On the outskirts of N52 Star, within the Skrull Empire fleet, the leading general gazed at the planet on the screen, his eyes flickering. He had considered the possibility of his capable subordinate, Magma, failing, but he never imagined Magma would perish during this mission.
And all of this was because of someone on this planet.
"General Augus, according to the information extracted from Magma's mind, the one who kidnapped Astra this time is named Beckett, from the Centaurus Galaxy."
"Beckett? Centaurus Galaxy? Thanos's Centaurus Galaxy?"
Augus, with his hands behind his back, turned around, a hint of confusion in his voice. The Centaurus Galaxy was quite far from N52 Star, and also far from Tofa.
"Yes, this Beckett is indeed Son of Thanos."
The general, having gained a general understanding of Beckett's identity from Magma's memories, frowned, unsure of how to proceed for a moment.
He had initially thought it was just some reckless space pirate causing trouble, but the reality now told him it wasn't; it was the son of a renowned overlord in the universe.
"General, Thanos's influence is vast. If he—"
"There are no 'ifs'," the general interrupted his adjutant before he could finish.
"His Thanos's reach doesn't extend this far. This isn't some backyard he can freely enter and exit," Augus snorted, his words filled with confidence in the Skrull Empire's military might.
So what if he was Son of Thanos? He could simply pretend not to know. The secrets on Astra were something only the Skrulls deserved to possess.
"General, news from the Kree." The comms officer's reminder made Augus frown. Immediately, a blue-skinned Kree appeared on the large screen – his old rival, Accuser Dudek.
"It's quite rare, you actually contacting me proactively?"
"Augus, this is not a place you should be," Dudek said calmly on the screen, wiping the warhammer in his hand.
"Isn't that warhammer Rob's? How did it end up in your hands? Oh, I remember now, Rob is dead." Facing his long-time rival, Augus wouldn't show weakness. He unhesitatingly brought up the scar in Dudek's heart – Rob's death.
"Astra is Kree, not Skrull."
"This is simple, let our people see him. I promise, we won't take him away."
"...Why do you know about Astra?"
"Who knows? Perhaps your scientist got drunk and blabbed it himself."
"You—"
"Eliminate his signal, now." When words fail, silence is golden. Too lazy to bicker further with Accuser Dudek, Augus waved his hand, removing the annoying face from his sight.
Who did he think he was? Where did he think he was?
After all these years, he still hadn't changed that condescending bad habit.
"General, a communication signal from N52 Planet. It's been detected as Diana."
Is it here?
Hearing the name, Augus's face broke into a smile. What was the purpose of his massive fleet's advance?
It was precisely to make the Kree hesitant and to make the seven lunatics on N52 Planet believe there was room for negotiation.
"Connect."
...
"Your Highness Beckett, Woz only managed to intercept the last part of the signal." On N52 Star, in Diana's manor, Beckett, who had directly taken over Diana's throne, tapped his index finger on the armrest, signaling Woz, standing beside The Other, to begin decoding.
"If you want to live, then bring that Kree named Astra to me."
A deep, hoarse voice came from the decoded communication channel. After saying this, there was no further sound.
"That's Augus's voice!!!"
Astra, wearing the custom green helmet made by Woz and sitting idly on the ground, suddenly stood up.
He heard the voice of his enemy, the culprit who killed his parents in the L77 Star war a hundred years ago!
"You know him?" Beckett raised an eyebrow upon hearing this and looked towards Astra, whose face had turned grim.
"Augus, one of the Skrull Empire's generals. Magma was his subordinate and the mastermind behind the destruction of the L77 Star Kree fleet." Perhaps because it involved hatred, Astra, uncharacteristically, showed no erratic emotions at this moment.
Beckett understood, and the sound of his right index finger tapping the throne's armrest was jarringly loud in the empty hall.
"I've already spoken with the other six, and they've agreed to activate the Babel Tower plan."
A voice approaching from a distance interrupted Beckett's thoughts. Diana, in a wine-red long dress, swayed her hips as she walked into the hall. Astra, standing to the side, no longer had a cold gaze; his previous hatred had completely dissipated, leaving only admiration for her.
Diana was very pleased.
Although Beckett was unromantic, his prey clearly understood how to appreciate her charm.
"Tonight, we will control all the thrusters on N52 Planet through the seven Babel Towers. Then, it will be up to you, Your Highness Beckett." Mimicking The Other's address, Diana lowered her stance considerably.
Once this plan succeeded, they would be able to completely leave this detestable battlefield, and their lives would no longer be threatened. But the prerequisite was that Beckett, as the navigator, could withstand the snipers from the two great empires and buy enough buffer time for N52 Planet to change its orbit.
"No, wait a minute, I have a question."
"If time is this tight, what about the others on N52 Planet?" Astra, snapping out of his enchantment, mulled over Beckett's previous words and moved towards Diana.
"Them? My dear, they are all a bunch of irredeemable scoundrels. Do you still want to worry about their lives?"
Upon hearing this, Diana acted as if she had heard a funny joke. She didn't push away Astra, who was getting closer, but instead reached out to tidy his slightly disheveled clothes.
The entire N52 Planet, every single inhabitant, had blood on their hands, especially in that bat's jurisdiction.
"I hope you remember, dear, that those people are burdened with more sins than can be counted."
"To burn their lives for the future of this planet is the only contribution they can make."
Now, everyone on the N52 Planet was under the surveillance of two great empires. Diana would not expose the Babel Tower plan to the gaze of the two empires just to save these people.
"Since that's the case, then it's settled." Beckett rose from his throne and, right before Diana's eyes, put on the silver-white bracelet again.
"Take them to the only place they can seek refuge: the Babel Tower."
Beckett glanced coldly at Diana, and his figure disappeared from the spot the next second. The surging winds tore at Diana's skirt, catching Astra's eye and causing him to whistle involuntarily.
"Let's go, I'll take you to the only place you can seek refuge: the Babel Tower."
Diana paid no mind to her torn skirt and called out to The Other, who was staring blankly in the direction of the door.
Thanks to [Mo Luo Chang] for the tip~
One update today, I'll continue editing images tonight and resume two updates tomorrow~
My poor drafts were all used up during the fire safety training the other day, sob sob
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