Chapter 19: Seeking Sanctuary

Leo returned to the control room to find Quill, Drax, Gamora, Thor, and Sif waiting for him with the Fugitoid. "Ah, Leonardo," Fugitoid said. "Good. You're ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," said Leo.

"Not yet," said Nova. Moving to a cabinet, he opened it to reveal an older model of a white space suit. Leo recognized it; it was the same kind of space suit he'd worn back when he and his brothers had had space adventures with Fugitoid.

"Astro-suit," said Nova. "Equipped with oxygen converters, grav boosters, and even alien language translators." He pulled the suit pieces out of the container and handed them to Leo, who quickly suited up.

Leo never got tired of the feeling of wearing a space suit. It always made him feel like he was in an episode of Space Heroes, his favorite TV show. The turtles had kept their suits as souvenirs, and sometimes he would go into Donnie's lab where they were kept and try his old suit on again.

All suited up now, Leo stepped into the teleporter tubes. "The beaming tubes will break your bodies down on a molecular level and then teleport the molecules to the coordinates in the computer and rebuild them," Fugitoid explained. "Like Star Trek, if you will."

"Hah!" Drax laughed. "I enjoyed that movie. Captain Han Solo was my favorite. He is a much better captain than you, Quill."

Quill closed his eyes and sighed through his nose. "That's the wrong movie, egghead!"

"My head is not an egg, Quill," protested Drax. "You and Rocket continue to insult me by comparing my body parts to food items. It is most disrespectful."

"Ahem!" Fugitoid cleared his voice box. When everyone was paying attention again, he continued, "Whatever happens, do not lose your teleporter bracelets. If so, you will have no way of return travel. So take care, friends!" He turned towards the control station. "Cosmo, fire up the teleporters!"

"Firink teleporters now, Comrade Honeycutt!" said Cosmo. A blue, swirling light enveloped the group inside the teleporter tube. Donnie arrived in time to see them leave, and he and Leo locked eyes. Leo raised his hand and waved goodbye before they began melting away and finally disappeared altogether. The blue light filtered out of the tubes and all was as it had been.

Cosmo ran up to Fugitoid and jumped up, placing his front paws on the android's leg. "Cosmo must be to thankink Comrade Honeycutt again. Having red rubber ball is beyond relief. Cosmo feel like new dog."

"Sure thing, Cosmo," said Fugitoid. "Would you do me a favor and go activate the remote tracking on Leonardo's space suit?"

"Of course, Comrade." Cosmo trotted off.

Fugitoid glanced over at Donatello, who was staring out the window with a crestfallen look on his face. "Are you all right, Donatello?" he asked.

Startled, Donnie looked up. "Uh, yeah, Professor." He swallowed. "Just worried about my brothers. That, and the whole earth getting invaded by a crazy Asgardian warlord. Man, this has gone from bizarre to insane so fast, it's hard to wrap my brains around it."

Fugitoid pulled a chair out for Donnie to sit down next to him. "Well, if we can get the Bifrost activated and get back to Earth, the invasion problem may be moot," he said, patting Donnie's shoulder.

"And if we don't?" Donnie asked.

"Then, if my best estimate is accurate, Loki's army will have destroyed all of life on earth in approximately two weeks and Earth's only hope may lie in the hands of other heroes," Fugitoid said ominously.

The next thing Leo knew, he was on a strange new world. The planet's surface was desolate and rocky. Everything had a purple overtone; the light, the rock formations, the ground, the clouds. They had teleported to the rain-soaked, windswept outskirts of a city which had been abandoned long ago.

Drax promptly vomited on the ground nearby, earning an annoyed glare from Gamora and Quill. "I do not like teleporting," he said.

"Fugitoid to expedition party," said a voice in Leo's helmet. "Can you hear me?"

Leo activated his suit's comm. "We can hear you. It looks like we've landed at the outskirts of some ancient city."

"Ah, yes," said the Fugitoid. "Your suit's built-in holo-mapping device should lead you straight to the Anulax battery." As the Fugitoid spoke, tracking dots appeared before Leo's eyes, calculating a way through the ruins and marking the route with a red holo-line.

Leo headed off after the tracking dots, and the group followed. "Where are we?" asked Drax.

"Morag," said Quill. "Andromeda Galaxy. Used to be home to an advanced race, till the floods started. Now the only things here are the orloni."

"What's an orloni?" asked Leo.

A small rat-like creature came around the corner just them, with hairless skin, red eyes, and needle-sharp teeth. It hissed, and Leo jumped back, startled. "That," said Quill, before he punted the creature off like a football. "Let's find the battery and get out of here."

