Bella MacLeod's Twilight Fanfiction

Survivors

By BetterInTexas

Chapter 43: Saving the Day

The storm had occurred suddenly. A giant Supercell forming right outside the small town of New Baydon Oklahoma, population 9,270. Concerned citizens going about their daily lives at work, at school, at home, were standing outside nearly frozen in horror, watching the tornado form just outside the town. Oklahomans were no strangers to tornadoes, quite the opposite in fact, but this one was different.

This tornado was a monster and growing before their very eyes. Though every person over the age of 15 had seen a tornado in their life, none had ever seen an F 5 appearing as if the devil had placed it there. The town had no warning, other than a siren five minutes ago. It had been a beautiful morning. Now it was a nightmare.

Fire Chief Jim Hozier stood by his emergency vehicle, having little time to debate a horrible decision. Have his Fire Department continue to try a futile evacuation or send them out of harms way so they could conduct rescue operations? The nearest emergency responders outside of his were twenty miles away.

The tunnel moved into the outskirts of town. He knew the country on the edge and the far lying houses were being torn to shreds. He could hear it and see the debris cloud swirling around the huge tornado.

“Are you the Chief?” a voice asked him, over the wind and rain. How anyone had gotten this close or would even be out was confusing. He turned around and saw… her.

“Its you. What… what are you doing here?”

“I was tracking the storms. I’m not a big fan of storms and watch weather channel a lot. I was just in Kansas trying to… can you evacuate the town?”

“No. People are running for cover but the outskirts have… you need to get underground!”

“I didn’t fly from Kansas in ten minutes to hide underground. Get your trucks and ambulances to safety. They are going to be needed.”

The blonde girl, hair slicked by the rain and a determined if slightly dirty face wearing the brightest colors, levitated in front of him, eyeing the storm. Her skirt, cape and hair moved with the high winds but she did not move in the air, as if she were standing on solid ground on a beautiful day.

“Where are you going?”

“To try and stop that tornado.”

The blonde was gone and the man stood still, despite the terror around him, watching the red streak head straight for the giant black funnel.

“She is going to die.” he whispered. Grabbing his radio he ordered whatever men he had in vehicles to move the vehicles out of the path of the storm. Taking a last look at the tornado that was nearly on top of him, he got behind the wheel and drove off, having seen no sight of the blonde.

The girl in question was in front of the black funnel cloud.

“Kelex? Alex? Anyone got any ideas on how to stop a tornado?”

“I’m watching the Storm Chasers on the weather channel.” Alex told her. “I would recommend getting away. That thing is an F 5.”

“Not an option, Alex, this town is about to be destroyed. Kelex, if I fly in the opposite direction fast enough can I counter the vortex?”

“On a small scale tornado it would be possible. However this one is an EF5. It appears to be a mile at least in diameter. You would not be able to build that much speed around the moving object. The wind speeds are anywhere from 300 to 500 miles an hour and It is moving forward at 14 miles an hour, not sta…”

“Thank you Kelex! I need ideas!”

“Freeze it.” Alex spit out.

“That won’t work.” Kelex countered. “The odds…”

“Talk to me Alex. Kelex, shut up. Freeze what?”

“Tornados are a result of cold air colliding with the warm air that spins upward. Get inside that tornado and make the warm air on bottom going up, cold.”

Kara figured at this point, she had nothing to lose. The hero blocked out the sounds around her, the destruction, the exploding power lines and transformers and instead landed in front of the tornado. Though it was large it was spinning at incredible speeds. She stood fifty feet in front of it, not moving while the rest of the world tore to pieces around her. Taking a deep breath, she blew.

The air out of her mouth was hard and below zero perhaps close to absolute zero. Kara had not practiced this as much as her heat vision. She knew how to use her breath in a fight but unlike heat vision which she used for menial tasks, she had never experimented much with this power.

To her surprises she was able to continue blowing longer than she would have thought her lungs could have capacity for. She finally felt a bit winded and took another deep breath before the F5 ran into her. She brought her heat vision to the forefront just a bit, glowing her eyes and burning any dust and debris that landed in them, but kept blowing, standing in one spot as the storm moved over her. She did note that the funnel was slowing and as the great wall passed her. She found herself in the eye, took a last polluted breath and blasted her freeze breath straight up, chilling the warm air in the center and breaking up the storm. Though the winds did not stop, the funnel cloud lost its form and a series of downdrafts occurred, sending debris crashing to the ground.

Kara took it all in, seeing it in slow motion. The tornado had broken up but the sky was grey and dirty, rocks, wood, asphalt, trucks, one car, a roof and two cows, hit the ground around her. It seemed like the entire edge of town had been vacuumed up, placed in a blender and dumped. The dust in the air and the supercell cloud overhead made everything seem unreal, as if she were living in some post apocalyptic world.

Soon there was no sound at all. The debris cloud dissipated and she was left in the street, thousands coming out of their storm cellars, interior rooms of businesses and homes and staring at the destruction then her, standing in the middle of it.

Fire trucks raced to the scene and the Fire Chief Kara had spoken to moments before, pulled up next to her.

“How the hell did you do that?!” he asked. “Are you okay?”

Kara turned to him and tried to smile then dropped her head and crossed her arms.

“I froze it. My breath is really cold and strong. I changed the temperature of the warm rising air and it broke up.” she explained quietly.

“Holy… you can do that?”

“I guess so.” she told him with a shrug of her shoulders. “I can help with rescues. I can see through solid structures to find people, hear people calling for help from far away and lift pretty much anything you need me to. If there aren’t any other tornadoes from this cell, we can get started.”

