Chapter Forty-Five: The Mantis Stalks the Cicada

Quill and his crew’s raider ship zigzagged desperately, with the Nova Corps vessels in hot pursuit, firing relentlessly at them.
“These guys are really annoying! Should we just take them out?” Rocket asked everyone.
“Forget it, we’re still counting on them to defeat Ronan. They’ll spot the Kree warship soon enough—just hang in there,” Quill replied.
At that moment, the Nova Corps abruptly ceased fire and turned, soaring skyward.
“Let’s follow them and see what’s going on…” Arthur said.
Rocket steered the ship after the Nova Corps.
It turned out that the Nova Corps’ scout ship had finally detected the massive Kree warship, but by now, the Kree vessel had already entered the atmosphere of Xandar.
The Nova Corps dispatched every ship to intercept it, while the Kree warship opened its hatches, releasing countless small Kree ships that immediately tangled with the Nova Corps in fierce combat.
The six arrived at the scene, stunned by the chaos: the sky was thick with battling vessels, and the enormous Kree warship descended toward the planet. Ground-based anti-air missiles and armored mechanized vehicles were firing upward.
For a moment, it felt like a world war—Xandar was wracked by battle, and the sky was ablaze with conflict.
“Did we make a mistake?” Quill muttered, regretful as he witnessed the countless civilian casualties caused by luring Ronan to Xandar.
“You didn’t. Even if Ronan hadn’t come now, the moment he got the Orb, he would have attacked Xandar anyway,” Gamora said firmly.
“I have an idea!” Arthur declared.
“What’s your plan?” All five turned to Arthur.
“I’ll use the energy of the Power Stone to bring down the warship, then we’ll deal with Ronan on the ground!” Arthur replied.
“You want to use the Power Stone? Are you insane?” Gamora demanded.
“I believe I can withstand the Power Stone’s energy!” Arthur said confidently.
“I’ll go down first—wait for me to bring down the Kree warship, then open fire on anyone who emerges from it,” Arthur instructed.
“Alright, but be careful!” Quill said.
The ship’s hatch opened, and Arthur soared into the air, heading straight for the Kree warship while the others continued battling the Kree ships.
Arthur flew beneath the Kree warship; countless ships clashed around him, but none noticed the lone human floating in the air.
He took out the Orb, gripped it with both hands, and twisted it open—inside, a purple stone glowed with piercing light.
“The Orb!” Ronan and Nebula, standing in the Kree warship’s control room, immediately took notice of Arthur.

“Who is that? What’s he trying to do?” Ronan murmured, staring down at Arthur.
Rocket and the rest also noticed Arthur—everyone on the battlefield saw the floating figure clutching a dazzling purple gem!
Arthur seized the Power Stone—instantly, he felt a torrent of energy surge into him! A black mist erupted around him, with small purple energy cores swirling and circling. His body split with cracks swollen by the purple energy, and his eyes burned with violet light.
“Ah!!” Arthur endured the overwhelming energy, feeling as if his body might explode, but he gritted his teeth and held on.
After a while, the black mist faded, the glowing fissures healed, and the Power Stone’s energy stabilized within him. Arthur knew he couldn’t maintain this state for long—he had to finish Ronan quickly.
A golden trident appeared in Arthur’s right hand; he pointed it at the Kree warship, sending a massive surge of purple energy that struck the vessel dead center.
The Kree warship exploded instantly when hit, plummeting to the ground with a thunderous crash.
Witnessing this, countless Xandarians on the ground cheered, and the Nova Corps soldiers breathed a sigh of relief—they only needed to mop up the remaining small Kree ships.
Rocket piloted their ship toward the wreckage, firing at the escaping Kree soldiers.
Arthur descended from the sky, his eyes still glowing violet, and strode toward the Kree warship. He raised his trident, unleashing a burst of purple energy at the central command room, which exploded instantly.
Ronan collapsed to his knees; beside him lay Nebula and Korath, but only Ronan remained conscious. Despite being hit by Arthur’s energy, he had not yet fallen.
“Impossible! How can a mortal wield the power of an Infinity Stone?” Ronan snarled at Arthur.
“Who said I was mortal? I am Aquaman, from Earth! Die!” Arthur unleashed another blast of purple energy, piercing Ronan’s chest. Ronan’s body exploded, shattering into ashes.
Arthur returned the stone to the Orb—instantly, the energy vanished. He felt a hollow emptiness, his legs weak, nearly collapsing.
Rocket, Groot, Quill, Gamora, and Drax gathered before Arthur.
“It’s over,” Arthur said weakly.
“You really pulled it off!” Quill patted Arthur’s shoulder.
Drax saw Korath’s body, strode over, and chopped off his head, avenging his family.
As he moved toward Nebula, Gamora stopped him: “Let her go—she’s my sister!”
Just as Drax and Gamora were about to argue, a missile streaked toward them, striking Arthur in the chest and hurling him away.
The Orb slipped from Arthur’s grasp, floating up and landing in someone’s hand.
Gamora’s face turned pale as she recognized the newcomer: Ebony Maw, Thanos’s advisor, a formidable sorcerer.
A golden spear stabbed into Arthur’s chest, pinning him to the ground. Arthur screamed in agony.

It was the Black Order general—one of Thanos’s lieutenants.
“The great Thanos foresaw Ronan’s incompetence. Now, the Orb is ours, easily!” Ebony Maw laughed.
The general yanked the spear from Arthur’s chest and kicked the barely alive Arthur aside.
At that moment, the Guardians finally reacted—Drax charged at the general, Quill rushed to save Arthur, and Rocket fired at Ebony Maw, only to have his shots blocked by an energy shield.
“Enough. Thanos has what he wanted—the Orb. Let’s return and report,” Ebony Maw said.
“Gamora! You know full well what happens to those who betray Thanos!” Ebony Maw warned her.
A crescent-shaped ship appeared overhead, beaming a blue light that sucked up Ebony Maw, the general, and the unconscious Nebula, then vanished without a trace.
…
Arthur awoke in a hospital bed, feeling as if his body were falling apart, his chest throbbing with pain.
Another serious injury! Arthur smiled bitterly—his luck was dreadful; he seemed to get wounded in every battle.
“You’re awake!” Quill and Gamora were watching over him.
“Could you get me some water…” Arthur needed it to replenish his energy. Quill poured him eight glasses before Arthur was satisfied.
“Where am I?” Arthur finally had the strength to speak.
“We’re still on Xandar. Even though we defeated Ronan, Thanos managed to steal the Orb,” Quill summarized the events.
“We really got played,” Arthur said with a wry smile. But he remembered that in the movie, after Quill and the others left, Thanos destroyed Xandar and took the Power Stone.
At least the Xandarians wouldn’t be slaughtered by Thanos now, and Groot hadn’t been blown apart and reduced to a sapling. The outcome was much better than in the original story, and Arthur could only comfort himself with that thought.
“Alright, you’re awake, so we’re ready to set out,” Quill said.
“Xandar has lifted our bounty. We need to leave quickly, or if Yondu finds out I’m here, I’m done for!” Quill added.
“Good, let’s go. I could use a lift back to Earth to recover,” Arthur said.
The group boarded their ship and set off once more, five of them forming the Guardians of the Galaxy, determined to roam the universe together. Their next goal: to return Arthur to Earth so he could heal…