'And you're sure he didn't do anything, didn't touch anything?'
'Yes, Miss Luthor, we're sure. The whole floor has been checked and rechecked five times now.'
Lena nodded and dismissed the man. He was a member of her security team.
She was in the conference room with Maggie, Alex and Supergirl. The room was small, with a white table in the centre and a potted plant next to a window. She'd wanted Kara to be in as well, but Maggie had put her foot down on that one, said that this wasn't a civilian matter.
'Well,' Maggie said, 'you called it. Alvarez is a sneaky son of a bitch.'
Alex nodded. 'But whatever it was—he's hardly being forthcoming. If I have to listen to him say he doesn't understand why he's being persecuted one more time…'
Maggie put a hand on Alex's arm. 'Easy there, Danvers. I don't want to have to arrest my partner.'
'The man in that room isn't behaving at all like the man I met hours ago,' Supergirl said.
Lena turned away from them and stared out of her window. Three hours before, she'd been enjoying drinks with Kara and toasting to the success of Project Rejuvenate. Now, her guests were partying upstairs and she was stuck with this mess to clear up.
She'd found the view of space awe-inspiring at first, but now it seemed tarnished by this latest drama. Could nothing go off without a hitch when the name Luthor was attached to it?
'I just wanted one thing to go right,' Lena mumbled. 'One damn thing.'
'I can try speaking to him,' Supergirl offered, 'perhaps he would be more pliable if I offered him an interview in exchange for the truth.'
Lena turned around. 'You'd do that?'
'Of course. I want to know how he came to have those burns as much as you do.'
'Thank you, Supergirl. I won't keep you.'
She nodded and headed out of the room. Alex and Maggie glanced at each other and then looked at Lena, worried.
Lena groaned. 'What is it now? Has something else gone wrong?'
'Earlier on today,' Alex said, 'I had Supergirl search through Alvarez's room. She found ring box in the base of his wardrobe. The box was lined with lead.'
'Lead? But Supergirl can't see through that, right?'
'Exactly.'
'But there was nothing in the box.'
'No.'
Maggie stepped forwards and placed her hands on the table. 'We could send my boys in, do a full sweep of his room.'
'No,' Lena said, 'that'd attract the attention of the other guests for sure. And if Supergirl says the room has been searched, I trust her to do her job.'
'In all fairness, Supergirl did have to get out of there before the search was complete,' Alex replied.
'Well she can finish it while she speaks with Alvarez,' Lena replied.
Maggie said, 'I still think we should get some trained eyes in there. And the guests are bound to notice something is up when Alvarez doesn't come out of his room.'
'I know,' Lena said, 'but we can account for that—say he's not well, or something. Alex, you examined his fingers. What can you tell me?'
'The burns are superficial—they'll be completely healed in a couple of weeks,' Alex folded her arms. 'I'm more interested in how he reacted when I tried to listen to his heart.'
'Why was that interesting?' Maggie asked.
Lena could see the frustration written plain on the cop's face, but she couldn't worry about stepping on toes right now.
'He wouldn't let me place the stethoscope on his chest—flinched away whenever I brought it near, and when I asked him what was wrong he wouldn't say.'
'Odd,' Lena said. 'What was his behaviour like otherwise?'
'He seemed anxious. Kept mumbling under his breath. I didn't catch a word of it.'
She turned away from them both again, folded her arms and thought for a moment.
'Maggie,' she said, 'how about you personally search Alvarez's room while Supergirl talks to him?'
Maggie nodded. 'On it.'
She squeezed Alex's arm as she passed her and left the room also. Alex stared at Lena for a few seconds before speaking.
'This may be nothing,' she said.
'I know.'
'Alvarez could have just been nosy and gotten too close to the motor—that would explain the burst fingers, at least.'
'Yeah.'
'But you don't believe that for a second, do you?'
'No. Maybe it's just the Luthor in me, but I feel like there is something else going on here, something bad, and we're in the dark.'
'I feel the same way,' Alex said, 'though that could be the agent in me. Let's just see what Maggie and Supergirl discover and go from there.'
