Disclaimer: I do not own Guardians of the Galaxy. It belongs to their rightful owners. I only own Kat and whatever plot changes I make.
"Heads up! We're inbound!" Rocket announced as we approached a planet that looked like a severed head.
"Woh!" Peter and I both said at the same time. This was one place Peter and I have never been to once in our life.
"What is it?" Drax asked, amazed.
"It's called Knowhere. The severed head of an ancient celestial being. Be wary heading in, rodent. There are no regulations whatsoever here." Gamora explained as we entered Knowhere. "Hundreds of years ago, the Tivan Group sent workers in to mine the organic matter within the skull. The bone, brain tissue, spinal fluid. All rare resources, highly valued in black markets across the galaxy. It's dangerous and illegal work, suitable only for outlaws." Gamora explained some more as we walked the streets of Knowhere.
"Well, I come from a planet of outlaws. Billy the Kid, Bonnie and Clyde and John Stamos." Peter said as I gave him an amused look.
"It sounds like a place which I would like to visit." Drax said, impressed and in awe.
"Yeah, you should." Peter said as he took my hand and held it. Despite his tough exterior, he was a grabby person, well, to me anyway. Ever since we grew up together, we needed to be in each other's life in some way or another. Before our missions, if we were separated, we always gave each other something of ours for the other to hold on to until we got back. I smiled and squeezed his hand in return, lacing our fingers together.
Suddenly a bunch of kids surrounded us. "Watch your wallets." I said to the others as kids asked for some spare units. We soon were able to get past the kids and followed Gamora towards a bar.
"Your buyer's in there?" Rocket asked.
"We are to wait here for his representative." Gamora answered and we watched as a patron got thrown out of the bar.
"This is no respectable establishment. What do you expect us to do while we wait?" Drax asked.
"I'm sure you'll figure it out." I said as we walked inside. We got inside and the place was packed and way too loud for my taste.
"Stay close to me." Peter said lowly. I nodded, knowing why. Peter and I had to learn the hard way what happens when we're separated in a bar. In a mission we were both on, a guy tried to get a little handsy and began harassing me. I could usually take care of people like him but he was huge and no doubt, my efforts would have been in vain. Peter had to literally fight the guy off to leave me alone. Let's just say, all the guys learned to respect me in that bar.
Peter and I went to the bar and sat down and Peter ordered us two beers. We each took one and drank them. I wasn't much of a drinker so this would be my only one. Peter really didn't drink that much either. He can not hold his liquor well cause one time, he got plastered and he paid for it the next day.
After a while, I was getting a headache from the noise in the place and I looked at Peter and said, "I'm going outside. I'm getting a headache." Peter looked at me and nodded before kissing me. I smiled into the kiss and Peter said that he was gonna get fuel for the Milano. I nodded and headed out of the side entrance and saw Gamora out here by herself.
"I figured you'd be out here." I said walking over to her. She looked at me for a moment before looking back out to the city.
"My connection is making us wait." Gamora said.
"It's just a negotiation tactic. Trust me, Peter and I specialize in it. Yours is more, 'Stab, stab. Those are my terms.'" I joked with her. Gamora ended up smiling at that. "Hah, I made you smile. Now I can rub it in Peter's face." She just shook her head smiling.
"My father didn't stress diplomacy." Gamora explained.
"Thanos?" I asked.
"He's not my father. When Thanos took my home world, he killed my parents in front of me. He tortured me, turned me into a weapon. When he said he was going to destroy an entire planet for Ronan, I...I couldn't stand by and..." Gamora trailed off.
"I understand. I don't think I could either honestly, even if it was flesh and blood." I explained. "I have an older brother and if he decided to destroy an entire planet, I'd be against it. I would most likely do whatever it took to stop him."
"It's amazing." She said. I looked at her in confusion for a moment. "You are so different from Quill. How did you two even get together?" She asked. I laughed a little at that.
"Peter and I have always been opposites. We grew up together after he was taken from Terra. I was 10 and he was 8 at the time. Us being the only two kids with Ravagers, we decided to stick together and we grew up together after that. Hell, we didn't even start dating until 5 years ago. Sure, Peter can be immature, brash, and impulsive but he's loyal to a fault. He cares about the people in his life." I explained while smiling.
