Bella MacLeod's Twilight Fanfiction

Call Me Kara

By BetterInTexas

Chapter 58:

Barry Allen looked at the raging sea from Boston Harbor. The nor’easter sprung up suddenly but was well within the abilities of the Coast Guard to handle the few smaller vessels that could be caught, unable to handle the high seas. But the storm absorbing Hurricane Gina was a surprise no one had expected, that hurricane forming so quickly it was if hell itself threw it into the fray just to see what would happen. What happened was a massive cyclone turning the Atlantic up and down the East coast into a churning watery hell for any vessels caught on the seas, including the Coast Guard cutters and helicopters out to find any ship still floating. The seas were fifty feet high according to Curtis Holt, monitoring the situation via Palmer Tech and S.T.A.R. satellites. While he could move in the water easily, rescuing people off the boats and bringing them to shore would be easy, bringing them in alive, not so much. The Flash had carried people out of burning buildings and train wrecks but to wrap the Speedforce around the person at the speed he would have to travel was touchy. He could very well burn them up from friction or break every bone in their body if he got it wrong sending them all into the ocean. So he trusted his friends and wife to handle the situation on the water while he tried to help those on shore, caught up in rapidly escalating flooding.

“Barry, follow my directions. Turn left and follow the coastline North. There is a village that is being sunk, buildings are collapsing, cars being washed away. Clear as many as you can out. Run and I will let you know when you are there.”

Barry did run, finding the location in a few seconds, in time to empty an emergency shelter before the roof caved in. He was not moving as fast as he could but could not risk the people, especially panicking children, breaking their necks. He had moved forty four people out of the building ten miles inland with three seconds to spare before the structure collapsed.

“Cars are about to be washed away on the Interstate bridge. Sixteen cars and one bus. Take the street in front of you five miles and follow the sign to the right, you will be there.” Curtis further instructed, Barry taking off as ordered.

In the Atlantic, the Coast Guard Cutter Salvation had arrived at the location of a distress call. A private yacht, much too small to handle the waves and wind, was floundering and without control. The sailor on the deck shined his spotlight, even in the daylight the dark clouds made it difficult to see, searching for signs of life on the yacht. He saw one woman, holding onto a side rail, life jacket on but in danger of getting pulled under with the boat. A rescue diver dropped from above, fighting the high waves, trying to swim through them and over them just to get to the single person near death.

The diver had almost made it, when the boat tipped over, taking both of them down. Lost in the darkness, neither swimmer or victim knew up from down, just the feel of being engulfed by cold, inescapable water. Both reached out for anything and both though they were hallucinating when they felt hands wrap around their wrists and were pulled up. When the swimmer opened his eyes, he didn’t notice the towering waves which were now below him, only the dark form of a winged woman. A winged man was next to her holding the victim by her arm. Soon both were in the chopper, the pilot and co pilot struck silent at the close encounter with the now famous Hawkman and Hawkwoman.

My girl! My daughter and husband were washed away! I couldn’t hold her! She slipped away! Please, please find her!”

“Kara?” Kendra called over the com.

“I’m looking…”

Kara scanned the waters below, using her X ray vision to try and see under the surface. She located a floating form, human but too small to be a man and dove, hitting the surface of the water and continuing down twenty feet. The limp body bobbed and twisted but she finally powered through, cradling the body and moving up. Landing on the Cutter, she ran the girl inside as medics began working to save her life.

Kara ran onto the deck and looked once again at the sea.

“Donna! A half mile behind you, there is a hand reaching up. No, its under… back up!”

“I see him.” the Amazon confirmed, her lasso reaching out, wrapping around the husband’s wrist and jerking him up out of the sea. Pulling him up, she deposited him in the chopper with his wife.

“Your daughter is on the Coast Guard ship. She is safe.” Donna hoped. “Was anyone else in the boat?”

“No… she is safe? You know?”

“I know she is there.” Donna admitted.

“We are heading in now. Strap up, its going to be a rough landing. Thank you Wonder Girl.” the pilot told her sincerely.

“Please don’t call me that.” Donna mumbled.

“Thank you? Didn’t we just pull up one of their own and the wife?” Carter asked, annoyed.

“Kara pulled the little girl from very deep. She may not be alive. Can we focus on whats important?” Donna asked him, causing Carter to grimace. His brand of levity was not needed right now.

“Yeah, I guess that is… we need to follow the chopper, make sure they land. You can get to the Cutter. Kendra and I are strong enough to hold it up the bird if it has problems.”

Donna flew, landing next to Kara on the deck, while she looked out over the sea, looking for signs of life.

“Is the girl…”

“Working on her now. She coughed water up twenty seconds ago. The cold temperature may have saved her life. Why the hell were they out here? Wait… yeah I hear her… her heart is beating. The medics did good.”

“I don’t think we can do much more here. Do you want to check on her?”

“I want to go to my daughter and hug her for hours. Let me see if her lungs are cleared and we can fly. Ray? Where are you?”

“Northeast quadrant, near Canada. I’m seeking out heat signatures and humanoid objects or boats. None found so far.”

“Suit is holding up?”

“I told you I waterproofed it, Kara. Why do you doubt me?”

Kara ignored the question and went back into the cabin, where she was happy to see the little girl, pale but her skin gaining color, awake. Checking her lungs with her vision she told the medic the girl had a small amount of water still in her lungs that could cause problems if they didn’t suction. With thanks, she walked out with Donna at her side as the helicopter landed. Taking off into the sky, she had to dip back down when Kendra was knocked over by a wave and lift her teammate up. It was difficult for the Hawks to navigate the winds but neither would stay behind.

