First of all, I am so sorry for the super long hiatus! Life kind of... fell apart for a while, and I had so many things crop up at once that I just had no time and no heart to work on this project. I've been trying to keep myself doing something because I still love the story and plan to finish it, but every word's been like pulling teeth, and I've been struggling to find my place in the story again. I'm starting to get back to normal and hope to get the next chapter up in a more timely manner, but I can't make any promises to when that will be. It's not a super exciting chapter, and I'm sorry it might be a bit disappointing after such a long wait. It is an important one later on, though, and the next one should have a more exciting payoff depending on where I put the chapter end.

I own nothing. Characters and story belong to Marvel

Title is from "Wonderwall" by Oasis

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Chapter 5: My Wonderwall

Peter had meant to stay awake for a while at least, in case a message arrived, but he must have been more tired than he realized, because his memories ended shortly after turning his Walkman on and placing his head on his pillow. He woke up with the headphones still wrapped around his neck, but someone must have turned it off at some point. The switch had been flipped, when Peter would normally just let it run through the night.

The steady rumble of Drax's snoring filled the still-dark room and at first Peter couldn't figure out what had woken him. His unspoken question was answered a moment later when a soft knocking came from the door. There was a rustling from the bunk underneath him as Cosmo stirred and Peter took the time to stretch out his stiff limbs before climbing down from his own bunk. There was another soft round of knocking as Peter and Cosmo lumbered their way to the door.

"Hello?" Peter yawned as he reached for the control panel, followed by a low hiss as the bright hallway lights flooded the room and stung his eyes. Behind him, Cosmo gave a loud sneeze.

"Good morning!" Marlowe chirruped, looking much too awake and chipper as Peter blinked the sleep from his own eyes.

"What time is it?" Peter asked, stalling for time as his brain struggled to follow his body into the waking world.

"Breakfast time!" she answered brightly.

"No thanks. I'll just get something from the mess later." Peter was reaching for the panel to close the door in her face when she held a hand across the way to stall him.

"Not that. I meant I'll be taking trays down to your friends, and thought you might want to join me. I got your note much too late to do anything last night. I have a busy day planned today, so it would be convenient for me if I could combine your visit with breakfast."

Peter didn't doubt that Marlowe had a busy schedule, and he got the notion from her overly-bright and cheery tone of voice that if he made himself an inconvenience to her, she would make him pay for it somehow or other, so he promised to get ready and meet her at the Containment Unit shortly.

-x-

Groot, to Peter's surprise, had decided to stay behind. He'd claimed that the room would be crowded enough already. Peter thought that maybe he just really didn't like the idea of standing in a prison again so soon, no matter what side of the bars he was on, so he didn't argue.

Drax was given no such consideration, but the maniac had proven difficult to rouse. It had taken several kicks to his bunk and his own shoes thrown at him for the Destroyer to finally cave and submit to getting dressed and ready to go. Peter almost wished he could allow his teammate to sleep in. Drax may have the gifted healing of someone in their prime and from a species with incredible durability, but he didn't share the enhancements that the assassins did which allowed their worst wounds to seal overnight. Like Peter, Drax's injuries were healing at what would be impressive compared to most races. The inflamed puffiness had vanished and the wound was already beginning to mend back together, but if it weren't for the metal stitches still zig zagging across his chest, Peter was pretty sure the wound would split right back open. A healing pack or two would go a long way to help, like when the maniac had torn his neck on Halfworld, but the Nova Corps had been stretched thin on supplies even before the rescue mission, and Drax had apparently waved off any offers of aid that he felt would take away from the 'weaker crewmates.'

It would be nice, Peter reflected as they made their way down the familiar route to where the other half of his team was being held, to get a chance to rest and heal. With time ticking on his promise to Gamora, however, and the threat of his encounter with Ego looming like a dark storm on the horizon, Peter didn't think they were going to get that lucky.

Marlowe was ready and waiting for them outside the Containment Unit, a steaming mug of coffee in one hand and a cart laden with trays and more mugs at her side.

"I brought enough for everyone," she said, swiping her card and opening the door between sips from her mug.

