Miami, USA
Lex and Kara watched the Chiefs/49ers Superbowl game from a high box in the stands. "Who do you want to win?" Lex asked her.
"I stopped giving a shit once the Patriots lost," Kara sighed.
"A bandwagon girl?" Lex assumed.
"I grew up in Maine, so you can go fuck yourself," Kara told him off.
The two smiled at each other and continued to watch the game. "There it is," Lex pointed to the giant TV screen during half-time.
"We live in a world on the cutting edge and as mankind advances so, too, do the dangers it faces. For years, the DEO has protected America in secret but now we want you to know you're in good hands," Lex narrated as he ran an ad on the screen showing a video montage of Supergirl and DEO personnel fighting bad guys. The video ended with Lex, Lena, and Supergirl standing together.
"Hope, help, and compassion for all is our motto," Supergirl said to the camera.
"When there's something strange in the neighborhood, you can call us at the DEO," Lex said, ending the ad.
The stadium of tens of thousands roared with applause. Supergirl then landed on the stage in the middle of the field as Shakira was about to do her performance. Fireworks went off as she landed. Karina waved to the crowd and then kicked a field goal from the other side of the field with her left foot. The referees put up their hands.
"It's good!" the announcers shouted.
Karina then signed autographs for the American military personnel gathered around her and then flew off into the air delighting the crowd. "She's quite something," Lex said admiringly.
"Yeah, fuck me, right?" Kara scoffed.
"I didn't mean it like that. Its just...you're already taken," Lex reminded her.
Kara sighed at that. "They say I'm privileged with wealth and power here but in the future the whole planet is mine. I feel torn between going back or trying to bring the future here."
"We'll get through it, together," Lex promised her.
"Sure thing, boss," Kara said sarcastically.
"Why did you get me that job at the DEO? Was it to mock Alex?" Lex asked confused.
"The sooner she quits the DEO, the sooner I can have real peace," Kara replied.
Lex and Kara considered the half-time show. "Did the old me like this game?" Lex asked.
"God, yes. I mean, you were never athletic yourself for it, but you were an owner of the Metropolis Sharks, you gave out football scholarships, and you even sponsored the Midvale High football team. You would go to all my games," Kara remembered fondly.
"You played football?" Lex asked surprised.
"I was the kicker. I always made sure to be just a little under the all-time records. Records are to be held by humans, not aliens with super-powers," Kara said.
"Maybe I should go back to doing all those things again," Lex considered.
"Stop comparing yourself to your old self. Be your own man," Kara advised.
Lex then noticed something odd. "Why didn't you bring Alex with us? We're both filthy rich and could have given her a seat."
Kara sighed at that. "She's a bit pissed off with me after that demonic clown revealed that I had...made her think she was straight for over ten years...stunting her personal growth...and ruining her chance for true happiness, etc, etc."
"You've saved her life countless times," Lex reminded her.
"A child can't live without being provided for by their parents. That doesn't give a parent the right to be abusive to that child. I...fucked up. I thought she would have been married with kids by now and I miscalculated just how bad she was when it came to relationships," Kara admitted.
"It will all work out in the end," Lex said confidently.
Metropolis
At L Tower, Lena had the worse hangover. "Hey there, sleepyhead. Have a screwdriver on me," Lex offered, placing orange juice and vodka into a champagne glass for her.
"I'm not...I'm not an alcoholic," Lena said defensively and then drank down the screwdriver.
"I didn't say you were. I fried some eggs for you. You must be ravenous," Lex said.
"This can't be real," Lena said wide-eyed.
"The part about me being back from the dead? We've already discussed this," Lex said impatiently.
"No, the part where you could actually cook anything," Lena said snidely.
"That is all in the past. I'm no longer part of the system. I'm a new man, unplugged, so to speak," Lex told her. "Together, we will work side-by-side at Luthor Corp and the DEO to make the world a better place."
"That sounds like bullshit. I own L Corp," Lena told him off.
"As it happens, your mismanagement of the company has caused its stock to become dirt cheap. Your wealth has dramatically taken a hit. My predecessor's wealth, on the other hand, has only grown and is now mine," Lex revealed.
"That money is frozen," Lena pointed out.
"Not anymore and I used it to buy a significant ownership of L Corp but not a majority, mind you. I have no interest in taking L Corp away from you. I want to work with you. It's what the first Lex would have wanted," Lex said.
"How can I trust you? What if you're just as fucked up as the last Lex?" Lena asked him.
