Gold, red and blue.
Vers gingerly skimmed her fingers along the golden streaks. She was unfamiliar with this colour scheme, there was nothing like it on Hala or elsewhere in the empire. She couldn't recall changing it and she was the only one who would be able to. Starforce suits were hardwired to only be controlled by their assigned wearer. Once a suit's wearer died, no one else would ever be able to wear the suit. It was to prevent their technology from being used by enemies, no amount of reprogramming could change it - any attempts to do so resulted in the suit self-destructing. She had to have been the one to change it. The only explanation she could come up with was that she had done it during her time under the Skrull's influence. It was an unsettling thought. What else had they made her do?
Unsurely, Vers got ready and took a look at herself in the wall-length mirror. It should have felt wrong to see her Starforce uniform dawning such vibrant colours, colours that were not Kree. Starforce had always been strict about their dress code and general appearances. They represented the Kree and her empire, they had to look respectable and admirable at all times. They owed it to their people and the warriors who had come before them, who had protected their kind and allowed their empire to flourish. It was their mantel that Starforce carried. It was what Yon-Rogg had always taught her.
And yet... seeing her reflection made something deep inside her ache.
Gold, red and blue, it suited her.
Vers sighed and dialled her passcodes into her gauntlet, opening up the colour change system. Her fingers hovered over the buttons. She needed to change it back to its original colours. It wasn't appropriate to have her uniform looking like this. It was dishonourable, distasteful... and despite all that, why did it feel so wrong to change it back?
I can't wear these Kree colours anymore...
Vers shut her eyes, trying to place the distorted echo in her mind. It was familiar, so very familiar. But just like her dreams when she couldn't grasp it. It was as useless as trying to grab smoke.
What did you do to your uniform?
That voice she knew. Her heart jolted at the venom she heard. She spun around, certain that it had come from behind her. Even though she had just heard his voice, she was surprised to find Yon-Rogg, arms crossed, leaning against the lockers. There was something... off about him. A darkness in his eyes that she wasn't accustomed to. He was watching her warily, almost like he was waiting for something.
"What did you just say?"
"I didn't say anything," Yon-Rogg replied.
Vers frowned, she could have sworn he had spoken. "What happened to my uniform?"
"The Skrulls decided you were in need of a colour change." There was no missing the disgust in Yon-Rogg's voice.
"Why these colours? These are not the colours of the Skrull."
"I don't know," Yon-Rogg said, eyes trailing down her body, taking in her uniform with narrowed eyes. He pushed himself away from the locker and strode towards her. "I think its time for them to be changed. Preferably before any of the team see you, it would bring back bad memeories for them."
She wondered what kind of memories it brought back for Yon-Rogg. Nothing pleasant, obviously.
Vers nodded, lifting her arm to dial in the change. Yon-Rogg caught her by the elbow, bringing her arm towards him.
"Allow me," Yon-Rogg said. He adjusted the settings on her suit, watching with satisfaction as the colours shifted back to silver, green and black. Kree colours. Their colours. "As it should be."
Yon-Rogg placed a hand behind her head, bringing her close to place a gentle kiss on her forehead. His hands moved up the length of her arms, fingers lingering over the green metal. Vers shut her eyes, savouring the moment. She tried her best to ignore the empty feeling inside her, telling her something wasn't right.
Yon-Rogg straightened in his seat as planet D-42 came into view.
It was a planet renowned for its beauty, its surface glowing in shades of amethyst and mauve. It had two moons encircling it that were made entirely of crystal. At nighttime, the planet was speckled with a kaleidoscope of rainbow lights. Most of the planet was dominated by blankets of ancient, twisted trees with heart-shaped, purple flowers. There were countless rivers and streams hidden below the forest canopies, snaking their way through the mountainous terrain.
The planet was populated by a colony of Luphomoids who had settled their several centuries prior. Due to the planets advantageous position in the galaxy, it had flourished as a trading hub and was well known for having a diverse flow of species coming and going. Besides the Luphomoids, there was a rich variety of other species who called the planet their home. There was seldom any trouble associated with this planet, the occupants peaceful and welcoming, seeing newcomers as profitable both economically and culturally.
"I've tracked Starforce Unit 16 to the city of Turrent," Att-Lass said from his place at the console. "They seemed to have been separated. Three of them are in the Eastern side of the city while the other three are in the city centre."
"Korath, land us on the outskirts of the city. It won't be too far a walk from there and we can hide the ship among the forest," Yon-Rogg instructed.
Korath nodded, punching in a few codes onto the consoles in front of him.
"Alright, Team. We're going to divide into two units. Korath, Bronn-Char and Att-Lass, I want you three to go to the Eastern side. Vers and I will go to the centre of the city. This is a stealth mission, we want to create as little disturbance as possible. Avoid conflict if possible. Our mission is to retrieve Unit 16 and get them home, no matter their status."
