Guardians of the Galaxy - Annihilation: Conquest E-Book

Brendan Deneen

• Herausgeber: Titan Books
• Kategorie: Fantasy und Science-Fiction
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Seitenzahl: 409

Beschreibung

Witness the iconic Marvel heroes come together for the first time in this action-packed adventure to protect the galaxy from the all-consuming threat of the Phalanx. The Kree Empire is still rebuilding after the devastation of the Annihilation War when the Phalanx, a cybernetic race that converts hosts using a techno-organic virus, seizes control of Hala, the Kree home world. The person who accidentally brought the Phalanx right to the heart of the Kree Empire? Peter Quill, otherwise known as Star-Lord. The remnants of the Kree are in utter disarray, their massive technologically advanced fleets totally susceptible to Phalanx control. Keen to make up for his genuine mistake (and without much choice) Star-Lord and his rag-tag team are conscripted into service to turn the tide. Perhaps a small group of poorly equipped mercenaries and misfits will defeat the Phalanx before they consume the known universe? Outgunned and outmatched, the Guardians of the Galaxy race to find anything or anyone who could hold the secret to stopping the Phalanx, a quest that will take them to the fringes of civilisation and unearth twisted experiments long buried by the Kree.

Leseprobe

Contents

Cover

Title Page

Leave us a Review

Copyright

Dedication

Part One The Savior

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Part Two The Wraith

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Part Three The Enemy

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty-One

Chapter Thirty-Two

Chapter Thirty-Three

Chapter Thirty-Four

Epilogue

Post-Script

Acknowledgments

About the Author

A NOVEL OF THE MARVEL UNIVERSE

ANNIHILATION: CONQUEST

NOVELS OF THE MARVEL UNIVERSE BY TITAN BOOKS

Ant-Man: Natural Enemy by Jason Starr

Avengers: Everybody Wants to Rule the World by Dan Abnett

Avengers: Infinity by James A. Moore

Black Panther: Panther’s Rage by Sheree Renée Thomas

Black Panther: Tales of Wakanda by Jesse J. Holland

Black Panther: Who is the Black Panther? by Jesse J. Holland

Captain America: Dark Designs by Stefan Petrucha

Captain Marvel: Liberation Run by Tess Sharpe

Captain Marvel: Shadow Code by Gilly Segal

Civil War by Stuart Moore

Deadpool: Paws by Stefan Petrucha

Morbius: The Living Vampire – Blood Ties by Brendan Deneen

Spider-Man: Forever Young by Stefan Petrucha

Spider-Man: Kraven’s Last Hunt by Neil Kleid

Spider-Man: The Darkest Hours Omnibus by Jim Butcher, Keith R.A. DeCandido, and Christopher L. Bennett

Spider-Man: The Venom Factor Omnibus by Diane Duane

Thanos: Death Sentence by Stuart Moore

Venom: Lethal Protector by James R. Tuck

Wolverine: Weapon X Omnibus by Marc Cerasini, David Alan Mack and Hugh Matthews

X-Men: Days of Future Past by Alex Irvine

X-Men: The Dark Phoenix Saga by Stuart Moore

X-Men: The Mutant Empire Omnibus by Christopher Golden

X-Men & The Avengers: The Gamma Quest Omnibus by Greg Cox

ALSO FROM TITAN AND TITAN BOOKS

Marvel Contest of Champions: The Art of the Battlerealm by Paul Davies

Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy: No Guts, No Glory by M.K. England

Marvel’s Midnight Suns: Infernal Rising by S.D. Perry

Marvel’s Spider-Man: The Art of the Game by Paul Davies

Obsessed with Marvel by Peter Sanderson and Marc Sumerak

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse – The Art of the Movie by Ramin Zahed

Spider-Man: Hostile Takeover by David Liss

Spider-Man: Miles Morales – Wings of Fury by Brittney Morris

The Art of Iron Man (10th Anniversary Edition) by John Rhett Thomas

The Marvel Vault by Matthew K. Manning, Peter Sanderson, and Roy Thomas

Ant-Man and the Wasp: The Official Movie Special

Avengers: Endgame – The Official Movie Special

Avengers: Infinity War – The Official Movie Special

Black Panther: The Official Movie Companion

Black Panther: The Official Movie Special

Captain Marvel: The Official Movie Special

Marvel Studios: The First 10 Years

Marvel’s Avengers – Script to Page

Marvel’s Black Panther – Script to Page

Marvel’s Black Widow: The Official Movie Special

Marvel’s Spider-Man – Script to Page

Spider-Man: Far From Home: The Official Movie Special

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse: Movie Special

Thor: Ragnarok The Official Movie Special

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GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY – ANNIHILATION: CONQUEST

Hardback edition ISBN: 9781803362519

E-book edition ISBN: 9781803362533

Published by Titan Books

A division of Titan Publishing Group Ltd

144 Southwark Street, London SE1 0UP

www.titanbooks.com

First edition: April 2023

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead (except for satirical purposes), is entirely coincidental.

FOR MARVEL PUBLISHING

Jeff Youngquist, VP Production and Special Projects

Sarah Singer, Editor, Special Projects

Jeremy West, Manager, Licensed Publishing

Sven Larsen, VP, Licensed Publishing

David Gabriel, SVP of Sales & Marketing, Publishing

C.B. Cebulski, Editor in Chief

© 2023 MARVEL

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.

