Guardians of the Galaxy [1]

6

Screeching sounds could be heard in the distance as Astra and her companions followed Carina into a room filled with large glass cubicles that contained everything the Collector owned. They included artifacts, live beings of different species, even a dog with a Terran spacesuit on.

"Okay, this isn't creepy at all," Rocket commented.

"We house the galaxy's largest collection of fauna, relics, and species of all matter," Carina told them as they walked through the displays into the far side of the room. "I present to you Taneleer Tivan, the Collector."

An old-looking man with white hair, a white furry cloak, and black sunglasses with spectacles - at least that's what they looked like - turned around. He took his glasses off as he walked toward Gamora.

"Oh, my dear Gamora," he said, raising her hand up to kiss it. "How wonderful to meet in the flesh."

"Let's bypass the formalities, Tivan," Gamora said in an unwelcoming tone. "We have what we discussed."

But the Collector looked past Gamora and straight at Groot. "What is that thing there?"

"I am Groot," said Groot.

The Collector walked toward Groot. "I never thought I'd meet a Groot. Sir, you must allow me to pay you now so that I may own your carcass. At the moment of your death, of course."

"I am Groot," Groot replied.

"Why?" Rocket interjected. "So he could turn you into a frickin' chair?"

"That's your pet?" the Collector asked Groot.

"His what?!" Rocket prepared to take out his blaster.

Astra quickly stepped in front of him. "Tivan," she said impatiently, "we have been halfway across the galaxy, retrieving this Orb."

The Collector looked at her and his expression changed. "Ah, dear Astra," he said. "The sister of Gamora. How wonderful to meet you too."

He lifted up her hand to kiss it, but she wrenched it out of his grip. "Save it, Tivan. We have the Orb and we're not leaving 'till we're paid."

"Very well, then," he said. "Let us see what you brought."

Quill took the Orb out of his pocket, dropped, it, picked it back up, and handed it to the Collector.

The Collector put the Orb into a device that could open it for them to see what's inside. As it did its work, he addressed the group.

"Oh, my new friends, before creation itself," he began, "there were six singularities." He pressed a switch and the device started spinning the Orb. The atmosphere quickly turned purple, with a sphere of purple circles surrounding them. "Then the universe exploded into existence and the remnants of these systems were forged into concentrated ingots. Infinity Stones." The purple circles turned into holograms of the explosion that created the universe and pictures of the six Infinity Stones.

The Stones were not pictured as small individual stones. For one, the Reality Stone was pictured as a blob of red liquid. The Space Stone was inside a blue cube.

And Astra knew why he was making a big deal out of the Infinity Stones. The purple Power Stone was inside the Orb, and Ronan wanted to use it to destroy Xandar with one blast.

"These stones, it seems, can only be brandished by beings of extraordinary strength," the Collector continued. "Observe." He gestured behind them and they all turned to look at the holograms behind them. "These carriers can use the Stone to mow down entire civilizations like wheat in a field. A hologram showed a huge Celestial being using the Power Stone in a rod similar to Ronan's Cosmi-Rod to touch the ground and destroy a planet's entire civilization.