"You definitely have a strong bond. I envy that." Gamora said and I smiled. We suddenly heard crashes inside of the bar. We both looked and saw Groot, Rocket and Drax fighting.
"Oh great." I said as we both rushed in. Gamora dragged Drax off of Groot while I went to keep Rocket back and yelled out, "Stop it!" Rocket then pointed his gun at Drax and before he could shoot, Peter intervened.
"Woh! Woh! What are you doing?" Peter exclaimed, keeping everyone separated.
"This vermin speaks of affairs he knows nothing about!" Drax yelled out angrily.
"That is true!" Rocket yelled.
"He has no respect!" Drax continued.
"That is also true!" Rocket agreed once more. Well, at least we all agree on something.
"Hold on! Hold on!" Peter tried to keep everyone calm.
"Keep calling me vermin, tough guy! You just wanna laugh at me like everyone else!" Rocket exclaimed, clearly drunk.
"Rocket, you're drunk. Alright? No one's laughing at you." I said, trying to calm him down.
"He thinks I'm some stupid thing! He does!" Rocket exclaimed, having a melt down. "Well, I didn't ask to get made! I didn't ask to be torn apart, and put back together, over and over and turned into some...some little monster!"
"Rocket, no one is calling you a monster." I tried once more but again he didn't listen to me.
"He called me vermin! She called me rodent! Let's see if you can laugh after five or six good shots to your frickin' face!" Rocket yelled as he pointed his gun at Drax about to shoot before Peter jumped in front of him, blocking his shot.
"No, no, no, no!" Peter said. "Four billion units! Rocket! Come on, man. Hey! Suck it up for one more lousy night and you're rich." Peter finished. Rocket hesitated for a moment before lowering his gun.
"Fine!" Rocket agreed. "But I can't promise when all this is over I'm not gonna kill every last one of you jerks." He finished and I groaned.
"See? That's exactly why none of you have any friends!" I said out of annoyance. "Five seconds after you meet somebody, you're already trying to kill them!" Peter walked over and placed his hand on my back, calming me down.
"We have traveled halfway across the quadrant, and Ronan is no closer to being dead." Drax said as he left the bar angrily.
"Drax!" Peter yelled.
Gamora stepped in and said, "Let him go. We don't need him." Just as she finished, a door opened and then a girl with red skin with brown hair in pigtails came in and said, "Milady Gamora, I'm here to fetch you for my master." She then escorted us to a building and we went inside.
Upon entering, I saw tons of glass cases, filled with different species of creatures and animals. It broke my heart a little to see them like this. "Okay, this isn't creepy at all." Rocket said and I completely agreed with him.
"We house the galaxy's largest collection of fauna, relics, and species of all manner." The girl explained as she escorted to the back of the room. I looked ahead and saw a man with white hair in an interesting outfit. "I present to you, Taneleer Tivan, the Collector." She said as Gamora and The Collector walked towards each other.
"Oh, my dear Gamora. How wonderful to meet in the flesh." The Collector said as he kissed Gamora's hand.
"Let's bypass the formalities, Tivan. We have what we discussed." Gamora said but The Collector looked away from her and towards Groot.
"What is that thing there?" He asked intrigued as he walked towards Groot.
"I am Groot." Groot replied.
"I never thought I'd meet a Groot." The Collector said as he examined Groot. "Sir, you must allow me to pay you now so that I may own your carcass. At the moment of your death, of course." He offered. Jeez, this man gives me the creeps. I moved more towards Peter and grabbed his hand. He squeezed it back in reassurance.
"I am Groot." Groot replied.
"Why, so he could turn you into a frickin' chair?" Rocket asked as sarcasm laced his voice. I knew Rocket didn't trust the Collector at all and I didn't blame him one bit.
"That's your pet?" The Collector asked Groot and Rocket got pissed at that statement.
"His what?!" Rocket said as he went to grab his gun but Gamora intervened by saying, "Tivan, we have been halfway around the galaxy, retrieving this orb."
