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"I'm done running! Never again!"
The surviving Ravagers kowtowed hard enough to bruise their foreheads, THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD.
Hermione's expression didn't change. "All right. Noted. Fiercely loyal. That's enough."
Only then did they feel like condemned men who'd just been pardoned. They climbed carefully to their feet, heads low, eyes lower, barely daring to breathe. Every single one of them was silently thanking whatever gods they believed in that they hadn't been stupid enough to run with the others.
Hermione didn't spare them another glance. She waved her hand, opened a portal, and walked straight through.
"Get up, all of you."
Yondu looked at Kraglin and the rest, his expression still sour, but his tone had softened a fraction. "Clean this up. We're moving out."
Kraglin blinked. "Boss, where to?"
"Xandar." Yondu's voice was flat and heavy.
"What?!" Kraglin and half the crew stared at him. "Boss, you serious? The second our ship gets anywhere near that planet, the Nova Corps blows us to scrap!"
"Hmph." Yondu snorted, the memory of Hermione's conversation with Nova Prime still churning somewhere unpleasant in his chest. "The Witch already talked to Nova Prime. We've been granted amnesty."
"Amnesty?!"
"We can walk into Xandar? Openly?!"
First came the disbelief. Then came the explosion of noise.
That was Xandar. Capital of the Nova Empire. One of the most prosperous planets in the entire universe. Before, they couldn't even drift close without their hands sweating on the controls. And now they could just... fly in?
The way everyone looked at Yondu shifted all at once. Pure, uncomplicated worship.
Boss pulled it off. He actually latched onto someone powerful enough to get them into Xandar.
Seeing the crew's excitement, Yondu cut through it immediately.
"Listen up. Every single one of you — when we land on Xandar, you keep your heads down and your hands to yourselves. No trouble. None. The Witch put herself out to speak for us, and if any of you idiots make things difficult for her, don't come crying to me about what happens next."
"Yes, Boss!"
"We'll behave, we swear!"
They thumped their chests in unison, terrified of watching this opportunity evaporate. Moving freely on Xandar. The temptation was enormous.
...
Xandar.
General Romen was walking alongside Hermione, pointing out the local sights and customs, when his communicator went off.
"General! We're detecting a large Ravager warship on approach!"
Almost at the same moment, the space above the docking area warped. A massive, ugly warship punched through the cloud layer and began its slow descent.
Down on the ground, the residents and tourists going about their ordinary lives, shopping, sightseeing, just existing, looked up and saw the ship appear out of nowhere. Panic detonated through the streets.
"Ravagers! The Ravagers are invading!"
"Run!"
"Where's the Nova Corps?!"
General Romen watched the warship descend, then looked at Hermione standing calmly beside him. His mouth twitched. "Envoy, are these the... 'few' prisoners you mentioned?"
Hermione blinked. She nodded like this was obvious. "That's right. One shipload of prisoners."
General Romen: "..."
He let out a pained laugh, then quickly broadcast an emergency announcement over the public channel, warning that this Ravager warship was entering Xandar under supervision and all citizens should remain calm, barely managing to keep the streets from tipping into full chaos.
In the distance, beneath a tall building, a figure wrapped entirely in a black cloak stood in silence, watching the warship land and the unmistakably Asgardian vessel docked nearby.
"Asgardians... mixed up with Ravagers."
The voice was low and hoarse, threaded with confusion. "This could complicate Father's plan to seize the Power Stone. No. I need to report this immediately."
The figure dissolved into the shadows without a sound.
...
1 month later.
"Hey yeah yeah, hey yeah yeah..."
Come and get your love...
A man in a red leather jacket strolled through Xandar's crowded commercial district, headphones on, humming to himself, hands turning a metal sphere over and over as he walked. No particular destination. No particular hurry.
Then he stopped.
A familiar face, not far ahead.
"Kraglin?"
He moved closer, cautious.
Kraglin seemed to feel something and turned. He spotted Quill, and for one second just stared. Then his face split wide open. "Quill! You're finally back! Thank god!"
Right. The man was Peter Quill. Also known as Star-Lord, his own designation, not anyone else's. Son of Ego, that enormous head. The man personally responsible for Avengers 4. Demigod physique, very much mortal results.
Idiot.
Quill glanced around. "What are you doing here? Aren't you worried the Nova Corps will grab you?"
"Oh, it's a long story!"
Kraglin's face was lit up. "We all pledged to a new patron! She's the reason we can move around Xandar freely — it's been great!"
He grabbed Quill's arm. "Wait, the Orb — did you get it? Come on, I'll take you to meet the Witch!"
Quill's eyes flickered. An apologetic smile crossed his face. "Kraglin, I'm really sorry about this."
CRACK!
One punch to the jaw before Kraglin could react. He dropped. Quill grabbed him by the collar and dragged him into the nearest deserted alley.
"The Witch," Quill muttered, dropping Kraglin against the wall.
He knew that whoever had pulled enough strings to let notorious Ravagers wander Xandar in broad daylight had serious weight behind them. But he'd barely gotten free from Yondu. He was done being someone's errand boy.
The plan was simple. Get the Orb. Go independent. Sell it for an absurd amount of money. Live his life. Handing it to some new patron wasn't part of that plan at all.
He was turning to leave when a voice hit him from the alley entrance.
"Hey! Look what we've got here. Another Ravager!"
A raccoon with a high-tech scanner was perched on the shoulder of a walking tree, both of them aimed right at him.
"There have been way too many of these things crawling around lately," Rocket grumbled. "And thanks to that witch or whatever she is, all their bounties got pulled. Can't make a single credit off them anymore. Drives me insane."
The tree swayed his head thoughtfully. "I am Groot."
"I'm not giving up until I find one that still pays!" Rocket kept scanning. The next second, the device locked onto Quill and beeped. "Ha! There it is! This one's still live! We're getting paid today, Groot!"
"I am Groot!"
"Stop right there! Don't even think about running!"
Quill ran.
Rocket and Groot charged after him.
"Hand over the Orb!" A green figure dropped out of nowhere and landed directly in his path.
"Oh, there's another one!" Rocket swung the scanner at Gamora, his eyes going wide. "Whoa. That bounty is way higher. This is turning into a great day!"
"I am Groot!"
And just like that, all four of them, Quill, Rocket, Groot, and Gamora, were brawling through the middle of a crowded commercial street over a single metal sphere.
Energy blasts. Vines. Fists. Blades. The scene descended into spectacular, screaming chaos.
Somewhere in the middle of it, the Orb got knocked loose. It sailed through the air in a clean arc, hit the ground, and clattered along the pavement.
It rolled and rolled.
And rolled.
And finally came to rest against the foot of a young girl who was out for a stroll, eating an apple.
She looked up at the four people who had frozen mid-fight.
Then she looked down at the sphere by her shoe.
Her face was completely blank.
➤ Next: The World Turned Upside Down
[FULL STORY ACCESS]
📖 Read ahead up to [Chapter 291]
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