This novel is dedicated to my parents Irene Murray and Rich DeneenFor always supporting my dreams and encouraging my imagination

PART ONE

THE SAVIOR

CHAPTER ONE

HALA, THE HOMEWORLD OF THE KREE EMPIRE—TODAY

PETER QUILL was feeling pretty good.

It was a hot day, especially in the metal jungle that was Hala’s capital city. Even though he was sweating, Peter had a big smile on his face as he walked towards the planet’s largest spaceport.

His current mission was going better than expected. It was always a gamble to go into business with a race as self-interested as the Kree, but the money was good, and he was enjoying being a hero for a change. Instead of his usual ‘job’ of being chased across the galaxy by someone who had accused him of something he may or may not have actually done, this time he was acting as a freelance defense network advisor following a series of intergalactic combat triumphs that had surprised even him. He could get used to being on this side of the law.

The defense network upgrade had been Ronan’s idea, and the Kree leader had reached out to Star-Lord first, impressed by Quill’s escapades during the seemingly never-ending conflicts that had been raging across the galaxy for the last several weeks. Months? Years? Peter wasn’t even sure anymore. It felt to him like he’d been jumping from massive battle to massive battle lately, and he was glad they were finally over.

In a few minutes, he’d be meeting up with the Space Knights, an elite group of cyborg warriors created on Galador to battle a race called the Dire Wraiths.

Peter had faced off against a Dire Wraith once in a dark alley back on Earth. It hadn’t been the prettiest confrontation in his life, but he’d come out victorious (and covered in Dire Wraith guts, but that was a whole other story).

After this job on Hala, he was going to finally take some time off. He had more than earned a little peace and quiet. And money. Well, he hadn’t exactly earned the money just yet, but he was pretty darn close.

“Quill!”

Peter looked over and saw Ten-Cor approaching. The Kree suns reflected gently off her blue skin and Peter found himself smiling. She’d become a good friend in the last few weeks, and he really enjoyed spending time with her while they worked together on Hala’s defense network.

“I’m impressed,” Ten-Cor said, looking at Peter appraisingly.

Peter checked out his outfit and nodded. Yep, this new outfit was pretty sweet—even he had to admit it. He’d recently purchased it on credit from a Kymellian trader on Deneb-7. He’d soon have more than enough to pay him and the Rigellians back. And then some.

“Right? I just bought it. Nicest threads I’ve ever owned.”

Ten-Cor looked at him as if he’d just insulted her puppy. “I was not talking about your clothes, you ridiculous Earthling,” she responded, grinning back at him. “I meant this mission. Negotiating a deal between Lord Ronan and the Space Knights. That was no small task.”

“Aw shucks,” he said.

“Please do not pretend to be humble, ‘Star-Lord,’ and just admit that you worked your donkey off to improve the defense capabilities of Hala, all for a very reasonable price.”

Peter cocked his head at her.

“Donkey?”

“That is the word, is it not? I am still figuring out the nuances of English.”

“Donkey works for me,” Peter admitted. “I just hope this Galadorian technology does what the Space Knights are promising it will.”

“As do I and the rest of the Kree Council. This defense network upgrade will make a significant difference, especially after the damage we have incurred with the ceaseless wars. What it will do for the fleet, the sentries, the surface systems. It is a new day for Hala, and I cannot thank you enough.”

“My pleasure,” Peter said, tipping an imaginary hat. Confusion creased Ten-Cor’s face. Peter started to explain what tipping one’s hat meant on Earth, but then stopped. He’d never seen a single Kree wearing a hat, other than the helmets the warrior class donned before battle. “Once today’s initial demonstration is over, we can integrate it fully into Hala’s grid, and then I can go on vacation.”

“Vacation,” Ten-Cor huffed. “Such a human concept.”

“Darn straight,” Peter replied.

*   *   *

PETER ARRIVED at the central landing pad on the spaceport rooftop with a full cadre of stone-faced Kree warriors. He grinned at their leader, an especially emotionless man named Tur-Van, who gave no indication that he’d seen the smile or shared in Quill’s excitement for the imminent arrival of the Space Knights.

After a moment, the five cybernetic warriors touched down a few feet in front of Peter and the Kree honor guard. Quill wasn’t easily awed, and even less likely to show it when he was, but he had to admit to himself that the armored cyborgs were impressive. Each one was a different color, with slightly different armor, and he could practically feel the power radiating from their metal shells. He didn’t know a ton about the Space Knights, no one did, but their reputation as fierce fighters seemed well-deserved, at least at first glance.

“Gentlemen!” Peter practically shouted, a little too eager, then toned himself down. “A-hem. My name is Peter Quill, though perhaps you know me as… Star-Lord.”

He waited for a reaction. There was none.

Probably because they’re cyborgs, he reasoned to himself.

“I’m the Special Advisor to the Kree government,” Peter continued. “And I’m pleased to formally welcome you to Hala.”

One of the Knights, the silver one, stepped forward, its eyes glowing red. It was the tallest and broadest of them all, and Peter swallowed nervously. He’d gone up against all kinds of enemies, large and small, humanoid and… not-so humanoid, and this was one entity that he was glad was an ally.

“I am Daystar,” the Space Knight said, its voice mechanized and completely devoid of emotion. Peter had heard that some of the Space Knights could imitate emotion, but it was clearly not an attribute Daystar possessed. “I serve the Space Knight Restitution Initiative. In my travels across the galaxy, I have heard nothing but positive comments about the Star-Lord.”