“Kara, the Coast Guard cutter Hamilton is taking on water. They got hit by a rogue wave from reports. They were responding to a commercial vessel sinking. Head south, sixty two miles and make it quick.” Winn instructed.

Donna and Kara took off, Kendra and Carter following as fast as they could. Arriving five minutes later, Donna saw the Cutter tipping over. Diving in the water, she hit the side and straightened the boat, holding strong while a wave crashed on top of her and the vessel she was propping up. Kara had seen that the fishing vessel in distress was also tipping until a wave completely capsized the vessel, sending it under.

“Damn it. I’ve got the fishing vessel. Donna, you okay?”

“I can hold it upright for only so long.”

Ray flew in, scanning the ship for the cause of the listing. Seeing one of the bulkheads had cracked in a hull breach, he flew in close.

“Carter, where are you?”

“Right here above you. What do you need, Ray?”

“I need you to use that big mace of yours and bust a hole in this ship right in front of me.”

“You want me to put a hole in a sinking ship?”

“I need to blast through the bulkhead so it can drain, weld it back together, weld the hole you… would you just hit the damn boat?”

Carter did as instructed, while Kendra hovered above the spot Kara and the fishing vessel had gone under. She was beginning to get worried, especially for Kara, not knowing how long the woman could hold her breath.

Underneath the sea, the four fishermen who hadn’t washed overboard were in the mess hall of the sinking ship, knowing the end had come. The room was upside down of course so they stood on the ceiling heads above the rapidly rising water as long as possible before there was no air left and the inevitable happened. There thoughts were everywhere, visions of their families, their childhood, the friends and lovers, ex wives, children. The lights had flickered out minutes ago and all felt the freezing water cover their mouthes and were sure this was the end.

Until the water began receding. They could feel the ship rising, the entire vessel groaning, metal under stress but holding.

Those on the Coast Guard Cutter who had ran to the deck watching Wonder Girl hold the ship while Ray and Carter repaired the damaged side looked towards the sound of groaning metal, thinking a fishing vessel would be thrown into them by waves. Instead they saw a sight none would forget for the rest of their lives.

Rising from the sea, was the huge capsized vessel being held by middle deck by a woman in dark blue, her hair slick from the wind and rain, cape flowing behind her, oblivious to the wind and waves that crashed around her, not moving her a bit. She continued to slowly rise above the waves.

“There is too much damage. The crew is safe, the water drained but I can’t right the ship in the water. The hull has been breached in three places and the main struts are snapped. I’m going to have to fly it inland. Winn how many crew does a sword fish vessel normally have?”

“Six to eight Kara.” he answered.

“I’ve got four.”

“Go, we will do our best to find them.” Kendra told her.

“Be careful. If the CoastGuard ship is sea worthy we can continue the search. Barry how is the mainland doing? she asked.

“Busy. Flooding is getting worse but Zatanna is reenforcing levies as fast as she can teleport. I’m near Cape Cod working it now, evacuating people then heading towards Florida and back. Zatanna, I will let you know where I could use you the most. Can you handle it? I don’t want you teleporting and not being able to get out.”

“I’m in great shape. Tell me where I am needed and I will be there.”

Kara flew slowly, her grip tenuous at best, her fingers curled into the top of the metal deck, not the best place to be, considering the empty open spaced freezer underneath her making it difficult to not break the ship in half under stress. Fighting the wind wasn’t easy and she often had to readjust her grip due to the metal tearing away from her hands. This would have been much easier with the boat upright but easy wasn’t something she was used to in situations like this and didn’t expect it now. The men inside were injured but alive, moving around, most likely scared to death by the groaning metal as the wind swayed the vessel in her small hands.

Landing the giant fishing boat tenth miles inland on a high school football field in a small Massacusetts village, she was glad to see Winn had alerted the fire department who were close. She slowly and as gently as possible turned the boat over, placing it on its side. As the Firemen pulled into the open field, in awe at seeing the small blonde up close for the first time, and at the incredible sight of a huge boat in the high school field. She moved quickly to the Captain.

“Any other ships we have to pull out, I am going to bring them here. Can your men handle it?”

“Yes Ma’am.”

“If we can rescue the people and leave the ships behind we will but I may need this spot for more than two You are going to need welders. There are four men inside the mess hall towards the back. They are all injured but none life threatening. I’m pretty certain I got them out before the water completely covered them. I have to go.”

The men stood still, mouths gaping, seeing Superwoman shoot up into he sky with such force a sonic boom could be heard, even over the thunder.

As the rescue operations continued, the flight crew of the Justice League, working in conjunction with the Coast Guard and the Flash and Zatanna working with fire departments and EMS up and down the East Coast saved lives into the night. The news showed scenes of Wonder Girl and Superwoman landing three more ships in the previous football field and one at a high school field in Florida. The one that Kara would never forget was the one that got away. She had gone to the reported distress call and found the ship immediately, one hundred feet deep in two pieces. A dive and even in the darkness she saw all she had to see. She would come back to recover the bodies but bodies were all they were, faces frozen in fear, eyes wide open. The blonde hero shut down her emotions, as Oliver and Nyssa had taught her in situations like this, and focused. She would remember later but right now others were still alive and needed her if they were going to stay alive.

While rescue operations were being conducted into the night by very tired superhero’s and emergency workers, Central City PD had found itself in a gang shootout, attempting to take down an arms deal between an internationally wanted smuggler and the Crips, only to be caught in the crossfire when the Wa Ching attacked, attempting to steal the guns on their own.

