I woke up and felt terrible. My arms were heavy, my chest hurt, my head pounded, and I felt sick. I looked around and realized that I was in the DEO. I stood up and started to walk around. For some reason, people were being extremely irritating. They would just brush by me. Did I do something wrong? Did I hurt someone?

As I walked around, I found Alex in her lab. She was hunched over and silent. "Alex, are you okay?" She didn't respond to me. "Alex? Alex! Did I do something to piss you off?" I placed my hand on her shoulder and she didn't even respond. I leaned over and I saw that she was crying. "Alex? What happened?" The door opened and J'onn walked through the door. Alex turned around immediately. "They give you anything?"

J'onn shook his head. "Tycho and his men aren't speaking." Alex stood up abruptly. "What's going on?" I questioned. She stomped over to the door, but J'onn stopped her. "Violence won't solve anything. Beating them up won't do anything."

What was happening? "Will Hamilton let me go and-" J'onn crossed his arms. "I'm not sure that's wise." Alex balled up her fists. "If you think that you'll stand in my way, you're fucking wrong." She seethed. "Alex!" I shouted at her. Alex walked right through the door and down the hall. I glanced over at J'onn. It seemed like he saw me, but also like I wasn't there.

I rushed after Alex. "Alex! Wait!" We made our way back to the isolation room. What I saw laying there shocked me. It was, well, me.

I was as pale as the sheets I was laying on. The blue and red from my suit was such a stark contrast from my skin. I noticed that the suit was ripped to just under the house crest. I saw bandages wrapped around my stomach. I could see blood seeping through.

My lips were so blue they looked almost gray. There were solar panels all around me.

There were a few lines connecting me to the many machines around me. There was a tube shoved down my throat and another in my nose.

I could see the dried blood on my face and neck, from when I started to choke. My hair was stained red, probably when my head was slammed to the floor. There were stains as well on the skin on my arms. Bruises dotted my skin, some looking almost black from the excessive internal bleeding.

I started at Alex for a second, then back at myself. I couldn't believe this. What was happening? I watched as Alex grabbed my hand and held it tight.

I expected myself to feel her warm hand, but I only felt numb and cold. I didn't even feel myself breathing. My throat felt dry and I began to shake. I watched as the EKG monitored my heart and I listened to the slow animated beats. I glanced over at all my vitals, and I noticed that I was barely holding on. I tried to take in a breath, but air felt stuck in my lungs. "Just breathe, Little One." I heard a voice whisper.

I turned around and I thought I saw my mom for a second. But instead it was Astra. I tried to breathe, but I felt like my trachea was closed. "It's just your imagination. You're in shock. Breathe. In and out. In and out."

Slowly, I regained my composure. "Aunt Astra? I don't get it. What happened? Why am I like this? Why are you here?"

She smiled sadly and tucked a hair behind my ear before changing it into a frown. "You were stabbed, Kara. Tycho's men had you preoccupied and he stabbed you as you were distracted." I shook my head. "I don't get it. How did he stab me?" She placed a hand on my shoulder. "On Krypton, we made many enemies. Some of them were even more advanced than we were. The Dherons were a race that were at war with us. They found a way to fuse what you call Kryptonite and the metal together. My guess is that Tycho got his hands on some Dheronian metal, most likely from a meteor."

I glanced down to Alex's silent form and my unmoving body. "Why am I here?" Astra glanced down at my body. "When our bodies encounter anything so painful and traumatic, we find ways to escape. You lost quite a bit of blood, and the kryptonite circling through your veins isn't allowing you to heal. This is your way of slowly acclimating yourself to the pain." She walked to my other side. "And I am here as a figment of your subconscious to guide and help you back there."

I sat down my Alex's side. "So, no one can hear or see me?" Astra shook her head. "This body you are now is also just a figment to help your mind accept what has happened. You are still laying in that bed, but your mind is wandering."

