AN: Before this chapter begins, I'd like to give a big thank you to the support and hype you guys have given to this story. I'm glad that others want to see Batch 89 happy together, so please enjoy this newest chapter!
"On the planet Sakaar, a being known as the Grandmaster rules over his own corner of space. He finds the greatest warriors, willing or not, to compete in his arena for pleasure and sport. That is where our quartet of modified mammals have found themselves now, but they are not alone in this endeavor…"
Rocket shook his head from unconsciousness, vision blurry as he awoke in an unfamiliar place. The first thing he noticed was that he was strapped down to a chair, which brought back bad memories of the High Evolutionary's experiments. The second thing that came into focus was the humanoid man standing over him, poking at Rocket's fur with intrigue as his eyes scanned over the raccoon's body. Rocket tried to bite his finger, but the man quickly pulled his hand away.
"Ah, it seems we have a biter here," the man, his speech pattern distinctly… well, Rocket could only describe it as "unique" in his mind.
"Where the hell am I?" Rocket asked.
"And it speaks. Fascinating," the man laughed. "You really brought me something special this time, Scrapper 142. And this little… thing had friends with him as well?"
"Yes, Grandmaster. She brought four of them in total," said a woman in a yellow spacesuit standing next to the man, whom Rocket was to assume was named "Grandmaster."
"Good, good-good-good. Bring them all in for me, Topaz. I want to see the whole set," Grandmaster said. The woman, Topaz, pressed a button, bringing up three other chairs next to Rocket that held his friends.
"Hello Rocket!" Floor greeted, oblivious to the danger.
"Hey Floor…" Rocket sighed.
"Wait, that one is named Floor?" Grandmaster questioned.
"Yes, because I am on the floor… or, I'm usually on the floor. Now I'm in chair, but I'm still Floor," Floor replied.
"You know, Topaz, I don't think I've ever seen creatures quite like these before," Grandmaster mused. "I bet my brother would pay big bucks to get even one of these guys into his collection… but he said that about the last contestant I found as well, and I'm not about to let him take one of my champions."
"Excuse me, but what is all this exactly?" Teefs asked politely.
"Ah, right, I haven't even introduced myself," Grandmaster said. He flicked his hand, causing the chairs to start following him around as he, Topaz, and Scrapper 142 followed him. "My name is the Grandmaster, ruler of Sakaar and the head honcho of the Contest of Champions. We have the greatest selection of warriors fight it out to the death for my amusement, and the four of you are the newest contestants."
"But we're not fighters," Lylla said. "Just creatures looking to live our lives out in the stars. We didn't even mean to stay here on this planet for as long as we did!"
"Hey, anyone that captured by one of my Scrappers is fair game for the Contest of Champions," Grandmaster shrugged indifferently. "Besides… Topaz, what information did you get on these guys?"
"These creatures have markings similar to the experiments of the High Evolutionary," Topaz replied.
"Ah, yes, that guy. Pretty sure I've gotten a few champions from him before in exchange for funding one of his projects…" Grandmaster muttered to himself. "Anyways, get them fitted for detainment, Scrapper 142, and introduce them to their fellow champions. We do have the big event coming up soon."
"Hey, you can't just keep us here!" Rocket objected, tugging at his restraints again. "I didn't bust me and my friends out of a cage just to be put back in-!" The raccoon seized up as Scrapper 142 activated the device in his neck, sending electric shocks over his body. While it would be painful for anyone, Rocket's cybernetic parts made it hurt more.
Batch 89 was soon dragged through an ordeal, forcefully washed and made "presentable" by the Grandmaster's servants. The four were then tossed into cells underneath the main arena of the Grandmaster's palace. "Keep this one separate from the others. He seems like their leader," Topaz ordered. Rocket didn't have time to protest as he was separated from his friends, tossed unceremoniously into a dark cell across from Lylla, Floor, and Teefs.
"Caged again, caged again…" Floor fretted, hopping around the cell nervously.
Lylla took hold of the rabbit, giving comforting whispers to her friend. "It's okay, Floor. We'll find a way out of this. Rocket will come up with a plan, I'm sure of it."
"This is still unideal for us," Teefs hummed, pulling himself onto one of the cots in the cell.