Joe had called for back up from every on duty and off duty officer but knew Alex and Nyssa had plans, not knowing if the two were even in the city. With Barry, Kara, Zatanna, Ray and Donna on the East Coast, for all he knew he was alone.

The police were pinned down behind their cars on one side, the smugglers firing at the Wa Ching from the other and a giant van full of arms and ammunition being the cover for both. Joe looked up, hoping to take a shot and saw a man aim a gun at him, then fall to the ground, the dark form of the Valkyrie behind him. An arrow hit the van and exploded setting off a chain reaction, rounds and ammo flying everywhere.

Oliver slid down from a nearby buildings roof and began firing, shooting anything that moved then engaged in hand to hand combat before the untrained thugs had time to aim. Alex turned her gloves to full power, taking out each man with a single blow, shattering four jaws in her race towards the center.

Rather than grabbing her gun, she used her bow, firing arrows into the cars planning on leaving, taking out the tires. The screams of men who’s knee tendons were cut filled the air, Nyssa moving low, slicing the bones with ease.

One of the smuggler’s men had grabbed an unexploded grenade but before he could throw towards the police line a sonic scream brought him to his knees, dropping the grenade, the pin out. Sara landed on his back, pinning him to the ground on top of the explosive and used the momentum of his body being lifted by the blast to jump into the group Oliver was attacking, swinging her staff.

Seeing the four heroes in the middle of a fire fight, explosions still going off due to burning ammo, the SWAT team and police rushed the scene. A Russian thug stepped out of a dark dumpster corner, rocket launcher in hand and all the combatants in one place. Knowing the cause was lost, he planned to fire an RPG into the group, causing mass casualties and an opportunity for him to escape in the chaos. No one saw him pull the trigger and he never saw the blast that caused the rocket to explode the second it left the launcher, sending him flying back, face on fire, shrapnel buried in his chest.

Cisco in a long black coat, metal gloves and a black visor walked where the thug lay, keeping his arm extended. Vibe had been told to stay back, lacking enough training in street fighting according to Oliver but he was back up and a rocket launcher seemed like a good time to provide support.

The scene quieted, only the moans of the wounded and burned men rolling on the ground, while Central City PD began handcuffing the gang members and foreign weapons dealers.

“Thanks, but we had that.” Singh told Alex and Queen, walking up beside them.

“Uh huh.” Oliver agreed.

“Yeah, we were just about to make our move.”

“I’ve heard that from Barry before. Your men should have taken into account that a rival gang could intercept. If you had arrived sooner and engaged, you would have been directly in the crossfire with no cover.”

“Yeah, he has a point, Cap.” The SWAT commander admitted. By this point all had gotten used to Oliver’s criticism.

“Hey you guys want to grab some dinner after this?” Jamie, the Green Arrow’s biggest fan, asked.

“This is usually the part where I fire an arrow into a building and go away.” Queen told them.

“Yeah but… there isn’t really a point is there? Not that it doesn’t look cool.”

“I agree.” Joe admitted. “You know I haven’t always agreed with your methods but the swinging away thing does look pretty cool. I don’t suppose you told those guys they failed this city while Alex stumbled over reading them their rights, did you?”

“Joe, did you just make a joke?” Oliver asked, amused.

“It would have been a lot funnier if you ever let me use that modulator.”

“Then he wouldn’t feel as intimidating. We can’t have the Green Arrow sound any less scary.” Nyssa told them, walking up silently. Joe took in Queen, hood covering his face so not even the mask covering his eyes could be seen, Valkyrie in her robo helmet, body armor, guns, metal sticks and bow and quiver on her back, and Sara, wearing her black outfit tonight, checking on her Dad and laughing, staff still gripped in her hands. He admitted they all made an intimidating bunch you would not want to see in the dark anywhere. But something about Nyssa’s beautiful, exotic face covered by a small hood, a black scarf covering her lower face and a black long coat over tight black and blood red leather underneath intimidated him the most. She was the only one of the three around him who was smiling, as if she were out for a nightly walk. Alex and Queen still scanned the rooftops, looking for surprises. Sara checked on Cisco who wouldn’t stop smiling but it was Nyssa who seemed completely relaxed, even if the katana in her head was covered in blood.

“You are one scary woman. I like that. Don’t even need a voice modulator or anything. Have you ever told anyone they failed a city?” Joe asked, grinning.

“I prefer to strike first and talk to unconscious or dead bodies later if I must. I don’t have the flair for dramatics that my green friend does.”

“I…” Oliver switched off the modulator and took a deep breath “… I do not have a flair for dramatics. I just… I like to scare people. It gives me a psychological edge over them.”

“And putting an arrow into their eye before they realize you are there gives you a physical edge over them. We need to get back. I want to see the rescue operations and Barry isn’t here to do Alex’s paperwork. Our friends have been going well, but the damage is catastrophic. One of my private companies sponsors a relief and emergency response team for natural disasters. I need to contact the COO and make sure he has made travel arrangements and began procuring rations.”

“You… are the only woman who can talk about saving lives by feeding and providing medical treatment for disaster victims and putting an arrow in someone’s eye in the same conversation and not make it weird.” Joe told her, shaking his head and walking off.