Peter grabbed up a pair of trays and felt a rush of deja-vu for the last time he had struggled to balance a tray full of breakfast with his broken hand to bring it to Gamora on the Eclector. This time, at least, he didn't have far to take it.

Inside, Nebula and Gamora were already up. Gamora was running through a series of slow stretches that Peter recognized. They had been a pretty regular part of her morning rituals on the Milano, and the sheer normalcy of it stirred an ache in his chest that was growing all too familiar these days.

On her own side of the cell, Nebula was moving in perfect sync with her sister. Neither one was looking at the other, their eyes pressed closed, yet their movements were so precisely timed that it felt more like looking at a warped mirror than two individuals.

"Good morning!" Peter called.

Nebula opened her eyes to shoot him a rebuking look and the mirror effect was ruined.

Peter paused outside the door that led to their cell, staring at the smooth, unbroken glass and wondering if the Nova staff had to open the door to deliver the food. Peter didn't mind at all, he was neither concerned about being attacked nor worried the sisters would leave, but it seemed like an odd way to set up a prison. Marlowe provided an answer for his unvoiced question when she stepped up next to him and tapped her finger against the glass. At her touch, little symbols lit up on the glass in a sort of see-through keypad and she typed in a brief code. A moment later a small portion of the glass began to shimmer with an iridescent glow. Marlowe turned to catch his eye and slowly waved her hand through the shimmering glass like it wasn't even there.

"Whoah!" Peter couldn't help but gasp. That was some pretty advanced technology. "You guys have flow glass?"

"Just here," Marlowe said, a proud tilt to her head. "The Containment unit was designed to double as both a prison and a Quarantine in the case of an outbreak. Air doesn't pass through. Neither does anything moving faster than my hand just now. Effective against sneezes and violent attacks. With the treaty in place, we were hoping to turn our efforts from defense into support of our existing outposts and to have a way to offer our aid to those who were too far away or too hard to reach with just the standard flight craft. This ship was a prototype for that, meant to host a large crew for an extended journey. We were lucky. It was early in its development and in the middle of a test flight when Ronan came- When Xandar fell- So it wasn't destroyed in the attack and we were able to track it down later. Technically, it was only about half-way through construction, but we don't have the means to finish it right now. That's why some of the ship utilizes cutting-edge tech, while other parts are... less modernized."

While Marlowe had been speaking she'd taken the trays from Peter and begun handing them through the shield. The shimmering glass let the trays of food and drink pass through, but Peter noticed that Marlowe was careful to keep her own hands on this side now that Gamora and Nebula were standing.

"So," Nebula said, grabbing Peter's attention. She had her own tray balanced easily in one hand while she moved her chair over next to the door where Peter and Marlowe were standing. "What are you after today?"

"I can't just come and visit?" Peter asked with mock hurt.

"You have that stupid look on your face, again." After setting her chair down, Nebula had turned around and snatched up the chair from Gamora's side as well, dragging this one over and setting it in front of the first so she could sit and eat her meal with her feet propped up on her sister's chair and an easy view of the guests. "The one that sais you have a problem and you can't figure it out, so you want to make it someone else's."

Gamora, who had been busy retrieving her own tray, shot her sister an annoyed look when she noticed her stolen chair, but apparently decided it wasn't worth fighting over and retreated to her bed to eat instead.

"Alright, you got me," Peter relented with a shrug. "I need your and Gamora's opinion with something. But first, how's Rocket?"

"I think he'll live." Nebula picked up a plastic utensil and starting to pick at her food with a nonchalance that conveyed they were discussing getting over an ugly haircut and not a withdrawal that was known to be sometimes fatal.

In his own cell, rocket was still in his favorite corner, but while before he had appeared half-crazed and feral, now he just looked tired and miserable. He was still laying on his belly but more stretched out, his paws splayed out and chin pressed flat like he was trying to cool himself against the polished floor. His eyes were hollow and unfocused, but Peter was relieved to see they were back to their normal brown. Occasionally, an ear would twitch or his head would tilt or jerk, like he thought the room was moving around him, or a shiver would pass through his body. The whole scene reminded him oddly of a time Rocket had gotten so drunk that he'd spent the night hugging the bathroom floor of the Eclector and had woken with a hangover that gave Peter a headache just from proximity.

