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The Transporter Room.
More formally known as the Matter Transporter, it was one of the Enterprise's most iconic pieces of black tech. And there was no close second.
It could deconstruct a living being into an energy beam, transmit that energy to a predetermined coordinate, and reassemble them flawlessly. It was the absolute pinnacle of science fiction.
And since Hawk had perfectly manifested the Enterprise, naturally, he had manifested the Transporter Room as well.
It was a sleek, circular room that screamed 'future.'
In the center sat the transporter pad, a raised circular platform consisting of six individual transport pads.
"Enterprise."
"Sir."
Hawk led Gwen onto the platform. Once they were in position, he waited for Gamora to step onto a pad as well, then gave the order.
"Energize."
"Acknowledged."
VMMMMM!
With the classic, resonant hum of the transporter engaging, sparkling motes of light began to swirl around them. In an instant, the three figures on the platform dissolved into pure, shimmering energy.
The next second—
The motes of light materialized in the courtyard of Ego's palace, rapidly reassembling into their physical forms.
Gwen materialized, instinctively raising her hands and turning them over, inspecting herself. Then, she looked at Hawk with wide, amazed eyes.
"That was incredible. It felt like... magic."
"Want to go again?"
Hawk looked at his wife, whose eyes were shining with excitement, and offered a fond smile.
Gwen laughed and shook her head. "No, I'm good." She then turned her attention to the landscape, taking in the bizarre, alien beauty of the planet, so different from Xandar.
Massive clusters of iridescent crystals rose from the ground like a towering, petrified forest.
In the distance, waterfalls made of what looked like pure, liquid energy tumbled silently down cliffs, flowing into rivers that shimmered with an inner light.
As far as the eye could see, the vegetation and the forests were a kaleidoscope of vibrant, impossible colors.
"It's beautiful here."
"The planet we build together will be even more beautiful."
Hawk promised, his eyes fixed solely on her.
Their eyes met.
Gwen looked into Hawk's eyes, seeing her own reflection in his unwavering gaze, and her smile grew even brighter.
"I know."
"..."
Standing a few feet away, Gamora, who had beamed down with them but was now being treated like empty air, felt a violent shudder run down her spine. The sheer, overwhelming sweetness of their interaction was giving her goosebumps.
'I should be underground, not standing here witnessing this.'
Fortunately!
Just as Gamora was trying to decide whether to walk away or clear her throat, Ego's egg-shaped ship broke through the atmosphere and descended smoothly onto a nearby landing pad.
Star-Lord, rushing out of the ship, saw Gamora already waiting and ran over.
"Gamora, how did you guys..."
"Don't ask."
Gamora let out a massive sigh of relief as Peter approached. She quickly closed the distance between them, her face set in a mask of serious, deliberate ignorance.
Ego, playing the role of the gracious, sophisticated host, stepped out of his ship.
"Mrs. Phoenix. Well? Does the scenery of my world make the trip worthwhile?"
"It's very beautiful, Mr. Ego."
"Thank you." Ego accepted the compliment with a refined nod, then gestured for the group to follow him toward the exquisite, uniquely designed palace in the distance.
The interior of the palace was just as magnificent as the exterior.
In a word:
Opulent.
In two words:
Excessively opulent.
"I don't know where I came from."
"My earliest memory is of simply... being. A flickering consciousness, drifting alone in the vast, empty cosmos..."
As Ego led them through a series of sweeping, egg-shell-shaped dioramas, he narrated his origin story. The group—excluding Hawk and Gwen, who were hanging back—learned that Ego was a 'Celestial,' and listened to the tragic, romanticized tale of how he and Star-Lord's mother had met, fallen in love, and conceived their child.
Finally, Ego, eager to show off his handiwork, led Star-Lord away to see the monument he had built in honor of Meredith Quill.
As for the others...
Hawk didn't care what they were doing. He took Gwen and headed straight for the guest quarters Ego had prepared for them, a suite decorated with the planet's unique, crystalline aesthetic.
Gwen walked out onto the balcony, looking out over the landscape. Suddenly, something caught her eye. Without turning around, she called out to Hawk.
Hawk walked up behind her, wrapped his arms around her waist, and rested his chin on her shoulder. He followed her gaze.
In the distance.
He saw Star-Lord standing in front of a crystal statue of a woman. And in Star-Lord's hands, a glowing ball of pure white energy—a 'Rasengan' of Celestial light—was forming. Standing opposite him, Ego's face was twisted in a mask of barely contained, manic excitement.
It made sense that Ego was ecstatic.
After all, acting like a cosmic Zeus, he had seeded thousands of children across the galaxy, and Star-Lord was the very first one to actually inherit his Celestial power.
That wasn't just a one-in-a-thousand success rate—it was one in a million.
Hawk watched the scene unfold, a thought crossing his mind. He leaned in and whispered in Gwen's ear.
"Don't worry."
"Hmm?"
Gwen turned her head slightly, giving him a confused look.
Hawk smiled. "Our children will be born Gods."
Gwen let out a soft laugh.
"Shouldn't they be demigods?"
"What do you mean?"
"Their father might be a God, but their mother is just a mortal, isn't she?"
"..."
Hearing her logic, Hawk followed her gaze to the crystal statue of Star-Lord's mother. He understood exactly why she had said it.
But...
