You know what? A new chapter! Yay! I know, not the fastest writer alive. Moreover, the GotG 2 hit me hard. So funny, so adorable and so sad at once?! But I finally got a grip and finished another chapter. Maybe you will wonder what the hell am I saying by the end and what could I possibly mean with that „woman". But I prepared another story related to this, really crazy story, where this woman is the main character and it's written in the first person. You will think I'm totally crazy, but I love to write it more than this, so don't mind me. And I promise you'll understand everything in the end.
And some of you were complaining about my English. I know, I know, but I'm trying. You see how little time I have, I'm learning by myself, so I just hope it's not unbearable. Sincerely, I still have more readers in English than in Czech.
"You sure you know what are you doing?" Jenna asked suspiciously and watched Rocket connect several thin wires. She would have thought it absurd to see a racoon making a hadron enforcer several days ago. Now she learnt to never assume what was possible. However, she still couldn't get rid of the doubts.
"No worries," Rocket growled.
"Only I have quite a few."
She noticed he rolled his eyes.
"I've just never built the hadron enforcer, nor seen anyone else doing that. So I don't know whether we blow up!"
"If you don't understand, just sit over there with the rest, hold the tools and hand me the pliers."
"I'm not saying I don't understand it at all. And I don't think you should nip that already," she nodded to the wires.
"Tshe, sure, you are the real expert over every-" Rocket nipped one piece that stuck up and at the very same moment, the display turned off.
Jenna puckered her lips, looked at the sky and almost started to whistle. Everything to resist the temptation to say 'I told you'. Rocket grumbled.
"Ok. Another piece of advice, Madam I-know-it-all?"
She grinned, inspected his work for a while and knelt next to him.
She was stunned that he could do something like that. When she saw him for the first time, she thought him a weird monster, sort of a space talking rodent. But little by little, she found he's highly intelligent. And now it seemed he's a genius. She strongly doubted that there's someone on the Erth, who would manage anything similar. She wasn't sure even about Tony. Yet, she helped him and that impressed Rocket. He saw her as a whiny witch with not much sense. He didn't know much about the Earth. Anything, to be honest. And didn't think much about the advance of its inhabitants. Now he found out it didn't have to be so bad. Of course, she wasn't able to comprehend what was he doing, she couldn't do it by herself, but he was surprised she understood his instructions. Or that she took the tools from him when he was too rash. And when she told him, that she was working with one inventor back home and still didn't get how could he invent and construct an enforcer on the street between ruins just so, that she had to admit he's a genius, he felt as tall as Groot.
Even Drax came a little bit closer, although he had no idea what were they working on. He was intrigued by the insolent rodent and foreign girl with flashes of lightning in her hands making something he took for a bomb. So he watched them. Only Groot wasn't interested in the construction at all. He was sitting on a part of a former wall, looked around and sometimes grabbed a piece of the debris or waste and tried to entertain himself. Mostly it ended with a noise. Therefore, Rocket kept sending him for certain things, but he still acted more like a bodyguard for Jenna, who knew what he needed.
It was nice to know something again. It was nice to be almost like home. Rocket's growling was equal to Tony.
"Are you sure it will work?" Drax asked once they got up with finished "portable" enforcer.
"Wanna try, big boy?"
"With luck on our side and sense on theirs, we won't be forced to find out. The important thing for them is to believe and for us to be able to use it at least as a bomb, would it accidentally refuse to cooperate," Jenna added.
"Is it not a bomb?"
"Everything is a bomb if needed," Rocket shrugged.
"Now just get it on the ship."
"Yeah, another part of the plan," Rocket grinned and explained to her and Drax how to do it. And meanwhile the current activity seemed appropriate to Jenna, even interesting, now she knit her brows with concerns. Not idle.
"This is a stupid idea. Really stupid idea."
She gladly helped with the enforcer. It helped her. It occupied her mind while she was alone without her planet and without Quill. Right, not completely alone. She had to admit, that once Rocket discovered her technical talent, he showed a greater respect. And Drax scared her much less once she stopped to notice his stares. Also, all the ships and space shooting... she understood they needed a weapon for getting Peter and possibly Gamora back. An effective weapon. Perhaps she expected them to fasten it on Peter's ship, she didn't think about that. But Rocket's plan again blown her away. And she already got used to being blown away by everything.
"Do you wanna get Quill back or should we leave him to Ravagers?"