There was a heavy silence among his team as they processed his words. There was a high chance that Unit 16 were either gravely injured or dead. If that was the case then they would not leave their bodies behind. They would be brought home and given the proper send-off they deserved. Their bodies and blood would not be left to be picked apart by vulturish creatures. They were warriors. Not a commodity for lesser beings.
"For the good of all Kree!"
"For the good of all Kree!" the team repeated back.
They left the ship hidden within the forest and split into their two teams.
Yon-Rogg was displeased that he could not inform his team of the potential situation they were entering, they needed to know the full picture. Unfortunately - and rather foolishly in his opinion - his fellow Commanders and General had opted to classify the potential threat of the titan Thanos as a Grade 21 classification. This meant that only Commanders and higher ranks were privy to the knowledge. Yon-Rogg was of the persuasion that the information should be kept from the general public for the time being. They were under enough strain with the Skrull and Xanderian threats. Until this Thanos threat was confirmed by Kree sources, it could not be trusted fully. But keeping his team, who may encounter the danger, in the dark was grating on him.
Thankfully, the Hellion had not detected any signs of warships around the planet. If Thanos had been here, he was long gone now.
"There is way too much purple on this planet," Vers muttered.
Yon-Rogg glanced over his shoulder to look at her. It filled him with pride and contentment, seeing her back in her true colours. When he had entered the locker room and saw the abdominal mismatch of colours that Carol had dared to taint her uniform with, a cold, bitter fear had swept through him. He had watched her cautiously, waiting for her to notice him, waiting for her to turn on him. But she hadn't. The Supreme Intelligence's influence remained strong.
He had to have more faith. He couldn't live the rest of his days, constantly dreading that she would betray them again. He wanted to put it all behind him, to stop fearing the past and instead savour the present and look forward to the future. She had given him a chance, a chance for them to be together as he had wanted to for years. Soon, he would get her full confession. He planned to extract it with seductive whispers and teasing touches, a thought that made him ache with want. He shook his head.
First, they had a mission to complete.
"Rather straining on the eyes, isn't it? How far away to the beacons?"
"Half a mile away."
They continued trudging through the leafy landscape, cautious of the strange squawks and chirping noises around them. Eventually, they came to the top of a steep slope that overlooked a city in the valley below. It wasn't a sight he wanted to see.
"Is that the city?" Vers gasped.
"What's left of it," Yon-Rogg murmured darkly, narrowing his eyes.
The city below wasn't the beautiful marble city with tranquil rivers ribboning through it that had been described in its profile. It looked like a wasteland of rubble and dust. The towers and dwellings with their intricate carvings had been reduced to crumbling piles of stone. The ones still standing were like burned out skeletons, wounded with gaping cracks and holes. Fire still burned in many of the structures and surrounding forest, the smoke blocking out the sun and casting the once peaceful city under a dark shadow.
Yon-Rogg and Vers headed down the slope and into the city, more alert than before. The ground was covered in debris, soot and ash, among it were the bodies of countless civilians, all dead. It was a distressing thing to see, even for seasoned warriors. So much blood-shed. Whatever had happened here, these people had stood no chance.
Eventually, they found what they had been looking for.
Lying on the ground, near a broken fountain, were two members of Starforce Unit 16. The silver and green on their Starforce uniforms were barely visible through the soot that had covered them. Yon-Rogg knelt down beside one agent and Vers the other, checking their pulses. Both were dead. Blaster shots to their chests. Yon-Rogg closed his eyes, pained to know the fate that had befallen his comrades. For a blaster shot to have penetrated their armour, it had to have been done at close range. They hadn't died in battle, this had been an execution. When he opened his eyes he wiped away the soot that had gathered over the star on his fellow Kree's uniform.
"Guys, we've found two of the Starforce agents. They've both been killed by blaster shots," Vers said into her comm-link.
"We've located ours. One crushed to death under rubble, the other two killed by blaster shots as well," Att-Lass reported grimly.
"Bring them back to the ship," Yon-Rogg instructed. "We're not leaving them in this place."
"Got it," Att-Lass replied.
Yon-Rogg activated his gravitation manipulating gauntlets, carefully lifting the bodies into the air. They began making their way back to the ship, sombre as the fallen city around them. When they returned to the Hellion, they found the others had already made it back. They were not alone.
"Who's that?" Vers asked.
"Good question," Yon-Rogg said.
Lying on a medical bed was a golden-skinned woman with short ash blonde hair dressed in golden robes. She was covered in soot and speckled with gold blood and blue blood... Kree blood. Yon-Rogg approached her and looked down at her through narrowed eyes.
"We found her next to the three members of Unit 16 that we recovered," Korath explained. "She was still breathing and not too severely injured. We figured she might be able to tell us what happened to the team."
"Vers, I want you to tend to her and tell me when she wakes up," Yon-Rogg said.
He carefully placed the two warriors he and Vers had found on the floor then deactivated his gravitational gauntlet. Att-Lass and Bronn-Char immediately moved to pick them up and take them down into the storage bay.
