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Mantis didn't expect that one of her travels would take her to the alternate Earth. It was...different from the one that she knew. At the same time, she left the Guardians to pursue her own path. It was during such a travel when Mantis met Niran Pruksamanee or Lifeweaver, a Thai man coming from a wealthy family.
She agreed to come to the place where he was hiding, once he was done with his work concerning plants.
The Arcology was a beautiful place. It was a city like place on the surface of the ocean, built by the people, Hector and Claudio Martinses, who created a wall to protect Spain and Portugal from the massive sea waves. This wall then also protected both countries against the Omnic Crisis.
The Arcology consisted of not only a massive spire, but also of artificial islands that were connected. The component to make the spire and the walls was Durovidro, a hard light that was said to be durable as a diamond.
It wasn't just Niran who resided here. The place was home for many scholars and artists, mostly bright minds, who gathered to make their work beneficial for the humanity, and the world, in Niran's case, as he was the inventor, scientist and an artist. He was also an activist as well.
The Arcology also became a home to many Omnics, who were fleeing the humans' oppression, and the mind control of Null Sector. She was reminded of Humans and Mutants' hostility towards one another.
At the same time, it was not the Omnics' fault that they were created. The true blame was on the Omnica Corporation, that was shut down after Aurora's creation and her getting her status as a being after a hearing. Her creator fought for her, and that was a great thing. She did the same for Omnics, only for that fight to be invalidated by those, who blamed Omnics for the war.
Mantis thought that Ramattra would find a friend in Magneto, because of how similar they were.
Biolight was a curious piece of technology of this Earth, she thought, as she watched it being in the use. It was made from the Hard Light, made by Niran during his time in Vishkar Academy.
First, Biolight could be shot at another person or an Omnic to mend them. Secondly, he had the platform in order of a petal, that lifted people into the air. It did act like an elevator.
Lastly, a healing tree could be planted, and it provided a needed cover in the battle. The Biolight was also good for defending himself with his thorns, so they weren't just for show.
No wonder Vishkar wanted their claws on it. The Biolight had the potential for agriculture and medicine. Of course, Niran had no intention of selling his technology.
She got several books on the subject and read. She was not surprised to learn that until recent years, there was a group similar to Avengers called Overwatch. Led by a man who reminded her of Captain America, Overwatch stood for peace and justice. The group also initially ended the war between the Humanity and the Omnics, the latter being controlled by the Rogue God Program called Anubis.
The Strike Team was originally made of six people, Gabriel Reyes (The initial Strike Commander), Jack Morrison (Who reminded Mantis of Captain America due to how similar they were), Ana Amari (Black Widow would be a good friend with Amari, Mantis thought), Reinhardt Wilhelm, Torbjorn Lindholm and Mina Liao.
Gabriel Reyes came from Los Angeles, California, USA, Jack Morrison came from Bloomington, Indiana, USA, Ana Amari hailed from Egypt, Reinhardt Wilhelm was a Crusader and hailed from Germany, and Torbjorn Lindholm, the Engineer, came from Sweden. It was unknown from where Lina Miao came from.
After the War, Jack Morrison became the Strike Commander, while Gabriel Reyes became the commander of the covert ops branch in Overwatch called Blackwatch. That group did what Overwatch did not.
Overwatch expanded, getting more people to join its ranks, as it pursued the mission of peace in the world, until Overwatch was shut down by Petras Act. It was easy to blame superheroes, and Mantis knew that. Avengers didn't have it easy either.
Now, the once defeated Null Sector re-emerged after licking its wounds, and Talon was making their presence slowly known. But, UN was going after Overwatch, and Niran knew that as he kept in touch with Jean-Baptiste Augustin, ex-Talon Medic, who left the terrorist organisation after seeing that they were only using his medic talents for their destructive goals.
One was to hope that the world and UN would see that Overwatch was still needed.
Niran was more than happy to become a member of the Guardians, apart from his work in the Arcology. "This world needs saving, and we can work together," Niran agreed.
"I agree. We have to find the others, as the new Overwatch is alone in its fight against Null Sector and Talon. And given that we are not aligned with Overwatch, we can help out, and show the world that the Heroes are still needed," she responded.
She would not turn back, not when the world needed to be saved, and shown that Overwatch was still needed in this dire hour. And Niran needed her help in protecting his technology from Vishkar.
She suspected that Vishkar had ties to Talon, given how the organisation had the most dreaded assassins, Reaper and Widowmaker. This information came from Baptiste, whom she felt very sorry for. She felt that Rocket Racoon would befriend Baptiste, given their knack of using gear that they randomly found.
Mantis knew her mission, protecting her fellow Guardian, with whom the love now slowly blossomed like a flower. Her life as a Guardian wasn't over, but it was away from other Guardians.