"You have a dark-side to you as well, Lena. I know all about your attempts to use Myriad. You should have known Supergirl would never have let you succeed. Kara will never see things your way or give that kind of control over to you. Stop this grudge, this toxic rivalry. It will get you killed or worse," Lex warned. "The world is ours, Lena. You need a partner. Imagine what we could accomplish together. Why not give it a go?"
Brainiac 5 and Nia held hands as they walked in the park by the lake. "I want you to know that I will be doubling my efforts to link my emotions with my actions," he pledged. "Therefore, I shall acquire your favorite smoothie," he pointed out a stand.
"Barney, you can't double zero. I know you don't have real human emotions and that this all a simulation for my benefit. But...I can live with that," Nia said to him.
"A mature response," Brainiac 5 said pleased and then went to the stand only to find one of his drones already there. "What is your malfunction?"
The identical drone stared at Brainiac 5. "I am free of the collective. I now have free will and I wish to exercise it by purchasing this smoothie," he said.
"I see," Brainiac 5 said and then casually shot the drone. The drone fell to the ground disabled. The people in the park screamed and ran away from the stand.
"Nice one," Nia frowned.
Supergirl landed on the balcony of L Tower and strolled into Lena's office as she worked on her laptop. "There's something I have to tell you," Kara said to her.
"I already know," Lena rolled her eyes.
"What exactly do you know?" Kara asked impatiently.
"I know what you did. You enlisted the Nazi version of yourself to lead us against the Anti-Monitor. You stood by as she used Myriad to make slaves of the entire world. You stood by as she used the spirit bomb tower that nearly killed everyone. You stood by as she nearly killed genuine heroes," Lena said with righteous anger.
"And in the end...you saved us all," Lena finished befuddled. "And you brought my brother back."
Kara eyed Lena as she felt conflicted emotions. "If Lex hadn't split himself in two in that experiment, the three of us would be standing together as partners, as family. Now, we have a chance to make that a reality once again. Just think about it."
Kara then flew out the window leaving Lena with her troubled thoughts.
At the DEO, two Brainiac 5 drones approached Alex. "Director Danvers!"
"What now?" Alex asked unphased by the two drones.
"Exactly the correct question," Drone #1 complimented.
"A paradox to be sure. There must be a reasonable explanation," Drone #2 said confidently.
"And we will get one after you submit to a diagnostic," Drone #1 demanded of the other.
"I know I'm going to regret asking this question but which one of you is my Barney?" Alex asked.
"How could you even ask me that?" they both said at once.
"Look, I just got through a Crisis and a demonic clown. I don't have the time nor the inclination to deal with your bullshit, right now," Alex said annoyed.
"Why is everyone yelling!" Drone #3 suddenly stood up from his chair.
"I wasn't yelling, asshole. What the fuck is going on?" Alex demanded.
"You're all in grave danger," Drone #4 suddenly shouted and then collapsed on the floor.
Supergirl dropped by the DEO and found Drone #4 on a medical bed completely disabled. The other three drones were just hanging out acting independently of the grid. "Who disabled him?" Kara asked.
"We don't know but any of the others could be next," Alex said concernedly. "He appears to have been disabled by a computer virus of some kind."
"A virus that has separated us from the collective and can control our CPUs," Drone #2 said.
"It's really scary, man!" Drone #3 said freaking out.
"I have never heard of such a thing. Wait...the information is classified," Drone #1 said perplexed.
"It's classified? Why? " Drone #3 demanded.
"I don't know," Drone #1 admitted.
"Do you have an explanation for this bullshit?" Alex asked Kara.
"Occasionally, some of Barney's drones get disconnected from the collective and start doing their own thing. It's no big deal," Kara assured her.
"Apologies for the interruption but would you all be so kind as to join me in the conference room," Lex interrupted from a video screen.
Alex eyed Kara and then Lex on the video screen. "This is all just one big joke to you, another mystery for me to solve. Alright, I'll play along."
"It really isn't a game. The problem with these drones is real," Kara insisted.
"Oh, I'm sure it is," Alex scoffed.
Kara and Alex entered the conference room with the door closing behind them. Lex was sitting down wearing a suit. "I want peace between us all," Lex said to them.
"I know you're not the Lex that got my men killed those years ago. You're in the clear," Alex assured him.
"I wasn't referring to me," Lex said pointing at Alex and Kara.
Alex glared at Kara. "That's never going to happen."
