Whoo, let the action begin!

Thank you all for the lovely beautiful reviews. I read them all and they encourage me greatly. I am so glad you're enjoying this story.

Also, get ready for a one-way ticket into angst-land. It's coming.

Disclaimer: I do not own Supergirl.

When Alex opened her eyes and saw Kara's empty bed, she thought for one heart-stopping moment that Kara had been taken again.

Then she had shifted slightly and found the Kryptonian curled on the floor against the bars, hand still on Alex's. They had played games and talked long after the lights were turned off until finally Kara had been unable to keep her eyes open and fallen asleep still holding Alex's hand.

"J'onn, where are you?" Alex cast her silent call out into the void. "J'onn, I really need you to come get us." Then, unbidden, fear rose. "Are you even alive?"

She couldn't handle the possibility that J'onn hadn't been victorious in whatever fight had knocked his comms out, so she discarded the thought.

"We're really going to have to talk about promptness when I get out of here," Alex pushed the thought forward.

Suddenly, the lights brightened and the door down the hall opened, pulling Alex's attention away from flinging messages out into space.

Oh no. Oh no oh no oh no…. Alex watched as a group of guards made their way down the hall. Her grip on Kara's hand tightened and the girl stirred slightly beside her.

No no no…

The guards came closer, heading straight to Kara's cell.

"Come on," Alex tried reasoning with them as they unlocked the door. "She's injured already…"

At her words, Kara woke up, blearily opening her eyes.

The guards stepped into the cell.

"Hey, just leave her alone," Alex was almost pleading. "You don't need to do this."

Kara's cerulean eyes widened as she sat up and she pressed herself as close to Alex as possible with the bars between them. She was silent, jaw set as she watched the guards approached, and Alex's heart ached at her bravery.

"Don't do this," Alex could hear the desperation in her own voice as she tried to get the guards to stop. "Please. Leave her alone. You can take me instead."

"No!" Kara's response was immediate, her whole body tensing. "Alex, no!"

The guard in Kara's cell paused, looking back at the others.

"Alex, no," Kara pleaded. "It's okay, just let them…"

"Come on," Alex cajoled the guards. "You know you want to get back at me for beating up your friend. This is your chance."

For a moment the guard seemed to consider it but then he turned away.

"Those aren't our orders." The guard grabbed Kara's arm and easily yanked the girl to her feet, eliciting a soft whimper of pain.

As Kara's hand was torn from hers, Alex jumped up even as her own injuries screamed in protest. "Kara!"

"It's okay Alex."

Alex caught one last glimpse of Kara's pale face before the young Kryptonian was pulled away.

The time that followed was torture.

Alex couldn't sit still; instead she paced the length of her cell trying not to think about what was happening to Kara in that time and attempting to keep her desperation from leaking out in the form of tears. Alex Danvers did not cry.

"J'onn, this would be a really good time for you to tune in."

A guard came by with food and Alex taunted him with the foulest obscenities and worst insults that she could muster, hoping to bait him into a fight. He ignored her and Alex ignored the food. She felt far too sick to even think about eating.

After what felt like eternity, Alex allowed herself to sit on the cot in her cell, resting her head briefly in her hands.

Why?

That was what she wanted to know.

Why were they doing this to Kara? And why did Alex care so much that it felt like her own soul was being crushed?

It really was only the second question that she didn't have an answer to. The almost instinctual need to protect the younger being was tearing the agent apart.

Because despite her training and skills and prowess, Alex was helpless and completely unable to shield Kara from harm.

If, no when, Alex got Kara out of this hellhole, she would make sure the Kryptonian was never hurt again.

Sighing, Alex picked up the empty first aid kit, turning the sturdy plastic over in her hands.

It wasn't much but she might be able to make a rudimentary weapon that could do some damage.

Carefully she leveraged the box against the bars, managing to crack the cover into two pieces. Picking up the larger one, she worked on forming it into more of weapon shape by scraping it against the bed frame. It wasn't particularly fun but it beat pacing and at least felt slightly productive.

