"-awake, son?" I could vaguely make out the sound of someone- a man, talking to me. Their voice sounded vaguely familiar, but not enough to warrant me opening my eyes. Apparently, telepathic overexertion translated pretty terribly between Genomorphs and humans, considering every single thought I was currently having felt like a nail being driven into my skull. Honestly, you'd think a piece of hyper-advanced technology that can seamlessly rewrite the user's DNA would have at least some basic healing capabilities, but apparently not.
"He is awake and ignoring us in favour of continued rest." A much deeper voice said, "Rest they will require after what happened in CADMUS. I can feel his mental fatigue, it is nearly as great as the injuries the other three received fighting that creature."
Oh yeah, Dubbilex. Forgot about them for a second.
"Can you fix it somehow?"
"With my powers I could… alleviate the strain on their mind. My main concern is the stunted recovery. Any other telepath would have recovered from such an ordeal in under an hour, to be unconscious for almost two days is unheard of. The only explanation I can think of is that his regular human mind is not strong enough to heal on its own."
"Thanks for the diagnosis." I groaned without opening my eyes, and lazily activated the watch before immediately pressing down on the faceplate. Assuming the dial hadn't been rotated since I last used it, it'd still have Trippilex selected. It could have been, since I'd apparently been asleep for two days, but I doubted it had been since anyone that knew it wasn't a watch would probably also know better than to fiddle with a piece of alien technology they didn't understand. Especially if Aqualad had passed along what happened when he tried to run a current through it.
My assumption was correct, and my head suddenly felt as though a twenty-pound weight had been lifted off of it. With everything clearer, I opened my eyes and then immediately blinked when I was greeted with Superman and the Martian Manhunter both staring at me.
"Am I getting arrested?" Was the first thing that came out of my mouth at the sight of two of the strongest heroes on the planet both just… standing there. Any worries I felt were allayed when Superman actually chuckled and raised his hands reassuringly.
"Nothing of the sort. We just want to make sure you're okay, especially after you saved three of our own. Martian Manhunter here was looking after you since he's our expert on telepathy." Every syllable out of his mouth oozed kindness, and I felt at ease while in his presence.
Manhunter cut in, "While possessing raw power is useful, it is incredibly dangerous to attempt to unleash it in its entirety without taking the time to hone your own skills."
"But, we're not here to admonish you just yet," Superman interjected, "we know that there were extenuating circumstances. And we'd actually like to make an offer. Robin, Kid Flash and Aqualad, the ones that rescued you, are putting together a team of their own, and I think they'd all be quite pleased if you decided to join."
"What do I get out of it?" I asked immediately, folding my arms over my chest while doing my best to keep my face impassive. Well, actually, I was putting in zero effort to maintain a poker face, Trippilex just wasn't a very emotive form.
Neither of the heroes seemed put off by my selfish question, with Superman explaining, "You'll have a place to live, food, various luxuries provided by the League, and you'll get the chance to socialise with people your own age. I imagine there wasn't much opportunity for conversation when you were escaping CADMUS?"
"What happens if I don't join, are you going to throw me out onto the street?" I inquired, though I fully intended on joining this team of theirs. Trying to provide for myself legitimately and without bringing someone crashing down on my head would be a pain, especially since I wasn't from this world and, according to any official records, didn't exist. Besides, it wasn't as if the League would put a team of sidekicks in any actual danger. As it was, the biggest threat they'd probably face was Kite-Man.
"If you do not wish to pursue a life of heroics, the League will do everything in their power to set up a new life for you, and we will respect your decision. I am sure that many avenues would be open to you, with that device on your wrist." Manhunter told me, before looking at Superman pointedly, who promptly coughed.
"Speaking of that device-"
"The Omnitrix." I interrupted, before nodding to continue.
"Speaking of the Omnitrix, I heard that it apparently stores alien DNA, and transforms you into those aliens? Well, I was wondering if, uh…" Superman paused, but I knew exactly what he was going to ask.
"I don't have access to Kryptonian DNA," I said, "or Martian DNA. The only aliens in the Justice League that I can turn into are Hawkman and Hawkwoman."
"Alright, in that case-" Superman stopped and raised a hand to his ear, presumably to receive a message from a communication device, "A hostage situation? Super-strength? Central City? No, I'm not busy. I'll be right there." He lowered his hand before nodding to Manhunter, "Sorry about this, but duty calls." Before anything else could be said, he exited the room at super-speed.
With Superman gone, I finally looked around at my surroundings and was promptly underwhelmed when I realised I was in a regular, though probably quite expensive if CADMUS' education about the economy was still relevant, apartment. Not a proper medical facility, not a special superhero base, just some random guy's apartment.
"As you do not legally exist, we could not take you to an ordinary hospital. And unless you intend to take Batman up on the offer of joining the team, a League facility is out of the question." Manhunter explained, probably reading my mind to know what I was thinking. Wait, could he hear what I was thinking now? If he was, shouldn't I have been able to pick up on it with Trippilex's own telepathy?
"I am not reading your mind," He claimed, "just your body language. I also know that many humans can feel anxious in my presence, as they are a much more telepathically private species than Martians. Fifty years among humanity has helped me learn how to understand the way they think without telepathy. It is getting rather late, now, would you like to stay for dinner?"
"You're… inviting me to stay for dinner? This is your apartment?"
"Yes, and yes. It is quite late, and it would be discourteous to send a new ally away."
I frowned, or at least tried to, I wasn't sure how well it translated. "Awfully sure I'll join up, aren't you?"
"During your earlier discussion with Superman, you were projecting your thoughts quite loudly. It was hard to not read them." He replied calmly, and my eyes widened. Projecting my thoughts? What the hell did that mean?
"As I said before, this transformation possesses remarkable telepathic power, but that power can also be a detriment if you cannot control it. If you are not careful, your telepathy will act automatically and broadcast your thoughts to other telepaths around you. If you wished, I could help you train your abilities. Or, since you will be sharing a living space, my niece could." He explained, and I blinked in surprise. Manhunter had a niece? As if on cue, a young red-headed girl with green skin revealed herself from behind a doorway, giving a nervous wave.
"Trippilex, this is my niece and protégé, Miss Martian."
"But you can call me M'Gann! Or Megan, since it's an Earth name and, you know, this is Earth." M'Gann quickly cut in, smiling eagerly at me.