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She landed unsteadily, never ceasing her momentum towards the blaring alarms that signaled trouble. She had to get to Lena.
All Kara really knew about the situation, was that Lena was working on something; had taken the day away from both of her companies for the specific purpose of tinkering with her new pet project. The CEO had been teasing Kara about the new project, playfully 'zipping' her lips when Kara asked about it; and the lack of information about the situation was making the hero nervous.
She reaches the lab where her best friend had been working; the only locked room within the empty building. Kara reminded herself to scold the woman for working on something without anyone else around; this might have been avoided, if only the CEO had ensured she weren't alone.
Kicking the door in with ease, she assesses the situation; sparks of electricity are dissipating, the various screens and computers around the room are destroyed, chairs and tables are strewn around the room, and Lena lies slightly off to the right. Moving towards the CEO, Kara gasps, as tears form in her eyes.
Lena is naked, blood trickling from her eyes, mouth and nose; with the crest of the House of El seared into her chest.
Kara simply stares, too shocked by the vision to move; before she finally gathers her wits, and practically tears her cape from her suit. Wrapping the barely-breathing woman up in the red fabric, she makes a beeline towards the DEO.
After leaving the youngest Luthor with the DEO's medical team, she hurries to the hub, demanding they find out what happened; crying as she screams at her team to just do something. Alex wraps an arm around the sobbing hero, whispering reassuring words as she ushers her away to a more secluded area.
Alex is glad that she's able to corral her sister; while Kara's close friend's have picked up on her feelings towards her best friend, she doesn't want anyone else to push Kara into her own realization. Moving them to sit out-of-earshot of the rest of the agents, she envelopes her little sister in the warmest hug she can manage.
Kara simply sobs into the older woman's chest, clutching the fabric of her uniform as if it were a lifeline.
It's several hours later when Kara hears a doctor tell J'onn that the CEO is stable, and she's up and moving before she's heard anymore; rushing towards the recovering woman, and unknowingly, into trouble.
"Supergirl, a word" J'onn ensures there's no room for argument, and is walking towards his office before he's even finished speaking. Kara is desperate to check on her best friend, but Alex has already placed a hand on her back to lead her after the director. Stifling her complaint, she decides to just get it over with.
The sisters reach the office to find J'onn already seated, scowling at some paperwork as Kara shuffles into the room. The director doesn't even raise his head when he speaks
"Alex, you stay too" The elder Danvers obliges, and takes a seat next to her sister.
"Supergirl, can you explain this?" J'onn asks, as he slides an image across the desk. Kara averts her gaze the second she registers what the image is. Alex gasps as she reaches for it, holding a hand to her mouth as she surveys the image of the crest of House El, burned into flesh
"That's how she was when I found her. She was naked, and bleeding, and my crest was burned into her. Who would do that?!" She started sobbing again, Alex discarding the picture to comfort her sister. J'onn simply watched the two women for a moment
"Are you sure?" He finally ventured, and when the Danvers sisters realized what he was asking, both of their heads raised to reveal disbelief and anger etched into their features
"Y-you think I did this?" Kara asked, so quietly that even Alex had trouble hearing it, when seated right next to the hero
"Other than you and Superman, no one knows the more subtle intricacies of that crest. When comparing that burn with the emblem of your own suit, they're almost identical. No one else could have done it, Kara. So I need the truth" By now, both sisters were fuming, enraged by what their father-figure was implying
"Why would I do this? To my best friend! Why?! You give me a reason why I would even think of hurting her like that! Of hurting anyone like that! You tell me why I'd burn my house crest into someone's flesh!" Kara was hovering a foot off the ground, her eyes glowing with anger as she tried to keep her laser-vision in-check. Alex was just as angry, but focused on ensuring her sister didn't go off the deep end. J'onn hung his head
"I'm sorry, Kara. You know I would never believe it, but it's my job. I'm not making things up when I tell you that it's a perfect match for your own suit, which means that someone out there is trying to make you look bad; maybe even start a full-blown war between Luthor's and Super's.
I know you'd never hurt her, of all people; so go take a walk, cool off, and when you feel like you can stand to look at me again, come find me, and we'll see where we're at with finding this psycho." Kara took his advice, storming from the room as she seethed. Alex took a moment to glare at her boss, before she followed the alien out. J'onn sighed as he retrieved the image that started it all
"Who would do this?"
