A/N: I'm sorry I disappeared for a while! Anyway, here's the third part. I took some scientific liberties in this chapter, you'll see when. You might also hate me for the circumstances regarding said scientific liberties, but I hope not. :)
Thank you so much for the reads, follows, favorites, and reviews.
The poll is still open for those who haven't voted and would still like to!
I'd love to hear your thoughts. :)
Prompt: Kara and Alex somehow time-travel to Krypton and Alex meets Kara's parents. Together the four of them have to figure out a way to get Alex and Kara back to their time before Krypton explodes.
Time Travel - Part 3
"What happened?" Kara asked, helping him in and closing the door. When she pulled her hand away from his side, it was slick with blood.
"I'm okay," Zor-El said, leaning forward slightly.
"Alex!" Kara called and her sister appeared from the living room, Alura a step behind her.
"Alex, can help, she's a doctor," Kara said as Alura moved to Zor-El's other side.
"Not really," Alex said, wiping her hands on her pants and taking a step toward Zor-El.
"You're close enough," Kara replied and ushered Alex over while they moved Zor-El to the couch.
"It's not that bad," Zor-El said and struggled to sit up, Alura pushed him back down.
"Can you stay still for one moment?" Alura asked, taking his hand. "Just let Alex look you over."
Alex smiled and gave a small wave. "I'll be quick, I promise." As she felt along Zor-El's side and bandaged up his gash and bruises, he explained what had occurred.
"The people are learning of Krypton's imminent demise. There was a small uprising, I got trapped in the middle of a fracas. I came out relatively unscathed, but I lost the power source we needed for the device to get you back to Earth, they took it and ran."
"But you were able to determine what happened to the time machine?" Alex asked as she finished securing the last bandage and Zor-El sat up.
"Yes," he said, and daylight was beginning to strip away the darkness in the sky, a reminder that time was racing away. "When you traveled times it exhausted the power supply, a rare mineral of Kryptonian origin."
"So we just need another sample of the mineral?" Kara asked. "That's fine, I can go get it somewhere, just tell me where."
"It's more difficult than that," Zor-El explained. "I obtained the last remaining sample within the city. It exists in nature, in a specific alcove on the west side of the mountain just outside the city limits. That's where you'd have to travel to get it."
"I'll go with you," Alex said, turning to Kara.
"You don't speak Kryptonese," Kara said, she really just wanted to keep her sister safe.
"You can cover for me," Alex shrugged. Alura nodded, "You'll be in an uninhabitable area, anyway, and it truly would be better to go as partners, we would go with you two, but we should be here when our time's Kara wakes up, she can't know that you two are here, it could have innumerable consequences on the timeline."
Alura waited for Alex and Kara's agreement before continuing. "Follow me, I'll find you something suitable to wear."
"There's one more thing," Zor-El said, as the three women reappeared moments later. "We have less time than we originally thought, the instability of Krypton's core puts more pressure on the mineral. By midnight tonight, it will be worthless, unable to function and power the device. So, we have nineteen hours left."
"Then we must go now," Alex said. Zor-El handed them a map he'd sketched from a resource at the university, exhibiting the route up the mountain and to the alcove.
"Be careful," Alura said as they exchanged goodbyes. "There are many dangers to look out for, beyond the violence that has out broken in the city, the mountain itself holds numerous perils, as well. The terrain is difficult, you must be cautious and avoid drawing attention to yourselves."
Both girls nodded, words running through their heads as they turned and disappeared into the early dawn settling across the city.
19 HOURS REMAINING
"So, are there cars here, or…?" Alex whispered to Kara as they exited the building and stepped onto the street.
Kara laughed and shook her head. "Sort of yes, in a way, but we'll take the rail, it's much quicker and will take us straight to the mountain edge, from there we'll have to go by foot."
"Okay," Alex said and set herself to looking around the city. Everything was so clean and elegant and efficient, from the long clothing adorning each citizen to the sleek architecture of the buildings—some so tall it appeared as though they were reaching into the universe.
As Alex watched in awe, Kara looked around with a tug yanking on her heart at the familiarity, the ease she felt being surrounded by her childhood planet.
"The turn's just up here," Kara said, nodding forward. "We can catch the rail at the station."
Alex tore her eyes from the streets to give her sister a nod. She leaned close to Kara and whispered loudly in her ear. "Your planet's really cool."
Kara laughed as they entered the station through its metal and glass doors. "I know," she faux whispered back.
