Lightning Strikes National

By Michael Weyer

This just popped into my head after "Falling" so thought I'd get it out fast. Enjoy.

Alex gasped as she barely managed to duck the debris flying over her head. In a blink, Kara was on her, a hand at her throat. Alex choked as she looked up, seeing none of her loving and caring sister in those eyes. Instead, it was a look that was colder than even Astra had ever shown, filled with a love of menace and violence. "Kara…" She tried to choke out.

The hand tightened further and Alex gasped out in pain. Nearby, Hank stared at the scene and realized things had gotten too far. There was only one way to stop Supergirl. It meant the end of his life as Hank Henshaw, his freedom, maybe even his life. But he had no choice. Taking a deep breath, he prepared to transform…

A blast of wind ripped past him, sweeping out of nowhere. To his inhuman eyes, Hank saw a streak of red and yellow and a blurred figure racing by him. It streaked over to Alex, yanking her out of Kara's hands. Before Hank knew it, Alex was standing by him, gasping out for breath and as baffled as he was at this.

Supergirl frowned as the figure came to a stop before her. He was a young man clad totally in a red outfit with yellow trimmings and a cowl over his head. What looked like yellow wings were attached to the cowl with yellow boots and an oval at his chest with a yellow lightning bolt. "Funny," he said in a strong voice. "I thought you were a good guy."

Kara rose up, frowning. "Who the hell are you?"

"The Flash," he proclaimed proudly.

"As in dead in a? Works for me." She stomped a boot on the ground in front of her, causing a manhole cover to pop up from the street. Grabbing it, Supergirl tossed it like a discus at the Flash. In a blur, he managed to grab the edge, spinning and then tossing it right back at the startled Kara, who took it in the mid-section, knocking her back.

The Flash looked to Hank and Alex. "You two okay?"

"Who are you?" Hank demanded, instantly alert.

"Concerned citizen," the Flash replied. "What happened to her?"

Hank didn't need his telepathy to know something about this young man really did mean to help. He'd learned to open up a bit more and took a chance. "She's been affected by something, turning her to her base impulses."

The man seemed to understand that. "We got a way of stopping her?"

"We do. But we have to subdue her first."

"Subdue. Right. Gotcha." The Flash took a breath as he raced forward to lash a fist out at Kara. He yelped in pain as it felt like he'd hit solid rock and it gave her the chance to lash a kick out that knocked him back. He rolled on the pavement, wincing as he rose up. "Okay…new plan." He streaked outward, racing up a nearby building to buy some time as his mind raced.

Okay, Barry, let's review what we know. Super strong, tough skin, speed of her own, what else?

A blur caught his eye and he saw a rather upset Supergirl floating above him.

Oh, yeah. Flight.

He saw her eyes take on a shimmering glow and dodged just as the beams of heat erupted from them. "Come on, seriously?!" he yelled. "Laser eyes?!"

Kara continued to sweep around as he dodged the beams, ducking and weaving to avoid the deadly shots. Barry raced around a nearby vent as the beams cut through it. He grabbed the metal and threw it out at top speed. Kara cut it in two with her vision as Barry took a running start, then leapt upward, using his velocity to lift himself up to strike at her again. The momentum knocked them back downward and to the street, Kara landing hard on her back and grunting.

Alex looked to Hank. "Is he…"

He shook his head. "No. He'd been using strength as well. But the speed is…even my people aren't that fast."

The Flash got back to his feet and swallowed. "Listen!" he called out. "I know you're not yourself so I'm trying to cut you a break but I'd really appreciate it if-"

Snarling, Kara grabbed a truck next to a cement mixer and lifted it over her head. "Oh, crap," the Flash muttered as she tossed it at him. He raced back to grab Alex and Hank and yank them out of the way of the car before it smashed into the street where they had been. "Is there a limit to her powers?" he asked.

"Should be," Alex replied, still amazed at this. "But she's pushing herself harder, not holding back."

The Flash took that in with a nod. "Then I can't either." He looked to Alex. "I need you to trust me here. Try to distract her, just for a second or two."

"What are you-"

"Just…trust me." Somehow, something in his eyes made Alex decide to do so. Taking a deep breath, the Flash vanished in that blur. Swallowing, Alex moved back to face the angry Kara. "Kara!" she yelled. "You have to stop this!"

"Oh, Rao, are you actually going to give me a 'come back to the Light Side' speech?" Kara snorted. "I love being like this Alex. I'm not going back to that weak little girl anymore."

"That weak girl is the one I love!" Alex yelled back. "Please…" She was cut off as Kara grabbed her once more by the throat and reared her fist back. Kara was about to punch when a movement caught her eye, too fast for anyone human to notice. But she saw it, the streak of red and yellow and turned in a millisecond.

