About an hour after the gladiator-match
Finding the residency of my target was surprisingly easy: all I needed to do was pass by several of the guards in order to pick up on their surface thoughts, making them unwittingly direct me through the Grandmaster's Palace. With the guard's thoughts providing me with a literal mind map, Sterns and I quickly found ourselves ascending the many levels of the massive superstructure, rapidly making our way to the upper floors.
In order to not draw any unwanted attention, both Sterns and I had shrunk down using Cross Technology, and remained cloaked most of the time. As with the Time Stone inside Oliver's shrunk engine, the Mind Stone in my forehead didn't exhibit any limitations in its powers as a result of its altered size. Gleaning the thoughts of the aliens surrounding us remained as easy as interpreting the thoughts of humans had turned out to be, despite the fact that the universal translators merely worked on speech instead of actual thoughts.
Clearly, the primordial force of nature embedded in my helmet didn't care for such silly things as language barriers.
As for the more… physical barriers that we encountered during our stealth mission…
"Sterns."
"Yeah?"
"Do you see that massive metal gate in front of us?"
"Yeah?"
"I don't want to."
"You got it."
And with the push of a button, the previously imposing slabs of metal closing off the hallway were reduced to the size of a fingernail, allowing Sterns and I to freely continue our journey. A few feet away, Sterns pressed another button, the gate springing back into place with a lurch, and some malfunctioning components where the door had suddenly disconnected from the security systems in the walls.
It would take a while for anyone to notice, I knew: I could sense no organic minds in our vicinity, and Sterns had hacked the security feed. Due to the completely different programming language used on this alien planet, Sterns hadn't been able to completely take over the Palace's systems, but he had managed to disable any alarms, as well as putting the camera and sensor feeds on infinite loops.
And so we continued for another ten minutes, having used various elevators and stairs to ascend another twenty levels at least, until I came to a sudden stop. Feeling Sterns' questioning eyes on me, I quickly elaborated.
"Large group of organics, moving in our direction. Contact in less than two minutes. Kill your thrusters and hug the wall. I'll go see what they know." I spoke over our comms, getting a curt nod from Sterns before he swiftly followed my orders.
As he hid underneath his cloak, I instead flew upwards, hiding myself amongst the various deep rivets that ran across the ceiling and walls, my camo cloak smoothly adopting the surrounding color scheme and geometric patterns.
I didn't have to wait long for my targets to arrive, a half dozen aliens in brightly colored armor walking down the hall in a smooth lockstep, the glaring lights of the Palace glinting off their futuristic forms as they moved as one. Their appearance made them appear disciplined; each and every one of them as cool as a cucumber, fierce determination running through their veins (or whatever the hell their alien biology had as an alternative).
Their minds however…
'Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit…'
'Man, I really should've saved up my sick days. Maybe then I could've gotten myself out of this mess…'
'Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit…'
'This is gonna suck. His mood is hard enough to read as it is, but after tonight's show…'
'Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit…'
'Fuck my life. I didn't even get to say goodbye to my mother…'
'OH SHIT, OH SHIT, OH SHIT…'
Their well-concealed gibbering almost made me chuckle aloud, before I controlled myself. According to whom their thoughts were focused on, these guys were on their way to my target. Since I was on my way to my target as well, and wished to speak to him in private, I couldn't have that. Still, considering my arsenal, there was no need to escalate the situation with violence.
Not yet, anyways.
With a flex of my will, the Mind Stone's power flooded me, and I took a hold of the minds underneath me. Just as I had done with the security forces in the arena during Beta-Ray Bill's match, I pulled and pushed against their minds, causing them to halt in their tracks as one. Exerting my will over their terrified minds, I once again started pulling at their thoughts, supplanting their ideas with my own.
For a moment, there was no movement, before the man in front of the group turned on his heel to face his companions.
"Right! Break time! To the mess hall, move it!"
"Yes sir!"
And without a fuss (and with mixed feelings of relief and confusion) the group of guards did a collective 180, and started walking back the way they came from, hurriedly moving away from their original destination.
Dropping to the floor, I shared a look with Sterns, before we quickly made our way towards my target. It took us only five minutes, two more floors, one blast shield and three energy fields before we finally arrived at my target's quarters, who was facing away from the arched doorway leading to his spacious room.
Enlarging myself to my full size, I started walking towards him, his head tilting somewhat as he noticed the sound of my heavy footfalls. Half-turning in order to face me, I saw my target's eyes narrow, while I couldn't quite keep a grin from showing on my concealed face.
"Greetings!" I called out in what I hoped was a non-threatening manner (though the fact that I was an unknown deep inside the most secure building on this planet would likely make me seem to be a threat no matter how I presented myself).
My target's eyes narrowed, expertly studying what was visible of my armored form from underneath my camo-cloak.
