"AVENGERS BATTLE ALIENS IN NYC"

"Thousands still missing Tuesday as the death toll continues to rise in the wake of what has been confirmed to be an alien invasion of New York City-"

"STARK INDUSTRIES LAUNCHES DAMAGE CONTROL INITIATIVE WITH GOVERNMENT."

"NYC ENTREPRENEURS FUND CLEANUP EFFORTS."

"Doctor Reed Richards has committed a large sum from his vast fortune to reclaiming the area around Grand Central Station following the alien invasion. Richards, renowned for his research into so called 'unstable molecules'-"

"NEW ORGANIZATION FOR THE BEST AND BRIGHTEST FORMED IN MANHATTAN."

"Local entrepreneurs Reed Richards and Susan Storm held a press conference announcing the launch of the 'Future Foundation'-"

"-Intends to gather the greatest minds in the world under one roof to solve mankind's greatest problems."

"The world is evolving, and its issues are evolving with it. We can no longer remain apart if we are to solve it. It is my belief that the future begins with a solid foundation. Here at the Baxter Building we will pour that foundation."

"RUMOR: RICHARDS AND STORM ON SHORTLIST FOR NOBEL."

"HUMANITY 'GRAVELY UNDER-PREPARED,' SAYS TECH MOGUL ESSEX."

"BUGLE EXCLUSIVE: WHY STARK IS BLACKLISTED FROM GENIUS CLUB."

"THESE 11 MEMBERS OF THE FUTURE FOUNDATION ARE HYDRA PLANTS! NUMBER SEVEN WILL SHOCK YOU."

"Susan Storm appeared on stage with the First Lady today at the Global Climate Summit-"

"WEDDING OF THE CENTURY? RICHARDS AND STORM TO WED."

"The two Future Foundation founders have been reported to be dating for years now, but the couple has been tight lipped until now-"

"IRON MAN ABDUCTED? STRANGE CRAFT OVER GREENWICH VILLAGE."

"AVENGERS PULL EARTH FROM THE BRINK!"

"An entire nation in morning today as millions flock to Washington for the funeral of Captain Steve Rogers-"

"-How are we supposed to go on after what happened? We have no defenses that can compete with everything out there. Even the Avengers barely managed it and the UN shut them down years ago!"

"SCIENTISTS SHOCKED BY RICHARDS' SPACE BID!"

"You look back seven years ago, the search for intelligent life on other planets was the realm of crackpots and pseudoscience. But since then we've not only learned we aren't alone in the universe - we've seen that our technology is far outstripped by alien capabilities."

"RICHARDS: FOUNDATION TO GO TO MARS"

"NASA WHO? BILLIONAIRE AIMS FOR RED PLANET"

"The universe has proven to us to be larger than anyone could have ever imagined. We Earthlings need to expand into this new frontier if we are to keep up. That's why the Future Foundation is going to prepare Mars for the future colonization of humans. Through Unstable Molecules we have cut the time necessary to reach Martian Orbit in half. Before long humankind will have two homes, and that's only the beginning. The Future begins on a solid Foundation!"

|Fantastic Four: The Golden Age|

In the vacuum of space, a great silver cylinder cuts through the blackness. The Beautiful Tomorrow, the culmination of five years of research and development, billions of dollars in capital, and the passions of hundreds of engineers. Within it dwell the thirty-person crew of the first manned mission to Mars. A collection of botanists, physicists, astronomers, and other would-be pioneers all belonging to the Future Foundation; the society of freethinkers and entrepreneurs curated by the Richards family.

Reed Richards was standing in the engine room observing the massive device powering the ship. The Tomorrow Drive was powered by unstable molecules, which even on a thirty day trip to Mars Reed wouldn't be able to properly explain to most of the people on board. They could be made to alternate between different quantum states, essentially reducing the amount of space in front of the ship and then expanding it behind the ship, propelling them forward at previously unknown speeds. Reed suspected they were a distant cousin of the Pym Particle, but the venerable physicist remained adamant about keeping his miraculous technology secret even after it helped save the universe.

Unstable Molecules had rocketed Reed into the public consciousness, and were now rocketing the foundation he built into the stars.

"Shouldn't you be up top with the flight crew popping champagne or something?" The voice came from Johnny Storm, Reed's brother in law and the youngest member of the crew.

