AlienWarlord
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C44 I’m Star-Lord
🕑 Added 2024-04-13 05:00:56 +0000 UTCSeeing as the meeting with Nova Prime was nearing its end, an alliance tentatively forged amidst the looming threat of Thanos and the persistent shadow of the Kree conflict, Peter quietly slipped out of the meeting, his presence no longer required.
Stepping out into the hallway, the door closing behind him, Peter bumped into a figure in the hall. Turning swiftly, he found himself face-to-face with a familiar woman clad in the unassuming robes of a Jedi, her features plain yet momentarily sharpened by surprise.
Their accidental bump sent a shiver through him, not from the collision but from something far more mystifying. Eyes glazing over, Peter found himself plunged into a vivid and harrowing vision of the past. “?!”
He witnessed the catastrophic fall of the Skrull homeworld under a relentless Kree siege. Through the chaos and the blinding explosions, he saw the royal palace, a once majestic structure, now engulfed in flames.
Amid the screams and the merciless advance of Kree soldiers, he saw R’Klll’s father, the emperor, bravely defending the entryway, only to be cut down by a merciless barrage of energy blasts.
Her mother, regal and defiant to the last, was cornered and executed without ceremony. The devastation was complete, and through it all, he felt the depth of R’Klll’s despair wash over him—her world shattered, her family gone, leaving her the sole survivor amidst the ruins.
The vision ended as abruptly as it had begun, leaving Peter stunned for a moment, his heart pounding with the shared pain of loss. He stared into the eyes of the woman before him, understanding the immense burden of her past, as well as the fact that she was not who she appeared to be…
“Sorry about that,” Peter recovered quickly, blinking in the bright light of the corridor, staring into the woman’s wide, wary eyes. “Are you okay?” he asked, his voice more concerned than he intended, his heart pounding with the echoes of her memories.
The woman—R’Klll, though he didn’t know her name yet—nodded slowly, masking her confusion. “I’m fine. But I should be going…”
As R’Klll made to move past Peter, suddenly, another Jedi appeared down the hall, his stride purposeful, his eyes lighting up in recognition upon seeing the woman R’Klll was impersonating. “Master Yelana, there you are! I was hoping to discuss the recent archive findings with you,” he called out, his tone friendly yet insistent.
R’Klll stiffened, the surprise evident in her posture as the Jedi approached, speaking to her as if he knew her well. Her eyes flickered around like a caged animal, a silent anxiety hidden beneath a veneer of calm.
Peter noticed the slight panic behind her facade and realized her disguise was at risk of being uncovered. Quickly stepping in, he extended his arm, placing a friendly hand on her shoulder. “Actually, Master Yelana was just about to help me find something in the Archives,” he interjected smoothly, his voice carrying enough confidence to pause the approaching Jedi. “Do you mind if she catches up with you later?”
The Jedi paused, a look of confusion crossing his face, but he nodded. “Of course. We can always talk another time,” he replied, albeit reluctantly, before turning away and heading back down the corridor.
Peter turned to R’Klll, his expression sympathetic. “Let’s find somewhere private to talk,” he suggested quietly.
Guiding her gently by the elbow, he led her to a secluded room down the hall, away from the prying eyes and ears of the Temple.
Confused, as she didn’t know why Peter was helping her, R’Klll allowed him to take her away, albeit hesitantly. ‘Did he really see through my disguise…’
Once inside the small, dimly lit room, Peter closed the door softly behind them, ensuring their privacy. “Okay, we should be safe here for a moment,” he said, turning to face her fully. “Now, ‘Master Yelana’,” his voice dripped with sarcasm. “Out with it. Who are you really, and what are you doing here?”
“I’m not sure what you’re talking about,” R’Klll replied, her voice steady but tinged with an undercurrent of tension. Her mind raced, weighing the risk of maintaining her disguise against the possibility that Peter had truly seen through it.
Peter just looked at her, a slight smirk forming on his lips. His eyes, knowing and amused, didn’t waver. “Come on, I know you’re not Master Yelana, because if you were, you’d have recognized me when we bumped into each other. Now stop wasting my time. Who are you?”
Seeing that denial was futile and knowing that her cover was blown, R’Klll did the only thing left for her to do—she went on the offensive.
In a swift motion, she shed the Jedi disguise, her appearance morphing fluidly until her true form was revealed. Her skin turned a vivid green, and her features sharpened into the regal yet fierce lines of a Skrull.
Without a word, she lunged at Peter, her movements quick and deadly, a stark contrast to her previously calm demeanor.
Peter, however, seemed almost nonchalant as he effortlessly sidestepped her attacks. His eyes lingered on her, not just with caution but with a hint of admiration for the fierce beauty before him.
“Really? Is that how you treat all the guys who try to help you?” Peter asked, ducking under a particularly aggressive swing. “Or is this just because I’m so handsome?”
R’Klll, frustrated by his ease at avoiding her strikes, paused, breathing heavily. “Why are you not fighting back? And why help me?” she snapped, her stance defensive yet poised for more attacks.
Peter shrugged, his expression turning playful. “Maybe I’m just curious. Or maybe,” he continued, his voice lowering slightly as he took a daring step closer to her, “I’m considering asking you out on a date. You know, once you stop trying to kill me.” He suggested, ogling her pointed ears, which reminded him of the Elf hentai he read in his previous life…
(A/N: Degenerate…)
R’Klll halted, taken aback by his audacity. The room grew quiet, save for the faint ambiance of the Temple outside the room. Her fists clenched, unclenched, a storm of conflict raging within her. Was he serious? Was this some kind of tactic? Yet, there was an earnestness in his tone that puzzled her.