Once the scene was cleaned, the four members of the JLA vigilante squad headed back to S.T.A.R. to drink and watch their teammates in action. Caitlin had been keeping track of everyone but her worry was soon gone. She had been closely watching Kara all day. Her best friend was obviously tired even for her stamina but her cells never once lost power. She had dove into water all day, staying submerged for five minutes once without breathing and lifted large vessels, flew them to safety, then flew back at speeds approaching Mach 6. She had never been faster and her cells had never been more powerful, only showing minor power fluctuations that quickly revived themselves almost imitating Barry’s restorative powers. While Lexie may have made Kara weaker during pregnancy, she made her much stronger after pregnancy.

Barry also continued moving faster throughout the day. He had started slowly for him, carrying people to safety but sped up as the day moved on. Caitlin wondered if he even realized he was wrapping people in his aura, none feeling any discomfort at being handled at unimaginable speeds for a human body to take. Zatanna needed frequent breaks but her powers were holding stronger than ever and Caitlin suspected this had a lot to do with Sara and Oliver’s workouts she was put through.

Jax began complaining the minute the group walked in.

“You said I couldn’t go because I would just blow things up. Did I not just see an exploding arrow fly into a van full of exploding ammo? I could have done that, Oliver. I’m getting tired of being sidelined.”

Oliver stepped close to the young man who while not merged with Martin was still impressively built and not intimidated.

Oliver leaned down and whispered in his ear.

“You weren’t sidelined. Everyone was out and you are the most powerful person in Central City when Kara and Barry aren’t here. If someone tried to take or attack Lexie, it is best if it is you protecting her. Cisco still isn’t precise with his blasts. I wanted you to take care of her. Thats not me sidelining you, that is me counting on and trusting you with the most important person under four foot tall in my life. Since I am her sworn protector I guess that kind of makes her the most important person in my life. Do you think I would leave her with just anybody, Jax?”

“Nah man.” Jax admitted, not having thought of who was still here and realizing if anybody got stupid ideas about attacking the JL headquarters he and Martin were the only defense. “I got you.”

Oliver patted him on the shoulder. “Thank you. You are a good man and friend. Never think I want you out of battles. I just want you where you could do the most good and that was here. I appreciate it.”

Oliver walked towards the locker room before Lexie found him. She had seen him in his uniform before and didn’t seem to mind but he did. Oliver was a different person in his mind when he wore the hood and that wasn’t the person he wanted his Goddaughter to see.

Jax shook his head once the Arrow had left. Oliver Queen was the only person he ever knew who could be a jerk and a good guy at the same time. Barry called it his gift. He and Martin may be two people sharing one body as Firestorm, but Oliver was also two people sharing the same body and he doubted Oliver could tell the difference anymore as to which was which.

An awake Lexie, dragged herself out of her bed at Grandma’s the next morning, rubbing sleep from her eyes. She had stayed up too late, especially considering she was only a month away from being four years old, an adult in her mind, watching news footage of her Mommy and Daddy saving lives all day and night.

“Momma still swimmin… swimming?” she asked her grandmother followed by a big yawn. Eliza and Jeremiah were camped out on the couch watching CNN coverage. The storm had passed but the destruction was wide spread. Despite Barry’s speed, he couldn’t be everywhere and hundreds were dead or trapped under debris and rubble on land. All the heroes who had assisted were on the ground now. Barry had been working with fire departments in various cities all morning, using his hands as buzz saws at areas directed by the rescue teams, Kara had been using her X ray vision and strength to save people from toppled buildings, as had Donna, Ray and Kendra, lifting large struts, damaged sections of bridges and helping people caught in wrecked cars. The heroics of the night, well documented by news agencies had given way to simpler acts. They were no longer heroes saving people from danger at the moment, simply aide workers doing the best they can with rescue operations and body recoveries.

Kara had gone to three areas in the ocean she remembered in the night, with body bags, diving down and pulling each victim up before the sea claimed them. While dead, their families would at least not have to visit empty graves. Ray shrunk often in other cities, finding his way through debris to search for trapped victims, only stopping once to make a minor repair to a power cell. Jaw and Martin had flown in the morning, separating and helping to prepare shelters and assist the injured seeking medical treatment.

“No, she is done swimming, but her and Daddy are helping clean up the mess.”

“I can help. I’m strong now.”

It was true that in the past months, since Kara and Barry, along with Caitlin, Eliza and Alex, began working with Lexie on controlling her powers, she had grown stronger and her skin was impenetrable the majority of the time now. Caitlin also pointed out that for a three going on four year old, Lexie never was sick. No colds, no upset stomachs, not even gas. She ate twice what a child her age should eat and never gained a pound, still remaining thin.

“I know sweetie but you aren’t strong enough for this yet. This is something you don’t need to see.”

“You are watching.” Lexie reminded her.

“Yes, but what we see on the news isn’t what is really there. Not what your Mommy and Daddy are seeing. A lot of people are hurt and one day you can help them but we have to keep working, right?”

“Can I have a boat to practice holdin up?”

“Holding. Do we need to have another discussion about using G at the end of words?”

“No. I want eggs and pancakes.”

“Of course. Let me fix them and we can all go to S.T.A.R. Grandpa and I have some work to do and you can play.”

“Awesome! I love big circle.”

“S.T.A.R.”

“A star is where Mommy is from. The big circle is where Daddy runs around and Unca… Uncle Cisco watches TV.”

Eliza sighed while Jeremiah silently laughed, not wanting to argue the point. Charlie came in, seeing Lexie and jumped into her arms. While he used to run when she didn’t wear her bracelet, they had come to an agreement that Lexie would not run with him like Mommy did.

