The Guardians of the Galaxy, consisting of Peter "Star-Lord" Quill, Gamora, Drax, Rocket Raccoon, and Groot, traverse the galaxy looking for aliens to help them save Earth. However, though they ask several species including the Makulans, the Ligra lion people, the Kymellian sorcerers, and more, everybody refuses to help. Quill messages Carol "Captain Marvel" Danvers and tells her they failed, noting that Earth has a very tough reputation since they beat Galactus and sundered the Infinity Gauntlet, so many alien species are hoping the Chitauri destroy Earth and ends its threat. Danvers begs him to get Earth some help and urges him to keep trying; he agrees and says they'll try the Brood next.
The other Guardians talk and agree the situation is basically hopeless. Raccoon is the most vehemently in favor of just giving up on Earth, even when Groot reminds him that it had good pizza. Gamora says they should respect Quill caring about his home, but also says that they've tried their best and can't spend much more time on saving Earth from another self-inflicted crisis. Drax concurs with her, and Raccoon sums up by saying they're moving on to another job. Before anyone can tell Quill, though, he says that help just found them.
They go to visit Mantis, who says she expected them to come earlier and that she has advice for them. Quill says they need an army, not advice, but Mantis says they have all of mankind; the problem is that the planetary shield is blocking Earth off. Mantis promises that she can point them to something that will help Quill. She explains that, as Galactus went through the galaxy destroying planets, some researchers began following him around and searching through the rubble he left behind for any interesting technology. These researchers amassed a considerable collection of Galactus' technology, some of which might be able to breach the shield. Quill says this is an old legend but Mantis assures him it's real, and Gamora asks how to find it. Raccoon complains that he thought she had agreed to give up, but Gamora says they have to guard the entire galaxy and not just the parts they like.
Mantis explains that the cache of Galactus' technology is in the Jojola Nebula, which Quill exposits is unnavigable; ships can go in but can never find their way out. He considers giving up rather than trying, but Mantis says that there is one person who found a way out of the Jojola Nebula and can help them navigate it. This turns out to be Yondu Udonta, a pirate criminal who raised Quill but also enslaved him. Mantis and Quill arrange for him to be released from prison to help them, and the group leaves for the Jojola Nebula.
The group flies towards the Nebula with Quill and Udonta bickering over whether Udonta raised Quill in a cruel manner or not. Udonta says that Quill is basically copying him, as he captains his own ship with a motley crew. Gamora asks about Udonta's own crew, the Ravagers, and Udonta says they betrayed him and left him for dead. At that point they reach the Nebula and Udonta steers them past wrecked ships to a planet, claiming he used his perfect memory to map the chaotic nebula in just three days. He takes them to a database on the planet and Raccoon and Groot begin to search the records describing the treasure cache, and as Quill and Udonta argue and threaten to fight each other, Raccoon finds information on something called the 'Transluminal Tuning Fork' which is theoretically capable of breaching the shield surrounding Earth.
Quill, Gamora, and Udonta fly to where the records claim the tuning fork should be but it isn't there, and they quickly realize that some robots are taking the technology from the ground and assembling a large statue of Galactus with the tuning fork at the top. Back in the database, Raccoon says that the robots are foot soldiers called Punishers which Galactus uses to guard his stuff; the researchers brought some to the cache but the robots turned out to be self-replicating and eventually overran the whole place. Gamora says they aren't strong enough to fight off a robot army and Quill suggests they get closer and then lure the robots away so they can use a tractor beam to steal the tuning fork, but Udonta suddenly triggers Gamora's ejection seat and shoots her out of the craft.
Quill, enraged, says that Gamora will kill Udonta, but Udonta says he has an army and she doesn't. He contacts Kraglin, one of his Ravagers, and orders him to get to work. A large Ravager ship flies down towards Quill's ship as Udonta boasts that he'll be taking the tuning fork back to Earth as Quill wanted—but he'll sell it to the highest bidder instead of just using it to save everyone, and he'll sell off Quill and his crew to whoever want them as well. The Ravager ship tractors up the tuning fork (with a few of the robots hanging onto it) as well as Quill's ship.
Udonta takes Quill onto the bridge of his ship and Kraglin tells him that he sent some foot soldiers to catch the other Guardians. Udonta boasts that he's going to be rich after this job, noting that he really spent a full cycle mapping out the Jojola Nebula in preparation for raiding it before being arrested, and then he spread the tale that he knew his way around the Nebula because he knew some fool would free him to use him as a guide. Kraglin then notes that the robots are tearing up the cargo bay, and an enraged Udonta snaps that he specifically demanded the robots not be brought aboard.
Back at the database, Raccoon is worried that Quill has fallen out of contact and says they need to go after him. Drax tries to beg off, saying he's resolved to be non-violent, but at that point Udonta's foot soldiers arrive to capture them. Groot, however, appears in a huge suit of battle armor and beats up the Ravagers. The Guardians leave but almost run right into Udonta's ship, then rush back inside as Ravagers stream in after them in flight from the robots. They manage to shoot the controls and get the door shut, though Quill notes this strands Gamora outside, and when Udonta tries to threaten him Quill points out that if the robots destroy Udonta's ship he won't be able to get off planet to sell or exploit his knowledge of the nebula. Drax, however, finds that the door is now jammed, but as he looks out through a window he suddenly yells for everyone to get down. The door explodes inwards as Gamora shoots it with the tuning fork. She then blasts the Ravagers aside and demands Udonta, threatening to kill him until Quill points out that they need him to guide them out of the nebula. At that she throws him down and stalks off.
Once the Guardians and Udonta escape the nebula, Udonta asks if he's happy. Quill says he'll be happy once they take the shield down, but Raccoon says that the tuning fork is actually useless; the robots stripped it for parts and when Gamora used it she burned out whatever was left, leaving the Guardians with a useless pile of junk. Udonta laughs at them, but Gamora threatens him with a large sword and says they don't need him alive anymore so he should be tactful. The Guardians then retreat to another room and try to figure out what to do next, resolving to send Udonta back to jail but unsure how to help Earth. Quill muses that maybe Gamora was right and Earth is doomed, but Gamora says they'll find a way to breach the shield. Quill points out her earlier defeatism but Gamora says she was inspired by seeing Quill ally with Udonta, whom he despised, just for a chance of being able to save Earth. Raccoon signs on, as do the others, and Quill agrees, though he's not sure how Mantis could have been wrong. Gamora says Mantis wasn't wrong—she had said that he would find something that would help, and he did: the other Guardians themselves.
Tropes:
- Robot Uprising: What happened to the planet with the weapons cache.