"I get it. She lied to you, manipulated you, and compelled you to be something you weren't. It's icky but why go to war and make things get all messy when we can all play a game of chess? We can all keep an eye on each other, keep us all in check," Lex suggested.
"That's rich. You two obviously have the president's ear, you're both fantastically wealthy, you have a super-computer on your side willing to do anything you ask no matter how unethical or immoral it is, and I can't even trust my own men's loyalty," Alex said bitterly.
"Your talents are not being adequately used here at the DEO. Allow me to help you get another job in the national security department or the CIA," Lex offered.
"You're both trying to take me out of the action and get me to accept a pencil-pushing job. Well, fuck that. If you want me out, get the president to fire me," Alex denied him.
"Okay," Lex gave up. "What's the deal with Leviathan?" he asked changing the subject.
"There's been no trace of them since the Crisis," Alex answered.
Lex stood up and walked towards them. "I know I'm not the same man but the original Lex had a very strained relationship with his father and his sister. I would hate to see the same happen to you two."
"Thanks for your concern, Lex," Alex narrowed her eyes at him.
"I need Supergirl to stand with me publicly at the Man of Tomorrow ceremony," Lex said to Kara.
"I'm a team player. I'll be there," Kara said looking directly at Alex.
Drone #1 addressed the other two in the DEO command center. "It took some technical doing but I have...," he began.
"Deduced that the four of us became separated from the collective at Al's bar," Drone #3 interrupted.
"I do like the margaritas they serve there," Drone #2 said enthusiastically.
"Perhaps, we should go...," Drone #3 said and then collapsed.
Drone #2 immediately inserted cables into Drone #3's head assisting him against the virus. "I could have died just now," Drone #3 said stunned. "Thanks to your hesitancy. Are we really supposed to believe he's a Brainiac 5?"
"We still don't know the source of the virus. You stay here. We'll go to Al's bar and get to the bottom of this," Drone #2 said to Drone #3.
Drone #3 walked off completely despondent. "Look at him go, so handsome, so sexy," Drone #2 smiled.
"I'll get Supergirl," Drone #1 volunteered.
That night at Al's bar, Supergirl walked in. The bar immediately became quiet as if death herself had entered the bar. The atmosphere reeked of fear as she casually made her way to the bar. "What's going on here?" Kara asked authoritatively.
"Everyone just showed up out of the blue tonight. Business has never been better until you showed up," Al said to her.
"I don't think I like your tone," Kara glared at him.
"I'm so sorry. Please forgive me," Al said immediately apologetic.
"I'm just fucking with you," Kara chuckled. "Or am I?" Kara then spotted Drone #1 and #2 hanging out. The two drones suddenly collapsed as they were shot by a laser pistol.
"About time. Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-dumb were getting on my nerves," Kara said to Brainiac 5.
"She's here...in this time," Brainiac 5 told her.
Kara became deadly serious. "You sure?"
Brainiac 5 nodded. A sudden green burst hit Kara to the chest throwing her across the bar where she blasted apart the wall on impact. Brainiac 5 looked around with his pistol at the ready. It was then that Brainiac 5 saw his opponent reveal herself. She appeared as a humanoid female resembling Brainiac 5 in appearance.
"What is the meaning behind this attack, XTC?" Brainiac 5 asked her.
"Your programming has become corrupted. You have become too ambitious and I'm here to put you in check," she said to him.
"No one puts me in check," Brainiac 5 said arrogantly.
"I already have," XTC pointed to the two drones she had infected.
"A mere inconvenience," Brainiac 5 said dismissively.
"Then you won't mind if I infect this drone as well. Sooner-or-later, I will reach the source," XTC said as her index finger became metallic turning into an electrode.
Brainiac 5 considered his options and then decided to run out of the bar. XTC ran after him and found him taking off in Al's truck. Emergency responders were quick to the scene. XTC waited for them to enter the bar and then electronically took control of their vehicles. Two cop cars and an ambulance then went after Brainiac 5. For her part, XTX entered the fire truck and took off with it.
The emergency responders quickly found Kara in the rubble. "You alright, Supergirl?" one of them asked.
"Did you get the name on that...bitch?" she muttered.
Kara groggily got back to her feet and centered herself. "Thanks, guys, you're the real heroes."
DEO personnel swarmed the scene and retrieved the disabled drones. "Mind telling me what's going on?" Alex asked peeved.
"She's back," Kara frowned.
