"ARRGGGH!" he shouted, jolting himself awake.

He sat up in bed. J'Onn looked around. He was in his own darkened apartment. Everything was as it had been for the past fifteen or so years.

He leaned over and picked up his Avengers League membership card. He pressed a button, which put him in direct communication with Captain America.

"What is it?" the groggy voice said on the other end.

"Steve, it's J'Onn. Meet me at the Watchtower at nine o'clock tomorrow."

"Do I bring the League?"

"Sure. As many as possible, but not everyone is necessary. It's kind of an emergency."

"I know. I'll see you tomorrow. Cap out."

"So, why exactly are we here?" Flash inquired.

"You all know about the headaches I've been getting the past few months," J'Onn said. "I believe I have finally ascertained the cause."

"Forget to allow enough room for your brain when you shapeshifted?" Flash asked.

Quasar stifled a laugh. J'Onn glared at Flash. "I'm afraid it wasn't anything as simple as that," J'Onn said, reaching for an Oreo. "And the headaches were not the only thing bothering me. I have also had many dreams in the past couple of weeks, which I now believe to be visions. They all have to do with an ancient Martian belief. One that I subscribed to for many years before I was suddenly drawn to Earth."

"And it's still haunting you?" Quasar wondered.

J'Onn nodded. "Last night, I had a dream about a certain Martian Emerald. It was the center of a Martian holiday, known as the Festival of the Emerald. My people believed that it would bring good fortune to us, as long as the Emerald was on the planet. Safe."

"And if it wasn't?" Iron Man asked.

"Terrible things would happen. I never saw first hand what could happen, because every year, the Emerald was always safe."

"So, why are you getting the headaches?" Captain America asked.

"I believe the Emerald is trying to send me a message. I think that the entire ordeal was to get me to remember the Festival."

"And now that you have?"

"The Emerald wants me to come home. It's contacting me."

"Where is the Emerald?"

"I don't know."

"How can you get back home?"

"I can't. I came via a vortex, created by a Doctor Erdel. Unfortunately, he's dead, and the technology was confiscated by the government."

"Wait a minute," Iron Man interjected. "There have been several expeditions to Mars in recent years, and none of them have discovered any positive, one hundred percent proof that intellegent life exists. So, how are we to account for you?"

"I don't know," J'Onn replied. "The only explaination I can give is that the vortex pulled me through time and space. The only reason I think that is because of something that Z'Onn Z'Orr said to me."

"Z'Onn Z'Orr?" Flash asked.

"He was the criminal that I chased through the vortex, and the one who murdered Dr. Erdel. He mentioned something about having the power to move through time and space. That is why I think I may actually be from the past, or the future."

"Wow. Does that make you feel . . . I dunno, weird?" Quasar inquired.

"I usually don't dwell on it, and live in the here-and-now. Everything that happened to me before I came to Earth was a lifetime ago."

"How do we get to Z'Onn Z'Orr?" Captain America asked. "He's might be able to help."

"He's trapped in a vortex, never able to be freed. Besides, I doubt that he would have any knowledge himself."

"What are you going to do?"

"For now, I'll think about what is going on. I mean, I could be close to finding a way home. The Emerald could take me there. But, to find it would probably take a while, and a lot of energy."

"The League can help, and we can always call for more help."

"Thanks, but I'll think about it first."

" . . . Earlier today, the Metropolitan Museum of Art unveiled their newest exhibit on religious artifacts. Of note is one interesting emerald, that no one seems to be able to identify."

The screen flashed with a picture of an emerald. J'Onn stared in disbelief.

The anchor continued. "This emerald was found about ten years ago in the Sahara Desert. Over the past decade, it has passed from various merchants, tribesmen, and finally to the curator of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The unidentified emerald will remain on display for ninety days."

J'Onn flipped off the news broadcast. He activated his card, calling all available Avengers.

Ten minutes later, Captain America, Wasp, and Flash had joined him in the conference room.

"What's this about?" Wasp asked.

"As I told the others this morning, I have recently learned of the location of a Martian Emerald. It might provide me with a way to return to my home," J'Onn explained. "Just a few moments ago, I saw on the news where the Emerald is on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art."

"And what does that have to do with us?"

"We are going to 'borrow' it."

"By borrow, you mean steal, right?" Flash asked.

"Let's not get into specifics here," J'Onn countered. He turned to Cap. "Is it all right if these two accompany me to the Musuem?"

