"So, this is where you live?" I asked, holding M'gann's hand as the two of us stood at the large two-story house in front of us.
I don't know why I expected it to be run-down considering that we're just at the edge of the slums, but it was a lot more beautiful than I expected, having the same luminous blue vines that illuminated the outside.
"Y-Yeah. Mom's a G'arrunn so she got this house near the nicer area even though she married an A'ashenn."
"You mentioned those terms before. What does that mean?" I asked, noting how there were only White Martians with a scarce one or two Green Martians around us.
"Um, G'arrunn are Green Martians and make up the majority of the race. A'ashenn are White Martians and make up a minority of our race. Then, there are the royal Red Martians or B'lahdenn that rule M'arzz. Finally, there are the Yellow Martians or the Y'ellonn that are held above G'arrunn but below B'lahdenn."
"Okay and I'm guessing that your mother marrying a White Martian is why she got kicked out to here."
"Yep. Just don't mention that I said that. She might look like it doesn't bother her, but I think she still misses her family."
"Don't worry. I won't," I spoke softly, rubbing the back of her hand before we turned our heads as the door opened.
"M'gann!" A Green Martian dressed in a dark blue hooded cloak with a female voice spoke excitedly, M'gann letting go of my hand and rushing over to hug the woman that was most likely her mother.
Looking past them, I caught sight of a White Martian exiting the house as well, their gaze focused on me as I nodded in greeting. Her dad smiled before he nodded back, my gaze turning back to M'gann to see her mom looking at me with a smile.
"Hello."
"Good day, ma'am, sir. I must say it is a pleasure to meet you."
"Same here. M'gann informed us of your arrival, but I admit that it was exciting to hear that she had a boyfriend."
"Mom~No," M'gann groaned, to which I chuckled as her mom giggled before I turned to her father as the man walked forward.
Raising his hand, I grasped it firmly as the man spoke, "M'aatt M'orzz. This is my wife J'ann M'orzz."
"Chris Kent, sir, though I'm sure you already knew that if M'gann informed you about me."
"We did, but it's always better to hear from the man directly," he replied with a friendly tone, patting my shoulders with a grin as I chuckled.
"Please, come in. I'm sure the travel from Earth must have been exhausting," J'ann spoke with a warm smile and I chuckled as M'gann looked away with a blush.
"The company made the journey much more bearable."
"Don't you start," M'gann warned with narrowed eyes as I raised my hands in surrender, J'ann covering her laugh with her hand as M'aatt looked amused at our interaction.
The inside of the house was surprisingly cozy, a contrast from the methodical beauty of Ma'aleca'andra. There were plants with a dim glow embedded in the walls that pulsated softly like a heartbeat as well as numerous glowing crystals that had holographic images on it.
'Wait, M'gann has 17 brothers and 11 sisters, right?' I thought as I looked at the images, narrowing my eyes as I saw the baby photos of said brothers and sisters.
They were all Green Martians and as the pictures shifted past, I couldn't help the thought as I saw the Green Martians slowly but sure fading out from the photos until it was only M'gann along with her parents and one other White Martian.
That Martian soon left the photos as well, leaving only M'gann and her parents in the photos afterwards.
'Abandoning your family to try and protect your own pride. Nothing more than filth,'
"We can hear your thoughts," I let out a soft sigh as I turned, M'aatt walking up to me with a smile as M'gann and J'ann were busy somewhere deeper in the kitchen.
"Well, I can and I'm certain J'ann can as well, but M'gann likes to not use her telepathy when she's at home."
"I shouldn't have called them filth, even if they did abandon you guys. They are still your children."
"I thank you for apologizing and you are correct. There was a time where I loathed my A'ashenn blood, but over time, I've come to see that their choices are they own," I couldn't help but feel for the guy as I saw the melancholic look in his eyes. "I cannot force them to see beyond what they were taught, but I will not let the blindness poison the love I still carry for them."
"That...an admirable approach," I murmured, standing with my arms crossed. "Most people, myself included, would've carried that resentment until it buried them."
"From what M'gann has told us, it almost did. What made you change?" he asked and I looked at him before smiling.
"The thought that the last thing they would remember of me would be my escape from the Watchtower and murdering a man. By no means was he innocent, but I still murdered him. I didn't want that to be the first thing they thought of when they heard my name again."