I watched Alex as she held onto my hand and looked onto my face with despair in her eyes. "Kara, please be okay. Please wake up. I know you're in a lot of pain. And if I could, I would wish it all away. I would do anything to get you out of this situation."

She held my one hand in both of hers as she leaned forward. "I would trade places with you in an instant. I hate that this happened to you, but you need to be strong, please. I believe in you and I'll be damned if this is what slows you down."

She lowered her head and I expected her to cry. But it was more than crying, it was the kind of desolate sobbing that comes from a person drained of hope. I grimaced and I wanted to cry, but exhaustion wouldn't let me. Everything was looked gray and I was feeling faint. Alex's head shot up and she stood. The chair went clattering to the floor. "Kara! Stay with me!" She cried out. She jammed the button over my head.

Dr. Hamilton and a few others came running in. "What is happening?" Alex questioned. Dr. Hamilton glanced at all the monitors and her eyes went wide. "Where is James Olsen?" Alex was confused. "What? Why do you need Olsen?" Dr. Hamilton ran from the room and Alex and I chased after her. Sitting in lab was James, Winn, Iris, Barry, Joe, Caitlin, Cisco, and somehow, Miss Grant.

They all looked up to Dr. Hamilton with extreme worry. "Call Superman here now!" She shouted. James opened his watch and pressed the hidden button. "Why do you need Superman?" Miss Grant asked. "He's the only one that I can think of who can give Supergirl a blood transfusion." The atmosphere in the room turned gloomy. "It's that bad?" Winn asked in a small voice.

I noticed that he wasn't wearing his clothes from work. He was now dressed in DEO clothes that looked a bit big on his frame.

I saw that his, and everyone's eyes were tinted red, they were crying. Of course, though, Miss Grant was trying to look like the strongest one. But instead she looked like one of the worst. A flash of blue and red came into the room. "What's happened?" Kal asked. No one spoke for a second, seeming like no one wanted to break the news to my cousin.

Dr. Hamilton was the one to speak up. "Superman, your cousin was seriously hurt while fighting off Simon Tycho. She isn't doing well at all; she was stabbed. I believe that you are the only one to give her blood. If not-" She didn't finish her sentence, but Kal got the idea. His posture changed immediately. "Let's go." They ran off and I couldn't stand. Everything was brighter and I could feel my head pounding like a drum.

"Stay strong Little One. You can get through this. Fight, your loved ones are waiting for you." That was the last thing I heard and I fell back into the darkness.

I woke up some time later and felt a bit better. Even though I felt nothing close to what I was, I still was extremely weak. I looked over my body and to my side and saw a blood bag connected to my arm. I stood up and scanned myself. I looked about the same as before, but the blood was no longer on my face or neck. The red stain was gone and my lips weren't as gray. The room I was in was dark. I guessed that it must've been extremely early in the morning.

I decided to go back to where everyone was waiting. Mostly everyone was asleep on cots or the ground. Winn was the only on wide awake. He was staring up at the ceiling with dark eyes. I watched as he stood up, and walked to the room holding my body. He sat down far enough away to show that he wanted to be there next to me, but was afraid to hurt me, if it was possible.

He took in a deep breath as tears threatened to fall. "Kara, please wake up, we're all waiting for you. Everyone is out there for you. Why? Because you are so strong every day, when everyone else needs it. Whenever you walk into a room, you'd be the brightest person in there."

He smiled for a second. "Everyone would turn to admire your strength and fearlessness. But being strong isn't being free of fear, it's the exact opposite. Sometimes it means pushing on through the worst for others, and considering yourself at a lower priority. Yet, it takes true strength, which I know is in you, to look after yourself too."

He sniffled and wiped away some tears. "You always said that your parents sent you here to protect Kal. But we are all born to protect those we love, to be the angels of our better nature. All of this is strength. Be strong, please." He held his head in his hands and let his tears run freely. I placed my hand on his shoulder. "It's okay Winn."

I knew he wouldn't hear me, but it made me feel closer to him and everyone else who weren't locked in this subconscious state. "How do I get back?" I sobbed.

