Warning: contains minor spoilers for Guardians of the Galaxy #11!
In a new preview from Marvel Comics, Star-Lord and the Guardians of Galaxy return to the site of one of the most epic conflicts in the history of Marvel Comics. The Gods of Olympus are after Peter Quill, as he recently robbed them of their power, taking it for himself in order to become a literal Star-Lord as the Master of the Sun. Apparently, the power-hungry and violent Gods care little for the lives of innocents, which is why Star-Lord, Nova, and the rest of their allies have chosen a site decimated during Marvel's devastating Annihilation event.
In recent comics, Peter Quill was believed to have been killed in the act of sacrificing himself to end the Gods of Olympus, which subsequently tore the rest of the Guardians of the Galaxy apart. However, neither Star-Lord nor the Gods actually died, and were instead transported to the realm of Morinus. Peter spent nearly 150 years forming a new life for himself before the Gods found him, angered that he had taken a large portion of their power with his element guns. Not wanting to cause Morinus' destruction, Peter found a way back to his own universe, and the Gods followed. However, for the rest of the Guardians, only a few months had passed since they thought Peter had died.
Now, an extremely powerful Star-Lord has rejoined with the Guardians, and they're gearing up for a major fight with the Gods of Olympus. As such, they've returned to Daedalus 5, which was ravaged by the Annihilation Wave, suffering major losses due to a weaponized Galactus courtesy of Annihilus in 2006's Annihilation event. While it's fitting that the Guardians are making a final stand at the site where the team was born, there's also a deeper purpose. Here is Marvel Comics' preview of Guardians of the Galaxy #11 from Al Ewing and Juan Cabal:
It should be noted that the events of the Annihilation War are far back enough that Star-Lord was still much more of a solider and warrior, as he'd yet to evolve into the more carefree and charismatic rogue he's now known to be. Will he become more serious and sober in light of returning to the site of the devastation that occurred in his past? Annihilation was such a major cosmic event from Marvel Comics, largely due to its massive levels of devastation at the hands of Annihilus, who razed countless worlds. Even Nova declares in the preview pages that the day when Galactus was unleashed was most likely the worst day of his life.
Fresh off his transformation and a lifetime spent building a new life, Star-Lord is returning to the site of one of his greatest failures, all to give him enough of a tactical advantage to take down yet another threat to the galaxy. While Peter Quill has never been more powerful, he's also never been more off-balance, and while Daedalus 5 prevents his foes from gaining power from slaughtered innocents, it's also likely to weigh on how the Guardians of the Galaxy see their chances, and possibly to exacerbate the deep wounds the team still hasn't addressed. Guardians of the Galaxy #11 releases February 17, and will see the beginning of a battle that's being teased as one of the greatest the team has ever faced.