The Martians

A/N : I've been on a long break from fanfiction lately due to real life getting in the way, but now I'm back! And now I have another chapter I want to share.

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I huffed as I sprinted along the mostly empty harbor. My pace slowed as time stretched on, finally relaxing as I was almost done with my morning run.

I eventually found myself on a beach, but it seemed it was abandoned. I plopped myself at the base palm tree, leaning against the trunk and letting my heart calm its rapid tempo.

The fresh breeze and crashing sound of the waves were definitely soothing and before I knew it, I had closed my eyes and started meditating.

Little did I realize that I wasn't alone on the beach. My first warning was the rustling of the sand. At first, I dismissed it as just the wind or some sort of animal, but as the shuffling grew louder I quickly realized it was the sound of footsteps heading towards me.

I opened my eyes and was surprised by what I saw. " Well, hello there."

It was a week after I started staying in the Mount. Justice that I received the news that one of my future teammates will be joining me soon.

I had a suspicion about who it was, since the one who was supposed to introduce my new team member was Martian Manhunter.

Unfortunately, I didn't remember everything about the Young Justice series. It was so long ago since I saw it.

Of course, there were some major events and plotlines that stuck out, mainly that there was a secret evil organization called the Light trying to take over the world and that Wally West was supposed to die sometime in the future.

It was all a bit fuzzy, but I was sure I would remember more as time went by and events came along.

I decided to treat my knowledge as nothing more than a very loose blueprint of what could potentially happen since my presence was bound to change things.

Any attempts to try and change or steer what was to happen were at best delusional since I couldn't account for every single variable, especially when the people moving things behind the scenes were smarter than me and had more experience.

I could never come close to competing with people like Lex Luthor a bona-fide genius or even Ra'z al Ghul or Vandal Savage, who were almost literal manifestations of the worst in humanity.

This didn't mean I wouldn't do my best to make their lives harder or try and expose them earlier than would have happened in the series.

If I was being honest, I thought about just coming clean to Batman, but in the end settled on subtly drawing his attention to the light and leaving him to it. I still wasn't sure how to let him know everything else I knew, but I would cross that bridge when I came to it.

I was taken out of my thoughts by the sound of the Zeta-tube activating and announcing the arrival of people.

I made my way to the Zeta tube room, and when I got there, Standing in the hall were two people, an older man with brown hair and a younger woman who was a redhead, both of them dressed in simple casual clothes.

The girl looked anxious, looking around and holding her elbow, while the man looked perfectly calm.

The girl shifted and looked at me as if noticing my presence.

"Hello, what can I do for you?" I asked, coming up to them.

The man started to morph, his form and colors shifting until a recognizable form stood in my living room. He had a large blue cape that covered his shoulders and some of his chest, green skin, and a pronounced brow.

"Martian Manhunter." I said, stepping forward and reaching out with my hand. "Nice to meet you sir."

"It's nice to meet you as well, Mr. Blackwood." The Martian replied, reaching out and shaking my hand firmly before gesturing to the young woman.

"This is my niece, M'gann M'orz, also known as Miss Martian. "

The young woman started to shift as well, slowly changing into a different form. Her hair stayed red, but her skin turned green, and her overall form shifted slightly, but she still looked like a green human. She even had freckles and was a bit taller.

"It's nice to meet you as well, M'gann." I said, extending my hand to her.

"It's nice to meet you too. Please call me Megan. " She said, shaking my hand daintily.

"I wanted to introduce my niece to you since she's going to be part of the team and will be joining you in the mountain. She arrived on Earth several months ago and it was decided that it would be beneficial for her to join the team as a learning experience. " Manhunter explained.

I shifted my eyes towards her," Glad to have you on board. And, welcome to the team. "

She blushed a bit," Thank you. I'm glad to be here too. "

"I was hoping that perhaps the two of you could talk, perhaps you could give her a tour of the Cave?" Manhunter asked as he put a hand on her shoulder. It was just for a few seconds, but their eyes seemed to jerk back and forth at each other. Were they having a psychic conversation?

