Chapter 146: Return of the Guardians Part 1: Escaping the Sovereign
It was night time in Equestria and everyone was sound asleep, peacefully sleeping in their beds, dreaming sweet dreams, but in Spyro's room, his tablet was going off, ringing like no other as an incoming call was coming in, which got on Spyro's nerved as he opened his eyes, looking out to see it was the middle of the night, groaning as he turned and pulled the tablet out to see who it was that was calling him in the middle of the night. As he opened it, he saw it was Master Yen Sid who was calling, making him groan as he answered the call.
"Master, do you know what time it is?" Spyro asked, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "It's the middle of the freaking night here!"
"I apologize for waking you so late Spyro, but this cannot wait." Master Yen Sid replied. "There is a strange power spike in the World of Marvels, mainly in the region that your friend, Starlord, is in."
"Peter?" Spyro asked, remembering him. "What has that Ravager gotten himself into now?"
"Well, from the reports, he and his friends, the Guardians of the Galaxy, have become guns for hire." Master yen Sid replied. "Mercenaries you could say, and bounty hunters."
"Well, people gotta eat, don't they?" Spyro asked. "But what does this have to do with Peter and the Guardians?"
"The energy readings Sora and Riku got from that world are unlike anything we've seen thus far." Master Yen Sid replied. "In fact, they're closely similar to, if not greater, than your current power levels."
"Seriously?" Spyro asked, looking outside before returning his attention to the master. "Alright, I'll assemble a team and go check it out in the morning. Probably nothing more than another warmonger trying to conquer the universe again."
"Perhaps, but I would advise caution young prince." Master Yen Sid replied. "These readings are nothing to laugh at."
The call ended and Spyro closed his tablet, placing it back on the nightstand and going back to sleep, laying his head down and going back to snoozeville, hoping to get some more sleep before the rooster crowed again. The next day, as soon as Spyro woke up, he looked for Rainbow Dash to tell her to get the girls and have them gather at the garage where he had a mission, so as soon as Rainbow Dash left, Spyro went into the garage and got everything ready for when they arrived. After about an hour or so, the Mane six arrived at the garage and with them was Rosy and Midnight, both entering as well as he turned to face them.
"Thank you for coming on short notice girls." Spyro said.
"It's not a problem darling." Rarity said. "When Rainbow Dash said you had a mission, I knew it had to be serious."
"It's nothing major or anything like that if that's what's on your mind." Spyro said. "Master yen Sid contacted me last night, saying there was a strange power spike in the World of Marvels. Mainly where the Guardians of the Galaxy reside in."
"Wait, you mean Peter Quill and the others?" Rosy asked.
"You know these guys?" Midnight asked.
"I do." Rosy replied. "We met them on our last adventure into the World of Marvels. If there's a power spike there, it could be trouble."
"That's why I call you all here." Spyro said. "We're going to check out what it is that's causing this spike and see if it needs to be dealt with."
"Well I would like to go." Rosy said. "Dad and I know Quill and the other guardians, they'll probably be happy to see us."
"Then I'll go as well." Midnight said. "I'm getting bored sitting around and doing nothing all day except train."
"Perfect, now I just need one more volunteer." Spyro said.
"Well, unfortunately, Ah can't go." Applejack said. "Got a lot of chores to catch up on."
"And I have a very big order that simply must be finished before the end of today." Rarity said.
"And I have several birthday parties to plan!" Pinkie said. "There's Spyro's, followed by a few other ponies-"
"And I have to work a double shift so I have time for tryouts for the Wonderbolts that's coming up!" Rainbow Dash said.
"That leave Twilight and..." Spyro said, looking to see where Fluttershy was, but not finding her. "Where's Fluttershy?"
"One of her animals friends got sick, so she stayed at home to take care of it." Rainbow Dash replied.
"Then that leaves me." Twilight said, walking up. "I'll go."
"You sure Twilight?" Spyro asked.
"More than sure." She replied, making him smile.
"Alrighty then, we leave in half an hour." Spyro replied. "Pack whatever you need or may want. This maybe a recon mission, but knowing the Guardians of the Galaxy, they're probably getting shot at."
Twilight, Rosy and Midnight rushed back into town to get whatever supplies they thing they'll need for the journey, meanwhile, after everyone left the garage, Spyro did some modifications to the Dragon's Crest, making sure everything would function properly and nothing would go horribly wrong. After the half hour was up, the three ponies returned to the garage, where the Dragon's Crest was waiting for them, the docking bay down and ready for their arrival, so they all walked on board the massive vessel as the engines started up, the bay closing as the ship took off into the sky, leaving Equestria behind. As soon as they reached the upper atmosphere, Spyro returned to his human form and put in the coordinates for the World of Marvels before jumping into Warp Space, heading for Marvel universe.
"So, what's this 'Starlord' like anyway?" Midnight asked.
"He's kinda childish, but he's a relatively good guy." Spyro replied. "Though he sometimes doesn't think with the right head."
"Dad!" Rosy exclaimed, clearly uncomfortable with what he said.
"What did he mean by that?" Twilight asked.
"Use your imagination." Spyro replied.
Twilight didn't understand what he meant by that, completely clueless until she put it all together, her cheeks turning a deep red as it finally came to her.
"Looks like she figured it out." Midnight said.
"Is he really like that!?" Twilight asked, completely shocked.
"Pretty much." Spyro and Rosy replied, making Twilight rethink her decision.
"Hate to think of all the child support that poor guy's gonna pay if his horsing around comes back to get him." Spyro said.
They remained in warp space for some time, allowing themselves to do whatever they could to keep themselves entertained in the meantime, Midnight and Rosy heading to the simulation room to practice some of their moves while Twilight remained in the cockpit with Spyro, watching as the lights went by. But as they were flying through warp space, Twilight used her magic to take her lightsaber out, looking at it as she turned it over, sighing as she looked to her colt friend.
