MARVEL: SILVER SUPERMAN OF ASGARD

"Don't worry, you'll always find it. You just need to have a normal heart. We've gained a lot on the planet Saka, haven't we?"

Rocket Raccoon scowled as he heard Drax the Destroyer's sarcastic remarks.

"You are the least qualified to speak in our group. If it weren't for you—the guy who ran out of the spaceship without authorization—we wouldn't have caused such a huge commotion on Saka or made such a mess trying to save you. What kind of disaster is this?"

Rocket's frustration boiled over as he continued, "Do you even realize that we almost lost our heads because of you? If we had known this would happen, we wouldn't have bothered rescuing you, idiot. Let's not even mention how we nearly got killed. And because of you, now we have to find another planet to lay low."

"Like a fool, wandering around in this infinitely dark universe... If I were you, I'd screw my own head off just to make it up to everyone."

Drax simply smiled, pretending not to hear Rocket's scorn. He could sense the concern and camaraderie among his teammates. Though he felt guilty for dragging them into trouble, he remained silent, knowing that words wouldn't change the situation.

Seeing that Drax had stopped responding, Rocket lost interest in further mocking him. Sometimes, Drax was as dense as a rock—almost in competition with Groot in that regard.

The only one who could really argue with Rocket was Star-Lord. Groot and Drax, on the other hand, were like two silent logs, sometimes going an entire day without saying a word.

It was enough to drive Rocket insane.

He slammed his paw on the table. "Enough! I really don't want to talk to you tree stumps anymore. The rocks on those barren planets have more emotion than you!"

With that, Rocket turned to leave. "I'm going to my room to rest for a while."

Star-Lord didn't stop him. But just as Rocket took a few steps away, the entire spaceship trembled violently.

Everyone in the Guardians of the Galaxy immediately snapped to attention.

"What the hell was that?"

Rocket instinctively dropped to all fours, stabilizing himself as the artificial intelligence of the spaceship blared a piercing alarm.

"Alert! Alert! Unidentified spacecraft are attacking!"

Star-Lord's expression darkened. "Looks like we're in big trouble."

He quickly disengaged the autopilot mode and activated the ship's weapon system.

The recent attack had struck the ship's outer energy shield. As an experienced space traveler, Star-Lord knew the dangers lurking in the cosmos—not just asteroids but also space pirates and other hostile forces.

This was why he always kept the ship's self-defense system online. The moment the ship detected an attack, its energy barrier automatically activated. Without it, their spacecraft would have been blown apart, reduced to cosmic debris drifting in the void.

Rocket reacted swiftly, leaping back into his seat and operating the reconnaissance system. His claws danced over the controls as he scanned for their attackers.

A cluster of moving dots appeared on the radar—more than a dozen in total. They were circling the Guardians' spaceship, matching its speed.

They had been surrounded.

"Dammit! When did these rat-faced scumbags get so close?" Rocket growled.

"I don't know," Star-Lord muttered, gripping the controls.

As Rocket adjusted the settings to identify their attackers, the system displayed an image of their ships. A chillingly familiar emblem adorned their hulls—a skull, stark and unmistakable.

Among the fleet was a massive flagship, at least ten times the size of their own ship. The surrounding vessels were comparable in size to the Guardians' spaceship, but the sheer number of them was overwhelming.

At least a thousand space pirates.

If this were a ground fight, Rocket and the team wouldn't be too worried—they'd just battle their way out. But in space, firepower was everything.

Even with Rocket's modifications to their ship, enhancing its weapons and combat capabilities, they were severely outnumbered. The enemy's main ship alone had enough firepower to obliterate them.

No matter how brilliant Rocket was, he couldn't change the reality that fighting head-on would deplete their energy reserves fast.

Their defensive barrier wouldn't hold against continuous bombardment from a fleet this size.

Staying here meant certain death.

"Damn it," Rocket muttered. "We've run into space pirates. Hey, Star-Lord, aren't you supposed to be on good terms with these guys? Maybe you can go out there, flash that dumb smile of yours, and convince them to let us go."

"Are you insane? Space pirates aren't some tight-knit family. And besides, the last time I met a bunch of them, they were trying to kill me! Even if I knew these guys, it wouldn't help. This is a completely different group."

"Great," Rocket scoffed. "So you're saying if they do recognize you, we're even more screwed?"

"Exactly. If they know me, they might just blow us to pieces on sight."