“I don’t date children,” she finally said, her voice clear but still laced with defiance.
Peter’s grin widened. “Well, there’s a first time for everything.” He said, wiggling his eyes bored suggestively. “But before we get to that, maybe you can tell me why you’re really here? And if you’re truthful, I might not rat you out to the other Jedi…”
R’Klll weighed her options. With her cover blown and this strange young man standing before her, perhaps it was time to reconsider her strategy. Slowly, she lowered her guard, her posture relaxing as she decided to take a chance.
“Fine. First things first,” R’Klll began, her voice steadying as she gathered her thoughts. “I am R’Klll, former Empress of the Skrull Empire.” She paused, expecting a reaction—a gasp, a look of awe, anything to indicate recognition of her former stature.
Instead, Peter merely nodded, his expression unchanging, almost nonchalant. “Nice to meet you, R’Klll. I’m Peter Quill. So, why is a former empress skulking around the Jedi Temple?”
Her disappointment was palpable; she had expected her title to impress or at least stir some concern. But Peter’s calm demeanor remained intact. He had seen her past, the weight of her loss, and the fall of her empire in his vision, but R’Klll was unaware of this. To her, it seemed her royal identity held little sway over him.
“Since you asked so directly,” she continued, her voice a blend of resignation and a hint of respect for his straightforwardness, “I was given a task by a man named… Ebony Maw.” R’Klll’s tone dipped into something darker at the mention of Maw’s name, hinting at the fear he inspired in her.
As she spoke the name of her employer, Peter immediately recognized it, his demeanor shifting to a look of concern as he realized that this led back to Thanos.
‘What is he up to?’ Peter wondered. ‘Why send her when he could just come here himself…’
“He tasked me with infiltrating the Jedi Temple to locate a girl named Gamora. I am to retrieve her and bring her to him, but if that’s impossible, I have to confirm her condition before reporting back.” R’Klll explained, her gaze shifting to gauge Peter’s reaction. “The pay is good and the guy was frightening, to say the least, so I took the job. That’s all…”
Peter listened intently, his mind piecing together the implications of R’Klll’s mission. ‘Gamora,’ he thought, ‘Thanos’s favorite.’ If Thanos was opting for stealth rather than a direct assault to retrieve or check on Gamora, it suggested a strategy that was uncharacteristically cautious for the Mad Titan.
‘It has to be because he doesn’t have the Infinity Stones in this universe…’
This realization eased some of the tension that had been coiling within Peter since the threat of Thanos had surfaced. If Thanos was focused on extracting Gamora quietly, perhaps a full-scale attack wasn’t as imminent as he thought it was.
This possibility brought a subtle relief to Peter, allowing him to consider their next steps without the immediate pressure of impending doom on the horizon.
Once R’Klll finished her explanation, she shifted uneasily, her eyes flicking toward the door. “Can I leave now? I’ve told you everything. I need to find that girl before the real Master Yelana returns…”
Peter stepped in front of the door, blocking her path. “Hold on a second. What happens when you meet up with Maw and he learns you failed your mission?” His tone was serious, a stark contrast to the playful banter earlier.
R’Klll frowned, her lips tightening. “I’m not going to fail,” she asserted, a hint of defiance in her voice.
“But you are,” Peter countered calmly. “Because I’m not letting you kidnap Gamora or even see her, for that matter. You can leave peacefully, like we agreed, but that’s it.”
The realization of her predicament sank in, and R’Klll’s composure faltered. She knew returning to Maw empty-handed—or worse, with no information at all—was likely a death sentence. The tension in the room thickened as she processed her limited options.
Seeing her distress, Peter offered a solution, “Listen, I want to help you, really. So, how about this? I’ll arrange it so that you can see Gamora from afar, maybe even snap a few pictures of her, but in return, I need information.”
“What kind of information?” R’Klll asked, her tone cautious.
Peter leaned against the door, crossing his arms as he considered what would be most valuable. “For starters, how did Maw contact you? Where did you two meet? And most importantly, where are you supposed to meet after you’ve completed your mission?”
That last question was by far the most crucial of them all. After all, If they knew where Maw would be, they might have an opportunity to strike a significant blow against Thanos’s forces.
‘With Corvus, Proxima, and finally, Ebony Maw gone, Thanos would have a much harder time in the future…’ Peter plotted his first murder, a wry smile flashing on his face. ‘Revan would be so proud of me…’
R’Klll frowned, digesting the potential dangers each option held. On one hand, failing her mission would certainly lead to her demise. On the other, betraying Maw to Peter, who was clearly an enemy to her employer, posed a different but equally lethal risk.
Each piece of information shared could either be a lifeline or a noose around her neck…
The thought of betraying Maw made her skin crawl with fear—his retribution would be swift and merciless. Yet, she didn’t have much of a choice in the matter. Either she returned empty-handed, or she played the role of a double agent.
Finally, she nodded slowly, the decision firming up in her mind. “Maw contacted me through a secure channel set up for people like me who are willing to do jobs such as these. We met on a nondescript ship orbiting Nal Hutta, where he personally gave me half of the payment. As for where we’re supposed to meet,” she paused, taking a deep breath, “it’s planned for a remote station in the Outer Rim, coordinates given only after I confirm the mission’s completion.”
Peter nodded, processing the information. “That’s a good start.”
R’Klll looked at Peter, a trace of desperation in her gaze. “Can I go now?”
Peter nodded, “Sure, but first…” he said, his flirtatious smirk returning. “How about that date?”
A/N: 2130 words :)