Dressed in her favorite pink jeans and Hello Kitty white t shirt, Lexie entered the big circle. Winn and Caitlin had apparently gone to there apartment, exhausted from being up all night, not having superhuman strength like their friends. According to Grandma, Aunt Alex, Grandpa Henry and Aunt Nyssa had taken a helicopter to Boston where several shelters had been set up to assist. Cailtin offered to go as well but the three seeing how exhausted she was denied her travel, insisting that she sleep and monitor the heroes vitals who were there, in other words watch over Lexie if she got sick or had anything unusual happen. Only Cisco and Oliver stayed behind with Eliza, Harry and Jeremiah in the lab for security. Curtis had also gone home after a night of directing efforts with Winn until their eyes could no longer see the monitors clearly.

Lexie got bored watching Grandpa and Grandma look into microscopes and began to wander the halls of S.T.A.R. as she often did. Unca… Uncle Oliver was beating up his piece of wood and she didn’t want to bother him. He never would tell her what the hunk of wood did to him but she guessed it must have been something bad. Next he was probably going to use the air ladder and that was boring too.

She moved on, walking into the mannequin room. The mannequins were empty now, except for Uncle Cisco’s and Uncle Oliver’s. Then she saw it.

Aunt Alex had left her suit behind. Taking a look around, seeing no one, she squinted her eyes and looked through the walls. Lexie had figured out that when she wanted to, she could see through anything, except the metal Mommy and Daddy had put in the walls around their room for some reason. She supposed the training must be secret. No one had noticed her, Uncle Cisco was playin video games and probably wouldn’t let her play since she crushed his controller last time. She was clear.

Moving to Aunt Alex’s mannequin, she checked it out carefully, even levitating a bit since no one was looking and taking in the helmet. It was so neat. The black visor could do lots of neat tricks but she could not figure out how to get it off the mannequin. There was a small button on the side that she almost missed. Pushing it, she nearly shot into the wall, surprised to see it fold in on itself into a metal circle.

Lexie took another look around and floated back to the mannequin, lifting the ring off and landing softly with it. It slipped over her head easily, but she was disappointed that it was still a ring and wondered if she had broken it. That would not be good. It would be a long, long time out.

The little girl found the small button on the side and pressed it again, hoping to undo the damage.

“Whoa!” she yelled as the helmet emerged and wrapped around her head. The chin piece didn’t quite touch her chin and it felt wobbly. Aunt Alex must have a big head. The display came on and Lexie giggled. The world was dark but there were red moving objects she recognized as people all over the place.

“Cool…”

The little hero began running, hitting a wall once and falling on her butt, but standing quickly. Even though she wasn’t listening hard, she could still hear all kinds of things, like Uncle Cisco’s game and Uncle Oliver playing with his ladder again. Grandma and Grandpa were talking about

some sort of batera, no bacteria, which was sooo boring.

“Speedster room.” she realized, running down the halls avoiding the red spots. She could get to the Speedster room and no one would see her in the helmet. Using her fingers for imaginary guns she crawled and jumped, shooting make believe bad guys. Hearing a noise behind her she jumped forward, rolling onto her back and pointing her finger guns.

“Lexie, what are you doing?” Uncle Oliver asked, bending down and lifting the visor.

“Finding bad guys.” she explained, as if it should be obvious.

“Who said you could play with Aunt Alex’s helmet?”

“Nobody said I couldn’t.” Lexie fairly pointed out.

Oliver helped her up and flipped the visor back down.

“Say default visions.”

“Default vision?” like magic, the helmet’s vision was no longer covered in darkness and red objects.

“Why are you pretending to have guns?”

“To shoot bad guys.”

“We don’t shoot bad guys. We arrest bad guys. Even Aunt Alex uses a bow mostly now. Do you know why?”

“Because we are only allowed to hurt bad guys with sticks and swords and arrows?”

“No… I mean…”

“Grandpa Joe says you shoot too many people with arrows. He didn’t think I could hear but he was talking to Grandpa…”

“Okay, lets forget about Grandpa Joe for a minute. A gun does not require discipline. Anybody can use a gun. Don’t pretend to play with guns. They aren’t safe.”

“Can I play with Sara’s staff?”

“No, Sara has it.”

“What about the screaming toy she has that really, really hurts people?”

“No, that isn’t a toy. The helmet isn’t either but since Aunt Alex isn’t around… I don’t suppose it would hurt. Do you want to play with a little bow I made for you?”

“No. I want to fight bad guys.”

“Okay, lets go into the training room and practice hand to hand combat on the training dummy.”

“You mean the big piece of wood you don’t like?” she asked, trying to figure out who the dummy in the room was. Harry called Uncle Cisco a dummy a lot. He said other words Lexie found out she wasn’t able to say but lately he was just using dummy.

“Yeah, the big piece of wood. You want to take the helmet off?”

“Nope.” she answered quickly. Oliver sighed but figured Alex would never know.

“Fine.” he lifted Valkyrie Jr in his arms and walked the girl to the red sun room, leaving the lamps off. Oliver demonstrated a simple technique using hands and elbows on the extensions.

“So its like the clapping game me and Momma do, only we do it a lot faster? When is Momma and Daddy coming home? I miss them. Charlie is in a mood today. Thats what Momma says when she is gone and he doesn’t want to play. He spends most of the time pouting. I said my Gs.”

“Mommy and Daddy will be home tonight or tomorrow.”

“Who said they could be gone that long?” Lexie asked immediately, not liking that answer.

“They are helping save other little kids, like you will one day. Now can you copy what I just did?”

