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A/N; I am entirely reader-supported. Here are my special thanks to those of you who enjoy my writing enough to support me with your hard earned money on my pa-atreon page. Not just them though, special thanks to everyone who even just reads this story, reviews it, favourites or follows it. You're the reason I keep going. Thank you. Welcome to this new story, feel free to check out my other work if this is your first.

The thing about being the person in charge and then having your best friends as your essential seconds was that when it was time to get going and do something else, it was very difficult to find someone to complete your role without you.

What am I talking about? The Kylosians, of course. I was the one keeping them sane and in check. Without me, the only one I trusted to take my place was Ovette. The problem with that? We'd arrived at Knowhere last night, and today was the day I'd make the journey to the Collector's store. I needed Ovette with me because her input would matter on what kind of planet we'd end up purchasing (if we ended up purchasing anything at all)

A week of research into then galaxy later, and I was now convinced that while Drax's plan had made sense the first time I heard it, it was actually one of the most stupid ideas to ever be conceived. There was a reason Thor and the Asgaurdians were willing to entrust him with an infinity stone for safekeeping. There was a reason Thanos had waited so long top go after the stone that he knew was in the man's possession. He'd gone after him personally and not just left the mission to one or more of his children or servants like he had with the others. There were only two stones that Thanos never bothered sending anyone else for. The first was the Soul Stone, which he actually had no idea where it was, and the Second was the Reality stone in the Collector's possession. The latter couldn't have been hidden from him. He probably knew about it the moment that it was sent there, and still, he didn't seek it out.

That on its own was enough to give any sane man pause, and then there were the other things I'd learned about his place and role in the galaxy. Remember what I said about empires? The galaxy was made of them, and smack dab in the middle was the man on the head of the dead celestial. The collector was neutral from every empire. One of the few truly neutral forces that existed in the galaxy, and he just so happened to be important to every single one of the factions. Everyone traded with him, and so much trade was facilitated through his deals and connections that he was, on his own, a lynchpin of the galactic economy. And even worse, was the fact that he was the last true stabilising element in the powder keg about to go off that was the criminal element of the galaxy. Slavers, Pirates, Bounty hunters, they all answered to him at the end of the day. He kept them in check, they acted as his enforcers when he needed any and in return, he kept them safe from culling attempts. Prevented the large empires from just wholesale killing and exterminating all of them when they got too annoying and problematic.

Basically speaking, the Collector was friends with everyone and enemies with no one. Well, not literally no one, but no one important was on bad terms with him. If we killed him, we'd be basically fucked. Sure, I feared nothing in the Galaxy being able to hurt me, but the Kylosians and the rescued slaves were another matter entirely.

Speaking of the rescued slaves, quite a few of them had expressed interest in disembarking at Knowhere. I, personally, felt that it was a brave, but stupid choice, but who was I to object to what they wanted to do with their lives. Sure, they were more likely than not to be sold right back into slavery the moment they spoke with the wrong person, but what did that matter to me. They were choosing to no longer be my people after I'd given them basically every luxury that they'd never seen before. What happened to them as a result of their own foolishness wasn't my business. It couldn't be. I couldn't afford to waste time and energy on the matter.

That was why I had AIKO take charge of it and pilot a ship with them onboard to land on the surface the moment we'd arrived at the orbit of the Celestial's head. She used one of the six ships I'd been able to have automatically built by my small army of nanobots during the journey. With nothing else to do, I'd had them building things that, I felt, would eventually come in handy one way or another. The first of those things? Obviously spaceships. Not just any spaceships, though. Ships fast enough to blow even the quickest of the Kree's new fleet out of the water, and with enough weaponry to lay waste to a small planet.

I stared at one of them as it flew right back into the _Dark Aster's_ docking bay. For its shape, I took inspiration from the millions of fictional sources in my head. But when it came out it looked nothing like any of them, it was something special. Large enough to fit fifty people without any spacial enhancement, and fitted with so much glass that everyone in the ship could see the outside at all times. It was similar to a pleasure cruise ship in design, but nothing like any of them when it came to payloads.

All the spatial tech I didn't use on the inside of the ship was saved for the outside. Canons, repulsers, blasters, missiles, the ship had it all. Shoved into the form factor of a pleasure ship was enough weaponry to lay waste to Knowhere as it presently was. "Is it done?" I audibly asked.