They both nodded at the suggestion, but neither seemed able to meet the other's eyes. Lena knew Alex, like herself, wasn't suited to waiting around for answers. She wanted to be the one to go out and find them.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
As she walked through the building, Kara plastered a fake-happy smile back onto her face. She greeted a couple of guests as they passed, agreed to selfies with the drunk ones, and then turned off into the mercifully quiet corridor where Alvarez's room was.
Two members of Maggie's team were standing outside, and nodded to her as she approached.
She knocked on the door and received no reply. Her super hearing was able to pick up the sounds of someone sobbing.
'Mr Alvarez,' she knocked again, 'this is Supergirl. Can I come in?'
Still no answer. So Kara opened the door anyway, and froze.
Alvarez had trashed his room. The bed had been stripped and pulled in front of the bathroom door, and the wardrobe doors were open and the clothes missing. His bedside table now looked like kindling.
Kara called his name again.
'Stay away,' he shouted, 'I'm safe in here—just stay away!'
'Hey,' Maggie came up behind her, 'Lena wants me to… what the hell?'
Kara motioned for her to stay back, and she walked over and pushed the bed back into its original position. Maggie tried the handle.
'Mr Alvarez,' she called, 'are you decent? If so, unlock the door.'
'Leave me alone,' he cried back.
'We need to talk to you,' Kara said.
'GO AWAY!'
'This isn't negotiable,' Maggie called, 'so you either open this door right now or Supergirl will open it for you.'
Kara and Maggie listened to the sound of sodden footsteps grow closer to the door. The door clicked, and the footsteps stomped away.
'I'll go first,' Kara said.
She stepped into the room and failed to hide the surprise on her face in time. Alvarez was sitting in what she could only describe as a nest. He'd dragged all his clothes and the bedding into the shower, arranged them into a cup shape, sat in the middle and turned the shower on.
'This keeps getting weirder,' Maggie murmured.
Alvarez was sitting with his knees touching his chest, fully clothed, hair lank and covering his eyes. The bandages Alex had placed over his burns were soaking, and one dropped off his pointer finger as they stared and revealed an angry looking welt beneath.
Kara walked over and turned the shower off. She knelt down in front of the man and gave him a cautious smile.
'Let's get you out of there, alright?'
He shook his head and showered Kara with droplets of water.
'I'm safe in here,' he mumbled, 'she can't get me.'
Kara turned back to Maggie. 'Get Alex.'
She nodded and left the room.
'Marco, you're soaking wet,' Kara said, 'you'll be freezing if you keep sitting there.'
Suddenly, he leapt up.
'Turn the water on,' he yelled, 'turn the water on! She can't get to me when the water is on!'
He bashed the button on the wall several times until a thick stream of water poured out of the nozzle and drenched him all over again. Kara narrowly missed the spray as she dodged away from it.
'Who can't get to you?' She asked.
Alvarez jabbed his temple several times.
'Her-her-HER! She tells you her plans and laughs at you when you fail—and even when you succeed you're not good enough—stupid humans! So far behind, so stupid.'
The jabs became harder with every poke and neared his eyes, so Kara took his arm to make sure he couldn't injure himself. He strained against her with all his might, but it did him no good. He sat back exhausted, tipped back his head and drank a little of the shower water, instead.
The arm of Kara's suit was now as sodden as he was.
'Who is this voice? What is her name?'
He closed his mouth and stared at Kara for a moment. His widened eyes narrowed to a normal side, and his mouth retreated to a frown.
'You know her,' he said in a monotonous fashion. 'She knows you too, Kara Danvers.'
Supergirl took a step back. 'What—'
'Supergirl? What's the situation?' Alex came in behind her, and Kara was relieved to see Lena did not accompany her and Maggie.
'Alex—he knows who I am. He just called me Kara Danvers!'
Alex rush passed Kara and grabbed his shoulders.
'Hey!' she yelled into his face, 'how do you know my sister, huh? How do you know who she is?'
Alvarez's smile was enough to Alex remove her hands and for Maggie to shudder and step back. He widened his eyes and glared straight at Kara in a manner that made him look deranged.
'She told me.'
Alex glanced back at Kara in shock.
'He doesn't mean me,' Kara said, 'he was talking about this voice, a woman—and something about her finding humans stupid.'