"Do I want him back? I don't care-" she started, but then stopped. "He can get me home, he's from my planet. We have to get him back. And what are the Ravagers? What are they doing?" she asked because Peter didn't tell her really much. Or she wanted to know someone else's opinion.
"They ravage."
Jenna rolled her eyes.
"They thieve, sell, buy on the black market, smuggle, I would say killing is not out of their business, but I wouldn't hire them for a murder. They are brutal, but not secretive about it."
"Yep, Peter told me they are like a space pirate mafia..."
"What's pirate mafia?" Rocket asked. "What is it doing?"
"Pirate."
"You terrans are crackers."
"Ravagers are a herd of criminals, thieves and crooks," Drax said in a much more serious tone.
"Well, if you didn't notice, Quill has their patch on his jacket."
"They wouldn't go after him would he still be one of them. We have to help him. He said he broke away. But I still think it's stupid," Jenna defended him immediately.
"So this is how he's doing it!" Rocket measured her. "Anyway, we don't have a better plan. Help me to get it up. Destroyer," he turned to the red-green giant, "you dress up and prepare for the departure. Groot, get in. We're setting off! We are on the same ship, aren't we?" he told Jenna, but Drax answered.
"We have only one, hamster."
Jenna shrugged and did what he asked her to do. Or what he commanded. They brought the enforcer into the ship and she was just hoping their plan would work. If not, the Ravagers could catch even them. Or they could explode. It wasn't a rocket science, on the other hand, it was Rocket's.
Although, some time later, when she sat behind Rocket who seized the control panel of Peter's spaceship, it occurred to her she should object. Maybe even now, when it was probably too late for objections. It turned out it's not so difficult to pilot a spaceship. Or get it to the outer space. Or to find the Ravager's ship where they dragged Peter. The rest seemed impossible and absurd.
She rather didn't imagine Drax standing on the top. Once they got close enough, he climbed with a helm, oxygen and straps out and held the enforcer. He didn't like it had to be him, but Rocket was piloting, Jenna was the second smallest and weakest and Groot was... Groot.
They were in sight of the huge ship of Ravagers. Really huge. She'd never seen anything similar in her life. Their ship looked like a dwarf. It reminded her a giant predatory fish of the deepest darkness of the ocean. Only mechanical one. When they got closer, it looked more like a flying rock. Meteorite. Then she thought she knew it from some sci-fi movie. And finally, the strongest feeling was she would never voluntarily step in. It looked ominously. Dangerously. If she could lie to herself and tell that bars, prisons and crafts aren't so different from the Earth, now it ended. Looking at Eclector, how she learnt from Rocket, there was no doubt everything terrestrial dumped her. There was no more than hope. That they would be reasonable or... the blast would be fast and painless.
Rocket reached for a radio or whatever they used for communication. She didn't try to pay attention. She waited. And hoped they weren't late. That Peter wasn't dead or... or badly beaten... She didn't want them to hurt him. And certainly not to kill him. She would be alone again. With three nutcases. Maybe for a few minutes if the enforcer worked, or who knew where if Rocket was wrong.
But then was no time for other considerations. Rocket flew tightly to the huge ship and fired. To Jenna's surprise. Only then he turned on the communication.
"Attention, idiots. The lunatic on top of this craft is holding a Hadron Enforcer. It's a weapon of my own design. If you don't hand over our companions now, he's gonna tear your ship a new one. A very big new one!"
Jenna watched Rocket with wide eyes. Did she really think he would negotiate? Then she equally horrified looked ahead where the Ravagers stood by a big window. God...or...any existing entity...she had an impression they didn't impress them. That they were not going to do anything.
"I'm giving you to the count of five." Rocket was.
"You kill Peter!"
But he didn't listen to her.
"Five. Four. Three..." he started to count down.
"No! Wait, hold on!" Peter's voice sounded from the speaker. He didn't sound beaten or dead.
"Rocket, it's me, for God sakes! We figured it out! We're fine!"
Fine... So he was totally fine. They were making an enforcer and were afraid and he was fine. That was too much!
"Oh, hey, Quill. What's going on?" Rocket barely managed to take his hand off the control and Jenna pushed him away.
"Quill! Fine? I'll tear you up! I'll kill you! Do you know what we did 'cause of you? And now you say you ok?!" Jenna suddenly wished to fire too. She just completely ignored all around her and felt rage.