Rocket smirked. "Wow, you really are unpopular. If it were me, I'd have been calling them my long-lost brothers and sisters by now."

Before they could argue further, an incoming transmission interrupted them.

A video link request.

Star-Lord hesitated for a second, then accepted the call.

The screen flickered to life, revealing the face of their would-be attacker.

And things just got a whole lot worse.

At that moment, a space pirate with red skin and two long black horns appeared on the opposite side of the video communication screen.

The pirate sneered and spoke.

"Listen up, people inside. We are the Iron Stone Space Pirates. We've already surrounded you. If you're wise, you'll stop your spaceship immediately and surrender. Otherwise, we'll tear your ship to pieces."

He paused, then added with a cruel laugh, "Stop now, give up your pointless resistance, and maybe—just maybe—we'll leave you with a whole corpse. Hahaha!"

The Guardians of the Galaxy were not known for being timid. None of them were the kind to back down easily—otherwise, they wouldn't have survived long in this line of work.

These space pirates were clearly out for blood. Letting them board was out of the question.

Rocket Raccoon chuckled.

Seeing him laugh, the pirate leader scowled. "Hey, you furry little toy—what are you laughing at?"

Rocket smirked. "First of all, I'm not a plush toy. And second, you look ridiculous—like a moldy carrot. Did some carrot merchant send you to promote vegetables or something?"

"We don't need carrots. So, why don't you do us all a favor and scram?"

Rocket's words enraged the pirate leader. His eyes burned red as he pointed a furious finger at Rocket.

"You *** furball! I swear, when I catch you, I'll tear you apart piece by piece!"

"Fire! Attack them now!"

The space pirates unleashed a barrage of laser fire on the Guardians' spaceship.

But Star-Lord had been prepared for this. The moment the enemy's main ship opened fire, he deftly maneuvered the Guardians' ship, dodging the blast.

The pirate's laser cannon missed and instead struck one of their own ships that had been positioned behind the Guardians' vessel.

The unlucky pirate ship shook violently under the impact, its energy barriers barely holding. Chaos erupted inside as its crew scrambled to regain control.

The pirate leader was momentarily stunned, realizing he'd just hit his own men.

Star-Lord grinned. "Perfect timing."

Seizing the opportunity, he skillfully piloted the Guardians' ship past the damaged enemy vessel.

With the pirate ship still reeling from the attack, its crew was in complete disarray—unable to stop the Guardians from making their escape.

Rocket smirked. "Hey, carrot-head, you gonna chase us or what?"

The Guardians' ship sped off into the distance.

A moment later, the pirate leader snapped back to reality and roared, "Get after them! I want them turned into space dust!"

"Yes, chief!" his crew responded.

More than a dozen pirate ships sprang into pursuit, lasers blazing.

As the Guardians' ship weaved through space, lasers rained down behind them. Star-Lord's reflexes were razor-sharp—he rolled, twisted, and dodged the attacks as if he had eyes in the back of his head.

He'd been in worse dogfights. Star-Lord had stolen from high-tech empires, survived massive fleet battles, and danced through enemy fire before. Compared to that, this was just a warm-up.

But despite his expert piloting, the relentless barrage slowed their escape. The pirates weren't giving up.

Rocket quickly launched a spread of jamming missiles behind them, the projectiles scattering like flower petals in the void. Explosions filled the air, creating a fiery barrier that disrupted enemy targeting systems.

Even so, the pirates pressed on, undeterred.

Rocket growled in frustration. "What the hell is their problem? Are they that obsessed with chasing us? We didn't steal their wives, did we?"

"If they keep this up, we'll run out of energy before we can shake them," he added. "We were supposed to find a place to refuel. The energy we took from Sakaar is almost gone. If we don't lose these guys soon, we'll be stranded out here, waiting for them to board us."

"I know," Star-Lord replied, eyes fixed on the controls. "I'm doing everything I can."

But the pirates kept closing in. Rocket clenched his fists, itching to turn around and start blasting.

Then—just as Star-Lord noticed their energy levels reaching critical—there was a sudden explosion behind them.

A brilliant burst of fire lit up space, even through the dense laser fire.

"What the hell just happened?"

"I don't know," Rocket said, eyes wide. "But it looks like… the pirate ships behind us just exploded."

"Exploded?"

The Guardians exchanged glances. Something—or someone—had just turned the tables.

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