'Lena Luthor,' he mumbled, 'Lena Luthor. Such a nice name. Lena Luthor rolls off of your tongue, doesn't it? Too bad the name is owned by a not nice lady. Oh well. She'll be dead soon.'
Kara saw red. She grabbed Alvarez around the neck and slammed him into the wall of the shower.
'Kara!'
'What're you doing?!'
'What do you mean Lena Luthor will be dead soon?'
Alvarez tried to reply, but all he could manage was a gurgling sound as water crashed into his open mouth. Kara let go of him, and he fell to the floor, coughing and rubbing his neck.
'Kara,' Alex barked, 'step outside. Now.'
She didn't argue. Now her uniform was soaked through, and the police officers outside the room stared as she passed. Maggie stayed back with Alvarez.
'That was out of order,' Alex said.
'You heard him,' Kara shouted, 'she threatened Lena!'
Alex turned to the officers. 'Take five, guys.'
'We don't leave unless Detective Sawyer says so.'
'And when I walk back in there and tell her you're ignoring an FBI agent, what do you think she'll say?'
They hurried off.
'That FBI cover must be wearing a little thin by now,' Kara said.
Alex shrugged. 'It's useful. And don't change the subject. What the hell were you thinking back there?'
'I was thinking he just threatened Lena. Alex, if he said Maggie were to die soon what would you—'
'Don't,' Alex held up a hand. 'Seriously. Look at him, Kara. The man is having some kind of breakdown.'
'I didn't realise you'd taken a psychology degree.'
'You don't need a psychology degree to see that man is clearly not well. You shouldn't trust a word that comes out of his mouth, you hear me? Not a word.'
Kara frowned. 'He started talking about humans like they were some other species to him.'
'He's not an alien.'
'I know that. But I think whoever 'she' is might be.'
Alex ran a hand through her hair and sighed. 'Did you not just listen to a word I said? Kara: you can't trust his words—they probably don't even make sense to him.'
'Alright, alright, you've made your point. What do we do now?'
'You need to relay this info to Lena, and tell her we're going to have to go back to earth and drop this man off at a mental hospital. He needs a kind of help we're not equipped to provide.'
'But there are escape pods, can't we—?'
Alex shook her head.
'Protocol dictates they are only to be used in the case of a real life or death situation. We have enough pods for everyone now, but if one is missing we may not be able to take all the staff. Lena will have to reschedule. I'm sorry, Kara. Really, I know how much Lena has banking on the good press. But dealing with this is beyond our means.'
'You're right, you're right…'
Kara turned and made to walk away, but Alex began to speak again.
'I'm surprised you'd compare Lena and Maggie,' she called.
'Why? You love Maggie. I love Lena.'
'Yeah, but in a different way. Unless there's something you're not telling me.'
Kara shrugged. 'I'm going to change uniforms and update Lena.'
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Lena needed a stiff drink, not champagne. She set her glass down on the conference room desk and frowned at it. One of her staff had brought her a chair, but she didn't want to use it. Having the ability to pace was about the only thing keeping her sane.
'Miss Luthor?'
Supergirl. Lena smiled as she entered and hoped she'd misread the expression on her face. Please, she thought, no more bad news.
'What did Alvarez say?'
She looked uncomfortable. Lena wondered if she should offer the seat.
'Mr Alvarez isn't making a lot of sense,' Supergirl replied. 'Agent Danvers believes he is having a… breakdown.'
'You're kidding me.'
'I wish I was.'
'He's going to need transport back to earth.'
Supergirl nodded. 'I'm so sorry.'
Lena gripped the edges of the desk for a moment. She wanted to kick herself for agreeing to create enough escape pods for her staff and the guests, but no extra. They had to go back.
'I'm sure you already know that—'
'We're going back to earth? Yes. Was there anything else?' She asked through gritted teeth.
'Just that… Alvarez is pretty convinced you're going to be killed by "her".'
Lena looked up at her in surprise. 'Her? Who?'
'I have no idea. He kept mentioning this woman, someone who apparently hates humans and had a plan for him.'
'But that's a part of the breakdown,' Lena said.
'Alex is assuming so, yes.'
'Then there's nothing to worry about. We'll get back to earth, I'll get lynched by the board and probably lose my job…'
'If I may say, you're taking the threat on your life in your stride.'
