Earth was strange. So many people with so many feelings, and Mantis found herself feeling overwhelmed. This was not the isolation of Ego’s planet, or even the small group she’d come to consider family. This was seven million people exuding emotions into the world around them. It was a relief when she was ushered into the Avengers compound and directed toward someplace quiet. She was not expecting company, though.
“Hello,” she said brightly, smiling as her antennae perked up. She wasn’t close enough to him to get any sense of his feelings, but plenty of humans had reacted poorly to her before, so she held up a hand the way she’d seen others do when attempting to calm a fearful animal. “Do not be frightened by my hideousness,” she said, smile not fading the slightest. “I will not hurt you.” If she had to, she could put him to sleep, but she was hoping she wouldn’t have to.