"Spyro... could I ask you something?" Twilight asked.
"Anything Twiley." Spyro replied, turning to face her
"Why me?" Twilight asked, confusing Spyro. "Why me, of all other ponies, was I given the power to wield the Force? I don't even think I'm capable of doing it."
"Twilight, no one knows how the Force moves or acts." Spyro answered. "It's everywhere around us, binding the Galaxy together. Some are born to wield it, others acquire the ability by dedication and training. Guess you were one of the lucky few born to naturally wield the Force."
"But, what if I fail?" Twilight asked. "What if I'm not strong enough to wield the Force?"
"See, it's thinking like that, that causes people, and ponies, to fail." Spyro answered. "They allow doubt and fear to cloud their minds, letting that fear make them loose focus, and falter. You Twilight, you helped to defeat Nightmare Moon and save Princess Luna from her darkness, turned Discord to stone, even helped to defeat Sombra's darkness incarnated. You Twilight are an amazing pony who has amazing friends, and incredible power." He then got up and walked over to Twilight, stroking her head to calm her down. "No matter what Twilight, if you can defeat three great evils and come out unscathed, you can wield the power of the Force."
Twilight felt her heart flutter a bit, wiping away a tear as she hugged Spyro, who returned the hug as the ship kept flying through Warp Space, an alarm going off to let them know that they were approaching their destination.
"Looks like we've arrived." Spyro said, walking over to his seat and taking the controls. "Coming out of warp space... now."
A moment later, the ship came out of warp space and as it did, they got a look at a culmination of worlds of all sizes, big and small, aligned in a straight line, amazing Twilight as Midngiht and Rosy came up.
"What kind of world is this?" Twilight asked.
"This world is known as 'The Sovereign.'" Spyro replied. "It's a culmination of worlds that this genetically advanced species of humanoids, who are called the Sovereign, brought together, making a literal galaxy their world."
"Gotta say, a lot of effort just to make a single world." Midnight said. "Is this the world where the energy readings are coming from?"
"According to these scanners... no." Spyro replied. "The readings are elsewhere. Looks like we're here at the Sovereign to get some help from some old friends."
"Does that mean we're going to see the guardians again?" Rosy asked.
"We are." Spyro replied, looking over at how unsure Twilight looked. "Don't worry Twilight, they're good friends. Plus they know this galaxy better than I do, so we'll be hitching a ride with them to find this energy reading."
"You sure it's a good idea?" Twilight asked.
"Trust me Twi, they'll help." Spyro replied.
He then set course for the planets surface, flying down and through the clouds surface, moving through a storm to get to the planets surface. On the surface, in the middle of an area with a lot of power conduits, the Guardians of the Galaxy were getting set up to protect these conduits because they are where the Sovereign would get a special kind of batteries that was key for their survival.
"Alright A holes!" Peter said. "It's show time! It'll be here any minute."
"And it will be its loss." Gamers said, charging a blaster cannon, much to Quills surprise.
"I thought your thing was a sword?" Peter asked.
"We were hired to stop an inter dimensional beast from feeding on those batteries." Gamers pointed out. "And you think I'm going to stop it with a sword?"
"Well, the sword is usually your thing and gun was mine, but I guess we're both using guns now." Peter said, looking at the scanner again. "Wow, wow, wow, hold on, this thing is picking up something else."
"If there's a second one, then it means double the payday for us Quill." Rocket said, setting up a stereo set.
"Drax, why aren't you wearing one of Rockets Aero rigs?" Gamers asked.
"It hurts." Drax replied.
"Hurts?" Gamers asked.
"I have very sensitive nipples." Drax replied, making Rocket laugh.
"Oh, my nipples hurt!" Rocket said, mocking Drax. "Oh, goodness me!"
"What about him!?" Drax asked, annoyed by the talking Raccoon. "What's he doing?"
"I'm setting this stuff up so we can listen to toons while we work." Rocket replied.
"How is that a priority?" Drax asked.
"Blame Quill!" Rocket responded. "He's the one who loves music so much!"
"Actually, I'm with Drax on this one Rocket." Peter said. "That doesn't seem really important right now."
"Oh, alright Quill, I understand Quill." Rocket said, winking his eye.
"No, I'm being serious, I'm siding with Drax on this one." Peter said.
"Ok Quill, I understand completely." Rocket said, still winking. "I understand you completely."
"I can see you winking." Drax said.
"Damn it!" Rocket said. "Was I using my left eye?"
They then heard something, looking to the source to see a baby Groot attacking some alien rat like creatures, pushing one before punching another, turning to his friends.
"I am Groot." Groot said.
"Seriously Groot, they were not looking at you funny." Rocket replied.
They then heard the storm picking up, looking to the sky as they formed together and created a wormhole, which a massive Inter dimensional monster with many tentacles came out, roaring as it leapt out of the wormhole and towards the platform with all the batteries on it, landing on it as it crashed down. Not wasting any time, the guardians all charged forward with cannons and blades, attacking the beast head on while Groot remain behind, connecting the speakers to Quills tape player and it started to play a song immediately, Groot enjoying the beat as he danced along to it while his friends all fought the massive monster. While he danced, his friends each took an opportunity to attack the beast, sending wave after wave of blaster shots at the thing as it smacked them around or slammed after being caught by it's tentacle, Quill trying to tell Groot something, but the beast smacked him unexpectedly with it's tentacle, knocking him away and allowing Groot to continue to dance, dancing to Gamora as she dodged an attack and noticed the dancing tree.
"Groot, get out of the way, you're going to get hurt!" Gamora said, which Groot just waved his hand, greeting her. "Hi."
