Xandar, Nova Corps headquarters.
The Nova Corps' leaders looked at Sebastian Shaw with doubt in their eyes. They were somewhat unconvinced that the super-powerful cosmic being Peter and his friends had described, someone who could face Thanos directly, was this frail-looking young man. He was so young he could almost be called a teenager in appearance.
They had originally thought the person Peter was referring to would resemble Beta Ray Bill who stood behind Sebastian. Or rather, when Peter first announced their arrival at the headquarters, the Nova Corps' leaders had naturally assumed it was Bill who would be their champion. However, Peter later revealed it was not the horse-faced alien warrior but the human in front of them who looked so ordinary. This revelation caused the Nova Corps' leaders to panic internally.
Could he really do it?
This was a question shared by all of the Nova Corps' leaders present in the room.
Sebastian clearly saw the doubts and skepticism of the Nova Corps leaders written on their faces. But he had no intention of explaining anything to them or proving himself. He was also somewhat dismissive of the Nova Corps' current defense plan against Thanos. In his view from what he could see, the most reliable plan to resolve the Nova Corps's problems was to hand over the Power Stone to him directly. He could control it properly and pass the message to Thanos. This would naturally resolve the crisis on Xandar without any bloodshed.
"Peter, can he really stand up to Thanos and his forces?"
Looking at Rhomann Dey who was the Nova Corps's captain, Peter nodded again with confidence. "Rhomann, I have told you this many times already. I saw him fight Thanos with my own eyes on Knowhere. He completely repelled Thanos and his forces. You cannot always judge a person by their appearance alone!"
Blinking at Peter's insistence, Rhomann coughed lightly to clear his throat. He nodded and said. "Yes, you are right about that. It really should not be like that. So..."
Before Rhomann could finish his words, Sebastian was no longer willing to delay this conversation.
He looked at the Nova Corps leaders present in the room. He spoke directly to all of them. "Everyone, Peter has already told me the truth of the situation. Thanos wants to attack you here on Xandar because of the Power Stone in your possession. As long as the Power Stone is not in your hands anymore, as long as Thanos knows who has it in their possession, he will not waste his strength fighting you at this critical moment in his plans."
As soon as Sebastian finished speaking his suggestion, everyone present fell silent. They considered his words carefully. Although they acknowledged that what Sebastian said was indeed reasonable and logical, the Nova Corps' leaders still felt deep down that it was safest to protect the Power Stone themselves with their own forces. As one of the top military forces in the universe, the Nova Corps while believing they could not compete directly with Thanos in raw power, did not feel that they were completely defenseless against his invasion.
In their view and military calculations, they could defend Xandar for a long time. This would be enough to hold off Thanos and his Black Order for a considerable while. Moreover, they had already begun a secret plan to utilize the Power Stone's energy directly. They had initially selected some Nova Corps soldiers with strong and special physical qualities to undergo Power Stone energy transformation.
These enhanced soldiers, simply named Nova Centurions, would become Xandar's future strongest defenders. They would be the main force against Thanos and his invasion. The leaders were confident they could hold out until the Nova Centurion program reached mass production levels. They certainly would not consider Sebastian's suggestions seriously.
However, they could not possibly tell him the whole truth about their secret program. Rhomann looked at Sebastian directly. He pursed his lips together. He said carefully. "After all, Xandar and the Nova Corps are among the most powerful military forces in the universe. While Thanos is undoubtedly a formidable enemy to face, it is relatively safer to keep the Power Stone with us under our protection. Besides, even if we are ultimately defeated in battle, we can still transfer the Power Stone to safety later, right?"
Sebastian looked at him with an unreadable expression. Then he glanced at the other Nova Corps leaders present in the room. He suddenly smiled and nodded politely. He said. "Yes, you have a valid point there."
With a smile on his face, Sebastian said no more to them. He stood aside with Bill in silence.
Seeing Sebastian's expression and body language, Peter coughed lightly to break the tension. He quickly ended the conversation with Rhomann and the others. Then he came to Sebastian's side. He whispered to him quietly. "Sebastian, they have their own considerations and plans."
Sebastian looked at Peter with understanding eyes. He shook his head and laughed softly. "Peter, I am not a narrow-minded person at all. Since I have already agreed to come here to help you fight Thanos and his forces, I will naturally not give up halfway through the battle. My suggestions are just suggestions for them to consider. They are free to choose whether to accept them or not. I will not say that I have any negative feelings because of these things. So do not worry about it.
It is just that I still have some unfinished business to deal with on the planet Sakaar. I cannot stay here on Xandar forever waiting. So when will Thanos and his forces launch their attack on Xandar? If it will take another year or two before they arrive, I will go back to deal with the things on Sakaar first. Then I will come back here when needed."
"According to the Nova Corps' intelligence calculations, Thanos's Black Order army will enter Xandar's orbital space within the next twenty-four hours. So right now we are preparing to start evacuating the civilian residents of Xandar to safe zones."
"Okay, tell me immediately when you need me to take action in the battle."
"No problem, Sebastian. I will contact you right away."
Watching Peter leave to rejoin the Nova Corps, Bill whispered to Sebastian quietly. "Principal, did you not say the Infinity Stones are our most powerful weapon against Thanos in the long run?
I think, if it becomes necessary, we can take possession of the Infinity Stones first by force. The Nova Corps on Xandar will not be able to resist Thanos and his Black Order successfully."
"We have to give Peter and the others some respect and face. Besides, us taking the Infinity Stones by force is very different from them handing them over to me willingly. There is no need for us to create conflict with the Nova Corps unnecessarily."
"Give them to us voluntarily? But how could that be possible? The Nova Corps are clearly planning to use the Power Stone themselves. Will they give it up voluntarily to us?"
"If it comes to a matter of life and death for Xandar and its people, they naturally have no choice left, right?"
With that final statement, Sebastian stopped talking about the matter. He asked the Nova Corps to prepare a quiet private place for him. Then he began to research how to rebuild Mjolnir properly.
Sebastian had originally planned to find someone worthy to wield Mjolnir after repairing it completely. This way Hogwarts would have its own Thor to protect its peace and students.
Instead, he unexpectedly found Beta Ray Bill on Sakaar. Perhaps it was fate and destiny that the candidate to wield the new Thor's hammer had come to him at the right time. Now, all that was missing was the hammer itself in working condition.
The broken fragments of Thor's hammer numbered twenty-one pieces in total. Each piece contained within it some degree of thunder's power and lightning authority. However, precisely because of this residual power, remelting the broken pieces together was no easy task at all. Even with Sebastian's current magical abilities and power level, he needed to proceed with extreme caution and care. Otherwise, a single mistake in the reforging process could completely destroy Thor's hammer forever. That would be a fate far worse than the effort required.
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