[Star-Lord leads Gamora and Drax aboard Ego's ship, where Ego and Mantis are waiting for them.]
[After they walk in, a shimmering yellow membrane closes behind them, and the ship silently lifts off, leaving the planet behind.]
[Inside, Ego lies down on a couch, and Mantis places a hand on his forehead, lulling him to sleep.]
[Star-Lord pulls an old photo from his jacket, one his mother had left him. It's a picture of a young and vibrant Ego.]
[The journey to Ego's homeworld is a long one. Drax, Star-Lord, and Mantis sit together with nothing to do.]
[Star-Lord leans toward Mantis. "Hey, can I ask you a personal question?"]
[Mantis's eyes widened with delight. "Oh! No one has ever asked me a personal question before!"]
["What's the deal with your antennas?"]
[Mantis tilted her head. "The purpose of my antennas?"]
["Yes! Quill and I made a bet!" Drax announced bluntly.]
[Star-Lord dropped his head into his hands with a groan. "Dude! You weren't supposed to say that!"]
[Drax ignored him and explained the wager. "I said that when you are about to pass through a very low doorway, your antennas can sense its height and prevent you from hitting your head."]
[Gamora, who had just walked over, couldn't help but laugh at Drax's theory. The man's logic was always so wonderfully bizarre.]
[Star-Lord pointed a thumb at Drax. "Right! And if they have any other purpose besides keeping you from banging your head, I win!"]
[Mantis smiled softly. "They are not for sensing doorframes."]
[Drax leaned his head back in disappointment, while Star-Lord pumped his fist with a triumphant grin.]
["I think they have something to do with my abilities," she explained.]
[Gamora asked curiously, "What is that?"]
["When I touch someone, I can feel what they feel."]
[Star-Lord looked surprised. "You can read minds?"]
[Mantis immediately shook her head. "No. Telepathy is for thoughts. I perceive feelings. Emotions."]
[She held out a hand to Star-Lord. "May I?"]
["All right," Star-Lord agreed without hesitation, offering his hand.]
[As Mantis's fingers touched his, the tips of her antennae began to glow softly.]
[A sweet smile graced her lips as she sensed his emotions. "You feel… love."]
[Star-Lord swallowed hard. "Yeah, I guess I feel a general, selfless love for everyone."]
["No," she corrected gently. "Romantic, sexual love."]
[Peter panicked, immediately trying to backpedal. "No! No, I don't!"]
[But Mantis, in her innocence, didn't understand the nuance. She pointed directly at Gamora. "For her!"]
[Gamora's eyes shot wide as she stared at Star-Lord.]
["No! That's not—" Star-Lord stammered, but any explanation he could offer now would be pale and useless.]
["Hahahaha!" Drax roared, pointing at Star-Lord's mortified face.]
[Gamora opened her mouth to say something, but closed it again, lowering her head in silence.]
["Okay, fine," Star-Lord muttered, utterly defeated.]
[Mantis looked between the helpless Star-Lord and the hysterical Drax, confused by the reaction.]
[Drax gasped for air between laughs. "She just revealed your deepest, darkest secret! Hahahaha!"]
["You must be so embarrassed! Hahaha!" He was laughing so hard he could barely breathe, slapping his chest. "Do me! Do me!"]
[Mantis stood and placed her hands on him. In the next second, she was overcome by his emotion and burst out laughing along with him.]
["I have never felt such humor!" she giggled, collapsing onto the couch and pointing at Star-Lord right alongside Drax.]
[Star-Lord sighed, muttering to himself, "This is unbelievably annoying."]
[Mantis then stood and walked toward Gamora, intending to feel her emotions as well.]
[But Gamora grabbed her arm before she could touch her, her expression frighteningly cold. "If you touch me, the only thing you're going to feel is a broken jaw."]
[Her sharp reaction made Mantis recoil, her cheerful demeanor vanishing as she lowered her head meekly.]
[After Gamora released her, Mantis turned back to the others.]
["I can also change people's moods… a little," she offered quietly.]
[Star-Lord nodded, intrigued. "Oh yeah? Like what?"]
["If I touch someone who is sad, I can give them a moment of comfort, a temporary satisfaction. I can make stubborn people more agreeable."]
["But I mostly use my power to help my master fall asleep," she continued. "He would lie awake all night, thinking of his lost children."]
[Star-Lord fell silent. He hadn't expected that. The thought of Ego losing sleep over his search for him chipped away at his distrust, replacing it with a flicker of warmth.]
[Drax slapped his chest. "Do that to me!"]
[Mantis placed her hand on his forehead and whispered, "Sleep."]
[Instantly, Drax leaned back in his chair and began to snore loudly.]
"Must be nice to be young. Fall asleep the second you lie down," Tony snorted, looking at the snoozing Drax on the screen.
Natasha glanced at the real Gamora. "Scared of what she might find?" she asked knowingly. "Putting on a cold front to push her away before she reads your secret? Classic move. I get it."
Star-Lord glanced at her from across the room, past Strange and the others. Thanks to Mantis, his feelings were out in the open. Now, it all came down to what Gamora thought.
Gamora kept her head down, saying nothing. She knew exactly what she was feeling. When she finally risked a glance up and met Peter's gaze, she quickly looked away again.
Captain America wasn't paying attention to their drama. He had already contacted Wanda. Soon, another shimmering golden portal opened, and Wanda flew out, followed by Mysterio. She and Beck had been assisting with disaster relief, but after learning that even Strange was stumped, she had come immediately. Mysterio, ever curious about otherworldly phenomena, had tagged along.
Without a word, Wanda unleashed her swirling Chaos Magic, beginning to probe the strange, cosmic flower.
At that very moment, light-years away, Ego's true self—the living planet—felt Wanda's power assaulting his extension on Earth. The information was transmitted instantly to the humanoid body he had created.
On the bridge of his ship, the being known as Ego felt the psychic intrusion, and his expression soured. He hadn't expected the Avengers to move against his creation so quickly. The ship was already traveling at maximum speed, but there was no way to reach Earth any faster.