"Who are you, stranger?" Beta-Ray Bill growls out.
"A potential ally, should you be willing to listen to my proposal." I reply in a light tone, but the Korbinite doesn't let his guard down, remaining silent for a moment.
I use those few seconds in order to walk a couple of steps further into the Champion's room, observing the cyborg alien in the low lights embedded in the ceiling, and whatever little light comes in from the Sakaarian nightlife through his spacious windows. The cybernetic Korbinite is sitting in what almost appears to be a mix of the chair/mobile prison that Thor was held captive in, and Darth Vader's meditation chamber. Thick robotic limbs rise up from the back of the "chair" and are working repairs on Bill's artificial body, most notably his arm and ribcage, where the Kharadar had injured him.
Remember that scene in the second Terminator movie, where Arnie removes the skin on his forearm, showing the robotic appendage underneath? Think something like that, but instead of spindly hydraulics, imagine a far more solid structure, along with blinking electronic lights and lines, Bill's artificial skin pulled away much like the communicator panel on Buzz Lightyear's armor.
And his chest… the ancient Vikings are thought to have had a ritualized form of execution, called the Blood Eagle. I'll spare you the gory details, but it basically involved breaking open someone's ribcage and pulling out their lungs in order to create "wings". It seemed that Bill's body was capable of much the same, though without any blood or apparent discomfort, the alien studying me with a critical gaze even as his metallic ribcage was on full display, two robotic limbs digging deep into his side in order to perform repairs.
However, as gruesomely fascinating as his body is, it's his mind that's even more intriguing. During his match, as high-up amongst a massive crowd as I had been, it had been impossible for me to hone in on his thoughts and peruse them with enough subtlety that he wouldn't notice.
But standing here in front of him, with neither distance or hundreds of other minds between us, I can get an unobstructed look into the mind of Beta-Ray Bill… and holy shit is it a dark place. Hatred, pain, loss, self-loathing and general bloodlust flood my ethereal senses like a tsunami of angst. Clearly, being enslaved and forced to fight to the death on a regular basis while his people are god knows where and probably all dead, hasn't done his emotional stability any favors.
But other than what I feel from his mind, it's how his mind feels that's interesting. It starkly reminds me of Phineas, but more… closed off, or layered. As if I'm looking at a brain like Phineas', but one which is entombed in layers and layers of opaque and durable material.
Feeling his eyes on me, I give him a slight shrug.
"I apologize if I caught you at a bad time, Beta-Ray Bill. I'd offer to return later, but considering I am not exactly a guest here, there might not be a later. So I'd like to discuss my proposal here and now, if you wouldn't mind."
For a long moment, the Korbinite remains silent and completely unmoving (other than a flick of his eyes towards Sterns when the scientist is a tad too obvious in his staring at Bill's systems). Finally, after what feels like minutes, the Champion starts talking in a deep, gruff voice.
The voice, combined with his horse-like face, reminds me of Ron Perlman, to be honest.
"My appearance… it does not… disturb you?"
I chuckle as I take a seat on one of the couches, showing of a relaxed appearance as I lean into the pillows, resting my hands behind my helmet.
"Of course not! I do not care for how people look. Hell, my best friend has a head thrice the size of what's normal for my species, and another one doesn't have a body at all! Or well, he has several that he uses whenever it suits him, but most of the time he's happy being the digitized consciousness inhabiting my fortresses' systems. And I myself do not exactly have what you would call… an average build."
Seeing his eyes track slowly from me to Sterns and back again (I get slightly unnerved by the fact that he does not seem to need to blink), Bill remains silent for a few moments again, before he lets out a small grunt.
"I see. Well then, 'potential ally'. I have but a few questions for you. What brings you here? And why should I listen to you? You are clearly no friend to the Grandmaster, or there would have been no need for you to sneak into my quarters. What is to stop me from raising the alarms and having you removed from the Palace?" Bill growls lowly, shifting slightly in his life-support chair/repair station.
At his movement, the robotic limbs smoothly fold away, while the exposed flaps of his skin fall back into place again, sealing themselves smoothly with a slight hiss and a small burst of steam as the artificial Korbinite raises fully from his chair.
He towers over my sitting form, powerful arms crossed over a broad chest, the orange flesh perfectly hiding the engines and reactors underneath. In the comics, those reactors that powered him had a potential output that, when fully unleashed, had allowed Bill to go against Galactus himself, if only for a brief moment (I'm actively controlling myself not to drool in the presence of such powerful technology).
In response to his slight intimidation tactic, I come to my feet as well, subtly (or not so subtly) showing him that for all his size, I still tower nearly two feet over him, while being broader at the chest as well. However, after a brief stare down that couldn't have lasted for more than a few seconds, I slowly sit back down again, arms spread out over the back of the couch, my entire posture as non-threatening as I can make it.