She snorted. 'I'm a Luthor, Supergirl. If I get less than ten of those in my inbox before sunrise I'm having a good day.'
Supergirl seemed a little shocked by this, but Lena waved a dismissive hand through the air.
'Don't worry about it,' she said. 'And thank you for being so prompt. I suppose we have no more of an idea as to why he went down to the base of the ship?'
'None, I'm afraid. I can try speaking to him, but—'
'There wouldn't be much point.'
'No.'
Lena turned away again. 'Well, I better make the necessary arrangements. It'll take all night to prepare, and—'
She was cut off by the sound of guests whooping and cheering somewhere outside.
'I'll let them know this evening. No sense in ruining their fun for the moment.'
Supergirl bowed her head.
'Thank you for your help today,' Lena said.
'I didn't really do anything.'
Lena smiled. 'You did more than you think, trust me on that.'
'It… may be better if you stay away from Mr Alvarez for now,' Supergirl said, 'he may be the one who wants you dead, after all.'
'Of course. I'll have my staff and the police on board handle him.'
Supergirl nodded. 'I'll see you later, Lena.'
'Yes…'
She paused by the door. 'Unless there was something else?'
Lena swallowed. This wasn't the right time for this conversation at all. But there she was, her hair a little wet and a concerned look on her face when Lena didn't answer straight away.
'I was talking to Kara a little earlier.'
Her eyebrows jumped. 'Oh?'
'She seemed to think, well, it's a bit silly, really. But perhaps you'd like to meet up for a drink, or a meal, or something?'
A confused smile played about her lips. 'Like… a date?'
'Oh, no, no. I meant as friends. I'd like to get to know you more.' A pink tinge appeared on her cheeks before she could swallow the embarrassment.
She continued, 'I-I mean, it looks like I'll have some time on my hands seeing as this is falling through, and I thought you might like to…'
At last, she smiled.
'I'd like that. You could use that to call me.'
She indicated the device on Lena's wrist, and she touched the symbol for the millionth time that day.
'O-oh. Anytime I like?'
'Mmm-hmm.'
'Well, I might just do that. Thank you, Supergirl.'
She gave Lena one last smile as she left the office.
She touched the watch and wondered if Supergirl let James Olsen call on her whenever he wanted. Or was it just Lena?
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Kara changed into her human clothes and wandered down to the office. The police officers Alex dismissed still weren't back, so Kara found it easy to enter her room as Supergirl and exit as Kara Danvers.
She made her way back into the viewing room she'd watched the blast off from. According to her watch, it was 3 p.m. on earth, and most of the guests were drunk out of their minds. Kara waved away the champagne she was offered and took a seat in the viewing deck.
'Kara.'
She looked up. Lena stood over her, wringing her hands.
'What's up?'
'Come with me.'
Lena lead her out of the room and over to the conference room with tense shoulders. Kara swallowed and tried her best to look confused as she shut the door behind them.
'Are you alright?'
'No.'
Lena went on to explain the Alvarez situation, and sat back in the chair, defeated when she was done. Kara allowed her mouth to hang agape for a few seconds, deeming that necessary for effect, and then wrapped an arm around her friend's shoulders.
'Lena…'
'I know.'
'And you still have no idea what he was doing? What he was planning.'
'None. I wasn't supposed to tell you, mind. So you're going to have to act like you have no idea what I'm talking about if you see your sister.'
'That's not a problem.'
Lena sighed and stood up. 'Maybe I shouldn't have told you—I don't know. It's not like you can do anything.'
'I can be there for my friend,' Kara replied.
Lena turned and gave her a sad smile.
'That means the world to me, really. Your support… but I feel so defeated. This was supposed to be L-Corp's biggest venture yet, we were supposed to set the standard for commercial space travel.'
Kara hung her head.
'When do we head back?'
'My team say it's going to take them a few hours to change our trajectory and alert the necessary organisations on earth, and getting cleared to land will take a few hours more. So tomorrow morning, looks like.'
'The guests don't know yet.'
'Well, they're mostly drunk,' Lena sighed, 'I could use something as well…'
'So have something.'
She shook her head. 'I should remain clear-headed in case anything else crops up. A drunk boss wouldn't be much use in a crisis.'
