"That's right! Kraglin's absolutely right!" the bearded Ravager shouted while raising his weapon directly at Yondu. "Yondu's gone soft. He's no longer fit to lead the Ravagers. We need a new captain!"
The Ravagers behind him immediately raised their guns as well.
At the same time, the Ravagers still loyal to Yondu also aimed their weapons at the opposing side.
Inside the ship, Tony, Nebula, and Groot sat together watching the live feed transmitted from Rocket's body camera, all three deep in thought.
"So this blue-skinned guy's actually on our side?" Tony asked while resting his chin on one hand.
From the earlier conversation between Rocket and Yondu, Tony got the feeling that Yondu wasn't truly their enemy—though he also seemed like the type who could betray them at any moment.
"They're Ravagers," Nebula explained coldly. "Criminals of the galaxy. A bunch of filthy rats."
She knew the Ravagers well. They operated completely outside interstellar law—essentially a massive galactic underworld organization.
"Oh, so basically the guys from Hell's Kitchen," Tony said immediately, finding the perfect Earth equivalent.
And honestly, he wasn't wrong. In many ways, the Ravagers weren't much different from the gangs back in Hell's Kitchen.
After a brief discussion, the three quietly moved toward Rocket's location.
Tony didn't choose to fly. The flames from his armor thrusters would be far too obvious in the darkness.
Meanwhile, tension on Rocket's side had reached its peak.
Both factions were on the verge of open conflict, and Rocket had already wisely retreated to the sidelines to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.
Then a whistle sounded.
The battle erupted instantly.
Yondu controlled his Yaka Arrow through the crowd, the glowing projectile mercilessly harvesting the rebelling Ravagers one after another.
At the same time, Yondu's loyal subordinates opened fire.
The two sides immediately descended into chaotic combat.
Hearing the commotion, Tony's group abandoned stealth entirely and rushed straight into the battlefield.
They chose to help Yondu suppress the mutiny.
After all, Yondu had already made his stance clear—he had no intention of handing the Guardians over to the Sovereign. At least for now, they weren't enemies.
Tony raised both hands.
Energy cannons instantly formed over his palms.
From above, he unleashed a barrage of explosions onto the battlefield below.
Tony deliberately reduced the output of the blasts to roughly the power of hand grenades, but each shot could still incapacitate several Ravagers at once.
Nebula and Rocket continuously fired as well, both of them possessing near-perfect aim.
Combined with Groot's battlefield control, Yondu's side rapidly gained overwhelming dominance.
---
Meanwhile, the egg-shaped ship carrying Quill's group entered the atmosphere of an unknown planet.
The planet itself was primarily red in color, intertwined with streams of blue energy. On one side of the world, a sun-like star emitted dazzling light.
Soon, the ship landed.
Everyone followed Ego out of the craft.
The planet was lush with vegetation. Strange alien plants flourished everywhere, dense and vibrant.
It looked nothing like a dead world devoid of animal life.
In fact, it resembled Earth's ecosystem remarkably closely.
"Everyone," Ego said warmly, "welcome to my planet."
A platform extended from the ship, allowing the group to stand and admire the beautiful natural scenery around them.
The bizarre yet stunning environment immediately captivated everyone.
Even Gamora and Quill, who had remained suspicious of Ego the entire time, found themselves gradually drawn in.
Among everyone present, only Karl clearly understood that Ego was far from benevolent.
He hadn't brought Quill here out of fatherly love.
He wanted to consume him.
Before long, an enormous structure harmonizing perfectly with the surrounding nature came into view.
This magnificent building—grand, elegant, and seemingly one with the planet itself—was Ego's home.
The group followed him inside.
"You have your own planet, can survive in space without protective gear, and casually wiped out hundreds of ships in a single attack," Gamora finally said after recovering from her initial shock. "What exactly are you?"
"I am a Celestial."
Ego spoke casually, but everyone behind him froze.
Well—everyone except Karl.
"A Celestial?" Gwen immediately asked. "So you're a god? Like Thor?"
Among the people she knew, Thor was the only one she associated with the concept of a god—the Norse God of Thunder and heir to Asgard.
"Something like that," Ego replied with a smile. "Just a very small god."
He gestured lightly with his fingers.
Obviously, the "god" Ego referred to wasn't quite the same as the one Gwen had in mind.
As they walked deeper into the palace, the interior grew even more extravagant.
Every pillar, every brick, radiated luxury.
The intricate patterns were complex yet aesthetically perfect, while streams of blue energy flowed through the architecture like living veins.
Everything blended together in breathtaking harmony.
"I don't know where I originally came from," Ego began explaining as a floating egg-shaped sphere beside him opened up, projecting a holographic display.
"My earliest memory is of being a flickering light drifting alone through the universe."
The hologram shifted as he spoke.
"After millions of years, I learned to manipulate the molecules around me."
A planet slowly formed within the projection.
"As time passed, I grew smarter. Stronger. I continued developing everything around me—layer by layer—until eventually…"
Ego spread his arms.
"…I created the planet beneath your feet."
What he described was so unbelievable that everyone exchanged stunned glances.
Creating an entire planet from nothing?
That was practically the power of God Himself.
But Ego continued calmly.
"Eventually, I began to feel loneliness. I believed there had to be other life in the universe besides me."
"So I created a body for myself."
"I gained touch. Hearing. Every sensation."
"I could even feel pain."
"And through that… I discovered something extraordinary."
"Emotion."
Ego turned toward Quill.
"So I began exploring the universe, searching for life."
"Then one day, I found a planet."
"A living planet."
"It was the first time I had ever encountered life other than myself."
"And from that moment on, I knew I was no longer alone in this universe."
"When did you meet my mother?" Quill suddenly asked.
It was obvious from Ego's story that he had encountered countless people and worlds long before meeting Meredith Quill.
"Not long after," Ego said softly, "I accidentally arrived in a primitive star system."
"The system possessed a glowing star just like many others, but only a few planets orbited it."
"And among those planets…"
"…only one possessed life."
"A blue planet."
The holographic image shifted again, becoming the Solar System.
Among the planets, one blue world stood out vividly.
Earth.
The only life-bearing planet in the entire system.
"I searched for you for a very long time and never found any trace of you," Ego continued while looking at Quill. "Until I heard rumors about a Terran capable of holding an Infinity Stone with his bare hands and surviving."
"That's when I knew."
"You had to be my son."
Ego's words were emotional and sincere.
Even Gamora appeared somewhat moved.
As for Quill—
By now, most of his suspicions toward Ego had completely disappeared.
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