"Quill, can you tell your girl and your hamster to stop fooling around?" she heard another voice and that only provoke her.
"I'm not-" they started to protest at once, that they are no hamster - and what the heck is hamster - nor anyone's girl, but they obeyed in the end. Peter convinced them he's not in danger, at least for now, that he didn't expect so vehement rescue mission, he appreciated that (Jenna only made a face) and they needed to sort the other problem, namely Ronan and the Orb. Which Gamora didn't save from him.
Only when Rocket flew into the inner hangar where obviously a lot of other ships could be parked and where Peter waited, and when all of them got out, including Drax who gladly put away his cargo, Jenna realized she didn't think about the Orb. There was no time in this sequence of events. She was afraid, every now and then of something else, something scary, and except the journey out of Kyln to Knowhere, she had no time to think. Or to keep her thoughts to a single matter. She didn't remember the terrible explosion, the even more terrible speech of the Collector and other things... like flashes in her hands, the smell of frying flesh and the ash until she sat in a different ship, bigger, weirder and less friendly. She was frankly frightened by a part of the crew who should be Ravagers. She thought it's not possible after Kyln, but it was. She didn't intend to trust them on no account. And she wasn't sure she should trust Peter. She absurdly clung to him on Kyln. He was the only human-like one, as it turned out, only one human, and she needed any spark of assurance and hope that everything would be normal. Or that there's someone who would understand what was she talking about and wouldn't want to... eat her or something. That's why she was so afraid and didn't want to loose him. But then came the rage, when he was completely all right and the dreaded enemies weren't really enemies. They were for her, though. Even if the rest seemingly had no problem with them. That angered her too. Since she entered the Triskelion, nothing was under her control. And Jenna hated not to be in control.
She also realized Peter had new clothes. He wore a dark red uniform like everyone else. And when he led them into a room where Gamora sat, Jenna saw even she dressed similarly. The more inappropriately and unwelcome she felt. Probably not only she. Because soon she found herself in a new, unknown place with the task to find something wearable. She rather didn't ask and just listened to Peter.
But she couldn't find anything fitting or made for women. Gamora was probably lucky, but she was aware how much improper was her current clothes among such company. Her skirt wasn't designate for any acrobatic moves and she would gladly take at least an extra sweatshirt if she could. Therefore they offered her to change. After Peter argued with one of the Ravagers who resembled human. Crazy one. And the very same stood next to her and waited till she searched stored pants and overalls. According to him, they should have some, at least one somewhere, for women. But grown women.
She hoped Peter would help her, but he got an order to explain to captain what were they going to do and who are his odd "friends". And explicit order not to lock himself in the storage with her. She rather swallowed all comments.
But she didn't find anything. She went through several shelves and boxes and had to agree with her guard. They didn't keep uniforms for tots.
Only after a while, she found some clothes in a cabinet at the back. Among them, even an overall obviously cut for a woman and similar to the one Gamora was wearing now. Maybe little too big or long for her, but she liked it. Probably like the only one here. But when she tried to open the cabinet, she couldn't. It was locked.
"I wouldn't touch that," the said... Ravager said. Peter maybe told her his name, but it was the last she cared for.
"Why? It's expensive?" It probably was, if it's locked, she thought. But there was no other suitable option.
"Flame-proof. Modified. Locked so nobody can mess with it."
"You work around engines in that?" Jenna tried a joke. But doubted they had woman-technician. Or a sense of humor. She didn't meet one or the other here yet.
"No. It's the captain's woman."
"He has... hm," she mumbled. "And where is she?"
If any other person... Gamora had to find her uniform somewhere!
"Where would she be, on T-"
"Come on! What are you doing to her there, Kraglin! It's time," Peter's voice interrupted them and after it Peter himself. Finally. The Ravager frowned.
"I can't... there's nothing for me. I was able to find only shoes," Jenna explained their delay.
"Well... you look quite sexy. I let you at leas my jacket. Now grab a gun and let's go," he commanded and she had to follow him. Perhaps wanted to. But ignored that she should be sexy. She didn't feel like that, didn't think that. Didn't want to think that. But then she realized.
"A gun?"
She couldn't use any gun they have to offer. She had never touched it!
"You can't control your lightning properly, otherwise it would be enough. But I won't send you against Ronan with empty hands to sing him that everything's gonna be bright and easy."
