"So this really is the Destroyer's homeworld."
While healing the warrior who had finished off Ronan, Rowan briefly skimmed the man's memories and confirmed his identity. Drax the Destroyer. No wonder the planet's native inhabitants had felt strangely familiar from the start.
"Headmaster," Gamora said, approaching with a middle-aged officer in a Nova Corps uniform. "The captain of the Nova patrol wants to speak with you."
By then, Rowan had already restored the Sanctuary II, the Dark Aster, and the surrounding warships to pristine condition. After Thanos and Ronan fell, he sent Gamora and Yondu to free the surviving patrol members and the remaining half of the planet's population, while he handled the fleet.
These ships were among the finest in the galaxy. Whether sold for profit or brought back to reinforce the academy, they were invaluable.
"Collect."
Rowan produced a box enchanted with extreme spatial expansion and calmly stored the repaired warships inside. Turning to the Nova officer, he smiled.
"Rowan Mercer, from Terra. Sorry I arrived a bit late."
"N-not at all," the officer said quickly, snapping out of his daze. "If not for you, none of us would be alive. I'm Falren, captain of the Eighth Nova Patrol Fleet. On behalf of the Nova Empire, thank you."
This man from Terra had annihilated Thanos and Ronan's combined armada alone and taken both their heads. To Falren, he felt less like a man and more like a being from ancient legend. Even Nova Prime herself would have to treat someone like this with caution.
"It was convenient timing," Rowan replied lightly. "Someone put out a bounty and stirred up trouble near my home. This is just cleanup."
He handed Falren another container.
"I don't leave my planet often. Since this is my first trip out, consider this a greeting gift to the Nova Empire."
Falren swallowed hard when he saw what was inside.
Thanos. Ronan.
Two heads.
"A… greeting gift," he echoed weakly as he accepted it.
"Captain Mercer," Falren said after steadying himself, "I've reported everything to the Empire. Nova Prime formally invites you to visit Xandar as our guest. If you have the time."
The deaths of Thanos and Ronan, along with the destruction of their fleets, would shake the entire galaxy. Thanos was a universal scourge. Ronan's death would finally remove the largest obstacle to peace talks with the Kree. For the Nova Empire, this was nothing but good news.
And someone like Rowan Mercer was not an enemy they could afford to have.
"I was planning to visit anyway," Rowan said without hesitation. "I have a few things I'd like to discuss with Nova Prime."
Relief washed over Falren's face. Convincing a being like Rowan was not something he could have forced if Rowan had refused.
"We'll depart for Xandar in one day, then."
With the arrangements made, Falren returned to coordinating relief efforts. The Nova Empire had extensive experience handling worlds ravaged by Thanos. With half the population still alive and most resources untouched, recovery was grim but possible.
Far away, on Xandar, Nova Prime convened an emergency council the moment Falren's report arrived.
"So," she said calmly, surveying the chamber, "what do you make of this being from Terra?"
To her, anyone capable of erasing Thanos and Ronan so completely had to be an ancient god of Terra. The planet itself was technologically primitive, but its history was steeped in myths of powerful deities. The Empire had always avoided direct contact for that reason.
"This is an opportunity," one official said. "Ronan's faction was the main reason peace with the Kree kept stalling. With him gone, negotiations should finally move forward."
Another nodded. "We should host him on Xandar. Gratitude aside, securing a powerful ally is… prudent."
Nova Prime agreed.
The Nova Empire was exhausted by war. If forging ties with a godlike being from Terra could bring peace and long-term security, then this invitation was more than courtesy.
It was necessity.