She fired her cannon and flew off to continue to fight the massive beast, leaving Groot to continue to dance, enjoying the music right as Drax landed near him, recovering from the beat down he had and looked at Groot, the little tree freezing while Drax was staring at him, as if playing a game of red light green light. After a bit, Drax got up and went back to attack the monster, letting Groot continue to dance until a bug got his attention, chasing it around until he caught it and tried to eat the bug, but Rocket made him spit it out, returning to the fight. While they fought, Groot found another one of them rats, getting angry and attacking it, using his hand to wrap around it's neck and ride it around like a bucking bronco until he was thrown off, near the speakers, getting up and dancing again as the battle raged on, but then Drax was knocked into the Speakers, landing on them and crushing them, which made Groot mad as he attacked Drax, which the Destroyer didn't feel it as he pushed Groot away, getting back up and starring at the monster as their weapons did very little to harm it, getting an idea.
"Our weapons have no effect on the beast!" Drax shouted. "It's too thick to be pierced from the outside! I will cut through it on the inside!"
"Wait, what?" Gamora asked, Drax laughing as he ran forward towards it. "Drax, wait, don't!"
Drax didn't listen as he then jumped towards the beast, which it opened its mouth right as he jumped and the beast swallowed him whole, shocking everyone as Quill disengaged his mask.
"Did Drax just jump into that thing's mouth!?" Quill asked, flying to Gamora. "What's he thinking!?"
"He said the skin is too thick to be pierced from the outside, so he's trying to cut through it from the inside!" Gamora replied, firing the cannon again.
"But that doesn't make any sense!" Quill said. "It's inside is just as thick as it's outside, what was he thinking!?"
"Clearly he wasn't!" Gamora replied, firing again. "But he's right about one thing, our weapons have no effect on it! We need something stronger than this!"
"Did someone say stronger weapons?" Spyro asked.
The guardians all looked up to the sky and a second later, the Dragon's Crest pierced through the sky and unleashed a volley of cannon fire, hitting the beast with pin point accuracy, making it howl in rage as the bay doors opened, allowing for himself and the ponies to jump out, Twilight firing a bolt of magic towards the monster while Rosy and Midnight got their Keyblades out and slashed across the hide, only making the monster angry right as Spyro crowned it on the head, disorienting it as he leapt away and landed right next to the two guardians.
"Spyro!" Quill said, firing another bolt. "Boy are we glad to see you!"
"Eh, I was in the neighborhood and thought I'd come visit." Spyro replied, summoning a bolt of lightning and hitting the monster. "So, what you guys been doing? Keeping out of trouble?"
"Hah, you wish!" Rocket replied, hitting the monster again. "Hey, who're the other two horses?"
"Ponies!" Spyro replied, slamming his foot down and punching the shard of metal, hauling a cut on the thing. "The lavender one is Twilight Sparkle, one of my mare friends, and the other is Midnight Sky, my daughter."
"Wait, daughter!?" Rocket asked, firing more laser bolts. "Dude, seriously? How many kids do you have!?"
"You really wanna know?" Midnight asked, slashing upward.
"Buddy, are you part rabbit or something!?" Rocket asked. "You and Quill are way too much alike!"
"She's not my biological daughter." Spyro replied, creating a ball of fire and hitting the beast with it. "Can we discuss this later? We got a beast to kill here!"
"That thing is not going to go down!" Twilight said. "Its skin is too thick!"
"Wait, look!" Quill said, pointing to the cut under its neck. "That cut, that's the weak spot!"
"Quill, you me and Rocket will keep its attention, get it to look up!" Spyro said. "Gamora, once you have a clear shot, take it! Girls, get out of the way!"
Spyro called his wings and took off, flying into the air followed by Quill as they helped Rocket to get the beasts attention, forcing it to look up as it tried to get them, firing volley after volley of lasers and elements at the thing, annoying it as they made it look up and exposing the weak point. As Gamora got a clear shot and pulled the trigger, there was a click, indicating the gun was empty and making her growl.
"Wow, that was poor timing." Midnight said. "Got anything else to kill this thing?"
"Yeah, this." Gamora replied, tossing the gun away and getting her sword out.
"That'll do it." Midnight said.
The three fliers flew around, keeping it's attention to the air as it grabbed Quill, about to eat him when Gamora rushed forward and leapt to the beast, using it's own arms to give herself a boost as she plunged her blade into the cut, sliding down the beast as yellowish-green blood came out, the monster roaring out as it collapsed, dying on the spot. As they got down and breathed a sigh of relief when Drax came out of the beast, laughing in triumph, but also causing Twilight to gag and almost throw up.
"Ha, ha, yes!" Drax exclaimed. "I have single handedly slain the beast!"
"Yes, you have Drax." Spyro said.
"Spyro!" Drax shouted, still laughing as he got up to hug him. "It is good to see you again old friend!"
"Let's... hold off on the hug for now, alright?" Spyro asked. "Anyways, we need your help."
"Our help?" Rocket asked. "Well, depends, what's the job?"
"There's an unusual energy reading in an uncharted part of space." Spyro replied. "I figured you might be able to help in checking it out real quick, since you guys know this galaxy better than I do."
"You bet we know this galaxy." Quill said. "Sure, we'll help. But first, we need to get what we're owed by the High Priestess."
The group traveled together to the Sovereigns palace where their High Priestess was waiting for them, the Sovereign revealing to be humanoid with golden skin. As they approached the Priestess, they noticed her followers near her and her guards watching them like they were going to do something, keeping an eye on them while Spyro kept the ponies close, sensing disdain in the Sovereign.
"We thank you guardians for putting your lives on the line." The priestess said. "We could not risk the lives of our Sovereign citizens, for every citizen is born exactly as designed by the community, impeccable both physically and mentally. We control the DNA of our progeny, germinating them in birthing pods."
"Well, I like making people the old fashioned way." Quill said, making the guardians groan.
