[A subtitle slowly appeared in the sky: 26 years later, the abandoned planet Morag!]
[A small spaceship slowly landed, and a man walked through the strong winds. The climate here was extremely harsh.]
[The man was wearing a mask and looking at the dilapidated buildings in front of him from a distance.]
[He pulled out a holographic projector from his pocket and overlaid the buildings that had existed here before the abandonment.]
[Then the projector showed how people had lived here before it was abandoned, displaying the planet's former glory.]
[In the projection, Star-Lord quickly found the target he was searching for and approached a ruined palace.]
[He walked in slowly and pressed the switch behind his ear. The mask on his head retracted, revealing his face.]
"Is that you, Quill?" Rocket Raccoon screeched, looking from the screen to the man currently piloting their ship with a mix of shock and amusement.
"Yeah, that's me," Quill grumbled, a troubled look clouding his face as he watched his own past play out for the multiverse to see. "This was when I went to Morag to get the Orb." He ran a hand through his hair, annoyed. "This is bad. Now everyone in the galaxy is going to know my face. I'm going to be famous for all the wrong reasons."
"Hahaha! The name 'Guardians of the Galaxy' will soon be known throughout the cosmos!" Drax boomed, his deep, hearty laughter filling the small cockpit.
"You idiot!" Rocket snapped, literally jumping in frustration. "This exposes our every move! They know we have the Power Stone! They know how we operate! This is a tactical nightmare!"
"It doesn't matter," Gamora cut in, her tone serious and steady, silencing the argument. "We can't stop the screen from broadcasting whatever it wants. Our only priority is getting this Infinity Stone to the Avengers on Earth. We need their power to help us deal with Thanos." Her gaze hardened. "And we have to warn them. He's likely heading for the dwarven homeworld, Nidavellir. The Asgardians need to be prepared for an attack."
But Gamora's warning, though prescient, was already too late. Thanos had moved faster than any of them could have imagined. While the Elementals were ravaging Earth, the Mad Titan had descended upon Nidavellir.
Heimdall, Asgard's all-seeing gatekeeper, had his attention fixed solely on Earth during that crisis. The subsequent full-power activation of the Bifrost to send aid had temporarily disrupted the delicate energy balance of the Nine Realms, forcing him to focus all his efforts on stabilizing the Rainbow Bridge. He never saw the attack coming.
The quiet tragedy that befell the dwarves would only be discovered much later, when Thor, seeking to repair his shattered hammer Mjolnir, would find the great forge cold and silent. But for now, that grim future remained unseen.
On Earth, Thor himself was oblivious to the fate of his old allies. He was preoccupied, working with Tony Stark to forge a groundbreaking alliance between Asgard and his adopted home. Tony's vision was ambitious: he wanted to harness Asgard's power to construct a new planetary defense system, one capable of repelling cosmic-level threats. He also hoped to get his hands on their legendary Uru metal, planning to combine it with Vibranium to create a new line of armors far superior to his current models. His final request was for Doctor Strange to enchant the new suits, giving him a fighting chance against the mystical enemies he knew were out there.
In return, Asgard sought Earth's technology. After watching the screen's broadcasts, even Odin, the All-Father, had come to recognize that advanced weaponry and integrated systems could rival the power of gods. The future of his kingdom rested on his shoulders, and while Thor's strength had grown immensely since their last battle, Odin feared it still wasn't enough to definitively defeat Hela. At best, they were evenly matched. Asgard needed more power, and the Avengers were the perfect partners.
[Star-Lord took out his beloved vintage Walkman, put on the headphones, and when the popular songs from the 1980s started playing, his entire demeanor changed immediately.]
[He walked forward with small dance steps, twisting his waist and hips periodically, and he looked genuinely happy.]
[Some small lizard creatures that still inhabited this place noticed the arrival of the outsider and ran towards him with hostile roars, but he danced and kicked them away one by one with rhythmic precision.]
[When he was deeply moved by the music, he even picked up a small lizard that was hissing at him from the rock and used it as a microphone to sing along.]
[After a dance routine that couldn't be more awkward, Star-Lord encountered a chasm that blocked his path. There was a terrifying monster in the pool below, with its mouth open, waiting for him to fall in.]
[He activated the boot jets on his shoes, easily flew over the chasm, and continued to move forward with cheerful dance moves.]
[In front of him, a massive door blocked his way again, but how could this stop the famous Star-Lord in the universe?]
[He took out an object that resembled lipstick and inserted it into the locking mechanism on the door, and easily opened the entrance.]
[Star-Lord looked at the shimmering energy barrier behind the door. Inside was the target of his expedition, the Cosmic Orb!]
[Star-Lord casually took out a luminescent sphere and activated it. The sphere immediately began to glow, illuminating the environment inside the chamber.]
[He placed the sphere on the ground for lighting.]
[At the same time, just as Star-Lord found the Cosmic Orb, another group of uninvited guests arrived at Morag in a small warship.]
[Ronan's pursuer, Korath, walked out of the airship, and beside him were Ronan's fully armed soldiers.]
[Star-Lord knew nothing about this development. He was placing a triangular gravitational device on the ground. The cosmic orb within the energy shield was immediately attracted by it, broke through the energy barrier on its own, and was drawn onto the device.]
[As the Cosmic Orb was extracted, the energy shield automatically resealed. Star-Lord picked it up and just as he turned around, he saw Korath and the others pointing weapons at him.]
[Looking at the unexpected visitors, Star-Lord was momentarily confused, "(⊙o⊙)...Hey!"]
[Korath spoke in the Kree language, and at his command, two of his soldiers quickly rushed forward.]
[Seeing this, Star-Lord immediately threw the Cosmic Orb in his hand to the ground and raised his hands in surrender.]
["Hey! Put it down! Man! Don't fire! There's nothing to worry about here!"]
[Korath picked up the cosmic orb from the ground and demanded, "How do you know about this artifact?"]
[Faced with his question, Star-Lord decisively pretended to be clueless, "How could I know anything about this! I'm just a salvager! I rummage around and pick up scrap everywhere!"]
[But Korath was not so easily fooled. He saw through Star-Lord's clumsy deception immediately.]
["You don't look like a salvager! You're wearing the uniform of a Ravager!"]
[Star-Lord quickly made excuses, "I salvaged this outfit too!"]
[Then he complained to the Kree soldier who had been prodding him: "Blue guy! Can you please stop poking me with that thing!"]
[Korath didn't have time to waste on Star-Lord, and shouted: "What is your name!!!"]
["My name is Peter Quill! Okay? Just calm down, man!"]