Aww yeah, Peter thought, nodding appreciatively. Dude already knew my codename.

“We are pleased that the Kree are working with you,” Daystar finished.

“Yeah, they’re not so bad when they stop fighting the Skrulls for two seconds, amirite?” Peter joked, then realized he was surrounded by a bunch of cyborgs and Kree soldiers, neither of which was known for their sense of humor. The soldiers behind him shifted awkwardly.

“I… suppose,” Daystar responded, apparently attempting to process the comment.

Good job, Peter, you’re the only person in the galaxy who can make a cyborg feel awkward.

“If Galadorian technology can improve Kree defenses, especially after so many intergalactic conflicts, we are pleased to be of help.” Daystar glanced at its companions. “There are not many Space Knights left after our seemingly endless battles with the Dire Wraiths. We appreciate that Hala is one of the most important lines of defense in this quadrant, and we recognize the need to bolster those defenses, for the sake of all innocent life. This technology benefits the Kree Empire, and thus all of us.”

Peter fought against an urge to give Daystar a high five.

“I agree wholeheartedly,” he said stiffly instead. Just finish this job and then you get to go on vacation, he reminded himself.

There was a long moment of silence and Peter looked around, confused, then realized that everyone was waiting on him.

“Oh!” he said, smiling and holding his arms out. “Okay! Time for the demonstration. Of course.”

Peter looked at Tur-Van and nodded. The commanding Kree officer opened a small compartment on the forearm of his armor and punched in a series of commands on a screen hidden there. For a moment, nothing happened.

Uh-oh, Peter thought after almost uttering it out loud.

However, a moment later, a section of the large metal floor began to move nearby, revealing dozens of shadowed figures that grew in clarity as Hala’s suns showcased their details.

Another platform below raised the figures fully into the light and Peter smiled at the sight. Fifty huge Kree sentries, fully robotic: silent, implacable, unmoving.

The Space Knights glanced at each other, as if saying, That’s it?

Peter nodded at Tur-Van again, and the latter punched in another series of commands. The sentries’ eyes blazed to life, an eerie green that cut through the intense daylight, and a deep hum filled the air. Peter smiled as he felt the sentries booting up through the ground. There was some serious power being displayed here… and they hadn’t even really gotten started.

“Okay, let’s go,” Peter uttered confidently, and Tur-Van punched in the final commands. The sentries suddenly shot into the air in unison, a perfect and clearly deadly formation. Peter watched the Space Knights’ faces and noticed what almost looked like satisfaction flash across their metallic visages.

The sentries performed several complex drills in the sky, showcasing their power and firing capabilities. Several Kree surface-to-air ships also performed impressive moves on the outskirts of the demonstration, further showcasing the Kree’s renewed might.

Peter moved forward, removing the most important item of the day from inside his coat. It wasn’t large, not much bigger than a cell phone on Earth, but its importance could hardly be understated.

This device, which Peter himself had helped conceive, design and create, would connect the Space Knights to the Kree defense network, allowing the two races to coordinate their moves the next time someone was foolish enough to mount a large-scale attack on multiple star systems. This kind of cooperation was unprecedented for either race, and Peter stood at the center of this groundbreaking moment. He realized he was beaming as he held out the device but just went with the feeling instead of concealing his pride. He’d never been good at shielding his emotions anyway.

“Kree leadership is aware that we will be accessing their mainframe, correct?” Daystar asked mechanically.

“Yep!” Peter responded. “Lord Ronan himself is watching the demonstration from his flagship. I know we can’t see him, but I can feel his eyes burning a hole in the back of my neck. Not gonna lie, that guy still kind of scares me!” Peter laughed but the laughter died when the Space Knight just continued to stare at him.

Star-Lord cleared his throat and continued: “We’re going to upload your Galadorian upgrades through the lead Kree ships, as well as the sentries that are doing their best to impress you very-difficult-to-impress Space Knights. Then we can run some threat scenarios. Cool?”

Daystar stared at him. An awkward moment of silence stretched out as the air show continued above.

“Would you like to do the honors?” Peter asked, holding the device up in front of Daystar.

Peter had never seen a Space Knight smile, had heard from multiple people on multiple planets that they never showed emotion to outsiders—and probably never showed it, period. But if you’d asked him to place a bet in that moment, he probably would have put down a sizable one that Daystar had must smirked.

But no, that was impossible. It must have been the way the light was hitting the cyborg’s metallic face.

“With pleasure,” Daystar replied, showing no actual pleasure other than that mirage of a smile.

While the Kree sentries continued their impressive defensive dance above, surrounded by the nimble airships, the lead Space Knight punched a series of commands into Quill’s device, connecting his network to the Kree defense system. Daystar cocked his head for a moment, as if he’d heard something in the distance, and then took a step back.

“Connection complete,” the Space Knight announced.

“Fantastic,” Peter responded.

He let out a long breath. It had worked. Now he could relax.

Finally.

CHAPTER TWO

THE OUTWORLD OF LAMENTIS—AROUND THE SAME TIME

THE TRAIL of dark purple blood shimmered in the snow.

The hunters followed it slowly, gripping their assault weapons tightly in their gloved hands. Everything was silent except for the crunching noises their military boots made while walking through the wintery wasteland.