"Yes, Captain. All the former crew members disembarked the moment the ship landed, and the rest of the night was spent according to your orders." That was the third thing I'd adapted the ship for. It had sensors powerful enough to pierce whatever shielding prevented me from scanning the planet at will, and in a second, a display floated before me, showing all the data that the ship had gathered. The Celestials were the closest things this universe had to actual Gods to the best of my knowledge. It was useful for me to learn all that I could about them, and what better opportunity would there ever be than the head of a dead one just ripe and waiting to be studies.

The scans, on a molecular level, showed nothing beyond what I expected. It was fascinating, but if I ever wanted to figure out how to do what they did and become an essential God, then I'd need to study an actual living sample of the species.

Still, what I had was enough to make guesses and build models. I'll get the information I really need when I go after Ego, the Living Planet.

"AIKO, keep an eye on the Kylosians and prevent a mutiny while we're gone, will you? I'll tell Drax he's in charge but we both know who'd truly be calling the shots" I said, finally coming to a decision on the power vacuum that mine and Ovette's absence would leave.

"Of course, Kal. I wish you the best of luck in your negotiations" Her voice rang out from the speakers as I left the room. The Collector and his museum were waiting.

XXXXXX

The first thing there was to note abut Knowhere was how obvious it was that everything here revolved around one man. The town, if one could call it that, was practically built around the museum that the Collector enjoyed operating out of. From the outside, the museum outshone everything else on the planet. Multiple floors of crystal standing right in the middle. It was built like a place from earth, except far grander than even the Versailles. Lights shone from every corner as it illuminated the sky and drew attention to itself, regardless of the fact that it should have been day time. The star Knowhere revolved around could barely be considered one, considering the fact that it was dying and pretty much mostly gone. The white dwarf bathed the planet in a cool glow that meant it wasn't perpetually dark, but it was still nowhere near bright enough to even be considered daytime by the vaguest of estimates.

Enough pondering about it, though, I walked into the Museum with Ovette right past my heels. She walked behind, looking for all the world like a secretary or aid. I had no idea where she got the idea from, but the walking style combined with the pantsuit she'd gotten from god knows where helped sell the impression. Why the impression was being sold? I couldn't say. Ovette's mind worked in strange ways, and AIKO was an enabling influence when it came to things like this. How I managed to somehow code artificial intelligence more mischievous than Kelex was something that had to be studied.

We entered to a jaw-dropping view. The Collector had clearly spared no expense in making the entrance as shocking as it could be for those who dared to visit. The hall was large. Easily the same size as the Vatican's main prayer hall, and on every surface was some sort of exhibit. Some big, some small, some living, and some not. In one corner, I could see a pair of knives that looked to be made of the same sort of metal that I'd seen on parts of Thor's armour during the invasion. Asgardian then. On another was a woman, on her knees and hands bound in cuffs as she clearly meditated. I couldn't guess at the species, but her bright blue skin glowed in the light and a long tail poked out of the robes she was wearing. I could see the famous Cosmo the Dog, laying in his cage with no movement besides a ruffling of his fur that told me he was asleep and not dead.

Everywhere I looked, there was a new curiosity to catch my attention. I saw a few things that had to be from earth, but so much more that was obviously alien.

"Most people seek an appointment rather than just waltz into my home" A voice rang out before the owner of the Museum, Taneleer Tivan himself, walked straight through a wall and stood a few metres away from us. Ovette gasped, but I didn't bother pretending to be surprised. With senses like mine, I knew where everyone on the Celestial head was right now.

"I am not most people," I said, taking a step forwards, putting the six guards that had walked in with him on edge, making them clutch their blasters even tighter.

"No. No, you are not. I see that. Now, what do you want? I doubt a man like you came all the way here to have a look at my impressive collection" His eyes when he spoke the last word. That kind of manic obsession. He wasn't sane. Not truly. Good

"I have come to trade"

"Oh ho. Trade, you say? I don't hear that one every day. So what do you have that you think will be worth anything to me?" He asked, stippling his fingers and leaning forwards without taking a step. Small micro movements like the way their hold on their blasters relaxed just a tad told me the guards were feeling less tense now that things had returned to familiar territory.

"The Cosmi-rod of a Kree Accuser, and not just any one. Ronan himself" The guards didn't do anything as unprofessional as gasp or break into whispers at my words, but their shock remained obvious to me. Tivan, himself, was unbothered with hiding his reactions. He gasped in open delight and clapped to himself.

"Show it to me" He asked, and I stretched my hand towards my chest. The centrepiece of my suit, which I hadn't taken off since the journey began, glowed as the nano-computers activated the pocket dimension within it and spat out the hammer-looking weapon. I caught it in my hand easily and spun it with ease, enjoying the heft of the weapon. I'd have enjoyed wielding it myself, but I could always make better, and this was the only thing I could feel comfortable selling to him at this point. His greedy eyes watched the rod as I moved it in my hand.