"Has he said anything yet?" Peter asked.

"No," Gamora cut in from her spot on the bed when Nebula hesitated. "He seems to be over the worst, but he'll still be pretty out of it for a while." Her voice was cool and confident, and immediately Peter felt a little better, even if he knew he was mostly just responding to the familiarity of following his own Gamora's advice. "You could give him some water. He'll be thirsty soon."

"Do you think he could eat something?" Peter didn't know how long it had been since Rocket had eaten.

Gamora stole a look at her sister, but Nebula was now pointedly ignoring their conversation.

"Just water for now I think." There was another thoughtful pause, and then, "Maybe some broth tonight, if he's more awake, to help him get his strength back."

While they'd been talking, Marlowe and Drax had been setting up chairs in the hallway between the cells so they could discuss matters in more comfort. At Peter's imploring look, Marlowe paused long enough to give him an answer.

"I'm sure we can arrange for that."

"Great!" Peter said, collecting a mug from the cart and filling it with water from a pitcher. After a brief discussion that almost dissolved into an argument before Cosmo intervened, Peter was allowed back into Rocket's cell to carry the mug over to his prone friend. Rocket flinched and flicked his ears back at the approach, but he didn't growl or snarl, so Peter called it a success, left the mug within easy reach and retreated back to the hallway. He wanted desperately to try to talk to his friend, to know if he was okay, but even when Rocket had returned the feelings of friendship, trying to talk to him during a hangover was a suicidal endeavor at best.

"So before I get too into it," Peter said as he took a seat with his own tray. "Did the Council, or whatever, make a decision about my request?" There really wasn't much point in coming up with a plan if they were going to just shoot down his deal anyways.

"They're in agreement, for the most part," Marlowe answered from where she sat perched on the chair furthest from the Assassins. "They'll want to scope out the area before they can commit to any interaction or attack, though. No one knows much about Celestials, aside from the fact that they're very dangerous. What you're proposing carries a big risk to our crew, and we didn't survive this long by just charging into battles half-blind."

"That's fine." It sounded like things were exactly as he had expected. "I can give you the co-ordinates when we're done here. I'm hoping to get away with minimal fighting, but have no clue where to even start. That's why we're here."

While Peter and Marlowe had been speaking, Nebula's face had transformed from surprise, to understanding, to annoyance. Now, as he looked up at her expectantly, she let out a long breath through her nose.

"I knew I hated that stupid look on your face," she growled out. "It sounds like you're scheming harder than ever to get us all killed."

"This may be my best shot at getting Mantis back," Peter reasoned, silently pleading with his eyes.

Nebula appeared unfazed by his display, but from her spot on the bed, Gamora was staring with open curiosity now.

"Celestial?" Gamora asked, her eyes narrowed at the back of Nebula's head, as though accusing her of not sharing this information sooner.

"Why don't you start over at the beginning and fill everyone in?" Nebula said, ignoring her sister and turning her attention back to her plate of food. "Then, when we're all on the same page, we can decide whether or not your latest idea can be salvaged."

"Thanks for your continued faith in me," Peter sighed, but there was a smile to his lips even as he feigned hurt. He knew he could count on her.

Really, the only one here that was totally clueless about what he had to say was Gamora. And Rocket, he supposed, but Peter wasn't sure if the raccoon could understand anything he was saying right now, or even if he could, if he would be able to remember any of it later. Here he gave a slightly more abridged version, not bothering to rehash the details of the Eclector, which Nebula and Gamora both already knew, and skipping over Yondu's death with as much grace as he could muster. Even so, by the time he had wound down into explaining his current predicament everyone had finished eating their breakfast.

"So what I'm here for is; I want to find a way to get Mantis back, or at the very least, find out if she's alive, without getting into a fire-fight with my dad. There's no point in putting anyone at risk if she's not even there."

