Quest for the Orb

"The Orb is much more important than you realize. I wonder how many other players are caught up in this game? Things may be about to get quite fascinating..."

- Taneleer Tivan The Quest for the Orb, was an interstellar conflict involving notorious personalities throughout the galaxy. Centered around the Infinity Stone known as the Orb, the conflict started as a four-way altercation between the Guardians of the Galaxy, the Ravagers, the Nova Corps, and the Kree warrior Ronan's army of Sakaaran mercenaries and Thanos loyalists, all of whom desired the artifact for different purposes. After various battles, the former three factions joined forces to battle Ronan over the Orb's final possession in the Battle of Xandar.

Origin of the Orb
The Power Stone is a remnant of one of the six singularities which existed before the universe. After the universe came into existence, the energies of these singularities were forged into concentrated stones known as Infinity Stones. The stone is capable of annihilating entire planets, and was used by the Celestials as a means of placing judgment upon worlds and their populaces. However, the stone was just as dangerous to its handler as it was to the societies against which it was used, as its insufficiently powerful handlers were destroyed by its power. Eventually, the Orb was hidden on the planet Morag, storing it in a secret tomb that was hidden beneath the planet's vast ocean. The ocean would recede every 300 years, making the tomb accessible.

The Quest Begins
Millions of years later, the Orb became the desired object of various different parties. Thanos and his allies, the Kree fanatic Ronan the Accuser, Korath the Pursuer, Nebula, and Gamora had been seeking it for some time, and traveled to Praxius IX under false leads. Taneleer Tivan also sought to add the Orb to his collection, and hired Gamora to betray Thanos and give it to him. Peter Quill, a member of the Ravagers discovered the Orb's location on Morag, but just as he recovered it from the tomb, he was attacked by minions of Ronan.

Barely escaping from the attackers, Quill took the Orb to Xandar where he had made a deal to sell it through the Broker. However, when the Broker learned that Ronan also desired the Orb, he refused to take it, fearing for his life. Quill was then attacked by Gamora and the criminal duo of Rocket Raccoon and Groot, who had been pursuing Quill through a bounty. A chase ensued, after which the four were detained by the Nova Corps and taken to the Kyln, where they were imprisoned and the Orb was confiscated. Joining up with criminal Drax the Destroyer, they re-obtained the Orb and escaped from the prison.

Skirmish on Knowhere
The Guardians of the Galaxy then traveled to Knowhere, where they handed the Orb to Taneleer Tivan, who explained the Orb's history and capabilities. Carina, Tivan's tormented assistant, attempted to take the stone, but upon touching it, she accidentally triggered its power, releasing an energy pulse that killed her and destroyed most of the installation.

Drax the Destroyer, mad with the desire for revenge, had also contacted Ronan the Accuser, whose forces attacked Gamora, Rocket Raccoon, and Star-Lord. After Nebula destroyed Gamora's pod, Ronan then recovered the Orb. After realizing it contained one of the Infinity Stones, Ronan decided to double-cross Thanos out of spite due to Thanos' beratement of him. He harnesses the power of the Stone and forged it into his hammer, the Universal Weapon, vowing to destroy Xandar and kill Thanos.

Battle of Xandar
Ronan the Accuser began his attack on Xandar. Quill attempted to use Rocket's Hadron Enforcer to destroy Ronan, but the Stone prevented him from being destroyed. After Ronan's ship, the Dark Aster, crashed onto Xandar, Ronan attempted to use the Universal Weapon to destroy Xandar once and for all, but was distracted by Quill's antics. Rocket Raccoon shot Ronan's hammer with the Hadron Enforcer, destroying the hammer and releasing the Stone. Star-Lord then caught the Stone, and through joining hands with Gamora, Rocket, and Drax the Destroyer, managed to withstand its power long enough to destroy Ronan and be inserted into a container by Gamora. Yondu then forced Quill to give him the Orb, and flew away with it. However, Quill had switched the containers, so he had given Yondu a doll inside a container rather than the stone. Quill entrusted the Orb to the Nova Corps on Xandar, who stored it in a high-security vault in the city. In return the Nova Corps pardoned Quill, Gamora, Rocket and Drax, and rebuilt Quill's spaceship.