After a few minutes, the lead hunter, a Chitauri named Kraddus, held up his fist and the party halted noiselessly.

They’d been hunting the family of frost minx for days. The matriarch was wounded—badly, judging by the amount of blood on the ground—but she and her pups were still moving at an impressive clip. The animal’s meat was useless, poison to almost every race in the known universe—but the gold and green fur would fetch more than a fair price on Deneb-7.

The hunting party was made up of multiple aliens, and in a different time, they might have found themselves pitted against each other in an intergalactic conflagration. But for now, they all shared a common characteristic that bonded them together despite the intense cold.

Greed.

“They’re in there,” Kraddus whispered into his headset, pointing his gun at a copse ahead of them. The other hunters nodded, fanning out just liked they’d discussed at the beginning of the hunt.

The guns they clutched were overkill, they all would have admitted that if pressed, but this excursion wasn’t about a fair fight. It was about making money and making it as fast as possible.

They’d started the hunt as equals, but since Kraddus had drawn first blood, he was now the unofficial leader, and the other mercenaries grudgingly followed his orders.

Moving forward in a unified semicircle, the hunters entered the small forest. It was even quieter in here, the ground somewhat protected from the constant snowfall by the large, multicolored trees that rose into the sky.

Kraddus continued to follow the blood, clocking the rest of his party in the corners of his eyes. If he could finish the kill by himself, perhaps he could claim a larger portion of the eventual credits.

Or perhaps he would be the only one to leave this deity-forsaken planet after a series of unfortunate but ultimately beneficial accidents. Stranger things had been known to happen to some of his former partners.

He inched forward as quickly as possible without giving himself away to his quarry. There. Just behind a small bush and tucked away between two rocks. He could see the animals’ breath rising through the branches.

Kraddus glanced over. The other hunters were far enough away that he could finish this—and then maybe finish them. He smiled as he slowly aimed at the small hidden crevice and placed his finger gently on the trigger. It was almost too easy…

The whining sound of an energy blast filled the air, followed a millisecond later by a concussive attack that hit Kraddus square in the chest, throwing him back twenty feet, where he crashed into the snow, his breath ballooning out of his lungs with a pained grunt.

“What in the name of the Celestials…?!” he spat, quickly grabbing his gun from where he’d dropped it and scrambling to his feet.

A lone figure descended from the sky. A woman. Wispy silver hair. Wearing a skintight red-and-yellow suit complemented by a black cape that swirled in the wind as she touched down in front of the rock where the frost minx had been hiding. Kraddus had no doubt the animals were long gone, and cursed his luck, and the woman as well. They’d have to take care of her, then start their hunt all over again.

He blinked snow out of his eyes and got a better look at her. She had what looked like a scar running down the right side of her face, above and below the eye, and the socket there was just a glowing orb. Likewise, two luminous bands were wrapped around each wrist, one of which was still pulsating from the energy attack it had clearly just delivered. It took a second for his brain to register the weapons on her forearms, but then it clicked.

Those were the Quantum Bands.

“Quasar…” he uttered, his stomach dropping.

“Well,” she said, an angry smile appearing on her face, “my friends call me Phyla-Vell, but I don’t think we’re quite there yet.”

The bands were beginning to glow again when Quasar was suddenly hit in the back and sides by multiple energy attacks. The other hunters had completed their circle and were just as annoyed as Kraddus at the loss of their prey.

Phyla-Vell collapsed to the ground, her hands pushing into a pile of snow between two trees, the bands glowing eerily under the white powder.

“More!” Kraddus shouted. “She’s Quasar! If we bring her in… dead or alive… we’ll all be very rich men!”

The other hunters didn’t need to hear anything else. They doubled their attack, moving closer as they did so. Kraddus pulled his trigger with glee, adding to the violent barrage.

Quasar was clearly in pain, but she managed to stand and raise an energy barrier, shielding herself from the assault. Snarling, she took to the air again and fired power beams from both arms, sending two of the hunters crashing into large trees. They landed at the bases of the trunks, unmoving.

The other hunters fired wildly at her, but she moved through the air like she’d been born to it, smashing her energized fists into another hunter, burying him in the snow. Without even looking, she blasted another man behind her and grabbed yet another’s weapon as he closed on her, and broke it in half over her knee. She punched the surprised hunter so hard that he spun a hundred and eighty degrees and collapsed onto the snow-dusted ground.

Quasar quickly turned and hit the second-to-last hunter with what could only be described as a ‘rope’ of energy that lashed out from the Quantum Band on her left hand. It caught the snarling man in his face and sent him snapping back into the shadow of a large tree.

Turning slowly, she faced off against Kraddus, her breathing slow and steady. She’d fought all kind of intergalactic threats since taking on the mantle of Quasar, but this conflict felt particularly satisfying. She’d always despised those who preyed on the weak and innocent.

The Chitauri leveled his weapon, aiming it between her eyes as she walked calmly towards him. At this range, he was confident he could blow the interloper’s head clear off, despite her seeming resistance to the earlier attacks.

“Go ahead,” she said, her right eye glowing, “Do your w—Arrrrrgh!”

A bolt of pain exploded inside Phyla-Vell’s head, making her see literal stars and a very specific planet. The pain was so intense that she fell to her knees and blinked rapidly, trying to clear the unexpected images out of her mind.

“You must reach him before they do,” a voice intoned within her mind.

