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xxxxxThe raccoon is the largest member of the procyonid family, with a distinctive black ‘mask’ around its eyes, ringed tail, nimble front paws and clever behaviour. All of those do serve to describe Rocket, though he is (slightly) larger still than the average raccoon and (extremely) cleverer. Standing at three and a half feet tall, he seems well at ease with taking on a bipedal stance, and one might be able to tell that his skeletal structure has been adjusted for this purpose. He is also pretty slender for a raccoon, fitting well within the many different jumpsuits that he may wear while piloting.
xxxxxBeyond that, there are marks of all manner of surgeries about his body. While many scars are hidden beneath his fur, some metallic markers of his implants are all about his body. The glint of small bolts beneath his eyes, flat fasteners along his collarbone and similar connectors near his elbows are the most obvious, but beneath his flight suit, it’s all the more pronounced. Metal bars up and down his spine, stopping at his tailbone, with connectors for some kind of foreign electronic devices built into his shoulders. His fur is sparse on this section of his back, making the heavily scarred and damaged skin there all the more obvious. On his chest, there is a panel in the shape of an X bolted on.
xxxxxHe also looks like the kind of guy who probably bites.
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xxxxx89P13 had a fairly normal upbringing, raised by a father who was doing the important work of genetic and cybernetic experimentation in the name of creating a perfect species on a perfect world full of perfect people, and usually left in the company of his siblings. They were regularly experimented on, tinkered with, taken apart and put back together in the name of progress.
xxxxxTo clarify, this upbringing was normal specifically for batch 89, the latest in the High Evolutionary’s experiments. Funded by his business interests, Utopia was a fascination of the Evolutionary’s, a personal project funded by cybernetics, weapons and medical technology sold galaxy-wide. He had a love-hate experience encountering Earth from a half-century ago, much enjoying the culture and art of the earthlings, but having antipathy towards its people. Surely, a smart guy like him? He could do much better than this lot of jerks.
xxxxxBatches 1 through 88 were but stepping stones in the path to reaching perfection, and were disposed of when their purpose ran its course. 89P13 made dear friends with the other subjects, who he shared a small space with as he grew from just a tiny kit. One of the first words that he was able to utter roughly translated to, ‘hurts’, as one of his cellmates dabbed at his surgical wounds to sop away the blood.
xxxxxWhen 89P13 was being experimented on, the High Evolutionary noticed that this particular subject displayed a keen intellect, curiosity and capacity for learning, something he considered uncharacteristic of batch 89 in general. He brought 89P13 out for more experiments, exposing him to mathematics, music, machinery and much more. When he was shown a rocket taking off into the atmosphere from the High Evolutionary’s viewport, it excited his imagination, to the point that he chose the name ‘Rocket’ to be used among his cellmates.
xxxxxAround this time, the High Evolutionary was working on his next pet project, the creation of batch 90. Things weren’t going so well, though, and during one of these outings, Rocket was left to observe the working of the machines while they failed to produce the desired results. In a child’s verbiage, he communicated a suggestion to the astonishment of the scientists there for the amount of insight the little creature had, though it was not taken particularly seriously and he was ushered back to his cell.
xxxxxWhen next he was brought back out, the High Evolutionary questioned how Rocket could have known to make the suggestion he did, if he read some notes by one of the other scientists, if he overheard something, but Rocket confirmed that it was his own creative thinking. The High Evolutionary was jubilant and explained that this would be the breakthrough they need to create the perfect society and complete batch 90. To populate Halfworld after all!
xxxxxRocket was also delighted, for this would surely mean that him and his friends from batch 89 would find a place in this new world. The High Evolutionary thought that this was funny; he explained that for all the intellect the raccoon displayed, he did not seem to realize that a perfect society did not abide imperfections. And batch 89, despite Rocket’s exceptional traits, were grossly imperfect. Which is why he was going to remove Rocket’s brain for further study, and give the go-ahead for the incineration of batch 89 to make way for the future.
xxxxxWhen Rocket was returned to his cell, he displayed another ability that outstripped even his intellect: Stealing. Stealing and hiding so many things. Each time he was brought up for experiments with the High Evolutionary, he stole and tucked away whatever he could. And now, he had both the motivation and the trash required to create a device that would disable the electronic locks on the cages. He attempted to escape with his friends, but the High Evolutionary was coming for a visit at the same time with security tailing behind him. When the High Evolutionary shot and killed one of the other escaping creatures, Rocket leapt at him, tearing apart his face in a fury, and turned the gun towards the security guards, killing them as well. To his horror, they had already made short work of his remaining friends, and he fled from the gruesome scene to the spacecraft that once inspired so much hope and inspiration.
xxxxxThe ship was very well equipped, having enough resources to keep a crew alive for years. And for a little raccoon? Well, it lasted a little longer though, ‘saving things for later’ turned out not to be one of his enhanced traits. Eventually, to sustain himself, he became a thief. Again, stealing was one of his greatest powers. And it turned out that if he got caught, he had a way of slipping out of trouble.
