Synopsis / Summary / Plot
Star-Lord's father J'Son is Patriarch of the new Universal Church Of Truth and he's trapped Peter Quill and most of the other Guardians Of The Galaxy aboard his Cathedral flagship. Only Groot and Moondragon were left in the Guardians' ship the Bowie, plus the dying Rocket Raccoon.
Now Heather Douglas wants Rocket to let her into his mind so she can learn *why* he is dying. Rocket reluctantly shows her how he was born in the galactic insane asylum Halfworld as 1 of a bunch of pets designed to calm the patients down. Then the doctors abandoned the planet to the robot staff, who later genetically/surgically modified the animals into more-humanoid sentient versions and left the running of the place to *them*.
We see a montage of some of his subsequent adventures:- Meeting Hulk in space (Hulk #271). Fighting with his love Lylla against Killer Clowns and Blackjack O'Hare and his Black Bunny Brigade (RR vol 1). Fighting the Phalanx with Bug and Mantis (Annihilation: Conquest). Fighting the previous UCT with Adam Warlock, Drax The Destroyer, Gamora, Quasar (Phyla-Vell) and Star-Lord (GOTG vol 2). Fighting Kraven The Hunter (RR vol 3). Fighting alongside Groot (almost any time).
He says that the Guardians became his family (and Groot his best buddy). After the Infinity Wars it was just they 2 and Star-Lord left on the team. It was then that Rocket felt the Halfworld robots' changes breaking down and his body dying. He was too proud to let his friends see him like that so he sneaked away back to Halfworld without telling them. (But Gamora located him and was secretly guarding him so that he could die in peace.)
Groot won't let him off that hook so easily. He's angry that Rocket wouldn't ask for their help. And that he's given up and accepted death without a fight. Rocket replies that he's agreed to help them against the Church - what more do they want?! But he's not much good in his current state so he unveils his secret weapon - a giant Transformer-lookalike robot suit.
On board the Cathedral Beta Ray Bill, Captain Marvel (Phyla-Vell), Gamora and Lockjaw have been 'converted' to the cult but J'Son has left his son with free will. The Patriarch shows them the engine room where tubes full of captured super-beings provide the power for the ship. The converted Cosmo the Space-Dog greets fellow canine Lockjaw.
They are also extracting psychic 'residue' from their victims so that in the future the Church has come from they will be able to kill Death. Patriarch shows Peter a cocoon like the 1 used by Adam Warlock in his many resurrections. But J'Son says this *isn't* Warlock (presumably it's the Magus), and he also shows him a large room full of such cocoons.