'Fair point.'
Kara perched herself on the edge of the desk, and Lena poked her leg.
'I took your advice, you know.'
'Hmm?'
'About Supergirl. I asked her if she'd like to meet me for lunch or something when we got back to earth.'
Kara gasped. 'Like… a date?'
Lena burst out laughing. 'That's what she said! No, I meant as a friend.'
'Oh.'
'You seem disappointed.'
'I'm not, I just...Well.' Kara shook her head.
'Come on.'
'It's fine.'
Lena poked her. 'Out with it.'
'Really, it's nothing.'
'It's clearly not, and I want to know what it is.'
Kara rolled her eyes and let a half-hearted laugh escape before she said, 'you're really persistent.'
'Hey, my career's going down with this ship. I could use a distraction.'
'Okay, one: your career is not over. You're an amazing CEO. Two: I—'
The door opened, and Alex stepped in. She looked from Kara to Lena a couple of times, and sighed.
'Maggie is not going to like this,' she said.
'I haven't told her anything,' Lena said.
'Yeah, told me what?' Kara added.
Alex stared at the both of them.
'Okay,' Lena stood. 'She knows. I needed her support.'
Alex shrugged. 'Fair enough. You're both terrible liars. Lena, we've searched Alvarez's room thoroughly—there's nothing to see.'
'I see. Well, thank you for your efforts.'
'No need for thanks.'
'No, there is. You, Maggie and Supergirl have gone above and beyond.'
'That's the job,' Alex replied, but she nodded and thanked her all the same.
'Miss Luthor?'
Kara turned. By the door was a member of staff, but this time in a grey uniform. She nodded to Kara and Alex, then returned her attentions to her boss.
'Yes?'
'You're needed in the control room.'
'Lead the way.'
Lena made her apologies and followed the woman out of the room. Alex pointed at the chair.
'Sit down,' she ordered.
'What? Come on, Alex.'
'Sit.'
Kara did as she was told. Alex grabbed the arm of the chair and leaned over Kara. She shrank back into the chair a little.
'What are you doing?' Alex asked.
'Sitting?'
'Don't be smart. Kara, I know you have a thing for Lena.'
'What?' Kara felt herself blushing. 'You're ridiculous!'
'Kara. You know I can see right through your lies, right?'
'I'm not lying, Alex, and I'm done with this conversation.'
Kara made to stand up and walk away, but Alex walked over to the door and blocked it.
'I'm not doing this,' she said.
'Okay, fine,' Alex said, 'but I hope you know what you're doing. Befriending her as Kara and doing whatever it is you're doing as Supergirl—it's going to get messy. How do you think Lena's going to feel if she finds out her best friend lied about her identity?'
Kara left the room.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Lena remembered all the late nights she'd spent pouring over the designs of this place. How many hours of sleep had she missed trying to make the ship just right? She'd spent the most time in the engine and control rooms, chopping and changing the Daxamite technology, then realising the intellect of whomever built this craft was far superior to her own and changing it all back. She and her team possessed the knowledge required to understand how it worked, but not to replicate it.
Much of the rest of the ship had to be stripped away in its entirety and rebuilt—the damage it sustained when it was taken down was too great. But this was a simple task, for the technology on the upper floors was simpler to understand. When it was built back up, Lena had strove to make every area guests were allowed look as human as possible. The same couldn't be said for the base of the ship.
This was Daxamite, pure and simple. Much of what was down here could not be changed without rendering the ship unable to fly, even the décor. Splashing a coat of silver paint over the greens and blacks did little to humanise it.
Lena found herself accustomed to the style after hours spend roaming the corridors down here, but she knew some of the newer members of staff were not.
Adrian Ryans was the best pilot Lena could have hoped for. He and his team had gotten to grips with the Daxamite controls faster than any other group and were able to understand and correct their mistakes faster, as well. He was ex-army, preferred keep his head shaved and wasn't one for small talk.
'Captain Ryans,' he and Lena shook hands as she entered.
'Miss Luthor. We have a problem. Come with me.'
He directed her over to the series of control panels used to steer the ship and control almost every other aspect of the ship's habitability. A quick glance at one of the screens told her oxygen, nitrogen and carbon dioxide levels were all optimal.
