Maggie was relieved that Alex fell to sleep fast. Maggie spent the first few hours of the night constantly checking on her, so it was nearly 2am by the time she fell asleep herself. So when she awoke the next morning, she wasn't surprised that the bed was empty next to her. She hoped that that meant Alex was recovered, and maybe getting ready for work. She saw the strip of light in the en-suite bathroom, and assumed Alex was showering.

After nearly ten minutes, when Alex didn't emerge, and there was no sound from the shower. Maggie began to get anxious. She tapped lightly on the door. No answer. She waited a minute, then tapped again.

"Be right out," Alex's voice was rough.

Maggie wanted to respect her girlfriend's privacy, but when there was no sound after a further five minutes, she pushed against the door. "I'm sorry, babe," she called quietly. "I just wanted to … oh God, Alex," she saw Alex on her knees, her arms folded across the toilet. She was resting her head on her arms.

Maggie got onto the floor next to her. She put a soft hand on her back, feeling sweat-soaked fabric under her fingers.

"M'sorry," Alex's voice was thick.

"Shh. You don't have to talk. Just try to relax. I'm here now. I'll take care of you."

"Don't feel good," Alex's body stiffened, and she gagged.

"Have you been sick?"

"No. Can't," Alex gripped the sides of the bowl. Her breathing was coming too fast. She moaned. Maggie could feel her whole body shaking under her hand.

"Mag, I … oh God," Alex gagged again. Her mouth filled with saliva. "I …," she spat into the bowl. "I just ..."

"Try not to tense up. Just breathe easy. Try and slow it down, babe. You'll only make it worse," she rubbed soothing circles on Alex's back. She slid her other hand under Alex's forehead, startled by the heat of her skin. "You're burning up, Alex. Wait here, I'll be right back."

Maggie placed a bucket by the bed, together with a bowl of iced water and a washcloth. She was back at Alex's side in minutes.

Alex was slumped over the toilet again; her head was back on her folded arms. Her breathing was unsteady and, it seemed to Maggie, slightly panicked.

Maggie knelt by her, one hand on her shaking back. "I know you feel awful, babe. Let's get you back to bed."

"Wanna be sick," Alex muttered, thickly.

"I know. There's a bucket if we need it. You need to be back in the warm," Maggie could feel her shivers. Before Alex had the chance to argue further, Maggie helped her to her feet, taking most of her body weight. She managed to walk her back to the bed, just getting her to the bed as her legs gave way. Maggie helped her to lie on her side.

Maggie reached for her phone. "Kara, we need you," she said, trying to keep her voice even. "Alex is real sick." Before she had even placed the phone back on the nightstand, there was the familiar whooshing sound and Kara, dressed in her work clothes, was at her side.

"How long has she been like this?" Kara sounded panicked.

"Not sure. I woke up about 10 minutes ago, she was in the bathroom."

"Has she gotten sick?"

"No," Maggie smoothed her hand over Alex's forehead, "but it won't be long."

Alex moaned, and tried to sit up.

Maggie slid on the bed behind her, and pulled her into her lap, so that she was slightly raised. "Mag... I...," Alex sounded so weak. She swallowed, as saliva filled her mouth.

"It's okay, babe. We're here," Maggie tried to sound calm. She could hear Kara on the phone to J'onn, and was relieved to hear her asking him to send an ambulance. They both knew that Alex would not cope well if Kara flew her to the DEO.

Alex was shaking badly. Maggie was grateful when Kara held the bucket for her, so Maggie could use both hands to support her. Alex moaned again, and swallowed. She didn't want to throw up, but she didn't know if she could stop herself. The pounding in her head was excruciating.

"Don't fight it," Maggie said, softly. Her hand continued to caress Alex's back. "Just let it happen. It'll make you feel better. That's it, Alex. See if you can slow your breathing. It's gonna be okay. We'll take care of you. It'll be over soon," she wished she could believe her own words. She knew Alex needed to calm down, her agitation was only going to work against her. She needed to stop her panicking.

"Maggie," Alex said, thickly. "I think I'm gonna..." she gagged, barely even registering as Maggie held a cool washcloth to her forehead. "I can't..."