Hawk's lips curved into a smirk. "Honey, do you really still think you're just a mortal?"
Gwen turned around in his arms, wrapping her hands around his neck. She blinked, her emerald eyes looking up at him playfully.
"What do you mean? I'm not a mortal?"
"Of course not. If I am a God, then you are my Queen. Odin has Frigga, Zeus has Hera, and I have my Gwen!"
Hawk's smile was radiant, brimming with absolute confidence.
Gwen's smile matched his.
"Frigga is dead, and Hera's husband, Zeus, is a notorious serial cheater. Hawk, what exactly are you trying to say with those comparisons?"
"..."
The smile on Hawk's face froze instantly.
Fuck!
Sloppy.
Gwen watched his panicked, frozen expression, and her smile grew even brighter. The underlying anxiety that had been nagging at her faded away. She lowered her voice, her tone turning gentle. "I'm sorry. I was just thinking about Peter's mom. Ego gave her brain cancer, and now he's lying to Peter's face. I just don't know if Peter will be able to see through it."
Hawk recovered quickly. He pulled her close, burying his face in her hair. "Don't worry. Ego will get exactly what he deserves."
Thanos was just a name.
But Star-Lord? He was a literal father-killer.
To avenge his mother, he would gladly throw away his godhood and slaughter the scumbag Celestial who had betrayed her.
In a word:
Star-Lord had balls!
Hawk thought to himself, holding his wife close. He knew her pregnancy was making her more empathetic, more sensitive to the tragedies of others. He looked out at Star-Lord standing before the statue, and suddenly, a wild idea sprang to mind.
Maybe...
This time, the 'demigod' title can actually live up to the hype?
Hawk's eyebrow arched in silent amusement.
The sun began to set.
Ego's planet was bathed in a warm, orange glow.
Hawk stood on the balcony, quietly holding his new wife.
Meanwhile.
On another balcony nearby.
Star-Lord, still riding the high of discovering his Celestial heritage and reconciling with his father, had walked past Hawk and Gwen's room and seen them embracing. Inspired, he had sought out Gamora on her balcony, hoping for a similar romantic moment.
But unlike the endlessly optimistic Star-Lord, Gamora—who had been raised by Thanos and educated in the art of paranoia and betrayal—was not feeling romantic.
Her unease had only grown stronger since she realized she couldn't contact Rocket.
First, there was Hawk. A being who could traverse the vacuum of space without a suit, who had wiped out a Sovereign drone fleet with a single wave of his hand.
And now, Ego. A man who claimed to be a Celestial God.
The former was manageable.
Gamora might have sensed an overwhelming, unknown power emanating from Hawk and Gwen, mixed with the sickeningly sweet scent of their romance, but she hadn't felt any malice. Not a trace.
But Ego...
For some reason, from the moment she stepped foot on this planet, her intuition was screaming at her that something was horribly wrong.
So...
Lost in her dark thoughts, Gamora accepted Star-Lord's sudden, enthusiastic invitation to dance, but used the opportunity to voice her concerns.
And then...
"Earth... Earth is where I watched my mother die."
"No, you're just saying that because life on Earth was real. And this... this feels like a fantasy."
"This is real. I only have half human blood, remember?"
"It's the other half I'm worried about."
"Oh, I get it. You're jealous because my other half is a god."
"..."
On their own balcony, Hawk and Gwen, who had been enjoying their delayed honeymoon with their eyes closed, wrapped in each other's arms, both opened their eyes.
Hawk's expression was incredibly weird.
Gwen's ears perked up. She focused intently on the argument drifting over from the nearby room, whispering to Hawk.
"Hawk, do you know what the biggest surprise of this entire trip to space has been?"
"No, what?"
"That the entire universe speaks English. That is definitely the biggest surprise."
"Well..."
"Shh!"
Before Hawk could even respond, Gwen shushed him, her attention completely fixed on the final beats of the argument next door.
Hawk watched her, shaking his head with a helpless, fond smile.
If Gwen dedicated even a fraction of the focus she put into eavesdropping on gossip into analyzing her own hearing, she would realize that she was currently demonstrating auditory capabilities far beyond that of a normal human.
After all...
Their suite was on the far left wing of the palace, and Star-Lord and Gamora's room was on the far right.
But!
Watching his wife intently eavesdropping, Hawk decided not to point it out.
He wanted to see how long it would take her to notice it on her own.
Soon.
The argument between Star-Lord and Gamora came to a head. Star-Lord threw out, "I finally found my family, why can't you understand?" and Gamora, dropping her anger for a cold, devastating calm, replied, "You already have a family."
True heartbreak isn't loud or explosive—it's quiet. It's the calm certainty that the other person just doesn't get it.
After delivering that final line, Gamora turned on her heel and walked out of the room, leaving Star-Lord standing alone on the balcony.
Gwen, having absorbed the entire dramatic exchange, blinked and snapped back to her own reality. She looked at Hawk with a profound sense of relief.
"I am so glad we don't fight about stupid things like that."
"When do we ever fight?"
Hawk smiled warmly, then looked into her eyes. "But, do you know what we have to do now?"
Gwen's smile was radiant.
"It's time for you to go to work."
"Exactly."
"Go on. I don't like this place anyway. Get it done, and let's go home."
"Yes, ma'am."
"..."
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