"Hey! Let me just say, there's no prison in the world that can hold me!" Star-Lord boasted with a grin.
Sanctuary II lay in ruins, The chaos was palpable. Everyone was either scrambling to make repairs or fleeing for their lives. Amidst the frenzy, no one paid much attention to a group of misfits wandering freely.
Seizing the opportunity, Star-Lord and his crew managed to sneak into their spaceship, which had been stored in the wreckage like forgotten luggage. They escaped through a massive hole created by Captain Marvel, slipping out of Thanos' grasp like sand through fingers.
"No, Quill, we got away only because a super, super powerful lady kept the heat off us," Rocket Raccoon corrected.
"Damn it, I know that already! I don't need you rubbing it in!" Quill snapped, clearly irritated.
"But there's something about her fighting style..." Rocket mused, scratching his chin. "Flying straight into the enemy without dodging, smashing through the face of a spaceship... It feels awfully familiar. Ugh, it reminds me of Thor!"
The group fell silent for a moment, recalling their escapades on Xandar. Thor had once used a similar tactic to destroy Ronan's ship, though the aftermath had left him coughing up fragments for days.
"But this woman seems... tougher," Drax concluded, his voice filled with admiration.
"Yeah, and Thor probably learned that move from her," Rocket added, trying to sound nonchalant.
Before the conversation could drift further, Mantis spoke up, her tone hesitant. "Wait, did we forget something important?"
The group turned to her, puzzled. Mantis, though a cheerful addition to the Guardians of the Galaxy, often struggled to find her place among the more... eccentric personalities. Her thoughts, often pure and straightforward, sometimes felt out of sync with her comrades.
"I'm Groot," Groot muttered, his voice unusually subdued. Translation: Gamora is gone.
Realization struck the group like a thunderbolt. "Oh, crap!" Star-Lord exclaimed, slapping his forehead. "We left Gamora behind! With Thanos, of all people! We've got to go back for her!"
Logic screamed that returning to Sanctuary II, now a crumbling battlefield, was a suicide mission. Yet not one Guardian raised an objection. With a collective nod of determination, they turned their ship around and sped back toward the chaos.
As they approached, a transmission came through. "Quill, where are you flying, you idiot? Turn the ship around and take me to a hospital!"
Everyone stared at the screen in disbelief as Gamora's voice echoed through the cockpit. She was seated inside a makeshift spherical escape pod, visibly irritated but very much alive.
Quill blinked in confusion. "Uh... What happened? How did Thanos just let you go?"
Gamora sighed. "He didn't let me go. Thanos dragged me to Vormir to retrieve the Soul Stone. But then Thor attacked him. Thanos got badly injured and had no choice but to abandon me."
"Is Thanos dead?" Drax asked eagerly, leaning forward.
"No," Gamora replied, her lips curling into a small, vindictive smile. "But he's seriously injured."
Quill rubbed his chin thoughtfully, trying to piece everything together. Before he could speak, Gamora interrupted him. "By the way, Quill, can you contact your father?"
"My... my father?" Quill stammered, caught off guard. Pain flickered across his face. "My father's been dead for a long time."
"I meant Yondu," Gamora clarified impatiently. "We need to contact the Ravagers. This is our chance to hit Thanos where it hurts and end this once and for all."
Meanwhile, aboard Sanctuary II, chaos reigned. Captain Marvel's devastating assault had left the ship in tatters. While the lack of gravity prevented a catastrophic crash, the damage was catastrophic nonetheless. Multiple ammunition depots had exploded, vast sections of the ship had been exposed to the vacuum of space, and countless soldiers had perished.
Thanos, infamous for his unshakable composure, now stood amidst the wreckage, his face twisted in fury. His losses were staggering—nearly a third of his forces had been obliterated, along with countless weapons and fighter crafts. This blow rivaled, if not surpassed, the destruction Surtur had unleashed on Asgard.
For Thanos, the timing couldn't have been worse. Severely wounded and increasingly reliant on his army, this was one of the heaviest defeats he had ever suffered.