27 hours had passed by the time Kara felt she could stomach J'onn's presence, and she made her way to the main floor to find the martian, and see what information they'd uncovered.
She'd spent the night curled up beside Lena's bed, a hand outstretched to hold the comatose woman's own as she recovered. Alex had been in and out all night, as well; checking Lena's vitals, looking over her charts, and keeping her sister company. The pair were exhausted, but Kara wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else; Alex just wanted to be some comfort to her little sister.
When she reached the hub, J'onn, Winn and Alex were already looking at her, and the martian tilted his head towards the conference room, gesturing the others to follow. Winn wrapped an arm around the hero as they walked, whispering that Lena would be fine, and squeezing her hand as they closed the door behind them
There was nothing special about the conference room, aside from the fact that it was sound-proof. Whatever information they'd found, it was important enough that no-one else had been cleared to hear it. Kara was hopeful that this meant good things. J'onn nodded to Winn as the others sat, and the young man cleared his throat before bringing an image of the DEO logo up onto the large screen in the center of the room
"So, I'm not gonna beat around the bush on this; I finally managed to hack L-Corp's servers, and their cameras. What I found, is that Lena was building a suit..."
"You don't mean, y'know, one like Lex's, right?" Alex asked tentatively, sending Kara an apologetic smile as the blonde glared at her
"No, no. This suit is for Supergirl" Winn exclaimed proudly, as the other occupants of the room tilted their heads in confusion. He held a finger up before quickly moving it across the tablet he'd brought along, pulling up an image of Lena in glasses and a lab-coat that made Kara smile sadly.
"Just listen" He smiled as he hit play, and the CEO began to speak on the screen
"So, Ka...Supergirl came very close to blowing her powers yesterday. She could have been caught with no backup, no protection, nothing that would keep her safe from any would-be attackers. This...worries me. A lot. As such, I've been working nearly non-stop on the new suit. I can't run around punching aliens to help out, but I can make sure she's always safe. Today, we're testing the newly tweaked laser-vision enhancement, and hopefully, it'll work this time"
The CEO smiled to the camera as she held up an odd looking item, and Winn paused the video to give the team a moment to comprehend the new information
"This is the last entry in a hidden video journal about the work she's been doing on this new suit. The end of this video contains what happened to put her in that hospital bed; so maybe take a moment to prepare yourselves before I show it" every one nodded as they braced themselves. Winn eventually played the next part of the video
Lena stood, removing the lab coat to reveal the cobalt blue Super-suit underneath; perfect rendition of the crest of House El right in the center of her chest. (As she stepped away from her seat, the viewers saw that this new suit did not contain a skirt, appearing to instead be a full-body suit, similar to Superman's).
Moving away from the camera, the CEO connected the device she'd been holding to something at the collar of the suit, and placed the monocle-style prototype over her right eye, and positioned herself in front of a table, which held a row of slightly bent and misshapen cans.
Taking a deep breath, she mentioned the test number to the camera over her shoulder, and narrowed her eyebrows towards the cans. To her own surprise, a laser beam shot forward and decimated the can she'd been focused on, and she squealed with delight before positioning herself to take out the remaining few.
And that was when it all went sour. Electrical currents began to skip their way across the room, a familiar title crackling into the room as the lights flickered, and the video stream momentarily went fuzzy. (When the image cleared, the team viewing the clip gasped, and Supergirl practically growled)
Livewire
"I've been watching you, little Luthor. Tinkering away on that pretty little suit. Good job, by the way. But we can't have you helping Supergirl, now, can we? Not when I still have to kill her" She rushed the CEO, who surprisingly held her own, until the electrified villainess caught her arm. She laughed maniacally as she forced the woman to the ground
"Now, I'll make sure you never get a chance to help Supergirl, ever, again" With that, she poured hundreds of thousands of volts into the screaming CEO, laughing as she tried to destroy the woman. When she was satisfied with the result, she stood from her place, and looked down on the Luthor
"You didn't have to get all naked for me, honey. I can get off either way. But that pretty little burn on your chest is gonna wreak havoc, and I can't wait to hear about it" Crackling from the room, Lena was left on the floor, naked, from the suit seemingly disintegrating with the high voltage, and just barely breathing. It was seconds before Supergirl was on the scene, and Winn cut the video there.