He pulled his Zune out of his pocket to pick a song before putting in the earbuds and skipping across the surface of Morag to the sound of "Kokomo" by The Beach Boys. The others followed him. The rain that had preceded their arrival had been replaced by a light mist that gave everything an eerie purple hazy color.

I should have done this years ago, Leo thought as they traveled in search of the battery. I should have oiled up my old space suit and—and just taken off. Get away from everything. Get away from the team, get away from the Foot Clan and the Kraang and New York City and just come out here to seek my fortune. Go out into the universe and see what else I have to offer. Just take a step back and look at the Earth as part of the cosmic tapestry.

Donnie, sitting next to Fugitoid and Cosmo in the control station, was watching the view from Leo's suit's built-in holotransmitter. "This technology is really blowing my mind," he said, half to himself. "All the things you've invented, Professor—it's so amazing! Even the stuff you said you've done since we last met you. It pales in comparison to the way the Kraang kind of just mash everything together with mutagen."

Fugitoid emitted a robotic chuckle. "Well, I don't know about 'mash everything together,' but I suppose they did play a part in your existence."

"If you ask my father, he'd say it was all fate and destiny," Donnie said. "If you ask me, that's pretty crazy."

"Perhaps," Fugitoid muttered, his fingers flying over the control panel in front of him. "Or perhaps not."

Confused, Donnie turned. "Huh?"

"Do you know how our teleportation device works, Donatello?" Fugitoid asked.

"No."

"It's quite simple. Elements are scanned down to the atomic level. Then, that information is transmitted to the receiving location and used to construct replicas, not from the actual material of the originals, but from atoms of the same kind, arranged in exactly the same pattern as the originals. The originals, of course, are destroyed during the scanning process."

Donnie was geeking out full-time. "So, it's like the expedition group was copied and pasted to Morag, while their originals were deleted?"

"Excellent summary, Donatello," said Fugitoid. "Though, like my own explanation, it only describes the science of it all: the calculations we use to gauge muscle mass, genetic makeup, cellular formation and reformation, et cetera." The Fugitoid paused, adjusting a dial on the control pad. "But nowhere in those complicated equations do we take into account the essence of the individual—the soul, if you will. Really, it's such a magnificent mystery, how could we? And yet, the very thing that makes a being who they truly are—their soul—survives the teleportation trip every single time. Intangible, yet intact."

Fugitoid gestured at himself. "Or, consider myself for that matter. Externally, I am an android. A synthetic construct. But, internally, I am who I have always been—Zayton Honeycutt. I wonder . . . if our true essences, of their own volition, are able to make the journey across dimensions via technology, why not across space and time as well?"

"But . . ." Donnie was at a loss for words. Fugitoid's argument made sense, yet . . . "But what about proof, Professor? There's no way to test it. No empirical evidence. You're just supposed to . . . believe it?"

"Yes, you are right. There is no scientific proof that it is possible," Fugitoid admitted. "But there is also no definitive proof that it is not. So, rejecting the possibility without earnest consideration—well, perhaps that is what would be truly 'crazy'." As Donnie sat in stunned silence at Fugitoid's words, the android opened a comm channel with the expedition group. "Well, gentlemen, have you reached the location of the battery yet?" he asked.

Unbeknownst to the heroes, they were being tracked by a pair of Salamandrians, a race of anthropomorphic salamanders. Salamandrians had long been persecuted by the stronger powers of the galaxy: the Kraang, the Triceratons, the Kree, even the Nova Corps at one point. They were a race of battle-hardened warriors who knew how to survive, and how to defend what was theirs.

Both Salamandrians wore astro suits with metal boots and gloves, as well as air helmets over the heads. One of them was tall and grey, with an armored tail, a bionic eye, and scars spread through his body. The other was slim and teal-colored with small, white, pearly spots on her. Her suit's tail section had been modified to wield rows of spikes.

The pair stopped on a rock bluff overlooking the expedition below. "G'Throkka!" said the teal one. "The intruders!"

The Salamandrian with the robot eye, Commander G'Throkka, used his bionic eye to scan the group. "Yes, Y'Gythgba. I recognize them. Peter Quill and Drax, of the outlaw group the Guardians of the Galaxy."

"The daughter of Thanos the Mad Titan is among them as well," said the teal one, Y'Gythgba. "I do not recognize the other two. But by the look of their armor, they are Asgardian." She looked up at G'Throkka. "What purpose could the Asgardians have with a group of common outlaws?"

"I do not know," G'Throkka said.

Y'Gythgba drew one of her explosive discs from her belt. "I know only one thing: their presence risks the discovery of our Salamandrian relay station. We must stop them." Before G'Throkka could argue, she had jumped down behind the group and drawn her blue plasma sword, teeth bared in a snarl. G'Throkka jumped down next to her.

