It took the Guardians considerable time and engineering effort to properly secure the ancient Ebon Hawk to their ship using reinforced towing cables and stabilization clamps in order to travel safely through hyperspace. Initially, they had planned to simply strip the derelict vessel for valuable parts and sell anything they didn't need to replenish their dwindling supplies and repair funds. However, after extensive discussion and debate among the team, they ultimately rejected this shortsighted approach.
They quickly realized the significant potential benefits of maintaining the Ebon Hawk as their secondary vessel alongside the Benatar. The modern ship would continue serving as their primary home base and command center, while the ancient craft could provide additional cargo capacity, emergency backup systems, and potentially valuable historical technology once it was fully restored to operational status.
At this particular moment, Star-Lord, Rocket, Kraglin, and Gamora were working alongside HK-47 to conduct a thorough examination and inventory of the Ebon Hawk's remaining contents and systems.
Most of the food supplies and water reserves they discovered had long since corroded, spoiled, or evaporated completely after four millennia of storage. There were several weapons scattered throughout the ship—blasters, as HK-47 called them—though they were also showing significant deterioration and rust damage. However, everyone knew that Rocket possessed the technical expertise to either repair these ancient weapons or at least reverse-engineer their design principles for creating improved versions. In terms of personal belongings, they found various articles of clothing featuring unusual design aesthetics that seemed completely foreign to their experience, but they carefully stored these items for potential future use or study.
Over time, the entire vessel would require extensive restoration and repair work to return it to anything resembling functional condition.
For the immediate present, however, Rocket was conducting a detailed investigation of HK-47's internal systems and deeper capabilities, hoping to extract more useful information about their intended destination—the ancient droid's home galaxy.
During this technical examination, Rocket discovered something particularly intriguing when he found a hidden compartment that opened from within the robot's chest assembly.
"What exactly is this supposed to be?" Rocket asked with obvious curiosity.
HK-47 glanced down at his opened chest compartment and said, " Statement: "Ah, I appear to have located the final storage location of Master Surik's most sentimentally illogical belongings. Curious she would hide them in me before our unfortunate and unnecessary separation."
"What are you talking about?" Rocket pressed for more details.
"Hey everyone, come look at what's inside HK's chest cavity," Rocket called out to the other team members.
After taking a closer look inside the assassination droid's chest compartment, Gamora observed a faintly glowing blue cube nestled securely within the droid's internal mechanisms.
For just a moment, Gamora thought she might be looking at the infamous Tesseract that had caused so much trouble throughout the galaxy, but then she realized this object was completely wrong in terms of size and construction. Instead of being a perfect crystal cube, this device had metallic components and technological elements integrated throughout its structure.
Upon closer and more careful inspection, Gamora experienced a sudden flash of recognition about what this device might actually be.
"I've seen something like this before," she announced with growing certainty.
"You have? Where?" Star-Lord asked with obvious interest.
"On my father's command ship," she replied, her voice taking on a more serious tone. "I don't know exactly what it was supposed to do, but I remember seeing something very similar in his private chambers." She carefully lifted the object in her hands and turned it over slowly, examining it from multiple angles. "The one he possessed was shaped like a pyramid instead of a cube, and it glowed with a red light rather than blue, but the overall design concept and technological aesthetic looked almost identical to this."
"Informed Observation: You must be referring to a Sith holocron," HK-47 interjected with obvious knowledge.
"A Sith what-a-cron?" Rocket asked with confusion.
"Detailed Explanation: A holocron is a specialized storage device that contains vast amounts of knowledge, historical records, and technical information. Only individuals with certain rare abilities can successfully access the data stored within these devices," HK-47 explained as he examined the item in Gamora's hands. "What you are currently holding is specifically a Jedi holocron that belonged to my previous master, Meetra Surik. If your father possessed a similar device of Sith origin, then he was undoubtedly a practitioner of the dark side."
"A Sith..." Gamora repeated the unfamiliar word slowly, noting that it triggered vague memories of other conversations and references she had encountered over the years.
"What exactly are the Sith supposed to be?" Rocket asked with growing curiosity about this new information.
"Simple Answer: They are the sworn enemies of the Jedi Order. Both groups possess identical supernatural abilities and powers, but they follow completely different and opposing philosophical approaches to the mystical force that grants them their capabilities."
"That sounds like some kind of religious conflict," Star-Lord observed.
"Technical Correction: I would not classify it as religion in the traditional sense. Rather, both groups follow their respective philosophies with fanatical devotion because literally everything they do and every decision they make depends entirely on their connection to this mystical energy source."
"That sounds incredibly stupid and pointless," Rocket said dismissively.
"Agreed Statement: Yes, I found their endless philosophical debates to be tedious and irrelevant," HK-47 confirmed. "I never paid much attention to their Force-related discussions because they were consistently boring, unnecessarily complicated, and utterly confusing to observe."