"Korath, come with me. It's time we all head home."
Vers lay in her bunk, tossing a small pebble she had found in her boot into the air. She had changed into standard fabric robes, knowing from experience that her armoured uniform was not comfortable to rest in. Att-Lass had kindly offered to take over watching their mysterious guest, allowing Vers to get some sleep. Unfoutnely, sleep evaded her. She was too restless. Every time she closed her eyes she saw the corpses strewn across the rubble. It churned her stomach, thinking how such an atrocity could have happened. They had all been civilians, weaponless and defenceless. What kind of coward slaughtered people like that?
She thought back to why they had been brought to D-42. Starforce Unit 16 had been scouting for information on a new threat. Whatever that threat was could have been responsible for the massacre. But what was it? She hoped that their golden guest would be able to shed light on the situation or that Yon-Rogg had found intel stored within their fallen Starforce warriors gauntlets.
As though summoned by the very thought of him, Yon-Rogg's telltale knock sounded on her door.
"Come in," Vers called out.
Yon-Rogg entered the dimly lit room. "I forgot how small these rooms were."
Vers stuck her tongue out at him.
All the members of the team had their own living quarters. They were small rooms with only a standard bunk and storage closet. The Commander had the biggest room, which was fitted with his own washroom, a study area, double bed and closet.
"Are you here to make fun of my room or is there something you want, Commander?"
Yon-Rogg smirked and took a seat on her bed. He moved a strand of hair that had fallen over her eyes and tucked it behind her ear. "Do I need a reason to come visit you?"
"You're keeping me from sleep, so yes, you had better have a good reason for disturbing me," Vers replied easily.
"Oh, I'm disturbing your sleep, am I?"
"Rude." Vers could barely keep her smile at bay. "You shall have to make it up to me."
"And how can I redeem myself?" Yon-Rogg asked.
"I'm sure you can think of a few ways." Vers wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling his lips down to hers.
Yon-Rogg moved to rest his hands on either side of her head, his body leaning over her. She deepened the kiss and a hot flush of desire raced through her when she heard him moan in response. She ran her fingers through his hair, musing it as much as she could before her hands slid down to his chest.
Yon-Rogg shifted, bringing his body onto the narrow bunk, hovering over her, resting on his elbows to bring him closer to her. As useful and efficient as his armour was - and even rather pleasing to see him in - this was not one of those times. With the bulky armour, she couldn't bring herself close enough to the heat of his body and it wasn't the most comfortable thing to have pressed against her, especially with her wearing such thin robes. His weight on her, though thrilling, was too heavy with his armour on. She mustered up her strength to roll them over, so he was now under her and she straddling his waist.
She leaned down and kissed him again and again, only breaking away to steal air before their lips reclaimed each other's again. She had wanted to do this for so long, a little indulging wouldn't hurt. Kissing him made it easy to forget things she didn't want to think about. There had been so many encounters they had shared where she had thought it would lead to hot kisses and sinful touches. And now to finally be able to act on the desire...
"Why did you have to be wearing your armour?" Vers groaned, frustrated that there was hardly any skin to run her fingers across. She moved her mouth to his neck, leaving open-mouthed kisses from his collar to behind his ear.
"Then help me take it off," Yon-Rogg grunted.
"Too much effort," Vers sighed, shaking her head.
She rolled off of him, attempting to stand. Yon-Rogg didn't seem to like this idea very much. His arms encircled her waist, yanking her back down. Vers let out a yelp as she fell backwards onto the bed, her back flush against Yon-Rogg's chest, his arms wrapped tightly around her. He placed a kiss at the base of her neck, nose nuzzling against her.
"Then just stay like this for a while," Yon-Rogg murmured, his breath hot on her skin.
Vers placed her hands over his arms, squeezing them into her. They lay there in the darkened room, listening to the lull of the others breathing. Every so often, Yon-Rogg would place a tender kiss into her neck.
A few hours later, Vers was roused from the light slumber she had succumbed to with a faint beeping sound. She picked up her gauntlet from under the bed, reading a message from Att-Lass. Her eyes widened and she began nudging Yon-Rogg awake.
"Yon-Rogg, wake up!"
Yon-Rogg responded by fastening his arms around her tighter, burying his face into her neck. Vers rolled her eyes. She would have elbowed him in the gut to wake him up, but his armour would give her a rather nasty bruise and pain for her efforts. To Yon-Rogg's misfortune, this meant there was only one other option to wake him up.
Vers summoned a jolt of power to her fingertips and tapped his hand that was rested around her stomach. It sent a very light spark of energy coursing through him. Nothing more than a minor electric shock, a love tap if anything. Yon-Rogg hissed, eyes snapping open and releasing her. He bounced back instinctively, his back hitting the wall behind him.
"Vers!"
"You weren't waking up," Vers replied innocently. She rose to her feet and began putting on her armour which she had left neatly folded on the floor. "Att-Lass just informed me that our guest is awake."