Journey to Vanaheim

Prolouge

Vanaheim was a beautiful planet. It was like Asgard in a way that made Thor homesick. Which made sense, given that the two worlds used to be in close contact. What separated Vanaheim was that there was a lot less gold and a lot more wood. While the Asgardians had been all about conquest and glory, the Vanir's values revolved around the natural world and the manipulation of Sedir, the magic generated by the planet.

Peter thought it looked like a nice place for a vacation, and the gang would have to come back when this was all over.  Gamora would have liked it.

Gamora was what had brought the Guardians to the arboreal planet. Ever since the 2014 version of Gamora had run off after the final battle against Thanos, the Guardians of the Galaxy (with their newest member, Thor) had been attempting to track her down. Desperate to regain their lost teammate, even if she had no idea they were a team, the Guardians had arrived on Vanaheim with the promise of information that would help find Gamora, in exchange for a favor.

The Guardians approached the palace of the Vanir royal family. Like most of the buildings in Vanaheim, it was woven from live trees and vines using Vanir nature magic. Two guards stepped outside to escort the team to the throne room, where the king and queen waited to make their bargain.

Queen Salainen and King Luonto were the epitome of regality for a planet so deep in touch with nature. They both sat on thrones as tall as trees with curling branches growing from the top. Their crowns, which appeared to be woven from plants, had branches too, they climbed above the monarchs' heads to create the image of deer antlers growing from them.

Peter stepped forwards, he'd seen space leaders of every type, and he wasn't about to be intimidated by the tree hugger kind. "Your majesties," he started with a charming grin, "I'm Star-Lord. My team and I have come to take you up on your offer."

"The Guardians of the Galaxy," The queen said, a slow smile creeping over her face. She flicked her wrist, and the branches on her throne moved down, growing flowers shaped like cups, filled with golden nectar. "Won't you please have a drink? I'm sure you must be exhausted from your journey."

Thor, Mantis, Drax, Rocket, and Groot all stepped up and plucked the drinks from the throne, but Nebula and Peter stood still.

Nebula locked eyes with the king, "What do you know about Gamora?" she asked.

The king raised an eyebrow, "Skipping the pleasantries, are we? Very well. Our researches have been able to locate your sister's last known coordinates. We are willing to share these coordinates with you, once you've completed your end of the deal."

Rocket looked up from his flower cup, "And uh... what exactly is our end of the deal?"

"We need you to return something that was stolen from us." Said Queen Salainen.

Rocket chugged the rest of his nectar, "A little less vague, please?"

"My wife and I have two children," Said King Luonto, "our son, Paikka, who is off completing his studies, and our daughter, Kaunis, who was stolen from us shortly after her birth, sixteen years ago. We need you to bring her home."

Drax turned his attention away from his drink, "Who stole her?"

"We are royalty," responded Salainen, "we have many enemies. Even now, there are bands of rebels scattered across this world, plotting the end of our regime, they will no doubt attempt to stop you on your mission. After the decimation, this planet nearly fell into anarchy. To maintain order, we performed a ritual to strengthen our family's connection to the Sedir. In doing so, we strengthened Kaunis' power, and were able track traces of it to the planet she was hidden on."

"Our people are not travelers;" said Luonto, "we rarely send anyone to leave Vanaheim. And all of them just regained their loved ones after losing them for five years, we cannot afford to put them at risk again. That is why we sent for you, the heroes who saved the galaxy time after time."

"While I appreciate the flattery," Peter said, "this girl must have her own life by now. She probably has no idea she's related to you, and you already have an heir. Why do you need her back?"

"I would think you of all people could understand," the king's voice was still strong and dignified, but there seemed to be almost a plea to it. "to long for family lost to you. To be so desperate to see them again, even if they don't know you. We have the same trouble, and we can both get back what we've lost."

Rocket scowled up at the monarchs, he didn't trust rich people, this seemed a bit shady, "I'm sorry, but you want us to nab some girl who probably doesn't even want to come here, while being chased by gangs of rebels, and for what? Coordinates to a place Gamora's almost definitely long gone from by now? I don't think—"

"We'll do it." Peter interrupted.

The queen's smile grew, "We thought you would. She's on a planet I believe you're quite familiar with, it's known by its natives as Earth."