Their spirit was good, but they needed to face reality. If only Ronan and his men were coming, perhaps we alone would be enough. I would handle Ronan, and his subordinates could be stopped by the Guardians and the Nova Corps. But if Thanos's forces joined in, the story would change.
"Wait, I agree with helping Xandar. But it's also a fact that we alone would be insufficient if we have to face Thanos's army as well."
Rocket happily agreed.
"Phew... thank goodness. At least there's a sane person here. Honestly, I felt like I was joining a suicide squad."
Quill asked me.
"Then what do you want to do?"
"Call the Ravagers. All of them."
Quill looked quite surprised.
"What???"
"I think that's the most feasible plan. All we have is money. If we offer 10 million units per team, they won't be able to refuse."
Everyone had faces full of deep thought. Then Rocket vehemently objected.
"No! No way!! That's money we worked so hard for! You want to just hand it over to the Ravagers? Do you think that makes any sense!??"
"I'm not saying give it all away! We earned a total of 4 billion units. Even if we give 10 million per team, that's between 1 and 1.5 billion. Each of us would only need to chip in 200 million! Even after paying that, we'd still have a considerable amount left. Isn't that better than just going to our deaths like this?"
Rocket sighed.
"Sigh... This is insane..."
"Besides, things are already strained with Yondu over the Orb. We can use this big catch to make amends and reconcile."
Quill thought for a moment, then raised his hand.
"Alright! I'm in favor. I thought there was no other way either."
Gamora, Drax, and Groot also raised their hands in agreement.
"I agree too."
"Me too!"
"I am Groot."
Finally, we all looked at Rocket, who eventually gave in.
"Damn it... Fine!"
I decided to go to Xandar alone to report this, while the other Guardians would scout under Gamora's guidance. We needed to know the timing of the attack. The other members were all wanted, so it couldn't be helped.
So I put Cosmo in a single-person pod and headed to Xandar.
"From what I've heard, it sounds like something big is going to happen..."
"Don't worry. It'll work out."
Judging by Cosmo's expression, he looked uneasy, as if regretting his choice. I gave Cosmo a few pieces of jerky.
"It's tasty, but a bit salty."
"Just eat it. It's all I have for humans right now. I'll buy you some later."
Even in this situation, Cosmo was fussing over snacks.
Anyway, we arrived on Xandar, informed the guards of the situation, and were guided to Nova Corps Headquarters.
"So you're saying there's intelligence that Ronan and Thanos are joining forces to attack Xandar?"
"Yes, that's correct."
"Do you have any proof?"
They wanted evidence, not trusting the claim. So I showed them my Asgardian medal.
"Oh! You're from Asgard. Please wait a moment."
The Nova Corps officer I was speaking with ran off somewhere urgently. As expected, having an Asgardian medal made things like this easy. After waiting a while, a white-haired middle-aged woman who appeared to be high-ranking arrived. This was Nova Prime, Irani Rael.
"You're from Asgard?"
"That's correct. But I'm not an Asgardian."
"How curious. Asgardians don't usually give such medals to others... That must mean you're a trustworthy person, correct?"
The status of Asgard was indeed remarkable.
"It happened because we've helped each other out with various things."
"I see... So you have intelligence that Ronan and Thanos are joining forces to attack Xandar?"
"Yes. Thanos's daughter, Gamora, betrayed him and informed us. My friends have gone to scout and confirm it."
"Is there no possibility it's false?"
"Gamora holds a deep grudge against Thanos. In my judgment, the possibility of it being false is low. And even if it is false, Xandar loses nothing, does it? You can just concentrate on defense. You can think of it as training and prepare."
"That is true. Very well."
Irani Rael began speaking with the officers beside her. From the conversation, it seemed to be going well. While the Nova Corps prepared, I went to a pet store on Xandar to buy some food and treats for Cosmo.
"This looks tasty. Buy this and that too."
"Okay, okay."
Cosmo started picking out various things, drooling. When a dog can talk, things like this are convenient. He could pick exactly what he wanted to eat.
'Wait... does that make things convenient for me, or for the dog?'
Anyway, after buying a ton of food and treats, we went outside, and with perfect timing, Quill contacted me.
β Jean! Chitauri forces are starting to gather around Ronan's ship. Looks like they're preparing to attack Xandar.
"Got it. I'll inform the Nova Corps immediately."
β Good. I'll put out the request to the Ravagers right away.
I immediately contacted Nova Corps Headquarters and informed them.
"My scouts just contacted me. A large Chitauri army is gathering near Ronan's ship."
"This is serious. Understood."
I said to Cosmo, who was beside me.
"Cosmo, you go to Earth for a while. It's too dangerous for you here."
"Okay."
Cosmo, understanding the situation, didn't object. I immediately used my [Mana Mystic Arts] ability to open an Eldritch Gate, arrived at my New York home, and evacuated Cosmo.
"Wow~ You're a person with many amazing abilities."
"This is a secret. If you tell anyone, no treats."
"Okay."
Just then, Natasha, who was apparently home, came upstairs with Momo.
"Perfect timing. Natasha, could you watch the dog for a while?"
"Huh? Where'd this dog come from?"
"His name is Cosmo. He was a test subject for various experiments. I brought him with me."