“Uh huh.” Hozier said, looking at her in awe. She couldn’t be older than his daughter. “Yeah, my guys will keep us informed of any new storms. I think everybody needs your help right now.”

“Where do we start?” Kara asked, never having been part of rescue operations before.

The Chief took a breath, still trying to calm his racing heart.

“I guess with your eyes and ears… you tell us.”

“Follow me then. I’ll stay low but I can see more area in the air.”

Kara was in the air soon enough and talking to Alex.

“You doing okay?” the older sister asked.

“Aren’t you supposed to be in class?” the blonde asked.

“I was. Maybe you have lost track of time but class is over. Good job stopping…”

“Good idea. We really need to have a talk with Kelex about what we expect from him.”

“Kara… you have been in the Midwest all day, surrounded by storms. How are you doing?”

“Okay. Counting prime numbers backward from ten thousand quite a bit but I am okay. Hold on, I hear some cries.”

“Just be careful. Keep a look out for flying objects heading towards you. Kelex will alert you to any small objects flying at high speeds but other aliens could attack you from the ground.”

“I’m being careful. I’ll be back in time for dinner… maybe breakfast actually.” she finished, looking over the ruined small town. Over half of it was safe but the parts that were hit were demolished.

Kara landed near a flattened house where she had heard the noises. Fire trucks pulled up in the yard as she peered through the remains of the structure.

“Three made it to the basement. One… one didn’t. I can lift the debris off. It shouldn’t hurt the structural integrity of the basement. What do you think?” she asked the fireman who was staring at the girl with wide eyes. News of her had reached the entire world two days ago, Cat Grant reporting constantly about her conversation with the alien and the Daily Planet running her picture on everything they could think of, papers, online, billboards. But no one had seen her since saving the plane. Now here she was, in Oklahoma and she had just stopped an F5 tornado.

“Yeah… thats a house… but you did catch a plane I guess.” he finished.

“The body of a female, I think it might be the mother. She is near the cellar door but… she must have been getting her children in. The three who are safe are all children. We need to move the mother’s body first. No child should see that.”

Kara began working and the firefighters who had began taking out extraction tools placed them back in the truck as she moved through the remains in a blur. Soon enough the house was spread out, what was left of the roof had been moved and she was standing in the middle, looking down at a body.

As Kara suspected, it was a middle aged woman. She motioned to the emergency responders who brought a stretcher and carried the woman’s body to a waiting ambulance for cover.

Kara opened the cellar door and saw three very scared face, two young girls, no older than Clark and a young boy, perhaps 4.

“Where are Mommy and Daddy?” the first girl asked, not even noticing that a caped blonde was helping pull her out of a hole in the ground.

“Your Mommy had to go to the doctor. Was your Daddy home?” Kara asked.

The girl nodded, big tears forming. “He was trying to open the windows but Mommy told him it wouldn’t work and to come with us. Then he screamed and she said he was gone. Then the door closed and we heard this noise. I tried to get us out but I couldn’t get the door to move. Is Mommy and Daddy going to be okay? Where did they go?”

Kara lifted the girl into her arms and passed her over to a waiting firefighter who had heard and began walking off with the child. Kara was glad because she had absolutely no idea what to say to her. The other two said nothing, seeming shocked beyond words, eyes dead, as if they had hidden inside themselves to escape the horrible reality of what was going on. The teen had experience doing that herself.

Looking around, seeing the children dirty, homes ruined, her breathing picked up as did her heart. She moved quickly, looking for an escape then leaned on the back bumper of a police car.

“Calm down, calm down, calm down. They need you, Kara. Don’t lose it. Keep it together, calm down.” she whispered over and over.

“Are you okay?”

Kara recognized the voice of the Chief she had first spoken to.

“Yes sir. I am ready to go to the next. Just needed a moment.” she told him, once again trying to smile and failing.

“You take all the time you need, young lady. I know this is horrible but that thing was about to do triple the damage. Thank you for being here.”

“Of course sir. I’ll get back in the sky.” Kara told him then was off, in the air and listening for more cries for help.

It was morning before the work ended with one last recovery. Outside of the city, a tree contained the remains of a car in its branches, picked up and flung a half mile from the nearest road. The emergency vehicles were parked around the tree but no one had an idea how to get it down. The vehicle was intact for the most part but the frame was bent around the great trunk.

Kara arrived and flew up, eye level with the vehicle. Inside were a young girl in the back and her parents in front. It was painfully obvious none were alive. She gently moved the car out of the tree and sat it on the ground below. Ripping off the back door, Kara reached in and closed the little girl’s eyes. Pulling her gently out, Supergirl cradled her in her arms and carried her to the back of a waiting ambulance. No one made comment of the tears in her eyes and while the responders were very glad to have her, many wished someone her age had not had to see this destruction and death.

A click caught her ear, a soft one, from nowhere nearby but she recognized it for what it was. There were many things Kara Danvers, alien in hiding, did not like in the past and cameras pointed at her that did not belong to her family were at the top of the list. She looked sharply and saw James Olsen, telephoto lens in hand, standing a hundred yards away under tree cover.

James for his part had gotten a shot of the Supergirl crying over a dead child in her arms. He wasn’t sure what to make of it. He had taken several pics but that one hit him hardest. She looked so young, fragile, and so tired. So much more vulnerable than the powerhouse in the pink sweatshirt that beat a monster to death. Here in the daylight, surrounded by grief and destruction, he saw a new side to her, a side the world should see.

Kara had other ideas. Appearing in front of James in a blink the man actually jumped back.

“What are you doing here?!”

“Hey, whoa. Its me, James, remember? We met the other…”

“I know who you are, Jimmy. You are the guy who followed Lois Lane without my permission. What the hell are you doing here?”