Just as Alex was actually getting an edge on the plastic, the door down the hall opened and she quickly hid the plastic pieces in her boot before springing up, blossoming hope quickly dying as she saw the two approaching guards were alone.

"Where is she? Where is Kara?"

They didn't answer, their menacing grins telling her exactly what their intentions were.

"Ah. Revenge time," Alex spat, taking a few steps back from the door to give herself ample room to maneuver whatever came next. "Question. Is this going to be your revenge on me for beating up your asshole friend or my revenge on you for torturing innocent beings?" Exhilaration and adrenaline filled her as she taunted the approaching guards. Finally she could do something.

"Put your hands up." The door had opened and the first guard was edging in, gun raised.

Alex let a smile curve her lips even as she raised her hands. They were afraid of her.

While one guard held the gun on her, the other drove his fist into her stomach. She doubled over then dropped to her knees.

They laughed, one of them kicking her, and she allowed herself to be thrown to the ground and endured the next couple blows with exaggerated groans of pain. She needed them to think she wasn't a threat.

It worked.

The gun was held casually, almost forgotten, as they taunted and jeered at her, bloated with power.

It was really a fine honed skill, knowing the right moment to act, and Alex had plenty of practice.

In a moment she had leapt to her feet and slammed the first guard against the bars, kicking the gun out of his hand.
As he slumped to the floor, she dove for the gun, only for it to be kicked away in the clumsy advances of the second guard who was already reaching for his weapon.

If he drew his gun, Alex knew she was done for and Kara's hopes for rescue were dashed.

Reacting on instinct, Alex pulled the sharpened plastic shard from her boot and lunged at the guard.

It was far more effective than Alex had anticipated.

She didn't have time to process the blood everywhere and the fact that she had taken a life as the first guard groaned behind her.

Quickly Alex tore off his combat helmet and slammed his head against the cement to render him unconscious.

And then it was quiet, furious action cutting off into stillness.

Shaking with adrenaline, Alex slowly stood up.

The cell door was still open.

There were two guns on the ground.

The guards had their access IDs still on them.

This was her chance to get Kara out of this living nightmare.

Quickly Alex took the uniform from the unconscious guard, this one only minimally blood stained as opposed to the other one, and pulled it on.

It was a bit too big, but with the full body armor and helmet that obscured her face, Alex was confident she could go undetected long enough to find Kara. People never saw what they weren't looking for.

Taking the guns and ID tags, Alex stepped out of the cell. She only paused to close the door behind her before heading down the hall to the door that Kara had been taken through.

Time to finally find out what was going on out there.

Taking a deep breath, she pushed open the door to find another hall. And at the end of this hall was what looked like a medical ward. People in white lab coats roamed between tables, flipping through clipboards, writing down notes, chatting in groups…

Alex walked with her head high, purposefully slow in her stride, trying to act as though she belonged. Nobody even looked at her twice.

Although she was carefully to only look straight ahead, she could see them on the peripheral of her vision: different aliens lying on tables and beds, some barely visible through the technology and tubes surrounding them.

Alex's stomach dropped to her toes and she was suddenly overwhelmed with the feeling that she was going to be sick.

Keep going. Keep going.

She was about to go to the next hall when a posted number beside a door leapt out at her.

Alien #379.

Kara.

One hand on her gun, Alex opened the door to find a woman clad in a white coat staring straight at her.

"Ah, good timing. I was about to request some muscle for back up." The scientist promptly turned back to whatever she was doing, paying no further attention to Alex.

Instead her sharp eyes turned back toward the figure lying in the bed, adjusting wires and tubes.

Kara.

It took everything in Alex to keep herself from lunging forward and destroying the scientist right there.

"I'll need you to hold it down when I take the spinal fluid sample," the scientist glanced up and Alex realized the doctor was referring to Kara.

