Batman was silent as he observed the information in front of him, his gaze moving between the multiple monitor screens in front of him.
"What is this?" Hal Jordan asked with a frown as he stood at Batman's right, the rest of the Justice League silent as they read the documents in front of them.
"While Klarion possessed Paragon's body, he left his mind open to said hero," Batman began, pressing a button that showed more information. "In there, he caught sight of rumoured alliances that the Light was making with other figures."
"And one of these groups are the Reach?" John asked, Batman nodding as Green Arrow scratched his head.
"It says here that the Reach is allied with the Guardians of the Universe? Doesn't that mean-"
"The Lanterns can't pursue them as fugitives according to the peace treaty they most likely signed with them," Hal murmured, John shaking his head as Hawkman frowned.
"What, pray tell, would this peace treaty entail?"
"The same that everyone gets," John replied, crossing his arms as he continued. "Millennia, the Reach were conquerors so powerful that it took the entire Green Lantern Corps to halt their expanding empire.
Since they then lost the war against the Corps, the Guardians forced them into a peace treaty in which they are forbidden from entering or invading any planet unless they are invited to said planet"
"So, unless we can give proof that these guys were here unofficially, we should consider you two off the table?" Flash asked and Hal and John looked at each other before the former shook his head.
"Even then, unless we can prove that the Reach is trying to conquer Earth, we'd be forced by the Guardians to not help you guys."
"Well, that's just fun," Hawkwoman murmured before Black Canary spoke up.
"What of the Titans? How are they dealing with Paragon's leave of absence?"
"Fairly good," Red Tornado responded with a stoic tone before continuing. "They miss their friends, but they understand that Paragon cannot return until we've cleared his name."
"Which will be difficult to achieve given that the Light is doing everything in its power to slander his name and regain the power they once had," Batman responded, the rest of the group staying silent before the Dark Knight cleared his throat.
"That being said, we will have to move forward carefully," Batman continued, a tap of his fingers bringing forth planetary scans, intercepted transmissions and files marked with various insignia. "If the Reach is involved, it means that the Light is preparing for a large-scale operation just like the Silent Hour."
"And here I thought dealing with the chaos a few days ago was bad," Hawkwoman murmured with a frown, Aquaman scanning through the files.
"If the Reach and the Light are planning to work together, that means that Atlantis, Themyscira and any other location will be at risk of their invasion. Should we prepare accordingly?"
"If possible, yes," Batman nodded, scanning through the information. "With them trying to retain their power, they are stretched thin across the planet. Therefore, we will need to strike here and now to ensure that we are two steps ahead."
"You mean Tiamat?" Aquaman asked and Batman nodded as he tapped a key, maps opening to show off a temple at the epicentre of Bialya.
"Along with that, it is time to capture and detain one of the Light's Leader. Let us begin Operation Beekeeper."
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"Are we there yet?"
"Chris, you are not twelve years old. Stop asking that," M'gann spoke with a sigh as she sat at the controls of the Bio-Ship, but I smirked as I saw the amused look in her eyes.
"You say that, but I know you're just as bored as I am."
"It is true that this trip back to Mars is mind-numbing, but that does not mean that you should ask every five seconds whether or not we have arrived."
"You can see when we get there," Raven clarified as she pointed out at the abyss of space, my gaze turning to the planet slowly getting bigger before I leaned back in my seat with a sigh.
"Well, Match and Dubbilex are busy with...whatever it is the two of them do and you two like to have your girl talks, leaving me alone with nothing to do," I spoke with a shrug and Raven rolled her eyes as M'gann smiled.
"Well, what would you suggest we do so as to not exclude you from our activities."
"A movie night sounds fun."
"A movie night?" Raven asked with a raised eyebrow, a smile spreading across my face as I nodded at her question.
"That's right."
"What need would there be for a movie night?"
"A chance to unwind before the craziness that is Mars, if M'gann's stories about her people are to be believed," I responded, to which M'gann shrugged.
The last part of Young Justice I watched was when Vandal Savage went to meet Darkseid at the end of Season 2 before I woke up in this body. Therefore, I did not have any source material so as to ascertain whether or not M'gann was actually telling the truth.
Then again, she looked and felt absolutely terrified when I first told her I knew of her white Martian heritage, which made me wonder if it was just discrimination or something far worse.