She was vaguely aware of the hunter placing the muzzle of his weapon against her temple, but she was unable to do anything about it. Waves of dizziness and nausea racked her body as the images pulsed in and out of her brain. It was almost as if it was a message, an SOS, repeating itself over and over again.

“I’d make more if I brought you in alive,” Kraddus said through a cruel grin, “but I’m going to enjoy killing you so much that it’s more than worth it.”

Just as he started to pull the trigger, a green boot came flying out of nowhere and smashed into his face, throwing him to the ground. His weapon slipped out of his hands and landed nearby.

“What now?!” he shouted, wiping yellow blood from his mouth.

Another woman stood between him and Quasar, dressed all in green, her bald head gleaming softly in the little light that made its way through the gently swaying branches overhead.

“Heather…?” Phyla-Vell whispered, confused, unsure if this was part of the hallucinations that were playing out in her mind.

Kraddus grabbed for his weapon and brought it to bear as quickly as possible. “I don’t know who you are, ‘Heather,’ but I’m sure you will fetch a pretty penny on the slavers’ block.”

“I am Moondragon,” she answered, dodging the hunter’s attack, and leveling him with a nasty right hook, sending him back down to the ground a final time. “And I fetch for no man.”

Heather Douglas stood for a moment, surveying her surroundings. All the hunters were clearly unconscious, but she reached out telepathically to confirm that none were about to wake up. Satisfied, she quickly made her way to Quasar’s side, her knee crunching small sticks and snow as she knelt.

“Phyla, are you okay? Talk to me.”

Quasar blinked rapidly as the images finally started to fade.

“I… I don’t know what just happened. Something invaded my mind during the battle,” she said, allowing Moondragon to help her to her feet. “Whatever it was, it almost got me killed.”

“May I?” Heather asked.

Phyla-Vell nodded. Though they were as close as two people could be, they had agreed early in their relationship that Moondragon would never peer into her mind without her express permission.

Heather placed her hand on Quasar’s cheek, more an act of tenderness than a necessity to unlock her telepathic powers, and gently probed.

“Strange,” she muttered. “I don’t recognize that planet, but I know exactly who spoke to you.” She withdrew her mind from Phyla-Vell’s. “It was the High Evolutionary.”

“Seriously?” Quasar said, starting to feel like herself again. “What is he doing, sending me messages? I mean, I know he’s constantly playing dice with the universe, so to speak. But why me? Why now?”

“I... do not know,” Moondragon responded. “But I sense no deception in the message. Something is happening. And he needs our help. I just wish I knew where he was trying to send you.”

“That’s the easy part. That planet I saw was Morag IV.” She stared down at the Quantum Bands, which glowed softly. “I’m still getting used to these, but I think you’re right. Those images aren’t random. I suspect something important is happening there… or is going to happen.” The bands pulsed brighter, as if responding to her words. “I know we came here for some peace and quiet after everything we’ve both been through. But we’re needed on Morag, Heather. I just don’t know why, or what dangers we might face.”

Heather took Phyla-Vell’s hand in her own.

“Based on what I saw in your mind, what the High Evolutionary said, I agree,” Moondragon replied. “I sense that there is someone there who needs our help. Whatever it is, we’ll face it together. But first, let’s drop these hunters off at the local authorities. If I was a betting woman, I’d guess that these are wanted men somewhere in the galaxy.”

Quasar smiled and began gathering the men up in an energy sphere while Moondragon made short work of their weapons, smashing them into so much garbage, which Phyla-Vell then incinerated.

Despite the sunlight that peeked down through the leaves and the sound of the now-safe frost minx skittering in the distance, Phyla-Vell couldn’t shake the imagery that echoed in her mind. Something big was on the horizon, something that she suspected could threaten every living thing in the universe.

CHAPTER THREE

THE CAPITAL CITY OF HALA—SEVERAL MINUTES EARLIER

STAR-LORD NODDED his head, satisfied.

Glancing over at the Kree soldiers, who still stared into the sky with blank expressions, he laughed and took a step closer to them. “It’s okay, Tur-Van, you’re allowed to celebrate now.”

None of the Kree soldiers celebrated or indicated that they’d even heard Peter. However, Tur-Van’s eyes suddenly widened.

“Quill…” he uttered, his voice barely more than a whisper.

Peter felt his smile fading as he looked up, just in time to witness one of the sentries smashing into a Kree airship, both exploding in a massive fireball. After a moment, the sound of the crash reached the ground.

“What happened?!” Peter shouted at Tur-Van.

The lead Kree soldier flipped open his control module again, and his face quickly went dark. “I’m completely locked out!” He looked up at his fellow soldiers and nodded pointedly as debris began raining down around them. They understood his silent command and scrambled in an orderly fashion, their training kicking in immediately.

“This… This isn’t possible,” Peter said, looking at the device he had created to initiate the defense grid upload. The screen, which should have been full of data, was blank. “What the hell?” He smacked it against his palm, but the rudimentary fix had no effect. He looked over at Daystar.

“I need you to remove the Galadorian programming from the Kree network immediately! I don’t know if that was just a onetime error, but we can’t—”

“There was no error,” Daystar interrupted coldly.

“What are you talking about, ‘no error?’ Didn’t you see what just…”

Peter’s words trailed off as he looked at the Space Knights, at the subtle difference in their posture since before the explosion. And their eyes. Their eyes were now practically swimming with what looked like living technology.