Lexie nodded her head solemnly, the helmet swinging up and down. She followed Oliver’s actions perfectly. He showed her another set and she repeated this to his satisfaction. Lexie began enjoying this and seeing why Uncle Oliver liked hitting the wood. She repeated the motion over and over again, even when Uncle Oliver told her to stop.

Oliver stood by and watched the little girl’s arms turn into a blur, knocking off the extensions at high speed.

“Lexie stop, you are breaking it…”

His warning was cut off when a giggling Lexie struck out at the main body, cracking it in two and sending it flying into a wall.

“Oops. I think I broke your wood.”

“It’s… it’s fine. I can get a new one. Why don’t we take it easy for the day? I think Uncle Cisco is playing games instead of getting better at using his powers. You have more dedication than he does. Why don’t you go ask if he wants to play with you while I… clean up the splinters.”

“Okay!”

“And leave the helmet.”

Lexie tried to pout, but the power of her puppy dogs eyes was lost behind the visor. Oliver retracted the helmet and slipped it off her neck. Defeated she began the trek to Uncle Cisco. Before she got there, she saw Harry in his workshop. Harry had the neatest toys but today he was playin the number game.

“Watcha doin?” the little blonde asked.

“Oh, hi Lexie. I’m working on an equation. Supposedly one that is unsolvable. I don’t believe in that though. Never let anyone tell you there is no answer. There is always an answer. You just have to be smart enough and stubborn enough to find it.”

“How come you aren’t with Anna?”

“Zatanna is helping people with her unnatural powers. I do not have or want unnatural powers so I am here.”

“But Aunt Alex and Syssa doesn’t have magic either and is there. Dr. Martin is there. Do you think him and Jax are together like on fire or just helpin?”

“Because… I’m… busy.”

“You and Anna train together. Shouldn’t you be with her?”

“They… wait, what do you mean, Zatanna and I train?”

“You train like Momma and Daddy. I heard you when I came over with Daddy last week, or month. I’m not great at remembering time. You were both breathing hard like when Mommy and Daddy train and both of you said some bad words Daddy said I couldn’t say. If you train with her, why aren’t you with her?”

Harry froze, wondering why Kara had neglected to mention super hearing with her ever emerging powers.

“Lexie, Zatanna and I would like to keep it a secret. Can we do that?”

“Momma says we are all family and we don’t have to keep secrets from family. I should never keep secrets from Momma and Daddy. Besides Daddy and Momma know you train a lot. Daddy told me he knew when he ran me out of the lab.”

“Of course he does.” Harry sighed. “Still if you don’t want to keep it a secret, lets just not talk about it, okay?”

“Whatever. Can I watch you play the number game? Mommy taught me how to read last week I think and numbers too.”

“She taught you to read in a week?”

“It seemed simple enough. I don’t like Q’s. Momma said they are married to U’s but I don’t see why they can’t leave each other sometimes. Daddy and Momma and me go to work at different places. She also taught me numbers. I can add and subtract.”

“Fine… yeah, you can watch.”

Harry went back to his board looking over one of the great unsolved physics theories in history, the theory of entropy or arrow of time as it was nicknamed.

Lexie sat, watching the poor man struggle, thinking maybe Mommy should teach him numbers.

“Oh close!” Lexie encouraged. Harry was really smart when he tried. “You are getting warmer.”

Harry ignored the little girl as best he could, focusing on the problem at hand.

“Nope, colder… colder… freezing…”

“Enough!” the frustrated man snapped. Lexie’s eyes widened.

“I was just trying to help. Momma says I can’t give you the answer so I was trying to give you hints.”

“Really? Martin says you proved String Theory but I find that hard to believe. What do you really know about Quantum physics?”

“I read a book about it. I saw it after I learned letters in Dr. Martin’s room. It was big. It took me a whole ten minutes to read. There were a lot of Q’s.” Quantum. There is that U again. It just won’t leave Q alone. I’ll be quiet, no more hints, I promise.”

“Thank you.” Harry turned back, splitting off a separate equation separating the low entropy of the universe in the past and a reevaluation of the second law of thermodynamics. He had written for two seconds when he heard the sigh behind him. Turning he saw Lexie shaking her head.

“Sorry.”

“Why don’t you try and figure it out? Since you know so much about mathematics and physics? You don’t even have to use a U if you don’t want to. I won’t even make you sound out G’s like your grandmother insists.” he told her, trying not to become annoyed at a four year old.

“Are you sure? Momma told me not to and if she finds out I won’t be able to paint when she comes back. She also makes me sit and stay quiet for five minutes. It isn’t fun. I also can’t float for a whole day. She can be stricter than Grandma and Grandma is strict. If I do something naughty she makes me sit and listen to what Aunt Alex calls a boron lecture. Aunt Alex is teaching me to tune it out. Thats what she calls it. Tunin it out. Isn’t that funny?”

“I promise I won’t say anything and you won’t ruin my fun. Give it a shot. We can start with simple division if you like.”

Lexie hopped off the table, taking the marker from Harry and floated up, even with the board. She erased the second equation.

“Your problem is you are treating BP vari… variashions…”

“CP.”

“Thats what I said. Anyhow you are treating variations like they are a separate arrow of time. Uncle Oliver says arrows are precious weapons.”

“Precision.”

“Thats what I said. They are a product of the second rule… no law,,, separate law of Thermodynamics not a separate arrow. There are obvious exceptions to the principle of causality because you know Daddy has proved their isn’t only one possible past. If BP violations observed in weak force decays, it explains why the universe had a low entropy right after the big boom. Do you know what the big boom is?”

