Disclaimer: I don't own Guardians of the Galaxy or any of its characters.
Title: the stars will all burn out
Summary: Ego is disappointed to find that Meredith's son, like his many children, does not carry his lineage.
Rating: T
Warnings: Potentially disturbing imagery, character death
Author's Notes: Just saw the second film and it was brilliant! Though it destroyed me in many ways afterwards. I decided to play around with this alternate universe because I found this idea of Peter not having Ego's powers both fascinating and horrifying.

In the beginning, Ego was always proud of his children. Of how smart they were. Of how pretty they were. Of how strong they were.

How they must be the one to have the ability to use the light, he thought to himself each time he greeted them with open arms.

And each time, they failed him.

He had high hopes for Meredith's son. Surely a Terran who was able to hold an Infinity Stone would be different. Yet Peter Quill was the same as the others.

Inadequate.

" It's all right, son." It was hard to keep out the disappointment in his voice.

" Am I doing it wrong?" Peter asked, his brow knitted in confusion. He was earnest and aiming to please, so similar to his other children.

If his abilities did not manifest the first time, it would never.

But Ego instead told Peter it did take time to learn. He gave all his children the same courtesy. It was the least he could do for Meredith's son.

~.~.~

Gamora privately wondered why Ego had taken such a strong interest in Peter summoning divine powers he never used before, even unconsciously, but Peter was growing frustrated after hours of futile attempts and so she kept quiet.

Peter collapsed on the couch with an exasperated huff, staring at his hands. " Maybe I have to try harder," he sighed.

Nothing is ever good enough for him, the wind seemed to whisper.

Gamora sat up. " Did you hear that?"

Peter didn't but she did.

(in hindsight, it had been a warning she should have heeded)

~.~.~

" I'm sorry."

Shame curled inside Peter's stomach. He wished there was a spark or even a tingle of something. It would have been enough to erase the dissatisfaction and frustration in Ego's eyes.

Ego clasped a hand to Peter's shoulder. " You tried. That's all that matters to me."

He sounded sincere but anyone could see the disappointment lingered beneath the warmth in his eyes.

Peter wanted to ask what they would do next but Ego began steering him back into the palace, a firm grip on his shoulder.

" Here, son. I want to show you something."

Instinct made the skin behind his neck itch and prickle. Yondu had told him before to mind his instincts or else he would find himself dead a lot faster.

Peter took a step back but Ego was faster. Ego placed a hand gently against Peter's forehead and all his dread, panic and confusion faded away into oblivion as his eyes were opened to see –

Eternity.

~.~.~

It had taken Ego a few tries but he had found the best way to dispose of his children without hurting them. They were his flesh and blood after all. Giving them a vision of his world put them at complete peace. They were so happy and distracted that they would not realize the light tendril through their chest or that the earth below swallowed them whole.

Right now, Peter was smiling in utter bliss. His smile was just like Meredith's, glowing and bright like a hundred suns. Never in all the worlds that Ego had been to had he encountered such a warm smile that snaked its way into his heart.

Meredith was always special to him. It was just a shame her son wasn't.

Regardless, he felt Meredith's son deserved a little better.

Ego pulled Peter into a tight embrace, like he had done with Meredith long ago. He mused to himself it was rare that one of his children would be at the same height as him as Peter's head rested against his shoulder. " Go to sleep," he murmured to Peter. He could feel Peter's eyelashes fluttering shut against his cheek, a warm, content sigh against his neck.

He kissed Peter's temple, like he had done with his mother long ago, sending the virus that would soon send Peter into sleep forever.

" Good night, son."

~.~.~

The imagery of the twisted and mutilated bones was seared into Gamora's mind and the tearful words of Mantis's confession echoed in her ears.

They had to get to Peter now.

When they found Ego cradling Peter in his arms, Peter limp and unmoving, all Gamora could see was red.

Both her and Drax screamed Peter's name but it was Gamora who reached them first and raised her sword to slit Ego's throat. By the time Drax yanked Peter from Ego's grip, Gamora had already hacked off both of Ego's arms and slashed his chest into ribbons.

" What did you do to him?" Drax bellowed. Peter's head hung listlessly against Drax's elbow. It was wrong to see Peter, who was always so vibrant and full of life, like this.

Ego's eyes appeared glassy and remorseful, even as he slowly reassembled himself. " I did what was necessary," he gently said. He watched Drax shake Peter, trying to waken him to no avail. " He didn't feel a thing," he added, as if he was trying to console them.

Rage filled Gamora. There had been no lie in his eyes when Ego had earlier said how proud he was of Peter. And all Peter wanted was to make his father proud. " How could you do this to your own son?" she snarled.

" Peter was mortal. He would have died sooner or later."

Something in Gamora snapped.

~.~.~

Peter had explained to him, to all of them, to "check his heart" first if they ever found him unconscious. So Drax did as he remembered, placing a hand over Peter's chest, expecting to find it strong and steady like before, only to be alarmed to find how quiet and faint it was becoming. Even more alarming was how slow his breathing was as well.

