"Damn it, what the hell just happened?" Star-Lord grunted, prying Drax's heavy boot off his face with great effort. His expression was a mix of frustration and nausea. "Drax, I nearly lost my lunch back there."
"Mhm," Drax replied, still dizzy from the impact, ignoring Star-Lord's whining.
"Yow!" Star-Lord suddenly yelped in pain. He looked down to see that something sharp had just crushed his hand. In the dim light filtering down through the hole, he caught sight of a green figure stepping past him. Judging by the familiar weight and the unmistakable high heel… yep, that was her. "Hey, Gamora! You just stepped on my hand!"
"My apologies," Gamora said flatly, not even looking back.
"Yeah, sure," Star-Lord muttered under his breath. Watching her head toward the hatch, he couldn't help but ask, "Where are you going?"
"To finish what I came here to do." Gamora didn't waste another word. She pulled the hatch open—only to find Nebula standing there.
The air between the two sisters practically sparked with static.
"Gamora, today we end this," Nebula said, her voice dripping with pure, unfiltered hatred. All she'd ever wanted was a sister… but Gamora had only ever greeted her with cold indifference.
"You couldn't beat me before. Do you really think that three years later, you can now?" Gamora's voice was calm, her eyes locked on Nebula's. She paused briefly, her lips curling ever so slightly. "My dear sister."
Something inside Nebula snapped at those words. With a roar, she lunged forward, a gleaming dagger appearing in her hand.
Gamora ducked the strike, her own short blade flashing into her grip as she swept it toward Nebula's midsection.
The clash of metal rang through the cavern—clang, clang, clang—echoing endlessly in the vast darkness.
"Go, Gamora!" Star-Lord yelled from the ship's hatch, pumping his fist in encouragement.
"Shut your mouth, Quill!" Gamora's voice came back sharp and annoyed.
Star-Lord's smile froze on his face, awkward and sheepish.
"Terrifying creatures, aren't they?" Drax murmured beside him. Then, as if realizing Quill might not understand, he clarified, "I mean… women."
The two terrifying creatures kept trading blows. Despite Nebula's cybernetic enhancements that boosted her strength and resilience, Gamora's agility was relentless, her attacks coming from angles no one could predict.
"Now!" Nebula seized her chance, grabbing Gamora's wrist in a crushing grip. "Sister, it ends here."
"Oh? I don't think so," Gamora replied with a cold smile. Her arm might have been trapped, but she was far from beaten. Like a serpent, she coiled up Nebula's body, her long, powerful legs locking tightly around her sister's neck in a deadly chokehold.
"Oh my…" Star-Lord's eyes widened as his mind drifted into places definitely not suitable for children.
"I can feel what you're thinking, Quill. You're disgusting," Mantis' voice appeared in his head.
"Haha, come on, this is just what any normal man would—" Star-Lord started, but he cut himself off, suddenly aware of how bad that sounded.
"It's fine, I can keep a secret. Think whatever you want," Mantis teased, her voice lilting in his mind.
That was it—Star-Lord's face turned beet-red, nearly the color of raw liver. If it weren't for his thick skin, he might have been blushing all over.
"Aaagh!" Nebula roared, thrashing wildly to break free, hammering punches into Gamora's body. Neither was willing to let go, and the struggle sent them both tumbling to the ground, rolling violently deeper into the cavern.
Star-Lord, Drax, and Mantis scrambled after them, but the sisters were unstoppable, rolling and grappling all the way to the cavern's end. The sounds of their fight echoed weirdly through the stone—loud, rhythmic impacts that could almost be mistaken for… well… something else entirely.
At last, they stopped.
Gamora and Nebula were still locked in a furious struggle, but the three who followed didn't focus on them. Their eyes were drawn instead to something far more chilling—a massive mound of bones in the shadows ahead.
Under the base of an ancient statue lay countless skeletons of strange, nightmarish creatures. Bones were heaped without care, filling the chamber with an oppressive, deathly aura. No one could have imagined that such a beautiful planet would hide something so utterly horrifying.
"Kill me!" Nebula rasped, her voice breaking. "Let's finish this once and for all. As my sister, take my life with your own hands. That'll make you happy, won't it?"
Hearing those words, Gamora's legs loosened instinctively, giving Nebula a gasp of air.
"What are you doing? Kill me! End it! Then my sister—the one who's always been stronger—will grow even stronger still. The blood in your veins will turn to ice…"
Nebula's voice rose in a furious, almost broken howl.
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