"Seems reasonable," Nebula said, passing her empty tray through the shimmering portion of the prison wall as Peter reached forward to take it. Where his fingers met with the flow glass a strange chilling sensation passed over his skin. "A little too reasonable for you. Did you finally learn something after that last disaster on Traxxon III?"

Peter's hand lifted to his face and his fingers traced along the long cut still healing across his cheek.

"I guess so," he murmured.

"If you managed to control this power once, then shouldn't you be able to use it again if it came to a fight?" Gamora asked, piping up from her seat on her bed.

"No," Peter sighed. "At least not enough to do any good against Ego, I don't think. When I used it last time, Ego did something that activated my connection, then, when I wouldn't help him willingly, he physically plugged me into the light to use me as a battery. I think that's the reason I was able to go toe to toe with him and survive. I was connected directly to his core and had access to all that power. On my own, I barely managed to make a ball of light. I don't think he's going to let me get anywhere near his core again."

"There's also another problem here," he continued. "When Ego died in my universe, my connection to the light died with him. At least, I thought it did. I felt it leave me. But I guess at least something must have been left for me to keep my memories when Thanos did whatever he did..." Peter shook his head as though he could physically dislodge the train of thought. "My point is, if we kill him and my connection is lost or weakened again, I don't know if I could wield the Infinity Stone anymore."

"So we need to somehow get past this Celestial, and retrieve your friend, without killing him?" Nebula asked, her lips pressed into a thin, humorless smile. "A Fully grown Celestial who knows you and has proven he is more than willing to kill anyone in his way to get you back so he can assimilate the rest of the galaxies?"

"Something like that. I don't suppose you have any ideas?"

"I might," Nebula said slowly.

"What are you thinking?" Peter asked, leaning forward and willing her to speed up.

"I'm thinking; how important is it that you even go?"

"What?" Peter blinked.

"If him recognizing you is what will set him off, then we should avoid that. All you need to know right now is whether or not this Mantis is alive. Could some of the Nova Corps scout the area without drawing his suspicions?"

"So your suggestion is to use the Nova Corps like chum to test the water?"

Peter was surprised at the venom dripping from Marlowe's words.

Nebula's expression darkened ever so slightly, but when she continued she kept her eyes trained steadily on Peter.

"No one who was present at his destruction would be able to go without bringing more danger than they're worth, and that eliminates everyone in your group except the dog-"

Cosmo will not be offering to join in this venture, Cosmo interrupted.

Peter glanced down at where Cosmo was sitting next to him. The blatant refusal from the usually very helpful psychic caught him off-guard. Especially since Cosmo might be the only one in the group with the ability to survive an outright agressive encounter with his father. As though reading his mind, Cosmo turned to look Peter in the eye, his expression softening slightly as he continued on.

Ego would sense Light in Cosmo right away and become suspicious. Would be too dangerous. Like brother Peter, Cosmo will stay behind, but would like to remain in-the-loop.

Marlowe pursed her lips as Cosmo spoke, but looked more like she was reconsidering the danger the Nova Corps would be in, than concerned over his refusal to help.

"Do you think he would be hostile towards just the Nova Corps?" Nebula asked flatly, moving them on to the next point of business.

Peter chewed his lip as he considered this.

"I'm not sure... From what I know, other than his children, he had no real interest in anything or anyone else. If he doesn't make the connection between us, then I guess he probably wouldn't care, but I don't know..." The image of his dad as a horrible bloodthirsty monster was so vivid in his head, that it was hard to see past it into the memory of who he had seemed when they'd first met and Peter had been so excited to meet the man his mother had fallen in love with, and kept so faithfully devoted to long after he had heartlessly abandoned her to her death.

"Regardless of his motives," Nebula added. "It's likely it would bring too much attention to himself to assault just any craft that enters his space. It's not likely he'd be hostile towards a scouting ship or two. Even if he did show any suspicions, it would be easy enough to claim they were scouting for a new base or hiding place for the fleet. And this would excuse any interest they showed in his planet in search of this, companion, of yours."

Peter shifted the empty trays he still held in his lap. Her idea actually made sense, but it felt weird sending others in to take the risk for him. He had assumed he would be going himself and the rush of relief he felt at the opportunity to put off seeing his father face to face was tinged heavily with guilt.

