"The shooter was caught by a security camera inside the bunker. The Nova corps have yet to identify the masked shooter, however it is believed that they are one of the highly skilled assassins trained by Thanos. More widely known as the Dogs of War. The shooter is a blonde child, their biology most resembles that of a Xandarian. " Gamora leans forwards slightly from where she's playing with on the floor of the bridge. She peers around the edge of Yondu's station to watch the pretty newscaster explain all of this. Yondu hasn't realized Gamora was watching.
They played a clip from the security footage. The figure with glowing red eyes is a blur as they effortlessly take down a government operative nearly twice their size. Gamora flinches at each gunshot. They're carefree and cheerful despite the morbid atmosphere of the bunker. They don't even stop singing as they kill everyone in the room. Something about them is deeply unnerving.
Gamora can faintly make out the words to the song. She recognized the language. They're speaking English, she was sure of it.
The newscaster went on, "Due to the shooter's odd behavior one journalist coined a popularized nickname…"
~~•˖✧•✯•✧˖•~~
"The Requiem of Andromeda!" Peter reads the article aloud as he jumps on the sofa in the common room aboard Thanos' warship the Morior. "Named for the song they sing for their victims as they carry out Thanos' grim work. The history and identity of these assassins have always been shrouded in mystery."
"All this attention is gonna go straight to his head isn't it?" Miertra raises one eyebrow at Ophid. They sigh irritably and try to focus on their book.
"This is only the fourth time in history that we've caught a glimpse of the deadly assassins working for Thanos. Our first glimpse about these assassins comes from a photo taken…" Peter trails off as his eyes skim down the rest of the article. He stops jumping on the couch. "Blah, blah, blah, stuff about Voros…"
"Stuff about Voros?" Ophid lifts their head from their book, their interest piqued. "Wait, I wanna see! When did Voros get caught?"
They reach out for the transmitter but Peter bounces away from Ophid. "No way! Who cares about that, anywa–ah!" Ophid tackles Peter.
"I do!" They fall back on the couch as Ophid tries to take the transmitter away from Peter.
"C'mon, dude! Ophid! No!" He laughs as they wrestle. Ophid manages to pin Peter down and takes the transmitter from him.
"Oh look at how little Voros is!" Ophid cooes at the image, "And that must be Kekallie next to him."
"What? I wanna see!" Miertra jumps up from where he was sitting and runs over to look over Ophid's shoulder. Peter squirms out from under Ophid. They hold the transmitter flat and open a hologram of the image.
"See there's Kekallie in the pigtails and Voros has the teddy bear," Ophid points them out in the hologram. There was a group of 10 children standing in front of Thanos. One of them was holding out the head of their target. "That one in the middle was Leuria. She was so cool, she died just before you got here. Aonny is all the way on the right, he was really nice to me." Ophid explains casually.
Miertra frowns at the hologram, "Do you know everyone in this photo?"
"Ophid has been here longer than anybody," Peter grumbles. "Except maybe, Nebula."
"What do you mean?" Miertra waits for them to clarify.
"Daddy adopted me when I was a baby. I grew up in the nursery with Nebula, Sanctuary II has been my for as long as I can remember," Ophid said.
"Can we go back to talking about me?" Peter asked, only half joking.
"No, " Ophid and Miertra reply in unison.
"Come and get it, dinner's ready!" Voros' voice booms throughout the ship.
Miertra, Ophid and Peter all remember simultaneously that Voros was making cinnamon bread rolls for dinner. If they got there first they wouldn't have to share. They all lunge over the couch and collide with each other as they all try to leave the common room at once. They roughhouse with each other while yelling and laughing. Nebula sees her siblings barreling down the hallway towards her. She spits a curse and makes a break for the galley. Ophid picks up the pace to catch up with Nebula.
Voros can hear them coming a mile away. The troublemakers thunder through the doorway into the galley. Peter snatched up a wooden spoon as Nebula and Ophid darted around the island counter. Miertra is a step behind Peter. Voros holds up a hand to stop him, "Defensive weapon or offensive?"
"Offensive!" Peter glares at Nebula.
Voros plucks the spoon out of Peter's hands, and pulls a long carving knife out of its holder, "This one's much better."
"Voros!" Ophid cried indignantly.