" What do you know of this?" he asked Mantis, trying to not let his fear overwhelm him.

" This is what Ego does," she replied, eyes wide and tearful. " To all his children who are not like him."

A terrible fury erupted from Drax, a wrath he had not felt since the deaths of his wife and daughter. No parent should be the one to murder their children. And add in the fact that Ego had done this to his friend ...

He pressed Peter's body onto Mantis's hands. " Stay with him," he said, his voice barely able to control the need to cut Ego's head off multiple times, as Gamora was currently doing. " Wake him if you can."

Mantis, with her ugly bright eyes, nodded. " I will try."

~.~.~

The moment Mantis touched Peter's hand, she was overwhelmed with serenity and peace. The sweet calm was almost enough to lull Mantis to sleep, just as Peter.

The shouts of rage and clashes of combat coming from Gamora and Drax were enough to snap her back to reality.

You must wake, she called to Peter. Your friends need you.

She was dismayed how little effect her powers had, how much stronger Ego's powers was than hers. Peter did not even stir. His skin was becoming paler and his lips more blue with each passing second.

If you don't wake up, Ego will kill us! she urged. She allowed for her own fear and distress to leak through the bond, hoping it would jolt Peter back to consciousness.

Again, there was no reaction.

Pressing her mouth into a thin line, Mantis had no intention to giving up. She had failed so many of Peter's siblings already. She would not fail him either.

So she tried again.

She tried again and again and again.

She kept trying, even as Peter's heart had long stopped.

~.~.~

Ego watched as their ship disappeared amongst the stars.

A father might have chased after them, demanded the body of his son and the return of his adopted daughter. A madman might have hunted them down regardless, to silence them from knowing too much of his plans.

He was neither of those things.

For he had far greater ambitions that eclipsed those little details.

~.~.~

Yondu did not have many things that frightened him. On his worse days, he had nightmares of returning to that Kree prison. Lately, he could not stop thinking of his crew dead and floating in space without a proper burial. But right now, all he could see was a cold and lifeless Peter in Drax's arms and wondered why, why did he let Peter go.

Rocket reacted as he would have, if he had the strength to. " What happened?" he demanded. His tiny paws grabbed the front of Peter's shirt, just as Drax laid him down. If Yondu squinted, he could pretend that Peter was just sleeping. It was the most peaceful he had ever seen the boy. " What happened to Quill?"

No one was able to answer. Mantis's quiet sobs was the only sound in the ship. Gamora was a frozen statue, eyes blank and staring into nothing. Finally, Drax spoke.

" Ego killed him."

Those three words was what Yondu had been trying to avoid hearing for the last twenty-five years. Once again, Ego had a way of destroying everything that Yondu held dear.

He thought he could do right by Peter. The other Ravagers despised him. His crew were dead by his hands. His ship was destroyed by his command. Saving Peter, the one good thing in his life, was all he could think of doing to make up for all the things he had done.

Yet, the universe was too fond of screwing him over.

~.~.~

Rocket was not created to be a quitter and something as little as Peter's death was hardly going to get in his way.

" The idiot is just sleeping. Here, let me wake him up."

He slapped Peter's face hard. It should have disturbed him how Peter's head lolled to one side without any reaction ("Dude, what was that for?" Peter yelped, holding onto his reddened cheek after falling off his bed in a tangle of blankets while Rocket laughed and laughed until he rolled onto his side).

Rocket managed to hit Peter two more times with increasing desperation before Gamora caught his hand. " Rocket, stop," she said with a note of finality.

The flatness of her voice, devoid of any emotion, alarmed Rocket. " What is the matter with all of you?!" he snapped. " Quill's not dead!"

" His heart is no longer working," Drax quietly said. He sounded so defeated, it was unnerving. " He no longer breathes."

" Like that's going to stop Quill."

No one had the heart to say otherwise. But even the words sounded hollow in Rocket's ears.

~.~.~

Groot was aware of a few things. That his whole family was here in the ship and that made him happy. Another thing was that Peter was sleeping for a long time and it made everyone upset.

He watched curiously as Rocket tried to grab a bundle of sizzling wires from the ship's interior and headed towards Peter but the others tried to stop him. Rocket was snarling and spitting and smelled of fear and anger and desperation. Everyone else smelled of sadness, hurt and loss and they all looked so tired that they had no fight left in them anymore.

And Peter ...

He smelled like rot and decay.

Groot whimpered. He did not like that scent, especially on Peter.

He sat next to Peter, curling next to his neck, shivering at how cold it was. Peter was usually warm. Perhaps Terrans like him got cold quickly when outside. Terrans did seem to sleep a lot. It might be how they conserve their heat, he reasoned.

His fingers spread and blossomed leaves and flowers and he wrapped himself into a tiny ball over Peter's shoulder, nuzzling Peter's cheek. He hoped it would be enough to warm Peter up so he could wake up soon and they could go off on more adventures and save the galaxy once again.

Groot did not mind keeping Peter company until he woke up.