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Star-Lord placed the Cosmic Orb back on the ground. The man who had just entered picked it up and asked, "How did you know about this?"

"Know about what?"

Star-Lord found it ridiculous. These guys burst in pointing guns at him, stole the Orb, and now they were interrogating him?

But he didn't plan to give them a straight answer, so he shrugged and said, "I'm just a scavenger, digging around and—"

Before he could finish, the man interrupted, "You don't look like a scavenger. You're dressed like a Ravager."

"I picked this up too!"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a gun jabbed into his side. Star-Lord winced. "Ninja Turtle, would you quit poking me with that thing?"

Seeing the guy who looked like a Ninja Turtle aiming a weapon at him, Peter couldn't help but complain.

The leader suddenly raised his voice, barking, "What's your name?"

"Peter Quill, okay?"

But the man ignored him and ordered his crew to take Peter away.

"Why?" Peter demanded as they started dragging him.

"Because Ronan has some questions for you."

Peter didn't want to be taken prisoner, so he quickly blurted out, "Hey, I've got a name that'll scare the crap out of you if I say it."

That made everyone pause. They turned to look at him.

Peter straightened, putting on his most serious face. "Star-Lord."

"Who?"

The leader looked confused.

"Star-Lord, man! Legendary outlaw, master thief!" Peter tried to hype himself up, but the leader clearly wasn't interested. He waved his hand, and they moved in again.

Peter took advantage of the distraction, kicking a lamp he had placed on the ground earlier. It shot across the floor and exploded against the far wall, unleashing a blast of energy that disintegrated two of the men behind him.

As the leader turned in shock, Peter already had both his guns drawn.

*Bang! Bang!*

Two quick shots sent the leader flying.

Peter spun, holstered his guns in a flashy move, and spotted the Orb rolling to a stop nearby. He picked it up.

But the leader wasn't dead. He staggered to his feet, raised his cannon, and fired.

Peter dove back just in time, narrowly avoiding the blast. He slapped his helmet on and activated his rocket boots, blasting through the hole in the wall created by the explosion.

He tumbled to the ground outside but quickly recovered and sprinted away.

The leader gave chase.

Peter rounded a corner, only to find a ship parked nearby with more enemy soldiers standing guard. They wore the same uniforms—definitely allies of the group he had just escaped.

Thinking fast, Peter pulled out a gravitational trap from his belt. He tossed it into the crowd, activating it mid-air.

The device unleashed a gravitational pull, sucking everyone into a tight cluster. Cries of confusion erupted as the guards were pulled together and immobilized.

Peter seized the opportunity. He leapt high, landed on the cockpit of his own ship, and slipped inside just as the canopy opened.

Without missing a beat, he powered up the engines and launched into the sky.

But the enemies weren't done. The gravitational trap deactivated, and the soldiers scrambled to ready a large cannon.

They set it up, aimed, and fired.

Peter spotted the incoming blast and jerked the controls. His ship rolled sideways, narrowly avoiding destruction.

"Haha!" he whooped, laughing wildly as he soared away.

*BOOM!*

Suddenly, a massive geyser erupted from the ground right in his flight path. The shockwave blasted the ship into the air. Peter was thrown from the pilot seat, smashing into the wall.

Dazed, the ship spiraled out of control.

At the last second, Peter crawled back to the controls and hit the propulsion switch. The engines flared, halting the fall just above the ground.

Panting, Peter slumped against the wall. For a moment there, he thought he was done for.

But he had made it. He still had the Orb, and he was alive.

His mission was complete.

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*Earth.*

Back on Earth, Kai finally made up his mind. Just like he'd planned the day before, he would venture into space to track down Star-Lord and retrieve the Orb.

But this was a rare opportunity—and Kai didn't want to go alone.

He decided to gather the Illuminati and see who was free to join him.

So he asked Gear to send a message to everyone, inviting them to a meeting and explaining his plan.

At first, the others thought he was joking.

But after confirming with him directly, they realized Kai was dead serious.

That afternoon, everyone gathered at the manor to discuss the mission. After all, it wasn't every day someone casually invited you on a trip across the galaxy.

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