Lucy shows up to help her friends out of the colossal mess they've gotten themselves into. Alex wonders if calling her was such a good idea after all and Ruby learns the truth in the worst possible way! Will a surprise visitor from the agent's past help or hurt?
"So let me get this straight," Lucy mused as she paced Lena's living room, her stiff dress uniform looking especially out of place in the lavish setting. "Sam, your Sam, is actually Reign?" She asked leveling a glare at Alex.
"Yeah..." the agent conceded.
"And now, there are two more Worldkillers? And Sam is somehow a prisoner in her own body? And you and the kid are in danger from Reign because she knows what you mean to Sam. Did I miss anything?"
"That's kind of the cliff notes version but...yeah." Alex sighed, waiting for Lucy to digest the mountain of information just dropped on her.
"And Kara is where?"
"Off-world with J'onn trying to find a mineral that will hopefully cure Sam and the others."
"Jesus, Danvers!" Lucy stared at her, mouth agape. "How the hell do you get yourself wrapped up in this stuff?"
"Well my sister is an alien, so..."
"Right." Lucy scoffed, arms crossed. "And your new girlfriend is too?"
"Not quite, maybe, we really don't know..." Alex winced again at Lucy's characterization of Sam. If she didn't know any better she could have sworn there was an undercurrent of jealousy in Lucy's tone.
"Of course you don't!" Lucy raged, pacing once more. "Why would any of this be easy?"
"That is quite enough, Major." Lena interjected, tone clipped and borderline angry. "I convinced Alex to call you because I thought, as someone who claimed to be her friend, that you would want to help. If you're not willing to do so, you can take your leave."
Lucy stopped pacing to glare at the CEO, both shocked and impressed by the strength she was currently displaying. She could see why Kara liked Lena so much, she was obviously fiercely protective of her friends and that was something Lucy could easily relate to.
"I am her friend, Ms. Luthor." The Major asserted, trying not to sound as offended as she felt. "But this is a whole lot to take in and I'm just trying to make sense of it all."
"So are we, Major." Lena answered quietly, wrapping an arm gently around the sullen agent's shoulders. "Which is why we need all the help we can get."
"Please, Luce..." Alex's voice cut in, broken and unsure. "I can't do this without you."
The sight of her normally confident and brave friend so broken by grief over her lover had Lucy agreeing to help without further argument.
"You got me, Danvers. Whatever you need." Lucy knelt before her friend, taking Alex's hands in her own. "I'm all in. Let's go save your wife and kid!"
Alex cracked a tiny smile at that. "Sam isn't my wife..."
"Not with that attitude she won't be!" Lucy continued to tease, trying to raise her friend's spirits.
"Maybe we should defeat Reign first?" Lena questioned, levity in her tone as well. "Then we can go ring shopping for Sam later."
"You're on Luthor!" Lucy teased. "Oh and stop calling me Major. It's Lucy or nothing."
"Same goes for you, Lucy. Ms. Luthor is my mother and I have no desire to ever be her."
"No danger of that. But, dually noted."
Alex dragged Ruby through the halls of Luthor mansion, gripping the child's arm for dear life. They had to get to the safe room NOW. She'd nearly vomited when she answered her phone only to have Lucy scream at her from the other end that Reign had discovered their location just days after they had arrived. Ruby had looked suspiciously guilty but Alex had no time to decipher the look as her only focus was getting them to safety. She pushed Ruby ahead of her into the elevator as the perimeter alarms surrounding the estate went crazy.
Reign was somewhere on the property and it would only be a matter of time before she located the pair. The Worldkiller had become even more deadly having absorbed the powers of both her counterparts. Thankfully, the other women had returned to themselves but it seemed Sam was being pushed even farther away with every ability Reign gained.
The elevator doors closed just as the fearsome woman in black burst through the ceiling! Alex could hear her howl of rage through the titanium doors. She frantically pressed the distress beacon on her tactical watch even though she was sure Lucy was scrambling the cavalry to their location. The question was, would they make it in time?
The pair barreled down the armored hallway towards the Luthor vault. It was fireproof, had doubly reinforced doors and automated defenses to keep any unwanted guests out. Small wonder that Lex had utilized the space for storage of his most priceless pieces and a safe room.