“Yeah…”

“Okay taking into account, thats a fancy word isn’t it? In account, if you follow this path, it logically, I like that word, gives time a direction that is straight, setting the present distinctly separate from the past, and can change, which has a direct effect on the consciousness. Thats why Uncle Cisco can see past timelines that didn’t happen. There isn’t two arrows like you think, just one. Now l’ll draw it out for you. You want me to use big letters or little?”

“Bi… big.” Harry stuttered. He watched the the little girl, nearly four years old, destroy all beliefs regarding causality and explain the low entropy of time after the Big Boom… Big Bang.

“Okay, there you are? Need me to explain it or do you have this?”

“I… why don’t you go play with dolls or something?”

“I’ll go find Charlie. He needs cheering up when Momma is gone for a while. I’m learning Kryptonese next week. Do you want to learn with me? We can have a spelling bee after we are done? Did you know Kryptonese has 42 letters and not 26 like English? It should be fun! More letters to learn!”

Lexie began walking away to find Uncle Cisco until Harry said her name.

“Yeah?”

“Your shoes are on the wrong feet.”

Lexie dropped her head. She tried to dress herself but supposed Grandma was too tired to notice.

“Shoes are hard.” she admitted. “Have fun with the picture game and if you need anymore hints let me know!”

With a big wave, Lexie was gone, doing her best to move slow like normal kids. This was important. If she did it in private it would be easier around other people is what Momma told her.

Uncle Cisco was sitting in a recliner in his workshop though it seemed more like a game room to Lexie.

“Hey squirt. Good to see you.”

“Hi. Can I play?”

“Nope. Your Dad said this game is too violent for you. You can watch though. He just said you couldn’t play it.”

“Cooool. Are those Zombies?”

“They were. Hey you think you could do me a favor?”

“Sure!”

“My coffee is a little cold and I don’t feel like getting a refill. Think you can give it a quick zap?”

Lexie stilled, remembering she wasn’t supposed to burn her eyes unless Mommy was around.

“I can’t. Mommy isn’t around. Grandma said no hot eyes when Mommy isn’t around.”

“Barry said you were getting pretty good at controlling the temperature.”

“Yeah…”

“But if you can’t do it, no problem. I suppose I can walk all the way to the control room. I wish your Mom was here. She could do it but I understand. Its just a little heat but you are right, you shouldn’t try it. Maybe one day you will be up to her level.”

“I can do it! I’m just not supposed to!”

“Nobody is going to know. Come on, show Uncle Cisco what you can do.” Cisco handed the cup to her with a smile. The kid just needed confidence and he would give it to her. She just had to hold back a little. She hadn’t shown any real heat since she attacked Wonder Woman at three months old.

Lexie took the cup frowning and then looked around, using her X ray vision. Uncle Oliver was upside down, doing his stomach things, Grandma and Grandpa were excited about something in that microscope and Harry was beating his head on his desk. She seemed clear.

Lexie squinted, thinking about the power building up in her eyes and she could feel it. All she had to do was hold back a little and it wouldn’t be too hot. She focused on the coffee and felt it, small beams while her vision turned red. Hot eyes was fun.

Lexie got overexcited at her success and the coffee began boiling. The mug cracked and exploded, causing Cisco to jump away from the scalding beverage and glass pieces, while Lexie stopped her heat vision, surprised. She took a look at herself and screamed.

Eliza, Jeremiah and Oliver heard her scream and subsequent crying. All three rushed towards Cisco’s lab, seeing shattered glass and Lexie covered in what was obviously coffee. Cisco lay on the floor with wide eyes.

“What happened!?” Eliza asked, panicking while Oliver and Jeremiah looked for threats.

Lexie pointed to Cisco.

“His fault! I didn’t wanna! His fault, his fault his fault!”

“Are you burned?” she asked, trying to be calm while Jeremiah and Oliver glared at the man on the ground.

“No, I’m not burned. I’m in trouble and have to have a lecture and can’t paint and timeouts and my Hello Kitty shirt is ruined! I love this shirt! All because Unca Cisco can’t get his own coffee!”

“Calm down baby. No lectures, I swear, for you anyway.” she finished and then joined the two men glaring at Vibe.

“My bad? Yeah, totally my bad. I just thought she could use some practice.”

“My Hello Kitty shirt is ruined!” Lexie shouted at the man.

“I’m sorry…”

“Your fault!”

Further berating was stopped when an alarm that had not been heard in a very long time was set off. Harry ran in, some sort of gun in hand.

“Breach, where is it?” he asked, Cisco scrambled to his monitor.

“Pipeline. Oliver?” Vibe asked.

“Harry take that gun and get Eliza, Lexie and Jeremiah out of this lab. Keep a com in. Cisco suit up quick. Lexie you do not come back into this lab util your grandparents say it is okay, no matter what, do you understand me?”

“Yes sir.” she responded quickly, letting Jeremiah pick her up and the four running, Harry behind them covering any attacks from the back. Lexie recognized Oliver’s serious voice as well as Nyssa and Alex’s.

Oliver moved to the pipeline not bothering to suit up, only grabbing a quiver and bow. He ran the circle a half mile and saw it.

“What the hell?”

On the East Coast, Kara and Barry continued to work, now in Rhode Island where high winds had flattened several buildings. Ray had just exited from a Jr High cafeteria where eleven people had sought refuge before the ceiling crashed.