"We haven't slept in over twenty four hours."
Kara laughed again and steered Alex toward the ticket booth. "Yeah," she said. "I know that, too."
18 HOURS REMAINING
"We're almost there," Kara said as the high speed rail forged ahead, exiting the city limits. "In just a moment it'll be our stop."
"How far—" Alex broke off as the rail reeled forward. Metal shrieked beneath the train. The girls stumbled as the rail lurched and screeched to a stop. Kara rushed to the window, looking at the small portion of the track that was visible. The metal looked intact and unblocked.
"Could the power supply be affected by the core? Like our machine?" Alex asked, appearing at Kara's side.
Kara turned away from the window and faced her sister. "Probably. It's the most logical explanation. I never knew the core started shutting everything down. My parents never told me."
Alex shrugged and looked at Kara. "It's possible that they never even knew and besides, there were some big things you were dealing with, too."
"You're right." Kara nodded and took a long, deep breath. "Sorry," she rubbed her eyes. "I've just never seen Krypton like this, I guess all my memories were idealized."
Alex pulled Kara into a quick side hug. "It's okay," she said gently. "I think we all tend to idealize parts of our childhood. It happens."
Kara straightened her shirt with a firm nod. "We need to get going. We don't have a lot of time."
"What do we do?" Alex inquired, still looking around the nearly empty cabin, where the other occupants appeared more bored and annoyed than anything else.
"Hopefully they'll use a backup generator and temporarily get the rails going again, or maybe they'll get our fire department equivalent to come out and clear the cabins." Kara shook her head, eyebrows raised as she looked at Alex. "I don't know, I really don't."
17 HOURS REMAINING
"We can't stay here any longer, we can't, Kara. We've wasted too much time already."
"Yeah, I know," Kara snapped back. "I'm working on it." She tugged on the metal surrounding the window and huffed as her finger slipped and hit the outstretched piece, cutting the skin and sending crimson blood dripping onto the floor.
She heaved another sigh and rolled her eyes. "I forgot I could do that." Then she turned to Alex, "Go to the back of the cabin where nobody is, we're going to do something stupid."
"What?"
"Just go, just go," Kara said, nudging Alex out of the seat and toward the last window. "Kick here," she said, pointing to the glass.
"For real?"
Kara nodded, her hair bounced and she smiled. "Right there and do it quickly."
With a sigh and shake of her head, Alex looked around and saw that the few people who had occupied the cabin were either sleeping or milling around between the other cars. She figured there was something good about being out so early. "Here we go," she said and sent a sharp kick through the glass. It broke into thin shards, scattering around the seat and onto the ground beneath the rail. "So much for keeping the attention off us," she muttered, but Kara could tell she was grinning. Alex liked kicking things.
"Climb through the window," Kara said, glancing around as people looked for the source of the noise. "We're not too far off the ground."
"Yeah, yeah," Alex waved her hand and she was already halfway through the windowsill.
"Watch your fingers on the glass," she called as she dropped to the ground. Kara was by her side in a few moments. The blonde scanned the area and pointed in front of them. "We need to go about a half mile in that direction until we hit the trail that leads up the mountain." They took a few steps forward and Kara squinted and tossed her head back with a groan.
"What?" Alex asked.
"Look ahead," Kara replied, nodding toward a group of people gathered outside a tall cream colored building with large, long windows, they were throwing objects and shouting. "They're outside one of our government buildings."
"Can we go around them?" Alex glanced forward and saw the cluster expanding to take up the entire street as their yelling grew louder and echoed through the area.
Kara shook her head. "It'll take too long and there's no telling if the rioting has spread to other locations. We'll have to go through."
"Then let's do it," Alex said and they began navigating their way through the crowd.
Bodies pressed together as more Kryptonians joined the group and their volume increased again. Near the edge of the gathering, the area Kara and Alex had recently vacated, a small man approached the crowd.
Kara bit her lip. "They're going to destroy him," she whispered as he approached the crowd, keeping his head up and his posture firm. "I have to go help him."
"Wait." Alex grabbed Kara's arm. "Who even is this guy?"
"I can't remember his name, but he works for the government, he's a scientist and friend of my father. He's part of the team trying to stabilize the core, but they don't know that," Kara said, gesturing to the mob in front of them. "The information about Krypton's death was leaked, nobody knows what's real or false. They're all scared and it's making them angry and irrational, but they're going to hurt him. I can't let that happen."