Alex just hoped it would be enough to stall the Kryptonian menace intent on destroying Sam's last few threads to humanity. Reign had already gone after Patricia Arias and as much as Alex disliked Sam's mother, the woman hadn't deserved to die.
As soon as the reinforced doors slammed shut behind them, the agent guided Ruby to the farthest reaches of the room, putting as much distance between the teen and the alien threat just beyond the doors.
"Alex, I'm scared!" Ruby screamed as the sounds of destruction drew closer!
"Just stay there." She commanded the child. "Help is on the wa-"
The agent was cut off as the steel doors exploded inward, barely missing her! Alex quickly recovered, firing on the woman in black even as she dodged her counterattacks. The vault's defenses kept laying down cover fire but to no avail! Reign swiftly destroyed all obstacles in her way and in the blink of an eye, Alex found herself dangling from the Worldkiller's grasp.
"I admire your strength." Reign told her with a fond tone. "But the game has grown old. Once I have disposed of you and the child, this body will be mine."
"Leave her alone!" Alex thought she heard Ruby yell, though it was hard to tell with the blood roaring in her ears.
The next thing she knew, Reign was being thrown across the room. Alex felt weightless for just a moment before her back struck the floor, stealing the last bits of breath she had left! Her barely healed ribs sent shards of pain through her torso and her throat burned with every gasp she made. She squinted, trying to catch her breath and could barely make out what looked to be Ruby holding her alien gun.
"Mom?!"
Alex finally made it to her feet, stumbling towards Ruby. When she glanced over her shoulder, it was Sam's face smirking down on them, the black mask discarded in the blast.
"I'm sorry." Alex whispered as the child clung to her. "I'm so sorry."
"It's better this way, child." Reign grinned at the pair maliciously. "I have done you the honor of knowing the truth before you perish."
The villain's eyes glowed bright and Alex quickly positioned herself between the two knowing her body would do very little to protect Ruby from the Worldkiller's wrath!
"Alex, get down!" Imra called as she raced toward them. The agent had never been happier to see her sister's ex boyfriend's wife, than she was in that moment. She could feel the heat pouring off the shield the other woman projected and pulled Ruby tighter against her.
Suddenly, the onslaught stopped.
Imra dropped the shield to reveal Mon-El, in all his newly reformed hero glory, beating the Worldkiller back, a pair of kryptonite cuffs in one hand. Imra fired concentrated blasts of psychic energy at their adversary, keeping herself between Reign and her charges.
"Imra, now!" He shouted and the woman pulled a small device with a lead case from her hidden pocket.
With a quick push of a button, she slid the device between Reign's legs and jumped back as a domed force field quickly engulfed the villain! The green glow of the dome indicated it was clearly kryptonite-infused, supported by the bloodcurdling scream that Reign emitted when she tried to break out of it!
"No! Stop! You're hurting her!" Ruby lunged towards the dome only to be dragged back by Alex.
"It's the only way." Alex assured her, pulling the girl close to her again. "I promise we'll do everything we can to help her."
"And why should I believe that?" The teen spat bitterly pushing Alex away from her. "Why should I believe anything you say?"
Before the agent could respond, Lucy and her DEO team flooded the room herding Alex and Ruby away from the villain. "You guys okay?" Lucy asked, concern evident on her face, as they reached the main level of the mansion.
"Yeah," Alex replied, even though her entire body ached. "We're okay. Thanks for the assist." She nodded towards Imra, who had followed them up.
Though she still had mixed feelings about The Legion, their help lately had been invaluable, especially with Kara and J'onn off world until further notice. It seemed they genuinely wanted to help, even the previously less than heroic Mon-El. At this point the agent would take all the help she could get.
"Well, I wouldn't have had to send in the 'Future cavalry' if you didn't give your location away!" Lucy interrupted, her previous concern quickly replaced with anger!
"What?!"
"Someone from this location called Sam's cellphone." Lucy explained when she noted the genuine confusion on Alex's face. "I just assumed it was you... but it wasn't, was it?" Lucy questioned, her gaze falling on Ruby.
The teen fidgeted as all the adults turned their attention to her. She hadn't known then that Reign was her mother, just that Sam had been out of contact for several days. Now that she knew the truth, the girl was realizing just how much danger she had put them all in.