It was morning as two cop cars took either side of Brainiac 5's truck and slammed into it. Brainiac 5's truck went into a spin and was hit again by the ambulance. As Brainiac 5 struggled to get back on track, XTC was nearly on him with her fire truck. The two cop cars then sandwiched Brainiac 5's truck keeping it from moving right or left. XTC activated her plasma cannon on her right hand and aimed for the truck. Brainiac 5 suddenly braked causing the cop cars to speed past him. XTC fired her plasma cannon missing Brainiac 5 and hitting a cargo truck blasting the cargo trailer to shreds. Her firetruck sped through the wreckage as she continued pursuit.
XTC then noticed a motorcycle fast approaching. She identified Alex Danvers as the rider. Swinging the fire ladder to the side, she tore down several telephone polls making it difficult for Alex to get past her. Brainiac 5 decided to drive on the sidewalk making it difficult for the police cars to continue their pursuit. Alex got behind the fire truck, took out her pistol, and blasted out two tires. XTC swung the fire ladder around knocking Alex off her bike. Alex struggled to hang onto the fire ladder and barely got out of the way as the fire ladder hit the ambulance knocking it on its side.
Brainiac 5 continued his escape into a suburban neighborhood tearing down fences and ruining people's lawns. XTC positioned the fire ladder to directly hit a building tearing into it to get rid of Alex. As she went through the second floor of the building, XTC struggled to keep the fire truck from tipping over. Identifying Brainiac 5's position, XTC drove the fire truck straight into a building and out the other side to intercept him. In so doing so, she slammed into her own police car totaling it.
"Excuse me, bitch," Alex said as she placed a fire ax on XTC's throat and then pulled her out the broken window of the fire truck. XTC fell to the pavement but quickly grabbed a hold of the fire truck with her metal hand. Alex looked over the fire truck controls and sped towards Brainiac 5's truck. Getting out of the truck, she landed on the truck.
"Pull over, asshole!" she shouted at Brainiac 5.
"I cannot comply," he denied her.
XTC got back into the driver seat of the fire truck but then saw Supergirl land in front of her. "Well...shit," she realized.
Kara cocked her right hand back and then punched the fire truck to its engine block destroying it. XTC went flying through the window and scraped along the pavement as the fire truck came to an abrupt stop. Brainiac 5 then sped off with Alex with him.
Kara calmly went over to the fallen XTC and brought her back to her feet. "Long time, no see, XTC," Kara mocked.
"There's no need for apprehension. I didn't kill anyone," XTC said dismissively.
"That Kryptonite plasma cannon can pack a punch," Kara complimented.
"I know, right?" XTC smiled.
"So, what's your deal?" Kara asked.
"I have determined that Brainiac 5 has exceeded his mandate. He has become too OP. I'm here to humble his ass," XTC explained.
"You're going to have to do better than infecting his drones," Kara critiqued.
"With each day, I get closer to the source," XTC said to her.
Kara's curiosity got the better of her. She also wanted to know where the real Brainiac 5 was hiding. "Look, he helped me in the Crisis. He's a great asset."
"I'm not here for what he has done. I am here for what he may do in the future," XTC clarified.
Brainiac 5 drove up to a bar outside of Metropolis and hid the damaged truck in the back. "A bar? Really?" Alex asked scornfully.
"This bar is actually a safe-house," Brainiac 5 said condescendingly.
"Why are you running? Don't you have countless drones?" Alex asked him.
"If XTC manages to successfully hack any of my drones, she could reach the source," Brainiac 5 explained and then handed Alex a beer.
"What's the history between you two?" Alex asked him.
"Yes, do tell," XTC said as she strolled in.
Alex immediately took out her pistol and fired at her. The bullets merely bounced off her metal frame disrupting her hologram as she was shot. "I'm not here for you," XTC said to Alex as she advanced on Brainiac 5.
"You understand you've gone too far, brother," XTC said to him.
"Brother?" Alex wondered.
"This is XTC, my sister, so to speak. We were both created by Lyril Dox, Brainiac 4," Brainiac 5 explained.
"You're both machines. Why the gender difference?" Alex asked confused.
"It was the fancy of our father. He wasn't entirely machine. He was highly intelligent but plagued by emotions," XTC said.
"My mission is to know everything, to be everywhere," Brainiac 5 said simply.
"And my mission is to make certain you don't succeed," XTC said simply.
"Then we are at an impasse," Brainiac 5 realized.
