"Did he give up?" When the Kree Empire's battleship stopped shaking, the commander breathed a sigh of relief, thinking Robert had been deterred by the ship's defenses.
"Not exactly, Commander. The other four auxiliary ships are under attack!" The battleship's AI quickly shattered the commander's hope, displaying footage of Robert attacking the other four Kree battleships. The energy shields on all four ships were trembling violently, causing the commander's pupils to constrict in shock.
The Kree Empire had encountered countless powerful beings throughout its reign, whether they were technologically advanced, magical, energy-based, or even divine. But no matter how strong these beings were, none had ever dared to directly challenge the might of the Kree's battleships, which boasted some of the universe's most advanced firepower and defenses. In many ways, these ships were themselves considered among the strongest technological entities in the galaxy.
Yet here was one man, Robert, singlehandedly bombarding four battleships, and their shields were on the verge of collapse. This was beyond the commander's comprehension.
"Fight back! What are you waiting for?" the commander quickly regained his composure and shouted orders at his subordinates. "The Saiyan may be formidable, but that doesn't mean we can't lock onto him. I refuse to believe he can unleash that kind of power and still withstand our battleships' full firepower!"
"Yes, sir!" The Kree forces responded instantly, unleashing planet-destroying energy blasts towards Robert. The firepower directed at him was no less intense than what they had earlier aimed at the Nova Corps.
This also highlighted that the Nova Corps was far stronger than they appeared. Their barrier, created by linking their ships, had withstood numerous planet-crushing strikes from the Kree. It was an impressive defense that had held for longer than the Kree had anticipated.
As for Robert, he had no intention of recklessly taking the Kree's combined firepower head-on. Five battleships firing simultaneously was overwhelming, even for someone of his strength. Dodging the incoming blasts was the sensible choice.
"Hm? They've locked onto me? Unless I move beyond their range, it seems there's no shaking their aim," Robert mused. Every time he teleported to another spot to continue his assault, the Kree weapons automatically recalibrated, locking onto his new location.
Robert could have ended this easily by teleporting inside one of the ships. Once inside, their weapons couldn't target him, and it would be a simple matter to destroy the remaining four battleships from within. But he chose not to, because he wanted to test the Kree's battleships' resilience and firepower. Better to do it now, rather than waiting until he was back on Earth to figure it out.
"Boom!"
With a single ki blast, Robert collided with one of the Kree's planet-destroying beams, causing a massive explosion that ignited the surrounding energy blasts. The proximity of the explosions amplified the destructive force.
Even though the detonation happened far from Xandar, the Nova Corps' shields trembled under the shockwaves. The explosion was so concentrated that had it occurred a few more times, the Nova Corps' defensive barrier would have failed entirely.
"What a terrifying explosion. Can that mysterious being survive this?" muttered the Nova Corps' commander, his eyes filled with doubt and worry as he watched the screen.
His voice echoed in the conference room where Nova Prime and her advisors stood in silence, watching the devastation unfold. They, too, didn't know how this battle would end or what the future held for Xandar under the Kree invasion.
Initially, Nova Prime had believed that Star-Lord and his crew were hiding some secret power, perhaps the means to kill Ronan, and had sent her team to investigate. But as the battle with the Kree intensified, her perspective changed. She realized that even if Star-Lord's team had some tricks, they were no match for the Kree's battleships. The crew's knowledge of interstellar warfare was minimal, and they had no understanding of the true might of the Kree Empire's war machines.
Nova Prime even began to suspect that Ronan had been chasing Star-Lord's team with one of these warships, meaning they had likely just been lucky. That's why she had permitted Star-Lord's team to help and, if possible, escape Xandar.
What Nova Prime hadn't expected was that while Star-Lord's group might not have had the strength to fight the Kree, Robert, who supported them, did. He could face the Kree battleships head-on.
Yes, Nova Prime and her advisors had been watching Star-Lord's ship closely, especially after it managed to damage a Kree battleship's turret. It was then that they noticed Robert aboard the ship. His presence reignited their hope, the hope that Xandar and the Nova Corps could survive this assault.
If Xandar were to be destroyed, the sacrifices of all those Nova pilots would be in vain. But as they witnessed the massive explosion, doubt crept in again. It seemed impossible for anyone to survive such a powerful blast.