"Don't worry guys, I'll figure this out," Rocket called. He looked around his cell, crawling over every inch of the place to find any structural weaknesses. Unfortunately there didn't seem to be any, any the door of the cell was blocked by a laser gate. The only thing that the cell held in it, besides a toilet and wall-mounted cot, was a weird-looking tree situated in one of the far corners.
'Eh, maybe I can pull of some bark, try to pull open the laser gate that way…' Rocket thought. He went over to the tree, and tried pulling at the wood, but found that it was stuck onto the trunk fairly well that even his claws couldn't pick it off. "Geez… this thing is stuck… some kinda super-tree or something…" Rocket grunted. The raccoon was unaware of the roots of the tree sneaking out, curling underneath his feet before latching on and pulling Rocket into the air upside-down. "Woah! What the-!?"
The treen suddenly stood up, revealing themselves to be a tree-like humanoid that stood nearly seven feet tall. "I. Am. Groot!" the tree shouted in Rocket's face, the raccoon flinching as he got sap spit in his face.
"Woah there, big guy. I was just looking to get some of your bark. I didn't know you were a walking tree man," Rocket said defensively.
"I am Groot," the tree said.
"Yeah, I think I got that the first time," Rocket replied.
"I am Groot."
"Ah geez, it's one of these guys…" Rocket muttered. While he and his friends had been outfitted with universal translators, there were a few languages that even the High Evolutionary didn't know. Apparently whatever language this "Groot" spoke was one of those few. "Look, can ya set me down already? The blood is rushing to my head, and I already said I was sorry."
"I… am Groot," Groot nodded, putting Rocket back down on the ground gently.
Rocket took a moment to catch his breath before turning back to Groot, crossing his arms. "Well, Groot, looks like we're cellmates until I figure out a way of busting me and my friends out of here." The jerked a thumb to the cell across the hall. "I'm Rocket, and those guys over there are my friends."
"I am Groot?" Groot asked, gesturing a finger at Rocket.
Rocket rolled his eyes, before realizing that Groot was probably trying to ask him a question. "If you're wondering what I am, I'm a raccoon, though one that was illegally experimented on by some nutjob called the High Evolutionary. Don't know exactly what a raccoon is, but apparently, we're good at using our hands, and this raccoon likes making tools and fixing up broken things."
"I am Groot. I am Groot. I am Groot," Groot said. Rocket got the impression Groot was telling his own backstory from his gestures.
"Sorry pal, but there's still a language barrier between us," Rocket shook his head. Groot looked a bit sad at the revelation.
"Are you okay over there, Rocket?" Lylla called.
"Yeah, just making a new friend," Rocket replied.
"Rocket make new friend?" Floor gasped. "Want to meet new friend!"
"The guy's name is Groot, and he's a tree man of some kind," Rocket said. Groot moved closer to the door so the others could see him.
"I am Groot," Groot waved.
"Hello Groot! I am Floor because I am on the floor," Floor replied.
"Teefs, for my most distinguished feature," Teefs waved.
"Lylla. It's nice to see a friendly face in a place like this," Lylla said with a smile.
"I, am Groot," Groot replied.
"Rocket, why friend say greets again?" Floor asked.
"I dunno. Must be a language we don't understand," Rocket shrugged.
"Rocket, do you think that Groot could help us escape from here?" Lylla asked.
Rocket looked at Groot. "…Maybe, but there's not much we can do in this cell. There's nothing in here for me to work with, so we might just have to wait until that "big event" Grandmaster was talking about comes around."
"I am Groot!" Groot said, clearly panicked by Rocket's words.
"Eh? Not looking forward to having to fight, I'm guessing," Rocket said. He closed his eyes and nodded. "Yeah, fighting against my will for some guy sitting in his high tower isn't ideal either, but we aren't going to escape from this cell with what I have now. I need to get some tools to bust out of here…"
"I am Groot," Groot nodded, giving his understanding of Rocket's plans.
