A/N: Another story for my 2 readers, at last! This one got pretty long...I guess I couldn't help myself. I hope you enjoy!

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  One Hala Day, Vers woke up. She yawned and stretched and rolled around in her bed a little bit, then got up and turned on Hala News.

"Tonight, a special gala will be held in honor of the Supreme Intelligence's 1000th birthday. The SI won't really be present, but it's the thought that counts!!" the reporter was saying.

Vers rolled her eyes. Then she poured herself a behemoth bowl of cereal and wolfed it down.

The reporter continued, "We hold a lot of galas, but this one will be especially special because we are going to have a feature presentation by a group of Starforce, led by Commander Yon-Rogg."

Vers spit out all her cereal into the reporter's face. "I'm sorry, what?!"

"I said that Commander Yon-Rogg's Starforce team will be putting on a show for tonight's gala," said the reporter. "Supposedly, they'll be giving a PowerPoint presentation on the impact of the Supreme Intelligence over the years."

Vers stared at the reporter. Her eye twitched. Then she guzzled the rest of her cereal, threw on her uniform, and ran the 200 miles to the docking bay where the Helion was, while eating some energy bars.

She busted in and found Korath and Yon-Rogg playing cards atop the briefing holo-table.

Yon-Rogg put down a card and said, "Take ten."
Korath said, "What the..."
Then, "urgh."

"Look, I hate to interrupt...whatever this is, but HAVE YOU PEOPLE HEARD ABOUT TONIGHT?!" Vers screeched.

They book looked at her calmly and not as if she was yelling and waving around her glow hands.

"Oh, so you heard about the gala, Vers?" Yon-Rogg asked.

"Yeah I did," she said. "I have many things to say, but first and foremost: it's a gala on Hala. That's funny, hehe."

Yon-Rogg and Korath gave her blank stares.

"But they don't even rhyme," said Att-Lass, walking in.

"Nuh-uh! You can pronounce gala like Hala, it's just less common," Vers retorted.

"I didn't know you were an English professor," said Korath.

"Well...I am," she said with a smile. Then she stuck her tongue out.

Korath looked repulsed. Yon-Rogg just looked back to their game with a bemused smile.

"So anyway, how did this whole thing come to be? Why is OUR team putting on a PowerPoint presentation? Why can't it just be one of us? Like Minn-Erva? Or more importantly, not me?" Vers asked.

"Slow down, Vers," Yon-Rogg said, putting down a card. "The Supreme Intelligence got wind of its gala, and it asked me if my team could do something. You have to understand it's not in my best interests to refuse the Supreme Intelligence, so I accepted. It's not like I really want to."

Vers blinked. "So, first of all, the Supreme Intelligence bullied you into this? Second of all, you basically lied to it when you said you wanted to do it?"

"Now, now, Vers, I wasn't lying," he said. "I was respectfully pushing my true feelings about the matter away from the forefront."

She busted out laughing. "That's a really good excuse. I'll have to use that sometime!"

He rolled his eyes. "Sure, Vers. Also, the Supreme Intelligence doesn't...bully me. That's what you would call 'crazy talk.'"

She stared at him. "If you say so." Then she fished some popcorn out of her locker and chomped on it.

Minn-Erva walked in just then. "You know, Twinklefists, I'm guessing you've already had a ginormous bowl of cereal and two energy bars. Ever consider it might be better to save your appetite for tonight? There's always a buffet table at Hala galas. Plus, eating so much makes you fat."

"Haha! She said it! Hala galas!" Vers laughed. Some popcorn fell out of her mouth. She caught it and consciously put it back in the bag.

Minn-Erva raised her eyebrows and then went to pointlessly check on her rifle collection.

"Don't worry, Vers, you aren't fat," Yon-Rogg said.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, but I'm not really worried about it," she said, popping the top on a soda and slurping it.

"I don't know, maybe you should be if you can drink half a soda in one sip," he replied, observing her drinking tactics.

"Hey!" she complained.

Just then Bron-Char lumbered in. "Okay everyone, I've started work on our presentation. I'm thinking we'll open with the creation of the Supreme Intelligence, cover everyone who has ever contributed to it, its fundamental teachings, how they've developed throughout the years--"

"Woah, woah. I'll stop you right there," said Vers. "That sounds really bland and dull. Who says all the boring Kree nobility are going to enjoy that?"

Everyone could practically hear Minn-Erva roll her eyes.

"Well, Vers, that stuff is pretty much what we're supposed to talk about," said Att-Lass. "Sometimes boring is necessary, I guess."

"Yeah, but this is my first Hala gala and that means it has be awesome. I think we should play music and insert some memes."

"Vers," interjected Yon-Rogg, "As much as I want you to have a good time, I don't think those things would go over well with the more professional Kree that will be attending."

"So? I think it's overdue for the old folks to get with the times," Vers replied. Turning to Minn-Erva, she said, "Can you believe he only learnt what a meme was yesterday?"

"It's possible to get by without looking at memes, Vers," replied Minn-Erva boredly.