The expedition group turned to face the Salamandrians. "Newtralizers!" shouted Gamora.

"You are all dishonorable thieves and scoundrels, and you have invaded Salamandrian territory," Mona accused, pointing at the group. "Now you will fight us!"

Leo, who had been at the front of the group, couldn't see who it was, but he recognized the voice. That's Mona! Mona and Sal Commander were the nicknames of two of the turtles' Salamandrian allies, Y'Gythgba and G'Throkka. Back when the turtles had gone into space to stop the Triceratons from destroying the Earth, they had become friends with the two Salamandrians.

Obviously there was some kind of mistake, and he would be able to clear it up. He tried to push his way to the front of the group to explain, but before he could, the fight had already begun. Mona leapt with a yell towards Gamora, who quickly stepped aside. As she landed, she swept her girthy tail at Drax's legs, knocking him down onto the rocks. She swung her blue plasma sword at Gamora, whose reflexes enabled her to sidestep the attack.

Sal Commander roared and landed in between Leo and Quill. They moved out of the way just in time, and Quill moved to counterattack. Sal Commander used his brute strength to swat Quill aside, then activated the wrist laser shooters on the left arm of his suit and began blasting. The others dove for cover.

Mona had climbed on top of a rock and now jumped down at Drax. Drax did his best to block her attacks, but the Salamandrian warrior was just too fast, knocking him away with her tail again. "Those who dishonor the Salamandrians shall be destroyed!" she said.

Gamora leapt at her, bringing her sword down in a swing that Mona barely dodged. "Keep dreaming, Salamandrian!" she shouted.

Quill drew his blaster and fired a shot off at Sal Commander, who ducked under the shot and then punched Quill in the chest, sending him stumbling backwards. In the process, Sal Commander's tail mace accidentally struck Leo, trying to stop the fight. Leo spun onto his back and lay still, the wind knocked out of him.

"Leonardo?" Fugitoid asked through the helmet. "What's happening?"

Drax had climbed up a rock and now jumped down on Sal Commander, knives raised, yelling wildly. Sal Commander saw the attack and caught Drax with one hand by the neck, then threw him aside. "Back, vile lizard!" Thor shouted. The thunder god had flown up to the top of a rock archway, and his eyes grew blue as the purple clouds darkened over him. A powerful bolt of lightning struck his hammer, which harnessed the power of lightning. His hammer crackling and sparking, he fired off three blasts of lightning balls at Sal Commander. The commander charged, dodging the bolts as he leaped for Thor with a wild roar.

Quill's blasters were trained on Mona, and he fired off shot after shot. Mona ran, dodging and weaving to avoid the blaster fire, being chased by Gamora. Thinking fast, the Salamandrian ran towards Drax, leaping towards him in a jump kick. As the kick connected, Mona threw herself into the air, backflipping and kicking Gamora in the chest as she landed.

"Hold still, you stupid—!" Quill muttured as he blasted away. He never got the chance to finish his sentence, however, as Mona had pounced on him and knocked him aside with her tail.

Gamora and Mona leapt at each other, blades clashing. As they fought, Leo, who had finally got some air back in his lungs, got up. "Everyone STOP!"

Surprisingly, it worked. The fight ceased, and everyone turned to look at Leo. "Guys, we're on the same side!" he said. "Sal! Mona! Don't you remember me?"

"Leonardo?" Mona asked, puzzled. "But . . . how? How is this possible? How are you here?"

"And why have you thrown in with these criminals?" asked Sal Commander. "Graar."

"Reformed criminals," Quill clarified. "I'm guessing you guys haven't heard about the little tiff we got into on Xandar. We saved the day."

"You are the ones who defeated Ronan the Accuser?" Sal Commander asked.

"We sure are," Quill said, grinning.

After a tense moment of silence, Mona put away her sword. "Then you truly are noble creatures. I apologize for my hasty judgements."

Drax was doing his best to hold back Gamora from charging Mona. "I will have her head!" she shouted.

"Calm down, Gamora," said Drax.

Mona turned to Leo. "Leonardo. What is your business on Morag?"

"We're trying to locate anulax batteries to get back to Earth," Leo said. "Fugitoid's scanners said that there was one on this planet."

Mona and Sal Commander looked at each other. "There is," Sal Commander said, "but I'm afraid we cannot give it to you. It powers our relay station."

"Relay station?"

"Follow us," said Mona. The Salamandrians led the group into the Morag Temple, along a rocky path until they reached the huge cavernous inside of the temple. As Leo looked around, he saw domes of all sizes, lit up by a soothing glow from bubble lights and fluorescent rocks. There were travel tubes, computer cubes, and numerous Salamandrian warriors all going about their business.