xxxxxDuring one such ‘time out’ where he was jailed, he met Groot. Groot was a Groot named Groot, which makes much more sense if you understand Grootspeak, which Rocket did not. Still, in the time they spent together, they formed a bond, and when Rocket was inevitably ready for his daring escape, he also stole Groot from the jail.
xxxxxDuring their time together, Rocket quickly learned to understand Groot’s language, with language in general being something that he could pick up quickly (though actually pronouncing Grootspeak was, alas, physically impossible for Rocket). The pair continued to get up to shenanigans of dubious legality, or rather, indubitable illegality. Sometimes, other people have stuff, and you should actually have that stuff instead. One such individual who had stuff that Rocket should have instead was Peter Quill.
xxxxxQuill was carrying an artifact that Rocket had been hired to retrieve, which brought them into a very public conflict on Xandar. And, it turns out, when several criminals who are targets of bounties get into a public conflict in a city with a heavy presence of both the law and bounty hunters, it attracts the wrong kind of attention.
xxxxxOnce again, Rocket would find himself forming a bond while preparing for a daring escape from jail. He learned ‘Quillish’ (read: 80s English) from Peter, and Rocket learned a new appreciation for the pop music of the era that Quill was permanently stuck in. He had heard music kind of like that during the times where the experiments with the High Evolutionary were not of the painful variety.
xxxxxTogether, they started to drift more towards a ‘Robin Hood’ mentality, or even the mentality of people who believed themselves to be heroes. Guardians. Guardians of what? We’ll sort out those details another time. Their adventures took them all over the galaxy, sometimes together, sometimes apart, but usually in contact with each other.
xxxxxWhich is why it was a bit concerning that Rocket has not checked in recently during his return from a solo adventure that had (by all reports) gone swimmingly. This is because Rocket found himself in an unfamiliar place, stranded from his busted ship, and probably caged. But we all know how that old story goes.
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xxxxxIf It Ain’t Broke, Then Don’t Fix It - Raccoon Powers
xxxxxThe common raccoon, with its thick undercoat, can easily endure cold temperatures. They are usually nocturnal, with excellent night vision and possess dexterous fingers and non-retractible claws with vibrissae to help them with tactile sensation. In fact, the most important sense for the raccoon is its sense of touch, with two thirds of the area of the cerebral cortex that is dedicated to sensory perception dedicated to tactile sensation. They also have a strong sense of smell, and a broad auditory range, able to hear sounds as quiet as earthworms crawling through the earth. When climbing, they can turn their feet all the way around in order to help with climbing downwards or in odd directions.
xxxxxIf It Ain’t Broke, Then Still Fix It - Cybernetic Enhancements
xxxxxRocket is not a common raccoon (though yes, he does have all those common raccoon powers). His body is lined with all kinds of cybernetic enhancements, which increase his strength, durability and agility. He is able to overpower even adult humans without much difficulty, though an experienced wrestler at peak strength would be able to pin him (so long as their hands and fingers stay away from his mouth).
xxxxxHis durability may come as a surprise to anyone seeing the lean raccoon in front of them. You could hit him with a truck and he’d probably be okay, so long as you check on him afterwards and possibly seek medical attention. He heals a bit faster than your average raccoon as well.
xxxxxHis reflexes and speed are even better than a raccoon’s, which is good, because base raccoons do not have a lot of reflexes and speed on their side. He can avoid gunfire, to a point, so long as he has access to some kind of cover. These reflexes serve him very well in piloting ships.
xxxxxIf It Ain’t Broke, Then I’ll Break It - Tactile Intuition
xxxxxIf Rocket is able to lay eyes on a machine, and especially if he is able to pull it apart into its component parts, he will be able to understand what makes it work. He might not be able to describe it very well, but his hands will gain that understanding just fine. Once he takes it apart, putting it back together is no problem.
xxxxxIf It’s Broke, Then I’ll Make It - Mechanical Intuition
xxxxxOnce Rocket has some understanding of a machine, he can start to improvise with similar components or make adjustments and innovations based on the original design. He can turn scrap into a working device, make improvements on working devices, and fix things that are not working as they should be.
xxxxxIn a way, this also helps him to intuit the tactics of combat situations, where he sees the situation as disparate but interacting parts that he needs to use to achieve a particular result.
xxxxxIf I’m Broke, Then I’ll Take It - Theft
xxxxxRocket will often identify things as probably being required for later use, which means that he will surreptitiously pocket things that may have future value. He is often carrying all kinds of bits and bobs that one (sometimes even he) might not understand the purposes of until he puts them all together. He is less concerned with monetary value than he is with function, but the function of ‘being shiny’ fortunately correlates with a lot of valuables and allows him to pay his way.
xxxxxI Am Groot (Believe Me This Actually Fits The Naming Scheme) - Language
xxxxxHe has an uncanny ability to pick up, understand and retain languages, intuiting grammar from the structure of people’s speech around him and retaining most any vocabulary that he can hear. Because of this, he knows a number of alien languages, including Grootspeak and Quillish.
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