"Kara, we don't have time," Alex glanced at the woods just a few hundred meters away. "The longer we wait, the harder it's going to be to get through."
"I can't leave him," Kara said. "I'll be quick. I'll meet you on the other side of the crowd, at the edge of the forest by the silver sign.
"I'm not letting you go alone, we stick together."
Kara shook her head and gave Alex the pack Alura had made for them for when they hiked the mountain. "You don't speak Kryptonese, it could give you away and then I don't know what would happen, I don't know what they'll do. It's not worth it."
Kara watched as the group shifted and engulfed the government scientist, he disappeared from sight and she saw someone raise his or her fist above the area he entered, before moving the hand down in a hitting motion. "I'll meet you at the sign in a few minutes," Kara said. There was a large boom at the other side of the cluster and Alex turned her head to see that a street sign had been pushed down.
"Wait, Kara," Alex twisted back to face Kara again, but the area she had previously occupied was vacant. Alex pressed on her toes and couldn't pick out her sister's blonde head of hair. Kryptonians filled the space beside Alex, blocking her view. She sighed, why were Kryptonians so damn tall, anyway?, she wondered, grumbling as she followed Kara's instructions to the sign, where seconds turned to minutes and worry buzzed inside her as each moment passed.
16.5 HOURS REMAINING
"God, Kara where are you?" Alex muttered and rubbed a hand across her forehead. From her position beside the sign all she could see were heads bobbing up and down in the sea of Kryptonians. She'd watched as the crowd had grown bigger and bigger as word spread.
She laced her fingers together, then untangled them and paced, rubbing her palms together as she waited and discreetly checked the time on her phone. Did they even have phones here? She wished she could call Kara. Alex laughed, she was pretty sure her data plan didn't cover this anyway. Ha. Kara would have thought that was funny.
Speaking of which, where the hell was Kara?
Alex was debating hitting her head on the sign or saying 'screw it' and heading straight into the crowd until she had her little sister with her again. She glanced back at the forest, spotting the entrance to the trail they would hike for the majority of the trip. Alex shook her head in worry, brought her fingers up to her lips. They never should have separated. Kara could be hurt, Kara could be in prison or something equally bad, she could be stuck in the crowd for hours, Kara could—
"Hey."
Alex spun around. She threw her arms around Kara and then pulled back. "What the hell took so long?" She leaned back further, eyes sweeping over her sister. "I swear to God that blood better not be yours."
Kara dropped her forehead onto Alex's shoulder and shook her head. "It's not, well, most of it isn't. He got hit in the face, among other places, and his nose was bleeding when I got him away from the mass of them and into the building."
"And your blood come from?" Alex raised her eyebrows and examined Kara for injuries.
"They threw some glass bottles and rocks and whatever, I was just blocking them from my dad's friend." Kara lifted her head and straightened up, she couldn't believe this was happening to her planet. She hadn't been outside much during its last days. "I'm okay, though."
Alex brushed her finger across a gash on Kara's hairline. "Are you sure?"
Kara nodded and gave Alex a smile before tugging her toward the trail entrance. "Let's keep moving."
14 HOURS REMAINING
"I can't believe we're only halfway up this stupid mountain," Alex grumbled and kicked a rock out of her way.
Kara's shoes pressed into the dirt as she walked, a trail of footprints spanned behind them. "I'd forgotten what sweating even felt like," Kara said and wiped her hairline where a sheen of sweat had gathered. "It's kind of gross…"
Alex laughed and poked her sister's side as they navigated around a large stone spanning between two tree trunks. "I bet you wish you'd spent more time training without powers," she teased, enjoying the fact that for once she might actually be more athletic than her sister.
Kara rolled her eyes. "Yeah, maybe…"
"Come on, I'll race you to that tree up there."
"No."
Alex gave a smug smirk and Kara suppressed the urge to give her sister a hard nudge in the other direction.
"These forests aren't too different from Earth's," Alex said, appreciating the shade provided by the trees towering above them.
"Yeah," Kara nodded in agreement, "We have some weird ones, like the Glass Forest, but most of them aren't too crazy. They have trees and stuff like Earth. The animals here are sort of different, but this part of the mountain is so steep nothing really inhibits it."
"It gets steeper?" Alex said, shooting Kara an exaggerated look of disgust and surprise.
"Look up." Kara nodded toward a block of precipitous stone, scattered with trees and colossal rocks.
