MD-Chapter 388 Sisters

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The banquet didn't go on too late and quickly came to an end.

Arthur and the others packed up and began to head to their rooms. Some went straight to bed, while others took a bit longer to wind down.

Excitement has its limits, after all, and there were still many things to be done.

From a combat perspective, the battle had ended, but there were still numerous objectives left unfulfilled. These would need to be tackled one step at a time in the days ahead.

When they returned, they found that Rocket had already woken up.

He was sitting on the bed, lost in thought.

What he was mainly pondering was… what exactly had just happened?

Ronan had arrived with his fleet, and to avoid being beaten, Rocket had injected himself with something. When he woke up, the world was at peace.

What kind of joke was that?

Rocket was frantic, and after his initial panic, he was left feeling puzzled.

When Arthur and the others entered, they found the little raccoon sitting on the bed, propping up his chin with a serious expression.

They were all a bit confused. Was this a side effect kicking in?

Rocket, seeing them return in formal attire, became even more perplexed. "Did Ronan come to attend the banquet?"

Everyone exchanged glances, then decided it would be best for Star-Lord to handle Rocket, and they dispersed.

Arthur didn't pay much attention to how Star-Lord tried to boast to Rocket. He had something else to focus on.

He took a small device out of his pocket, opened it, and a projection flickered to life.

The view was from Ronan's perspective. Ahead was empty space, and beyond it, the vast starry universe. Clearly, Ronan was still moving forward.

Arthur needed to keep an eye on Ronan.

While he knew it was impossible to find Thanos in a single day, he still had to make sure no unforeseen events occurred.

What he most hoped to see was Thanos getting taken down by his plan.

Even if Thanos didn't die, a good injury would work just fine.

But right now, nothing was visible.

He sighed, turned off the device, and was about to step away when there was a knock on the door.

Opening it, he was surprised to find Gamora standing there.

Arthur blinked instinctively and asked, "Where's Star-Lord?"

Gamora looked at him with mild confusion before responding, "He's fighting with Rocket."

"…Then why are you here?" Arthur couldn't help but feel a little awkward. It was late, a man and a woman alone, and he wasn't exactly Hulk with a preference for green skin. A green-skinned woman showing up unannounced seemed a little odd.

"Can I come in?" Gamora asked.

Arthur scratched his head. "Is that really appropriate?"

"…Then can you let Nebula out?" Gamora asked again.

Arthur's face turned bright red. 'How embarrassing!'

Why had he thought that way? It had to be his experiences; Natasha had liked him, Lily had liked him, and even Odin had shoved his daughter into his arms. Had he gotten too full of himself? Did he suddenly think no woman in the universe could resist his charm?

Then again, Hela had attacked him on sight and had never shown any other interest, right?

He quickly snapped out of it and scratched his head again. "Alright, it's probably not a good idea to keep her here…"

With a thought, Nebula appeared on the floor, transformed.

Gamora looked at Nebula with a mix of emotions before taking out a pair of handcuffs and putting them on her.

Just then, Nebula stirred, noticed the gift her sister had given her, and smiled. "One day, you'll fall into my hands!" she said, her voice full of certainty.

Gamora let out another sigh and turned to Arthur. "She…"

Arthur took a moment to think. "She doesn't know what to do, does she?"

Gamora nodded. The situation between the two sisters was… complicated.

Arthur wasn't sure if it was even his place to step in, especially with Nebula. In her current condition, she was practically a ticking time bomb.

After a pause, he finally said, "She really shouldn't stay on Xandar. If you trust me, leave her with me for now. When you're ready to go, I'll load her onto your ship. From there, it's up to you how to settle your… unfinished business."

"Don't you dare!" Nebula shot him a death glare.

Gamora gave a slow nod. "I trust you."

Arthur gave her a brief nod in return, then glanced at Nebula, just in time to see her eyes narrow.

"Don't even think about- "

Before she could finish, Arthur struck with practiced precision. In one swift motion, she collapsed, unconscious. He reached out and transferred her into the Disassembler Space, the Stark-modified containment system integrated into his gear, executed with the ease of someone who'd done it far too many times.

Gamora sighed again, this time more heavily. "Good night."

"…Yeah. Good night." What else could Arthur even say?

Once Gamora was gone, Arthur rubbed the back of his head, caught somewhere between amusement and confusion. What the hell had that been about? Honestly, it felt like Gamora just dropped by to remind him that Nebula still existed.

Nebula… how was he supposed to handle her?

After a few minutes of thought, he decided: best to just talk to her. No tech, no tactics, just a straight conversation.

With a focused mental command, Nebula reappeared before him.

Arthur timed it right. Within seconds, she opened her eyes, locked on him, and snarled, "Go ahead. Kill me if you've got the guts."

Arthur gave a slow shake of his head. "Nope. I have no guts. I'm not killing you."

"…"

Nebula blinked, visibly thrown off. People usually took the bait. This guy? Cool as ever.

Feeling awkward towering over her like that, Arthur sat down and leveled with her. "Look, I get it. I really do."

"You don't know anything."

Her voice trembled with pent-up rage.

"I know more than you think. You're Thanos's daughter. Since the day you could walk, you had to fight, fight her. Gamora. And you loved her, in your own way. But every time you faced off, you lost. Every time you lost, he replaced another piece of you with machinery. That's not just pain, that's psychological torture."

Nebula froze like she'd seen a ghost.

She stared at Arthur, as if trying to figure out whether he'd had surveillance running on her since childhood.

Arthur shrugged. "So don't assume no one understands. Maybe what you two need isn't another battle. Maybe it's just… one honest, equal conversation."

"Hmph."

Nebula turned her head sharply, refusing to meet his eyes.

Arthur smirked. "Look, I'm just some outsider in all this. But you're sisters. That counts for something. Try thinking about what coexisting might actually look like. And if that's too much… then at least, when you fight her again, tell her why. Don't leave it unsaid. You don't want your story to end with one of you killing the other, do you?"

Nebula hesitated. She turned back toward him, just in time to see his fist coming.

Thud.

She collapsed, and Arthur stashed her back into the Disassembler containment module with a sigh.

"Is this really my life now? Am I turning into some kind of cosmic therapist? I haven't even figured out my own issues…"

(End of Chapter)