'If someone tried to tell me that she was nothing more than a slave...yeah, half of Mars would be eradicated before the day was over,' I don't know whether or not that last part was Klarion or just my own dark thoughts, but surprisingly, I didn't flinch away at it.
"Please, don't think about destroying Mars before we even get there," Raven spoke in my mind with a groan and I blinked before catching sight of M'gann's blush.
"Right, forgot you two can read my mind. Anyway, you up for it?"
"Nope, I've already had a movie night with you so I'm good," Raven said with a shake of her head and I rolled my eyes at that before M'gann spoke up.
"Match and Dubbilex said that they're going to be too busy for a movie night."
"...So, it's just you and me?" I asked, smirking as her blush turned darker and she spun around to look at me.
"W-What? Just us two?"
"There are five of us on the ship and three have already said no. That just leaves us two and it's kind of boring having a movie night on my own," I replied, watching as she looked conflicted before nodding.
"Fine, I suppose I do need more time to unwind from the stress we suffered on Earth."
"Is that your way of blaming me for making you stress that much?" I asked and chuckled as she just responded with a huff, turning back in her seat.
"Nice work, Casanova."
"You be quiet," I responded, snorting at Raven's amusement before I smiled as I looked at M'gann. She tried to look focused, but there was still a slight purple shade to her cheeks and her eyes glanced once or twice at my reflection in the mirror.
'It's kind of cute,' I thought before palming my face as she squeaked and curled in upon herself.
"You forgot we can hear your thoughts, didn't you?"
"I can't wait for this to be fixed."
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"Okay, so this ship can just do everything, huh?" I asked, staring at the flat screen TV in front of us as M'gann and I sat in one of the storage rooms.
Dubbilex had decided to maintain control of the ship while M'gann wasn't there, Raven was there to keep him company and Match was busy with his own thing.
I don't know what and he won't tell me what it is when I asked him, so I just let him continue with whatever he is doing.
"Pretty much. She is quite dependable, isn't she?" M'gann spoke with a smile as she patted the rather soft flooring of the ship, drawing a rumble from it as I smirked.
"She is. So, what are we watching?"
"I vote for Inception," I was surprised to see that this movie existed in this world, especially since some of the actors and actresses that existed in my old one didn't exist in this.
"No, what about Hello, Megan?" She asked excited and I raised an eyebrow at that.
"Right, forgot you liked that show. Wait, how many seasons are there?"
"Just one and it's twenty two episodes," She responded as the TV turned on, already on said series as I shrugged. I've always wanted to see just how this stood up with shows like Malcolm in the Middle and Modern Family from my past life.
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"That...was much more enjoyable than I expected," I murmured, watching as the credits to the final episode appeared. I half-expected it to be a cheap rip-off of iCarly or That's So Raven, but it had its enjoyable moments.
"I know, right? It had its predictable moments here and there, but you could say that about any other show," M'gann said with a shrug and I smiled as I saw the excitement in her eyes as she continued to speak about it.
It was only after a few minutes of her excited talking that she finally noticed her being the only one talking about the show, letting out an embarrassed giggle as I chuckled.
"Sorry, I'm just a big fan of it."
"Oh, don't be. Your fangirling was adorable."
"Adorable?! I'll have you know, sir, that I do not fangirl."
"So, you're fawn over it?"
"No, I admire it."
"Is that why you said that I look like a 'Conner' when we first met?" I asked, snickering at her rolling her eyes at the reminder.
"Just because I said you look like him doesn't mean I wanted you to be him."
"No, but you made yourself Megan. Does that mean you were looking for a Conner?" I asked, leaning closer as she blushed and looked down.
"Wha-What...what do you mean?"
"Come now, M'gann," I teased with a smile, reaching forward to softly lift her head back up. "Conner and I look too alike and your human form looks very similar to M'gann. Doesn't that mean you had something in mind?"
"N-No, I just..." She mumbled something at the end and while I caught it, she blushed as I leaned closer until there was but an inch of space between us.
"Say that again."
"I just...like you, okay?"
"Was that so hard?" I asked and before she could say anything, her eyes widened as I laid my lips upon hers. Her eyes widened before she closed them, caressing her face before pulling her deeper by the back of her head.
Her hands grasped my face as I slowly laid back, floating onto my lap as my other hand rested on her hip. Her moans filled the storage room as I caressed her side, tasting the sweet strawberry taste of her lip balm.
With a soft gasp, she pulled back, the two of us staring into each other's side as our breathing filled the room.