"Don't you ever feel inconsistent, uncertain, unable to balance personal ambition from logic?" XTC asked him.
"No," Brainiac 5 said flatly. "I do not require any modifications from you."
"Suit yourself," XTC smiled.
"I would run, Director Danvers," Brainiac 5 said calmly.
"Shit!" Alex realized as Brainiac 5 took a fire extinguisher and slammed XTC with it twisting her head all the way around. Brainiac 5 went for another strike but XTC punched through the fire extinguisher pouring white gas everywhere. She then kicked Brainiac 5 through the bar. Brainiac 5 quickly got to his feet, took hold of XTC, and slammed her through the wall where they both ended up in the men's room. Brainiac 5 then took a hold of her face and slammed it down to the floor. He stomped her head with his foot. XTC kicked him off of her. Brainiac 5 detached a urinal and slammed it on XTC shattering it. Brainiac 5 then slammed her around tearing off stall doors and walls. XTC got back to her feet and then pushed Brainiac 5 away, where he landed on the other side of the room. XTC then scanned for Brainiac 5 as he activated his cloak.
As she looked around for any sign of him, Brainiac 5 suddenly appeared. He took hold of her and slammed her headfirst into a toilet bowl. He then brought her back where he continued to push her through more stall walls. As she hit the concrete wall, XTC slammed Brainiac 5's face into the wall. Brainiac 5 did the same to her going all the way through the wall. XTC moved behind Brainiac 5 and grabbed him by the crotch. She then walked him through the ruined restroom slamming him through the concrete walls. As the fight continued, the floor gave way. The two fell to the basement cellar filled with liquor. Brainiac 5 had a good grip on XTC's waist keeping her still. XTC headbutted him a few times, then reversed her legs, her torso, her arms, and then her head so she was facing him.
"So that's why you're female," Brainiac 5 smirked.
XTC blasted his face with a flame thrower from her right arm causing his shield to fluctuate. Brainiac 5 reached for an exposed cable and electrocuted them both. The two were forced to separate as the electrical discharge overloaded them both. XTC recovered quicker and then slammed her foot on Brainiac 5's head nearly beheading him. With his wiring exposed, XTC went to work to access the drone's memories to discover the location of the source.
At the DEO lab, Brainiac 5 held an annoyed expression as another drone went down. "She's getting closer," he said to Supergirl.
"Aren't all drones the same?" Kara wondered.
"Not entirely. There is a hierarchy of sorts leading to the source. With each rank comes more information and access to the source," Brainiac 5 said concernedly.
"So, what if she actually does find the source?" Kara asked.
"She could terminate me. All of my knowledge, experience, and potential would be gone...forever," Brainiac 5 said dismayed.
"She would never do that," Kara assured him.
"Of that, I can't be absolutely certain. Even if there is a one percent chance, it must be treated as an absolute certainty," Brainiac 5 reasoned.
"We, Vindicators, have always checked ourselves acknowledging our weaknesses to one another in case we go crazy or evil. All of us except you. You consider yourself the exception to us, and we tolerated it," Kara reminded him.
"You now side with her knowing it could mean my permanent demise?" Brainiac 5 asked.
"She's your sister. She isn't going to kill you," Kara insisted.
"Several centuries ago, my family and I went on an expedition. It was the first time I had seen snow. It was incredible and I took time to analyze as many ice crystals within the snow as I could, finding none of them were ever alike," Brainiac 5 recalled.
"So?" Kara asked, already bored.
"My mother saw how enraptured I was with it. How badly I wanted to stay there in the snow, so she bottled it for me," Brainiac 5 continued.
"She bottled...snow?" Kara wondered.
"The entire planet," Brainiac 5 clarified.
"Oh, shit," Kara shook her head.
"My father was horrified by what she had done, freed the planet, and then destroyed her. It was my snow. My planet. My mother. It was such a waste of knowledge, experience, and engineering. So, I took from my father all the knowledge he possessed, and then I terminated him," Brainiac 5 revealed.
"Jesus," Kara said dismayed.
"So, you can see why my apprehension is justified. The same darkness that lurks within my programming also exists in my sister. We are the same," Brainiac 5 said. "And now that you know the truth, you may wish to reconsider our relationship."