As the group entered, Mona announced, "Attention! Commander on deck!"

The Salamandrians stopped what they were doing and placed their right hand in the shape of a fist over their chests. "Rokka rokka!" they cried.

"At ease, men," ordered Sal Commander. The troops went back to their duties.

Quill let out a low whistle. "Wow, you guys have really set up shop here. Last time I came here, this place was nothing but a bunch of crumbling rock."

"Our Salamandrian technology is built to withstand Morag's oceanic climate," said Mona. "Most of the time, the planet is submerged in water. You have come during a time available only once every three hundred years, when the water levels drop enough that the surface of the planet is exposed. That is why we are on guard. It is during this season our relay station will be most vulnerable.

Sal Commander explained to Leo, "The Triceraton-Kree War escalates across the galaxy, and we are manning a network of tracking stations. This quadrant in particular is key, as if the Triceratons get past this station, they can surprise-attack our homeworld of Salamandria."

"We cannot spare the anulax battery that we use to power our station," Mona said sadly.

The group hung their head in disappointment. In Leo's head, Donnie spoke up. "Uh, Mister Star-Lord? Didn't you say that Morag was home to an advanced alien race?"

"Yeah," Quill said.

"It seems that the Salamandrians have found a way to integrate their technology with the tech already inside the Temple," Donnie observed.

"Your turtle friend is correct," said Sal Commander. "We use the Morag Temple's energy signature to mask ours, so that our presence here may remain undetected."

"Well," Donnie mused, "if that's correct, then the temple must have an existing power source. If I can reverse-engineer the temple's technology to replace the battery, and you don't need the battery to use for power anymore, then we could take it, right?"

Sal Commander and Mona looked at each other. "Then, yes, I suppose you could," Sal Commander said. "I would not trust the so-called Guardians of the Galaxy with such an item, but if you are here, Leonardo, you have my trust."

"Wait, Donnie," said Leo over the radio. "You're not even here, how are you going to do that?"

"You're my eyes and ears, Leo," Donnie said. "And, in this case, my hands, too. I'll be in your ear guiding the process. The Salamandrians must have tools we can use."

"Then I suggest we get to work," said Thor.

The work took them a few hours. It would have gone faster if Donnie had been there, but trying to explain the technology to him and the Fugitoid over the suit's radio almost drove Leo crazy. The two brainiacs of the team came up with a plan to make the temple and the Salamandrian's equipment symbiotic, where basically each would power the other. The temple drew power from Morag's core and focused it, though after so long it was too weak to fuel the Salamandrian operation on the planet. However, thanks to Donnie's reverse-engineering abilities, the Salamandrian station worked as a focusing device to help amplify the power from Morag's core.

True to their word, the Salmandrians handed over their anulax battery. Sal Commander handed it to Leo personally, a small glowing yellow cylinder Leo put in a storage unit on his suit. "Thanks, Commander," he said.

Thor approached Sal Commander. "You fight well, Salamandrian," he said. "You are a valuable ally to have on our side."

"As are you, Asgardian," Sal Commander said. They raised their forearms and performed the Salamandrian Salute. "I am honored to be in the presence of Asgardian royalty, Prince Thor."

"One cannot be the Prince of Asgard if there's no Asgard left to be prince of," said Thor grimly.

Sal Commander nodded. "I sympathize with you, Asgardians. My homeworld too was once attacked, and I fought bitterly to protect it. There is no doubt in my mind that you honorable beings did the same."

Sif propped her sword up point-down and leaned on the hilt. "Soon we will return to Asgard and destroy Surtur for what he did," she said. "Reinforcements from off-world allies would indeed be . . . valuable."

Sal Commander nodded. "I will speak to my general about the matter." He performed the Salamandrian Salute with Sif as well. "Farewell, Asgardians."

The group huddled up, and Leo radioed Fugitoid. "Fugitoid? It's Leo," he said. "We've got the first battery."

"Excellent!" came the Fugitoid's voice. "I'm preparing the beam-up sequence now."

Quill walked towards Mona with a small circular disk. "Here," he said, holding out his hand.

Mona eyed his hand suspiciously. "A comm?" she asked. "What for?"

"If you need anything, call us," Quill said. "If you need to find us, that will show you the way."

"You trust me with this?" Mona asked, looking puzzledly at Quill. "We just met."

"Sure I trust you," Quill said, shrugging. "Until you give me reason not to."

"I have nothing to give you in return," protested Mona.

"That's okay," Quill said, turning around and heading back towards the group.