"...She chose well," he replied, but didn't clarify when I turned to him.
"Dinner's read-What are you two doing?" M'gann asked as she turned the corner, to which I smiled as M'aatt chuckled.
"Simply, having 'The Dad Talk' with him as the Earthlings like to say."
"Really?" she asked with a dubious stare, to which I nodded as the two of us left the photo crystals.
"Really. So, what's for dinner?"
"Oh, it's Na'arah'minu," she replied and I just gave a slow blink at that.
"What?"
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Thankfully, Na'arah'minu was just a vegetable stew except it contained what the Martians considered vegetables. It did look a bit radioactive since it was a glowing violet and there was this spicy yet savoury scent to it.
"So, what would you compare this to?"
"Like you said, vegetable stew. It's just a lot better in my opinion," M'gann replied and I hummed as I leaned down and ate that first spoonful.
Immediately, I got hit with a spicy sweetness followed by a sharp tang that made my tongue tingle before it faded into a buttery warmth that spread through my whole body.
"...Whoa," was all I could get out, M'gann laughing softly as she nodded.
"Told you it's a lot better."
"It's M'gann's favourite. She'd always try and sneak extra servings as a child when she thought I wasn't looking."
"Mom~!"
"Oh, don't worry. We thought it was sweet."
"It was until she once hid a bowl of it under her bed. The entire house started glowing purple when she forgot about it for two days," I couldn't help my laughter as M'gann covered her face with a groan.
"She did the same with the sushi I made once. We were starting to think she was harbouring dead fish in her room."
"Hahahaha!" M'aatt burst out into laughter as J'ann hid her smile, M'gann whining as we kept laughing.
"Can we not talk about that, please?!"
"Hey, it's obligatory of me to find every bit of blackmail I can on you," I spoke after I got my laughter down, to which she just pouted as J'ann giggled.
"So, Chr-" I blinked as J'ann paused, noticing M'gann and M'aatt doing the same before he let out a soft sigh.
"Apologies, it appears word of your arrival has spread faster than we expected."
"Would they...?" J'ann asked and I narrowed my eyes as I began to hear the soft clicking of dozens of Martians outside.
"The A'ashenn has returned with an off-worlder."
"First, she goes to Earth without permission and now she brings one back? Shameful."
"It's not just the one. She was spotted with more, but they left to desecrate our great M'arzz with their filth."
"Stay here. I'll go talk."
"I'll come with," I spoke before shaking my head as M'aatt went to argue. "Sir, I know I shouldn't, but I don't like watching good people face mobs by themselves."
"...Promise me that you will keep your temper in check."
"I promise, sir," I nodded, to which the man sighed as M'gann grabbed my hand softly.
"No punching anyone, please."
"I promise," I spoke softly, kissing her forehead right between the two diamond markings on her forehead before I followed her dad out.
As we exited the home, I blinked as we were greeted by not Martians, but what appeared to be humans of all shapes and sizes, deciding to stay near the door as M'aatt walked over to the gate.
'Right, M'gann said that they liked to shapeshift into other humans on this planet.'
"May I ask why you all have gathered in front of my home while I am trying to have dinner with my beloved daughter, whom I have not seen in a long time?"
"M'aatt M'orzz!" The one at the front boomed telepathically, making me grimace as the Green Martian in ceremonial armour continued, "you bring dishonour upon your bloodline yet again by welcoming this outsider into our midst."
"Last I checked, I am not a resident of the inner walls of Ma'aleca'andra so your rules should not apply to me, should it J'imii?" That sent a flash of outrage through the crowd, a frown growing on my face as I saw M'aatt glancing at me.
"Your words reek of A'ashenn arrogance and-!"
"May I ask what you all are doing outside this home?" A voice spoke up from behind the guard and I looked past him only to raise an eyebrow at the green-skinned woman with brown hair and red eyes behind him.
"Ma'am!" the guard's salute made me frown as I saw the Martian shaking, the woman smiling as she patted his shoulder and shook her head.
"I am simply here to inspect this house. May I ask that you and your friends leave?"
"Yes, ma'am!" She must be someone very high up as the group dispersed immediately, their leader aiming one final sneer at both M'aatt and I before walking away with a huff.
"You didn't have to do that, M'ree."
