Hook. Line. Sink," Aleta purred. She raised her glass in a silent toast as the smoke swallowed the hall.
From orbit, the Liset's silent form watched the chaos spill outward. Kree frigates scrambled, alarms blared through every channel. Through the Liset's optics, Rhino and the Guardians could see entire platoons of soldiers storming down to the lower levels of the bank complex.
Rocket pressed his furry nose against the viewport. "Well, damn. That's half their damn army on a rescue mission."
Quill grinned. "Guess Stakar's little theater show is working."
"Ambassador gets snatched, whole garrison mobilizes," Gamora muttered, folding her arms. "Classic overreaction."
Drax nodded sagely. "If someone kidnapped me, I would expect ten armies to descend at once."
Rocket rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. They wouldn't bring you back, though."
"I would free myself either way, " Drax replied flatly.
"Not the point!" Rocket snapped.
The Liset's scanners swept the Kree docking rings. Ordis' voice purred through the ship. "Operator, empty hangar located. No signals detected, minimal guard presence. Shall I prepare a landing vector?"
"Do it," Rhino said, arms crossed.
"Still not comfortable with a self-driving ship," Quill said, clinging to whatever he could hold onto.
The Liset dropped in a smooth vector, its bulk landing on polished steel with barely a whisper.
The ramp hissed open.
Quill took the first step into the echoing hangar, blasters at the ready. "Okay, Guardians, time to go shopping."
Rocket hopped down after him, muttering, "If we don't get blasted into space dust first."
Gamora followed, every movement precise. "Stay sharp. They'll notice this gap in their defenses sooner rather than later."
Groot scampered at Rocket's heels. "I am Groot."
"Yeah, yeah," Rocket grumbled. "You're the muscle, I'm the brains. Don't rub it in."
Drax stomped out last, arms wide. "Finally! A worthy battlefield."
Quill sighed. "Drax, it's a bank, not a battlefield."
"Everywhere is a battlefield if you fight on it," Drax said proudly.
Rocket smirked. "Philosophy by Drax the Destroyer. Can't wait for the book deal."
Finally, Krugarr left the ship, creating a laughing face emoji while simultaneously scanning the surroundings for enemies.
The Guardians fanned out, weapons ready, shadows swallowing them entirely as the Liset's ramp sealed shut behind them, and with that, the only light source ended.
"Alright," Quill said quietly, eyes scanning the surroundings before turning on the night vision mode on his new mask. "Let's rob a bank."
As the hangar door opened, Quill peeked out first, blasters up. "Okay... so either we just pulled the luckiest card in the universe, or this is the kind of silence that comes right before screaming and lasers."
Rocket bounded past him, goggles pushed up, datapad in paw. "Relax. My scanners read squat. Nada. Whole place is quieter than a Nova Corps audit."
Rhino followed last. Faint shimmers of his blue shield spilled through the floor.
Rocket's eyes lit up. "Still can't get over it. That shield's gorgeous. And now," he slapped a compact node onto his chest. A hexagonal shimmer wrapped around him, pulsing faintly. " We all got one!"
Quill tilted his head, eyebrows raised. "Wait. You actually finished them?"
Rocket smirked. "Finished, improved, beautified. Say hello to Rocket's Portable Oh-Crap-I'm-About-to-Die Device, mark two."
Groot puffed up proudly, vines spreading, his own shield rippling across his bark. "I am Groot!"
"Yeah, yeah, you got one too." Rocket gestured. "And for the last time, I'm not calling it Sapling Tank Mode."
Gamora drew her blade, the new emitter on her hilt flaring to life. The blade hummed with energy, each stroke leaving faint light trails. She tested the balance, then gave Rhino a curt nod. "Efficient."
Drax spun the circular glaive that shimmered in his palm, its edge singing through the air. He hurled it down the hangar. It ricocheted, sliced through a steel crate, then zipped back into his hand. He grinned like a child. "Finally. A weapon worthy of me."