"Hello Johnny. We're not on Mars yet," Reed pulled a cylinder from the fuel bay. "Until then, I'm still working."

"The Drive? It works fine. Almost too fine. Engineering hardly ever needs to come down here, I think they're a little jealous."

"Which is why the Engine Room is a great place for… quiet contemplation."

"Alright, I can take a hint. I'm just grabbing one of my toolkits and I'll be out of your hair."

"Oh no, I don't mean that," Reed stopped him. "Here, take a look at this."

He produced a square of fabric from his pocket, then opened the capsule and poured a few drops of the peculiar teal substance onto it. The two men watched as it pooled on the cloth, then disappeared.

"So, uh, what am I looking at?"

"Potentially? Anything. I've been working on this the whole trip. Pliability, weatherproofing, insulation from a dozen types of radiation - thermal, nuclear, maybe even visible light. All as thin and lightweight as a pair of jeans."

"The next generation of spacesuits," Johnny whistled. "Would have been nice for this trip."

"It wouldn't require much modification," Reed nodded. "Though we hardly have the resources to outfit the whole crew. There's also the means of regulating it. I didn't call them 'Unstable' for grabbing headlines."

"Huh. The mind of Reed Richards never fails to entertain. Don't stay at your chemistry set too long though. My sister will be looking for you."

Johnny grabbed a bag and climbed back up to the main deck.

Johnny - along with Reed's schoolmate Benjamin Grimm - weren't scientists, but they [I]were[I] among the most essential members of the Tomorrow's crew. Johnny was in charge of vehicle maintenance on the many rovers and shuttles the Foundation intended to use to explore Mars. Johnny only understood Reed's designs in broad strokes but the two worked together well. He had knack with the crafts' proprietary workings. Ben was a skilled pilot, having flown recovery missions for NASA and the army in the past several years. He presided over the many scientists charting their course through space as Ship's Captain…

"Alright eggheads, we're in the home stretch. What's the latest?"

"Cosmic ray concentration is a bit higher than normal," one of the scientists reported. "Shouldn't be anything the shields can't handle."

"That about as confident an answer as you can muster?"

"Sir?"

"Forget it." Ben was known for his rough personality, but he was still rather popular the deck crew. He was much more outgoing than the average mathematician, and he brought a certain energy that made the long trip a little more bearable.

"Prepare to take us down to normal thrust," Ben announced. "Mars, here we come."

"It's all dehydrated anyway, I don't see what the big deal is."

Tamara Devoux leaned over the rack of food packets she was perusing and raised her eyebrows at the botanist.

"Big deal? This is our first meal in Martian orbit! It should be special. I only wish your crops were ready, you should see what I can whip up with real food."

Tamara was brought on as the nutritional officer and rations quartermaster on the ship. But the classically trained chef often couldn't help resorting to type when it came to meals in space.

The botanist grumbled as he looked at his hydroponics lab. "One month might be revolutionary for traveling to Mars, but it isn't anywhere near long enough for fruits and vegetables to grow. At the rate the Richards are moving us, we might not be eating this stuff til the return trip."

"Well, until then I guess we'll just have to rely on freeze-dried bags of…" she ran her finger across a row. "Ooh! Apple pie. This will do."

The various modules of the Beautiful Tomorrow rotated around a central column, the centrifugal motion maintaining normal gravity inside. Only the main column, from which the other rooms could be accessed, was a weightless environment. That was where Sue found Reed.

"There you are!"

"Hello dear," Reed smiled. "I was just talking to Johnny, and figured I should come up before the final approach."

She gave him a quick kiss. "Today's the big day. Can you really believe we'll be on Mars soon?"

"Getting here was the easy part," Reed chuckled. "I had a very similar conversation with Johnny."

"We're all pretty anxious to get down there. We've done all this planning, now it's time to put it to work. I'm certain we've prepared for anything."

"We have a veritable army of experts in their fields up here," Reed agreed. "But if we've learned anything in the last decade, it's that there's a lot we haven't seen yet."

As if to answer him, Ben's voice came over the comms. "Hey uh, Reed? We're coming up on the Red Planet. Only it ain't looking so red."

"What does that mean?" Sue frowned.

"Probably nothing good, Susie," Ben responded. "You're gonna want to see this."