Frieza rose gracefully from his chair and glanced at Natasha, who stood respectfully at his side.
The former S.H.I.E.L.D. top Agent now wore a perfectly tailored maid outfit.
With her eyes lowered and demeanor docile, she looked far more pleasing than when she'd been swinging an Electric Baton around.
"Natasha, go notify Maria. I am taking a little trip to pick up a package. While I'm gone, have her keep an eye on the house."
Frieza lifted a finger and tapped the air. "Especially that newly appointed 'Demolition Office Director' Thanos—keep track of his progress. Even if he's a seasoned hand, better safe than sorry."
Natasha bowed. "Yes, Master. I understand."
Having finished the trivial arrangements, Frieza wasted no more time.
He slowly raised his left hand. In his palm, the deep-blue Space Stone blazed with dazzling light.
Vrrrrn—
A dark-blue spatial gate tore open in mid-air. From the other side seeped an aura of desolation and death.
"Let's go see that pretty purple pebble."
Frieza stepped through, the hem of his white suit vanishing into the portal.
An abandoned planet.
The sky was a sickly gray-brown and howling winds swept clouds of dust and silence across the land. Colossal ruins loomed through the sand, telling of a civilization once here and now in decay.
Vormir.
A lost land whose tides recede only once every three centuries.
Frieza hovered mid-air, faintly frowning. "Tch."
Disdainfully, he used his Ki to form a thin barrier around himself, keeping the dust away from his suit.
"What a dump. Hiding such a gorgeous gem in a hellhole—were the old-timers all morons?"
Though he grumbled, his senses were razor-sharp. Amid the swirling dust, he clearly detected a vast, pure energy wave.
That aura—wild and tyrannical—answered to the Space and Mind Stones in his hand like a beacon in the night guiding a greedy traveler.
"Found it."
Frieza's crimson eyes locked onto a massive ruined structure in the distance.
"Oh-ho-ho-ho…"
"Looks like that dancing Earth idiot hasn't arrived yet—how lucky."
With a flicker, he shot forward, a white comet punching through the storm and landing at the temple entrance.
It was a vast subterranean cavern.
Cold, damp, the air thick with mildew.
None of that mattered to Frieza. What mattered was deep within the temple: a faintly glowing energy shield.
Inside it floated a hollow metal sphere—the Orb.
"Is this it?"
He strolled forward, ignoring ancient traps.
A few small local beasts lunged from the shadows.
Sss-sst!
Without even looking, Frieza flicked his fingers.
Several purple Death Beams punched through their skulls, leaving corpses on the ground.
"Too weak to qualify as rugs."
He stepped up to the orb, studying the force-field-protected sphere and slowly reached out.
Zzzzzzt!
A device supposedly requiring a special tool to open was, before Frieza's monstrous Telekinesis, like iron filings to a magnet. The protective field was shredded before it could even sound an alarm.
Clack.
The cold metal orb dropped into his palm.
"Quite exquisite." He toyed with it, a smile forming on his lips.
"But I've no patience for puzzle games."
Unlike Star-Lord in the movies, he didn't bother hunting for switches.
Frieza's fingers tightened slightly.
Crack!
The hard metal shell crumbled like a brittle cookie.
BOOM!
A blinding purple light erupted and a terrifying energy wave swept the cavern. The very rock walls trembled and cracked beneath the pressure.
Power Stone!
Among the six Infinity Stones, the embodiment of sheer destructive force.
Frieza gazed at the purple gem resting in his palm. It shimmered alluringly, its wild energy trying to bore through his skin.
An ordinary being would be vaporised on contact but—
Feeling the energy trying to ravage his cells, Frieza let out a satisfied sigh.
"Now that's the good stuff."
"Such ferocity—just my style."
His Ki surged and a Power Level of 120 million loomed like a mountain, instantly quelling the gem's rampage. The once-wild stone now lay docile as a lamb.
"Since we're here, let's test it."
He clenched the gem and casually punched a nearby stone wall.
No Ki blast, no technique—just the stone's own power.
BOOOOM!
The thick temple wall and hundreds of meters of rock behind it were reduced to dust in an instant. A crater dozens of meters across gaped open, sunlight pouring through.
"Nice." Frieza nodded in approval.
As he slipped the Power Stone into his pocket—
RUMBLE!
Engines thundered overhead.
Several jagged black ships screamed down and landed at the temple mouth.
Necrocraft.
The vanguard of Ronan the Accuser's Kree fleet.
"Quick! Scans show the energy source is inside!"
"That belongs to our Master—kill the thief!"
Clattering boots and charging weapons echoed.
A squad of fully-armored Kree Soldiers stormed in, led by a man in mechanical armor.
Korath the Pursuer.
At once, he spotted Frieza standing amid the rubble, purple gem in hand.
"That's him!"
Korath raised his energy rifle, greed and murder flashing in his eyes.
"The fool who dared beat Ronan the Accuser to the prize!"
"Listen up, outlander!"
Korath roared, barrel aimed at Frieza's head.
"Put it down! It belongs to the great Ronan!"
"Surrender now and I'll grant you a quick death!"
Facing the uninvited intruders, Frieza slowly turned. There was no panic in those crimson eyes—only deep mockery and irritation at having his fun interrupted.
"My, my…"
He tossed the Power Stone lightly into the air and caught it again. Purple light danced across his elegant, villainous face.
"Ronan?"
"That blue-skinned lunatic who runs around waving a hammer, judging everything in sight?"
Frieza tilted his head, a cruel grin forming. "You trash seem to have misunderstood something."
"This gem is now my toy."
"Want to take it?"
Frieza raised a finger, purple light flashing at its tip.
"Then pay with your lives."