"Let it happen. Yeah," Maggie grimaced as Alex heaved, and a gush of hot vomit hit the bucket. "That's good, babe. You're doing great. And again," she tightened her grip on Alex, whose body was wracked with tremors. "Try and get it all up. There you go, once more. Don't forget to breathe. We'll get you to the med bay real soon, Hamilton'll fix you right up. Again? Good girl. That's got to be most of it up. It's okay, Alex. We're here. We're not going anywhere. Kara's with us. Okay, babe. Try and slow it down," she was worried about hyperventilation.

Kara watched as Maggie bathed Alex's face, lovingly, gently. She passed her a bottle of water. "Want some of this?" Maggie held it to Alex's lips.

Alex sucked some water down, desperately thirsty. Her stomach roiled, and before either of them knew what was happening, she had vomited down her front, spilling water and bile.

The pain was overwhelming. Alex felt her head pound sickeningly with every heartbeat. She didn't know how much longer she could stay conscious; black spots danced in front of her eyes. She felt Maggie's warm caress. She didn't understand what was happening. She slumped in Maggie's arms, her breathing coming in fast, weak gasps.

"Her heart's racing," Kara said, anxiously. She knew Alex's heartbeat like her own. It was a familiar, and usually comforting, sound.

The doorbell rang, and in a second, Kara was directing the EMTs to the bedroom.

SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG

Only Maggie was allowed to stay with Alex as Dr Hamilton examined her at the DEO. Kara thought she would go crazy, pacing outside the room. Nobody was saying anything enlightening, so she could learn nothing about Alex's condition.

"Do you think this could be what Malverne was talking about?" J'onn asked Kara, quietly. "When he said 'antidote'? Do you think he knew this was going to happen?"

SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG

Kara approached Malverne's cell. He was smirking, as though he expected this visit. "She's burning up, right? Alex? Did she get sick yet?"

"What did you do to my sister?" Kara tried to keep control of her anger. She had always abhorred unnecessary violence but, right now, she would happily rip Malverne's head off, if only she hadn't needed him to save Alex.

He grinned. "I told her she would regret punching me."

J'onn appeared at Kara's side. "Don't," he said, too quiet for Malverne to hear. "We need to get answers from him."

"A full pardon, $5 million and a helicopter."

"And if we don't?" J'onn's voice was icy.

"If you don't, your favorite agent has, I guess, two days before the convulsions start. They'll last about 96 hours, with some more vomiting, just for fun. Likely some hallucinations too. It's possible you'll need to restrain her."

"And after that?"

Malverne gave a slow smile. "After that? Lights out," he said. "So you should get on to your boss sooner rather than later. The antidote takes two days to work. So that means," he made a show of looking at his watch, if you don't start her on the meds within four days, the DEO is going to be one agent down. And you don't want that, do you?"

Kara's fists were clenched at her side. "She was your friend," her voice was barely above a whisper. "She looked out for you."

Malverne whipped round to look at her, fury evident on his face. "She didn't want me!" he spat. "She told me she didn't want to be my girlfriend!"

"That's because she wasn't attracted to you. She didn't know why, then," Kara was fighting to keep control of her temper. She would have liked nothing better than to rip him limb from limb, but she knew that wouldn't help Alex.

"Because she is a disgusting dyke."

"Because she is gay, yes," Kara said. "But can you ever remember a time when she was mean to you? She defended you. She stopped those boys from whaling on you. And this is how you repay her." She felt J'onn's hand on her arm, and allowed herself to be led from the room.

SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG

"Her fever's worse," Maggie's face was tight with anxiety.

"What is it now?" Kara wanted to know.

"103.8," Hamilton told Kara.

Kara noted the IV in her sister's arm. Alex's eyes were shut, her face was bathed in sweat.

Maggie sat next to Alex's bed, one hand trailing soothingly through her hair, the other holding a limp hand.

A nurse came into the room, carrying a box. "More ice packs," he said, as he started packing them around Alex's body.

Maggie noted how gentle all the medical staff were being with Alex. They had moved her from the glass-encased med bay to a private room, to safeguard her privacy. And they were all treating her with such respect. She could tell how distraught everyone was.