“I… you said you didn’t mind press. Lois was writing some great things about you. When we saw you yesterday take out that tornado we jumped on a plane. We were hoping to get an interview. Word is you were tracking a storm in Kansas and then made it here in ten minutes? Does your friend I’m not allowed to talk about watch the news for you or do you have some sort of…”

“Jimmy, look around you.” Kara interrupted, “I have seen the bodies of eight children and twenty six adults, many of which had children who are orphans now. Do you really think I want to do an interview?”

James took her in and dropped his head a bit.

“Look, its important the world see the good you are doing.”

“No, its important that the good gets done. There are emergency medical tents in town and shelters are being set up in churches and need more volunteers. Go to town and help. There are more important things to do than take pictures of me, Jimmy.”

“Okay, you are right. I’m sorry, okay?” the man told her, backing up. “By the way, I like James.”

“I like Jimmy and I can lift a 747. Want to guess which one of us is going to win that argument?” she asked, feeling a bit of humor in these dark 24 hours.

“Jimmy it is. I will be in town… helping. Stop by and say hi at least to Lois. No questions. She likes you. You beat a large monster from Hell’s Angels to death. You are kind of her idol now.”

James Olsen took off at a jog, grinning despite her correct assertion that there was nothing to smile about on this day. She thought pictures of her doing good were not important. She had no idea how wrong she was. These were the photos that showed her true self. The girl who would change the world, give hope to the hopeless, just as she was doing now. He had followed her for an hour and saw how the other emergency responders took to her, how they worked with her and the kindness both showed the others. Within a short time you would think they had known her forever. She kept their spirits going. She would do the same for the world, and he would be the eyes of the world watching, Lois and he grudgingly admitted Cat Grant, would be the mouth speaking. They would be the ones to tell her story.

For now he had shelters to help set up.

Kara never did stop to say hi to Lois. Once all the trapped had been rescued and the bodies recovered she flew straight to the DEO roof downtown. Ty Gavin let her in from the rooftop and she showered, changed and headed straight to the red sun room where Jack and Alex were waiting for her. Jack opened the door and Kara and Alex entered. Alex sat against a wall and Kara curled into her, not crying, not upset, just wanting to be held. They stayed like that for three hours until Eliza and Jeremiah decided they wanted time with her too.

The family went to the beach house after work, Kara picking up Clark from school on her bike which he loved, and upped his cool gator with his classmates and sat in front of the television, watching NCN, Cat Grant’s parent station. On it, the Fire Department Chief was being interviewed. Kara thought she recognized a newscaster from NCN and definitely noticed Lois Lane bullying her way to the front. Though young, it was obvious Lois backed down to no one.

“Chief Hozier,” Lois started, “you worked closely with an alien today. Did you have any apprehension or fear? Did she appear threatening in anyway?” the reporter asked. Lois already knew, she had seen the photos James had taken but wanted it on the record.

“An alien? I spent two tours in Iraq. I saw her cry over dead children today. She is more human than a lot of people I have known in my life. There was no fear or apprehension. She broke up a storm that was about to kill thousands more, placed herself on the line and stayed behind to help us with search and recovery. I’m sure a lot of people will be asking that question to others but I won’t answer it again. There is no fear.”

Lois smiled, getting the answer she wanted. NCN’s field reporter asked about any conversations he may have had during the day and was told about the need for blood donations, the location of rescue shelters and called for assistance from nearby counties in the clean up that was still to come. It would take months, maybe a year for this town to recover but it would recover.

Kara, once again did not watch the news coverage. She had not read one article about herself since she came out. Her parents and sister did though. As expected, most of the media and public were positive about her appearance and actions. Lionel Luthor proclaimed himself correct on his theories of aliens and offered her any assistance she might need in the future. There were those who were negative however, just as Kara suspected there to be. One of those, Maxwell Lord, was dealing with Cat Grant on live television. Or she was dealing with him.

Cat for her part, had him exactly where she wanted him. He had been outspoken at a press conference he had called to give his opinion of the alien flying around the United States.

“Mr. Lord, Max, you don’t mind if I call you that, do you?”

“Of course not.” he told her with his trademark grin that was almost a smirk, the arrogant bastard.

“You called a press conference yourself, demanding that Supergirl reveal her identity, and state her intentions. What gives you the right to do this? Do you believe because you are rich, she is obligated to do as you instruct her?”

The grin was gone from Max Lord’s face.

“I am a concerned citizen of this country. She is a teenage girl who has great power. Power humans could not begin to deal with. She has said she is an alien but vague on the presence of others like her. She is operating without any guidance or oversight. She appears to be barely old enough to drive, yet she is speeding across the US in the air. Who does she answer to? The public sees a pretty blonde girl saving people in a bright skirt and cape. How do we know she even looks like that? Do we know the capabilities of what she can really do? Do we know how she stopped an F 5 tornado? No one is asking these questions. The media, including your outlets are hailing her as a savior, yet we know nothing about her. The Government is denying all previous knowledge of aliens. I believe if she has nothing to hide, then she should come forward, speak to the public herself and not through intermediaries who paint her as the second coming.”

“So if she were older, you would feel better? Or perhaps a male? Do you believe a teenage girl to be incapable of making good decisions?” Grant asked.

Max shook his head. “The second anyone criticizes her, they will be labeled anti feminist. She is apparently beyond reproach. It is a no win situation for anyone concerned about the damage she could do if left is dangerous for everyone, world wide.”

“And yet the polls since her first sighting have been overwhelmingly positive.” Cat pointed out, ready to spring her trap.

