Cassius's POV
This hadn't always been my plan from the beginning.
The explosion had been so unanticipated, so surreal. My back was forced into one of the glass cages, which had then showered me with millions of tiny sharp pieces. I was almost crushed by falling debris, and my foot had been temporarily caught between partially demolished materials. I was supposed to run but as soon as I had seen the Orb sitting unsupervised at the table, I had to take it. The metal was cold and smooth in my fingertips, and I traced the patterned details with curiosity.
Sure, I have always wanted the Infinity Stones but I treated the matters as fantasies – nothing more and nothing less. But the situation I was thrown upon was real and it was simple.
I had known about all the Infinity Stones ever since I could read. My parents could have stopped me if they hadn't provided me with the restricted books. They had been so daft and uncaring in my childhood, always treasuring Alenna as if she was perfect. When they had found out about her little fling, they didn't even seem that upset yet when I create petty accidents it's a big deal. But maybe I am an accident myself. They even said so themselves.
The Collector, who was apparently devastated by the damage thrust upon his museum (he lacks facial expression), had caught me escaping with the Stone. I had expected some form of punishment, but instead he offered me help. Before anything else, I asked how he knew of my existence. He answered mysteriously, saying that he and others had been 'expecting' us. What did that mean? I needed to dwell on it later.
I had then been taken to a powerful titan by the name of Thanos. Thanos, known as the Dark Lord by his most loyal underlings and dubbed as the Mad Titan by the galactic communities, is a powerful cosmic warlord who rules over a distant region of space and commands many under his power. Not only did he want the Orb, he wanted me as an assassin under his rule.
He is putting me to the test – if I can destroy the Guardians of the Galaxy, I will be granted with unlimited power in current time. Thanos explained how the Infinity Stone of Time works correctly; like a reset switch. Back in current time, the Guardians of the Galaxy will not be destroyed, and they will not remember me or Alenna from this time period. I'm not doing this for the power or for Thanos and his goons, I want vengeance. First, I have to complete this task.
And if I didn't:
"…You will have the power you selfishly desire, Cassius. But if you fail, if the Guardians remain, there will be no realm, no time period, and no crevice where I can't find you. You think you have experienced dread before? I will make you long for something as sweet as dread…"
I had always thought logic would help me avoid these sorts of situations, but once fear finally overtakes you there's no going back.
I had learnt that he adopted my mother. Speaking of which, my so-called family has kept too many secrets from me and Alenna to the point where my life is almost fabricated. Even before us, they have never really been good people as I've discovered. We agreed to help them, in return for them to help us. And yet, they betray us by hiding another secret. They hadn't even apologized, not that it would make a difference anyway. You know, it's kind of hard to trust someone when you don't know who that someone really is anymore.
The only downside of Thanos's mission was to collaborate with Ronan the Accuser and a female assassin named Nebula, the sister of Gamora.
I can only wonder what other dirty secrets my family concealed.
One thing I know is I will never trust them again. I will never accept or forgive them. They can attempt to make things better with their wealth, allow me to do anything I desired, and soak me in apologies. But I knew I'd have to make them pay, make them more sorry, make them feel the pain they'd put me through my entire life. So I'd take their wealth, enjoy my privileges, store the continuous apologises, but I'd be plotting their punishment all the while. In fact, I already have a plan.
They can't stop me now, even if they tried.
I had been escorted to a major sized Necrocraft where Ronan, Nebula and I lead a flock of soldiers to Knowhere. We had been summoned by an anonymous call, being practically forced to travel there. In some ways, I wished for my family to still be there so they can see what I have become and in other ways I hoped for them not to be there.
I had been provided with new attire for battle. It was made of thick black leather, and contained a dark metallic face-mask that could be activated on and off. I could see through a long strip of dark shaded glass when it was on, and was quite handy at times. I injected myself with the power of the Orb, with no second thoughts. It was incredibly painful and I could have died, but for some reason did not. It was worth it though. No one knows that I have the Orb except the Collector, and I can only hope he doesn't tell Thanos or anyone else.
Nebula is a cerulean-skinned Luphomoid woman, with skilfully built cybernetic enhancements making her look almost part robotic…which she may possibly be. She had black pupiless eyes, and a hair-lacking head. She had weapons such as knives linked to her belt, something that she didn't exactly hide so well. I noticed her frown deepen when I continued to stare at her, so I smirked in return.
Ronan also had a blue skin pigment, and I could define him as Kree by taking a closer look at his armour. Black war paint covered his face partially, and his eyes were the opposite of my own; his were dark and bottomless while mine were vibrant and purple, reflecting the aura of the Orb. Unlike Nebula, he didn't glare but stared back menacingly. I have to admit he did frighten me… only slightly.
I am supposed to follow my two 'supervisors' orders the whole time, but we didn't seem to be getting along so well and we've only been with each other for a few minutes.
"You are an idiotic Terran!" Nebula growls in her nasty mechanical voice.
"I am not a Terran." I say calmly, and can't help but smirk a little. I was actually part Terran, but I knew nothing of my culture or people except that they liked music, so I do not consider myself part of their race in general.
"You look Terran."
"What if I'm Xanderian?" I question her, but at this Ronan slowly turns his head towards me. "Kidding." I assure him quickly, and nod. I have to remember that Ronan despises Xander, and I think I do too.