" Sure. I've been staying here for a little over a week now, so I can give you a tour. " Her smile brightened as she lifted off the floor and started floating around excitedly.

"Then I'll leave you be. Unfortunately, I am needed for League business, however, if you need anything, don't hesitate to contact me." He said.

"Of course." I agree with a smile. "Thank you."

With a smile of his own, he says goodbye to M'gann before he turns back to the Zeta Tubes.

"Recognized: Martian Manhunter-07."

Looking around at the chamber once more, the two of us grin. This could be interesting.

Well, time to start the tour.

"... And this is the Kitchen! We have a fully stocked refrigerator and freezer, and right over there is the lounge area, where we can relax and watch T.V." I explain as I finish the Grand Tour.

I had shown her nearly every room inside the Cave from the Library to the gym. Besides those, I showed her the various entrances and exits of the Cave. All I hadn't shown her was where I would be staying.

Clapping my hands together, I turned back to M'gann. "So, have you tried any Earth foods since you arrived?"

"I have, yes. But I want to try out Grammy Jones' cookie recipe from Episode 17 of- well…"

"Episode 17?" I asked.

Trying to quickly change the subject she said. "So, where is the rest of the team? I was told there were several members." She asked.

Not caring about the abrupt change of topic." Well, they are with their mentors. I only ever met Robin and I hear Khaldur and Kid Flash will also be joining. For now, at least, we are the only ones who will be staying in the mountain full time. Oh, Red Tornado is also living here, but I have no idea where."

" Meow..."

"Hey, little guy you miss me?" I said, as I bent down to pick up my new feline friend.

" Aww, you have a cat!" Megan said, with an excited tone in her voice.

"Yeah, I picked him up at the beach a week ago. The little guy came up to me after I was finished with my run and I decided to adopt him. Things have been really quiet in the mountain so I figured I could use some company." I explained.

She was now petting the cat and he certainly seemed to like it." Does he have a name? " She asked softly.

" Of course, his name is Mr. Cuddles. " I declared.

She giggled," It certainly suits him. " She noted the lazy cat who was currently doing his best impression of a puddle, enjoying all the attention he was getting.

I spent the next few days just chilling at the base and hanging out with Megan and would occasionally train and make sure my online business was going fine.

It was one day while Megan and I were busy making cookies when I suggested something.

"Megan, do you want to go on patrol with me?" 

" You want me to come with you on a patrol? " She asked, a bit surprised.

" That's right. I was thinking we should do it to gain more experience. We don't know when we might get a mission. Plus most of our future teammates have years of experience working along with their mentors. " I explained.

" You make a good point. Where should we go then? And, shouldn't we first ask for permission? Uncle John told me that this was supposed to be a covert team. "

I snorted. " Says the shapeshifter? I can easily hide my face with a mask and my powers are diverse enough that I don't have to rely on powers that are too flashy or that I plan on using in future missions. "

" I still think we should tell someone. " She said.

" We are not prisoners Megan and we have enough power and ability to handle anything that comes up and if a situation does come up that we can't handle, the Justice League is just a phone call away."

She seemed unconvinced at first, but the more I talked the more excited she seemed to get by the idea.

" We should get my ship then, if we use the Zeta-tube they'll definitely find out before we get to do anything. " She said.

" Good idea. I'll go suit up then." I said, thinking about that cool-looking mask I found in the mountain in the equipment room. It was very similar to the one Redhood wore in the comics, so I had it painted in a green emerald color with gold accents for any edges.

It was made out of reinforced poly-carbonate Kevlar weave that was surprisingly strong and would do a good job to protect me from any head trauma. It was also very comfortable to wear and I was planning on asking Batman to add a few more features to it like an air filter and maybe a HUD.

The rest of my ensemble was still very similar to my previous one, but the jacket was now made of reinforced material that was bullet, stab and fire proof. My shirt and jeans were also made of similar materials albeit a to lesser degree and overall more breathable. And, I was also wearing a green hoodie under my jacket which was also stab, fire and tear resistant.

" So, where are we going for the patrol?" She asked.

"Gotham." I said.

(Chapter End)

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