"Well, perhaps you could give us a history lesson, in the archaic ways of our ancestors." The Priestess replied. "For academic purposes of course."
"I would be honored, yes." Quill said. "In the name of research."
"Quill, seriously!" Spyro exclaimed. "Stick it back in your pants dude. Now's not the time for you to be you."
"I apologize for the interruption your highness." Gamora said. "But your people promised us something in exchange for our services. Bring it and we shall gladly be on our way."
Looking to her left, she nodded her head and a couple of guards brought a prisoner, making the prisoner kneel before removing her hood, revealing it was Nebula, taking everyone off guard.
"Family reunion, yay." Quill said.
"What's her deal?" Twilight asked.
"That's Nebula, Gamora's sister." Spyro replied. "Let's just say she's not exactly the kind of person you want on your side. Helped to try and blow up a planet and a lot of other kinds of crimes against the galaxy."
"So she is your sister, correct?" The High Priestess asked.
"She's worth no more to me than the bounty due for her back on Xandar." Gamora replied, grabbing Nebula and picking her up.
"If you don't mind me asking your highness, how did you capture her in the first place?" Spyro asked.
"Our soldiers apprehended her attempting to steal the batteries." The High Priestess replied. "You may do with her as you please."
Gamora then dragged her sister away, getting her past the other guardians and the ponies before turning their attention back to the priestess.
"We thank you, High Priestess Ayesha." Peter said, bowing to her.
"Tell me, Mr. Quill, what is your heritage?" Ayesha asked.
"My mother is from earth." Quill replied. "Never knew my father."
"Why do you ask your majesty?" Spyro asked.
"Well, I see it within him." Ayesha replied. "An unorthodox genealogy. A hybrid that seems particularly... reckless."
"That was mean." Twilight said.
"The Sovereign aren't known for playing nice with others species." Spyro replied.
"You got that right." Rocket said. "They told me these people are conceited douchebags, but that isn't true at all."
He then winked to the others using his left eye, making everyone worry as some of the guards got their weapons ready.
"Rocket!" Spyro exclaimed, fearing for his friends.
"Oh shit, I used my wrong eyes again, didn't I?" Rocket asked, everyone turning and walking out as Drax grabbed the raccoon to make him move. "Sorry, that was meant to be behind your back."
"Count your blessings they didn't kill you." Drax said.
"That goes double from me." Spyro said, walking with them. "These guys will execute you for even sneezing in front of the priestess."
"Yeah, you're telling me." Rocket said, opening his bag for them to reveal some of the batteries. "Wanna buy some batteries?"
Spyro's eyes widened as he looked back, quickly rushing them out as Drax laughed, praying they wouldn't get attacked as they left. As they got onto the Milano, everyone got into the cockpit while Gamora worked to make sure her sister didn't have a chance to get away as the others took a seat wherever they could while some music was playing, Rocket and Quill taking the first two to pilot the ship while it took off and left the Sovereign home world. While they were leaving, Quill went down below to get a change of clothing while Spyro and Rocket remained up in the cockpit, the raccoon piloting the ship; while Spyro was looking out, starring at the expanses of space.
"No matter how many times I fly through space, it never ceases to amaze me." Spyro said.
"Humans." Rocket said, plotting a course. "Alright, first we drop Nebula off and claim her bounty, then we'll help you locate that unknown power reading."
"I appreciate Rocket, truly, I do." Spyro said, sitting in Quills seat. "You know, if the Sovereign find out you stole the batteries, they're gonna skin ya and make you into a hat, right?"
"Oh, don't you worry about me." Rocket said. "By the time they figure it out, we'll be half way across the galaxy, filthy rich in units!" Spyro couldn't help but laugh at the raccoon, looking back out into the expanses of space. "So what's the deal with Midnight? She seems... well, she seems to be a bit more like Gamora, but in pony form."
"She was trained by someone who calls himself the Dark Overlord." Spyro replied. "Found at the age of ten as a filly in the streets, no food, no love. He took her in and trained her to be a warrior, a killing machine. Exactly like Gamora. But Rosy... she got through to her, helped her to find her light within the darkness. So, I decided to take her in, make her my daughter, after Rosy pleaded with me of course."
"Hah, dude, you are too soft on these horses, I'm telling you." Rocket said.
"Oh, trust me, I might be a softie, but I can be nasty when I need to be." Spyro said, looking out. "So, how long will it take to get to Xandar?"
"It's only a few jumps away." Rocket replied. "We'll be there in no time."
However, a moment later, the ships alarm went off, letting them know they had company right as Quill got up the stairs, everyone looking to the scopes to see they had a fleet of sovereign ships coming up behind them, making Spyro's stomach drop.
"That's weird." Peter said, Spyro getting out of his seat to allow Starlord to take his place. "We have a Sovereign Fleet coming up from the rear."
"Why would they do that?" Gamora asked.
"Probably because Rocket stole a bunch of their batteries." Drax said.
"Dude!" Rocket exclaimed, everyone looking at him.
"Oh, right." Drax said. "Rocket didn't steal their batteries, it's a complete mystery to me."
"Real convincing Drax." Spyro said.
However, as he said it, the Sovereign fired at them, forcing them to take evasive maneuvers as it threw the ponies around, Spyro having to hold onto something to avoid falling and hurting something as Quill and Rocket worked to avoid being hit, utilizing evasive maneuvers of any kind to avoid the bolts of plasma fire while the ponies got back on their hooves, finding something to hold onto as they avoided being hit.
"What were you thinking!?" Peter asked.
"Dude, they were really easy to steal." Rocket replied.
"If that's your defense Rocket, it's not a very good one!" Twilight said.
"Yeah, I'm with the pony on that." Gamora said.
"Look, you all saw how that High Priestess was talking down to, so I'm teaching her a lesson." Rocket replied, spinning to avoid the ships.