"The wiring inside the crest is why it’s seared into her skin, it became too hot, and burned her. From what I can tell, the suit itself is gone, destroyed; which kinda sucks because it's incredible. It's lined with a kevlar-based steel mesh weave, ensuring that no bullet could ever pass through.
Flight capabilities are powered by a neural transmitter that attaches to the back of the neck, and I'm pretty sure the laser-vision she was testing is powered the same way. There's an inlaid exoskeleton that can reach mach 5 in terms of speed, and a PSI of 230,000 when it comes to strength; which means that Supergirl would actually be stronger with the suit. It’s amazing, really” Winn gushed. The others looked impressed; Supergirl, not so much
Kara stood from her place, leaving the room in an angry fluster, as she made her way to the room Lena was recovering in.
When she got there, she wrapped her arms around the CEO as best she could, and pressed a kiss to her forehead, whispering apologies, and promises to be back; after she found and pummeled Livewire.
No one saw which direction she headed, nor where she dropped her phone and comms when she left, and she was glad for that fact. She wasn’t entirely sure she would be able to stop, when she finds Livewire; and she certainly didn't want anyone getting in her way.
The DEO was buzzing with worry and confusion. Supergirl was AWOL; her comms offline, and her phone was found next to Lena's bed, making her completely unreachable. Alex had checked the hero's apartment to find it empty, and she was worried about her sister's mindset.
However, she knew that Kara would want Lena taken care of, so she made a note of frequently checking in on the comatose woman. When the agency began to ease into a quiet tension as night fell, a doctor sought her out, and hurried her to Lena's room. She silently hoped that whatever was happening could be dealt with before Kara found out, otherwise her emotionally unstable sister may snap.
As she neared the sterile room, she saw J'onn, already in the doorway, and was surprised to find the look of shock, somehow mixed with pride. Turning to face the room, she quickly discovered what had him so surprised
"Is...is she...levitating?" J'onn responded with a grunt, as the pair watched the CEO hover a foot off the bed.
"Kara used to do that, when she was dreaming. Took her forever to get it under control. But how is Lena doing it?"
"No idea. But I think it might have something to do with the suit she was building. I've had an agent collect Winn, he's on his way back now" Alex nodded along, her eyes never leaving the woman her sister had fallen for.
Winn would have been grumpy about being woken, if it weren't for the fact that if J'onn was right, this would be fascinating. He hurried through the DEO, making a beeline for the woman he secretly idolized; several scanners and other random devices stacked precariously in his arms.
When he reached the room, he found Alex and J'onn, still staring at the figure floating above the bed; and he nearly dropped his tech when he realized who it was. Scrambling to get his toys in line, he beamed; Lena could end the feud between Super's and Luthor's for good, and he couldn't think of anyone more deserving of that opportunity, not even Kara.
Gently setting his tech on a nearby bench, he quickly set to work.
Several hours later found Alex in one of the cots in the break room, trying to get some rest amidst the worry and confusion permeating the building. It was useless though, so when an agent gently knocked on the door and asked for her presence in the conference room, she was quite glad for the distraction
When she arrived, Winn was practically bouncing in place, J'onn was seated to his left, and looking imploringly at his subordinate over his shoulder. Alex took the seat opposite him, and turned her attention to Winn
"This. Is. Incredible!" He practically squealed as an opener
"I was wrong when I said the suit disintegrated, it didn't, it fused with her. At this point, we haven't found a needle that can penetrate her new skin, so I can't tell you if it's just surface fusion, or right down to her DNA, but it's a part of her now. No matter how deep the fusion goes, it means that she has all the power of the suit; laser-vision, super-strength, all of it. That's why she can hover.
Luckily, she seems to be recovering really quickly - likely due to the nano technology she'd infused into the suit, which I only just found about - and hopefully when she wakes, she can tell us if there's anything that can get through that material. She's really, really smart, so I doubt she'd make it impossible to cut-off if necessary, we just need to know how. But seriously, this is incredible!" He'd barely taken a breath as he spoke, and panted wildly when he finally stopped.
"Is there any chance this will cause her damage? It's a foreign entity, after all, you humans seem to have issues with that" J'onn asked.