Mona started to follow, protesting. "No. That is not the Salamandrian way. That is not how it works. I must return your gift by—"

Quill held up a hand. "You'll get me next time," he said with a confident smirk.

Gamora elbowed him hard. "Stop being cute around the female, Quill. We've talked about that." She eyed Mona with grudging respect, and Mona returned the look. "You heal far better than you fight, Salamandrian," she said.

"I am not the one retreating," Mona observed.

As Gamora opened her mouth to fire off a retort, the air around them shimmered blue and they were teleported back to Knowhere.

Donnie's eyes looked up at the teleporters as they began to shimmer and hum. "They're back!" he announced as the expedition group appeared inside the teleportation tubes.

Cosmo bounded over. "Welcome back, friends!" he said, barking happily. "Cosmo is hoping trip went well?"

"Yes," said Drax, "most successfully. We retrieved the harbulary battery."

Quill rolled his eyes, not even caring at this point.

"Excellent work, friends!" said Fugitoid.

"Wait," said Donnie. He paused, looking around slightly at the group members. "Where's Leo?" A horrible sinking feeling began to enter his stomach as they looked around, not spotting the blue turtle anywhere.

"He—he was right behind me . . ." Sif said softly.

Fugitoid ran over to the controls. "No worries," he said, his fingers flying over the panel. "The built-in comm in Leonardo's suit should give us his exact coordinates." He paused, and the viewscreen lit up, showing a map of the galaxy with a blinking red dot. "Right there," Fugitoid said, pointing. "Coordinates N5X2 106311411+2123518."

"Chitauri Space?" asked Sif. "What is Leonardo doing there?"

The rest of the expedition members paled. "Not just any Chitauri Space," Gamora said softly. "That's the coordinates for the Sanctuary."

"Domain of the Mad Titan Thanos," Drax added.

"That guy's nuttier than three Darth Vaders rolled into one," Quill said.

Drax glanced at Quill, puzzled. "Darth Vader and Thanos are not comparable, Quill," he said. "They are of different species. Darth Vader is a Klingon, and Thanos is a Titan."

Quill closed his eyes and clenched his jaw. "For the last time, Star Wars and Star Trek are not the same thing!"

"I owe Leonardo a life debt," Thor said. "He saved my life on Asgard. I owe him nothing less than returning the favor."

"I'll go as well," said Nova. "I can use my powers to slow Thanos down."

"Me, too," Quill said, raising his blaster. "And so will Rocket."

Rocket looked up from cleaning his blaster. "I will?"

"You will," said Quill. "And you'll go and do it using a little something that you built out of spare parts off of my ship."

Rocket's eyes lit up. "Of course! The Hadron Enforcer!" He scampered towards the door, heading down to the hangar to get the weapon he'd built himself. "Groot!" he shouted as he ran. "Wake yer bark up, buddy! We have a thing!"

Gamora followed Rocket. Thor went after her but Drax held him back. "No," the tattooed warrior said. "She will not come."

"Why not?" asked Thor.

"Her father is Thanos," Drax explained. "Her hatred for him is a hatred I have never seen in another living being. But she is conflicted. She will not fight him. Someday, perhaps, but not today."

Thor grimaced. "Her warrior spirit would be useful on our side against Thanos."

"I'm coming, too," said Donnie all of a sudden. They all turned to look at him.

Quill held up his hands. "I don't think that's a g—"

"That's final," Donnie interrupted, going over the wall of astro-suits and grabbing equipment, sliding it on. "I've just lost my family, my friends, and life as I knew it to some crazy extraterrestrial god in medieval garb. I may never see them again. I'm not losing Leo. So I'm coming, like it or not."

There was an awkward silence. Finally, Thor said, "We welcome your bravery, Donatello."

The group stepped back into the teleporter tubes as Rocket and Groot returned with the Hadron Enforcer. Fugitoid primed the teleporter. "Once you get there, you'll have minimal time before Thanos' Chitauri army finds you and closes in. Get in and out as quickly as possible, and whatever you do do not engage Thanos for longer than necessary. He is far too powerful for you all. Hit him fast and hard, and then give me the signal when you have Leonardo. Good luck."

The teleporters hummed as the group shimmered and vanished.

Something was terribly wrong.

Leo didn't know exactly what had happened. One minute he had been on Morag, on his way to the Knowhere station. But somewhere during the travel, he had been ripped out of the teleporter sequence, and transported here, to this strange world. Giant chunks of space rock floated idly through a space nebulae. The gravity was really weird here, as well.

Leo began to panic as he realized that he was not back on Knowhere. He tried radioing the Fugitoid, but there was no signal. Okay, Leo, don't panic, he thought. They'll come for you eventually. See if there's anybody who can help.