Kara put a hand on Maggie's shoulder. "I'm going to try talking to him again," she said, softly. "He liked her. She was kind to him. It makes no sense."

"He's jealous of me," Maggie realized it was true. "So he should have taken me! She did nothing wrong."

"You haven't done anything wrong either, Maggie," Kara said firmly. "He's the one with the problem. I'm going to talk to J'onn, see if he has any ideas. We could maybe get a negotiator in."

Maggie nodded. She couldn't quite believe what was happening. Alex had gotten better after the tank. She was fine. Okay, so she was tired, but who wouldn't be, after an ordeal like that? Alex moaned, and Maggie whispered soothingly to her.

Maggie brushed angrily at a tear on her cheek. This was not fair. None of it. Alex dedicated her life to helping others. Including Rick Malverne. If Alex hadn't been a kind-hearted teenager, he likely wouldn't even have remembered her.

"Let me know if I can do anything," Maggie said to Kara, as she reached the door.

"Stay with her. She needs you," Kara's voice cracked. Her own emotions were swirling. Alex was, by far, the most important person in her world. She had taken her in, cared for her, and spent her life protecting her. Kara snorted internally at the thought that Alex, still, spent so much time protecting Kara – Kara, possibly the world's strongest and least physically vulnerable woman. But Kara needed her. She needed Alex's protection. Most of all, she needed Alex's unfailing love and support.

"We have to force him to talk," Kara strode into J'onn's office. "We have to. She can't die," her face crumpled, "Alex can't die."

J'onn took her in his arms. "I've put a call into the President's negotiating team. Their best negotiator is ten minutes away."

Kara wiped her eyes. "We should tell Eliza. I should tell Eliza." She knew that Alex wouldn't want anyone but Maggie with her but, as her mother, Eliza deserved to know. She loved Alex and, even though they sometimes had a fractious relationship, Alex loved her. Kara would never forgive herself if something happened to Alex and she hadn't told Eliza she was sick. "I'll go get her from Midvale now. She'd want to be here."

SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG

"Maggie?" Alex's voice was so weak, and she sounded distressed.

"I'm right here, babe. I'm not going anywhere," Maggie kissed her hand, and stroked her cheek.

Alex forced her eyes open. Maggie had turned the lights down low, but it was still too bright for her. "Mag... I … oh fuck," Maggie held a towel under Alex's mouth as she dry heaved painfully, for the second time that hour.

Dr Hamilton came running in, when she saw a further spike in Alex's heart rate. She was watching her vitals closely from the next room, but she wanted to give Alex and Maggie as much privacy as possible.

Maggie paid her no heed; she was staring at Alex's face, her heart breaking when tears of pain tracked down that beautiful face. She wiped them away with her thumb. "I want to hold her," she said, quietly to Hamilton.

Hamilton wouldn't normally countenance such a request. But this was an unusual situation. And Alex Danvers was clearly in great distress. She wasn't responding to the massive dose of broad-spectrum antibiotics, and her fever was continuing to rise. Being held by her girlfriend would at least give her a shred of comfort. She nodded, and bent to unlace Maggie's boots for her.

Alex curled unconsciously into Maggie's side. "She's getting worse, isn't she?" Maggie kept her voice low.

Hamilton nodded. "I'm so sorry," she said.

SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG

Eliza tried to stay stoical when she entered the room. Kara had warned her, but she hadn't imagined that Alex would look this bad. Maggie was holding her protectively, and whispering gently into her hair. She didn't even notice Eliza and Kara entering.

Eliza put a soft hand on Maggie's shoulder. Maggie stared at her. "I'm so sorry," Maggie said.

Eliza put out a shaky hand, and touched Alex's cheek. "How long has she been unconscious?"

"About a half hour," Hamilton entered the room. "Hello, Dr Danvers. I wish these were better circumstances."

Eliza nodded. She kissed Alex on the forehead, and stroked her cheek. She pulled back. She looked at Dr Hamilton. "There must be something I can do. How is the lab work coming? Do you have any leads?"

"We can always use more help there," Hamilton was glad that Eliza wanted to be busy. She knew that Maggie wasn't up to small talk.

SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG

Maggie had never felt so desperate. She had been in some bad situations. Some real bad situations. The worst ever had been when she had realized that Alex had run out of air in that tank. But this, this frightened her more than anything ever had.

Alex's breathing had worsened, and her fever had spiked to 104.4. Maggie had hated it when she was in distress. But now she was barely moving; she was limp in Maggie's arms, the only movement the strained heaving of her chest. She couldn't bear it. She wrapped herself round Alex as tight as she could. Alex couldn't die. She couldn't. But if she did, Maggie wanted her to know how much she was loved. She would not let her go. Maggie didn't realize that tears were streaming down her own face until she felt Kara wipe them away gently with a tissue. She hadn't even noticed that Kara was still in the room. She patted the other side of the bed. It would be a tight squeeze, but she knew that Alex would want this. Kara climbed onto the bed, and held Alex from the other side.

They had been huddled together for nearly an hour when the first convulsion hit. Alex's back arched, and her limbs went into spasm. It was only due to Kara's strength that they were able to keep her on the bed.

Hamilton ran into the room, and injected a heavy sedative into the IV that snaked from Alex's hand. It took almost two minutes before the convulsion subsided. Alex's lips were tinged with blue. Hamilton held an oxygen mask to her face, and was relieved when her O2 saturation improved slightly.

Kara was looking panicked. "That's not supposed to happen. Not for another day, at least." She realized that Alex was worsening faster even than Malverne had expected. She grabbed Hamilton's arm. "You have to do something. Please," she begged.

Hamilton had an idea. "Dialysis," she suggested. "It won't cure her, but it might give her more time. It should leach out some of the infection. I have no idea if it will help, but ..."

"Do it," Maggie's voice was icy.

Hamilton nodded.

Within 15 minutes, Alex was hooked up.

SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG-SG

"If just I could read his damned mind," J'onn wanted to punch something. He wanted to punch someone. But he knew Malverne was their best chance of saving Alex. Saving his best-ever agent. Saving the woman he thought of as a daughter. He had only just survived the loss of his own family on Mars. He would never survive such a loss again.

"J'onn?" Eliza's voice was soft.

J'onn wheeled round, and saw Eliza at his office door. In seconds, he had taken her into his arms and was hugging her tight. They were both sobbing.

As they calmed, Eliza took both of his hands. "You know that I know about you," she said. "I know you are telepathic. I did some work on telepathy when I was at college. And I'm wondering … this resistance that he has built up to you. What if we drugged him? Maybe something like Rohypnol? It would reduce his defenses, but he'd still be conscious. She just had a third convulsion, J'onn," Eliza's voice hitched. "I don't think we have much time."

J'onn sprang to his feet. "We don't have any Rohypnol here," he told Eliza. "I'll call my contact at the FDA, I'll go get some."

"What about Kara? She could fly and ..."

"I'll do it," J'onn told her. "Kara needs to be with her sister."

Within a half hour, J'onn had the answer. He strode out of the cell where Malverne was held. Somehow he had resisted beating him to a bloody pulp once he had the answer. He called his tactical team that was tearing Malverne's apartment apart. "It's in the lining of his motorcycle helmet," he told them. "A memory stick. Find it, I'll be there in two minutes."

Five minutes later, J'onn ran into Hamilton's lab, brandishing the memory stick. She loaded it into the computer. "Twenty minutes," she said, "and it'll be ready to inject."

Eliza hugged J'onn with all her might. She let herself into Alex's room. Maggie didn't move. She was too entrenched in Alex, as she cradled her gasping girlfriend in her lap. Kara had moved from the bed and was staring sightlessly out of the window.

Eliza touched Kara's arm. "We got it," she said, softly. "We got the formula for the antidote. Dr Hamilton's just making it up now." Kara just stared at her.

Eliza moved to Maggie's side. "Maggie," she said. Maggie wasn't hearing anything. "Maggie," she spoke a little louder. She touched her hand gently.

Maggie looked up. Eliza had never seen such a look of devastation in anyone's face.

"We're losing her," Maggie gulped.

"No, honey. We're not. It's going to be okay."