“I am not denying she has done good works, saved thousands of lives, however I believe this can blind the public to the danger that she could pose. She was spotted following storms in Kansas and less than ten minutes later was in Oklahoma. Not even a jet could move that fast.”

“Perhaps another poll is in order to decide the public’s opinion if she should answer to men like you?”

“I am not saying she should answer to me but she should answer to someone.” Max stressed. “Besides the polls are conducted by the media, and the media will promote her. The results would be skewed and slanted towards whatever agenda they, or you, may have.” he finished, challenging the woman.

“Perhaps an unbiased review? If the public agrees with you they should support your views. If the public does not, I would recommend they stop buying your products. Would that satisfy you Max? You have said your peace, she has made her case with her deeds. Now the public you sell to can make their feelings known without any media involvement. Is business not an American way of determining public opinion?”

Maxwell Lord sat, unmoving and silent. He had attacked Cat Grant’s credibility to objectively report on the girl he saw as a threat and she had just struck him in the worst possible way.

Having nothing else he could say, the man stood up and walked off set.

By the next afternoon, his company’s stock had dropped 62% and continued falling. The Board of Directors forced the man to apologize to Supergirl in public, a veiled apology, saying while he remains concerned, he did appreciate the good work she was doing and would like to thank her publicly. Lionel Luthor fed fuel the fire, calling out businessmen like Lord as those who believed themselves above others, who should be answered to and offered the services and support of LuthorCorp to the one known as Supergirl in any capacity.

While the media firestorm continued across the globe, the girl at the center of the debate was in her apartment, playing with her cat and singing along to Rent on the TV. Alex finally gave in and began singing Take me or Leave me with Kara and the two danced around the apartment, a small kitten chasing them.

Finally tiring themselves out, the girl’s crashed on the couch and turned the TV on. To Kara’s consternation, Alex flipped it to CNN.

“Oh wow.” the older sister mumbled.

“What are they saying about me now? Does Max Lord want me to become his maid, or is Lionel Luthor inviting me over for dinner?” Kara joked.

“Not about you for once, believe it or not. Besides I don’t think Max Lord can afford a maid right now. There is a huge fire on the docks in Metropolis. Some chemical factory blew up and the fire is spreading to the nearby refineries.”

Kara tensed immediately. In the recent past, when she thought she had gotten over her fear of fire, and particularly explosions, she wanted to be a fire fighter. After her experience in Oklahoma, being involved in a major disaster held little appeal to her. Still, she knew she had to go.

“I can be in Metropolis in an hour.” Kara guessed and moved to change. Back in a second with uniform in a bag so she could change on the roof of the building, she was stopped at the door by Alex.

“I didn’t bring that up so you could go. Oklahoma and Kansas were bad enough. If they attack you in Metropoils we have no way of backing you up.”

“You can’t handle the speed I am going to be flying at Alex. The windshear would make it impossible to breathe.” Kara argued.

“We know Rozz guys hang around Metropolis. Its dangerous.”

“I have to go. If I see trouble I will outfly them, lead them into a trap here. Trust me. I have to go. If that fire reaches the tankers the damage to the environment would be catastrophic.”

With a kiss on Alex’s cheek, Kara was in the air ten seconds later, moving at unreal speeds, even by her standards. The girl still felt had still not maxed out her speed, growing faster as she grew older. She had not been timed since she left Midvale and realized perhaps it was time to find another training ground near National City.

An hour and twenty minutes later, slow by her estimate, she had arrived in the gleaming city and found the large cloud of smoke easily enough. She took a look from overhead and saw the fire department had the massive blaze contained in one space at least but they could not fight it forever. The edge of the circle was near the water, firefighters being backed up and soon would have to retreat or die, leaving a parked supertanker sitting vulnerable.

Kara landed next to the docks, surprising the firefighters who none the less continued to fight the inferno. The blonde spied a man with a Captain’s badge, directing the efforts and approached him.

“How can I help?” she asked, not bothering to introduce herself. The Captain looked at her shocked. She looked younger in person than she did on TV, smaller in stature than he imagined. In his mind, he saw her as being 7 foot tall with the muscles of Hercules. Everyone had seen her on television but few had sen her close. What he saw was a thin girl, perhaps 18 years old.

“I… I have no idea. We have to get this blaze stopped. If it hits the moorings, Metropolis is screwed.”

“Can the ship be moved?” Kara asked.

“No, something that heavy takes to damn long to start up. The sailors barely got the loading lines unhooked and the crews are holding the fire off from the oil refinery.”

“Kelex, can my freeze breath douse this fire?” she asked, stepping away a short distance.

“No, it cannot. The chemical factory that appears to have been the start of this blaze produces a product that contains large amounts of Potassium and Sodium. While your freeze breath will change the air into ice, the moisture would evaporate on contact with the fire. Any water would cause the reaction to worsen. You could in essence feed the fire.”

“Could I move this tanker?”

“Is it fully loaded?” the robot asked.

Kara took a look with her X Ray vision.

“Double hulled, half loaded.”

“A half loaded tanker weighs approximately 70,000 tons. You could conceivably push or lift this amount of weight, however due to your size, your hands would break through the hulls rather than push the tanker. Lifting it without the ship breaking in half around you is impossible.”

“Okay, what else do you have? Alex, are you listening?”

“I got nothing.” the girl admitted. “Pick up a hose and start spraying foam.”

“I have an option.” Kelex offered, sounding quite proud. “The fire is for the most part stationary, a half mile in diameter. In this case you can fly around the area fast enough to form a vortex, making a vacuum and depriving the entire area of oxygen. Any firefights inside the circle would be possible killed if their oxygen supplies run out and could potentially be sucked into the vortex.”

“Great.” Kara mumbled.