He walked around the surface of the asteroid he stood on, searching for someone or something to help him figure out where he was and how to get back to nowhere. "Hello?" he called. "Anyone?"

Soon he became aware of two figures in the distance. One of them was a tall, muscular figure, with purple skin, wearing a golden suit of armor. He sat on a throne made of polished rock floating in the air. The other was a thin, lanky man with blue-green skin and stringy white balding hair who kneeled on the surface of the asteroid behind the throne of the other figure. Unsure of whether they were friends or foes, Leo knelt down behind the rock and listened, keeping a hand on his blaster just in case.

"We should eliminate the Earth completely," the figure on the throne said. "The amount of damage and chaos that tiny planet creates all across the galaxy versus what it offers us in return is absurd."

"My liege, they are destroying their ecosystem from within, which will make the planet uninhabitable in the next few generations," said the other figure. "Yet many sections of the galaxy seem to think that it is the most important planet and worth spending entire economies defending it or attacking it. The damage to the galaxy if the Earth ceased to exist would be minimal—yet the damage to the galaxy because the Earth does exist is astronomical. At this point, the best we can hope for is salvation at your hand, Lord Thanos. We must conquer that backward planet, mobilize the genetic mutations into an army, and then fulfill your mission to restore the balance in the universe."

Thanos, the figure on the throne, rotated the throne a hundred and eighty degrees to face his lieutenant. "The unhealthy earth is going to create a virus within itself," he said. "That virus will spread to other species in the galaxy, causing a malignancy that we will not be able to stop in time. The earth is a disease-ridden, backwards planetoid of mayhem, and the Black Order should eliminate it. To continue, we need one, singular vision." Thanos leaned forward on his throne, staring at Ebony Maw. "My vision."

"Ebony Maw is but a humble vessel for you to direct, my lord," said the kneeling figure.

"Contact the Glaive and Midnight," Thanos ordered Ebony Maw. "Tell them to begin amassing the Outriders. The Gauntlet has been built. Now all we need do is wait."

Ebony Maw bowed even lower and slunk away. Leo paled as he realized Thanos' plan. Yeah, he's definitely not helping me get home. Time to go full ninja mode. Leo, being stealthy, began to sneak away when all of a sudden Thanos said, "Leonardo."

Leo froze. How does he know my name?

"I can see you," Thanos said. "Come forth, little one."

Cautiously, Leo peeked out from behind the rock and locked eyes with the Titan. Thanos raised a hand and gestured him closer with two fingers. "Come here," he said.

Leo stepped forward slowly, keeping a hand on the hilt of his blaster. "You know who I am?"

"I do. I've watched the Earth from afar, and you and your brothers have managed to stand out from the rest of the populace."

"Well, I don't know about you, but where I'm from walking talking turtles aren't exactly common." Come on, Leo, are you really making jokes right now?

Thanos smiled grimly. "I wonder if anyone actually finds you as humorous as you think you are."

Suddenly strange aliens covered in gold and purple armor climbed up on the rocks, surrounding Leo. They had long energy rifles aimed at the turtle, and they were growling and clicking in some strange tongue. "I shouldn't have come here," Leo said.

"Oh, no," Thanos said. "You didn't have a choice. I brought you here. Summoned you from out of space." As he said this, he held up a glowing blue cube in his hand, before closing his hand and making the cube disappear. "I'm very glad I did." He leaned forward on his throne. "I know about the galaxy's growing darkness. And that is what you have felt. Damage. Irreversible, horrible damage to the entire galactic cosmic force."

"How do you know this?" Leo asked.

Thanos chuckled, without answering the question. "Leonardo, all that you have been through and you still have not figured it out for yourself. That life is a cancer. All life is capable of is destruction and then unavoidable death. It gives. It tortures. Then it takes itself away. This life punishes you, Leonardo, at every turn. It has betrayed you since your mutation. And still you think it has value. The Earth is doomed. Doomed to subjugation and annihilation. And for all your pains and efforts to protect it . . . it has doomed itself."

"Yeah?" Leo asked. The more Thanos talked, the more it made sense. And he was getting the sinking feeling that he wasn't leaving here alive.

"Those selfish, immature animals on that mudslide home planet of your may have ruined the entire galaxy, but they have surely doomed themselves. I wonder which primate it was that caused the shift in cosmic powers. Those Avengers? Reed Richards? The Inhumans? Perhaps a new mutation was born and with it came nothing but ruin."

"I'll tell you who it was!" Leo snapped. "It was Oroku Saki. The Shredder! He's stopped at nothing to destroy my family and friends. That's what upset the balance in the universe! Doesn't that matter at all to you? I heard all your plans. Doesn't it matter that you're destroying an entire planet of innocent people?"