"I'm sorry," She whispered on the verge of tears. "I didn't know..."
"Shhh, baby, it's okay. It's not your fault, none of this is." Alex had the girl in her arms before the first tear could fall. She was relieved when Ruby didn't push her away again, though the girl remained tense.
Lucy wanted to interject that actually, yes, it had been Ruby's fault the Worldkiller had found them but one look at the girl's distraught face was enough to temper her sarcasm. Without a word, she placed a comforting hand on Alex's back as she led the pair away towards the waiting SUV. She glanced back at Imra and the heroine indicated she would stay, if only to keep an eye on the transport.
Alex stood in the dark kitchen, morosely sipping a glass of brandy. It didn't ease the ache in her heart or her bruised limbs, but the burn as it slipped down her battered throat was a welcome distraction. Ruby had fallen into a fitful sleep a few hours before, splayed out on the living room couch with the trio's favorite 'movie blanket' draped over her.
It felt wrong...
For her to be standing there in Sam's home, keeping watch over Sam's child while her lover was confined in both mind and body. There was a time, not that long ago, that the agent had considered Ruby to be her child as well. After all that had transpired, with Sam being revealed as Reign and the undeniable proof that Alex had kept it from her, she wasn't sure that Ruby still thought of her as family.
She certainly hadn't taken the discovery well...
"You lied to me!" Ruby raged, face red, tears streaming down. "You promised you would never do that!"
"I know, baby. I know." Alex set her hands gently on Ruby's shoulders; she could feel the girl tremble. "I was wrong. We all were. I broke my promise but I was only trying to protect you...like your mom asked me to..."
"What?"
"She didn't want you to see her like that. I didn't want you to see your mom differently..."
Alex had whispered the last word, unable to accept herself that Sam was different, that she was no longer the person they both loved, and that perhaps she may never be that person again.
"She-she was so mean...like she didn't even care about me... like she doesn't love me...anymore..." Ruby stuttered, her words interrupted by huge, wracking sobs as she collapsed into Alex's arms.
"No, baby, no!" Alex squeezed the girl tighter, trying in vain to use just her strong arms to protect her from the possibility of Sam truly being lost to them. "She loves you. So much, baby. That's how we get her back, we give her a reason to fight."
Ruby nodded against her chest as she whispered, "She loves you too...she told me before...before she got sick..."
Alex's heart clenched at the confirmation of Sam's feelings, at the confirmation of all they both stood to lose.
Her phone buzzed across the kitchen counter, interrupting her musings, and Alex quickly scooped it up. The agent felt her heart drop as Lucy's number flashed across the screen. She quickly ducked into the garage before answering.
"Danvers."
"Hey, it's Lucy." Alex rolled her eyes at that statement because obviously she knew.
"Yeah, what's up?"
"I thought you'd want to know that Kara and J'onn sent word that their on their way back with an ... unexpected visitor. But they got the mineral and Lena wanted you to here to analyze it but it can wait until morning. "
Alex sighed as she ducked her head into the house to note that Ruby seemed to be waking up. She had yet to even try to sleep. "No, it's fine. I can't sleep and Rubes just woke up. We'll be there in a half hour."
"Whatever you need, Alex." Lucy responded knowing she would be hard pressed to keep the agent away.
"Thanks Luce."
Before the agent could say more, there was a commotion on the other end and she heard Lucy mutter, "Well I'll be damned". There was a muffled response before Lucy spoke into the phone again. "You're gonna wanna see this Danvers, get your ass over here."
"Danvers!" A familiar voice called out to Alex as she and Ruby entered the command center.
There, standing next to Winn's workstation in all her 5'2 glory, was 'Detective Dimples'. Her hair was slightly shorter but the familiar head tilt and beat up leather jacket were just as the agent remembered. The scene was so familiar that Alex had to stop and remind herself that Maggie was her past and she was currently here to protect her future.
"Mags! What are you doing here?!" Alex exclaimed in shock, grabbing the other woman's arm and leading her down the hall, away from the group.
It wasn't that she was unhappy to see the detective; the pair's relationship had improved vastly over the past few months, she simply had not been expecting a visit from her ex in the midst of everything else that had been going on.