"Oh my, I see. Poor thing..."
Natasha stroked Cosmo. Cosmo greeted Natasha and Momo as well.
"Hello, I'm Cosmo."
"Gasp!!! A dog that talks!!!"
When Cosmo greeted her like a person, Natasha looked extremely startled. So I quickly explained.
"That's the sound coming from the translator around his neck."
"Ah... I see. For a moment there..."
"Anyway, please take care of the dog. I have a lot of work, so I have to go. If anything comes up, ask Momo. And you can feed him from the food and treats here."
"Got it."
Leaving Cosmo with Natasha, I teleported back to Xandar. Arriving at Nova Corps Headquarters, they agreed to lend me a fighter. I had been thinking about how to fight, so that was fortunate.
"This is serious. Ronan is a problem, but the Chitauri are a species that, though individually weak, overwhelm with numbers. At this rate, Xandar might be in danger."
I listened to the conversation in the briefing room. The Nova Corps leadership seemed deeply concerned. So I informed them that I had called my friends and the Ravagers.
"We've put out a request to the Ravagers. Their numbers are small, but they'll be a great help."
"I see. But can we trust pirates..."
The Nova Corps clearly didn't trust pirates. So I brought out another card.
"Additionally, these are attack drones I've brought in. They should supplement our lack of combat personnel."
I took the drones I'd prepared out of my inventory and showed them. The officers scanned the drones.
"Oh~ I see. But they're built rather simply."
Having produced them to match Earth's scientific level as much as possible, they seemed somewhat inferior compared to Xandar's latest technology. I added an excuse.
"Simple means we can produce a lot of them."
They seemed satisfied with that answer.
"I see. Then how many can you provide?"
"Up to 200."
Those 200 were all the attack drones I had stored in my inventory. Given the situation on Xandar, there was no room to conserve drones like I did on Earth. Here, there were no superpowered individuals like the Avengers.
"200 drones and the Ravagers... Understood. I'll relay the information about the drones and Ravagers to our fighter squadrons."
I took the borrowed fighter into space, deployed all the drones, and returned to Xandar. Thanks to the prior notice, there were no sanctions. The sight of 200 drones flying in formation was spectacular.
Irani Rael saw them and expressed her gratitude.
"Thank you for the support."
"Not at all."
We completed our battle preparations by the next day and stood by. The aliens from other planets who had gathered on Xandar began leaving in their ships. The sight of various ships rising into the sky was very impressive.
Time passed, and suddenly, sirens blared on Xandar, and civilian evacuation announcements began.
Wee-oo wee-oo wee-oo~
β Enemy ships are approaching Xandar in large numbers. The possibility of an invasion is high. All citizens, please move quickly to the nearest shelters. Shelter location information can be found through local broadcasts or official government channels.
I also received a call, informing me that Ronan's ship and Chitauri warships had appeared near Xandar. I moved to the Nova Corps base, boarded my fighter, and prepared to deploy the drones. Still, there was no word from the Guardians or the Ravagers.
Looking around from my fighter, the Nova Corps soldiers also looked quite tense.
β All pilots, launch!
The launch order was given to the Nova pilots. I deployed my drones, flew my fighter to Xandar's skies, and waited. Because I had drones, I kept my distance from the other fighters.
β They're coming!!!
As in 'Avengers 1', countless Chitauri forces pierced Xandar's atmosphere. The Nova Corps fighters and anti-air turrets opened fire simultaneously. A significant number of Chitauri fighters were shot down, but they still pushed through with overwhelming numbers. Once they closed the distance, they began attacking Nova Corps fighters, evading the suppressive fire.
β All pilots! Leave suppressive fire to the turrets and engage at close range!
Following orders, Nova Corps fighters broke formation and engaged in close-range combat. I also ordered my drones to engage and joined the battle. Chitauri fighters were offensively armed but had weak defenses, so even my drones could shoot them down.
Ratatatat~ Bang bang! Kaboom!
The battle quickly descended into chaos. Even I, experiencing this kind of battle for the first time, couldn't relax. I used [Kenbunshoku Haki] and [Crisis Detection] to operate my fighter.
β There are too many of them!! Are the Ravagers' reinforcements here yet!?
"Still no word."
β This is bad. At this rate...
As I fought, I surveyed the battlefield. The urgent voices coming from headquarters showed that the situation wasn't good. The turrets were gradually being destroyed. The Corps' fighters, barely holding their defenses, were also starting to be shot down.
The drones were in the same state. About a third of them seemed to have been destroyed. Worse, the giant cyborg alien creatures 'Leviathans' were also seen joining the attack. At this rate, Xandar seemed to have no future.
β Friends, have you been waiting? We're here!
Just then, Quill's voice came over the comms. Numerous Ravager fleets appeared in the sky and began attacking the Chitauri.
"Waaahhhh~~~!!!"
The Nova Corps cheered at the sight. For them, it was truly like rain after a drought. From that moment, the tide of battle turned rapidly in the Nova Corps' favor. The Chitauri forces couldn't stop the Ravagers' flanking assault.
Kaboom!! KABOOOM!!
Chitauri fighters were shot down one after another. The Nova Corps also regrouped and launched a counterattack. When the battle was somewhat under control, an urgent communication came from Nova Corps Headquarters.