"Because on this entire planet, the only ones that aren't your enemy, Bill, are my associates and I. These people, they do not care for your wellbeing or even your survival. All they care about is that you give them a good fight. Now, whether that fight ends with your opponent's guts spilled on the floor, or yours… well, let's just say it ain't exactly high on their list of concerns."
Bill bristles at my level tone and the reminder of his fate, but he can't exactly dispute what I've just said, so he turns his back on me as walks towards one of his windows, partly as an insult to me (by turning his back he's telling me he doesn't see me as a threat) and partly in order to cool his head.
"Do you always recruit others by reminding them how miserable they are?" the Korbinite bites out as he stares at the Sakaar City skyline.
"Honestly? Yes. It is much easier to recognize an opportunity to move forwards once you've recognized how backwards your current situation truly is." I reply easily, not surprised at all when the dour Champion scoffs at my words.
"And let me guess. In this case, moving forwards means being subservient to you?"
"An ally to me. I have employees, friends even, Beta-Ray Bill. But I do not have sycophants or slaves. Unlike a certain someone you and I both know."
For a moment, the Korbinite remains silent, before he looks at me over his shoulder with a calculating gaze.
"The Grandmaster." He guesses, prompting a smile from me.
"Indeed. The Grandmaster. What has he promised you, Bill? Win the Contest of Champions and you're free to go? Participate in his little death-matches, entertain the crowds with your bloodshed, and he'll allow you to go on your merry way?" I say in a mocking tone as I rise from the couch and approach him with slow steps, my hands folded behind my back.
Seeing his grudging nod, I allow my grin to grow even wider as I come to a halt beside him, my eyes raking across the futuristic cityscape far below me.
"Come now Bill. You cannot tell me you actually believed him, did you?"
For a moment, the cybernetic alien seems to struggle to find the words, his fists clenching and unclenching as he stares out the window with unseeing, unblinking eyes.
"He vowed to me that I could return to guide my people once I had demonstrated my valor in battle. He vowed that, once I had proven to him that I was worthy of the title of Champion, he would provide me with a ship and coordinates, a debt I would've repaid by fighting in his arena. He vowed to me, on his honor, that I would see my people again, if only I would but fight for them. And for him."
"Honor? Bill, the man has no honor! He is millions of years old, how many beings do you think have died for his amusement ever since he created Sakaar? Hundreds? Thousands? Hundreds of thousands? How many times has he offered freedom to one of them, I wonder. You cannot tell me that you honestly believed that he would allow his prize fighter to simply… walk off. All that revenue, all of that amusement… and he would allow you to just walk away?"
"What else was I to do?!" Bill suddenly roars, whirling towards me, his face drawn in a snarl and his hands balled into fists at his side.
"You think I had not thought of those things myself?! That I am foolish enough not to know when I'm being used?! Of course the man would break his word, but what other options did I have?! The ships are locked up, the portals guarded, and my crash had damaged both my ship and myself! I had no choice but to fight! Every! Damned! Day!"
And with a final roar of pain and frustration, Bill raises his fist, cocks it back, and in a single turn, slams it into the window hard enough for spider cracks to form along the entire length of the highly durable material.
As the Korbinite leans forwards, allowing his forehead to rest on the cool glass, I subtly wave Sterns away, who after a moment returns to his place by the entrance, his six robotic limbs once again returning to hide underneath his wide robes.
"I apologize for bringing up these old pains, Bill. You have been done a great injustice, your time spent in captivity here yet another sordid chapter in the tragedy that has become the history of your people. I do not-"
"Save your silver tongue and smooth lies, Word-Smith. Like I said: I'm not dumb enough to not be aware when I'm being used. You've succeeded in reminding me how backwards my situations is, like you said, despite my best efforts to forget during these last years. Now comes the part where you spin a pretty picture of how you're offering an opportunity to go forwards, so that afterwards, I can finally kick you out for disturbing what little peace I have left. Go ahead, oh my mysterious ally. Tell me how consigning myself to being your attack-dog will make everything better for me." Beta-Ray Bill says bitterly.
As I look for the right words to say in order to sway Bill to my side, I once again explore the surface thoughts of his mind, searching for anything that can give me a clue as to what I need to say in order to not get the Grandmaster's security forces called down upon my head.
And right there, at the center of his maelstrom of self-loathing, I find what I need in order to get the Champion of the Korbinites fighting by my side.
"I'd like to Bill. Really, I do. God knows you've deserved some good news after all the shit you've been through. But I can't tell you I'm going to make everything better for you, because that would just be a blatant lie. In fact, things are likely to get even worse should you join me." I say with a sigh as I lean against the cracked window, my gaze pointed towards my booted feet.
