Heroine ϟ Marvel [3]

10.0

CHAPTER ZERO

Aftermath

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SHI'AR GALAXY

If the galaxies had changed at all since the last time he had roamed the stars, Richard Rider couldn't see it now. Then again, all he saw was colourful space clouds of dust and star clusters in every direction. It looked fine. In his absence, everything seemed to stay the same. Rider willed the questions that popped up in his mind to go away so he could take it all in. He remembered waking up a few quadrants south of here, floating in space and not knowing how or when he got out of the Cancerverse. Worldmind wasn't responding to him. The last thing that Rich recalled before he blacked out was a rift tearing up the skies above him. The lights had blindsided him, before dragging his unconscious body in. Despite not knowing where the rift led, Richard didn't fight it. Wherever he would end up next had to be better than the Cancerverse. And he was right. Because this Nova was home.

Richard tightened his fists that were outstretched in front of him and rocketed forwards with a sonic boom. His golden aura of power intensified as he boosted past a group of small planets. He needed to make it back to Xandar. He had been fighting to stay alive in the Cancerverse for years — even though the dead never stayed dead for long in that dimension. Life was frozen in time down there. He was worn out. He wanted to go somewhere he knew well. Somewhere familiar. Safe. Worldmind, the Xandarian supercomputer in his helmet, hadn't said a word since he arrived. It was quiet the whole ride. Part of him was suspicious. The other part was relieved. Richard could finally hear his own voice in his head again. It told him to enjoy the moment while it lasted.

Richard heard the dull boom of something exploding in the distance. Curiosity gnawed at his brain and he looked down. The planet he was passing over was too far to see anything, so he flew closer to it. As soon as he entered the atmosphere, he heard it again. Boom! The roar of an energy blast — Richard knew the sound all too well. Taking a quick glance at his surroundings, Rich realised what sort of world he was on. The type where things were either dead or left for dead. He had half a mind to rocket away. He had better things to do. More important things. He had to go back to Xandar and let the Nova Corps know he was alive. The idea of reuniting with his team and friends warmed his heart a little. It also scared him. He had been gone a long time.

Boom!

Out of nowhere, an outpour of smoke and ash hit him right in the face. Richard coughed and stumbled back, waving his hands around in the air to get rid of the smog that suffocated him. It moved through the cracks on his helmet, stinging his eyes and burning his nostrils. He turned and groaned at the unpleasant feeling, before removing his helmet and walking away from the cloud of ash. When he breathed in the clearer air, he placed his helmet back on and pivoted on his feet, trying to pinpoint the cause of the explosions. He didn't want to alert anything to his presence, wary of what or who was behind the blasts. The technology in his Nova helmet worked well enough for him to scan the terrain. His head moved from left to right, squinting through the fog that was beginning to clear. His eyes widened when a single energy signature flashed on his display. Though it wasn't in front of him, but below him. As in, underground. Richard's interest spiked. He roamed the area for signs of wreckage. Found nothing. Then, he stumbled upon a large fissure in the ground. Big enough for someone to fall through. That would have explained how the person had ended up underground. He concluded this was where the smoke had came from earlier.

Boom!

Richard steadied himself when another blast almost knocked him off his feet. He cursed under his breath and took a closer look down in the pit through the cracks. That was when he heard it. Heard her. Whoever was down there was adamant on getting out. But they were getting tired. He could hear her ragged breathing as it echoed to the surface. The pauses between the blasts were getting longer. Rich listened to her as she yelled at nothing in particular, before shooting an energy blast at the rocks keeping her contained. He barely had time to dodge flying objects as they zipped out from the chasm. When Rich realised what had almost knocked him in the head, his heartbeat quickened. An aged alien skull, with a couple odd bones here and there.