The flames gradually died down. The explosions faded.
Quill and Gamora slowly lifted their heads.
The grand exhibition hall was gone.
What remained looked like the aftermath of a full-scale war—ruined display cases, collapsed structures, scorched floors. Not a single section remained intact.
Except for one thing.
An ice-blue wall.
And Karl standing calmly behind it.
The wall was riddled with cracks, spiderweb fractures running across its surface as though it might shatter at any second—yet it had held. It had absorbed the full force of the Power Stone's detonation.
Quill and Gamora stared in disbelief.
One moment, perfection.
The next, devastation.
And Karl had blocked it—unharmed.
Karl gave a casual wave of his hand.
The ice wall shattered instantly into countless glittering shards that drifted through the air like crystalline snow. A cool wave of frost rolled outward, clearing the haze and steadying everyone's rattled senses.
He stepped forward and firmly reassembled the Orb's casing around the exposed Power Stone.
This was not something anyone should be touching barehanded.
He tossed the Orb back to Quill and walked out of the ruined chamber. Gamora and Quill hurried after him.
"I actually thought the Collector might be capable of handling it," Gamora muttered. "Looks like even he got blown who-knows-where."
Rocket and Groot rushed over. Rocket looked on the verge of a breakdown.
"You're still carrying that thing? In that tiny little bag?!" he screeched.
Gamora frowned. "We can't just leave it lying around. What if someone else opens it?"
"Quill had it stuffed in his backpack!" Rocket shouted. "We were basically living with a nuclear bomb!"
"I think we should give it to the Nova Corps," Karl said evenly. "They might be able to contain it."
Rocket snapped back instantly. "Are you kidding? We're on their most-wanted list! That's not containment—that's surrender!"
"No matter what," Gamora said firmly, "Ronan cannot have it. I agree with Karl. We take it to Xandar."
Quill slowly placed his hand over the Orb again.
"Or," he said smoothly, "we find someone rich, morally flexible, and generous enough to pay us a massive sum—"
Karl kicked him squarely in the backside.
Quill yelped and flew forward.
"Incorrigible," Karl muttered. "This is a catastrophe in anyone's hands. It belongs with a power strong enough to defend it—and disciplined enough not to abuse it."
He knew exactly what the Power Stone could do.
Even Thanos would wipe out Xandar to claim it.
The Nova Corps might not be invincible—but among galactic powers, they were one of the few stable enough to guard it without immediately trying to conquer the universe.
Asgard already housed two Stones.
Adding a third would only paint a larger target on their realm.
Xandar was the better choice.
---
Suddenly, Gamora looked up.
A fleet of Kree troop carriers descended from the sky.
"How the hell did Ronan find us?"
On the ground nearby, Drax stood roaring triumphantly, blades in hand.
He had summoned him.
Quill groaned. "You called him here?!"
The troop ships landed.
Ronan emerged first.
Nebula followed closely behind.
"Where is Gamora?!" Nebula demanded sharply.
At the same time, another familiar ship appeared—Yondu's.
Quill saw him and immediately bolted.
"Run!"
They sprinted toward a cluster of docked mining vessels.
Quill, Gamora, Rocket, and Groot split across three small engineering ships and launched.
On the ground, only Karl and a visibly exhilarated Drax remained.
"Gamora has the Orb!" Nebula barked as she spotted the escaping ships. "After them!"
She returned to her fighter and took off in pursuit.
Ronan turned to board his ship as well.
Drax roared and charged.
He lunged, blade aimed for Ronan's throat.
Ronan dipped smoothly, seized Drax's arm mid-strike, and drove a crushing fist into his chest.
Drax slammed to the ground.
He staggered up immediately and attacked again.
Ronan evaded every strike effortlessly.
Then both hands struck Drax squarely in the chest with overwhelming force.
Drax was hurled through the wall of a nearby structure, disappearing in a cloud of debris.
---
In the sky above, Nebula locked onto one of the fleeing mining ships.
Unsure which vessel carried Gamora—
She decided to destroy them all.
Kree fighters opened fire.
Green energy blasts streaked through the air.
The three mining ships were unarmed—but small and agile. They wove through the barrage with surprising skill.
Gamora piloted hers through an impossibly narrow gap between industrial structures.
Her pursuers followed—
Too confidently.
One Kree ship clipped the opening.
It detonated in a brilliant explosion.
"Rocket! Cover me!" Quill shouted over comms as he veered sharply toward another vessel.
Below, Ronan stood amidst the wreckage.
Karl hovered calmly a short distance away, watching.
The real battle had only just begun.
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