Regaining full size, his usual trademark smile was gone. It had left his face after the first dead body he saw the day before.

“There are four alive but injured. Seven are dead. If I cut the metal I could cause more debris to fall and kill some of the remaining four.” he told Barry, Kara and the Fire Department Chief.

“You are saying we can’t get those who are alive out without killing some or all of them?” the Chief asked.

“No, there is a solid beam in the middle. It landed on one of the men and his leg is pinned. It could be crushed. If we move it there is a chance he can survive unless it is a crush injury. If your men can gently walk towards the middle and clear a hole, Superwoman can slip in and lift the beam. Its long enough that she should be able to hold the remaining debris up for a few seconds. Time enough for Flash to get in and get out with the four. All have broken bones Flash but no neck injuries that I can see.”

“Can’t we bring Zatanna in to turn the metal to dust or something?” Kara suggested.

Ray took her in, her suit torn in various places, her face not covered by the mask stained with dirt and her hair darkened by dirty sea water and ash, and saw she was not only exhausted but like all of them, haunted. All of the had seen dead bodies before but not so many spread out among so much destruction.

“She is in Florida, levitating debris in their rescue operations. I’m afraid if she teleports here, she may be to tired to do anything. Her tank has to be close to empty.”

Kara nodded, reaching into her boot and finding the waterproof pack, Caitlin had the foresight to prepare. Two tasteless energy bars.

“Eat.” she told her husband, handing him one of the bars.

“I’m good. Go ahead.”

“I can go without calories, you can’t. You have been running for 24 hours non stop. You can pass out underneath the building when I lift it. Please, eat. You can be hurt if you lose speed and I need you okay.”

Barry gave in, understanding her point and not able to deny her anything in this state. The last thing he wanted was to add worry over him to the emotions she was feeling. Although they had all seen horrible things, Kara still had the most empathetic nature and had to suppress it more than others. She had seen children injured and worse and wanted her own daughter in her arms.

The firemen gently dug through the debris, clearing a hole above the steel beam and moving down the metal pile. Kara glanced at Barry who nodded his head. She wished he would have eaten both bars but neither thought of food right now. Kara hovered over the debris trying to ignore the moans, focusing on her job. She looked at her husband who indicated that he was ready, dropped into the hole and lifted the enormous beam over her head. Barry moved, pulling three of the four out, then moving the last a half second before the debris moved by the bean collapsed back onto the ground around Kara.

She tossed the beam to the side and hopped to Barry. Firemen and EMS were treating the three but the two over the man trapped by the beam shook their heads. He had a crush injury and the immediate blood pressure loss killed him. Barry bent over, vibrating till Kara pulled him back.

“His heart has stopped. The blood… he’s gone. You can’t bring the dead back to life.” she told him sadly. The two had discussed this in detail before with Caitlin and knew some injuries, especially traumatic ones, could not be fixed. Barry may be able to heal himself in a split second but the time it would take to heal someone by linking vibrations would be too long to repair arteries, especially destroyed femoral arteries. Barry could not create blood.

Barry turned into Kara’s arms, wrapping her up, taking warmth from her in this dark day.

A Newswoman asked the Atom for a comment, Ray agreeing and telling the public that blood was desperately needed for the East Coast and to please donate at emergency centers being set up around the nation. With that they began moving onto the next town where Donna was slowly moving vehicles off the road, saving people who could be saved but clearing a path so ambulances could move. Nyssa and Alex were in Virginia directing recovery efforts. Kendra and Carter continued patrolling the seas, looking for life boats and covering areas where ships were still reported missing in conjunction with the Coast Guard.

Three hours later, the JL heard from S.T.A.R. for the first time that day.

“Kara?” Cisco asked.

“Yeah?” Her tired voice answered.

“I know you guys are busy but we could really use you here. Your car is in the pipeline.”

“Why is my Volvo in the Pipeline? Please don’t tell me Lexie moved it there.” she responded, causing Barry to snicker despite his exhaustion. He could imagine this story.

“No, I mean your other car? The one that got you… here? Yeah that car and it has been seriously pimped out. Carter Grant is here and someone who says he is your ex and Cat Grant’s older kid? I don’t remember him from any of the trips but… Kara, he say’s your cousin… you should come here as quick as possible.”

“What about my cousin?” Kara asked, her mind going over a million scenarios as to why Adam Foster and Carter Grant would be in her pod in the Pipeline and deciding none of them were good.

“He said your cousin is dead. We could really use you here. How fast can you make it?”

Kara’s heart felt like it stopped. She felt bile in her throat but pushed it down. Looking around at the damage, listening to the groans, the wails, the screams for loved ones who were gone, she forced her emotions from her mind.

“Keep them safe, Cisco and keep them there. We will be there… tonight.”

“Kara?” Barry asked.

“Kara he said your cousin…” Cisco started to remind her, thinking perhaps she hadn’t heard.

“I heard you, Cisco. I understand and so would he. There are a lot of people hurt dead and dying here. We will deal with it tonight. Right now if you could call Curtis back in and Winn, we could really use someone cutting into emergency feeds so we know where we are needed the most. I’ll… we will be there when this is done.”

“Kara, are you sure?” Alex asked through the com. Kara took a look at the destruction around her, the tears in her husband’s eyes and the sharp pain that had bloomed in her stomach, like a knife piercing her.

“Yeah, we are needed here, right now. If he is gone… if he is really gone I can’t do anything about it. I can do something sooner everyone is safe the sooner we can be there. I want to get back to my daughter. Lets get back to work, everybody.”