"Consider yourself lucky, Cassius, for if you were not in Thanos's favour you'd be dead!" Nebula threatens lowly.
"It isn't exactly easy to murder someone who has magic."
"Don't flatter yourself."
"I wasn't, it's a common fact."
"Stated by whom?"
"Me, that's who!"
"After all this nonsense is over, I'm –"
"ENOUGH!" Ronan shouts at the both of us, and we step away from each other yet continue to glare. The pair of Sakaaran guards in the room jump slightly.
"Any more ridiculous arguments and the both of you will be dead." He states deeply.
"I thought we just discussed that?" I raise my eyebrows. He gives me a dangerous and sharp look, but I just smile at him. If he killed me, Thanos would be after him.
"We have reached our destination." Ronan mutters dismissively, and walks towards the control panel plastered in the wall.
Nebula scrapes past me, turning back with a glare, "This isn't over." She says quietly, before walking beside Ronan. I stare at her back with narrowed eyes. She is mother's adoptive sister so technically she is supposed to be my aunt. Wow.
The wall in front of us folds into a door and rises, exposing the scenery of Knowhere. Before walking through the door and down the stairs, I activate my mask and follow the pair of imbecile leaders. Guards follow behind us.
Drax. They are here.
"Ronan the Accuser!" I hear his voice rattle through the silence, and he held a pair of sharp looking daggers. At this, I knew he meant trouble. He wanted revenge for what Ronan had done to him.
"You are the one who transmitted the message?" Ronan asks, slowly approaching Drax from a distance.
"You killed my wife. You killed my daughter!" Drax shouts, raising his daggers. Luckily, he couldn't recognise me under this mask. I mean, no one could.
A few flying crafts zoom over our head and Nebula takes a few steps forward and looks back, to get a better view of the ships. "It is Gamora. She is escaping with the Orb." Nebula states, and turns to the guards. "Follow her!" she yells sharply and begins to head inside the ship. Should I tell them that I have the Orb? Better not.
I follow Nebula but she turns to stop me. "You – stay here." She commands and I frown under the mask but obey.
Ronan chuckles at Drax and simply turns, walking towards me. Drax doesn't seem too happy about this, and runs towards Ronan with his daggers unsheathed ready to slice off Ronan's head. Ronan ducks and knocks the knife out of Drax's hand. The battle begins.
Instead of staying and observing the eventful fight, I choose to continue my mission. I needed to find the Guardians of the Galaxy and destroy them. As I walk, crowds of innocent bystanders scream and run at the sight of me, and I can't help but smirk at this newfound fear.
A small group of people are linked together, and stand in my way with scowls. "We will not let you destroy our planet!" a man at the front shouts, standing his ground confidently. He wore ripped clothing and had dirt streaked over his face. He looked Xanderian.
"My intentions are not to destroy this lousy excuse of a planet." I speak darkly, the mask making my voice sound lightly mechanic. The group continues to stand in my way. "I strongly suggest you relocate your positions before any…accidents happen."
"You mean war!" a blue-skinned man shouts, and the crowd mumbles in agreement. I clench my teeth beginning to get impatient. "None of us shall die!" he says.
Raising my hand sharply, I push the growing crowd around us back with my telepathic abilities and move forward to the man who had spoken recently, grabbing him by the collar. Gasps emerge and some people begin to flee. I watch as the man squirms under my insanely powerful grip, thanks to the new power I possess from the Orb.
"If I were you, I'd watch that mouth of yours." I growl dangerously.
"You speak largely for a foreigner. At least I will die knowing I was respected and not feared." he chokes out and my gript on his thin shirt tightens.
"Everyone dies, friend. It's your turn today."
I conjure a transparent knife in my hand, that usually had been blue tinted but is now purple. In a flash, I shove the knife deeply into his neck and throw him heavily to the ground. In his intense silence he somehow screamed with his whole body. The eyes wide with horror, the mouth rigid and open, his chalky face gaunt and immobile, the fists clenched with blanched knuckles, and the nails digging deeply into the palms of his hand.
Everyone else remaining in the area begun to scream and ran overlapping directions.
I plant my foot heavily down on his chest and smoothly kneel down to his almost lifeless face, deactivating my mask to stare him in the eyes as he slipped away from reality. "Being feared is a privilege." I whisper and he grabs my foot, trying to swat me off but I push down harder which causes him to choke, blood slowly pooling in his mouth. He then freezes, and the glistening life in his eyes disappears.
I activate my mask once more and step away from the now dead body. I just killed a person for the first time. I try not to think much of it and move on, noticing that the streets were less populated than before.
I felt my leather pockets for the Orb, and sighed with relief as it was still there. The Guardians could not have travelled too far, for this planet wasn't exactly the largest. Thanos's words burned in my mind, updating the fresh memory of my future if I do not obey. I just needed to keep looking.
I feel unstoppable.
Hey! Shorter chapter than usual but I had to cut it here because I'm not very good at writing in the villain's perspective. Just in case you had forgotten, this is the part of the movie where Ronan, Nebula and the Ravagers are caught up with the Guardians at Knowhere and things get messy.
If you're having trouble picturing Cassius and Alenna, there are links on my profile to visual representations of them.
Thanks for reading!
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