“You,” he spat. “You did this. But why?”

In response, the Space Knights began to flank around Quill, who quickly pulled a communicator out of his inside jacket pocket.

“Ronan! We’ve been double-crossed by the Space Knights! Shut it down! Shut it all down!”

Daystar’s metal hand wrapped around Peter’s fingers and crushed, the communicator splintering into pieces. Blood ran down Quill’s arm and he screamed in agony, his brain cycling through his next steps despite the pain.

“Free will is the error,” the metal voice intoned. “You and every other living being will join us. Or die.”

“Sounds kinda boring. I’ll pass,” Peter hissed through the pain, quickly unholstering his laser pistol and shooting Daystar directly in the face. The cyborg stumbled back, releasing Quill’s hand, and Star-Lord rolled away, blasting another Space Knight as he made it back to his feet.

“Tur-Van!” he shouted at the Kree warrior. “Target the Space Knights! Maybe if we take them out now, we can avoid any more casualties!”

Tur-Van and his Kree warriors began firing on the Galadorians, but the Space Knights had already started firing on anyone who resisted.

“Destroy any that will not join us of their own free will,” Daystar commanded.

“Processing,” the other Space Knights said in unison, continuing the carnage.

Quill barreled through the firefight towards the elevator, trying to ignore the throbbing pain in his left hand, shooting the Space Knights when he could get a clear shot. Based on what he was witnessing, he would be outnumbered in a matter of minutes.

A series of explosions above him halted his progress for a moment and he looked up.

“My god…” he uttered.

The sentries were destroying Kree ships en masse now, violent fireballs lighting up the sky as if it were a firework display.

Looking back down, Peter grimaced as he watched Daystar mow down Tur-Van, the Kree’s eyes making contact with Peter’s before closing in unconsciousness.

In a surprising moment of silence during this sudden warzone, all the Space Knights turned and faced Star-Lord, their hands glowing with deadly energy.

“Yeah, no thanks,” Peter said, then slammed through the stairwell door, deciding he didn’t want to risk his life by getting into a magnetically supported elevator.

As Quill raced down the steps, shaking his left hand, thanking whatever gods were watching that it had already stopped bleeding and that none of the bones were broken, he chuckled mirthlessly to himself.

“I guess that vacation is gonna have to wait…”

*   *   *

STAR-LORD BURST out on the ground floor, out of breath, laser pistol held in front of him. Sweat ran down the back of his neck and he blinked against the light of Hala’s suns, which blazed even brighter than when he’d been on top of the building just minutes earlier.

He hid in a small nook in the facade and inhaled huge gulping breaths, taking in everything around him while he recovered.

The streets of Hala, which only a little while earlier had been in pristine condition, the result of generations of cooperation and governmental spending, were covered in rubble and dead bodies. Dogfights continued to scream overhead but just a glance up confirmed Quill’s worst fears: the Kree ships were losing, and losing badly. To their own robotic troops.

Peter took a deep breath—what must have been pure adrenaline making him feel at the top of his game, at least temporarily—and ran out into the maze of concrete. He still wasn’t sure what the Space Knights were doing, what possible motive they could have, but he knew he had to get off the planet and reconvene with Ronan. And then hopefully get the hell out of this star system. He’d had more than his fill of battles lately.

*   *   *

AFTER A few relatively uneventful minutes, Peter was stopped in his tracks by the sound of someone calling his name. Weakly, but nearby.

He crouched down low, like he’d been doing repeatedly, just in case a rogue sentry suddenly showed up, then quickly and quietly searched for the voice. After another minute, he found it. Part of him wished he hadn’t.

“Ten-Cor!” he yelled, a strained sound, since he was both trying to contain his voice but also unable to control his emotions.

Ten-Cor lay on the ground, her body half buried in rubble, blue blood leaking out the side of her mouth. As Quill approached, she gave him a weak smile, which he tried to mirror. His stomach twisted painfully as he kneeled next to her, started pulling rubble off her.

“You must be… very excited about that… vacation,” she managed to say between pained grimaces.

“I am… and you’re coming with me,” he said, that dumb smile still plastered on his face. He felt like an idiot, helpless, but he kept pulling jagged pieces of concrete off her body.

She placed her hand against his face and he felt its fading warmth, fought back tears. He’d learned a long time ago that tears never helped in life-and-death situations.

“It’s okay,” she barely whispered, breathless. “I have to go now. But I’ll… I’ll see you soon, Peter Qui…”

She didn’t finish her sentence, her final word falling away into nothingness, and her hand fell away from his cheek, her face going slack, eyes lifeless.

“Damn it,” Peter whispered, then closed her eyes. “I’m sorry, Ten-Cor. I’m going to make someone pay for this.”

He stood, didn’t look at her again, couldn’t, and dashed off into the growing shadows of an increasingly chaotic day—and a deeply ravaged city.

*   *   *

STAR-LORD COULDN’T believe his eyes.

The sentries had destroyed every single Kree ship in the planet’s atmosphere and were now flying in formation towards the capital’s main power generator. Below them, the city burned.

There were way more sentries than Star-Lord had ever remembered seeing. Where had they come from? The other quadrants where they sometimes worked as protectors? Had the Space Knights built more themselves? After what Peter had seen today, anything seemed possible.