"Well, I didn't realize your motivation was altruism." Quill said, being sarcastic. "It's a shame the Sovereign mistook your intentions and now are trying to kill us."
"Exactly." Rocket replied, not knowing Quill was being sarcastic.
"Rocket, he was being sarcastic!" Spyro said, heading for a seat.
"Oh no, you were supposed to use a sarcastic voice!" Rocket said, furious he didn't catch on. "Not I look foolish!"
"Can we put the bickering on hold until after we survive this massive space battle!?" Gamora asked, trying to get coordinates for a world they could jump to.
"Incoming!" Spyro said, a massive wave of Sovereign ships coming after them.
"Good, I wanna kill some guys!" Rocket said.
A second later, Rocket opened fire on the massive swarm of Sovereign vessels, destroying many of them as they passed through, yelling out in joy as he fired upon them.
"Rocket, those drones are remote piloted, you're not killing anyone." Gamora pointed out.
However, it didn't seem to bother the raccoon as he continued to fire on the fleet, taking out ship after ship as they continued to fight through them, keeping out of the ships fire to give Gamora time to get a world they could jump to, but then one of the ships got lucky and hit them, causing minor damage.
"That was not good." Spyro said. "Gamora, tell me you have a world we can jump to."
Gamora flipped the screen and found one that might work for them.
"Got it." Gamora said. "The nearest habitable world is Berhert."
"How many jumps?" Quill asked.
"Only one, but the access point is 47 clicks away." Gamora replied. "And you need to go through that Quantum Asteroid field."
They looked to their right and right there were asteroids that were popping in and out of existence, Quill turning into them to fly through the field of popping asteroids.
"Quill, to fly through that, you'd need to be the greatest pilot in the galaxy." Drax said.
"Or have the instincts of a Jedi." Midnight said.
"Well lucky for you all I-" Quill said, getting ready to pilot through the field.
"I am." Rocket said, taking controls away from Quill and flying through the field.
As he flew the field, he dodged and waived both the Sovereigns fire and the incoming asteroids, flying around and avoiding being hit while also causing some of the Sovereigns ships to get hit by the asteroids as they popped in, doing a good job of not being hit, but then Quill took control from Rocket, shocking the raccoon.
"Quill, what are you doing!?" Rocket asked.
"I've been flying this rig since I was ten years old, I know this ship better than anyone." Peter replied.
"I was cybernetically engineered to pilot a space craft." Rocket said, taking back controls.
"You were cybernetically engineered to be a douchebag!" Quill said, taking back controls.
"Stop it, both of you." Gamora said, which they didn't listen to her.
"Quill, later during the night you're going to be lying in your bed and there is going to be something squishy in your pillow case and you'll be like, what's and you're going to realize I put a turd in it!" Rocket said, taking controls back.
"You put a turd in my bed, I'll shave you." Quill said, taking controls.
"Gamora, may I?" Spyro asked.
"Be my guest." Gamora said, getting up and allowing for Spyro to take her seat.
"Oh, it won't be my turd." Rocket said. "It'll be Drax's."
Drax started to laugh while the ponies seemed very uncomfortable with that, holding on for dear life while also looking or sensing outside the ship.
"I have famously huge turds!" Drax said as he laughed.
"We're about to die and this is what you're discussing?" Gamora asked.
They continued to take away controls from one another, the ships still after them as they continued to crash into the asteroids, the ship flying erratically until their arguing caused them to crash into an asteroid, causing a breach in the lower deck that caused a vacuum to try and suck them out of the ship, the ponies holding onto something while Groot was almost sucked out, Quill grabbing the small twig and tossing him back to Drax who caught him and gave him to Gamora as Quill activated the shield, sealing the breach.
"IDIOTS!" Nebula shouted.
"Can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm with Nebula on this one." Spyro said. "You're both idiots!"
"What, that's what happens when you let Quill fly." Rocket said, which Spyro took something and threw it at the raccoon, hitting him in the head.
"None of this would have happened if you hadn't taken those stupid batteries!" Spyro said, taking the controls. "And the ship wouldn't have taken hull damage if you hadn't taken controls away from Quill. And because of that..." Spyro then flicked the switch a couple of times, taking controls from them both. "I'm flying this junk pile."
"Hey!" They exclaimed at the same time.
"And to make sure you don't take controls from me..." Spyro said, waving his hand and locking their controls. "You piloting privileges are revoked until we get to Berhert and get this pile of junk fixed." Spyro then piloted the ship, checking the device to see if they were getting closer to the access point, revealing they were twenty clicks away, so he kept dodging and avoiding the last Sovereign ships fire, the pilot on their tail as he or she kept firing to destroy their ship. "Whoever this guy is, he or she is persistent, I'll give them that. And with weapons down, we can't fire back. Drax, up for a little moon walking?"
"Thought you'd never ask." Drax replied. He then walked down the stairs down to the lower deck, seeing Nebula reach for some kind of plant when he kicked it away from her, walking over to some small devices and grabbing one. "It's not ripe yet." He put a cable on his belt as he put the device on his back and it created a barrier around him, allowing for him to go out into space, grabbing the nearby gun and pressing a button that created a second shield between him and Nebula, pressing another button that deactivated the first shield and flying out of space, flying around until Spyro got straightened up, giving Drax a clear shot. "Die spaceship!"
Drax charged the cannon up and pulled the trigger and firing the weapon, hitting the ship and destroying it in a single shot.
"Nice shot Drax!" Spyro said, activating the winch he was on. "Five clicks away!"
As Drax was pulled in, they got out of the field, but unfortunately, the Sovereign were coming in around them, having gone around the field and surprising them.
"Son of a... they went around the Asteroid field!" Peter said.
"There's too many!" Spyro exclaimed, the Sovereign opening fire on them.
