Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
At their new headquarters on Knowhere, the Guardians of the Galaxy are attacked by Adam Warlock, a Sovereign warrior created by High Priestess Ayesha who seeks to destroy them for stealing from her.[a] After critically wounding Rocket, Adam is stabbed by Nebula and flees. The Guardians' med-packs are ineffective at healing Rocket's wounds due to a kill switch embedded in him by the organization Orgocorp. The Guardians travel to Orgocorp's headquarters to find the switch's override code and save Rocket's life.
As Rocket lies unconscious, he recalls his past. He was found as a baby raccoon and was experimented on by the High Evolutionary, Orgocorp's leader, who sought to enhance and anthropomorphize animal lifeforms, known as Humanimals, to create an ideal society called Counter-Earth. Rocket's fellow Batch 89 test subjects were the otter Lylla, the walrus Teefs, and the rabbit Floor. The High Evolutionary was impressed by Rocket's growing intelligence and used his insight to fix a defect in later Humanimal batches. However, he became envious of Rocket's intellect and planned to harvest his brain for further research before incinerating the obsolete Batch 89. Rocket attempted to free his friends, but the High Evolutionary killed Lylla and mocked Rocket for showing grief over her death. Enraged, Rocket mauled the High Evolutionary, whose henchmen killed Teefs and Floor in the ensuing firefight. Rocket fled in a spaceship.
In the present, an alternate version of Gamora,[b] who has joined the Ravagers, helps the Guardians infiltrate Orgocorp. They retrieve Rocket's file but discover that the code was removed by Theel, one of the High Evolutionary's advisors. The Guardians and Gamora travel to Counter-Earth to find him. They are followed by Ayesha and Adam after the High Evolutionary, their race's creator, threatens to wipe out the Sovereign if they fail to retrieve Rocket. At Counter-Earth, Drax and Mantis remain with Gamora and Rocket, while Peter Quill, Groot, and Nebula are guided to the Arête Laboratories complex. Nebula is forced to wait outside by guards due to her cybernetic enhancements; Quill and Groot enter Arête. Drax tricks Mantis into pursuing Quill's group and Gamora saves Rocket from Adam and War Pig, one of the High Evolutionary's guards.
Questioned by Quill, the High Evolutionary admits this version of Counter-Earth's society is imperfect, so he bombards the planet, killing the Humanimals and Ayesha. Arête departs as a spaceship, with Nebula, Drax, and Mantis boarding to rescue Quill and Groot. However, the latter pair escapes Arête with Theel, whom they kill before retrieving the code from his corpse. They are rescued by Gamora on their ship. As Quill's group uses the code, Rocket flatlines and has a near-death experience in which he reunites with Lylla, Teefs, and Floor. However, Lylla tells him his time has not yet come, as Quill succeeds in disabling the kill switch and restarting Rocket's heart.
Drax, Nebula, and Mantis encounter the High Evolutionary's next batch of test subjects, genetically modified humanoid children, before being captured. The other Guardians stage a rescue, leading to a battle against the High Evolutionary's forces. Kraglin fires on Arête with Knowhere and then helps to save Knowhere's citizens from a counter-attack by the High Evolutionary's Hellspawn. Intent on retreat, the High Evolutionary's crew mutiny, but their leader kills them. Drax, Nebula, and Mantis befriend three monstrous Abilisks to escape and reunite with the rest of the Guardians. The Guardians delay leaving Arête, choosing to rescue the children, who escape to Knowhere via a tunnel constructed by Cosmo's telekinesis. Rocket discovers imprisoned animals on the ship and is confronted by the High Evolutionary, whom the other Guardians defeat. Rocket spares the High Evolutionary,[c] and the Guardians help the animals escape to Knowhere. Quill nearly dies trying to reach Knowhere but is saved by Adam, whom Groot had rescued earlier from Arête's destruction.
Quill decides to leave the Guardians, names Rocket as the new captain, and reunites with his grandfather on Earth. Mantis embarks on a journey of self-discovery with the Abilisks, Gamora rejoins the Ravagers, and Nebula and Drax remain on Knowhere to raise the rescued children. The new Guardians—Rocket, Groot, Kraglin, Cosmo, Adam, Phyla (one of the rescued children), and Adam's pet Blurp—later take on a mission.