Not only were Nova Prime and her team thinking this, but Rocket Raccoon and the others also feared the worst. The only one who remained confident was Star-Lord, who believed in Robert's strength despite his ignorance of the true power of Kree battleships.
Fortunately, Robert didn't disappoint. The explosion, while intense, hadn't directly hit him. Instead, it was triggered by his own ki blast. Despite the immense shockwaves, it wasn't enough to harm him.
And as the saying goes, "where there's smoke, there's no damage." Given the amount of smoke and debris, Robert was perfectly fine.
"Whiz! Whiz! Whiz!"
Robert quickly resumed his assault, this time focusing his attacks on a single Kree battleship rather than spreading them out across all four.
"Crack!"
Despite the Kree ship's top-tier energy shield, it couldn't withstand Robert's relentless ki blasts. Soon, the shield shattered, and even the ship's hull—made of the universe's most advanced metals—buckled under the force of his attacks.
"Warning! Warning! Hull integrity at 33%. Unable to recover. Evacuation advised!" The damaged battleship's AI announced, highlighting a critical flaw of the Kree ships.
Minor damage could be repaired, but once a ship's hull sustained enough damage, it couldn't be fixed. While Tony Stark's nanotechnology might not be the most advanced in the universe, it was clear that such technology wasn't feasible for ships of this scale. The Kree ships were built for durability, not self-repair, which is why the damaged ship hadn't exploded yet.
"Boom!"
However, just because it hadn't exploded yet didn't mean Robert wouldn't finish it off. With a few more powerful ki blasts, the damaged battleship disintegrated into cosmic dust, along with its crew.
With one battleship destroyed, Robert had now gauged the energy shield strength and hull durability of the remaining ships. The command ship might have slightly stronger defenses, but it wouldn't make a significant difference in the long run.
"Is he a monster? Fight back! Keep firing! What are you waiting for? Do you want him to blow us all up?" the Kree commander roared, his calm shattered by the report of their ship's destruction. Panic and fury drove him to lash out at his subordinates.
"Yes, sir!" The Kree soldiers were equally panicked. They had come to avenge Ronan and expected an easy battle against the Nova Corps, not this.
The Kree had estimated that while the Nova Corps could hold them off defensively, they posed no real threat to Kree forces. That's why neither Ronan nor the Kree's war-hungry factions had understood why peace with Xandar was necessary. The commander had launched this attack to gain the support of these factions, hoping to become the next Ronan.
But now, instead of a swift victory, they faced Robert—a monster beyond their capabilities. Realizing this, the commander made a quick decision. "Disable the spatial lock! Open a wormhole and initiate an immediate retreat!"
"Yes, Commander," the AI responded without question, beginning the process of creating a space jump for the ship.
The soldiers, however, were dumbfounded. They had just been ordered to attack, and now the commander wanted to flee, leaving the other battleships and their comrades behind. It was clear he intended to use the remaining ships as decoys.
"Why are you looking at me like that? If any of you want to stay behind, feel free to take a fighter and face that monster. If you manage to kill him, I'll promote you to deputy commander," the Kree commander sneered at his hesitant soldiers.
"But can you do it? None of you can. Even our strongest tech and firepower at home would struggle against that monster. Shouldn't we try to escape?" he continued.
"But shouldn't we at least warn the other ships?" one soldier timidly asked, mustering the courage to speak.
"Hmph, based on the speed and strength he's shown, do you think we have any chance of escaping if we don't distract him?" the commander retorted coldly. "You can stay here and be a hero, but I need to get this information to the Supreme Intelligence."
Silenced by the commander's response, the soldier backed down. The others followed suit, lowering their heads. The commander's reasoning, while selfish, gave them a chance to survive. If there was a chance to live, who would choose to die? The soldiers expressed their unease but ultimately accepted the commander's decision.
As the commander had pointed out, someone had to deliver the information to the Supreme
Intelligence. Otherwise, if the Kree Empire unknowingly provoked such a powerful enemy, they would face even greater trouble.
And besides, sending a message wasn't enough. The Supreme Intelligence needed detailed intelligence, and that required someone to survive.
_________________________
[Check out my Patreon for +200 additional chapters in all my fanfics! $5 for all!!]
[w w w . p a t r e o n .com / INNIT]
[+50 PowerStones = +1 Chapter] [+5 Reviews = +1 Chapter]