"Very well, then. Let us see what you brought." The Collector said. Gamora looked at Peter and he took out the orb from his bag and being a total uncool klutz, dropped the orb before quickly picking it back up and giving it to The Collector.
"Good job there, genius." I said while rolling my eyes in amusement as I elbowed him.
"Leave me alone." Peter pouted. I giggled as The Collector inspected the orb.
"Oh, my new friends. Before creation itself, there were six singularities." He started as he used a device to open the orb and revealed a purple stone. It was really beautiful. "Then the universe exploded into existence, and the remnants of these systems were forged into concentrated ingots. Infinity Stones. These stones, it seems, can only be brandished by beings of extraordinary strength. Observe." He explained as he brought a video of a creature that had the stones in a hammer weapon as it slaughtered a village. "These carriers can use the stone to mow down entire civilizations like wheat in a field."
"There's a little pee coming out of me right now." Peter said and I had to agree on some level. The whole ordeal was kind of scary. Were we really holding on to that kind of power?
"Once, for a moment, a group was able to share the energy amongst themselves, but even they were quickly destroyed by it." The Collector explained as a video showed another video of six beings that were in a circle, being destroyed by the stones. "Beautiful. Beyond compare."
"Blah, blah, blah. We're all very fascinated, whitey. But we'd like to get paid." Rocket said, not giving a crap about any of this, if his body language says anything.
"How would you like to get paid?" The Collector asked.
"What do you think, fancy man? Units!" Rocket said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Very well then." He replied and went to get our payment. I looked and watched as the red-skinned girl began moving towards the stone, mesmorized by it. The Collector noticed her too and said, "Carina. Stand back."
"I will no longer be your slave!" She yelled as she grabbed the stone, triggering an explosion that destroyed her. Peter grabbed my arm as we hid behind a counter, his body shielding mine. Gamora on my other side taking shelter. I had no idea where Rocket or Groot were. There was a huge explosion.
When things had calmed down, Peter, Gamora and I looked over the counter and saw the destruction that the stone had caused. "Are you okay?" Peter asked, worry evident in his voice. I nodded.
"Yeah, you?" I asked. Peter nodded and we got out of our hiding place.
"What the fu-," Peter stopped mid-sentence. My thoughts exactly as I looked at the damage. Gamora went and grabbed the orb and locked it back up before we all left the building.
"How could I think Tivan could contain whatever was within the orb?" Gamora asked, angry.
"What do you still have it for?!" Rocket asked still in hysterics.
"Well, what are we gonna do, leave it in there?" I asked annoyed at the situation.
"I can't believe you had that in your purse!" Rocket yelled at Quill. Well jeez, just blow me a new one and ignore me.
"It's not a purse, it's a knapsack!" Peter corrected.
"We have to bring this to the Nova Corps. There's a chance they can contain it." Gamora suggested. She had a point, if anyone can, it should be the Nova Corps, but...
"Are you kidding me? We're wanted by the Nova Corps!" Rocket exclaimed. Exactly what I was thinking. "Just give it to Ronan." He added in. Definitely not gonna happen.
"So he can destroy the galaxy?!" Peter asked in disbelief at what Rocket just suggested.
"What are you, some Saint all of a sudden? What has the galaxy ever done for you? Why would you wanna save it?" Rocket asked, looking at Peter.
"Because I'm one of the idiots who lives in it! And gave me one hell of a girlfriend!" Peter yelled and I blushed. Really Peter?
"Peter, Kat, listen to me. We cannot allow the stone to fall into Ronan's hands. We have to go back to your ship and deliver it to Nova." Gamora explained. As much as I would love to, I did not wanna get arrested again. I've spent enough time in prison.
"Right, right, okay. I think you're right." Peter started. "Or we could give it to somebody who's not going to arrest us, who's really nice for a whole lot of money. I think it's a really good balance between both of your points of view." Peter suggested. I liked his idea a whole lot better.
"You're despicable." Gamora said.
"I.." Peter tried before Gamora interrupted him, "Dishonorable. Faithless!" She yelled as she began to walk off. We then looked and saw a crap ton of ships heading our way. Well, that can't be good.