"Close combat is not Peter's strong point. This is only fair," Voros explains in a patronizing tone. Peter grips the knife in his fist. He lunges across the counter to try and stab his siblings. Ophid runs in opposite directions. They chased each other around, under and over the dining room table.
By now Allace and Nexus have entered the galley as well. Allace takes a seat at the table, content to watch the chaos unfold around her. Nexus wanted to be a part of the action. "I wanna play too! Can I play?" He begs and whines as he milled about the room. He was uncertain as to how to join their game.
"Go away, Nexus!" Nebula snaps. She blocks a jab from the carving knife with her cybernetic arm, before shoving Nexus out of Peter's reach.
Ophid chimes in, "You'll get hurt!" They make a grab for the knife, but Peter jumps out of the way. Ophid crashes into Miertra. When Ophid starts to fall they reach out and grab Nebula for support, but ends up dragging her down as well. They fall into a pile on the floor. Peter drops the knife and giggles. "Dogpile!"
Ophid, Miertra, and Nebula all yell over each other, "No! No! Peter don't–! Wait–"He jumps up and body slams them. "Agh! You're crushing my hand! You're on my hair! Get off!"
"Me too! Me too!" Nexus races over to climb on top of the dogpile.
"Oh my God! Nexus, no!" Peter says before bursting into a fit hysterical giggling. Anytime someone tried to leave the dogpile the others would drag them back down.
"Nex, would you please make sure everyone gets a juice box from the fridge. It would be a great help." Voros instructs him kindly and their tiniest brother nods thoughtfully.
"Yeah, I'll help!" Nexus slides off the dogpile and races over to the refrigerator.
"Hot bread rolls coming through!" Voros announced as he carefully maneuvers around his siblings. They suddenly remembered what they were fighting about and scramble off the floor to take their seats.
The moment the basket of bread rolls touched the table. Everyone dives for it like a pack of hungry wolves. The bread rolls are divided up and devoured in mere seconds. Nexus passes around juice boxes for everyone. "Thanks, Nex, " Miertra mumbles, setting off a chain reaction. All their other siblings thank Nexus in chorus.
Their youngest brother beams with pride as he takes his seat next to Voros. Nexus frowns at the empty bread basket. "Hey, I want more bread!" He glances around the table before trying to snag one of Miertra's plate. "Mier gimme yours!"
"No way, I only got two." Miertra holds his plate away from Nexus. "Peter took three!"
Peter quickly stuffs a bread roll into his mouth, leaving one left on his plate. "You can't prove that."
"Peter, can you pass me the butter?" Nebula asks.
"Uh, sure, " Peter narrows his eyes at her suspiciously before turning away to grab the butter. Nebula lunges for the only remaining bread roll. Peter drops the butter and jabs his elbow back. Miertra and Ophid scoot away from them. Nebula drops the bread roll to block his attack. Peter makes a grab for it. Without thinking, Nebula grabs the bread roll as well. They rip it in half.
Nexus, Peter, and Nebula stare at what remains of the bread roll with shock and dismay. Nebula eyes Peter's half. He eats it before she can try to take it from him. Nebula gives her partially squished half to Nexus. He's a little disappointed but eats it anyway. "Voros, can you make more bread rolls?" Allace thought to ask, only after everything had happened.
"Hm?" Voros looks up from their meal and blinks their sleepy eyes at her. "I wasn't listening. Was someone injured?"
"Peter's about to be!" Nebula announced while reaching for her steak knife.
"You took half my bread so I get half your fruit!" Peter tries not to smile as he steals berries from Nebula's plate. Peter yanks his hand away as Nebula slams the knife into the table. "Ophid trade spots with me!"
"No."
Nexus sticks their lower lip out in a pout, "Voros, I want more bread!"
"Well, I did set aside two pieces for Maenyx…" He leans back in his chair and throws a glance at the plate of food on the counter. "But, they haven't been eating. You may eat them if you wish. I'd hate to have to throw them away."
"Yay! Thanks!" Nexus slides out of his chair and hurried over to retrieve the bread rolls.
Ophid furrows their brow, the smile vanished from their face. "Wait, they're not eating?"
Voros shakes his head. Miertra pipes up, "Mm, our cabins share a wall. They kept me up all night with their crying." He sounds less than sympathetic.