“Hey, who is Kelex?” the Captain asked, having listened to Kara’s half of the conversation. The blonde took a deep breath and wished she hadn’t. The smells and fumes were horrible.

“I can put out the fire, but you are going to have to trust me. You are going to have to pull your crews back.”

“Pull my crews back? We are the only thing standing in the way of this thing spreading over the industrial district.”

“And we both know you can’t fight this fire and win. Trust me, or lose firefighters and the fire? I understand if you can’t. If I were you I wouldn’t trust me either. I can do this though.”

“How?”

“I’m going to make a vortex, in essence a vacuum. If your firefighters keep their masks on they can still breathe but there is a chance they could be sucked into the air.”

“You… can’t do that. Thats impossible.”‘

“You would have said the same thing two weeks ago about catching a 747 or stopping a large tornado. Your call Captain. Soon neither of us will be able to do anything. I’m asking you to have blind faith in me, sir. I know that isn’t easy.”

The Captain took a look at the blaze. He knew he would lose firefighters today if this didn’t stop. An ecological disaster of epic proportions was about to occur that would cause a mass evacuation of Metropolis, people running from deadly fumes with no order.

“Everyone pull back. Retreat at least two hundred feet from the blaze, or as far back as you can go. Do it now!” the Captain barked into the radio. Kara nodded to him and took to the sky.

The man had seen many things in his twenty years of service with the Metropolis Fire Department, some unbelievable, some miracles but what he was seeing now took it to another level.

The red streak blew past in the air, just over the flames and continued building speed. Soon a circle of red was seen flashing around, then so fast it appeared to be a stationery circle then a tube growing from the ground. The red circle rose and the fire that had been in front of him began to fall back and rise with the bright red funnel that was now circling the half mile area of the blaze. Soon there was a tornado of fire in the air then gone, all but the red streak remaining.

Supergirl slowed and the red streak disappeared, her form becoming more distinguishable. The blonde landed next to the Captain and then fell back to the ground on her butt.

“Are you okay?” the man asked, while firefighter stood around looking at the caped hero in awe.

Kara laughed a little and held her head.

“Believe it or not, I am dizzy. Wow. Just need a second. Head rush.”

Shaking her head, she stood up and checked over the area.

“Did we get it all?”

“Yeah, uh, yeah. We got clean up. Looks like the blaze got… snuffed out. Thanks.”

“Glad to help. I have to go.”

Kara took off without another word, straight into the air until she heard a familiar, barking voice.

“I know you can hear me! Get down here!”

She stopped mid air and spied Lois Lane on the ground, Jimmy next to her, pointing a damn camera at her. She wondered how bad her public perception would be if she used her heat vision from here to burn his camera.

It would probably diminish her approval ratings she decided. Plus Eliza would have a long talk with her about controlling her temper. Ironic since she is the one who exploded on Astra with more vehemence than Kara had.

“I am going four blocks away in an alley. We will be alone. Find me.” Lois ordered.

“Bossy thing, isn’t she?” Kara mumbled.

“Let me guess? Lois Lane calling for you from the ground? Screw her, come home. I want to go to the range and you can keep me company.” Alex told her through the com.

“I told her and Cat Grant they would get exclusives in exchange for calling off the manhunt. I suppose i should talk to her.”

“Whatever. You need to get back to National City as soon as possible so you have backup.”

“It will just be a few minutes. Listen in, in case she asks me a question I won’t know how to answer.”

Seeing Lois standing in an alley with her bodyguard photographer, the girl landed quickly, hoping no one would have tracked her descent from the sky for a few minutes.

“Good day, Miss Lane.”

“I admit, the tornado thing was cool. How did you do it?” the reporter spit out, foregoing greetings.

“I flew around the fire, fast enough to form a vortex, snuffing the oxygen out of the air.”

“You can fly that fast?”

“Apparently.” the blonde answered.

“Wow. Okay.”

James Olsen lifted his camera.

“I am about to shove that camera in your…”

“Kara!” Alex shouted. “Play nice.”

Kara calmed herself. “No close ups please.”

“Put the camera down, James. So how does it feel to be a hero? Stopping natural disasters, blazing infernos, airplane crashes, preventing ecological nightmares?”

“The Metropolis Fire Department kept that blaze from spreading. They fought it for hours before I arrived. They are the heroes. I need to go. Take care Miss Lane.”

“Call me Lois. Please? What you have done, its been incredible.”

“Thank you, Lois.” Kara told her, for once hearing sincerity in the reporters voice.

“So what can I call you?”

“You have been following Cat Grant’s lead and calling me Supergirl in print. I suppose that will have to do. You may want to step back.” Kara told the two. They did as directed.

“More.” Kara suggested. The two complied but were still blown back as she launched into the sky, a boom following her, and was out of eyesight in less than two seconds.

“That girl can move.” Olsen muttered.

“Did you get any good shots?”

“Just a red blur circling the fire. Got a few of her talking to a Captain. You want to interview him. He is the one she was talking to before she pulled off a miracle.”

Lois agreed and the two set off to continue following the story of the century through witnesses eyes.

Three days later Kara sat on her couch, watching Streaky play with a ball of yarn and enjoying chocolate cake. The blonde was irritated and bored. She did not watch the news, did not listen to the voices of citizens. Instead she waited for dark. Clark had been begging her to take him flying at night and Kara agreed to do so on the first night of the new moon, in complete darkness, a short distance over the water. He still liked to levitate in the house and his strength had not grown. Jeremiah would be having a discussion with him soon about not being able to play sports due to what could happen if his strength appeared suddenly. Kara was very glad she wouldn’t have to take part in that discussion. The boy loved soccer and baseball.