She closed the door behind her before stepping forward slowly.

Oh god, Kara.

She wasn't sure if Kara was conscious or not; her bright blue eyes were closed and the Kryptonian's breathing was shallow and labored. An IV ran from her hand and wires were taped across her forehead but other than that, Alex didn't see obvious signs of injury. In fact, the deep cut that had been at Kara's brow was completely gone.

Although every fiber of Alex's being was screaming at her to grab Kara and get her away, she forced herself to stand still.

She only had one chance to act and she had to make it count.

"Most recent exploration of spinal and frontal lobe manipulation was promising. Vitals are improving, as theorized. The power of companionship, right?" The scientist glanced at Alex and chuckled before going back to work on her tablet.

The power of companionship?

She didn't have time to figure out what that meant because her chance had just arrived; the scientist literally had her back turned as she mused over something on the tablet.

How foolish.

The scientist dropped to the floor like a stone, not even give a chance to call out. Quickly Alex propped a chair under the door before rushing back to Kara's side.

"Kara, hey, Kara," Alex cupped the younger woman's face. "Wake up for me, okay? Come on." She removed the IV as gently as she could from the Kryptonian's hand, throwing the glowing green need away. "Kara, come on, it's time to go," Alex whispered urgently.

Kara gave a soft groan, the most beautiful sound Alex had ever heard.

"Alex?" Sapphire orbs blinked open then widened with confusion. "What..."

"Oh god, Kara." Alex pulled Kara into her arms and suddenly it dawned on her that this was the first time that they were meeting without bars between them. That realization only made her hold onto Kara tighter.

"Alex… what are you doing here? How did you get here? They will kill you if they find you!" Kara clung to her.

Alex loosened her grip on Kara, pulling back slightly so she could meet the young Kryptonian's gaze.

She was caught again by the selfless care in the young woman's eyes. She quickly kissed the girl's forehead before pulling her back into a fierce hug. "It's time to get out you out of here."

"They will kill you," Kara repeated, voice saturated with fear. "Alex, you're putting yourself in danger."

Alex squeezed Kara close briefly before reluctantly letting her go so she could take stock of the situation. "That's my job," she flashed Kara a quick smile before scooping up the tablet that had clattered to the ground. "This thing has got to have a map of the facility. And if anything goes wrong, I'll create a distraction and you get as far away as you can, okay?" She quickly pulled off the bulletproof vest she had taken from the guard and quickly pulled it onto Kara.

"No," Kara was shaking her head, trying to take the vest off. "No, Alex, no."

"What do you mean, no?" Alex caught Kara's hands, preventing her from removing the vest. They were running out of time, they would be discovered any moment. But Alex had to get Kara on board because as hard as it would be to escape with a cooperative Kara, it would practically impossible to make it out with a resistant Kara.

"You have to go without me. With your disguise, you could get out if you're quick enough. Taking me with you… I'll slow you down and they'll never let me go. It'll just get you killed." Even when she had been pulled out of the cell to face torturous treatment, Kara hadn't looked this afraid. "If you leave now, you could get out and maybe once you're safe you could send help to come get me."

Alex's brow furrowed as she realized what Kara was saying.

"Kara, I am not going to leave you." She had never felt so adamant about anything in her life even though she knew the risk. "As soon as they know I'm gone, they'll move locations, they'll move you and who knows if we'll ever find you again. I can't let that happen, I have to try to get you out of here, Kara. You deserve a life beyond this hell. I have to try and this is the only way."

"It's okay, Alex, I am at peace. I will be happy as long as you are safe," Kara looked at her imploringly. "You have to go!"

"I will not leave you."

They stared at each other for a moment, agent and alien, at an impasse.

Then something in Kara's expression shifted. "There might be another way."

I personally hate cliff hangers so I'll try not to wait too long before updating.

Bonus points if you can guess Kara's plan for getting them out of there!

Until then!

~silverliningineachcloud