As the Sovereign fired, their bolts were hitting the Milano, doing significant damage to the ship that made everyone worry, Spyro looking back to see how scared Twilight and his daughters were, looking to him for any ideas. Having had enough, Spyro looked out and lightning was arcing across his arms, lifting them up to unleash a Force Storm to destroy the Sovereign ships, but then two orbs of energy came out of nowhere and hit the ships, destroying the entire fleet that was after them.
"What the hell was that!?" Rocket asked.
"Don't know, don't care!" Spyro replied, looking at the machine. "The Milano has sustained critical damage, but we're one click away from the access point! Get ready!"
"Wait, what's that?" Twilight said, pointing outside.
She and Rocket looked at what it was she had spotted, revealing it was a ship, but on it was a guy holding onto the ship like it was a horse, waving at them as they went by.
"It's a guy." Rocket said.
"There, the access point!" Spyro said.
They all looked out and saw the hexagon shaped access point, passing through it, but as they went through, the ship exploded, going up in flames while everyone held onto something as Spyro piloted the ship, but unfortunately, Drax was still outside, thankfully attached to the cable as he flew outside, Spyro looking at the monitor as Gamora did.
"Oh my god." Gamora said. "He's still out there?"
"Gamora, get him back inside!" Spyro said, Gamora doing as she was told.
"Who put you in charge?" Rocket asked.
"I put myself in charge because the two children sitting in front of me don't know what they're doing!" Spyro replied, piloting the ship as best he could.
However, as he tried to find a place to land the ship, Gamora managed to save Drax, but then they were forced into a forest, crashing through trees and destroying much of the land as the ship skidded to a halt, one of the ships wings falling off and causing the ship to tilt as Drax laughed, having enjoyed the ride.
"Yes!" He shouted. "That was awesome!"
"Is he mental or something?" Midnight asked, cracking her back. "No way would I do that."
"That goes double for me." Rosy said.
"Triple." Twilight said.
"Anyone else agree with Midnight?" Spyro asked, which Quill, Rocket, and himself raised their hands.
They got out and looked at the damage, finding that the entire thing was trashed, completely destroyed and in tatters.
"Look at this!" Gamora shouted, clearly annoyed. "Where's the other half of our ship!?"
"Uh, technically, it's my ship." Peter pointed out.
"Either one of you could have made it through that asteroid field!" Gamora said. "Had you flown with what was between your ears instead of what's between your legs!"
"Hey, if what was between my legs had a hand, I'd have landed this ship no problem."
"Quill!" Spyro said, grossing them out. "Seriously!?"
"Oh come on!" Peter said.
"We almost died back there because of your arrogance." Gamora pointed out.
"More like we almost died because he stole Annulax batteries!" Peter said, pointing at Rocket.
"They're called Harpulary batteries." Drax said.
"No they're not!" Quill said.
"You wanna know why I stole them Star-muncher!?" Rocket asked, annoying Quill. "Because I wanted to! Besides, why are we discussing this? We had a little man save us by blowing up fifty ships!"
"Little man?" Spyro asked.
"Yeah, about one inch high." Rocket said.
"A little, one inch man saved us?" Gamora asked.
"Well if he was closer, I'm sure he'd be a lot bigger." Rocket said.
"That's how eye sight works you stupid raccoon." Peter said.
"Don't call me a raccoon!" Rocket shouted, getting ready to attack.
"Ok, I'm sorry, I took it too far." Peter said, a mischievous grin appearing on his face. "I meant Trash Panda."
As Peter said it, Spyro just covered his eyes, not believing that Peter actually just said that while Rocket looked to the others, wondering if that was something better.
"Is that better or worse?" Rocket asked.
"I don't know." Drax said.
"Oh, it's worse." Peter said. "It's so much worse."
"YOU SON OF A-!" Rocket shouted, leaping at quill to attack.
"Someone followed you through the jump point!" Nebula said.
Everyone looked up to see what she was talking about and saw a ship did indeed follow them through the jump point, flying downward towards them, forcing everyone to circle up and get their weapons out.
"Get ready for a fight ladies." Spyro said, calling his Keyblade as did the others.
"Set me free, I can help." Nebula said.
"You're a fool Nebula." Gamora said.
"You're the only fool if you refuse a hand in combat." Nebula said.
"You'll attack me the moment my back is turned." Gamora said.
"No I won't." Nebula replied.
"You know, an evil super villain would probably know how to lie better." Peter said, making Nebula look at him.
"I bet it's the one inch man." Drax said.
"Enough about the one inch man already!" Spyro exclaimed.
The ship continued to descend, lower and lower as it came towards them until it landed right in front of their ship, the ship shaped a bit like an egg, but Spyro was still on guard as he could sense through the Force that whoever was inside of that ship was powerful, very powerful. When the ship finished landing, the door opened, moving like a wave of water as it revealed a man in a brown, tarnished shirt with a cape on and black pants, standing next to him was a human, though she had some insect old like antennae on her forehead, pure black eyes and wearing all green. As they stepped out of the ship, the man smiled, the smile seemingly genuine, but Spyro could feel through the Force that he was hiding more than he was letting on.
"After all this time, I finally found you." The man said.
"And who the hell are you?" Peter asked, his hands on his blasters.
"I figured my rugged good looks would make that obvious." The man said, still smiling. "My name is Ego. And I'm your dad Peter."
Peter was completely shocked, in stunned silence as was everyone else, not believing that the man who saved their lives was Peter Quills father, lowering their guard as he approached to greet his son, but for Spyro, his instincts were telling him that this guy was bad news, sensing a serious disturbance in the Force. On the world that Malefor was on, Aphara was approaching a temple in the outskirts of nowhere, reaching it as it looked to be in shambles as there were massive holes in the ceiling, the structure itself was in shambles, and it had plants growing all over it, pushing some foliage away to get a better look as she pulled out a black crystal, an image of Malefor appearing on it.