Quill adjusted his visor, tactical readouts scrolling over his vision. He muttered, "Great. Now I probably look like a second-rate cyborg. This thing better make me at least twenty percent cooler."
Rocket cackled, waving his dual plasma pistols. They hummed as capacitors cycled energy almost instantly. "Forget cooler. I'm about to be legendary."
Rhino's voice rumbled quietly from behind as he stepped past them, calm as bedrock. "Do not rely on tools. Rely on focus."
Rocket rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Space monk wisdom, noted."
Quill sighed. "Alright. Let's get this over with before Drax decides to throw his new toy at me."
Drax raised the glaive meaningfully. "That is an excellent suggestion."
Quill hurried past Rhino to the corridor. "Moving on!"
Krugarr created a silence emoji as he went past the other Guardians and then cast a spell armor around himself, as he didn't get one of Rocket's new ones.
The corridor stretched long and sterile, glowing glyphs pulsing with Kree symbols .
Rocket tapped at a panel, Korath's access codes streaming green across his screen. The gate hissed open with a low rumble.
Quill leaned into the opening. "So far, so good..."
The comms fizzed, dead static filling their ears.
Rocket's ears twitched. "Uh-oh."
Gamora's hand went to her blade. "What is it?"
"Null-lattice walls. Signal blackout. No backup. We're cut off."
Quill groaned. "Of course we are. Why can't any job ever just be simple?"
Drax cracked his neck. "Good. No interruptions when I begin killing."
Rocket muttered, "Pretty sure I'm the only one here who thinks that's a bad thing."
Then the vents hissed.
Dozens of drones poured out, wings slicing the air, red optics blazing. Behind them came three Controllers, Kree-bio hybrids, their neural rigs glowing as they directed the swarm.
Rocket cursed. "Aw, hell. Controllers. Why's it always Controllers?"
Quill ducked instantly behind Rhino. "Okay, big guy, time to tank up. We believe in you!"
Rhino advanced. Drones swarmed, blaster fire hammered his shields, and shattered into sparks against it.
Rocket whooped. "Look at him go! Walking Juggernaut with a personal fireworks show!"
"I am Groot!"
"Yeah, yeah, you too, stick-boy!" Rocket fired grenades past Rhino's shoulder, the explosions rippling through the swarm while Drax's glaive flew back and forth past him.
Gamora vaulted high, her new energy edge slicing clean arcs through the drones that went past him. "The Controllers! Cut them off!"
Drax bellowed and hurled his glaive again. It slashed through two drones midair, curved, and buried itself in a Controller's chest. Drax barreled after it, roaring, "FINALLY, A WORTHY FOE!"
Quill leaned out, visor flashing targeting readouts as he fired. "Why do I feel like I'm the only one here who remembers this is a bank robbery?"
Rocket cackled, twin pistols blazing. "Because you are! And that's hilarious!"
Rhino slammed a fist into the deck. The shockwave ripped down the corridor, drones scattering like debris in a storm that were near enough to the walls of the floor. His body flared white-silver as he pressed forward, taking all the damage, searingly glowing more and more the more damage he took.
Quill's jaw dropped. "Okay. That's actually pretty badass."
Rocket crowed. "Told ya. Walking refrigerator with anger issues!"
"Tank," Rhino corrected calmly, crushing a drone underfoot.
Gamora landed beside him, her blade glowing. "Vault doors are ahead. We move now."
Rocket tried to sprint past, laughing. "Let's crack a bank, people!" But Rhino held him back.
"Everyone stay back for a second, I will finish these distractions first,"
he said before walking forward, after which he was nearly completely covered by the drones, trying to somehow damage him in any way, as the Controllers grew more and more nervous as he came further at them.
He stomped once on the floor and everything around him seemingly began floating in slow motion from the shockwave, as he again began to glow even brighter and then finally silver shrapnel exploded from his skin, taking away the silver with them, shredding the surrounding drones and Controllers, while leaving him standing in the middle of all the carnage.