The blonde placed Thor in the Blu Ray player, prepared to get her fill of Hiddleston for the week. She debated calling her adopted mother and asking her over to watch with her, but Alex would be home soon and loved Natalie Portman almost as much as Kara obsessed over HIddleston so she wouldn’t watch alone for long.

Kara had begun to hate being alone. Not a social person, this college experience meant absences from Alex. Looking back on her time on Earth she never realized how much time the two spent together. Now, with no friends, through her own decisions and no sister for a large part of the day, the hours began to feel very long with no one but her cat to talk to. When Kara was alone her thoughts wandered, she reflected on many things, worried about many things and an idle Kara was not a happy Kara. Too much time and she could feel the depression set in. The girl tried to watch news coverage of herself but still felt anxiety whenever she saw herself on TV.

Jessica had begun coming in the mornings but their sessions only lasted an hour. More than that and depression would definitely set in. So she found herself alone and bored.

And isolated. Kara hated feeling isolated. She always had her family to stem off the feeling. Now Jeremiah and Eiz were at work, Clark and Alex were at school and she was alone.

“Kelex?”

“Yes, Kara?”

“What is your progress on the weapons?”

“Progress is slow. Maintaing the power source without risking an explosion is trickier than expected with the alloys of this Earth.”

“Alex needs those weapons.”

“She would benefit more so from weapons that do not have spontaneous explosions occur, correct?”

“Stop being smart ass, Kelex.”

“You are the one who instructed me to study Tom…”

“I get it! Has Justin or the DEO made any progress on the bunker?”

“There has been no movement at the suspected building site. No one coming in or out. There are feint electrical signatures inside, but nowhere near the amount needed for a large scale construction operation. It is possible that Astra could have taken Fort Rozz’s cloaking technology and used it to mask her location. If she suspected you are working with humans, the bunker could be a trap, designed to kill any humans with you.”

Kara groaned, not having thought of that. “I’ll talk to Hank about it. Have Justin continue monitoring the area. Whatever satellites he needs use them. Also develop a complete geological map of the area. If I want to tunnel in from below I want the quickest route. Rock would be better than sand.”

“I understand.”

Kara debated calling J’onn to see if he had made any progress, knowing he hadn’t if Justin couldn’t. Instead she decided to make a new friend.

“Kelex, connect me to Cat Grant.”

Cat Grant answered the phone in her office immediately. In the past she would have ignored any unknown callers that didn’t go through her assistant. The fact that her entire phone system was bypassed told her this could only be one person.

“Cat Grant.” the woman answered and was rewarded with the young voice she would never forget. The girl who performed miracles.

“Hi Cat. Can I call you Cat? I call Lois, Lois and I wasn’t sure…”

“Cat is fine. What was your name again?”

“Nice try. So… what are you doing?”

The question caught the woman off guard.

“What do you mean, what am I doing? I’m directing a media empire that is following your exploits. The most important question is what are you doing?”

“Watching TV and playing with my kitty. She is a cutey. Not much of a conversationalist though. Have you ever seen Thor?”

“What is a Thor?” the woman asked, trying to figure out what this was all about.

“Its a movie, based on a comic… never mind. Hey you know a lot of famous people, right? Have you ever met Tom Hiddleston?”

“No…”

“Justin Timberlake?”

“No…”

“What about Angelina Jolie?”

“I have actually met her. She is… different.”

“Yeah I kind of guessed that. The girl in the mask with the gun? She is a big Angelina fan. So…”

“I’m sorry, why are you calling me?” Cat asked again.

“I’m bored. My… partner is off doing… stuff and I am at home, bored. Believe it or not, I don’t have many friends… any friends outside of my partner. She is busy so that leaves Lois or you. Something tells me you have met more famous people than Lois so I thought I would give you a call. What other famous people have you met? No wait, who is the weirdest famous person you have met? Like you wouldn’t expect them to be weird but they are actually total freaks?”

“Kelly Ripa,” Cat answered immediately. “Supergirl if you are bored, why aren’t you out saving people?” Cat asked, beginning to realize the teenage superhero had just called her to literally chat.

“No one needs saving that I know of right now.” Kara pointed out.

“There are always people that need saving! There are crimes happening everywhere. I suspect you live in National City since you respond much quicker here. There are robberies, gang violence, hostage situations occasionally, car chases…”

“And if I get involved in police business and someone dies, what will you write about me then, Cat?”

“That… you shouldn’t have involved yourself, most likely. But are you going to base your decisions on who to save in response to public response?”

“Why not? Aren’t you the one who told me I had to be careful how I acted in public?”

“I meant you shouldn’t beat people to a pulp and burn their heads off. You can control yourself, can’t you?”

“Sometimes.” Kara told her. “But why take the chance? All it takes is one slip up and Max Lord is back in business. By the way, thanks for that. It was awesome.”

“Believe me, I enjoyed it. I have hated that smug bastard for years…” Cat stopped talking, realizing she was being drawn into a conversation with the teenager. “Look, you can become involved. Just do what you do with the fire departments. Ask if they need help. If not, you can leave and if anything happens I will blame the police department for not allowing you to help.”

“Can we please not talk about work? Or hey, I got a great idea! I have some other costumes I designed I’ll be wearing soon. Some people have criticized them but I think they look hot. If I emailed you the designs could you take a look, give me an honest opinion?”

Cat sighed, realizing despite the massive amount of work she had, there was no getting away from this conversation.

“Fine. My email address…”

“Just sent it. Should be in your inbox now. If I can get past your phones do you really think I need your email address?”

“How do you do that?”

“Magic.” Kara jokingly told her. “What do you think?”

