Takes place right before Volume 2

Gora's POV

I would advise you not to do that... I deadpanned as my frustrations towards the raccoon began to arise.

"How 'bout you don't go tellin' me what's what?" Rocket groaned, slapping my spine away to prevent any more telepathic commentary from me, prompting me to roll my eyes.

The ship had been delayed in our voyage through space on our way to a "job" where the Guardians' services were required. As a result, we had to make a "pit stop" on a planet where Astra had gone to get the tools to repair the ship while the Terran, Zehoberei, and "Destroyer" had gone to restock on sustenance. I had stayed on the ship with the little walking sapling called "Groot" and infuriatingly arrogant Earth raccoon, Rocket, as he worked on his newest gun for the next mission. I had only been on the ship for a few weeks now, but that was plenty of time to see how dysfunctional everyone operated as proven by what occured next,

*Kaboom*

Following the midsized explosion that I shielded both myself and Groot from with my spines extending to create a shield in front of me, a small plume of smoke burst out leaving Rocket to cough as he waved the smoke away before growling in frustration and throwing a screwdriver to the wall.

I attempted to warn you, by plugging that wire into that capacitor you disrupted the electrostatic field it stores the energy in and therefore it destabilized. I explained while examining my paw and helping Groot reach a shelf where he began to attempt to chew on one of Rocket's weapons before he came over, annoyed, to get him down.

"What happened?" We looked to the door to see JJ standing there with a giant wrench in one hand while the other was cleaning the brightly colored fluid off her face with a dirty rag. After extending my spine out to her to communicate I began to explain,

Rocket was- but was rudely cut off with,

"I was just working."

"OK..." JJ squinted in uncertainty before reporting, "Well I managed to figure out why the engines keep hiccuping, something was clogging up the intake valve. Now we just need to reboot the ship's system manually from its power grid."

"So do it then." Rocket stated as if it was the most obvious idea.

"I can't."

"And why not?"

"Because I can't reach the system from the outside. Whoever created the plans for this ship really messed up with the power grid's access point."

You can reach it if you electroport inside and reboot it from the inside as the energy itself. I suggested while cleaning my antennae.

"'Electro-' what?" They both questioned at the same time.

You focus on your body becoming pure energy and you teleport via the electricity inside.

"Yeah I have no idea how to do that..." Astra admitted as she dropped the wrench back into a toolbox and sat down on the bench closest to Rocket.

It's simple, I will show you. I got up, prepared to teach her when we were interrupted by,

"Woah woah woah you think you can just come in here and start telling us what's what?"

I only wish to help Astra. I argued back.

"Her name's not Astra, not anymore."

You don't know anything about what she's capable of, so who are you to be telling me that. We were practically butting heads until Astra intervened putting a hand out to each of us to keep us separate.

"OK enough you two, I'm not a kid anymore, I don't need someone fighting my battles."

"Fine then, go with the freaky antennae 'Granite' or whatever and when she fails to 'teach' you, you know where I'll be." Rocket got back to work on his weapon as I scoffed and led her out of the room.

I cannot seem to make heads or tails of that creature... I grumbled as we walked down the halls, keeping a spine on Astra's wrist to maintain a telepathic lingual connection.

"That's cause there's nothing 'like me 'cept me'." Astra quoted imitating his voice as she did so, prompting me to laugh a bit.

Quite amusing Astra.

There was a silence before she told me,

"He is right on that though, Astra's not my name anymore..."

And why not?

"After Mom... sent me away I just wanted to forget about that place since it's not there anymore."

But it is still there.

"Not in the way it used to be..."

And Rocket knows this? Hence why he is disgruntled about my presence on this ship because he thinks that since I am from there I will bring those memories back for you?

"I think so, but who knows." Astra shrugged before stopping in front of a section of the ship's wall that had a panel ripped out to reveal the wiring underneath.

"Here it is, the manual reboot is right behind all of this, but if I move any of this around, I have no idea what it could do."

Alright, place both of your hands on the wiring and close your eyes. I instructed and she did so.

Now focus on your core, feel the energy under your hands and find a way to connect the two, call on your inner strength and imagine yourself becoming a part of the power.

"That's a lot to think about." Astra looked at me with one eye open.

Then just focus on one thing; your home. The origin of your powers.

"I already told you it's gone and I don't wanna think about it."

But you must if you wish to access your inner powers. I urged her with ferocity.

"I don't want to!" Sparks flew up from the panel from her outburst.

You have to! Her hands began to glow brighter as I continued to urge her until,

"I can't!" A small explosion formed under her hands and sent her flying back into the wall behind her.

Astra! I hurried over to her and extended my spines to help her onto her feet when she pushed them away and walked away hugging herself. I took it from her facial expression before she left that she wanted to be alone and I made my way back to Rocket's workshop.

"So ya failed big time or what?" I could practically hear the smugness in his voice meanwhile I stayed silent as I hopped onto the bench and curled my tail around myself as I lay down.

"OK, what'ja do wrong?" Rocket put down his tools as he came to lean against the bench close to me with a hint of concern in his facial expression. He allowed me to wrap a spine around his wrist willingly, much to my surprise, before explaining,

She refuses to acknowledge where she came from...

"That's cause it ain't there anymore."