"I heard that there was a 'BDSM Supergirl look alike' on the loose and I came to help." Maggie replied, trying to relieve some of the tension with a joke. "I just didn't expect you'd be stupid enough to take her on without the actual Supergirl. What the hell were you thinking Danvers?!"
"Kara's...gone right now and the DEO has been dealing with alien threats long before Supergirl came out." There was bitterness to the agent's tone that Maggie didn't miss.
"Hey, I'm not trying to pick a fight Alex." Maggie explained, hands held up in surrender. "I really did come to help. Where did Little Danvers have to go in the middle of a crisis?"
"She's off-world." Alex admitted with a sigh. "Trying to find an element that will help us defeat Reign. It's a kind of kryptonite that will stop her without killing her. Hopefully, she and J'onn will be back soon."
"And why don't we want to kill the self-proclaimed 'World-killer'?" Maggie asked, hands rose again in air quotes.
"Because she has a human half as well..." Alex explained, unsure of how much she wanted to reveal. "The other Worldkillers did too but we were able to save them. They were, mostly, innocent in all this."
"I can see the moral dilemma here but we're talking about one life versus thousands, maybe more... she nearly killed Kara for Christ's sake!" Maggie argued before Alex interrupted.
"It's Sam!" She blurted out in a hushed whisper, unable to keep it in any longer. "Reign's human counterpart...it's... Sam..."
"What do you mean it's Sam?" Maggie hissed, dragging Alex further down the hall.
"Exactly what I said. Reign's human counterpart is Sam and until we figure out a way to suppress the Worldkiller part of her, we are all in danger." Alex explained, in a worried tone.
"Shit." Maggie muttered, running a hand through her hair in frustration. "Does the kid know?"
"She, uh, found out earlier tonight...when Reign attacked us."
"Damn, Ally. I'm sorry. For you and the kid." She pulled the agent into an awkward hug but released her quickly.
"Thanks."
"Are you okay?" Maggie asked, Alex's safety always her main concern even if they weren't together. "You said she attacked you."
Alex waved her off with a weary sigh. "I've had worse..."
It was then that Maggie noticed the way Alex leaned to her left and kept one hand protectively wrapped around her ribs on that side. There were also dark bruises on the agent's neck, only partially concealed by her hoodie. Maggie had thought the raspiness in Alex's voice was from having just woken up, but now she knew better.
"Ally..." She began but the agent held up a hand to stop her.
"I just really need to focus on Ruby right now, and how to get Sam back. I'm okay, Mags."
"Danvers, you can't help them if you're hurting yourself." Maggie reasoned, hoping she wasn't pushing when she shouldn't. "Did you even let the doc look at you?"
"She did not." A voice piped up behind them. Lucy strode towards them, her expression a mixture between irritated and concerned. "Because, and I quote, 'I'm a doctor, too.'"
Maggie snorted before fixing Alex with a playful glare. "Damn, Danvers, you still using that one?"
"I thought you came to help," Alex grumbled. "I'm really not in the mood for you two to gang up on me. I need to go check on Ruby."
"The kid is fine." Lucy informed her. "Winn took her to the mess to get ice cream and Lena just arrived and is headed towards the labs."
"I'll go meet her there, then." Alex moved to step around Lucy but was intercepted.
"You can do that after you report to the med bay."
"Luce."
"That's an order, Agent."
Alex glared at the smaller woman. "Are you seriously pulling rank on me?"
"If it gets your ass to that med bay than, yes." Lucy's tone was stern but Alex could tell she was worried.
"Come on Ally, I'll walk you down there." The detective offered with a trademark-dimpled smile. "I haven't seen the doc in forever!"
"I have..." Alex grumbled again as she allowed herself to be led.
"Oh, I'm sure." Maggie responded, teasing her lightly. "Have they named a wing after you yet?"
"No!" Lucy called behind them. "But she does have a designated bed!"
Both Lucy and Maggie dissolved into giggles at that! As much as Alex wanted to protest their joking at her expense, she couldn't help but smile. It felt good to laugh and tease. She felt lighter, if only for a few moments, glad to have her friends and family backing her up in what was proving to be their darkest hour.