Their bravado was commendable, but they had to face reality. If it were just Ronan and his men, we might be enough on our own. I could handle Ronan, and his underlings could be dealt with by the Guardians of the Galaxy and the Nova Corps. But if Thanos's forces joined in, things would change.
"Wait, I'm all for helping Xandar. But the truth is, we're not enough to take on Thanos's army by ourselves."
Rocket happily agreed with my words.
"Phew... Thank goodness there's someone sane here. I honestly felt like I'd joined a suicide squad."
Quill asked me,
"So what do we do?"
"Let's call the Ravagers. All of them!"
Quill seemed quite shocked by my suggestion.
"What???"
"I think that's the most feasible option. All we have is money, so if we offer a hundred million units per team, they won't refuse."
Everyone wore thoughtful expressions at my proposal. Then Rocket strongly objected.
"No! Absolutely not!! That's money we worked so hard for! You want to just hand it over to the Ravagers? Does that make any sense to you??!!"
"I'm not saying give it all away! The total we earned is four billion units, so even if we give a hundred million per team, it'll be between one and one and a half billion. We only need to bear two billion each! Even after that, we'll have plenty of units left. Isn't that better than just going out to die?"
Rocket sighed and said,
"Ugh... This is driving me crazy..."
"And since we're on bad terms with Yondu over the Orb, this could be a chance to make up by bringing him a big job."
Quill pondered, then raised his hand and said,
"Alright! I'm in. I was thinking there's no other way."
Gamora, Drax, and Groot also raised their hands in agreement.
"I agree too."
"Me too!"
"I am Groot."
Finally, when we all looked at Rocket, he reluctantly agreed.
"Damn it... Fine!"
I decided to go to Xandar alone to inform them, while the other Guardians went scouting under Gamora's guidance. We needed to know the timing of the attack. The other members were wanted, so there was no choice.
So I boarded a single-person pod with Cosmo and headed to Xandar.
"From what I've heard, it sounds like something big is about to happen..."
"Don't worry, it'll work out."
Looking at Cosmo's expression, she seemed a bit uneasy, as if regretting her choice. I gave her a few pieces of jerky.
"It's tasty but a bit salty."
"Just eat it. It's all we have for now. I'll buy you more later."
Cosmo was complaining about snacks even in this situation.
Anyway, we arrived at Xandar, informed the guards, and were guided to the Nova Corps headquarters.
"So you're saying you have information that Ronan and Thanos are joining forces to invade Xandar?"
"Yes, that's correct."
"Do you have any credible evidence?"
They seemed skeptical and wanted proof. So I showed them the Asgardian medal.
"Gasp! You're from Asgard. Please wait a moment."
Upon seeing the medal, the Nova Corps officer I was speaking to hurried off somewhere. Having the Asgardian medal sure made things easier. After waiting a bit, a white-haired middle-aged woman who appeared high-ranking arrived. This was Nova Prime, Irani Rael.
"You're from Asgard?"
"That's right. But I'm not Asgardian."
"Interesting. Asgardians don't usually give such medals to others... It must mean you're trustworthy."
Asgard's prestige was indeed significant.
"We've helped each other out in various ways, so it came to that."
"I see... You said you obtained information that Ronan and Thanos are planning to attack Xandar?"
"Yes. Thanos's daughter, Gamora, betrayed him and told us. So my friends have gone to scout if it's true."
"Is there any chance it's false?"
"Gamora holds a grudge against Thanos. I think the possibility of it being false is low. And even if it is, Xandar has nothing to lose, right? You can focus on defense and treat it as a training opportunity."
"That's true. Understood."
Irani Rael began discussing with the officers beside her. From what I heard, it seemed to be going well. While the Nova Corps prepared, I headed to a pet supply store on Xandar to buy food and snacks for Cosmo.
"This looks delicious. Buy me this and that too."
"Sure, sure."
Cosmo started drooling as she picked out various items. Having a dog that could talk made this convenient—she could choose what she wanted to eat.
'Wait... isn't this convenient for the dog, not me?'
Anyway, after buying a bunch of food and snacks, as we stepped outside, I got a timely call from Quill.
"Cassian! Chitauri forces are starting to gather around Ronan's ship. Looks like they're preparing to hit Xandar."
"Got it. I'll inform the Nova Corps right away."
"Alright, I need to contact the Ravagers immediately too."
I immediately contacted the Nova Corps headquarters and relayed the news.
"My friends on reconnaissance just contacted me. They say a large Chitauri army is gathering near Ronan's ship."
"This is no ordinary matter. Understood."
I turned to Cosmo beside me.
"Cosmo, go to Earth for now. It might be dangerous here."
"Okay."
Cosmo seemed to understand the situation and didn't refuse. I immediately used my [Mana Mystic Arts] ability to open an Eldritch Gate and arrived at my New York house to evacuate Cosmo.
"Wow~ You have so many amazing abilities."
"This is a secret. No snacks if you talk about it."
"Understood."
At that moment, Natasha was at the house, coming up from the first floor with Momo.
"Perfect timing. Natasha, can you watch the dog for a bit?"