That was all the Fastest Man Alive needed.

As he ripped down the street, using the momentum of a run across the entire state and back, the Flash swung his arm outward and blasted out what looked like a shockwave of lightning. It hit Kara dead on, sending her flying backward. Instantly, the Flash dipped his hands into the cement mixer, covering them like gloves. A blast of friction turned them into solid cement and he was on Kara punching away.

In her stunned state, Supergirl easily could have handled twenty or thirty such punches without pain. But four hundred and seventy-eight of them, each with the force of a hurricane, striking in a single second was enough to rattle even her. In what appeared to be an eyeblink, she was down and out.

Hank was quick to move in, Alex right behind him. The Flash was bent over, hands on his knees and heaving for breath. "Is she down?" he choked out.

"She is," Hank confirmed.

"Good," the Flash sighed. "Because I really couldn't do that again."

Hank was all business as he moved to the masked man. "We need to take you with us."

The Flash looked up at him. "Uh huh. Yeah. Sorry." Before Hank could move an inch to his gun, the younger man vanished in that blur of red and yellow.

Alex just stared at the spot he'd been. "What was that?"

"File it for later," Hank told her. "Let's get her into containment before she recovers and hope Lord is telling the truth for once on how to fix her."

"If he doesn't, he's a dead man." Hank knew Alex meant what she said and right now wasn't that judgmental of her.

Kara had no experience with what it meant to be drunk but she was reasonably sure this was what a terrible morning after felt like.

The pain was nothing, any bruises left by the punches faded. No, it was the emotional fallout as sadly, she remembered everything of the previous 24 hours and felt like utter crap over it. The insults, the way she'd mocked her friends, nearly killing Cat, all of it weight on her. And worse was how she knew deep down, she'd meant it all.

She knew Cat wouldn't be happy letting her have a "personal day" but she needed it. She was sure Cat was busy anyway doing everything to trademark "the Flash" and ranting about anyone figuring out who this mysterious hero was. Kara wondered herself but frankly, it was the least of her worries right now.

Now, she just needed a walk, a real walk to clear her head. She could feel something...different in the air of the city, a tension that hadn't been there before. A tension because of her and it made her want to just run and fly away. She wondered if maybe Kal could let her crash at the Fortress for a while. Some solitude was just up her alley.

"You okay?"

Kara jumped as she saw the man before her. He was about her age, brown hair, handsome and a nice smile, dressed in a simple pair of slacks, shirt and jacket. "Sorry," he said in a friendly voice. "I just…well, wanted to check on you."

"Huh?"

"I know it's wrong but did a quick look around town and wasn't as hard as I thought to track that lady from last night and how you share the same place. And really, wow, the glasses are not as effective as you think they are."

Kara blinked. "Sorry, do I know you?"

"Well, it wasn't exactly a talkative meeting," the man said. He glanced around before pointing to his chest, making a move of a circle and then a jagged line inside. Kara just stared in confusion before her eyes widened. "Wait…you mean…you're…"

The man looked around. "There someplace to eat? You would not believe how much I'm starving."

Barry Allen (as he said his name was) swallowed and wiped at his chin with a napkin. "Good to know no matter what universe, a Big Belly Burger is the same." He sipped from the drink set at the table in the fast food restaurant not far from the CatCo building.

Kara was still munching on her salad as she studied him. "You really mean this. You're from another universe."

"You've got the super-senses," Barry said. "You can tell if I'm lying."

"It's still…a lot."

"Says the girl from another planet." Barry sipped his drink. "It's true."

"And you just…ran here?"

"A bit more complicated but yeah. Harrison told me it was possible I could access other Earths but didn't believe him until I found myself in a city that doesn't exist in my world that's protected by a girl with super-powers."

"Was protected." Kara looked down. "I don't know…if I can anymore." She brushed back her hair. "Are you okay? I mean, I was sure you broke something in that fight."

"Ah, sprained some knuckles," Barry waved off. "Don't worry, I heal fast. And they told me you're not usually like that. Believe me, fighting another hero is pretty much a standard thing."

"Doesn't make it right." Kara looked down. "At least you stopped me before I killed…someone I care about."

Barry frowned. "Hey, I know what you're going through."

Kara's eyes flared. "Oh, really? You know what it is to be warped around to a total bitch, turn on all your friends, your family, cause damage and have everyone hate you?"

"Yes."

She blinked as Barry went on. "Well, not the bitch part, obviously. But one of the first guys I fought filled me up with rage. It made me lash out at everyone, the guy who raised me, my friends. I nearly killed the boyfriend of the girl I'd always loved. It took a good friend to get me down from there before it got worse."

Kara swallowed. "Oh. Um…sorry."

Barry leaned forward. "So yeah, I've been where you are now. The guilt, the anger, all of it. Which is why I know you can get over it."

