The Last Shifter (a Loki romance)

Chapter 98

"Excuse me." They all looked up at me.

"Who are you?"

"An interested ally."

"Interested in what?"

"Keeping that stone from falling into the wrong hands. The only ones I truly trust are my own. So," I extended my hand, "I'll be taking that." I could see Nova Corps officials closing in. Those that remained, anyway, and with the fleet wiped out, that probably wasn't much.

"Guardians of the Galaxy." The one in charge spoke up, "Why don't we move this conversation somewhere more private?"

I disliked being associated with these 'Guardians', but it served a purpose. It got me a ride back to Nova Corps headquarters. On that ride, I distanced myself from the others and looked out upon the devastation done to the city. It was horrible, but in my heart, I knew that it would be the best case scenario if Thanos got his hands on the stones. This was nothing. Nothing compared to what he had done to my home. When we arrived at headquarters, we were greeted by a group of people dressed in blue and led by a blonde woman who appeared to be in her fifties or sixties.

"Welcome, Guardians. We are indebted to you."

"Let's get one thing straight. She's not a guardian." Peter pointed at me, "She wants the stone."

"Hey, I know you!" My eyes snapped to a member of the greeting party. Dey. "You're the one who stole my ship!" Everyone suddenly had a hand on a weapon.

"I had my reasons. I brought it back too," I tossed him the keys, "You'll find it not far from the crash site." Dey was stunned.

"It doesn't matter whether or not you brought it back, you still committed a crime."

"Pffft, and this lot hasn't? I know that less than two days ago, they were in deep space. About where the Kiln is, if I had to guess. That's a very high-security prison."

"Their crimes have been negated due to their actions against Ronan."

"Their actions against Ronan would've been for nothing if not for me. I don't care how long they could hold the stone, they were still in contact with the ground. The only thing keeping that destructive energy from expanding was me." I yanked off a pair of rings and held up my hand so they could see the burn marks the hot metal had left on my fingers. That shut them up fast.

"Who are you?"

"Nobody of significance."

"I beg to differ. Not many known about these stones, and those that do do not know much about how to use them. Containing the kind of destruction caused by this stone requires special knowledge. Ancient knowledge that had not been seen in this universe for thousands of years."

"So is this a nice way of telling me that my age is showing?"

"You certainly aren't denying it."

"I don't like where this is going. Two minutes ago, you wanted to arrest me. Suffice it to know that yes, I am ancient, and yes, I do have a strong connection with those stones, but in order to maintain my semi-anonymity the rest must remain a secret. Now, you lot seem to think that you can protect it, I can see it in your minds. I would like to inspect that facility before I allow you to house this stone."

"Certainly."

"We have a request." The large brute spoke up for the first time, gently pushing the raccoon forward.

"Groot died in the crash." Was all he was able to say before he broke down in tears again.

"We may be able to help. Groots are quite resilient, if a few twigs are planted, he should grow back. Come, let's see what we can do. A few officers led the large man and the raccoon away.