"Huh? What dog?"
"This is Cosmo, a dog who underwent various experiments. I brought her with me."
"Oh, I see. How pitiful..."
Natasha petted Cosmo. Cosmo then greeted Natasha and Momo.
"Hello, I'm Cosmo."
"Gasp!!! The dog is talking!!!"
When Cosmo greeted them like a person, Natasha seemed utterly astonished. So I explained quickly.
"That sound is coming from the translator on her collar."
"Ah... I see. I thought..."
"Anyway, please take care of the dog. I have a lot to do, so I'll be off. If anything comes up, ask Momo for help. And for food and snacks, just give her what's here."
"Got it."
After entrusting Cosmo to Natasha, I teleported back to Xandar. Arriving at the Nova Corps headquarters, they decided to provide me with a combat ship. I was pondering how to fight, so this worked out well.
"This is a serious matter. Ronan is one thing, but the Chitauri are a species that overwhelms with numbers, even if they're weak. At this rate, Xandar might be in danger."
I overheard the conversation in the meeting room. The Nova Corps leaders seemed deeply concerned. So I informed them that I had called my friends and the Ravagers.
"We've made a request to the Ravagers. They're few in number, but they'll be a big help."
"I see. But can we trust pirates..."
The Nova Corps clearly didn't trust pirates much. So I played another card.
"And here are the attack drones I brought. These can replace the lack of combatants."
I took out the drones I had prepared from my inventory and showed them. The officers scanned the drones.
"Oh~ I see. But they seem quite simply made."
Since I made them to match Earth's technological level, they looked somewhat inferior compared to Xandar's latest tech. I added an excuse.
"Simplicity allows for mass production."
They seemed convinced and moved on.
"I see. How many can you provide?"
"Up to two hundred."
Those two hundred were all the attack drones stored in my inventory. Recalling Earth's past situations, there was no room to spare drones. There were no Avengers-like powered individuals here.
"The Ravagers and two hundred drones... Understood. We'll inform the combat squadrons about the drones and the Ravagers."
I used the provided combat ship to go into space, then released all the drones and returned to Xandar. Thanks to prior notice, I faced no sanctions. The two hundred drones flying in formation were a spectacle.
Irani Rael saw them and thanked me.
"Thank you for the support."
"You're welcome."
We finished battle preparations by the next day and waited. Aliens from other planets gathered on Xandar began leaving in their ships. The sight of various spacecraft ascending was impressive.
As time passed, a siren suddenly blared on Xandar, and a civilian evacuation broadcast aired.
The siren blared loudly.
"Enemy ships are approaching Xandar in large numbers. Due to high invasion risk, all citizens must evacuate to the nearest shelters immediately. Shelter locations can be found via local broadcasts or official government channels."
I received a call. They informed me that Ronan's ship and Chitauri warships had appeared near Xandar. I moved to the Nova Corps base, boarded the combat ship, and prepared to operate the drones. But there was still no word from the Guardians or the Ravagers.
Looking around from the combat ship, the Nova Empire soldiers seemed very tense.
"All units, deploy!"
The Nova pilots were ordered to deploy. I operated the drones and piloted the ship to hover over Xandar's airspace, keeping distance from other ships due to the drones.
"They're coming!!!"
Just like in 'The Avengers', countless Chitauri troops broke through Xandar's atmosphere, and the Nova Empire's ships and anti-air turrets opened fire simultaneously. Many Chitauri ships were shot down, but they still pushed forward with overwhelming numbers. As they closed in, they began attacking the Nova Corps ships, evading the suppressive fire.
"All units! Leave suppressive fire to the turrets and engage in close-quarters combat!"
Following the order, the Nova Corps ships broke formation and engaged in close combat. I ordered the drones to engage and joined the battle. The Chitauri ships were offensively armed but weak in defense, so drones could easily shoot them down.
The rapid fire of guns and explosions echoed.
The battle quickly descended into chaos. In my first experience of such combat, I couldn't afford to relax. I utilized my [Observation Haki] and [Danger Sense] abilities to pilot the ship.
"There are too many of them!! Is Ravager support still not here!?"
"No word yet."
"This is bad. At this rate..."
As I fought, I monitored the situation; the urgent voices from headquarters indicated things weren't going well. Turrets were gradually being destroyed, and the Corps ships began falling as they struggled to defend while attacking.
The drones were no different. About a third seemed destroyed. Moreover, the giant cyborg-like alien creatures, 'Leviathans', joined the attack. If this continued, Xandar's future looked bleak.
"Friends, you waited, right? We're here!"
Then Quill's voice came over the comms, and numerous Ravager fleets appeared in the sky, attacking the Chitauri.
"Whoa~~~~!!!"
The Nova Corps cheered at the sight. For the Corps, it was like rain after a drought. From then on, the tide of battle swiftly turned in favor of the defenders. The Chitauri forces couldn't fend off the Ravagers striking from the flank.
Chitauri ships were shot down one after another, and the Nova Corps regrouped and counterattacked. As the battle began to wind down, a frantic voice came over the comms from Nova Corps headquarters.