Ryans lead her over to a member of his team, seated at the largest console in the room and scratching his head.
'Warner. Tell her what you told me.'
'Miss Luthor,' the man seemed a little flustered by her presence. 'I—I've tried to change our trajectory as ordered four times now, but the ship is not changing course.'
'So we're still heading further into space?'
'Affirmative,' Ryans said, 'and we're having trouble contacting earth. All we hear over the comms system is a rush of static.'
Lena placed a hand on her forehead.
'Diagnostics?'
'No problems with the ship. According to the software, every aspect of the craft is running as it should.'
'And this never happened in any of the test runs.'
'No.'
Lena turned back to the member of staff who had brought her down here.
'Get the repair team mobilized. Make them search.'
Ryans cleared his throat. 'With all due respect, Miss Luthor, there isn't much point. All scans indicate—'
'Yes,' Lena said, 'I can see what the scans indicate. But clearly they are wrong, or we would be plotting a course for earth right now!'
Ryans put his hands behind his back and stared at the floor. 'Ma'am.'
Lena sighed. 'I'm sorry, Ryans. That was unnecessary.'
'Miss Luthor?'
Another member of staff replaced the last. She wore the royal blue uniform of upstairs.
'Yes?'
'Detective Sawyer wishes to speak with you about Alvarez. She says it's urgent.'
'Let her down.'
'But that's against protocol. She could wait—'
'Damn the protocols. Bring her down here.'
'Right away.'
Ryans cleared his throat again. 'A detective, ma'am?'
Lena nodded. 'Yes.'
'Do you think it's prudent to allow her down here when—'
'Maggie is a good police officer. She may not know how to fly a ship, but her skillset may be useful.'
There wasn't a great deal Lena could do until Maggie arrived. She hated feeling like a loose end, so she marched over to one of the consoles and stared at its readings. From what she could tell, Ryans was correct in saying there appeared to be nothing wrong.
'Not sure about the paint job down here, Lena.'
Lena turned to face Maggie. 'Now you see why this area if off limits. What've you got for me?'
'Alvarez us getting worse. He's screaming and ranting about this woman and a ring, and he's making less and less sense. Some of the other guests are beginning to notice something's up, too. I've had three ask me if he's alright so far.'
Lena swore under her breath.
'Ryans, fill her in.'
Ryans gave her a concise account of exactly what the problem was, and Maggie frowned.
'This has to be to do with Alvarez,' Lena said, 'right? He must have done something.'
'Agreed,' Maggie said, 'would you mind if I checked out the engine room?'
'Not at all. One of my staff can show you the way—yes, Captain?'
'Ma'am, Detective Sawyer is no mechanic.'
'So let her take one with her,' Lena waved a dismissive hand, 'two sets of eyes are better than one.'
'I won't let you down,' Maggie said with a nod.
Lena gave her a weak smile.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Maggie missed her firearms. She always felt a lot safer with her main strapped to her hip, her backup in her right boot. Wandering around a formerly hostile ship without any form of defence made her feel naked.
The mechanic was a nervous looking man. He kept on glancing left and right, looking from Maggie's face to her badge. He did it so many times she was left wondering if this wasn't the first time he'd been in contact with the police and made a mental note to find out his name later.
'How far away is this engine room?' Maggie asked after a couple of minutes of walking in silence.
'Around this corner.'
Maggie motioned for the mechanic to stand behind her. She wasn't expecting any trouble, but it didn't hurt to be cautious.
'This area has been checked already—'
'Shh!'
She stepped inside, making sure to shift her centre of bodyweight from one foot to the other in case someone jumped her.
But the room was empty. She straightened up and motioned for the mechanic to follow her in, but still made sure he stayed behind her.
'Can I check now?' He asked.
'Okay, but—wait. What is that?'
Something caught her eye at the back of the room, underneath a panel with a series of buttons and dials on it. A square of metal coloured differently to the rest of the room—did it just eject that ring?
The lead-lined ring box. Maggie walked over and knelt down. This thing would definitely have fitted in it.
'Can I come further in?' The mechanic asked.
'Stay where you are for now.'
What was that glowing green band through the middle of the silver? Maggie reached out…
Laughter filled her ears.
'Humans… so stupid…'
