The rest of the ship seemed to be much easier to manoeuvre through, though I suspected that was because a good deal of Ronan's forces were on ships outside. Quill had once again taken the lead, keeping up a quick pace as we hurried down that halls. I gasped stumbling a bit as the ship jerked forcefully almost as soon as we reached the security doors. Now stopped I held up my HWT checking the readings take I had picked up from the sensors Nova had set up around the city. I announced loudly with an edge of desperation, "Guys, we gotta speed this up. Most of the Nova Corps just got whipped out."

The news was grim and I couldn't help feeling horrible about it, dammit I really was soft. Men poured from on of the tunnels heading towards us. Quill shot two of them before he called, "Gamora hasn't opened the door!"

"Great update Quill, but I have eyes too!" I shouted as I began snipping a few of the rushing men before they could reach us.

"I was not talking to you, Nixy!" Quill shouted back as he fired two more shots towards somebody who was trying to be sneaky.

My eyes narrowed and I slowly moved up to my full height lowering the rifle as I glared at Quill. In a low threatening voice I practically growled, "What did you just call me?"

"Phoenix is too big of a mouthful!" Quill admitted dismissively as he pulled out the Hadron Enforcer, now that the amount of guards seemed to have gone down. Groot had also taken up trying to break down the door by lazily hitting it with his arm.

"So you go with 'Nixy'?" I demanded shaking my head as I declared, "That is the weirdest name ever!"

"Well, honestly, your names already pretty weird. If anything I just made it better," Quill reasoned smugly, no doubt smirking under his mask. I huffed unhappily ready to shout only to ready my rifle when the door opened. I was a little surprised to find that running into the room were a psychopathic manic was housed, not to mention that he was armed with a infinity stone, was not nearly as terrifying as I thought it would be. I was a bit confused when Gamora simply and with what seemed like no effort shot through the floor, taking out two of the guards that had been stationed there. So why didn't we go through that way?

I pushed the thought from my mind as I ran stopping in front of Groot as time seemed to slow. Ronan turned to face us, in his hands he held a hammer. At the end I it, crushed into its side I could see the familiar glow of the infinity stone. The charging of the Hadron Enforcer rang around the room and all at once the world sped up being sent into fast forward. I was blinded for a moment and I felt a twinge of regret as I realised that Rocket would miss his weapon making something go boom.

The light faded slowly and I blinked a relieved smile on my face, Drax cheered excitedly assured that the man who killed his family was gone. But it seemed as soon as we got the taste of victory I frowned worriedly as something moved in the dust. I glanced over at the rest of them, Quill had lowered his mask confidently but his eyes widened when he saw the same thing I did.

"Oh shit." I whispered as a single ominous figure stood slowly. The dust hadn't even fully settled before Ronan raised his hammer aiming it towards us. I threw up my arms sucking in a breath as the blast flew at us at an alarming speed. The blast itself was really damaging, maybe it hadn't been aimed properly or something. But still the blast managed to send us flying.

For one moment it felt I was floating, but it only lasted until I slammed into the steps behind us.

I had twisted in the air so my head and my side connected painfully with the stairs, I moved slowly biting back a cry of pain when I shifted in the wrong way. Something was probably broken.

I heard someone shout and I looked up blinking harshly only for my eyes to widen when I saw Drax running at full speed towards the still standing Ronan. I closed my eyes for just a moment reaching up to rub at a throbbing spot on my head. Thankfully my skull wasn't cracked, it just seemed to be bruised. I opened my eyes again when I heard somebody, multiple someone's, groaning painfully.

I looked over mildly grateful when I spotted Gamora, Quill, and Groot all beginning to force themselves to their feet, and I slowly did the same.

I looked back to Ronan and Drax only to gasp with worry, a haunting image of seemingly dead Drax flashing in my mind, as I watched Ronan holding up the blue man by his throat. I jumped to my feet, about to rush to his help only for something else to catch my eye.