Quill wiped the seemingly never-ending sweat from his forehead and watched from his position in the shadowy room with its huge windows. This massive suite, at the top of a military building, had once been an opulent location for the Kree’s many celebrations following any number of victories. Now, it was dark and empty except for overturned tables and chairs, multiple windows cracked or shattered entirely. But it gave Peter a bird’s-eye view of everything that was happening.

Thankfully, there were no Kree citizens on the streets anymore. He hoped the survivors of the initial assault had found safety in some of the small towns that surrounded the city, or had even made it off-planet. He needed to start thinking about doing the same thing. But first, he wanted to find out what the hell the sentries were doing. And where were the Space Knights? He hadn’t seen one in at least an hour. This fact probably should have given him comfort, but it just made him even more nervous than he already had been.

Outside, the sentries continued to mass together above the power generator, huge jags of electricity shooting into the sky through and around them. Quill had to look away several times as the brightness of the energy bursts increased.

As more and more of the robots came together, Peter had a sudden realization.

They were fusing together. Building something.

“This is impossible,” he whispered to no one.

Despite their incredible size, strength and battle capabilities, the sentries were relatively simple machines by Kree standards. Their existing technology would never allow them to do what he was clearly witnessing.

Their existing technology.

Maybe the Space Knights gave them an upgrade, he thought, shaking his head in disgust and wonder.

The sentries continued to merge as Peter watched, exhausted and helpless.

After a few more minutes, he realized the sentries were collectively forming a tower above the power generator, one that stretched so far into the sky that he couldn’t even see the top anymore. Energy radiated up from its newly formed walls, continuing to throw off massive bolts of electricity into the air. He was forced to look away again but tried to keep his eyes on what was happening, knew that something very bad was occurring right in front of him.

Finally, the last of the sentries joined the tower and the energy blasts slowed, and then stopped altogether. It grew eerily quiet on Hala.

“This can’t be good,” Quill said.

As if in response, a colossal shock wave, seemingly brighter than the Kree suns themselves, burst outwards, bathing the city in a strange glow but also shooting up and into space, and in uncountable directions.

What was left of the windows in front of Star-Lord burst inwards, slicing him open in multiple spots. He screamed and fell to the floor, dragging himself to safety behind one of the overturned tables, streaks of blood spreading out on the floor behind him.

Grunting, he ripped parts of his new clothes into shreds and pressed the cloth against the worst of his wounds. Luckily, the broken glass had missed all his arteries.

“Nope. Not good at all.”

CHAPTER FOUR

HEMPSTEAD, NEW YORK, EARTH—AROUND THE SAME TIME

RICHARD RIDER carefully hid his peas beneath the pile of mashed potatoes.

Even though he was in his twenties, whenever he was around his parents, especially back here in this house, he felt like a little kid again. It was somehow both awesome and terrible at the same time.

“I see you,” his mom said, not even looking at him. Across the table, his father chuckled and placed a forkful of peas into his own mouth, smiling at his son as he did so.

Richard laughed, too. He’d been attempting this same trick his entire life and had not once been successful. He grimaced and picked a single pea off his plate, forcing it down his throat followed by a giant gulp of milk.

“Gloria, our son has saved the universe more than once. I think he’s allowed to go a night without vegetables.”

“Charles, even the great and mighty Nova needs his greens,” she countered, levelling a loving stare at her husband. “I hear that Thor eats broccoli with every meal.”

“Oh my god,” Richard said, laughing again. It felt good to laugh after what he’d been through. He hadn’t seen his parents in months, had been in outer space dealing with a series of intergalactic threats and had barely made it out alive. He’d also witnessed the deaths of the rest of the Nova Corps—all of them—and was now the last living Nova. The entire history and knowledge of Xandar, the Nova Corps’ home world, was now his constant companion in the form of the Worldmind artificial intelligence. Since the death of the Corps, Richard had been pushing himself harder than ever, trying to prove himself worthy. But now? He was beyond exhausted. He needed bad jokes from his mom more than ever.

“There is no way Thor eats broccoli. He’s more of a leg of mutton and flagon of ale kind of guy.”

“Speaking of which, have the Avengers invited you to be on the team yet?” his father asked, raising an eyebrow. It was a question he asked often, sometimes as a joke, sometimes not. This time seemed to fall into the latter category. “They really could use someone with your speed and power. In fact, just the other day, I was telling Mr. Zito that…”

A loud noise from outside, like a muffled explosion followed by a slight tremor in the floor, caught their attention and Charles’s words trailed off into confused silence.

“Get somewhere safe. Now,” Richard whispered, grabbing his star-adorned helmet from where it waited on the seat next to him, like a very quiet dinner guest, and placing it on his head. His consciousness instantly connected with the Xandarian Worldmind and his battle armor began unfolding itself onto his body, the three energy plates on his chest immediately pulsing with power.

“Richard… what… what’s happening?” Gloria asked as she and Charles backed towards the living room and the basement stairs. Richard knew they had a panic room down there—knew because he and his parents had built it together shortly after he had been given the powers of the Nova Corps by a dying alien. Just in case.

Richard opened his parents’ front door and walked through, eyes narrowing at what he found standing on his childhood front lawn.

It was Garthan Saal. A former Nova who had, at one time, also hosted the Worldmind, and had gone insane with grief and power. Richard had heard that Garthan had possibly died during an attack on Xandar, but was relieved to see that wasn’t the case.