"This mystical energy source that both the Sith and Jedi depend on completely..." Gamora said as she turned to face HK-47 directly. "It's called the Force, isn't it?"
"Surprised Statement: Lady Gamora, I was not aware that you possessed such extensive knowledge about my home galaxy. Where exactly did you acquire this information?"
Gamora sighed heavily and leaned against the bulkhead before providing her explanation. "I don't actually know that much about it, to be honest. My father... he has accumulated knowledge about virtually every corner of the universe during his long lifetime. He mentioned it to me and my adopted siblings on several occasions—stories about a distant galaxy where certain individuals could manipulate some kind of unique, invisible power that most people couldn't perceive or understand."
"Impressed Statement: Your father must be an exceptionally intelligent and well-informed individual."
Gamora's expression darkened considerably. "More like a complete and utter madman with delusions of cosmic significance."
"Philosophical Observation: Madness and genius are often two different perspectives on the same fundamental reality. My former master Revan once shared that particular insight with me."
"I really like your attitude, HK," Rocket said with genuine enthusiasm, "but I have to stand with Gamora on this particular issue. Thanos is absolutely insane—he destroys entire planets and commits genocide like it's some kind of casual hobby."
"Intrigued Statement: Hmm, based on my personal kill count and operational history, he could be considered a worthy opponent and professional challenge. Formal Request: I would very much like the opportunity to face him in combat and prove that my assassination capabilities are superior to his methods."
Gamora actually let out a short, bitter laugh. "HK, if you could somehow manage to kill my father, then you would officially surpass every known assassin and mass murderer in the entire universe."
HK-47's optical sensors brightened noticeably. "Enthusiastic Declaration: Challenge accepted with great anticipation."
Meanwhile, Rocket had taken possession of the mysterious holocron and was examining it with intense scientific curiosity. "So is there anyone among us who can actually open this thing? Do we need one of those Force users you mentioned to access whatever's stored inside?"
"Confirmed: That is absolutely correct," HK-47 replied. "Only an individual with Force sensitivity can successfully activate a holocron. It is completely impossible for anyone else to access the stored information through any alternative means, unless they are willing to destroy the holocron entirely and lose all the data contained within it during the process."
"If I didn't hate them both with every fiber of my being, I would consider contacting my adoptive brother or father to open this device for us," Gamora said with obvious irony and frustration.
"Curious Inquiry: Are you suggesting that your father possesses Force abilities?"
"Not necessarily in the traditional sense you're describing. However, my father has developed a much deeper understanding of various mystical and supernatural phenomena throughout the universe, and I have observed that many of the advanced tools and weapons he employs do seem to require some degree of Force sensitivity to operate effectively."
"Where are your adoptive siblings currently located?" Rocket asked with practical interest.
"Honestly, I haven't heard from any of them in several years. No one knows where they might be scattered throughout the galaxy. My father sent them on various individual missions across the universe, and most of them haven't returned or reported back yet."
"Alright, let's not get bogged down in family drama and personal history right now," Rocket said as he held up the glowing holocron. "There absolutely has to be some way for us to open this thing and access whatever knowledge is stored inside."
"Well, if my fanatical adoptive sibling managed to figure out a method, and my father developed his own approach to Force-related technology," Gamora observed thoughtfully, "then logically speaking, if they could accomplish it, you should be able to work out a solution as well."
Rocket stared intently at the softly glowing cube, scratching his head as his mind raced through various technological possibilities. "If you really think so, then I suppose I'll have to give it my best effort and see what I can accomplish."
Meanwhile, in another section of the ship, Star-Lord and Kraglin were carefully studying the navigation charts and stellar cartography data that HK-47 had provided them with. Learning to properly interpret the Basic Galactic Standard language of an entirely different galaxy was proving to be quite a time-consuming and challenging process.
For Star-Lord, this linguistic puzzle represented the fulfillment of another childhood fantasy inspired by adventure movies like Indiana Jones—deciphering an unknown ancient language and demonstrating his intellectual capabilities to his impressed teammates.
Throughout this learning process, HK-47 was providing the Guardians with an extensive wealth of information about his home galaxy, covering everything from the vast array of alien species that inhabited its countless worlds, to the major planetary systems and their unique characteristics, to the various governments, organizations, and institutions that maintained order throughout its many sectors.
To be completely honest, most of this information was rather tedious and boring for the Guardians to absorb.
HK-47 also found the comprehensive galactic overview to be quite dull and uninteresting, so he focused primarily on the more important and practical aspects that had been relevant to his previous assignments and the missions his former masters had given him. He paid special attention to information about criminal syndicates, bounty hunter guilds, and various underworld organizations that the Guardians might eventually encounter during their travels.