Cap nodded. "It's probably the best choice for stealth that we have. Just make sure you don't get caught."

"Why can't we just use the government support to help us here?" Flash wondered.

"No one in the government would be willing to help," Cap replied. "That's one of the things I've noticed recently. For some reason, the government is trying to keep us on a leash."

"Interesting," Wasp noted. "So, we sneak in, grab the Emerald, and then bring it back here?"

"That's the plan," J'Onn replied.

J'Onn J'Onzz, Flash, and Wasp arrived at the museum.

"This is definitely a weird feeling," the Wasp said. "Coming here to commit a robbery!"

"Don't think of it that way," J'Onn said. "Think of it as a non-traditional method of helping out a friend in need."

"I wish I'd said that," Flash said.

"Besides, it is only temporary," J'Onn added.

"I know, I know," Wasp said. "Let's just get this over with before someone sees us. I don't fancy being in the paper tomorrow as an accused thief."

"Yes, let's begin," J'Onn said.

J'Onn made himself intangible and flew through the wall of the museum. Once inside, he turned himself invisible so that he could search unseen. He searched through the building until he found the object he was looking for . . .

"The Emerald!" he whispered. He flew over to get a closer look at it. As he neared it, he got a sudden pain in his temples. He saw brief visions of Red Sands and deep, dark canyons. He saw home.

He focused himself and took a good look at the beautiful red jewel. He used his telepathy to contact the Wasp.

"Right!" she responded. "I'm all set!"

Wasp shrunk to her smallest size and snuck into a museum via a crack in the doorway. Once inside, she sought out the wires connecting to the door alarm. She burnt out the wires. Now that the door was no longer alarmed, she opened it from the inside.

"J'Onn," the Wasp said to the Martian via their telepathic bond. "The door is open. Hurry up, before the guards realize it and come to check."

"Very good," Martian Manhunter said. "Flash, follow my telepathic guidance. It'll lead you here."

Flash shot forward. He past the guards moving faster than the human eye could follow. They had no idea he was there. Flash appeared next to the case containing the Emerald.

"Give me a minute to get outside, Flash," the Manhunter said. "And then, do it!"

The Manhunter turned invisible and exited the building. Then, he gave Flash the mental 'All clear.' Flash vibrated and shattered the glass. It took a half second for the alarm to begin sounding. In less time than that, the Flash grabbed the Emerald and fled the building. He was outside already when the bells started sounding.

The guards started running to the room where the Emerald had been. The Wasp locked the door from the inside and slipped out through the crack in the door. Eventually someone would notice the burnt wires and fix them. It wouldn't cost the museum much. Still, she made a mental note to donate some money to the museum.

Flash was miles away, waiting at a pre-arranged rendezvous by the time the bells started sounding. Wasp was at her smallest size and J'Onn was invisible, so they were able to get away completely unseen. The had committed the perfect robbery and escaped without witnesses. The headed back to the mansion.

"Sir," he said, addressing J'Onn, "Mr. Pym arrived while you were away, and was escorted to the Watchtower by Captain America. You are to meet them there."

"Thanks, Jarvis," J'Onn said.

Moments later, they materialized on the Watchtower, and walked to one of the many labs. J'Onn gently put the Emerald down on a table, and allowed Pym to examine it.

Henry put on a special magnifying device he had created. He looked around the Emerald.

"It's broken," he said after minutes of study.

"What do you mean, 'broken'?" J'Onn asked.

"It looks like it is missing pieces," Pym explained, pointing to three holes. "See these holes? It looks like there are three shards of the Emerald that are not here."

"Damn!" J'Onn shouted. "I have no way of finding those pieces either."

"J'Onn, there is possibly one way," Captain America suggested.

"No, please don't be what I think it is," J'Onn replied.

Cap sighed. "We have to contact Z'Orr."

"Even if I wanted to, we can't. He's stuck between dimensions. It's impossible."

Everyone was silent for a moment.

"J'Onn," Flash began, "just since the League was reformed, we've faced Manhunters and gods, been shunted into a weird mirror-image universe, gone up against a bunch of wackos who took control of all of Earth's satellites, and shrunk an entire city, just to name a few things. And you're saying that getting someone unstuck is impossible? Highly unlikely maybe, but we can get almost anything accomplished. We just need to call the right people."

J'Onn was silent. He thought deeply.

"Okay," he finally said. "Even though I don't think it can be done, we'll try to open the vortex. Call in whoever you need. But first, I need an Oreo . . . "