[center][h2]THE GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY[/h2] [b]IN[/b] [h2]RAMBLE ON[/h2][/center] [hr] The Hasslehoff hung over the planet silently, as the distress call from it plays on a loop inside the cabin. The assembled Guardians listened again as the panicked settlers below pleaded for help to protect them from the "monsters" that had appeared a few days ago. The Guardians had gotten to the planet after a few jumps, only a few hours after Heimdall had let them know about the distress call. Using that timeframe, the settlers had been under attack for at least two days. Most of them were probably dead. That almost wasn't a question. But someone of them were still bound to be down there. And Thor was going to make sure he got them out of there. What worried him, though, was the sounds coming from the background of the distress call. The snarls and growls coming from whatever was attacking the people were clearly the same mindless devourers that Thor had encountered inside the old Asgardian cache he and Peter had found. "So it's a trap," Rocket said what they were all thinking. "Listen, I feel bad for the people down there, but they're probably dead, and I don't think we should be too. Let's find some other, more profitable rescuing to do." "We are not doing this because of profits," Thor reminded the small mammal. "No, we're doing this because you went and got us all marked for death," Hawk rolled her eyes. "We're here to draw this guy out so we can get rid of that, then we can all go on our separate ways." "Well how do we draw him out without stopping things he's trying to do?" Thor motioned towards the planet. "Clearly whatever this world was offered him an opportunity. He could have set a trap for us somewhere less remote. Why here? Maybe there's a clue." "And maybe I don't care," Rocket laughed. "Just because we're looking for the guy doesn't mean we have to spring every trap. Especially when this one is seemingly more deadly than others." "I am Groot." "Thank you, Groot," Rocket smiled. "I am incredibly reasonable." Quill, who had been uncharacteristically quiet up until this point, stood up out of the pilot's chair and shook his head, "We're gonna help those people. Thor's right. We can't just be doin' this for ourselves. We have a chance to do some real good, and we should take it." "Yea, chance to do some real good dyin'," Hawk grunted. "I'm only here so I don't die. I'm not here to help some yokels who are probably already dead, or to help blondie over there feel better about himself because he's been a worthless drunken asshole for the better part of a few millennia." Thor felt the muscles in his arm tense as anger took hold of him. She wasn't wrong about him being worthless for eons. But he wasn't doing this to make up for past wrongs. It may have been becoming unworthy of Mjolnir, the great hammer that was still resting on some rock thousands of lightyears away, but he now knew it was his duty to protect those that needed it. That such a lesson was being taught to him after the death of all that he knew and loved was not lost on him, and it made his sense of failure run deeper. "What I may have failed to do in the past is of no concern to the present," he responded to the Thanagarian. "But the longer we bicker up here, the less chance the people below have of surviving. I intend to land. If thoust wants, thou may stay on the ship. But I am going to find out what happened on this planet. If you wish to join me, thoust may." "How would thoust like thou funeral done up?" Rocket shot back at Thor, mocking his manner of speech. "It should not be my funeral to be planned, but our enemy's," Thor chuckled at the furry creature and motioned for Quill to bring the ship down towards the surface of the planet. [hr] The ship settled down quietly on the landing pad of the settlement, with nothing but the harsh wind of the planet to greet them. The steel, prefab structures that made up the modest little village. A plastic, formerly-transparent sheet covering some cargo on the landing pad snapped off and floated like a ghost down the main street of the town. When it reached the end of the thoroughfare, it snagged on the top of the metal stairs that led into the mouth of a cave. The cave had been hastily fortified, but little "Computer says this place was built as kind of a mining sharecrop for the Tivan Corporation," Rocket explained. "The settlers were given all the land they wanted as long as they mined the nuclear material below. Not a bad deal from the looks of it." "The settlers would have hidden in the mine, then," Thor said, picking up Jarnbjorn and heading for the ship's exit. He turned to find Quill already checking his Element Guns and suiting up to head out with him. "If any are still alive, that's where they'll be." "Yea, running off into the dark, scary cave," Rocket shook his head. "I knew you two had a deathwish, but I dind't know it was this bad." "I am Groot," the tree said, flabbergasting the small mammal. "What do you mean you're going too!? Not ten minutes ago you said it was a terrible idea!" "I am Groot." "You changed your mind!? What made you do that? Seeing the terrible death cave!?" "I am Groot." The raccoon rubbed between his eyes with this thumb and forefinger in frustration, before picking up his guns, "Fine. Fine. Fine. If you want to die, I'm coming with. That way we can all die like idiots. At least then I won't have to listen to any of you any more." The four of them made their way to the airlock, and turned to Hawk, who was lounging on a chair in the galley, sipping a drink, with her feet up on the table. She shrugged at their glances, "What? I'm not getting killed. I'll give you guys a few hours. If you're not back in that time, I'm getting out of here for sure. Just fair warning." "How generous of you," Peter grimaced at her. "I can't believe you're just going to let people die in there." "They're already dead, Peter," she shot back. "All of you know that. And if you go in there, you're going to be dead as well." "Well, better to die trying to save people than die as a coward," he shrugged. "Better just not to die," she smiled and waved as the four of them left the ship.