Thanos sat with his fingers interlaced on his floating throne, his golden armor radiating a captivating glow under the cold moonlight. His meaningful gaze unsettled Ebony Maw.
He didn't understand why Thanos was mentioning the moon out of the blue. Was he trying to warn him?
Ebony Maw, adept at deciphering Thanos's thoughts, suddenly lost confidence in the plan he was so sure of. From his understanding of Thanos, this man would never do anything meaningless or say anything without purpose.
Ebony Maw looked up at the sky. The gentle light of the full moon now seemed more blinding than the midday sun in his eyes. What did Thanos's words mean?
Ebony Maw didn't know, nor did he dare to ask.
Despite appearing to be favored by Thanos now, with command of the Second Legion seemingly glorious, Ebony Maw still knew his place. Everything he possessed was given to him by the man before him. If Thanos wished, he could revert him back to the lonely, pitiable wretch he once was overnight.
"Watch, Ebony Maw. Beckett tonight." Leaning back against the cool chair, enjoying the rare moment of quiet after retreating from the front lines, Thanos closed his eyes under the moon's caress, a Great Ape appearing in his mind.
That was the form Beckett could only possess on a full moon night. When Beckett was one year old, Thanos, his sole guardian, wanted to bond with his adopted son. For this, he had specifically set up a large pot outside Sanctuary Base, intending to cook a dish that was once popular throughout Planet Titan for his adopted son, Beckett.
The consequence was that Beckett, then only one year old, transformed into a Great Ape under the full moon and kicked over the pot Thanos had specially built.
The boiling soup splashed everywhere. The warrior, transformed into a Great Ape, became violent due to the infant's fragile nerves being unable to withstand the surge of power. And from then on, Thanos had a clear idea for Beckett's upbringing.
The nourishment and reinforcement from the Nutrient Fluid, and nerves no longer fragile after countless battles—these were Thanos's decisions to ensure Beckett could maintain his sanity after transforming into a Great Ape.
Uncontrollable power, in Thanos's opinion, was not power at all. People desired power because they yearned to accomplish long-held fantasies with usable strength, not to lose control and rampage after gaining it.
Recalling Beckett's serious expression at the age of five, earnestly stating he would control the Great Ape form, Thanos couldn't help but smile.
"The defenses are indeed tight. I wonder if Ebony Maw is here."
Under Thanos's gaze, Beckett, who was gradually approaching the Nutrient Pod, held his breath, trying to conceal himself in the shadows of a corner while observing the tight security nearby.
The deeper he went, the tighter the security became.
The patrols went from just a few to groups, and Beckett's path as a thief became increasingly difficult. He had no confidence he could slip past these guards to the area where the Nutrient Pod was located.
Squinting, Beckett calculated the shift changes of each patrol team, telling himself to remain calm as he began to deduce the probability of a successful stealth operation based on the timetable he had drafted in his mind.
Regrettably, the probability of success was zero.
Beckett had thoroughly experienced the sensitivity of Cyborg soldiers to enemy attacks over these 116 days. Unless he could eliminate all the Cyborgs before him in a mere instant, stealth was simply not an option.
Most importantly, he didn't know if that scheming sorcerer, Ebony Maw, was waiting for him to walk into a trap. However, the nutrient fluid in his backpack could still sustain him for about fifteen days.
Beckett's plan was to take a gamble while he still had nutrient fluid to heal his injuries. If he failed, he would still have a chance to make a comeback with the existing nutrient fluid's healing properties. If he waited fifteen days to act, having completely depleted the nutrient fluid, failure would make it difficult to rise again.
"Father once said that when facing a situation, one must never wait for death."
"Therefore…"
Thanos's teachings echoed in Beckett's mind. Having made up his mind, Beckett seized the moment, exerting force with both legs, and shot forward like an arrow released from a bow towards a patrolling team of Cyborgs.
"Here goes nothing!"
Vast energy condensed in Beckett's fingertips, instantly piercing the core of an entire Cyborg patrol team. His scarlet tail, exceptionally vibrant under the base's lights, coiled around one of the Cyborgs' corpses to use as a shield against the concentrated fire from other teams, while Beckett continuously changed his position.
The young figure weaved and dodged in the unfair battlefield with extreme agility. Using his hands, feet, and even an extra tail, Beckett's movements, while adding a few wounds, also took the lives of a patrol team each time.
Beckett's greatest gain over these 116 days was the understanding that one must strike with precision and ferocity. He didn't want to, nor did he deign to, play fancy games; it was all about a direct, iron-fisted approach.
Exchanging the smallest price for the greatest victory was the attitude a warrior should have.
"Beckett!"
Cull Obsidian's low growl clearly reached Beckett's ears. With alarm bells ringing in his mind, Beckett rolled on the ground, narrowly dodging the mark made by Cull Obsidian's giant axe.
Cull Obsidian, a giant compared to Beckett, leaped high from behind the Nutrient Pod. His left hand, encased in silver-black armor, directly grabbed Beckett's red tail, exposed outside his combat suit.
Beckett felt an irresistible, immense force surge from his tail, causing his small body to lose balance. He was pulled by the massive Cull Obsidian right up to him.
"You brought this upon yourself."
With his tail gripped and pulled in front of him by Cull Obsidian, Beckett seized the opportunity and punched him directly in the face.
"Roar!"
In pain, Cull Obsidian instinctively loosened his left hand gripping Beckett's tail. However, Beckett's tail then hooked around Cull Obsidian's thick arm, and using the tail's momentum, he spun around, getting behind Cull Obsidian, and delivered a powerful whip kick to the back of his head!
Boom!!!
The whip kick, accompanied by a whistling sound, shattered Cull Obsidian's helmet. Beckett's brute, unreasoning strength caused Cull Obsidian's massive body to stagger uncontrollably, wobbling and half-kneeling on the ground.
Now!
Beckett, not lingering in combat, knew his objective clearly. After briefly repelling Cull Obsidian, he leaped towards the Nutrient Pod door.
However, before he could take flight, a mechanical hand, assembled from the parts of several Cyborg corpses, descended from above and slapped Beckett, who was attempting to soar, back to the ground.
"Ebony Maw!"
Although Ebony Maw hadn't appeared, only he possessed this ability within the Sanctuary.
"Beckett!"
Roaring Beckett's name, Cull Obsidian grabbed Beckett's lower leg and lifted him into the air. Immense power erupted, directly slamming Beckett hard onto the Sanctuary's solid ground!
Once, twice…
As if he couldn't get enough of it, Cull Obsidian slammed Beckett six times before flinging him into the air. The immense impact caused Beckett to smash through the top structure of Sanctuary Base, plunging headfirst into the vast starlight.
Not intending to let Beckett go, Cull Obsidian crouched down, then leaped up. His massive body shot out like a cannonball, directly pursuing Beckett, who had been flung into the air above Thanos's domain.
I remember the setting where Saiyans transform into Great Apes upon seeing the moon due to the Blutz Ray is from GT. GT, strictly speaking, is only a fan-made work authorized by Akira Toriyama, right? The specific reason for transforming into a Great Ape doesn't seem to be explained in detail in the main series. In the main series, I only recall that after the moon was destroyed, Master Roshi used Krillin's bald head as a substitute for the moon, and Vegeta once transformed into a Great Ape using an artificial moon.
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