"Do you think it could work?" Peter turned his gaze hopefully on Marlowe.

"Perhaps," she said, with a guarded tone, watching the assassin with a sideways glare rather than returning Peter's attention. "It'll depend on whether or not he's even there. From the sounds of it, he spent a lot of his time traveling."

"He'll be there," Nebula said with such certainty Peter turned back to raise a brow at her.

"How can you be so sure?" he asked. He didn't doubt her, but was surprised at her blatant conviction.

"Because he has someone you want," she stated flatly, "and you're very predictable."

"This brings up another thought," Marlowe broke in again, finally releasing Nebula from her dirty glare to look at Peter. "This plan of your father's, the Expansion, it's a threat to the universe on a scale nearly on par with Thanos himself. If your absence is the only thing keeping him in check, then I believe the Nova Corps would agree that unless we can find a way to neutralize him without killing him, the best thing for everyone is if you were to stay behind, somewhere out of his reach where he can't find you."

Peter glanced around, but found that even Drax and Cosmo seemed to be in agreement over this.

"Alright," he relented easily. "You win. I'll stay behind, but I also want to be kept in the loop in case he tries anything."

"I'll see what I can do," Marlowe promised, but she was already busy stacking empty dishes on the cart.

Peter swallowed a sigh as he realized his time here was nearly over. As per their deal, he would have to leave when Marlowe did. It was frustrating, but he reminded himself that soon they would hold whatever trial they had in mind and see that his companions weren't a threat, and all this nonsense would be over.

He cast a quick look at the assassins. Nebula was still in her chair, leaning back now so it was propped up on two legs as she watched Peter and Marlowe thoughtfully. Gamora seemed to sense their meeting had come to an end and had stood to return her tray as well. As soon as Peter accepted it, with a smile she didn't return, she moved back to her side of the cell where she resumed her morning exercises.

"Hey Marlowe?" Peter asked as a new thought came to him.

"Yes?" Marlowe didn't pause in her cleaning. Drax was helping her move the furniture back now.

"You said the Nova Corps has been assisting refugees and stuff for a while now. I don't suppose you guys know anything about where Thanos might keep prisoners? Like, really important ones?"

From her place on the floor Gamora didn't pause in her movements, but she did crack one eye open to watch them carefully.

"Most of the people we help are fleeing his path of destruction – they were never prisoners-" Marlowe stated, but she paused after settling the chair in her hands back onto the floor. "I think there was someone... It was a while ago, who had spent some time on Asylum."

"Asylum?" Peter asked.

"A massive prison ship," Marlowe explained. "Part of Thanos's main fleet. Heavily armed and nearly impossible to track."

"They're not there," Nebula broke in, her arms were crossed and she was now rocking her chair back and forth with a feigned nonchalance. "If they were on the Asylum I would have know about them."

"Who's not there?" Marlowe asked, eyes narrowed as she looked suspiciously between the two. "Who else are you looking for exactly?"

"Gamora's parents," Peter answered. "Thanos has them. He's keeping them prisoner somewhere, but we don't know where. Gamora thinks they're on a planet, but that's all we really know."

Marlow's brows furrowed slightly, and Peter thought he caught something that might have been reluctant pity cross over her expression again.

"I'll look into it if I have the time."

That was hardly promising, but she was already rolling the cart towards the doorway.

End

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Chapter 6 Preview: "...In the distance, Peter thought he could see a group of corpsmen in flight gear moving through the hangar as well. As the capitol planet of a vast empire, Xandar had always had a very eclectic citizenship, so Peter had no clue which of them were new recruits and which were just young refugees from Xandar. "This wouldn't have anything to do with going to see my father would it?" Peter asked, the sight of the young and inexperienced aliens suddenly filling him with an unexpected wave of apprehension..."

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Thank you everyone for sticking around despite the long and unexpected break. I will try to get evrything up and running and get the Earth book going soon as well. I have been doing some planning in my down time so it wasn't a total loss.

I'm sorry to all the reviewers I haven't replied to, I will try to get to those as soon as I can.

-OMaM