"Great. I'm going to take that as us being on the same page," Rocket smiled. He looked to his friends. "Well then, I suppose we should figure out what we've got going for us in the arena…"
[***]
"Our Counter Earth quartet had gained a new ally, but there was still the matter of escaping from the Grandmaster's Contest of Champions. Only a combination of their wits and skills would lead them to a favorable outcome…"
"Alright you mangy creatures, up and at'em!" Topaz droned as she and other Grandmaster guards came in to collect Batch 89 and Groot. The gang were all dragged to what seemed to be a waiting room, with rows of weapons lined up on the walls. "You've got five minutes to pick your weapons before the contest begins. Good luck."
Rocket moved to escape, but another laser gate came up, blocking him from going anywhere. "Guess we're gonna have to fight before we can do anything…" the raccoon muttered. He went over to the wall of weapons, inspecting their options. "Well, I don't suppose you guys have any preferences? I'm the only one that's actually used a firearm…" He picked up a pair of smaller blasters for himself, setting them aside.
Teefs stroked his whiskers before picking up a cannon-like weapon, using his mechanical collar to attach the weapon to his back. "I think this will suit me well," he nodded.
"I'll take a blaster as well," Lylla said, catching a thin silver gun from Rocket. The otter then hummed, before grabbing a staff and some rope, tying a makeshift holster around her waist for her weapons. "There, that should do it."
"Floor want gun too!" Floor cheered.
"Nah-ah-ah, you're not getting one," Rocket held his blaster up where Floor couldn't get it. "I know you want to help, Floor, but your limbs, robotic or otherwise, can't hold a blaster properly. We'll have to work on your cybernetics before I even think about teaching you how to use one."
"Oh… Okay! Floor just be distraction then!" the rabbit said with a smile.
"I am Groot," Groot said, flexing his limbs to make thorns appear along his body.
"Yeah, that'll work. Here, see if you can hold some of these as well," Rocket nodded, passing some small explosives over to Groot. The tree-man opened up his chest to safely store the explosives inside. "Gross, but effective."
The door leading to the arena opened up, and the gang gave each other nervous looks before stepping out into the blinding lights. A sizable crowd was gathered to watch the event, cheering as the champions all arrived in the arena. Rocket took note that all sides of the arena had a champion or two stepping out of it, each one looking more deadly than the last. 'What is the event all about anyways…?' he thought.
"Welcome everyone, to the Contest of Champions!" Grandmaster announced from his personal viewing tower. "We have a special event for you here today, one of my favorite kinds of contests: Survival of the Fittest!"
"Oh flark, not one of these…" one of the champions groaned, a bald humanoid with orange skin. The crowd cheered at Grandmaster's announcement.
"Yes, yes, very exciting and all that. I even got this special monster imported from some backwater planet called…" Grandmaster backed up from his microphone and whispered to Topaz, "What planet was it?"
"E-arth, sir," Topaz responded.
"Ah, yes, from E-arth! Just scooped it right up. Found it running around in some snowy wasteland!" Grandmaster said. "Shame we couldn't get that stabby claw guy, but you can't complain about what you can't catch…"
"Rocket, is he talking about Earth?" Lylla asked.
Rocket nodded. "Sounds like it. Whatever monster we've gotta fight, it's from the world the High Evolutionary took us from…"
A box rose up in the middle of the arena, shaking and shuttering as whatever was held inside. "Get ready, champions, for our main event! And just so you know, the top performing champion today gets to have their freedom, no strings attached! If you survive, that is…"
The box shook even more, dents becoming visible as whatever was inside started to break free from its confines. The champions all readied their weapons, Rocket nervously holding up his blasters towards the box. After a moment the walls of the box burst open, revealing aneight-foot-tall monster covered head-to-toe in white fur, with lashing tails, vicious claws, and snarling fangs. "WENDIGO!" the monster screamed, before running towards the nearest champion, tearing them in half in the blink of an eye.
"Oh flark!" Rocket cursed, instinct taking over as he moved in front of Lylla to protect her. The raccoon and his allies quickly moved away from the Wendigo, before having to dodge backwards as one of the champions, a strange warrior wearing medieval armor with a broadsword, swung his weapon down on them. "Hey idiot, we're on the same side here!"
"It's every Champion for themselves and getting rid of small fry like you just clears out the competition faster," the warrior said.
"That's not very nice!" Floor exclaimed.
"Indeed it isn't," Teefs nodded. The warrior swung his sword again, only for Teefs' mechanical arm to reach out and catch the blade with ease. The walrus tossed the weapon aside, before barreling over the warrior, leaving them laid out flat on their back.
