The Girl Who Held the Universe in her Hands | marvel [1] ✔

EIGHT

CHAPTER EIGHT
' SOME SORT OF DOG . '

Ash sat in the corner, watching Drax, Rocket and Groot. Her hands gripped the arms of the chair, and her body reclined like she was sitting on a throne. With a harsh stare, her eyes flickered from the men and towards Gamora and Quill as they entered. Chaos erupted, causing her to jump to her feet. Ash drove forward, using her magic to throw Drax off Rocket.

"Stop it!" Gamora shouted as she and Quill ran to her aid. Ash stood in front of Rocket with her hands in the air, blocking his view of Drax and blocking Rocket's weapon.

"Woah! Woah! What are you doing?" Quill shouted.

"This vermin speaks of affairs he knows nothing about!" Drax roared, pointing accusingly.

"That is true!" Rocket replied angrily.

"He has no respect!"

"That is also true!"

"Hold on! Hold on!" Quill moved forward again.

"Keep calling me vermin, tough guy! You just wanna laugh at me like everyone else!" Rocket finished, shoulders falling with resignation.

"Rocket, no one is laughing at you," Ash corrected softly. "You've had too much to drink, alright?"

"He thinks I'm some stupid thing!"

"No, rocket-"

"He does! Well, I didn't ask to get made! I didn't ask to be torn apart, and put back together, over and over and turned into some... some little monster!"

Ash's eyes softened, and she bent down to his level. "Rocket, no one's calling you a monster."

"He called me vermin! She called me rodent! Let's see if you can laugh after five or six good shots to your frickin' face!" Rocket pointed his weapon at Drax again, and Ash pushed the gun away from the group.

"Four billion units, Rocket! Suck it up for one more fucking night, and you'll never have to work again."

Rocket hesitated for a moment before lowering his gun. "Fine. But I can't promise when all this is over I'm not gonna kill every last one of you jerks."

Ash sighed, bowing her head for a moment before rising to her feet.

"See?" Quill turned to face them all. "That's exactly why none of you have any friends! Five seconds after you meet somebody, you're already trying to kill them!"

"We have travelled halfway across the quadrant, and Ronan is no closer to being dead." Drax turned and left in anger, shaking his head.

"Drax!" Quill called after him.

"Let him go," Gamora dismissed. "We don't need him."

Ash glanced behind them when she felt a presence and her eyes found a woman. "Milady Gamora," she began. "I'm here to fetch you for my master."

"Fetch?" Ash repeated. "What are you, some sort of dog?"

The lady escorted them to the Collector's home with no reply.

"Okay, this isn't creepy at all," Rocket spoke. Ash took steps further into the room, spinning as she took in the artefacts.

"We house the galaxy's largest collection of fauna, relics, and species of all manner," the lady informed. She walked them to a man who waited for them amid the hoards. "I present to you, Taneleer Tivan, the Collector."

Gamora met him in the middle, Ash hanging back with the others but watching the man with narrowed eyes.

"Oh, my dear Gamora. How wonderful to meet in the flesh." The Collector kissed Gamora's hand.