[center][h1][color=GhostWhite][b]M A R T I A N M A N H U N T E R[/b][/color][/h1][/center] [hr] M'gann M'orzz, a Martian Manhunter, one of many elite operatives tasked by the enigmatic group of beings known as the Guardians of the Galaxy, was lost. She hailed from another world. This wasn't an entirely new experience for her as she, a citizen of Mars, had lived on Earth for years before recent events, and for decades prior the Manhunter had traveled the greater galaxy, visiting countless planets and celestial bodies during her stint as an agent of the Guardians. What was new to the alabaster-skinned alien was the idea of being from an entirely different reality than the one she found herself in at that moment. Truthfully, she had also spent the last half-year in yet another alternate reality, though at the time she hadn't realized it. For months, M'gann had found herself a captive in a strange world where she had been forced to participate as a gladiator in sadistic and brutal games that had threatened to claim her life at any moment. She knew nothing of the place nor the entity responsible for her abduction aside from one name: Mojo. All that had changed just hours ago. Now the alien found herself in what she, and those who accompanied her, believed to be a universe similar to but simultaneously completely removed from her own. M'gann let her eyes scan the handful of strangers settled around her for the hundredth time in half as many minutes. They were, by all accounts, a ridiculous collection. She and her stark-white, hairless form was the only non-human of the bunch. The rest were made up of a child; two adult males of uncannily similar tall, blond, model-like features; and a horribly disfigured middle-aged man. The child, a young boy with pitch-black hair, stood out even further among the fivesome due to his overly dark, hooded wardrobe marked with chains and skulls. The two handsome humans, while a closer look could differentiate them well enough - one was fairly more muscular and taller by several inches - were only particularly distinct as a result of their chosen outfits. One wore bright red and yellow, decorated in golden lightning bolt motifs, while the other was garbed in militaristic gear of muted blues and red. Both of whom, M'gann had learned, were doppelgangers of people she had once known. The taller of the two had identified himself as Steve Rogers. Although he looked remarkedly different than she had ever seen him, the name held meaning for the martian. During her early years as a Manhunter, M'gann had been assigned duty working alongside a Lantern, an intergalactic peacekeeper. At the time, Rogers had been a small, rail-thin man in his seventh decade. This unrecognized version of the man she once knew, however, stood over a foot taller, possessed significantly thicker biceps, and was about half the age. Despite the changes, though, M'gann still sensed within him the same quiet willfulness and determined kindness. Even if it didn't shine quite as brilliantly within him as she had once been used to. Barry Allen, the man dressed as a colorful storm, was known as The Flash where M'gann came from. On her world, he was a brilliant scientist and a member of the Justice Legion, a collection of hundreds of powered beings living on Earth who had united to defend the little blue planet from extraterrestrial threats. While not familiar with the man, only having met him a handful of times in passing, M'gann still knew of his reputation as a trusted, virtuous hero. It was this double of Barry Allen that had put forth the idea of alternate realities. He had suggested the five of them had been taken from their respective universes, transported across dimensional lines, and held as inmates on a world existing in another universe. It was a theory that held weight in M'gann's mind and seemed indisputable given the facts of their situation. Barry was now in possession of an "omni-universal transporter," as he had called it, that the group had 'liberated' during their recent escape. The device, visually similar to an ovoid Earth smartphone, had opened a doorway out of nowhere and deposited the five to their current location. The former prisoners and gladiators had fallen out of the sky as soon as they had stepped through the ethereal portal, plummeting several dozen feet before splashing into ice-cold waters. It had taken more time than had been pleasant for any landmass whatsoever to be located among the vast ocean, with three of the five forced to tread water for an uncomfortable stretch of minutes while M'gann and the child, the only ones of the impromptu group apparently capable of flight, raced towards the horizon in search of safe harbor. They had to fight against unusually powerful winds that whipped about wildly in seemingly every direction. In the end, all they had been able to locate was a short, metallic spire that jutted out of the blue expanse and provided just barely enough surface area for all to sit. It was there that the five of them first introduced themselves. Six, the child; Jonah, the man with a nearly melted-off face; and both Barry and Steve. The stories they shared were brief, dialogue between the group was stinted for a myriad of reasons including uncertainty and unwillingness to open up, but almost identical in nature. Their experiences being abducted and having to fight to survive were shared amongst all, though some seemingly had endured more than others. It was also there, on that tiny, isolated tower protruding from the depths, that the five realized Barry's theory proved true. Hours after their landing, with dusk beginning to settle, two undeniable realizations had been made. M'gann had found herself waiting for the evening to arrive, and as soon as the orange glow of the sun began to fall below the horizon the martian's gaze had swept across the heavens searching for familiar, comfortable features. Mars, her homeworld, was visible to the naked eye. The red planet was a tiny, gleaming speck among the stars, but it was another celestial body that captivated her attention. Earth's moon. Large, pale-yellow, and almost full. Only a quarter of the orb was obscured by clouds, giving it the appearance of a partially eaten cookie. She had stared at the distant object for several minutes, finding its presence to have a calming, hopeful effect that was abundantly appreciated after many months of hell. The comfort was fleeting, though, as she soon realized once the obscuring clouds moved away from the yellow globe that the moon was far from full. Several smaller chunks of space rock orbited around the once spherical satellite, creating a haphazard halo. [i]Destroyed[/i], she had realized. [i]Gone.[/i] The moon of this Earth had been obliterated in an undeniably catastrophic event. It was this that caused the Martian to truly embrace the notion of alternate realities. This, she told herself, was not her home. The high winds and lack of any visible landmass then made sense to her. The damage to the moon would have had a disastrous effect on the Earth. After she voiced these observations to the others it didn't take long for the other shoe to drop. While M'gann had had her eyes turned to the heavens, taking note of the moon, Steve had fixed his attention to the very structure they sat upon. The metal construct, strangely alone amongst the waves of the ocean, had felt familiar to the soldier. It had taken him some time to match that familiarity, but it had become all too clear what it was that the five had made their resting place. The Empire State Building. Or, rather, the spire of the massive skyscraper. Only a scant few dozen feet remained above the risen oceans. M'gann and the others knew then that they found themselves in New York City. The ruins thereof. M'gann M'orzz was lost. Lost among an endless sea of alternate dimensions and far from her own home reality. Lost with a collection of strangers who just hours ago had likely been preparing to kill her to ensure their own survival from the horror of Mojo's death games. However, M'gann M'orzz, the Martian Manhunter, was not without hope. This was not her reality, but her home was out there. Her life, her people, her planet, and her love were somewhere among the infinite cosmos, and no matter how titanic the odds were stacked against her she intended to return to it. To [i]him.[/i] She had not persevered through months of hell, determined to return home, to submit now. M'gann would find a way back. No matter what obstacles she faced.