"Hey! Get back here!" the warrior shouted as the group moved away from him. "I can't get back up in this armor!"
"Then you shouldn't have fallen on the floor!" Floor giggled.
All around the arena, champions were either battling it out with each other or trying (and failing) to kill the Wendigo. Off to one side of the arena, a rock-man was flattening himself up against the wall, a weird punk bug thing cradled in his arms. Seeing as he wasn't fighting anyone else, Rocket decided that guy looked to be a good ally to have.
"Hey, you!" the raccoon shouted.
"Oh, hello there!" the rock-man waved pleasantly. I'm Korg. This guy here is Meik. Just trying our best not to die here."
"Same here," Lylla said. "Would you be interested in forming an alliance with us, Korg?"
"Well, I would, but you see I have to take care of Meik here. Can't really fight without his legs and all," Korg said. He then looked over to see Groot and waved. "Oh, hello Groot!"
"I am Groot," Groot waved back.
"Yes, I see you do have a lot of new friends. Good for you," Korg nodded.
"Korg understand Groot?" Floor asked in surprise.
"Oh sure. Once you get to know him, it comes naturally," Korg said. "Are you still on for the uprising next week, Groot?"
"I am Groot." Groot raised an eyebrow.
"No, I still have to get the fliers," Korg replied.
"Look, this is all fine, but we really need to either get out of here or kill that Wendi-whatever!" Rocket said impatiently.
"Wow, angry little fella, isn't he?" Korg said.
"Rocket is actually very nice if you get to know him," Lylla said, crossing her arms.
"Well, if you want to win, then your best bet is to team up with Bill," Korg said.
"Bill? What kinda stupid name is Bill?" Rocket questioned. Korg pointed out to the middle of the arena, where a mighty warrior was showing his strength. He was a tall humanoid with golden brown skin and a horse skull-like head, with bulging muscles and a mighty battle axe in hand. If this were a movie, you'd see a dramatic slow-motion shot as he effortlessly cleaved a red-skinned alien in half. "Oh, I like Bill."
"Should we be concerned that he might slice us in half?" Teefs asked with worry.
"I am Groot," Groot shrugged.
"Yeah, you guys look small and helpless enough for him to take pity on you," Korg nodded.
"Gee, thanks," Rocket muttered. The raccoon climbed up Groot, resting on the tree's shoulder to get a better vantage. "You okay with me sitting her, Groot?"
"I am Groot," the tree nodded.
"Good. Now then, let's go team up with Bill and take down that monster," Rocket said. Groot let out a battle cry as they ran back out into the arena, Groot holding out his arm as he hardened up the bark there, turning it into a battering ram shield. Rocket used the cover to blast any champions that got too close for comfort, with Lylla, Floor, and Teefs following closely behind.
When a warrior with too many knives started screaming and charging at them, Lylla gasped and held up her blaster. Having no experience with the weapon, the otter was blow back by a single shot, completely missing the shot and only glancing one of the warrior's knives. This did give Floor the chance to jump in and defend her friend, though, the rabbit using her spider limbs to clamber around the warrior and start disarming her with carefully placed strikes. Soon the warrior had dropped all of her knives, with Teefs slamming his tail on her head to knock her out.
"Floor, what was that?" Lylla asked in shock.
"Floor saw Lylla in trouble, so Floor helped!" Floor explained. She smiled and picked up one of the knives about twice her size, holding the handle in her mouth. "Floor have knife now!"
"Yes, you do…" Lylla said warily. "Floor, I just saw you hit that person's pressure points in such a way that they couldn't move their body. How did you know to do that?"
Floor shrugged. "Don't know, just knew it would work. Make screaming lady stop screaming."
'Hm… I wonder of that has to do with the High Evolutionary's programming…' Lylla thought. She shelved those thoughts for later as another warrior ran at them, but they were soon stopped by the Wendigo grabbing them by the head and twisting it off like a bottle cap.
"My word… I think I'll be sick," Teefs said in disgust.
"Stay calm, big guy. That's our target," Rocket said, turning around to see the beast now looking at them. The Wendigo snarled… before running off and going after a different warrior. "Huh, it didn't attack us?"