"You sure this temple will have what you need for your spell?" Aphara asked.
"I am positive it will have everything we need." Malefor said. "This temple was the location of the egg for the original Spyro, the purple dragon who imprisoned me here in the core of this world, its heart."
"So what does this place have that you need?" Aphara asked.
"The eggshells of an unhatched hatchling." Makefor replied. "I sent my minions here years ago to destroy the eggs that would hatch on the year of the dragon, where Convexity would be at its strongest. Unfortunately, one of the guardians protecting the eggs got it to safety, but my minions smashed the rest. I need you to go in and collect as many eggshells as possible. Bring them to me and find the bones of an elder dragon as well while you're at it. There should be some nearby in the Gloomack swamp."
"But what about the blood of your enemy?" Aphara asked.
"Leave that to me." Malefor replied. "I already made a special deal with someone in another universe. He'll get me exactly what we need. You just get the items you were assigned and do not fail me. I do not tolerate failure."
Malefor then ended the transmission, allowing Aphara to put the crystal away and fly off, heading towards the temple, flying to the roof where there was a massive hole in the top of the ceiling, landing on the edge and looking in to see a few dragons around a pool, observing them for some time before they left, the sun setting in the distance as they went to get some sleep. When they were gone, Aphara glided down into the room, landing gently as she looked around to make sure no one was in the room before sneaking off, heading in the direction that Malefor said the nursery was in, the door opening for her as she walked in, it unfortunately, one of the guardians was in front of the door, forcing her to hide behind a wall to avoid being spotted by him. She peaked around the corner to observe the guardian, noticing him nodding off before lying on the ground to catch some sleep, giving the dragoness a chance to sneak by and enter the room, finding there were dozens of nearly lain eggs in the nests, ranging from all colors and patterns.
The room itself was nice and clean, no amount of garbage or any broken eggshells to be seen anywhere as she search the room, checking under every nest, around every stone and rock she could see, but there was nothing in the room that indicated there was an eggshell anywhere. She was about to give up when she heard someone heading her way, panicking, she dove behind one of the columns that has some eggs on it as a large Green Earth dragon walked in, checking the room to see if the eggs were ok and as he was checking, the dragoness looked for an escape route, her heart racing as she feared of getting caught, but as she was looking, she noticed in the corner of her eye some eggshells, the color was faded, but she could tell it was from a yellow dragon. Without wasting time, she reached over and snagged the shell, the dragoness hiding again as the dragon looked in her direction, doing one last check of the room before leaving the room and leaving the dragoness alone. When he was gone, the dragoness peaked out as she heard the door close, looking around as she saw another passage way, taking it and praying that no one was guarding it, which thankfully, it wasn't well guarded and allowed for her to escape, flying to the nearest ledge and landing before pulling out the shells and the crystal, contacting her master.
"Lord Malefor, I have the shell." Aphara said, showing it to him.
"Hmm, yes... this will do perfectly." Malefor said. "Good work. Now, get the bones and return to the palace, we have much work to do if we're going to succeed."
"Yes my lord." Aphara said.
She then ended the transmission and put both the crystal and the shell into the pouch she had, expanding her wings and tasking off into the sky, heading straight for the swamp that Malefor believes had the bones they needed for the ritual to work. Back on Berhert, night had come and everyone had set up a small campfire, allowing for them to relax a little bit as they all were talking to Ego, getting to know him better, but Spyro was still unsure of the guy, sensing something was wrong with him from when they first met.
"So Ego, how long have you been searching for Peter?" Midnight asked.
"For almost twenty six years actually." Ego replied. "Hired Yondu to bring Peter to me when I heard his mother died. But instead of bringing you to me, he kept you. Lord knows why."
"Oh, I'll tell you why." Peter said. "Because I was a skinny little kid who could squeeze into places that an adult couldn't. Made it easier to steal stuff."
"Well, whatever the reason, since then I've been trying to track you down." Ego said. "To bring you home."
"I thought Yondu was your father." Drax said, making everyone look at him.
"You thought Yondu was my biological father?" Quill asked. "We've been together this whole time and you thought Yondu was my actual blood relative?"
"You look alike." Drax replied.
"One's blue!" Rocket said.
"No Yondu isn't my father." Peter said. "He abducted me, kicked the crap out of me so I could learn how to fight and terrified my by threatening to eat me."
"Eat you!?" Ego asked, clearly annoyed. "Ah that son of a-"
"Anyway." Spyro said, cutting Ego off. "How in the entire galaxy did you find us?"
"Well, even past the section of the galaxy I know of, everyone has heard of Starlord." Ego said, clearly happy. And heard of the Prince of Light and Darkness."
"So you know who I am?" Spyro asked.
"Of course I know." Ego said. "Word travels fast about you pal. Though, I actually expected you to be taller. Anyway, let's say we head back to my world now! Your associates are more than welcome. Even the triangle face monkey and the three horses."
"Ponies!" The three ponies exclaimed.
"Whatever." Ego replied. "Any once you're there, I can explain your very... special heritage. Finally get to be the father I always wanted to be." Everyone looked at the man, Spyro still not trusting the man as he kept his hand near his lightsaber at a moment's notice, looking at Gamora, who looked at him, both silently agreeing they didn't trust him. "Excuse me a moment. I gotta whizz."
Ego then walked away, leaving the group as Gamora and Spyro looked at him, looking to Peter with skepticism.
"You're not buys this, are you?" Peter asked.
"Let's go for a walk." Gamora said.
"Count me in." Spyro said.
The three of them got up and walked away, the ponies following close behind as they went into the forest to get out of ear shot of the group.
"Peter, no offense, but I'm getting some seriously bad vibes from this guy." Spyro said.