"Well, no matter. This presentation is going to be good, I hereby decree it," said Vers. Then she marched out of the living room, probably to go pillage the kitchen or something.

Everyone looked at Yon-Rogg.

"What are you looking at me for?" he said. "If she's commandeering the project, it's not my job to stop her."

"But it kind of is..." mumbled Att-Lass.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY??" shouted Yon-Rogg.

"NOTHING!!" Att-Lass replied quickly.

Later that day, everyone was preparing for the gala.

"So do we have to have to wear fancy clothes?" asked Vers.

"No, we'll be in our uniforms since we'll be representing Starforce," replied Yon-Rogg, who was reviewing the guest list. "I hope you know this means we have to be on our best behavior."

"Good for me! I'm always on my best behavior," Vers said with a smirk.

"Mhm," he replied. "Just try not to yell too much."

"Hm, I wonder if there will be Gala apples at this gala," Vers pondered, already on another subject.

"What are you talking about?" asked Korath.

"Apples? You know? Uhh...actually, never mind. I don't think I know either." She replied.

Minn-Erva sighed. She was straightening Att-Lass's bowtie, which he had insisted on wearing.

"Hey, if this bowtie chokes me, I'm counting on you to not let me die," he whispered.

"Whatever," she replied.

"Alright, team! There's a ferry arriving in 15 minutes to take us to the gala. We'll have 30 minutes to socialize before our presentation. When it comes time for that, we're going to walk up on a designated stage and deliver our lecture. Then we'll be free for the rest of the night to do whatever we want," Yon-Rogg summed up.

Vers raised her hand.

"You don't have to raise your hand, Vers," Yon-Rogg said.

"Oh, okay. I just wanted to ask, do we have to socialize? Because that's boring."

"Well, it would be the polite thing to do. But in your case, it may be better not to," he answered.

"Oh. Cool," she said. "Thanks for that."

"Any time," he replied with an overly pleased smile.

Minn-Erva threw her hands up. "Ugh, if this is all that's happening, I'm going to go do some last-minute changes on my hair."

"Does my hair look good?" asked Korath.

"Uhhh...yeah," answered Att-Lass.

Soon, the ferry arrived. It was a fancy skiff with a canvas roof on top and lights draped all over it.

"Ooh, this is fancy," said Vers.

"I told you, everything relating to a gala is fancy," said Minn-Erva and strolled past her.

"Yeah, except you," replied Vers.

"OOOOOHHH!!" shouted Att-Lass.

When they got to the gala, they found it to be inside a fancy building that was all lit up. Inside, the party was raging. Well, raging as best it could when the only people attending were boring Kree nobility in fancy suits and whatnot.

"Alright, everyone, have fun. And remember Vers, no screaming," announced Yon-Rogg.

"Gasp! The buffet table! Gala apples, here I come!" Vers shouted.

"Already failed," Minn-Erva sighed with a shake of her head.

"Hey, I'm coming with you!" said Att-Lass, butting into Minn-Erva in his scramble to catch up.

"I am coming as well," said Korath. As he walked through the crowd, people seemed to gravitate away from him.

"Hm," said Minn-Erva. Then she turned to Bron-Char. "Do you have the laptop with our presentation?"

"Right here!" he said and held it up. Just then a random guy walked by and bumped the laptop. It smashed to the floor in a kabillion pieces.

Bron-Char stared at the pieces blankly. Minn-Erva looked around and smiled nervously at people. Yon-Rogg pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Well, it looks like our presentation just went from bad to worse," Minn-Erva said.

"It wasn't bad, Minn-Erva, it was just different. But, yeah, we're in a predicament now," Yon-Rogg replied.

"HEY BUDDY!! HAVE SOME RESPECT FOR PEOPLE HOLDING LAPTOPS IN THE AIR!" shouted Bron-Char.

Some people looked at them weirdly.

Just then Vers came stumbling over with her arms full of pastries. "Hey guys, guess what!! These balls of greatness taste just like cream puffs! Try one!"

"Cream what?" asked Yon-Rogg, but was stopped when Vers stuffed one in his mouth.

Minn-Erva looked repulsed, and then started cleaning up the pieces of the laptop.

"Oh, uh, what happened there?" asked Vers. "No wait, don't tell me. Bron-Char waved it in the air and some random guy knocked it down."

"Your detective skills are getting better, I see," said Yon-Rogg, swallowing his "cream puff."

"It wasn't hard to figure out," Vers replied.

"Excuse me, but, what are we going to do for our presentation now?" asked Bron-Char.

Vers narrowed her eyes determinedly. "We'll just have to wing it," she declared.

"Wing it?" repeated Minn-Erva.

Vers threw her hands up. "Nobody gets me. Whatever, you'll see how it happens. Until then, you guys ought to stop lingering by this smashed laptop and go socialize."

"Maybe I don't want to socialize," replied Yon-Rogg.

Vers gave him a look. "But everybody loves you!"

Yon-Rogg gave her a look. "Everyone?" he repeated.

