Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Chapter 8

"Are Guardians expecting attack?"

Peter shrugged. "Something like that."

Cosmo muttered something into her helmet's communication line before trotting to the head of the group, barking at the locals to clear the way for their Guardians of the Galaxy, an order that was followed with awe.

Soon enough, they'd made it back to base—a five-story building that housed all their needs, from quarters to, well, mini bars. But those were used sparingly. Usually.

They found Kraglin in the common room, whistling with no arrow in sight, but upon their entrance, he stopped to welcome them with a grin.

"Hey! Back so—" He was cut off as the Yaka arrow came flying out from down the hall, wild from its owner's lack of concentration, and the team was forced to duck as their friend hastily tried to reign in his tech.

"Oh, sorry!" Kraglin gave a few breathy whistles until the arrow flew close enough for him to snatch it out of the air. "It gets like that sometimes."

"All the time." Nebula corrected dryly, shooting a wary look at the arrow before stepping into the common area and directing her attention to Peter. "So, is this a new tactic you're trying out?"

Peter narrowed his eyes. "Tactic?"

"Yes." Nebula's brow furrowed as she moved to the side of the room and folded her arms over her chest. "I'd call it 'Not Consulting Your Crew Before Promising a Bat Woman We Will Find Her Missing Children Who Disappeared Without a Trace.'"

Drax gave a grunt of agreement as he pulled a half-eaten bag of zarg nuts from the cushion of a chair before taking a seat. "I also question the logic of this mission."

"I am Groot."

Peter sighed. "Okay, I'm sorry." He paused, his gaze falling to Rocket as he waited for the raccoon to chime in with some cutting remark.

But Rocket barely shrugged, his gaze on the floor and his arms folded across his chest. "Yeah. It's probably stupid. And dangerous."

Peter was tempted to question his lack of vulgarity and flare, but help arrived before he had the chance.

"I think it's nice," Mantis put in hesitantly, offering Peter a hopeful smile as she took a seat in the chair across from Drax.

Drax narrowed his eyes. "That means nothing. You are his sister."

Mantis glared at him. "Shut up!"

"Hey, hey." Peter raised a hand to settle them, and thankfully, the room fell silence. "I know how it looks, but...were we really not going to take the case?"

"Yes." Nebula's brow remained set. "Even their mother didn't have a clue to where they'd gone. They probably got lost in the woods and died."

That got her a round of pointed looks, but the woman shrugged them off. "What? Survival of the fittest is applicable to any population."

Drax laughed. "I agree with that! Which is why we should hunt down the golden man instead and kill him. Because he's weak."

"Just stop thinking about the 'golden man' for one second," Peter snapped. "We're not here to..." He sighed, forcing in a deep breath. "Look, maybe it isn't the easiest mission, but we've fought Thanos. Finding two kids should be...less difficult than fighting Thanos, but that's not the point. None of you feel any sympathy for a couple of kids who might have been snatched up from their loving homes"—he looked at Nebula—"away from their parents who couldn't do anything to save them?" He looked at Drax. "And for everyone else who doesn't fit into those categories, just take a moment to think about what 'family' means to you. Because I know we were all searching for a family, until we found each other. These kids don't need to search; they just need to be found."