Rhino looked back at the others.
Quill blinked. Rocket stood with his mouth wide open, while Gamora shook her head slightly. Groot stared, eyes wide. Even Krugarr seemed impressed. Only Drax remained unfazed, his hand closing harder around his glaive.
Rocket coughed. He cleared his throat. Then he nodded toward the door. "Well, guess we better get going before that wakes up any other security. After you, big guy."
After some more walking, the great vault doors loomed before them, three meters thick while humming with contained energy. Rows of Kree glyphs glowed faintly across the surface, pulsing in rhythmic sequence.
Rocket scampered forward, eyes already wide, datapad out. "Oh-ho-ho, baby... would ya look at this beauty. Triple-layered harmonic locks, cross-synced quantum ledger seals, and..." He whistled low. "A self-destruct failsafe for the door's mechanisms wired straight through the core."
Quill raised his blasters nervously. "Translation for the normal folks?"
Rocket grinned, teeth sharp. "Translation: we got about ninety seconds to get in before this whole opening mechanism atomizes itself and everything outside of it. So, you know... no pressure."
Gamora stepped up beside him, gaze steady. "Can you do it?"
Rocket scoffed. "Can I do it? Lady, I'm Rocket, of course I can. Question is, can you keep meat-shield over there from making a new crater while I work?"
Rhino didn't rise to the jab. His massive frame simply stepped closer to the vault, one gauntleted hand brushing the glyphs. The glyphs flared brighter in his presence, the hum deepening.
Quill frowned. "Uh. Is it supposed to do that?"
Rocket froze, ears twitching. "Nope. Definitely nope. Don't touch anything, Chrome-Dome. Lemme handle this."
Rhino tilted his head, but withdrew his hand. The hum lingered a moment longer, then settled back into its rhythmic pulse.
"Sixty seconds," Rocket muttered, claws flying over his datapad. Panels hissed, locks disengaged, and steam vented from hidden seams. "Come on, come on..."
Quill tapped his visor nervously. "Guys, I'm picking up movement in the corridors we went to before. Reinforcements inbound."
"Fifty seconds," Rocket snapped, sweat beading on his brow.
Drax hefted his glaive, rolling his shoulders. "Good. Let them come. I will decorate this vault with their corpses."
Quill groaned. "Can we not decorate the one place we're trying to rob?"
"Forty seconds," Rocket barked. "Shut up, Quill."
The last glyphs flared, then dimmed. The massive doors shuddered, gears grinding, and the vault yawned open with a groan that echoed through the chamber. A pale blue light spilled out, bathing them all as Rocket looked confused at the panel he was working on, clearly not finished with whatever he was doing.
"I'm Groot."
They all suddenly heard and turned their heads as they saw little Groot retracting one of his red tentacles from within the door's systems, everyone slowly put the puzzle together in their heads.
"I'm Groot,"
he said and went into the Vault, leaving a completely flabbergasted Rocket behind.
Gamora slipped past him, her eyes sweeping the chamber. Rows upon rows of crystalline cores and artifact drawers stretched out like an endless archive. But in the very center, a raised pedestal gleamed with pale light, a Time-Vault with a Map within it.
"That's it, our target?" she asked Krugarr sharply while he scanned it with his eyes and then nodded his head.
Quill jogged after her, visor scanning. "Looks like it's on some kind of timed harmonic lock. Once we touch it… "
"Yeah, yeah," Rocket interrupted, clambering up the pedestal. "We're on a timer, alarms go full blast, the whole building comes down on us. Standard Tuesday." While still keeping an eye on little Groot, who walked around touching everything with his new limbs that he could grab.
He cracked his claws and set to work.
Meanwhile, Rhino lingered at the edge of the chamber. His head tilted slowly toward a darker corridor branching off from the vault. The faint golden ripple shimmered across his chest again, stronger this time.
He froze. He could feel it, another pull. Not the artifact they'd come for, but something deeper, hidden.