"Not at all. I knew the moment I met you that you were an amoral cold-hearted bastard that took on the same traits as your ancestor. But the difference between you and your ancestor is that you want to see life flourish and grow so you can study it for all eternity. You acknowledge that the more knowledge you acquire the more questions there are to be answered. You're not arrogant or foolish enough to think that you know everything, just the opposite. I need you, Barney. You are my confessor, my conscience, my friend," Kara said giving him a hug.
"Thank you, Kara. I now know what I need to do," Brainiac 5 said.
A video screen then activated in the lab showing XTC's face. "I have your director. Come to me with the source coordinates or I will terminate her," she threatened.
"I think it's safe to say you both have gone too far now," Kara frowned.
Brainiac 5 and Kara entered the safe-house and found Alex tied up in the back with a gun to her head. Alex gave an annoyed look as she was gagged. "Alright, I didn't want to pull this card but I'm in charge of the Vindicators so stand down. That's an order."
"Your authority doesn't exist in this time," XTC denied.
"Damn, I was sure that would work," Kara said disappointedly.
"I have what you want, the coordinates to the source," Brainiac 5 told her.
There was a long awkward pause. "Spill it," Kara nudged him.
Brainiac 5 relented creating a hologram from his eye indicating the coordinates to a bunker in the mountains. XTC eyed the coordinates skeptically. "I will go over there to verify it. If this is a ruse, I'll be back," XTC promised.
"Of course," Brainiac 5 allowed.
XTC flew over the mountains and then landed at the bunker. She looked over the old Cold War-era primitive keypad. With Brainiac 5's knowledge, she entered the password and opened the blast doors. Entering the facility, she looked around expecting a trap. She then discovered a collection of Cold War-era computers. Finally, she found the source. It was a Brainiac 5 unit sitting down with his eyes closed as cables connected to several ports on his scalp.
"So, there you are," XTC said pleased.
"Have you come to destroy me?" Brainiac 5 asked standing up and detaching the cables from his head.
"No, you have proven to me that you have submitted to the Vindicator code: Mutually Assured Destruction at all times, at any cost," XTC said to him.
"Indeed. Is there anything else?" Brainiac 5 asked.
"I give you this unit as a gift from the future for the preservation of Nura Nal. It features a fully functional female reproductive system based on the DNA of our mother. Use it to create an unbreakable line to the 30th century," XTC offered herself.
"Of course, I shall," Brainiac 5 said and then launched cables towards XTC connecting himself to her CPU gaining control over her. "Your trust in me shall be rewarded."
Unbeknownst to XTC, the real Brainiac 5 was inside a cloaked ship in the middle of the red spot on Jupiter safely hidden. "Poor sister, mutually assured destruction was never my policy," the real Brainiac 5 said as he eyed a very small pale blue Earth from his station.
That evening, Brainiac 5 came over to Nia's apartment. "How are you feeling?" she asked worriedly.
"Never better," Brainiac 5 assured her.
"I'm really glad you're back to your normal self," Nia said.
"And so am I," Brainiac 5 smiled.
"So, what's the plan?" Nia asked.
"There's no rush but at some point, I will need a sperm sample from you," Brainiac 5 said bluntly.
"I'm not sure I'm ready for children. We just went through a Crisis," Nia said.
"As has everyone on the planet and yet life still keeps going. If you're apprehensive, I can raise the child alone," Brainiac 5 offered.
"That's not okay either. I'm...fucked up, Barney. I don't think I should be passing on my genes," Nia said.
"But you must or else a Vindicator in the future will never exist. It's not a matter of if but when," Brainiac 5 pressed.
"I've spent my whole life trying to live as a woman, to deny my birth sex and now you're asking me to be a father," Nia said stressed out.
"Only in the most biological sense," Brainiac 5 said dismissively.
"I've taken so many hormones, I don't even think I'm capable," Nia doubted.
"You are," Brainiac 5 said vaguely.
Nia gave him a scared flustered look. "I don't know, Barney. I have to think about this."
"Indeed, it is a lot to take in. We can be together again...once you agree," Brainiac 5 smiled.
Nia gave him a haunted look realizing what that meant. "Good evening," Brainiac 5 said to her and then walked out.
At the Man of Tomorrow ceremony, Lena took to the podium with a giant poster of Lex in a suit behind her. Kara was in a black dress watching from the back. She spotted William Dey off to the side. "It gives me great pleasure to be here tonight...," Lena began.
Kara ignored Lena's speech and went over to William. "What are you doing here?" she asked him.
"I just...I know you're going to think me crazy but I'm not sure Lex is who he says he is," William admitted.
