In order to avoid drawing attention, Quill had to cradle Rocket Raccoon in his arms, pretending he was a stuffed toy. Drax and Groot were easier to explain away, considering the tourists were used to seeing larger costumed characters.
They progressed at a snail's pace because there were people frequently coming over to take photos with Groot. The adorable-looking Mantis also received a lot of attention, and even Drax gained some fans. Quite a few people asked Quill where they could buy such a cute raccoon toy.
In any other area, their slightly weird appearances would probably raise suspicions, but here in Batu Star, a place where various alien races assembled, tourists just assumed they were special performers arranged by Disney, admiring the professionalism and immersive experience.
Members of Guardians of the Galaxy also soaked in this welcoming atmosphere. Drax continuously struck various strongman's poses, even lifting little girls onto his shoulders for their parents to take photos.
Groot seemed to be very fond of human children. Apparently, youths of this race were just in line with his aesthetic taste. He loaded four or five kids onto his shoulders and even let one of them sit on his head for a family photo.
Mantis, like the most professional Disney actress, nodded to those around her with a smile and took pictures with tourists, showing a somewhat shy expression.
Star-Lord, the most conventionally good-looking one among them, incessantly showed off his alien gun and chatted with young men who were interested in weapons. He was having such a good time that he covered less than a hundred meters within twenty minutes of entering the park.
Observing all this from the window of a nearby restaurant, Shiller quietly held his head in his hands.
Steve and Stark were both watching this with a sense of schadenfreude. What does it mean for a fool to find a master?
Stark understood what Shiller was trying to do. Now Yondu was as antsy as an ant on a hot pan, otherwise he wouldn't have ventured to Earth.
Scratching beneath the surface of Yondu's urgency, it had to do with now all the interstellar countries were tightening security measures, and the life of interstellar pirates everywhere was not easy due to the upheaval within the Shi'ar Empire after Mystique assumed power.
Thanos, in order to advance his career, was stirring up trouble everywhere. And he actually persuaded the important people of all the major Empires. In collaboration with Loki, they were about to take the reins of interstellar security in their own hands.
Thanos was a ruthless character. If he truly came into power, his first fire on office could wipe out all the interstellar pirates.
Receiving an invitation from Loki this time, Yondu must have thought they meant to negotiate, but his current situation was terribly unfavorable. He didn't have a shred of intelligence, and the negotiating location was at his adversary's home.
He was desperate to gain some bargaining chips. Even if it was to capitulate, he needed some tangible benefits. But now his situation was quite critical. So, he decided to sharpen his weapon right before the battle: intelligence would be the best bargaining chip.
Understanding how the other party intends to build their security defense system, and whether there were any loopholes to exploit, could serve as bargaining chips that could potentially reverse the situation. Even some intelligence other pirate groups didn't know about could give him an advantage when dividing the spoils later on.
Shiller could guess what Yondu was thinking: he was desperate for intelligence, well, Shiller would give him intelligence.
No one in this world would be more adept at fabricating information than Shiller. Give him a basic frame, and he would give you back a world.
Batu's storyline was inherently perfect because its setting was a planet which had lost its past prosperity and had become a haven for smugglers, a variety of wanted criminals, black marketers and information merchants, perfectly fitting Yondu's needs.
After negotiating with Disney and increasing the remuneration by fifty percent, they immediately gave the performers a crash course to replace the previously fabricated interstellar information with the real interstellar information provided by Nick.
For instance, the smugglers here used to disclose to some tourists the location of hidden badges, sprinkled with some fabricated interstellar secret news to enhance the sense of reality and immersion.
Now these interstellar secret news had all been replaced with real ones, the ones Shiller had heard while mingling with the elite during his time in the cosmos. A little verification would reveal they were indeed true and valuable information.
This was like a piece of alluring bait, which Yondu couldn't resist.
The Ravager team weren't exactly rich. They were far from being the fat sheep Shiller often described in his stories, but the interstellar society was just a magnified version of human society. Which pirate didn't have a big backer?
From Yondu's reaction, it was clear that his backer was not far from death. Don't expect these pirates to be loyal. If their old boss is almost dying, wouldn't they try to get a good price for themselves and improve their worth in the eyes of the new boss?
What Shiller wanted was the old boss behind Yondu.
The ones who could afford to hire interstellar pirates for long-term resource plundering were definitely fat sheep in the interstellar society, possibly the upper echelons of the Three Great Empires.
Shiller first lured Yondu in with the possibility of information here, and then he would negotiate with him.
When Yondu provided information, Shiller would get the intelligence and then sell it to Thanos. Thanos would then, under the pretext of interstellar security, kill the chicken to warn the monkey. Apart from getting a share from the looting, Thanos would even have to thank them.
But Yondu had sent Star-Lord.
Shiller didn't know what unrealistic expectations Yondu held for his foster son's intelligence. Just the idea of having a walking raccoon, a green-skinned alien woman, a grumpy giant, a tree-man, and an insect woman with antennae on her head forming a team for intelligence work was a fantastic plan for interstellar security in the modern age - such an impressive art form that even Thanos would have to give a thumbs up.