Nebula slams the knife down, pinning Peter's hand to the table. She comments casually, "Everyone isolates themselves at first. Maenyx will adapt eventually."
"Ow, what the hell!" Peter snaps at her. He tries to remove the knife from the table but it won't budge.
"Must you always be the center of attention? We're talking about Maenyx right now," Nebula replies.
"You stabbed me! Voros!"
"I'll get the bandages." Voros stands up from the table and retrieves the emergency medical supplies from the cabinet. The room is silent as Voros yanks the knife free. He gently begins to tend to Peter's wounds.
Allace breaks the silence. "What are you going to do about Maenyx?"
"When Heather locked herself in her cabin for a whole month, Peter lured her out with jellybeans, " Ophid recalls.
Peter cracks a small smile, "I think I might have some extra candy in my cabin."
Voros bobs his head absently. "If you would like to give them something sweet I would not object."
"I wanna bring Maenyx their food! Can I do it? Please, Voros!" Nexus suddenly pipes up.
"I wanna meet our new sibling too, " Ophid chimed in.
Voros moves into the galley and pours himself a glass of water. "Hm, I do not wish to overwhelm Maenyx, since they are already having a hard time. I would advise visiting them in pairs. Nexus and Peter can bring Maenyx their dinner. Ophid, you are welcome to visit them sometime after that. Would anyone else like to visit Maenyx?"
"Hard pass, " Miertra grumbles.
"I am curious about them, " Allace replies hesitantly, "but I don't wanna make things worse."
They all look over at Nebula expectantly. She doesn't know where to look and drops her gaze to her plate. She shrugs, "I can wait until they're more comfortable."
"Understood. If any of you change your mind let me know," Voros nodded along.
After dinner, Peter fetched the last package of chocolate from his stateroom. He was saving it to teach Nexus about smores, but it seemed like Maenyx needed the chocolate more. The first few months are hard on everyone. Peter doesn't have any memories from the first month he spent of Sanctuary II. It was all one big terrifying blurr during what had been the worst year of his life.
Nexus walks very slowly down the hallway. He's being extra cautious so he doesn't spill any of Maenyx's dinner. "Do you want me to carry that?" Peter offers kindly.
Nexus furrows his brow, and insists aggressively, "No! I can do it!"
Maenyx had been assigned the stateroom down the hall from Peter's room. He knocks on the door and calls out to the ship's AI. "Mori would you let Maenyx know that we're here, and unlock the door."
"Of course, Peter, " Morior replies politely. A moment passes before the door glides open. The room is pitch black.
Peter does remember Heather's first month on their ship. She ate very little and barely moved from her bed, she would cry so violently she would make herself sick. Peter eventually got Heather to leave her cabin but it was Kekallie that helped Heather shower and brush her teeth. It was Kekallie that stayed up with Heather when she was too frightened to sleep. Peter hated himself for killing Kekallie but he hated himself missing her more. He tries to push thoughts of Kekallie to the back of his mind as he turns on the lights.
He surveyed the room. It was a simple bedroom that looked mostly untouched, today's lunch was left on the bedside table. Maenyx must have been hiding somewhere. Nexus stood hesitantly outside the doorway, he looked at Peter for some direction. He had no idea what he was doing. Peter starts to hum so Maenyx would hear him coming. He feels a weird sense of Deja Vu.
There are very few places to hide. He checks under the bed first, then he checks the wardrobe. He slams the wardrobe door shut. There's a surprised gasp followed by shuffling from within the closet. Peter rolls his eyes and strolls across the room. They always hid in the closet, why did everyone believe they were safe there?
"Maenyx, I'm opening the door now." And he does, very slowly, so he doesn't frighten them. "Hi there."
Maenyx was huddled in the corner of the room. They had their knees pressed against their chest, and their eyes were bloodshot. Someone–probably Voros–had given them a bath and a fresh change of clothes. They were gripping a flashy new pocket knife like their life depended on it. They keep their eyes trained on Peter and the blade pointed in his direction.
"That's a cool knife ya got there, " Peter says quietly. He sits down outside the closet and pulls out his own pocket knife. "Than… Dad gave me one too." He held it up for Maenyx to see. Their eyes widened slightly, but they don't lower their blade. "It's like a Sorry for Being the Universe's Shittiest Dad gift. It's the only gift dad ever gave me." He watches Maenyx closely. They don't say anything but they lower the knife slightly, the tension was beginning to leave their shoulders. "What? Not even a smile for that?"