"I thought everybody loves Ronan," commented Korath, walking over. There were crumbs of various kinds sprinkled over his shoulders.

"Everyone does love me," said Ronan, suddenly appearing.

"AAH!" screamed everyone.

"What are you doing here?" scowled Yon-Rogg.

"I'm a member of the Accusers. I have the right to attend galas," he said snidely.

"I think what Yon-Rogg's trying to say is that nobody likes you, you're not welcome here, and he hates your guts," Vers helpfully supplied.

"Vers!" Yon-Rogg hissed.

"Hm. That sounds about right," said Ronan. Then he walked away.

Just then, a random guy walked up on stage. "Now it's time for tonight's feature presentation by Starforce!! Please welcome Commander Yon-Rogg, Mini-Erva, Verse, Charred-Bron, Coolrath, and Att-Lisa!"

All the Kree applauded.

"Uh, Yon-Rogg, do you have another team that we don't know about?" asked Vers.

He pinched the bridge of his nose for the second time that night. "All I can say is, either our names were spelled wrong on the program or that guy is really bad at pronouncing things." He beckoned his team to follow him onto the stage.

"But he got your name right, which further reinforces my 'everybody loves you' theory," Vers said with a smile.

"Whatever," he replied. "If you were planning anything special for our presentation, now is the time."

The team now stood in a line on the platform. All the people in attendance quieted down and turned toward them. The lights dimmed and a spotlight shown onto them.

Att-Lass fidgeted. Minn-Erva cleared her throat. A cricket chirped.

"SO!" Vers said, clapping her hands together. "We're gathered here tonight to celebrate the 100th birthday of the Supreme Intelligence!"

"...It's the 1000th, lass," whispered Bron-Char.

"I mean the ONE THOUSANDTH!! Sorry bout that," Vers continued casually. "Um...the Supreme Intelligence has been a leader and part of our culture for a very, very long time. I'm sure it's proud of us for putting on a celebration for it, even though it can't be here because it's an AI..."

"We'll be sure to show it the livestream," added Minn-Erva.

"Yeah," said Vers. "So, uh, we all love the Supreme Intelligence, right?"

Some people in the crowd lightly cheered. Yon-Rogg averted his eyes when Vers looked at him.

"Yeah, so uh, we just want to say thank you to the Supreme Intelligence for leading us and making all the hard decisions. And protecting us from Skrulls. Though that's kinda our job, isn't it?" Vers looked at her teammates, who were sort of trying to hide their faces.

"It doesn't matter. What does matter is that the Supreme Intelligence is cool. Real cool. I mean, I personally haven't spoken to it yet, but from what I hear it governs missions and when people have to make dinner!"

Now the crowd was starting to look really confused.

"Yeah, it's just the best. Apparently it bullies people into doing things they don't want to do. Plus, I hear it always takes on the form of the person you most admire, but older looking! How rude is that?! All in all, the Supreme Intelligence is just a little cra--"

"O-kay, Vers, that'll do it," interrupted Yon-Rogg. He got in front of her and smiled well-meaningly at the crowd. "In conclusion, I think it's safe to say that everyone has their own views of the Supreme Intelligence, and they are all respectable. However, we can all agree that it is an insightful leader who has only made positive contributions to our society thus far."

The room clapped. A few people whistled. Ronan sat in the back eating pie with a gruff expression on his face.

"Thank you and good night," said the Starforce team. Then they all but ran off the stage.

Yon-Rogg ushered his team out the door. It was already a cool night outside. Small pieces of confetti rained down from the building, some of which settled like snow in Yon-Rogg's hair. "I think we can all agree that we should take an early leave tonight," he said.

"Why? Was there something wrong with my presentation?" asked Vers.

He looked at her. "You know, I'm beginning to think that you play dumb for comedic effect."

She smiled. "Your detective skills have improved, I see!"

Minn-Erva scowled. "Excuse me, but if we're not going back to the gala, I'd like to head home and take a hot bath to relieve me of all the stress that awful presentation caused."

Yon-Rogg smiled, now somehow back in a good mood. "Alright. Everyone, feel free to head home. But I highly recommend you do not return to the gala, even for cream puffs. We need to let this incident blow over."

"Sure thing, boss," replied Vers. She pulled a cream puff out of her pocket and munched it.

Korath grumbled. "You should have brought one for me."

"Yeah, and me!" complained Att-Lass.

"Sorry, I didn't think ahead. I did bring one for Yon-Rogg, though," she said, and stuffed it in his mouth.

"I will never understand the young folk," mused Bron-Char.

"Yeah, me neither," said Korath.

"What?" Vers shrugged. "He clearly enjoyed it the first time!"

"Okay, well, I'm going to head home. The marathon of Everybody Loves Ronan is starting in half an hour," said Att-Lass.

"Aha! I knew it. Everybody DOES love Ronan," said Korath.

Vers gasped with mock-offense. "No, everybody loves--"

"Let's not get back into this," Yon-Rogg sighed.

THE END!