Saal had fluctuated for years between doing the right thing and crossing the line into questionable behavior. Based on the anger on Garthan’s face and his glowing hands, Richard suspected the former Nova wasn’t here to join them for dinner.

“Garthan!” Richard said, forcing a smile onto his face. Whatever was happening here, he wanted to de-escalate it immediately. His parents were probably safe in the basement, but he didn’t want to take any chances. “I’m so happy to see you. I thought you were dead.”

“More like you wished I was dead,” Saal hissed back. He wore no helmet, and his Nova Corps uniform had been altered, either intentionally or otherwise—now looking battle-damaged and somehow deeply troubling.

Richard kept his breathing even. “What are you doing here? Is everything okay? Anything I can do to help?”

“Everything is not okay, Rider! I have been trying to catch up with you since the destruction of the Corps. You do not deserve to be the host of the Worldmind! Only I am worthy!”

Saal quickly raised his hand and Nova was pummeled by a powerful burst of energy.

Luckily, the attack sent Nova into the street, rather than into his parents’ house, and he counted his meager blessings as he got back to his feet as fast as possible.

He quickly accessed the Worldmind’s scanning capabilities as Garthan began to run towards him, and read the data that showed up directly in front of his eyes.

Saal’s energy levels were higher than seemed possible. If the former Corpsman truly had been following Richard around the cosmos since the destruction of Xander, who knew what kind of upgrades he’d given himself.

“Worldmind, call S.H.I.E.L—” he started to say as Garthan suddenly rushed at him, faster than he expected, and slammed a fist directly into his face, sending him flying farther down the street and into a fire hydrant—which immediately ruptured and shot water into the air, and all over Richard.

“Great. Mr. Manne’s dog loves that hydrant,” he groaned, wiping blood from his mouth. “He’s going to kill me if I survive this.”

Nova quickly blasted what was left of the hydrant, sealing the metal and stopping the flow of water, and then took to the sky, feeling the frustration and anger building. He hadn’t had a home-cooked meal, let alone a home-cooked meal with his parents, in forever. And his dad had even made his favorite meal (except for the peas). Garthan Saal had crossed a line.

Hovering several dozen feet in the air, Richard unleashed a blistering blast of energy at his enemy, snarling as he did so. In the past, this amount of power had dispatched more than its fair share of opponents.

The powerful beam encased Saal and everything around him, creating a cloud of pulverized concrete and dirt. When Richard was convinced the former Nova had to be defeated, he let up with his attack and watched as the cloud settled and began to dissipate.

A loud voice suddenly ripped into his mind, and he nearly doubled over in pain from the psychic invasion.

“Richard Rider. You are needed. Come to me. Now.”

And then it was gone.

As a rattled Nova attempted to regain his wits, Garthan suddenly shot up through the dust and into the sky, and slammed directly into Richard’s solar plexus, knocking the wind out of him and pushing them both higher into the atmosphere and the diminishing sunlight of evening.

Richard struggled to catch his breath as Garthan grappled with him, mumbling angrily and getting his hands around Nova’s arms and back, and squeezing almost instantaneously. Richard’s already ragged breath suddenly vanished altogether, and he quickly started seeing stars as they rose higher into the air, the oxygen in both his lungs and the space around him diminishing rapidly.

I am not going out like this, said a voice inside his brain, though it sounded far off, and he wondered if it wouldn’t be easier to just go to sleep.

“No!” he shouted, intense energy erupting from the three circular plates in his chest armor, and he threw his arms out with all the strength he had, breaking Garthan’s grip. He could feel the rage pulsing through his body.

Nova grabbed his enemy’s arm and flew in a lightning-fast circle, evading desperate blows from the disoriented Saal. The helmeted warrior spun faster and faster, and at the apogee of the spin, he hurled Garthan back towards the Earth at blinding speed.

Richard shook his head and watched as the former Nova hurtled downwards, attempting to halt his descent and fly back up towards his enemy.

“Nope. Not happening,” Richard said through gritted teeth, and rocketed down towards his adversary.

Just as Saal was starting to take control of his direction, Nova slammed into him, fists first, and sped towards the ground. Every instinct in his body told him to slow down, that he was about to commit very painful suicide. He shut those warnings off and increased his speed.

“You don’t... deserve the Worldmind...” Garthan managed to say as the ground grew closer and closer.

On some level, Richard suspected Saal was right, which made him speed up even more.

The two combatants hit the ground with what felt like the force of a megaton bomb, shattering glass for miles in every direction. The road’s concrete broke apart and went flying, fragments finding purchase in trees, homes, and anything else that stood in their way.

Slowly, the chaos settled, and silence asserted itself on the scene. All was still for several minutes.

A blue-and-yellow gloved hand rose from the giant hole that now adorned the small town’s main street. Richard pulled himself up and collapsed on the road which he had driven since he was sixteen years old.

“Ow,” he murmured, staring up at the bright blue sky.

After a moment, he clambered to his feet and looked back down into the hole. Garthan Saal was unconscious but alive.

There wasn’t another human in sight, so Richard quickly accessed the Worldmind and did a thermal search. It didn’t look like anyone had been killed or even injured by the superhuman crash. A small miracle.

I’ll take any miracles I can get, he thought.

The Worldmind suddenly spoke, the sound filling his helmet.

“S.H.I.E.L.D. agents are en route and will arrive in six minutes. Garthan Saal is uninjured other than superficial wounds, and will not regain consciousness for eighteen minutes.”