His gaze locked on a second Time- Vault in the shadows. Smaller, not sealed, but radiating the same strange hum he had noticed before. His body seemed to lean toward it unconsciously, drawn by some tether beyond his control.
Quill noticed first. "Uh... big guy? Eyes over here, not over there."
Rhino didn't answer. The ripple spread across his frame again, brighter.
Gamora's gaze sharpened. "What's in that direction?"
Rocket didn't even look up from his work. "Nothing we want, that's for sure. Stay focused, big guy!"
But Rhino couldn't pull his attention away.
Tenno POV:
I never felt anything even remotely like this before. I can almost taste its energy, the power emanating from it. My hands are already trembling with anticipation just from thinking about it. How much more when I finally see what lies inside and is reaching towards me?
And then I suddenly am there, standing right in front of the Vault, and my hands start shaking even worse than before. It feels like an eternity till the Vault finally opens and reveals the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. Then I feel a deep suction force, I get pulled out of my Warframe right toward it, and it snaps onto me, as suddenly, I feel the same sensation all over again, the one I felt when I got sucked into this universe in the first place. And the next thing I see is the inside of the Orbiter.
Observer POV:
Rhino's massive frame slumped without warning, his shield flickering out while the Warframe crashed to the floor with a metallic thud that shook the chamber.
"Tenno?!" Quill yelped, visor scanning frantically. "That's-uh-that's not supposed to happen, right?!"
Rocket whipped his head up from the pedestal, eyes bulging. "What the hell do you mean, wait. Did he just face-plant mid-Mission?! He's the meat wall! He can't go offline!"
Drax strode over, jaw set. He gripped Rhino's shoulders and strained to lift him. The Warframe barely shifted. His face purpled with effort. "He is... heavier... than ten war-beasts!"
Quill darted to help, grabbing at Rhino's arm. His boots squealed on the polished floor as he barely budged the armored titan. "Great, so our tank's turned into a paperweight!" he said as he gave up trying letting Rhinos arm fall to the floor with a massive thud.
"I am Groot!"
"No, buddy," Rocket said through gritted teeth, still frantically pawing at the Time-Vault's lock. "You can't carry him either, your twiggy arms'll snap!"
Gamora's gaze swept the chamber sharply. Her hand shot to her sword. "Quiet. Reinforcements incoming."
As if summoned by her words, the walls hissed. Secret panels in the corridor outside the vault slid open. Lines of Kree drones flew in, eyes glowing crimson. At their center came more of the bioengineered Controllers, neural rigs sparking as they linked with the swarm.
The Guardians closed ranks instinctively. Drax, still with Rhino sagging over his shoulder, let out a guttural roar. "I will carry the fallen warrior! Protect me while I bear his weight!"
Quill muttered under his breath as he fired at the first wave of drones. "Yeah, sure, easy for you to say. You're not the one fighting the enemy!"
Rocket snarled, snapping his datapad shut as he pocketed the Map fragment, raising his new pistols. Blue light flickered over his compact shield as he vaulted onto a crate, activating his aero-rig.
"Fine! Plan B: shoot everything that moves!"
Blaster fire filled the vault. Gamora cut a Controller down with a savage slash, boosted by her own aero-rig, speeding from enemy to enemy, sparks flying. Groot wrapped a tendril around a drone and slammed it into the wall while still trying to carry one of Rhino's feet's. Drax bellowed, stumbling forward with Rhino slung awkwardly across his back, each step shaking the ground.
"Faster!" Gamora barked.
"I am already fast!" Drax bellowed back. "He is as heavy as a mountain!"
"Then make do!" Quill shouted, blasting another drone.
Rocket fired wildly, laughing in manic fury. "Don't worry, Quill, we'll make you carry him next if Drax croaks!"
"I am Groot!"
"Exactly, buddy!" Rocket barked. "We leave no one behind. Even if they weigh a freakin' starship!"
He said as alarms wailed through the corridors now, the entire vault complex coming alive. Red lights painted the chamber in bloody hues.