24 Chapter 19: The Emperor’s Tragedy in Space (R)

(Ja'ems dream)

Not long after we left our sector and were moving towards anywhere else a situation occurred which finally put into perspective just which universe me and N'Baro were reincarnated in. The mothership ran into someone incredibly dangerous and psychopathic. "Ma'ex according to our sources, that ship belongs to Thanos," one of the officer's states as the massive ship comes ever closer to our own.

My face blanks as I go pale in fear, I even tremble a little. 'This is most definitely the Marvel universe, and it's trying to kill me and my people. Otherwise, how would we run into Thanos after just escaping Makino and his relentless pursuit.' I take a deep breath and steady myself, "Ready the escape pods, women and children first. Thanos would wipe out half of us before he leaves, and we are not strong enough to fight him and win at least not now, not as we are."

Obsidian my second in command, a man with deep purplish black hair who looked like a slightly larger Tom Cruise with deep indigo eyes immediately began making sure the evacuation went in an orderly manner. However, we were still late, they noticed us and had already begun the process of boarding. "Zeta, how many people can we evacuate before they take control over the ship?" Obsidian asks the AI I developed in my younger years.

[We would be able to evacuate one fourth of our population if his highness fights with his life on the line in the suit,] Obsidian frowns at the response he receives. Even Zeta's sultry tone couldn't ease him a little bit like it was intended, considering our situation I understood. "What if the soldiers use the experimental biolinks to fight," he asks. The sultry female British voice of Zeta answers back [Three-fifths if his highness fights and four-fifths if the soldiers overload themselves to fuel the fight, that is if no Energems or Zeo shards are used.] 

Hearing that Obsidian smiles, he then gave me a hug. I let him because I thought he felt relieved that a majority of our people would survive according to the information. Instead, he pricked me with a needle and my mind started to become hazy. "I'm sorry Ma'ex but I can not as your royal guard be in sound mind if the last of house Mk'rah sacrifices themselves for our people. That's what soldiers and knights are for."

(Obsidians POV)

Looking at my king passed out on the floor I steel myself. The biolink is experimental technology derived from reverse engineering the Ultralinks, it is by no means perfect or safe, but it will be our best chance. Not to mention Zeta could take all the gathered data from this battle and help the Ma'ex in perfecting it.

Looking at the people on the bridge I coldly shout "Get going the lot of you! Gather the gems and the crystals and have all the scientists and civilians disperse. Us soldiers would burn our lives to give you a chance, don't waste it otherwise our Ma'ex wouldn't be able to sleep in peace anymore." Seeing them rushing around like cra'ans in their hill I snort, before stuffing the sleeping Ma'ex in the best escape pod in the ship alongside the gene codex of our planet's races. "Zeta, watch over his highness for me," I didn't get a reply, but I knew she heard, she always hears.

"May the gods of the grid be with you Ma'ex," I mutter under my breath. I then go put on one of the biolinks being distributed. "Soldiers, today we fight till the last one of us dies, the longer we last the higher a chance you have given our family and friends of escaping, do not let them down." Looking at all the stoic faces before me I smiled a small smile, "Turn off the limiters on the biolink, today it doesn't matter if it forcefully causes us to overload as long as we do so among our enemies. For Takion and Ma'ex Steel!" "For Takion and Ma'ex Steel," is echoed back at me. 

'Maybe if we do fight hard enough, we can distract them and drive them off,' I think as I hand out synthezium. A synthetic Zeo crystal that can only replicate about twenty percent of the potency of Zeo crystals. It takes on the colour of its users latent TURBO energy and would allow the user to replicate the effects of Zeo crystals when combined with the biolink to some extent. 'At least Ja'em should live, he's the Ma'ex Rex. The one with the blessing of the gods of the grid.'

(Narrator POV)

The ship was destroyed blown up on Obsidians orders driving Thanos int0 a fit of rage. Rage further fueled by discovering that he hadn't truly balanced the race upon the ship due about three fifth escaping. He captured some soldiers, the ones who fought the hardest and rallied the morale of their comrades. Chopping off their arms to prevent themselves from overloading and blowing up as he had seen some of their comrades do, he decided to break them and use them as batteries.

He then looked at the pods within the lab on his ship. His interest piqued by the relentless courage of the soldiers he just wiped out as well as their strength and strange ability to create energy, he decided to clone some of them in a sense. He walks to the clone of the one who was at the front, the most relentless one, the one who managed to land a couple hits on his before being efficiently and cleanly dismembered in order to prevent him from blowing himself up when he realised the futility of it all. He looked at the clone of Obsidian and said "You shall be my Executioner, my Hunter. With you the Warlock would become even less of a threat, I name thee Mai'kel the right hand of Thanos."

While this was occurring one third of those who escaped were captured by the ultralinks. The explosion of the ship disrupting the navigation of their escape pods, the shockwaves pushing them to the border of what is now Guardian territory.

(The Milano)

"How long is he going to be in this condition, he's been like this for days" Peter Quill walks around pacing, his hands behind his back. "Why are you so worried Quill? Its not like you know him do you," Gamora states causing Quill to shift his eyes a little. Gamora stares at him a little harder sending a slight glare his way. Drax, Rocket and Groot immediately take a step back, Rocket opting to shut his mouth in order to ensure his safety.

Peter sighs before he speaks, "If he's who I'm thinking of he should be as well as look much older." Gamora motions him to continue and so he does. He talks about how his Uncle James although everyone either called him Max or Jim looked out for him as a kid. How he was friends with his father but always told him to be careful of him too. How he learned engineering and everything up until Yondu kidnapped him at age twelve after he went missing. Gamora looking at the almost crying Starlord gives him a hug.

"No matter what we're here for you," she mutters into his ear before guiding him to his room. "I am Groot?" the walking tree utters its tone a little worried. "I know, I saw it too. I agree with you we should be worried," Rocket replies to his friend. "I agree with the talking Rodent!" Drax's somewhat loud and insensitive voice resounds.

"Who are you calling a rodent!" Rocket draws his canon on Drax. "Are you not a rodent?" Drax's confusion laced voice again resounds in the enclosed room. "That's it!" Rocket was thankfully restrained by Groot before he began to let bullets fly. "I am Groot!"