"At this point, no. The material was invented by Lena, and has been created to be safe for carrying wounded people. She made sure of that. Her notes make reference to Edge's lead-poisoning accusations, so she's gone above and beyond to ensure no ill-effects occur, if open wounds meet the material. However, it was never meant to be fused with a person, so that's not something I can really guess on. We'll just have to keep an eye on her." Winn shrugged, as J'onn nodded
"So, you're saying that she's pretty much the same as Kara now? Stronger even?" Alex pitched in, Winn nodded
"Yeah. Her notes state that she has no idea of Supergirl's exact stats, so she configured everything to be slightly more than what she'd calculated, just to be safe; but she actually went well over Kara's maximum output, on most of the components. So she'd be stronger than her." Winn seemed almost proud of that
"So we need to keep a close watch on her. If she turns bad, we're in big trouble." J'onn stated.
"I don't think that'll be a problem. You've seen how she looks at Kara, I doubt she'd do anything to hurt her, or even upset her. Not unless she's under some kind of mind control. I think she's safe, and I think that if we all try to be there for her, she won't have a reason to go bad in the first place. If we give her a chance, I think she'll be an even greater force for good than Kara" Winn seemed almost insulted that J'onn would suggest such a thing in the first place, and Alex silently agreed with a nod. J'onn looked to each of them, before conceding his acceptance with a shrug.
Winn beamed as he launched into another gushing ramble about the suit Lena had been working on
The next few days passed with only one minor incident; a Fort Rozz escapee wreaking some havoc, with no Supergirl to keep him in check. The DEO managed to take him down, but he struggled violently as they tried to drag him into a cell. All hands were on deck to get the prisoner under control, but his size and strength made him far better suited for a fight with the Girl of Steel.
The massive alien lashed-out at nearby agents, flinging them across the room with wide sweeps of his tree-trunk sized arms. Alex and J'onn had taken cover behind an overturned desk, while they loaded tranquilizers made specifically for extra-thick hides. Alex popped up to position herself for the shot, when the gargantuan beast swung his arm again; but met an abrupt stop. Alex's eyes widened as she took in the scene
Lena was awake, and currently holding onto the now flailing arm of the alien escapee. She looked shocked, as if she hadn't expected to stop the thing mid-swing. But as Alex watched, an almost devious smile formed on the CEO's lips, and she yanked at the arm, pulling the monster forward as she lifted her knee to greet his face. With a resounding 'crack', the alien fell, and the room went dead-silent.
Everyone stared at the woman, most gaping at the show of strength, some whispering theories to one another. J'onn stepped around the fallen desk, and then the snoring alien the young woman had just dropped with ease.
"I think we should have a talk, Miss Luthor" Lena nodded, as she stared down at the unconscious alien. She had a theory about what had happened, but was still shocked at the situation. J'onn gestured for Alex to follow them, and gently lead Lena to the conference room.
Lena sat nervously in the conference room, Alex to her left, J'onn to her right as they waited for Winn. J'onn had suggested the young man explain everything, as he'd probably have a better idea of what's going on anyway. Lena just nodded.
Winn eventually made his way into the room, and sat directly across from the CEO, smiling widely at her. The gesture made her feel more at ease, and she relaxed a little with his presence.
"So firstly, this suit is incredible. Like, seriously, I have no idea how you made half this stuff work!" A slight grumble from J'onn had him quickly clearing his throat.
"Sorry, but it's really awesome. Anyway! I don't know what you remember, if anything, So I'm just gonna tell you everything we know..." Lena listened intently as the young man explained the situation, leaving no detail out, and ensuring that she knew she could ask questions if she needed to. She was shocked, that her calculations had been so off when it came to Supergirl's powers, but other than that, was only mildly freaked-out
"W-where's Kara? I need to see Kara" She finally ground out, as the tears started rolling down her face, the gravity of the situation hitting her full-force. Alex sighed, while J'onn and Winn hung their heads
"We don't know. She found out what Livewire had done, and we haven't seen or heard from her since. She left her phone and comms behind, so we have no way to reach her. I've even checked her favorite take-out places, they haven't seen her since she disappeared. I'm worried about her mental state" Alex answered, Lena blinking as she took the information in.