Kara snorted. "Really?"

"It won't be easy," Barry agreed. "But you can do it. You were a hero already and you can get back there." He saw her looking down and moved to put his hand over hers. "Again, I know how it is. I've been hit low a few times. I guy I trusted turned out to be my worst enemy, literally. I lost a friend and I've been taken down hard. That friend who helped me? He spent five years living in a hellish experience, mostly on a desert island and he's lost a lot too." He looked Kara in the eye. "And he taught me that no matter how hard you get beaten down, what matters is how you get back up. It sounds trite but it's true, you just have to keep fighting."

Kara adjusted her glasses. "I guess…I guess I do." She saw Barry looking at her with a light smile. "What?"

"Nothing. It's just…I mean…you work at a news company and no one sees past the glasses?"

"It works."

"I'm just saying, I at least have a mask on. And the voice, you can shift that too."

"My cousin doesn't wear a mask," Kara told him. "Neither do I. I want people to trust me…at least they did."

"And they can again," Barry said. "They'll be afraid for a bit. And there always will be people who mistrust you. Joe…the guy who raised me…he's a cop and he knows every cop has that public pressure turn on them now and then but they do their jobs. Just keep doing yours and they'll realize they can trust you again."

Kara cocked her head. "You really believe all this, don't you?"

Barry smiled. "This is the third Earth I've visited and I've discovered there's two things they all need. One is heroes."

"What's the other?"

"The Godfather. Don't ask me why, it just is."

Kara couldn't help chuckling and Barry smiled. "And there it is. See, you need to start doing that more. You'd be amazed how smiling can help your mood out."

Kara did her best even as she narrowed her eyes. "Were you a choir boy in high school?"

Barry chuckled. "Nah, I've got a terrible singing voice."

"Me too." Kara sipped her drink. "So, you don't have a Superman on your world?"

"Or Metropolis," Barry told her. "I see you have a Central City but haven't been able to check and find out if there's another version of me there."

"Do you know how to get back?"

"Hoping that if I just adjust my speed, I can break back through."

"Maybe the DEO can help you out."

"I don't know," Barry mused. "No offense but they remind me a bit of these guys in my world called Argus and you don't want to know how dirty they get."

"I trust Alex and Hank," Kara pressed. "And no offense but you need some help to get back home." She smiled softly. "Believe me, I understand that."

Barry was about to reply when a booming sound echoed from outside, followed by several screams. Both of them looked out the window to see people running in fear, Kara lowering her glasses to peer outward. "Oh, hell," she muttered. "Non."

"Who?"

"Imagine me from last night without the morals." Kara got to her feet and raced to the exit. Barry was behind her as the two moved into an alleyway. Kara ran forward, yanking her shirt open to reveal her uniform. By the time she was out of the alley, she was Supergirl. A rise in electricity came behind her as Barry joined her, clad in his Flash uniform.

They both paused to look each other over. "That looks a lot better than the other one," the Flash noted.

"Feels it," Supergirl admitted as she flew outward, the Flash following. They came to the center of a main street to see Non and a half dozen other leather-suited men attacking a large tanker truck. Supergirl flew forward to strike at Non, who grunted at the punch. "So the truce is over?"

Non rubbed his chin. "I saw the reports from last night. I had thought perhaps you had come to your senses. Realized your aunt's path was the true one."

"Last night wasn't me."

"Oh?" Non glanced at the people staring in terror at both of them. "They disagree."

Supergirl suppressed her anger before speaking. "I'm still fighting for them. And against you."

The red and yellow streak raced outward, grabbing a hose from the tanker and in moments had wrapped three of the Kryptonian criminals together. The Flash joined Supergirl as he looked Non over. "This is your bad guy? Non? Man, at least Cisco tries to give mine clever names."

Non just glared as the three men burst free from their hose. They each lit up their eyes and both heroes tensed as they prepared to run from the heat vision. Just as the beams cut loose, a large green shield appeared in the air to catch the blasts. Floating downward was a figure in a green and black uniform, a green mask covering his eyes, his brown hair billowing a bit in the wind. He lowered himself down, a green glow surrounding him as one gloved hand held a ring that emitted a large green sign with STOP written on it.

Supergirl glanced over. "Friend of yours?"

The Flash frowned. "I was going to ask you that."

Non narrowed his eyes. "I thought you Green Lanterns stayed away from this world."

"I'm changing that," the man said in a strong voice. He lifted his ring to unleash a beam that turned into a literal battering ram to slam Non back. He glanced back at Supergirl and the Flash and lifted an eyebrow. "You two just going to stand there?"

They exchanged looks and then smiles as they stood by the green-clad man and got ready for a fight.

Just had to throw that last bit in, all comments welcomed.