I spun the hammer as I handed it over to the slave that stepped forwards. Orange skin, pretty face, and curves that were to kill for. Carina, I would guess. She took it to him, and he ran his hand along it in awe and excitement. I guess I'd been right. This was the kind of thing he'd love to have in his collection.

"No deal. The rod is good, but not worth a planet" What? What did he just say? He spoke with a tone that made it sound as if he were sorry.

"But that suit of yours, though. I'll trade you a solar system for it" He said, bringing the rest of his offer to bear. Of course, he'd been greedily looking at the never seen before space expansion teach and not the cosmi-rod, of which he must have had a couple dozen already. The factor of it belonging, or having belonged, to Ronan The accuser couldn't make it that unique when compared to the others.

"It's not for sale" I said bluntly, watching the tension in the room amplify as the guards ab and on ed their previous relaxation and gripped their blasters again. One, a reptilian creature with green skin, even had the audacity to take a step forwards. My eyes itched to cleave his head from his body for the presumption that he could stand against me, but that would be unwise, so I stayed my hand and thought better of it.

The silence stretched for seconds, and then minutes. I felt Ovette step closer to me as she started preparing to use me as a human shield. Wise girl. Just as suddenly as the silence came, it left when Tivan spoke again.

"The Dark Aster. It's in Knowhere's orbit. I'd trade that for a planet" He offered, looking at me with a gleam in his yes. I could see the strategy at play here. Reject my first offer out of hand, counteroffer with something that I was likely to refuse, and then give his real offer. Sadly for him, that wasn't going to work here.

"The ship is what I came here in. It's also not for sale." I say, watching his smile begin to give way.

"A stubborn one, I see. I like you. I want us to do business. So tell me what type of planet you're looking for, and I will see if the rod can suffice as payment."

"A large planet. In a part of the galaxy not close to any of the empires, and not in any known expansion plans. Broadly temperate climate, and habitable for an oxygen breathing, and water drinking, carbon-based life form with all the things they'd need to survive." I said, to him watching him hmm and consult a tablet that the Slave, Carina, held up to his face for inspection.

"I've got seventeen planets like that. Each of them goes for well over Fifty million credits. Needless to say, your rod isn't worth near as much. The suit however…" He ended leadingly. Well, this was terrible. But not irredeemable.

"And what about terrible planets. But in habitable systems?" I asked.

"What do you mean?"

"For example, a planet with terrible gravity, or in the middle of an ice age or something, but in a solar system with a sun not likely to explode anytime soon and with no enemy neighbours." I asked, watching him fall into thought as he considered the tablet in front of him.

"I have something for you. A small planet in the Vega system." He said, tapping the tablet and making it project a hologram of the big blue ball of ice. My eyes quickly devoured all the other information about the planet as it appeared, and I was sure that the one would suffice. All I had to do was build a world engine, and we'd be off to the races. Funny enough, the world engine also happened to be one of the easiest things for me to build. It was the primary purpose that most of the Dark Aster would end up serving, after all. It would serve as the hot bed and foundry while my nanobots would scour the system for raw materials to get things done. Most, if not all, of it could be automated and completed in a tireless week by my relentless swarm of small machines. That was also why, in every waking minute, and even the sleeping ones, I had the fabricators working at full throttle.

"Even a planet like this one is still worth more than the Cosmi-rod, but since I like you, I'll make you a deal. Give me the body of Ronan the Accuser and the Rod, and I'll let you have it" He said, eyes giving nothing away. Ahhh, there it was. Just added on as if it were an afterthought. That was what he truly wanted. The look of desire on his face when I spoke of having the Cosmi-rod of Ronan the Accuser was beginning to make more sense now. It wasn't the rod. He probably didn't give a hoot about it. It was what it represented. Ronan the Accuser was dead, and he knew it. This entire negotiation had just been a long tactic for him to dance around and manipulate me into giving him what he wanted without ever even noticing that I'd done so. He was good at it too. If I didn't have all the training of Krypton's primary General and the senses of a literal God, I probably would never have even noticed. But the point was, I did. Now, just how would I take advantage of this?

A/N; We've got the next three chapters of this story, along with the first Eleven chapters of another fic that I uploaded at the exact same time as this one (an insert is into an OC firebender in ATLA) all available on pa-atreon, and you can read all of that right now just by heading to the link on my profile or searching for my username up there. Feel free to have a look.