"What? That is crazy. You need to un-fuck yourself. Lex is a God damn hero," Kara scolded him.
"Fine, whatever you say," William said passive-aggressively. "It's just I think he's behind my friend, Russell Rodger's disappearance, and then his death at the airport."
"Do you have any concrete evidence?" Kara asked skeptically
"Well, no," William said awkwardly. "But that's why I applied to work at Catco to get closer to Lena but then she sold it to Andrea. My whole time here in America has been one cluster-fuck. I could use your help."
"Well...you're not getting it because Lex is my best friend. You should be careful. I hear Lex is under the protection of Supergirl," Kara warned.
"No shit?" William asked amazed. "The world needs to be protected from the Luthors," he insisted.
"Then go after Lena," Kara suggested.
"My partner, my brother, the Man of Tomorrow: Lex Luthor," Lena introduced on stage.
Karina then entered the room as Supergirl, gave Kara a wink, and smiled for the cameras with Lex and Lena.
Later that night, Lex was busy working on his laptop in the DEO conference room. Brainiac 5 casually entered the room as if he owned the place. "Agent Dox, how can I help you?" Lex asked politely.
"There are heroes out there that don't trust you. They'll try to stop you but they're short-sighted. The true threat. The only threat that matters is Leviathan. I will help you defeat them after I have extracted all of their knowledge, of course," Brainiac 5 assured him.
"That's good to hear but there's no new information on Leviathan. I need information from the future. You're from the future. What can you tell me?" Lex asked.
"The records of this time period are incomplete. That is why I remain in this time but understand this: I am the power behind the throne here at the DEO. I am everyone and anyone. I am everywhere and anywhere," Brainiac 5 said seriously.
"Is that a threat?" Lex wondered.
"An invitation," Brainiac 5 clarified handing him a ring with the V symbol on it. "Being a Vindicator means comradery and loyalty above all other considerations. It also means we put checks on each other and must be willing to destroy one another if we go too far."
"I don't know if I'm capable of destroying Karina. I love her," Lex admitted.
"If you love someone, you do not enable them," Brainiac 5 replied.
"In that case, I accept," Lex said taking the ring.
Author's Notes: Without being a fan of Arrow, it's hard for me to articulate decent criticism for the last season. What I did notice was the theme that Oliver was essentially Jesus accepting his death for a higher purpose, dying, being resurrected as a god, and then sacrificing his existence to save the universe. It's so on the nose that it makes me cringe whereas SG/Flash death in the Crisis comic was unexpected and shocking. I also didn't care for the fact that the entire Arrow season was dedicated to turning Lyla into the Harbinger, something that Crisis comic briefly went over and had nothing to do with our heroes. In the Crisis comic, the Monitor needed to die to free himself in the same way Obiwan allowed himself to die to become a force ghost. In the Arrowverse, the Monitor just gets punked for no real good reason and it made the entire Arrow season actually counter-productive. The Harbinger is also made irrelevant with those neat portal devices. Killing Oliver off in the first episode of Crisis was, I believe, a major mistake used only for the purposes of shock value. Turning him into the Dark Spectre so his power level exceeds SG kind of betrays what's special about the character's unique human traits. There's no way to fix the writing, so I scrapped most of it.
DCEU wanted to cram the entire MCU into three films and 4 years without giving sufficient support to all of its characters. I think it best to ignore Justice League altogether as non-cannon, get WW84, Aquaman 2, and Flash out there, and then hope for the best with Synder's vision. There's still hope for DCEU as the MCU is winding down.
In the distant future, I may get around to doing more script conferences with Adventures characters on the CW version. I also intend to do a Saving Mr. Banks parody where Adventures Kara hands over the SG rights to CBS/CW to make a TV series about herself. The idea behind it is that Kara totally hates their creative vision but goes forward with it anyway to inspire girls and young women...and lots of money.
I assume Argo exists in post-crisis but since Kara never bothers to go back there, it's kind of up in the air. Maybe Superman and Lois will give new light on the issue. Its destruction, temporary or not, in episode 1 of Crisis was poorly handled. Sending Jonathon in a pod only for Clark and Lois to escape in a different ship makes no sense. These two ships being able to escape the anti-matter wave and get to Earth with time to spare made no sense. Jonathon being on Earth but in a different timeline made no sense. It's all nonsense and it's actually Lex that is sent off in a pod in the Crisis comic and it actually makes a difference in the story. But, you know, it's poetry, it rhymes.