Winn left a few minutes after that. I sat on the edge of the bed, trying to find out how I could wake up. Everyone wanted me to. It wasn't until a few hours later when I figured out if I concentrated enough, I could start feeling again. It almost drained all my energy though, dealing with all the pain and senses. I took in a deep breath and pushed through a thick fog.

I opened my eyes and found myself laying on the bed. Everything was extremely disorientating and I was confused. Where was I again? Pain burned through my body and I fought back the darkness.

I felt something grab my hand. Someone was talking to me, but I didn't hear them. I looked to my side and I saw blurs of all my loved ones. They were all being held back from the room by DEO agents. The tube in my throat was causing me to gag and my head started to pound. They were trying to hold me down and I pushed them off. Another few hands pushed me down onto the bed. Someone injected something into my arm and I couldn't hold back the darkness any more.

I woke back up and I saw my body laying back down. The tube was now gone from my mouth, but an oxygen mask was covering my face. My legs felt like a thousand pounds, but I still walked back to the lab. There, everyone was talking to each other. "Why was she fighting everyone like that?" Iris asked. "She was probably in shock. I've read a bunch of medical reports that patients in ICUs react strongly after waking up from their comatose state. Some are extremely confused and don't understand why they are there. Other people forget completely. And some are aware the entire time."

Caitlin explained to the group and everyone shifted from the tension in the room. "I just can't believe that Alex almost punched one of her own DEO agents to get to Kara." Cisco stated. Everyone turned to him with large eyes. Then they all looked over to Miss Grant. My heart felt like it dropped. Oh no, she knows.

Miss Grant rolled her eyes. "Oh please, I already had my suspicions and it was confirmed when Wit tried to help her. He tore her shirt open to get a better look at the wound. I saw her suit underneath." She paused for a second to regain her famous personality. "What do you all take me for? One of those journalists from the Daily Planet? We all know who Superman is." She waved her hand nonchalantly. "Man, Kara is going to kill me." I heard Winn whisper as he slouched in his chair.

I stared at Winn and I realized why he was wearing DEO clothes. He was covered in blood. He was covered in my blood. He was the one trying to stop me from bleeding out. I swallowed thickly. Now I understood why it seemed to be hitting Winn the hardest out of my friends.

I felt tired so I headed back to the isolation room. On my way, back to the room, I saw Alex sitting in one of the empty armories with her eyes closed and a defeated look on her face.

As I walked through, I noticed that J'onn was watching her too. He was just outside the door. He sighed and walked in. I followed him. "Are you okay Alex?" She didn't answer. "Alex?"

She stood up quickly. "No, J'onn, I'm not okay. Have you seen my sister? Have you seen how weak she is? Did you not see what state she is in? It's been almost a month and the only thing we have is her waking up only to be put back under by sedatives!" I could see her figure shaking.

J'onn rested a hand on her shoulder. "Alex, it's natural for you to be feeling this way. But Kara is still recovering. Her body knows what is best for her. We can't just wake her up because it's been a month. We could cause more damage if we don't let her wake up when she is ready. She lost a lot of blood." He whispered the last sentence.

I heard the smallest voice crack at the end. It was strange to hear J'onn get emotional. Alex sniffed quietly and J'onn grabbed her in a hug. "It's so strange to see her laying there. I feel like every time we end up back here. Her in the isolation room and me waiting for her to wake up." I could see the tears building up in her eyes.

J'onn pulled her closer and lifted her chin to meet her eyes. Tears streamed down her face. "That feeling of darkness, emptiness, you feel is fear, Alex. Fear is a part of being human. It's the precursor to bravery. We need it to make us do what needs to be done. Feel it, own it, and let it ignite your drive." He stated with emotion lacing in his voice.

I could tell that he was trying to be strong, but I knew better. He was trying to make Alex feel better while doing the same to himself. I smiled weakly at them. "Thank you J'onn." I stated and walked back to my bed.