"It matters not who is to blame for they will all suffer and pay," Thanos said indifferently. "There's nothing you can do now, Leonardo. Before this unnatural event, the entire galaxy was happy to ignore them. Or sit back and laugh as the Earthers destroyed themselves. But now? They have revealed themselves. They need to be controlled or to be done away with. Now no one will come to save them because they have proven themselves a danger to us all. No one would care if Galactus himself ate that entire planet whole."

He stood up on the seat of his throne, and Leo's nerves snapped. "Stop!" he shouted, drawing his pistol and aiming it right between Thanos' eyes. With one shot, he could stop this crazy alien warlord and save the Earth.

The Chitauri began growling and readying their rifles, but Thanos merely stared back at Leo. "Are you going to watch, Leonardo? Are you going to watch the Earth's last days?" he asked.

"Sit back, Thanos!" Leo ordered. He could feel the sweat trickling down his forehead, and the blood pounded in his ears. The tension was so thick he could cut it with a knife.

"Are you going to join them in their final silent scream to a god that doesn't exist? As the rest of the galaxy . . . as I . . . as someone makes them crawl and beg for what they have done."

"Sit down."

"Or?" Thanos taunted, amused. "What will you do?"

Leo fired. The noise ripped through space, as Thanos recoiled in pain. A black blaster mark appeared on Thanos' forehead, smoke rising from the dot. Thanos turned back to look at Leo, as Leo, panicking now, fired three more shots. None had any effect. Leo began shaking so badly that the pistol fell from his trembling hand.

"A valiant effort," Thanos growled. He leaped at Leo, who shut his eyes, tensed his muscles, and prayed for a swift death.

An explosion suddenly launched him backwards onto his back on the hard rocky surface. Opening his eyes, he saw a large cloud of grey dust and rock particles where Thanos had been standing. The Chitauris had all been caught in the blast. Turning in confusion, Leo looked behind him and saw Rocket, Groot, Quill, Thor, and Nova flying towards him from a distance. And leading them was—"Donnie!" he shouted.

Rocket grinned, the smoking Hadron Enforcer strapped to his chest. "We really do need a battle cry."

"I am Groot," Groot pointed out.

"I mean one for all of us," Rocket corrected. " 'I am Groot' works for you, but we ain't all named Groot."

"You can use 'For Asgard,'" Thor offered. "I don't care. More publicity for the Asgardians."

Even in the stress of the moment, Donnie was still impressed by Rocket's tech. "How did your gun do that, Rocket?"

Rocket patted the side of the Hadron Enforcer affectionately. "It's a one of a kind weapon, just like me. Fires a bullet that contains hadron particles, which explode on impact."

Donnie's jaw dropped. "A bullet made of hadron particles?" he gasped.

Rocket looked at him in shock. "You don't even have that tech yet on Earth?"

"Oh my . . . you—you have no idea . . ." Donnie stammered.

"How do you live?" Rocket asked.

The dust from the explosion had cleared, and Thanos got up, wiping the blood from his lip and smiling as the group closed in on him. "Rats," Rocket muttered. "Why does this never work on the big bad guys?"

"One of him and four of us," Nova said, whose fists had begun charging with yellow energy. "We should be able to—"

Groot wasn't listening. The tree-like creature had landed on the asteroid first and now charged Thanos with a wild, "I am Groot!"

"Never mind the four of us, Groot'll wrap this up before nap time," Rocket laughed. "Watch this!"

Thanos didn't move as Groot swung his tree-like limb, instead ducking under the alien's attacks before punching through Groot's body in a pulverizing blow that shattered his wooden form. Pieces of bark, good for nothing now but mulch, exploded everywhere as Groot's severed head went spinning off into space. "Aw, flark!" shouted Rocket. "Groot!"

"He killed him," said Thor, scarcely unable to believe it.

Rocket took off on his jetpack, flying towards the cloud of spinning wood slivers. "Not if I can grab some of his burnt—agh!"

Donnie had been firing at Thanos with his laser pistol, but the Titan had deflected the shots with the Infinity Gauntlet. One of the shots had haphazardly struck Rocket, sending him off into space.

"Rocket!" Donnie shouted, activating his own grav booster and flying after Rocket.

"Never mind me, Don!" Rocket called. "Get Leo!"

Donnie changed course, heading down towards Leo as Thor and Nova both charged Thanos. Nova's hands began to glow with red cosmic energy, and he fired off a concussive blast that Thanos merely absorbed with the Gauntlet. This, however, gave Thor time to strike, and he flew in, delivering a powerful blow to the Titan's helmet while Nova blasted at Thanos' feet. The Titan warlord lost his balance and fell off the edge of the asteroid.