"Perhaps it recognizes us as also being from Earth," Lylla guessed.
"Is that so?" said a strong voice. The group turned to see Bill standing there, his body half covered in various types of blood from the other champions that had tried to fell him. "Then perhaps you'd be willing to work with me to defeat that monster, rodent?"
"I'm a raccoon," Rocket corrected. "The name's Rocket, that's Lylla, Floor, Teefs, and this guy here is Groot."
"I am Groot," Groot greeted, the others giving their own waves.
"What a motley crew you have, warrior Rocket," Bill nodded. "I will ally myself with you for the time being. Now then, to defeat this Wendigo!" Bill let out a warrior's cry as he charged the Wendigo, the monster looking up from the dead corpse of a fallen champion before roaring and meeting Bill in a clash. The two locked hands as they pushed against each other, equal in strength as neither gave up ground. Bill grit his teeth and ducked down, letting the Wendigo leer over him before striking at the beast with his axe.
"Yes! Go Bill!" Floor cheered.
"We're going to need to help him out too," Rocket said. "Lylla, see if you can find a weak point on that thing! Teefs, Groot, distract the Wendigo and help out Bill."
"And what about you?" Teefs asked.
Rocket reached into Groot and pulled out a few spare weapons, quickly starting to take them apart. "I'm gonna make us something that'll totally blow that monster sky-high. Floor, over for me!"
"On it, Rocket!" Floor nodded, the gang breaking up to do their tasks.
Teefs slid behind the Wendigo as it brawled with Bill, the walrus leaning forward to fire off the cannon he had strapped to his back earlier. The weapon sent out a burning ball of fire that exploded into colorful sparks on the Wendigo's back, the monster howling in pain as its fur was singed off.
"Oh, someone picked the fireworks cannon. My favorite," Grandmaster mused.
The Wendigo turned around and grabbed at Teefs, only for Groot to stretch out his arm and tangle up the monster's arm with vines. Wendigo snarled and used its free hand to cut into Groot, the tree-man crying out in pain as his arm was cleaved in two!
"Groot!" Lylla gasped, racing over to his side.
"I… am Groot," Groot winced, looking at his lost arm. Lylla watched as his stump slowly started regrowing.
"Oh good, you'll be all right," the otter sighed in relief. She turned around to see Bill and Teefs keeping the Wendigo busy with fireworks and axe swings. Lylla also turned to see Rocket taking parts from discarded weapons and sticking them together, while Floor fended off any remaining champions with her nerve strikes and newly acquired knife.
"Accursed monster, die!" Bill shouted, landing a clean strike on the Wendigo's chest. The wound burst open, only to quickly heal back up as it roared in defiance. "The Grandmaster has given us an unkillable monster, has he? Well no matter, as nothing it unkillable!"
"Almost… got it… here!" Rocket said, holding up his new weapon. It was a hastily put together amalgamation of guns almost double Rocket's size, but the raccoon managed to somehow hold the weapon with little effort.
"Oh, big shooty thing! What it do?" Floor asked as she paralyzed the last of the champions attacking them.
"This is going to be our ticket to victory," Rocket grinned. "Lylla, did you find a weak spot yet?"
"It's skin heals from all damage quickly, but I don't think its insides are quite as durable, especially to fire," Lylla replied.
"Then I just got one shot…" Rocket muttered. He held up his blaster and aimed, taking one of the grenades he had acquired and loading it into the weapon. "Everyone, keep that thing still so I can freaking shoot its mouth!"
Groot nodded, using his one hand to stab into the ground, sending out roots that wrapped around the Wendigo's feet. The monster roared at being restrained, but Bill quickly shut it up with a hammer uppercut to the jaw. The warrior then stepped out of the way as Rocket fired off his weapon, launching the grenade right into the Wendigo's mouth! Bill grabbed the monster's head, forcing its mouth shut before the explosive went off, turning the Wendigo's head into mush as its body fell over.
"Disgusting…" Bill said, shaking off the Wendigo guts from his body. The crowd soon started cheering, with Bill holding up his hammer in victory as Batch 89 and Groot held up an arm too.
"Well, I can't say that's how I expected that to end, but here we are," Grandmaster said. "But we have ourselves a winner! And like I said, the top performing champion of this battle gets their freedom, so… Bill, congratulations! You're free from the games!"
