Ronan

He was prepared to make major concessions; as long as Zane, this Great Demon King, would not pursue the matter any further, he would comply with even the most demanding requests.

"Kneel down and apologize to them now! Then this matter will be settled."

As he spoke, Zane pointed to Rocket and Groot standing beside him.

"What?" The highest leader couldn't believe what he heard and instinctively questioned.

He had expected Zane to demand resources, technology, or the execution of those who captured Rocket and Groot.

But he never imagined that Zane would demand he kneel and apologize to a genetically engineered inferior creature and a mere sapling.

"I won't repeat myself. You have ten seconds to prepare!"

With that, Zane started the countdown.

"Ten!"

The highest leader's eyes showed a struggle. As a self-proclaimed superior being and the ruler of a civilization, how could he kneel, especially to two creatures he considered monsters?

"Nine!"

A voice came through the highest leader's communicator.

"My lord, just kneel! We're talking about millions of lives!"

"Eight!"

His pride began to waver, and his knees started to tremble uncontrollably.

"Seven!"

His knees began to bend slightly, but he still did not kneel.

"Six!"

The communicator now echoed with the voices of many people.

"My lord, please, just kneel!"

"Five!"

Under Rocket's expectant gaze, the highest leader of Xandar suddenly dropped to his knees with a loud thud.

"I'm... I'm sorry," the highest leader said, utterly defeated.

As for Groot, he seemed to have no idea what had transpired, still reveling in the joy of being back with Zane.

Rocket, on the other hand, felt like he was living in a dream.

Who was this person kneeling before him?

The leader of a civilization!

Someone he couldn't even dream of approaching was now kneeling and apologizing to him.

For a moment, Rocket felt an urge to cry.

Damn, there must be dust in his eyes, because how could the strong Rocket be crying?

But the tear still fell, hitting the ground and shattering into countless tiny droplets.

It represented all the hardships and grievances of Rocket's past life...

Finally, Zane looked down at the highest leader of Xandar, then turned and boarded the Ark with Rocket and Groot.

Under the hopeful eyes of those on the ground, the Ark broke through Xandar's atmosphere and sailed into the vast universe.

Just as Zane said, the matter was settled.

In fact, the whole affair went smoother than Zane had anticipated.

It was hard to imagine that an entire planet's military strength consisted of only a few thousand small ships.

To Earthlings, who are constantly at war, this was simply unbelievable and illogical!

Perhaps the Xandar civilization had been at peace for too long.

Or perhaps civilizations like Earth, which are obsessed with destruction and the frenzied development of weapons, are a rarity.

Meanwhile, shortly after Rocket and Groot left the prison, Ronan arrived with his army, following a lead on the Orb.

They missed each other by less than a minute, narrowly avoiding each other.

Had Ronan arrived a little earlier and intercepted Rocket and Groot, Xandar might have already become a dead planet by now.

From this perspective, the Xandar civilization's luck wasn't so bad.

Ronan, the radical from Kree, had a simple reason for pursuing the Orb.

He had made a deal with Thanos: if he delivered the Orb to Thanos, Thanos would help him destroy his ancestral enemy, the Xandar civilization.

Ambitious Ronan seemed diligent in searching for the Orb.

But knowing that the Orb contained the Power Stone, he had no intention of being Thanos's pawn.

He was only using Thanos's name to openly claim the Power Stone for himself.

Once he had the Power Stone, the fate of the Xandar civilization would be in his hands, no longer needing Thanos's help.

After destroying the Xandar civilization, he planned to challenge Thanos and become the new ruler of the universe.

A bold plan, very ambitious indeed.

However, even if he could fully control the Power Stone, could he really defeat Thanos?

All of this was moot unless he could find the Power Stone.

Now that the Power Stone had fused with Zane, it had vanished from the Marvel Universe entirely.

So everything Ronan was planning was a fragile bubble ready to burst.

Unfortunately, by the time Ronan traced the source, he would find not the Infinity Stone but the Scythe of Death!

Unaware of all this, Ronan continued his relentless search for the Power Stone.

Sometimes, the asymmetry of information leads to a series of tragedies.

After easily conquering the prison, Ronan found Gamora.

In a way, Ronan saved both Gamora and Star-Lord.

If the guards hadn't killed them during their escape attempt, the prisoners would have done so by nightfall.

The difference being, Gamora would be killed, while Star-Lord would meet a brutal end.

"Gamora, where is the Orb?" Ronan, his face dark and menacing, asked.

"I don't know," Gamora replied as she was brought before Ronan.

She was telling the truth. She knew the Orb was with Zane, but had no idea where Zane was.

Ronan stared at her silently for a long moment, then said coldly:

"Then you are useless. Die!"

He moved to kill Gamora. Though she was Thanos's adopted daughter, Ronan, who sought to break away from Thanos, had no qualms.

He would simply claim that Gamora died during the prison riot.

He figured Thanos, focused on the Infinity Stones, wouldn't turn against him over an adopted daughter.

But he didn't know that although Gamora was just an adopted daughter, she was the only person Thanos truly loved in the universe.

If he struck her down, both he and the Kree civilization would be engulfed in Thanos's wrath.

At this critical moment, a voice called out from the corner.

"I know where the Orb is!"

Star-Lord, who had been held by the soldiers, broke free and shouted, seeing Gamora about to be killed.

Ronan stopped his hammer just before it smashed Gamora's head, the hammer's wind blowing her hair back.

One second later, and her fate would have been a cracked skull.

"Where?" Ronan retracted his hammer and turned to face Star-Lord.

*************************************

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