Now Thor spun his hammer over his head, and the skies grew dark as a bolt of lightning shot through space, directly striking the god of thunder. Thor roared as he aimed his hammer at Thanos and fired a lightning bolt with enough voltage to power New York City straight at the Titan. The bolt struck Thanos head-on, sending the Titan crashing into another asteroid below. The force of the blast demolished the asteroid as Thanos hit it, and he continued falling.

"Guys, let's get out of here!" Quill shouted, blasting Chitauri soldiers while boot-jetting from rock to rock. Donnie had grabbed Leo, and the two of them were cowering behind a rock as the Chitauri rained down purple laser fire on their position.

"Donnie!" Leo said, turning to look at his brother. "You came back for me!"

"Of course I did!" shouted Donnie, smiling at his brother. "You're my brother, Leo. Maybe the only family I've got left."

Leo grabbed Donnie's arm. "Then let's kick some purple alien butt and get home to save our family!" The brothers grabbed their laser pistols, counted to three, and then popped out from behind the rock at the same time, blasting at the Chitauri as Nova and Thor returned to the group.

"We must hurry," Thor said. "Thanos will not be stopped."

"Where's Rocket?" Donnie shouted.

Rocket was still spinning through space with his jetpack, straining his arm at a piece of wood. His furry fist closed around it. "There ya go," he said, hugging the stick-sized piece of wood affectionately. "I got ya, buddy."

"Rocket! Let's go!" Quill's voice shouted over his suit's comm.

Rocket turned around and flew back towards the group, opening fire on the Chitauri from above. "I'm coming, Quill," he said as he blasted the aliens. "Come get some, space dogs!"

As the group reunited, Thanos's arm appeared on the edge of the asteroid. The Titan warlord dragged himself onto the asteroid surface, pulling himself up to face the group of heroes. He raised an arm, and the blaster fire from the Chitauri stopped. "You think you have accomplished something here today?" he yelled at the group. "This means nothing. The Earth is still doomed. You have only prolonged your miserable existence."

"You're wrong about the Earth, Thanos," said Leo. "There's good people there. Heroes."

"Professor, activate teleporter now!" Donnie radioed. The group shimmered as they were engulfed in blue light, then vanished.

Thanos looked out into the vast expanse of space where the group had been standing a minute ago. "We shall see, Leonardo," he said to himself. "We shall see."

The next thing Leo knew he was back in the Knowhere Station. The group crowded around him. "Leo!" Donnie said, embracing his brother tightly. "I thought I'd lost you."

Leo returned the hug. "I'm not going anywhere, Don," he said. "That's a promise." He reached into his pouch and pulled out the anulax battery. "Here's the battery, Professor."

"Excellent, Leonardo!" Fugitoid said. Taking the battery, he handed it to Cosmo, who held it in the air telepathically and licked it like a lollipop. "Cosmo, divert most of Knowhere's primary energy through the sub-relay stations so we can plug the battery in," Fugitoid said.

"Cosmo will do as Comrade Honeycutt requests," said Cosmo as he trotted off with the battery.

Fugitoid turned back to the group. "While you were away, we received an off-planet transmission," Fugitoid said. He moved over to the control panel and activated one of the viewscreens. The screen lit up to reveal a large chubby brown alien, with a single eye at the end of a long and thick eyestalk that extended out from his neck. The alien's mouth was stretched across his bloated belly, and some dark brown facial hair had grown above its mouth like a moustache.

"Robo-baby!" the alien said. "It ain't like you to miss calls. I guess you must be busy. Anyways, a little birdie told me you're on the hunt for some anulax batteries, and boy do I got some information for you. If you want in, I'll be at the Iron Lotus on Contraxia for another cycle. I better not see those two-timing turtles there either. If you have any trouble getting past the bouncer, just tell 'em ol' Belebome sent ya, huh?" The alien laughed as the viewscreen winked out.

"Vrax Belebome," Quill said.

"You know Bellybomb?" Donnie asked.

"I do," Quill said. "He makes a living ferreting out information in and selling it to the highest bidder."

"Do we trust him?" Drax asked.

Quill shook his head. "Not a chance."

"But he's got information concerning the anulax batteries," Fugitoid piped up. "Information which could be vital."

"That's why the Guardians will go with you to see what he's got," Quill said. "Like backup."

"We can stay here and hold down the fort till you get back," Nova offered. "Knowhere's always in need of maintenance."

"Excellent," said Fugitoid. "How soon can the Milano be ready?"