Peter was almost mesmerized by the steady yellow glow the latest infinity stone was emitting. Unlike the power gem and the unsettling feeling of imminent annihilation that surrounded it, this one felt like soothing. Like it wanted to be helpful. Peter reached out his hand.

"Peter!"

He turned his head sharply to the side and tried to look as innocent as possible with an annoyed Gamora glaring down at him.

"Do not go near that gem," Gamora warned, pausing from her work with Rocket to break down the barrier around the gem.

"I wasn't going near it!" Peter protested. "I was just looking."

Rocket scoffed from where he was typing in some ridiculously long strand of code.

"Yeah, right. We all know your grabby face, Quill. You're not fooling anyone," Rocket said.

Peter let out a sound of pure indignation that no one bought for a second.

"Peter, just stay back," Gamora cautioned. "This is the reality gem. It wants to be used. It had the Tihlophi under its influence for years until the Nova Corps detected a disturbance."

"Alright, alright, I get it. Stone bad, no touchy," Peter grumbled as he took a step or two back from the yellow gem on the black, smooth, and shiny dais. He wondered why something like it was built in a place that looked so abandoned. The damp and dripping stone cave it was in didn't do the stone or it's resting place any justice.

"Good," Gamora said, barely paying attention to him anymore as she continued looking over Rocket's shoulder.

Peter tried not to feel neglected, but the truth was there wasn't much he could do in this situation. He probably should have stayed near the ship with Drax and Groot, but he figured he should stick around Gamora and Rocket just in case they were too distracted to defend themselves when the natives eventually figured out what was going on.

"So, uh, what does the reality gem do exactly?" Peter tried to make conversation and distract himself from the incessant golden shine. He also did his best to ignore Rocket's muttered insults.

"It's as it sounds," Gamora explained a little impatiently. "The gem can bend reality to suit one's desires. Regardless of impossibilities."

"So anything? It can do anything," Peter said, his mind going a little crazy thinking of all the possibilities. "I thought it just did illusions or something."

"Ugh, will you shut up?" Rocket said sharply, practically stabbing the keys as he continued coding. "I'm having a hard enough time with this... this impossible fucking security, and I don't need you baldies jabbering over my head."

"What's impossible about it?" Peter asked, ignoring Rocket's groan of despair.

"It's like nothing I've ever seen," Gamora admitted reluctantly. "It is strange. The Tihlophi are nowhere near advanced enough to have created this..."

"It's fucking infuriating is what it is!" Rocket shouted, finally giving up on his typing and pulling at the fur on his face. "Not even the Xandarian Worldmind would be this difficult to crack!"

"So...what now?" Peter asked. "We can't just leave it here."

"To do so would be irresponsible," Gamora acknowledged. "Stay here, I will contact the Nova Corps and tell them to send an officer. Perhaps access to a system such as the Worldmind will be able to get through this."

"Yeah, yeah," Rocket said, plopping down ungracefully on the cave floor as he scowled at the deceptively primitive-looking computing system. The system was connected to a glimmering barrier around the dais the stone was sitting, and they'd been trying to get through the barrier for the past hour at least.

"And Peter," Gamora called, catching his attention as she was turning to leave. "Stay away from the stone."

"Jeez, I already said I would," Peter said with disbelief.

Unfortunately for Peter's ego, Gamora ignored this as she strode out of the cave and left the two of them to watch the stone.

"Like anyone believes you," Rocket said. "Remember, we know your grabby face."

"That's not even a thing!"

"It is to a thing," Rocket retorted. "You were wearing it! And you were wearing it again, like, a second ago. Trust me. I know the grabby face. I, too, probably have one, maybe. But I'm not dumb enough to feel that way about a damned infinity stone. The last one gave us enough trouble."

"God, I wish you would just shut up!" Peter yelled at the raccoon.

He huffed and turned away from Rocket, trying to calm down. Arguing with Rocket usually wasn't worth the annoyance. But after a second or two of zen breathing, Peter realized it was a little strange for Rocket to actually listen to him and shut up when he told him too. At the very least, there was some angry muttering to fill up the silence. Peter turned back around, confused, and only feeling more so when he saw Rocket's mouth moving but nothing coming out.

"Uh, Rocket?" Peter said tentatively, walking slowly toward the panicked raccoon clawing at his throat. "Are you okay?"

The flat look that Rocket managed to send him in the midst of his panic neatly managed to answer that question. Rocket started to point at his throat and then at the gem, and he gave Peter the most frustrated glare he had ever seen.

"What," Peter looked over at the softly glowing gem and then back to Rocket. "You think it was- oh shit, you think it? Uh, alright."

Peter suddenly got it. The reality gem answered wishes, and Peter had just wished that Rocket would shut up.

"Alright, I hope this works," Peter mumbled. "Uh, Rocket I wish that you could talk again."

"OH MY GOD," Rocket started shouting. "QUILL, I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU."

Peter startled as Rocket pulled out his gun.

"Hey, hey, hey, Rocket, buddy. Calm down," Peter said, looking between Rocket's face and the gun in the raccoon's hands, Peter's arms stretched out defensively in front of him. "I just figured out how to get the gem out of the barrier."

"Wha?" Rocket said, lowering the gun before looking over at the gem and then at Peter's smirking face. "Ohhhh..."

"Uh huh," Peter nodded, finally feeling secure enough to lower his arms.

"Okay," Rocket said, finally setting down the blaster. "Summon it then."

"What- wait, why me?" Peter complained.

"It was your idea," Rocket said.

"But Gamora told me not to touch it."

"So don't touch it."

"How am I supposed to summon it without touching it?" Peter yelled in frustration.

"I dunno. This was your idea," Rocket shrugged.

Peter sighed, and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Okay, fine, whatever," Peter said. "I'll summon it. Just get the container thing ready."

"Can do," Rocket said with a grin as he pulled out one of he cheap containment spheres they had ready.

"Alright," Peter said as he took a deep breath and let it out sharply. "I, uh, wish that the reality gem was in my hand."

It took less than a second before the brilliant yellow stone blinked out of existence and into Peter's out-stretched hand. For a moment, Peter just stared at it, stunned that it had been that easy. The compulsion that he had been feeling from the moment he had laid eyes on the thing was satisfied too, and Peter couldn't help but smile down at the glowing stone. The light it emitted was bright and warm. It reminded him of the summers he had spent on Earth when he'd still been a child and everything was all right in the world. He almost wished he could...

"Quill!"

The sound of his name made him look up, and he saw the distressed faces of Rocket and Gamora at the cave entrance before he watched them fade away.