"It's Em'ree or Ms. J'onzz, Mr. M'orzz."
'Ah, a daughter,' I thought with realization when I heard her dismissive tone, noticing the look of hurt in M'aatt's eyes before he masked it with a smile.
"Right, Ms. J'onzz."
"Thank you. Now, I came here because an unregistered Bio-Ship entered the atmosphere and landed at one of the pads near the central plaza instead of at the Science Centre. I simply wished to meet its driver. Is that you?"
"No, the driver you're looking for is inside," I replied, to which the woman simply nodded and walked past into the house.
"Daughter?" I mouthed to M'aatt, nodding slowly when he gave a sad smile in response. Letting him walk in first, I followed after, the door closing behind me as the three of us made our way to the dining room.
"Is the matter so-M'ree!" J'ann looked ecstatic as she stood up from her seat and hugged her daughter, surprising me when I saw the smile on the woman's face.
"Hello, Mom. Also, sorry about outside, Dad. You know how it is."
"As long as I get to see you, everything is okay, M'ree," M'aatt's words just confused me even more as the man hugged her, but as I turned to M'gann, I paused when I saw the frown on her face as she turned into her humanoid form.
Well, this was about to either very fun or very hard to watch.
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"How have you all been?" Dubbilex asked as he landed in front of the hidden Genomorph base, smiling when he felt feelings of elation and contentment coming from them all.
Match just smiled as he stood beside Raven, who was surrounded in a black-white aura while having an oxygen mask on her face.
"I don't see how you can breathe when the air's this thin."
"Superman's clone," was all Match responded with, chuckling as Raven just rolled her eyes, Turning back, he raised an eyebrow as he saw a G-Gnome walking over before blinking when the G-Gnome's horns glowed.
"What took you all so long?"
"Connor!" Match exclaimed with a grin as he picked up the G-Gnome, who immediately slipped out of his grasp and leapt onto Raven's shoulders.
"Where is Chris? I do not see him."
"He's currently meeting M'gann's parents."
"Ah, I do not envy him," Connor replied, making Raven give him an amused look as Dubbilex looked around.
The new city of Genomania was a beautiful sight, being made out of natural rock formations organized into suitable buildings and structures.
Along with that, it appeared to be illuminated by the same luminous plants and as he looked up, he hummed at the drone hovering above the city that also cast a protective barrier around them.
"The Lanterns helped build the city," Connor explained as he saw Dubbilex's gaze before pointing at the barrier, "and that was made by Zatara with the help of Martian Manhunter and Flash."
"I see. To think that the Genomorphs would one day found our own land on Mars itself."
"Hey, don't get all sentimental and philosophical on us now," Match spoke with a warm smile, to which Dubbilex let out a soft chuckle.
"I won't, brother. Still, this would not be possible without the efforts of you and Chris. Thank you," the G-Goblin spoke with a bow of his head, which Match returned with a smile as Raven narrowed her eyes.
"It is quite the city too, much more nicer to look at than the mess below."
"Let us not insult the capital city of our neighbours below, Raven."
"I'm just saying. I'd rather live up here than down there," Raven replied with a shrug, to which Dubbilex shook his head as the group made their way into the city.
"So, what do we do while Chris is busy getting his mind stitched back together?"
"Whatever we wish to d-" Dubbilex paused as he felt a foreign presence to the east, narrowing his eyes as he saw figures approaching.
Following his stare, Match frowned as Raven raised an eyebrow at the Martians approaching, noting the yellow skin-tone of the ones in dark blue cloaks and the deep red skin-tone of the one at the front that was dressed in darker blue armour with yellow and red accents
"You, off-worlders. Who is your leader?"
"That depends on who's asking," Match spoke up and they watched as the red one held up a hand to stop the others before replying.
"I am S'turnn Jaxx, king of Mars and I fear that M'arzz itself may be in grave danger," The Martian's words made the group look at each other before they let out soft sighs in unison.
'We just wanted a vacation.'
A/N: And we end off here~! A bit of a shorter chapter in preparation for the bigger one next week.
Anyway, some family bonding, tensions arising and an alteration in the timeline. Also, debut of one of my favourite villains next week, but we'll leave that for then.
Next chapter: War of Worlds.
As always, read, enjoy, review and until the next one...
Ba-Bye~!