"Ok, well, we have to find her. Where else have you looked?" All trace of tears had left the CEO, leaving behind a confident, but worried expression as the trio listed where they'd searched for the blonde. She mulled over the information and quickly decided on the next place to search
"Mr Schott, can you get access to any satellites over this region? I think we will have better luck looking for her from the skies" Winn nodded, and made his way to his desk to start the search. J'onn and Alex merely looked at her with raised eyebrows. She shrugged
"She always told me that she loves flying"
It took several hours for Winn to finally gain full control of a satellite to search for Kara, and the small group focused all of their attention on the screen, as they tried to find any signs of the Girl of Steel.
It wasn't until a sudden electrical storm kicked-up towards the South end of the city, that they found a lead. Unable to get a clearer view, Lena followed her gut instinct, and flew ahead to the scene, despite both Alex and J'onn yelling after her to wait. She was rather glad for all the hours she'd spent testing the flight capabilities of the suit, otherwise she would likely have succumb to her fear of flying.
Upon arrival at the scene, Lena was both pleased and somewhat mortified that her gut feeling had been correct; as she found Kara slamming Livewire's face into the ground while spitting insults, and promises of more bodily harm at her. Moving quickly, Lena positioned herself to take the hero out; using a burst of super-speed to spear tackle the woman to the ground, where she could effectively pin her.
Kara struggled for only a split second before she registered who it was that held her, and her eyes filled with tears. Lena loosened her grip slightly, anticipating the blonde's next move, and was pleased to be proven right again, as the Kryptonian surged forward to wrap her arms around the CEO's midsection.
Kara sobbed into her best friend's neck, while clutching tightly at her borrowed DEO uniform. Lena whispered soothing words as she gently cradled the crying hero, pressing soft kisses into her hairline as she tried to calm the previously berserk blonde. A quick glance over her shoulder told her that Livewire was out for the count, and she watched as Alex and a small team of agent's rounded the corner to collect the fallen villain.
Alex cast a glance her way, and she nodded slightly in an attempt to assuage the agent's fears. When Alex nodded back, she turned her full attention back to the alien in her arms, who was now hiccuping as her sobs began to ebb.
"Ok now, Supergirl?" Kara nodded, with her face still buried into her friend's neck
"Wanna tell me why you nearly killed Livewire?"
"Sh-she tried...to kill...you" the blonde gasped in response. Lena sighed
"That doesn't mean you get a shot at killing her. Plus, how am I meant to punch a puddle?" She joked as she pulled away from the embrace, just enough to look the hero in the eyes. Kara laughed slightly before she sobered
"You mean too much to me, to let her get away with that. I just...I was so angry. It was like the red K all over again. Like I couldn't even control it. I don't know what I'd do, without you, Lena" the hero leaned forward again, taking the other woman back into her arms as she nuzzled into dark hair. Lena sighed in content, and smiled when she felt a light kiss dropped to her neck.
"Kara, that sounded almost...romantic. Something you want to tell me?" She knew she'd caught the blonde when she stiffened in her grasp, and chuckled slightly. Kara had been onto her about her knowledge of Supergirl's identity for a while now, so she hadn't frozen from that. But Lena had suspected more to the Kryptonian's feelings for quite some time, as well, and had confirmation in the blonde's reaction. She placed another kiss in the hero's hairline, and gently pulled away
If Kara looked shocked before, it was increased tenfold when the woman of her dreams leaned forward again, and gently pressed their lips together. The shock quickly dissolved into a dreamy grin as the youngest Luthor pulled away with blushing cheeks and a shy smile
"So...you like me too?"
"Yes, you dummy, I like you too. And we have a lot of talking to do. What happened tonight is way out of line, and I'm sure Alex and J'onn alike will reprimand you heavily for it.
And you and I need to talk about this, about us, and what that entails. So go get scolded, then meet me at my place, ok?" Kara sheepishly nodded as the pair raised themselves from the floor, Kara guiltily making her way over to her glaring sister, who immediately whacked her up the side of the head, before turning to the black SUV they’d return to headquarters in.
It was late by the time J’onn and Alex had finished with Kara, and she was a little worried that Lena would be asleep, but as she neared the penthouse apartment the CEO called home, she saw that the lights were on, and soft music was coming from the speaker in the lounge area
Stepping through the already open balcony door, she spotted Lena returning to the room with a glass of wine. Not wanting to wait too long to be in the other woman’s arms again, she floated over to her, and nuzzled her way back into those berry scented locks.
Lena only chuckled, as she melted into the warm arms that had encircled her.
No matter what happened from here, she hoped there’d be a lot more of this