But it is, it may not seem the same as it did before he came, but that is why we must embrace it now more than ever, or else Chrysinthea will truly perish.

"That might make sense to you, but to her, everything she knew is gone and she's been trying to start over since then and now you come along telling her to go back there for her powers to work."

If she felt this way, then why did she request for my inclusion on the team?

"Who knows? Maybe she does care for her home deep down, but she doesn't want to have to rely on a hope that might not happen for strength."

And what hope would that be?

"That she'd find her sister like her mom wanted."

I processed this information, remembering Astra's sister Lumna before she had been sent away to the training grounds, the last time the two of them had seen each other, they had made a promise to each other to play alcula, a game among Chrysinthean children only after they have mastered their powers and therefore is an unofficial rite of passage from childhood to slightly older childhood.

I suppose I have been pushing her to depend on that hope since arriving on this ship.

"A bunch I might add." Rocket added with a light smirk.

Then I must attempt to teach her your way, by embracing what her new life is in the present moment.

"You're on your way." Rocket commented before breaking our connection to get back to work.

On my way to what? I thought before shaking the thought off and going to find JJ.

I found her sitting in the kitchen eating the last Yaro Root in the bowl, looking down at the table in melancholy. Gently wrapping a spine around her wrist without startling her, I began to speak to her,

JJ...

"You hear to convince me to go back to a home that doesn't matter to me anymore?" She asked rather depressedly.

No... I started, prompting JJ to groan in response, I have been on this ship long enough to see that everyone aboard clashes in terms of perspectives, they are full of anger due to their past and do not trust others easily...

"You done?"

But you all have become a family through those conflicts and this bond that you share with the others, as I now see, is what you believe will keep you all together not just as a team, but as a family...

JJ considered my words for a minute before replying,

"I guess you could say that. All of us, Rocket, Quill, Gamora, Drax, Groot and me, we all came together just to sell some power 'Infinite Stone' or whatever to some white-haired whackjob who said I was the only one of my kind left," JJ smiled a bit ruefully before she continued her speech, "but after saving the universe, we decided to stay together cause we figured 'hey we make a pretty frickin' good a-hole kicking team' and now... I don't want to lose this family like I did my last one..."

She's encountered an Infinity Stone?! I thought in alarm, but I did not let JJ catch onto my surprise as I told her,

Then I stand corrected, that fierce protectiveness for this new life you have is what you need to focus on in order to access your full capabilities.

"Then let's do it." JJ stood up with a new determination in her eyes before quickly finishing off her Yaro Root and making her way back toward the panel, but I stayed behind, ruminating on what this new piece of information would develop into.

If he is looking for those stones, then JJ's home will not be the only one to be devastated by his wrath... I can only hope that when that day comes, we will be ready...

I was making my way back to Rocket's workshop when Quill, Gamora, and Drax came running onto the ship with bags of groceries in hand, but they were extremely quick to shut the door behind them, cluing me into the fact that they were in trouble. Connecting to Gamora, albeit with a threatening glare from her before making contact, I questioned,

What did they do this time?

"Why do you assume we are to blame?" Drax asked rather pointedly.

"How would you even know what she's asking?" Gamora questioned him,

"I too am extremely intuitive."

I highly doubt that. I spoke to Gamora and she smirked a bit before informing me,

"These two decided to try to pick a fight with a shopkeeper who happened to be armed and here we are."

"Yeah, please tell me the ship is fixed otherwise we're dead." Quill asked, nervously looking to the door.

Abruptly, there was a pop of sparks that sent out a small streak of electricity from the wall and coalesced into JJ.

"What the he-" Quill's exclamation was cut off with Gamora commenting with a hint of pride in her voice,

"You've learned a new ability."

"Yep, and we're ready to take off from this place."

A blast on the door alerted us to the presence of the wronged shopkeeper on the other side, prompting Quill to hurry up to the cockpit with a quick,

"On it."

"Come on, I'll race you to the workshop to scare the crap out of Rocket." JJ touched the wall next to her and disappeared in a small flurry of sparks.

Smiling lightly as I ran back to the workshop, I arrived in time to see JJ appeared right in front of Rocket as he screamed and took cover in a corner, causing JJ to break down into a fit of laughter.

"Next time you try that on me, I will not hesitate to shoot you." Rocket threatened before dropping the tough facade and saying,

"So you managed to figure it out?"

"With a little help from Gora."

I nodded my head down to show that it was my pleasure before Rocket instructed her,

"Tell Star Munch that we got a new score to get to on Sovereign."

"Will do." Before touching the wall and teleporting out again.

Are you certain you wish to take this particular job? I asked Rocket after connecting to him.

"What? What's the problem now?"

The Sovereign are not too fond of Chrysintheans and if she crosses them in any way, they will not hesitate to kill her. I explained with worry lacing my telepathic voice.

"With that nifty trick you just taught her, I wouldn't worry too much about her."

'Nifty'? You're not turning soft are you? I smirked a bit before he scoffed and retorted gruffly,

"I ain't soft!" Before shaking me off to add his newest gun to his collection of weapons.

There's the Rocket I've grown to accept. I smiled before walking out of the room and going to watch as the ship was directed toward the Sovereign's system.

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