I can feel the confusion rolling off of the Korbinite as he regards me warily, before I have to hide my smile as I can feel it shift towards curiosity instead.
"And what, exactly, are you offering that's worse than being forced to fight for every new dawn in this hellish pit? For that matter, if what you're offering is so horrible, then why would I want to agree to it in the first place?" Bill growls out as he studies me.
"Well, it's worse than fighting in this hellhole, because if you agree to follow me, you'll end up fighting everyone, everywhere. Entire armies stand between me and my nemesis, ranging from Kree to Chitauri to the native Sakaarians, and they aren't going to do me the courtesy of remaining huddled together in the same place. If I wish to meet my enemies in battle, I will have traverse the length and breadth of the entire Galaxy, moving from one inhospitable place to the next. And you'd want to join me despite all that because of two reasons."
Pushing off the window, I raise up a single finger, looking the Korbinite dead in the eye.
"First, we'll keep a look-out for your people. I am not vowing that we'll find them. I am not vowing that, if we do, they'll be alive. But I do promise that we'll try. And should we find the other Korbinites, then you'll finally know what has become of your people. If they have perished during the time that you have been separated from the fleet, then we shall give them a proper burial according to your customs and traditions. Should they be alive, then I offer them refuge within my own solar system. There are several moons there which my people are incapable of colonizing, but which would make a more than adequate New Korbin for your people." I say in a deadly serious voice, mentally pushing all of my conviction, all of my honesty to the alien in front of me.
I can feel Bill's suspicions waver, hope blooming inside him against his will at the prospect of finally removing that gnawing anxiety that has been a constant companion to him for these past years, of finally ridding himself of the pain of not-knowing.
"You have that kind of power? To promise unknown refugees an entire moon?" Bill asks skeptically, neither his voice nor his face betraying any of the emotions hidden inside of him.
"As I have said before, Beta-Ray Bill: I am far from average amongst my people. My friend and I may have found our way to Sakaar, but do not take this as a sign that my species has discovered interstellar travel. Only a sub-species of my race has managed to create a base on my planet's only satellite, unknown to the majority of my people and mostly due to interference from the Kree. Many of my people still think that interstellar travel is not achievable using conventional science and technology, though I'm trying to dissuade them from such notions. As such, many valuable moons and planets have only been observed from afar, and for many of them there are no colonization projects drawn up. So yes, Bill. I can offer your people a moon."
I can tell that he's tempted already, but his experiences have jaded him enough to remain wary of my offer, his unblinking pupiless eyes remaining fixed on my faceplate.
"And the second reason for why you think I'll accept?"
"Because of one of those armies that stand between me and my nemesis: the Fire Demons of Muspelheim, led by none other than Surtur, prophesized reckoning of Asgard… and the Destroyer of Korbin. Your homeworld."
A tidal wave of sheer fucking rage slams into every fiber of my being, my mind, body and soul shaking underneath this veritable onslaught of hatred rolling off of the alien in front of me like a fiery tornado. It feels like the equivalent of staring into the sun with my mental senses, so I quickly withdraw my power, using the Mind Stone in order to shield my psyche against Bill's rage, all the while sending cool, calming thoughts to the mini-Leviathan that had gotten worried inside his tank in Oliver's trailer.
Blinking the metaphorical spots from my mind's eye, I focus back on the source of that titanic amount anger, and what I see is somehow even scarier than what I've just experienced.
Bill hasn't moved. His hands are still kept loosely at his side. His face is completely and utterly blank. And he still hasn't blinked. But those eyes of his…
In a tone colder than the depth of space, Beta-Ray Bill speaks only four little words, and yet the barely restrained fury is enough to raise the hackles on my neck.
"When do we start?"
Fun Fact: Interestingly enough, Thor: Ragnarok was a reunion for part of the OG Jurassic Park cast. There's Jeff Goldblum, of course, but in a blink-or-you'll-miss-it cameo, we also see Sam Neill (Dr. Alan Grant) during the Asgardian play of Loki's death, acting as Odin. In that same scene, Matt Damon plays Loki, while Luke Hemsworth plays Chris Hemsworth.
AN: I am sorry this is so short, but as I've said before, I'm knee deep in exam preparations. Hell, I shouldn't have actually written this much in the first place, since I still have an entire research paper to write! So yeah, again, sorry about the length, but I really wanted to write, looked at the time and thought that this was a decent enough spot to cut the chapter. As for future updates, I have exams until February, so they'll be sporadic at best. Until then, I hope you have had a wonderful New Years, cheers!
I would like to express my thanks to Miu, Justlovereadin, Daniel Dorfman, Carn Krauss, Samuel Carson, Thordur Hrafn, ReaperScythe and Fakhrurrozi for their continued support! It really does mean a lot to me, so thanks again!