Cat looked over the costumes. The background behind the mannequins were obviously erased, meaning she kept these somewhere other than wherever she lived. Cat doubted she would have her outfits on mannequins in the open of her home.

“I think the one with pants and armor makes you look like the very young dictator of a small European country no one has heard of before. The others… are you serious? Young women, young girls are already looking at you as an idol, a symbol of power and what they could be. Earths mightiest champion is a teenage girl, not unlike them and she is saving people in a skirt. It is very symbolic but these skirts here, I would expect to see them on a low priced call girl on a budget. If you bent over, James Olsen would get the shots of his career and probably keep the pictures for himself.”

“So too short?”

“Why one Earth would you wear a bathing suit and a cape? Did you run out of material to make a skirt for the one on the end? Remember whatever you do, whatever you wear, you are going to have young, impressionable girls, looking up to you. If you dress as a sex object, they will follow. Is that what you want?”

“Everybody is a critic.” Kara muttered. “No, I don’t want that. Point taken. But the armor one stays. That is my go time suit. If you ever see me wearing it, run for cover because something bad is coming.”

“Then save the world as you, not dressed as some image you hope will convey strength, decking yourself in armor. This world needs hope, not more soldiers. You have to show the love in your heart, not just the strength you possess.”

“I’m not good at showing or dealing with emotions.”

“I could tell that by your eyes and tone of voice. You have been through something horrible. But you love your family, the humans who took you in? You love your sister and yes only a sister would have stood by your side in the face of that monster. I have problems with anxiety as well. We both have to play a role, portray ourselves as strong to hide the scared person inside us. But I saw you cry over the body of a dead child. Don’t hide who you are. I have a feeling you are something beautiful. Let the world see it.”

Kara shook her head and was about to steer the conversation back to famous people when she heard it. A voice, on a different frequency, one humans would most likely not hear, calling her name.

“Kara Zor El, I know you can hear me.” a grizzly male voice told her.

“Cat, I am going to have to get back to you. Something has come up. Thanks for the chat, call you later.”

Kara ended the call and silenced the com in her ear.

“Only a Kryptonian could hear this. You are in National City. You live here, I know it. Meet me at the Caulder Power Plant outside the city, daughter of Alura. We have business. Come alone.”

Kara grunted frustrated and clicked the TV off. Thor would have to wait.

“Kelex, have Justin look in on the power plant, the jerk just mentioned.”

“The power plant is abandoned. No cameras are working in the vicinity. It is outside of the city, no nearby neighbors. Would you like me to send blue prints to your phone?”

“Don’t bother. Open communication with Alex and J’onn.”

Kara changed into her standard uniform, Cat’s opinion about her armored one fresh in her mind and informed her sister and the Director what was going on.

“Come near but stay back. If I see others or am about to get beaten I will let you all know to converge. I don’t want to scare this guy off. Technology to pull off a message at that frequency and knowing Alura, he definitely spent time on Rozz and probably has information we need.”

Both sister and Martian reluctantly agreed, Eliza and Jeremiah standing behind the monitoring station at the DEO, anxious at having their daughters going into battle once more. Connolly and his team loaded up and Henshaw took his place in the control room, knowing it would do no good. Connolly would do what he wanted anyway, but Henshaw liked to portray to his other agents that he had some sort of command of his elite agents.

Kara waited until the DEO was in the air and Alex had changed and was on her bike, heading towards the site. Once everyone was in position and the blonde determined there were no enemies in the surrounding area, she landed.

Kara had no idea who or what to expect. This guy had chosen his location well, the buildings lined with much lead.

“I’m here. Daughter of Alura and all. Come exact your furious vengeance.” she taunted. Kara listened and heard his heartbeat easily, behind a wall in the back of her. She waited for movement and when he jumped, the girl slid to the side, avoiding his kick.

Taking him in, Supergirl was immediately disappointed.

“A Valeronian? I thought this would be a challenge. I ran into one of your kind at a Metropolis bar. Folded quick. You are strong but you aren’t in my league.”

“I am Vartox. Your mother ruined my life. I am not afraid of you. You are just a girl. You can be hurt, killed. Kryptonians think they are invincible on this planet. You aren’t.”

“My family ruined a lot of peoples lives. I can take a pretty good guess that yours was ruined before she ever met you. Bad life choices, maybe? Not hugged enough as a child? Surrender now and I take you into custody, you tell me everything I want to know, including the location of Astra and Non. You do this and you live.”

“You threaten me? I’ve killed a Kryptonian on this Earth already. He looked down on me as well.”

“Could I get his name so I can scratch him off my hit list?” the blonde asked. She heard Ty snickering in the background and knew he had this alien lined up for a shot from five hundred yards away.

The Valeronian pulled the large glowing axe from his back. Kara felt serious heat from it and doubted her heat vision would have an effect without a lot of effort. He tossed the axe towards her and she watched it slowly moving end over end. Once it reached her, the girl grabbed it by the handle and threw it back, this time the axe spinning horizontally and slicing through the alien’s left leg, cutting it off just above the knee cap.

Vartox fell with a scream. It had happened so quick he had not had time to process it. The last time he had thrown his axe at a Kryptonian, it had taken the man’s head off.

Kara walked up and stood over him, arms crossed.

“Looks like the heat from the axe didn’t completely cauterize the wound. I’m trying to be a better person, to stop killing. Hold on a bit and I will handle the blood loss.”

She unleashed her heat vision at the stump on his leg, unable to keep a smile from her face at his screams.

After he stopped screaming and the DEO chopper had landed, Kara walked to the axe on the ground. It had a bit of weight to it. It would be too heavy for Alex to use so she tossed it to another friend.