"That makes two of us." Twilight said.
"Make it three." Midnight said. "Feels like my entire spine is shivering being around him."
"Look, I get what you're saying." Peter said. "I mean, after all this time, he shows up and wants to be my dad? You know, this could very well be a trap. We have a lot of people who want us dead."
"I know, but... what was that story you told me?" Gamora asked. "About Xardu Husslebrow?"
"What?" Peter asked.
"He owned a magic boat." Gamora said.
"Wait, you talking about David Hasselhoff?" Spyro asked.
"How do you know about him?" Peter asked.
"I was originally from earth." Spyro replied. "Of course I know who David Hasselhoff is. And FYI, it wasn't a magic boat. It was a talking car."
"Right." Gamora said. "And why did he have a talking car?"
"To fight crime." Peter replied. "And to be supportive."
"Where are you going with this Gamora?" Spyro asked.
"Well, when Peter was a boy, he'd carry his photo around, claiming he was his father." Gamora replied.
"Wait, seriously!?" Spyro asked, looking at Quill. "You carried a photo of David Hasselhoff and say he was your father?"
"I told you that when I was drunk." Peter said.
"I love that story." Gamora said.
"I hate that story!" Peter said. "It's sad. When I saw all the other kids playing catch with their friends, I always wanted to do that. More than anything in the world."
"That would probably be a lot of kids now back on earth whose fathers left them." Spyro said.
"That's my point." Gamora said. "What if this man is your Hasselhoff?" Spyro looked to Peter, seeing he was starting to think it, wanting it to be true. "And if he is evil..." She walked over and took Peters hands in hers, holding them. "We'll just kill him."
"There it is." Spyro said, look at Gamora and Peter's hands, smiling. "Want me to go get a priest and get you two hitched?"
As he asked that, Gamora removed her hands, clearing her throat.
"Alright." Peter said, looking at her. "We'll go. But what about the ship?"
"Rocket can repair it while we're gone." Gamora said.
"I'll stay and help him." Spyro said. "I have several other ships, I know my way around repairing heavily damaged goods."
"I'm stay with you." Midnight said. "Might need someone to keep an eye on Nebula while you're gone."
"Well, I'd like to go with Peter." Twilight said, shocking Spyro. "I'd like to make sure nothing back happens to Quill."
"I'm more worried about something bad happening to you Twilight!" Spyro replied, kneeling down. "I don't trust Ego. The Force is telling me he's bad news bears."
"Don't worry dad, I'll be with her." Rosy said. "Besides, as Gamora said, if Ego does anything, we'll just destroy him."
Spyro wasn't comfortable to let the girls go with this guy, his gut telling him this was a terrible idea, but knew their minds were made up, nodding his head as they head back to camp. The next day, everyone was getting ready to leave, with the exception of Spyro, Midnight, Rocket, and Groot as they voted to stay behind and repair the ship and guard Nebula, making sure they didn't do anything while they were away.
"You leaving me with that fox!" Nebula shouted, clearly not happy.
"He's not a fox." Gamora said, walking out towards Rocket. "Shoot her if she does anything suspicious. Or if you feel like it."
"Ok." Rocket said, spraying sone Nanobots on the walls to start repairing the ship.
"Hey, it'll only be a couple of days." Gamora said. "We'll be back before Rocket and Spyro finish repairing the ship."
She wiped a tear away from Groot before walking out, leaving Rocket and Groot with Spyro and Midnight, the Raccoon continuing to repair the ship as Peter and Drax started to walk out.
"But what if the Sovereign come while we're away?" Drax asked.
"There's no way for them to know we're here." Peter said.
"I'm uncertain about parting ways." Drax said.
"I'm with Drax on this one." Spyro said. "No offense Quill, but this guy is sending up one too many red flags for my liking."
"God, you're both like a bunch of old women." Peter said.
"Why, is it because we're wise?" Spyro asked, Peter deciding to drop it as they walked out.
As Peter reached the entrance to the ship, he turned to face them, Rocket continuing to repair the ship as Spyro used the Force to lift the heavier stuff up and setting it aside to give them more access to the ship, Rocket stopping what he was doing to look at Peter.
"Hope daddy isn't as big of a dick as you are orphaned boy." Rocket said.
"What is your deal here?" Peter asked. "To get everyone to hate you? Because it's working."
"Peter, Rocket's just worried about you." Spyro said. "He just doesn't know how to express himself." Spyro walked over to him, the two ponies near him as he knelt down, hugging them as he worried for their safety before getting back up. "Keep my girls safe. If anything happens to them, I'll chop your dick off and feed it to you."
Peter just smiled, turning and walking away, but whistling as he was now officially scared of Spyro, he and the group walking into Ego's ship, walking in and looking around, but Peter saw his supposed father lying down, sleeping with Mantis nearby, providing comfort as she touched his head, making Peter reach into his coat pocket and pull the photo of David Hasselhoff out, looking at him and wondering if it was possible for Ego to be his father as the ship took off, leaving Berhert as they made their way to Ego's world, making the jump to leave the current system.
"You think they'll be ok?" Rocket asked.
"I hope so." Spyro said, still not liking having them go with Ego. "If anything happens, Rosy will call me through the Force and I'll hop into the Dragon's Crest and go kick the crap out of Ego if he does anything to them. Come on, we have a lot of work to do." He then lifted some metal with the Force, allowing for Rocket to use his spray gun to mend the damage as Spyro looked over to Nebula, looking to Midnight. "Midnight, keep an eye on Nebula. If she tried anything, vaporize her."
"Gladly." Midnight replied.
Midnight walked over to Nebula, sitting down opposite of the villain while allowing for Rocket and Spyro to continue to repair the ship, doing whatever they could to make it space worthy again before trouble showed up, hoping to be done before trouble showed up.