For a moment I thought that I had a concussion and I was just seeing things, but as the thing got bigger in the background I realized that it was not my imagination. When I finally realized what was happening I only had a couple Seconds to jump out of the way shouting panicked, "Incoming!"

I hit the ground just as the room shook at the force of a Milano came right through the glass wall, and somehow I knew it could only have been Rocket flying. The room slung a bit, I hadn't been able to dive as far away as I had wanted. When it came past it caused me to roll a bit, I stopped rolling breathing heavily as I waited for the room to settle. I coughed weakly as dust got into my throat.

I managed to force myself into a sitting position resting on my knees for a moment, looking around for my friends. Dammit now I was doing it; what was with this friendship? Was it a disease or something?

I spotted the ship first, having been forced to a stop when it slammed into the back wall. I followed the path of destruction towards the windows and I was immensely grateful when I found that Ronan was out of sight. If I had any luck left that would mean that the big blue bastard was under the rubble somewhere.

I looked around carefully noting that the pilots had been taken out in the attack too, it was then I noticed that the ship was going down. Falling at an alarming rate, I realized.

I shook my head instead looking around for any sign of life, I forced myself onto shaking legs as I looked around for them. I sighed with relief when I caught sight of Gamora dragging something along the ground. I hurried towards her with the intent to help, assuming that it was one of our friends. I was a little relieved to see that it was Drax, and he seemed to be alive. I rushed towards them and Gamora seemed a little surprised when I grabbed Drax's other arm and began dragging him back towards were we had last seen the others.

He must have weighted a ton and in any other situation I would have complained, but I sucked it up and continued to drag him towards were I could hear the others. We dragged him directly in front of Groot, and I felt my knees give out as my vision darkened for a moment.

I blinked trying to get rid the blur that surrounded everything, taking in deep breaths. I almost smiled when Quill appeared carrying a totally limp fury figure.

We settled down together in a circle in silence, no one spoke because no one needed too. Deep down we had all known if we did this there was almost no chance that we would live to see another day. But that didn't make it any easier to swallow. I wanted to say something, maybe thank them or something. Just to end this on a happy note. But I found that I couldn't even beginning to think of anything to say.

An eerie calm feeling settled over me as I looked over out the window, not really registering what I was looking at. Instead I saw New York City, swinging past me as I clung to my first friend ever. I remembered that night, when Peter had told me who he was and what he did.

And deep down that comforted me, but at the same time it also crushed me. Though I had never really acknowledged it there had always been a part of me that knew I planned on going back to Earth if nothing than to say my goodbyes to my friends and family who I had left behind.

I wanted to apologize to them, to tell them how sorry I was for leaving them. Peter, Natasha, FitzSimmons, Erik, Thor, Clint, Dad, Jarvis, Pepper, Rhodey, Jane, Darcy. God what had I put them through? I forced my thoughts away from that instead focusing on one of the only other comforts I had. I looked down at my HWT, no at the necklace that belonged to someone I had never gotten a chance to meet as was assure that I wasn't dying along, like Gamora said it was nice to die among friends.

I turned my head startled when I felt something rub against my arm. My eyes widened with shock as I looked around now realizing what had been happening while I hadn't been paying attention. I blinked away tears I didn't know I had been about to shed as branches began to spread around all of us.

I turned slowly towards the only one I knew could be responsible whispering curiously, "Groot?"

The tree man only kept his arms raised as the branches he made spread around us coming together on the other side, sealing us in a wooden sphere. My eyes widened when I realized with horrifying clarity what Groot was doing.

He was saving us.

"No Groot." A small voice whispered. I turned to look at the now awake Rocket who was standing in front of Groot.

"You can't you'll die." Rocket continued his voice full of despair. The tears I had just been trying to blink away came back with a vengeance and it took all my willpower to stop them from streaming down my face.

"Why are you doing this?" Rocket demanded covering his sadness with outrage, as if he was angry that his best friend would even consider sacrificing himself to save us.

The last thing I heard before the world disappeared into a flash of white light was a calm deep voice.

"We are Groot."