After the meeting ended, Rowan Mercer turned invisible and slipped back into his office in a blink.
It was anything but quiet.
Three separate groups were locked in a restrained but vicious fight, all circling the same object on the floor between them.
The Tesseract.
Gamora stood alone on one side. Rocket and Groot formed another. Peter Quill and Yondu made up the third, and in raw combat power, Quill and Yondu had the edge. Yondu's arrow was lethal even without killing intent, and while Quill wasn't a standout brawler, he made up for it with gadgets and tactical instincts.
Still, Gamora wasn't called the galaxy's deadliest spy for nothing. Her body had been heavily enhanced, her close-quarters skill terrifyingly refined. Rocket's intellect and agility made him dangerous in any chaos, and Groot's strength, resilience, and battlefield control kept pressure on everyone at once.
Whenever one side gained the Tesseract, the other two immediately turned on them.
The result was a deadlock.
None of them dared escalate too far. This was the academy. Surrounded by powered staff. Owned by a headmaster who could turn into a towering monster. Every blow was pulled. Every explosion muted.
"Stop!" Gamora shouted.
She had just seized the Tesseract again, but this time she didn't run. She knew better. The moment she did, the other four would unite against her.
"Listen to me. I have a proposal."
Yondu's arrow hovered inches from her face, his eyes cold.
"Girl, I'm not scared of your lunatic foster father. Hand it over and you might walk out alive."
Rocket stood on Groot's shoulder, gun leveled.
"Drop it, psycho. Or I'll turn you into chunky green art. Bet the boss would love that surprise tomorrow."
"Enough," Gamora said sharply. "Here's the truth. The one who placed the bounty was Thanos. If you bring him the Tesseract, there will be no payment. He'll snap your necks the moment you show up."
That made them hesitate.
"But," she continued, "I know another buyer. One who'll pay forty billion. We go together. I take ten. You split the remaining thirty, fifteen each. That's five more than the original bounty."
"Thanos?" Quill echoed. "The Mad Titan?"
Doubt flickered across all three faces.
"You're his daughter," Yondu said. "Why should we trust you?"
"Adopted," Gamora snapped. "He slaughtered half my world. My parents included. Then he turned me into a weapon. I hate him more than any of you ever could. I want the money so I can disappear and never be under his control again."
She set the Tesseract on the floor and stepped back.
"You keep it. I'll take you to the buyer."
Quill lowered his gun first. "She's telling the truth."
Yondu followed, retracting his arrow. "If that's real, you've got guts. Ever want a crew, you'd fit with mine."
Rocket hopped down from Groot's shoulder.
"Fine. I'm in. But I hold the cube."
That was non-negotiable. Yondu had a crew. Gamora had the contacts. Rocket and Groot were the only ones without leverage.
The others exchanged looks, then nodded.
Rocket stepped forward.
Before he could touch the Tesseract, another hand picked it up.
"Well," a calm voice said, "this is awkward. Did you all forget the contracts you signed this morning?"
Rowan Mercer stood beside them, visible now, turning the cube slowly in his hand.
"So," he continued pleasantly, "what do we do here? Do I kill you, or—"
"Move!" Yondu barked.
They attacked instantly.
Yondu whistled, and the arrow became a streak of red aimed straight for Rowan's head.
It stopped midair.
Then it reversed direction and hovered at Yondu's forehead, unresponsive no matter how sharply he whistled.
Metal obeyed magnetism. Alien alloy didn't change that.
Quill and Rocket fired next.
Their weapons twisted out of their hands, snapping around to point directly back at them.
Gamora's blade tore free from her grip and pressed coldly against her own throat.
Groot lashed out, vines surging forward, only for them to recoil and bind his own limbs instead.
Plant control answered magic as readily as roots answered soil.
One second.
Five attacks.
Five instant defeats.
"Headmaster, wait," Quill said quickly, hands raised, staring at the gun hovering above his skull. "We were just curious. Night stroll. No bad intentions. Honest."
Rowan returned to his chair, unbothered, the Tesseract resting in his palm.
"I know," he said. "I heard everything. There's no point lying now."
Yondu swallowed. "What do you want?"
"It's not about what I want," Rowan replied. "It's about what you choose."
He gestured, and the five contracts appeared on the desk again.
"Option one. I kill you. Clean and final."
He raised two fingers.
"Option two. You honor the contract. Lifetime service to the academy. No pay."
The room fell silent.
...
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