"What!?" Rocket shouted, stomping his foot. "News flash, Grandmaster! I was the one that dealt the final blow there, so the win should go to me!"
"I mean, you did that, yes, but Bill was clearly the one everyone was rooting for," Grandmaster said. "You and your tiny little friends can always try again next time. Now then, guards! Return the survivors to their cells."
Sakarrian guards quickly came into the arena, with Batch 89 looking nervous as Rocket looked around for some way out of this. 'Flark, there's too many guys here to take…' he thought.
Luckily for the animals, hope would come in the form of one of their allies. "Grandmaster!" Bill suddenly shouted, holding up his hands. "I would like to trade my prize for the freedom of Rocket and his friends."
"He can't do that, sir," Topaz said, only for Grandmaster to hold up a hand to her face.
"Ah, ah, ah, let me think…" he mutters. "Tell me, Bill, why should I trade four of my newest champions for one? That doesn't seem very fair."
"These four have proven themselves, but they are also quite small. Like animals my people would hunt on my home world," Bill said. "The four of them would surely equate to one of me. In return, you will continue to have my service in your Contest of Champions."
"You are one of my most popular champions…" Grandmaster mused. "Okay then, you have a deal, Bill. Guards, put down the pointy sticks and bring the funny talking animals up to my lounge. If they're getting their freedom, might as well treat them right, yeah?"
"What about Groot?" Floor asked.
"No, the tree stays with me," Grandmaster said.
Groot looked at his new friends, before giving a small smile. "I am Groot."
"You have a plan…? Wait, did I just understand you!?" Rocket said in shock.
"I am Groot!" Groot smiled wider, before one of the guards started poking him with their spear.
"Get moving, tree man," the guard droned, escorting Groot back to the cells while Bill was taken to his own, leaving Rocket and company to be taken up to the Grandmaster's lounge.
"You guys heard that, right? Groot actually said words!" Rocket said excitedly.
"It still sounded like "I am Groot" to me…" Teefs shook his head. "But I do feel like I understood the meaning behind what he was saying, if that makes sense."
"If we meet Groot or his species again, maybe we can investigate that," Lylla suggested. "For now, we should appreciate our freedom and get back to our ship."
"And find a way to get Groot outta here…" Rocket said quietly, Lylla giving him a nod. The tree-man was a friend of theirs now, and if Batch 89 believed in one thing, it's that it was good to have friends. And friends don't leave each other behind.
Author's Note
Batch 89 have meet Groot now! Getting to write Grandmaster was a lot of fun, so I hope I got his voice right (Jeff Goldblum is a particularly difficult actor to capture on the page, I find). I know that on Twitter James Gunn has given his own origin for how Rocket and Groot met, but for this story I thought it'd be fun for the gang to meet their new tree friend on Sakaar in the Contest of Champions.
Speaking of which, we've got a lot of Marvel references here. I decided to make the Wendigo their main adversary here as a reference to the Square Enix Guardians game (which you should play if you haven't, it's very fun!). Beta Ray Bill also plays a big part in this chapter, showing off that he is a mighty warrior but also has a sense of honor to him as well, letting Batch 89 have his freedom. I might also have some ideas to bring him back in future, especially during some of the Thor stuff.
Also we get to see Batch 89 in combat for the first time! Rocket is the most experienced since he's used a blaster before, while Lylla acts as a scout and field medic and Teefs is a walking (or in his case, rolling) tank, now with a cannon! Floor was really fun to come up with her fighting style, being fast and going after pressure points. This new skill of hers will be tied into what her programming is, like how Lylla has medical knowledge and Rocket has scientific and technological knowledge.
I've seen a few people asking this, so I wanted to give a timeline for what I'm planning with this story: I'm going to cover a 3 "Guardians of the Galaxy" films and the holiday special, along with both "Infinity War" and "Endgame", and the Guardians' scene from "Thor: Love and Thunder". There will also be chapters that will cover stuff that happens in-between the movies, which is where we are now, covering what Rocket and company were doing before the first Guardians movie.
Next time will cover Batch 89 relaxing on Sakaar and reuniting with Groot. I hope to see you all there to see what else the gang will get up to!