Nexus slowly creeps over to them. He gets as close to Maenyx as he can without making them uncomfortable. "Hi." He waves at them, "I brought you dinner." Nexus sets the plate on the ground and pushes it towards Maenyx. They eye it over suspiciously. "Peter give 'em the candy."
"Oh, right." Peter pulls the chocolate bar out of his pocket, and waves it at Maenyx. "I brought a peace offering." Their frown deepens and they shake their head a little.
"No?" Nexus tilts their head to the side.
"You won't eat?" Peter waits from a response that isn't coming. They blink back at Peter, expression unchanged. "Okay, more for me then." He rips open the packaging on the candy bar. He breaks off one of the chocolate squares and pops it into his mouth.
"I want some too, uh please!" Nexus chirps. Peter grins and breaks off a piece for Nexus. "Yummy!" They divided up half of the chocolate bar. Maenyx sticks their lower lip out in a pout and leans towards them slightly.
Peter tilts his head to the side. "You change your mind?" Maenyx nodded a little eagerly.
Peter placed what was left of the chocolate bar on the edge of the plate and pushed it over to Maenyx. They snapped up the chocolate and they nibbled on it at first. Their eyes widened slightly and the hint of a smile appeared on their face before they devoured the whole thing. They looked at Peter expectantly, he chuckled and shrugs, "Sorry, that's all I had. Maybe next time, okay?" He stands up and returns his knife to his pocket.
Peter turns to leave and Maenyx suddenly whines very softly, "No." Their hand moves up towards him like they wanted to grab onto Peter, but he's too far away. Maenyx let's their hand fall back to their side.
Peter turns to look at them curiously, he's surprised to hear them say anything at all. "No?"
"S-s-stay, " Maenyx's eyes suddenly filled with tears. They take a shuddering breath and choke down a sob. "Please, stay with me."
"Alright." Peter agrees. He sits down inside the closet and Nexus sits down on his lap. Peter talks to Maenyx for the next two hours or so. They respond mostly by nodding their head and the occasional shy smile. Maenyx slowly inches closer to Peter, until eventually, Maenyx lets Peter hold their hand.
~~•˖✧•✯•✧˖•~~
"No, yeah, that's For Whom the Bell Tolls by Metallica. They're probably human," Cammi replies casually. She's holding the transmitter against her ear with her shoulder, her feet are up on the co-pilots console as she paints her toenails.
"I knew it!" Gamora chirps from halfway across the galaxy.
Cammi grins and says smugly, "Lemme guess Richie didn't recognize the song?"
"Yup, congrats Cam-Cam you have the same taste in music as a serial killer," Gamora taunts her.
"Shut it, " Cammi scoffs and Gamora giggles. The hatch into the cockpit swings open and Drax ducks through the entrance. "Drax's here, I should go!" Gamora says goodbye and hangs up. Drax wanders over to the gunner's station and settles into the chair. Cammi takes her feet off the console and then stands up on her chair so she can see over the headrest. "Yo big man! Can I paint your nails?" She doesn't wait for a reply before opening the orange and yellow nail polish.
He glances at her curiously, "Why do you bother to ask if you are going to do whatever you wish anyway?"
"I dunno, just like talking to you I guess." Cammi shrugs and sets about painting Drax's fingernails. "Oh and I got somethin' you're gonna like!" Cammi grins mischievously and Drax shoots her a curious look. She sets the nail polish down and tosses Drax her transmitter.
He frowns at the headline and corresponding article. "There are too many words. I am not going to read this."
Cammi huffs a little, "Thanos and his lackeys are in the Razoria Empire,so Ronan might be there too." Drax's eyes widen. He suddenly lurches across the cockpit, grabs the wheel and yanks it to the right. Cammi laughs and the ship suddenly turns towards Razoria's star system.
/AN: I've been working on this fic for nearly 2 years now which is a long ass time to commit to any one thing, so thank you for sticking around this long. And thank you for your kind words and encouragement. I hope my work is improving somewhat (or that it at least has been consistently bad lol)