“Here Dan. Stumpy claims this can kill a Kryptonain. Have fun.”

Dan Hawk smiled looking at the newest weapon in his arsenal.

“Thanks kid. I’m really glad you didn’t kill yourself at your birthday party. This is the best gift I ever got.”

He walked away, leaving Alex and Kara speechless.

“He is really not good at expressing his gratitude.” Alex mumbled.

“Its actually probably the sweetest thing he has ever said to me.” Supergirl admitted.

An hour later Kara stood over the one called Vartox according to Rozz records while he lay on a med bay stretcher, arms cuffed to each side.

“Is it true that women bow to men on your planet? I heard that when I was a child.”

The man said nothing, anger coloring his face.

“Yeah, thats what I thought. This has to be one of the worst moments of your life. Its about to get even worse. You are going to tell me everything you know or I will burn every inch of your body until you look like a one legged lump of charcoal. You know me, you know what I have done and you know what I am capable of now. You may not fear death but you are going to fear dying in the manner i plan for you, if you do not give me what I want.”

Connolly and Kara were left with the prisoner behind a closed and locked door. Eliza and Jeremiah stood outside, worried about Kara, about what she was doing but understanding it would be done. They were proud she had not killed the bastard but now wondered if their pride was too early.

The two walked out after 52 minutes.

“We didn’t have to torture him. He talked. Team meeting in conference room.” Connolly told them. Jeremiah put his arm around his daughter and walked with her to the secure room.

As soon as everyone was settled, Connolly began.

“He doesn’t know where Myriad is being built but doubts it is in Idaho. It is in North America, and he had heard it is underground but not where. After we nuked Fort Rozz, he was one of those who split from Astra. The bunker in Idaho is most likely a staging area or fall back spot.”

“I think Astra purposely directed my trace, and yours, to that bunker.” Kara told the room. “No movement in or out for a week, means she probably set a trap for us. Something she thinks will kill you all when we would rush to investigate.”

“And you?” J’onn guessed. Kara shook her head.

“Not me. My guess would be explosives. Humans trapped underground, the whole place wired to blow, it would make the most sense.”

“Unless it was Non who directed the call to that location and not Astra. If he assumed Lobo would be beat, he could have gotten Astra’s phone before hand and had it directing all calls to that location, at least as far as traces go. He could have laid a trap for you, Kara.” Jack pointed out.

No one said anything for a moment until Kara broke the silence.

“We have to find out why. Why there? It could have been anywhere. There may be clues left over, it may be legitimate. It could contain soldiers, biological entities, who knows what.” Kara told them. “The more I have thought about it, Myriad would not be built in a bunker. It has to be launched. Why build it under one of the strongest places in the world and risk damage when it lifted? It is buried under soft ground somewhere. This place has another purpose.”

“And you can’t see inside it because a Nuclear fall out bunker is going to be completely lined with lead.” Dante reminded her.

“I’m not saying it isn’t a risk but what isn’t? We can’t do this in complete safety. I will rip the door off, go inside and check for explosives. I also need something to check for viruses that may be left. You are all going to have to trust me. If I see any aliens or danger I will fly out immediately and we all regroup. You know I am fast enough to get away.”

“Maybe, maybe not.” the Martian pointed out.

“Look, I am trying to be a team player. I called you before this pathetic fight. I have waited to go into that bunker for a week. But my patience is running thin. I am going in. You can all back me up, outside. I’m leaving now. Whoever wants to follow is welcome. Alex…”

“I’ll be on the chopper with them.” the older sister told her immediately. Kara nodded her head, not surprised in the least. Jeremiah also indicated he would be going to her great irritation but she said nothing.

Kara arrived at the location twenty minutes later and hovered over the area. She hovered for four hours until the sound of the DEO’s largest transport chopper arrived after a refueling stop halfway across the country.

She landed with the disembarked agents, her father and sister. She was grateful that Alex had at least worn the suit Kara had made for her.

“Load up.” Connolly ordered. “Kara, no playing around. If something looks strange, you run or fly out of there. Promise?”

“Yep. I’m good.”

The blonde walked up to the door alone and ripped it open. She noted the hinges had been smooth so it had definitely been opened since the eighties. Hearing nothing, she moved further inside.

The team outside waited, having no contact with her since she was underground.

After thirty two minutes, Alex had lost patience.

“Screw this, I’m going in.” she whispered, Dante agreeing and ran with her and Jeremiah towards the entrance. Connolly shook his head in frustration as the rest of his team followed suit.

“I am so glad I still get to give the orders and not a 19 year old girl.” he mumbled and ran to catch up.

The team slowly moved into the base then quicker, hearing no sounds at all. They watched for trip wires, cameras, anything, but it was apparent this place was abandoned.

So where was Kara?

Spreading out into the various rooms of the cavernous bunker, Alex screamed, sending them all to converge on her location. They found her standing over Kara. The blonde had some sort of alien entity attached to her. It almost resembled a plant but had tentacles wrapped around her, one wrapped around her throat. Hawk grabbed it, trying to pry it off and the tentacle squeezed. Surprisingly Kara’s throat was squeezed and her breathing was cut off.

“Stop!” Jeremiah ordered, kneeling next to her. He felt her pulse and without physical contact, the tentacle had loosened on her throat. She was unconscious but alive.

“We need to get her to the DEO. Some of you need to stay and see if there are more.” Jeremiah ordered. “If there are, I need one, dead or alive, to study. If there aren’t… just search.”

Ty and Webb picked Kara up by the shoulders and feet and rushed her out.

Alex stood in shock, watching her sister being taken out and wondered for the first time in a long time if she would ever wake up again.