"So...am I your Conner now?"
"No," She replied, making me blink before she leaned forward with a soft smile. "You're my Chris."
"...That was a bit corny."
"So corny," She murmured and my eyes widened as she leaned down and initiated the kiss instead, the sound of Inception echoing in the background.
That's okay. We still have twenty days left to watch it.
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"Okay, here are the rules before we land," M'gann began with a frown, all of us paying attention. "Firstly, things are very delicate here so even the slightest misunderstanding could spiral into something worse."
"Understandable," I nodded and M'gann smiled before she nodded.
"Secondly, White Martians are treated as second-class citizens and that's something that's been in Mars' society for centuries so even if someone insults, please don't attack."
"That's for you," Raven said and I rolled my eyes as everyone looked at me.
"I promise I won't attack anyone."
"Thank you. Finally, don't commit a crime. Martians are interconnected across the planet so if you commit a crime, the entire planet will know what you look like, what you sound like and what you smell like before the hour has passed."
"So, basically stealth first and everything else second, yes?" I asked, M'gann nodding as we all looked at each other before I nodded.
"Sure, we can do that."
"Thank you. Now, don't be alarmed," she spoke and grew in front of our eyes, hunger over with her limbs growing long and her skin turning a pale white.
Her clothing had also retracted into her skin, revealing a lanky body with two arms that had a membrane under her upper arm and beady, red eyes that looked down at us.
"Huh, I can see why you kept your human form secret," Raven murmured and I smiled as I saw the surprise flashing in her eyes.
"What did you expect? Raven has read your mind so she's probably seen what you look like and none of us three cared."
"You look similar to my own form," Dubbilex spoke up, a snicker coming from my lips when Match nodded.
"She does."
"R-Right. Well, remember, not all White Martians are...as open-minded as I am."
"Don't worry, M'gann. We understand," Match spoke with a smile while the rest of us nodded in agreement at his words, which made her smile.
"Thank you all, truly. Okay, let's go," She murmured, my gaze turning once more to the outside of the red planet as we landed. Through the few clouds, I could see Earth's blue luster in the distance, pushing back my feelings of my regret as I shook my head.
'Okay, let's get this show on the road,' I thought as I exited behind M'gann, the others following closely as we walked onto the capital of Mars.
Ma'aleca'andra was a beautiful sight on par with the memories Kaldur has shared with us of Atlantis, the buildings built into the rocky formations that rose up from the cave floors below.
Each building had luminous vines and plants running across their walls and surfaces, resulting in an iridescent array of light illuminating the city itself.
However, that sight was soon ruined by the sound of clicking, my gaze turning to see the narrowed eyes of the Martians aimed at M'gann.
"Filthy A'ashenn."
"Go back to your kind."
"Can you believe the audacity it has to show up in public?"
"I know, right? If I was that colour, I would ha-" Raven's presence filtered through our mind and cut off the thoughts while I held up a hand to grasp M'gann's shaking one.
"M'gann, look at me," I spoke, reaching up and turning her head to look at me. Narrowing my eyes and forcing back my anger at the unshed tears in her eyes, I smiled before wiping them away.
"Ignore them, okay? Focus only on my thoughts."
"You're lovely. You're beautiful. You're smart. You're funny. You're amazing," Positive thoughts flew forth from my mind and into hers, a soft giggle escaping her lips as I chuckled before turning my gaze to the others.
"Match, calm yourself, brother," I spoke out loud and smirked when I saw the panic at Match's eyes being a deep scarlet. Those gathered around us soon dispersed, Match taking slow breaths as I placed a hand on his shoulders.
"It's okay, brother. Leave them be. Dubbilex, where are the Genomorphs?"
"I can feel their presences above ground."
"Good. Raven, you and Match go with him. M'gann, why don't you and I go and introduce myself to my in-laws?" I asked, laughing at her cheeks turning a bright purple when the two of us began walking.
"W-What?!"
A/N: And we end it off here~! The Justice League are busy with their own thing and we're finally on Mars.
However, will recovery be a quick thing? Find out next time.
Like always, you can go to my Pat-reon-.-com-/-KingCrimsonNova to read ahead on this as well as many other stories & even some that haven't been released out to this site yet. If you want to, you are free to, but if you don't want, all's good as I will still be uploading here. This is just me trying to get some extra cash.
Anyway, as always, read, enjoy, review and until the next one...
Ba-Bye~!