"This is a sick joke."
"Yeah," Kara nodded in agreement, she pulled her hair off her shoulders, twisting it up into a ponytail. "We should take a quick break now, it'll be our last chance before we reach the cave."
"Deal." Alex plopped down onto a rock, taking off the backpack and flinging it toward Kara. "By the way, I love your mom."
Kara laughed and tried not to think about the inevitable goodbye that was approaching. "Me too. She's pretty great."
"Both your parents are," Alex said as she pulled water out of the pack.
Kara sat across from Alex and fiddled with a small stick, dragging it through the dirt and patterning the ground.
Alex took a sip of water and tossed the bottle to Kara. "A lot's going on right now," Alex began. "And I know, for me at least, it's all happening so fast and it's kind of difficult to process." She paused and glanced over at Kara, hoping she might have spurred some words out of her sister. Instead, the blonde was looking back at her, mouth closed, stick frozen in her hand. Alex could see how tense Kara had become, her muscles taut and tight.
Alex wanted to ask Kara if she was okay; if she'd be okay when they left; Alex wanted to ask Kara what she was thinking then. A part of the eldest Danvers sister wondered if Kara had really considered leaving, or if she'd been shoving the thought away. And, with the direction this conversation was headed, Alex was leaning toward the latter theory.
She wanted to start preparing Kara for the downfall, maybe it would be just a little less painful if Kara braced herself, but then Alex remembered her sister's happiness when she'd been surrounded by her parents; she saw Kara's smile, the blonde's lightness since she'd arrived, the bright, animated chatter and sparkling eyes; and Alex couldn't. She couldn't be the reason Kara's shoulders sagged or her eyes watered or her voice quivered any sooner than it had to. Seeing her parents; seeing Krypton again—it wasn't an experience Kara would likely get again. Alex couldn't bring herself to dull it with facts that, somewhere deep inside herself, Kara already knew.
When Alex glanced back toward Kara, the blonde was still looking at Alex with the same wide and innocent eyes.
"But," Alex decided to make an attempt at a save. "You look okay. You look like you're doing all right."
It felt like a lie on her lips, Kara's reaction did not look okay, and the wavering smile Kara offered—the relief that'd relaxed her so quickly at the prospect of avoiding reality—only made the agent feel worse. While Kara's tactics of avoidance were working now, the truth and pain it would bring could only stay unkindled for so long and once a spark set them in flame, the emotional eruption and concomitant destruction were going to be drastic.
11.5 HOURS REMAINING
A quick recap of the past two and a half hours went something like this: "What your step, watch your step, watch your step- Kara! Watch your damn step," Alex yelled, tugging her sister away from a misstep that could have sent her back down the mountain. Or, something like, "Watch out! Use your eyes, Alex… that falling rock literally could have killed you, pay attention." There were a couple of eye rolls to fill the few silences, some curse words thrown in for fun, and enough tripping that Alex was surprised there wasn't more of their blood on the damned mountain.
Alex was still busy thinking about how much she hated the stupid, death-rigged mountain when Kara nudged her side sharply just as she finished pulling herself over a rock.
"What was that for?" she asked, letting out a huff. "Oh," she said, looking up and straightening her shirt. "We're here."
Kara nodded, pulling her eyes away from the shallow cave, where she could see the purple mineral catching light and reflecting it back toward them. "It's about time."
Alex wanted to kiss the ground and Kara looked like she might cry tears of joy.
6 HOURS REMAINING
Kara's muscles ached, her feet dragged against the carpet. She leaned against Alex as they waited for Alura or Zor-El to let them know that it was okay to enter the apartment.
"That was horrible," Kara groaned and pressed her head into Alex's shoulder. "I always knew you were hardcore, but I have so much more respect for your athletic abilities. I take back all the times I said you were wasting hours training at the DEO. Look at you," Kara said, pulling away slightly, "You're barely even sweating."
Alex laughed and rubbed a dirt-caked palm across her forehead. "I wouldn't go that far," she said as the door cracked open.
"Did you get it?" Alura asked, ushering them inside quickly.
Alex nodded and passed the block of the mineral to Alura. The older woman took a step back, looking at the pair, noting each bump and bruise, the dirt and blood scattered across their clothes. "You girls look awful, are you okay?"
They both gave identical nods and tired smiles.
"Our time's Kara is in her room right now, but she's awake so we'll have to be careful. How about you two go wash up, change back into your clothes so you don't forget them, and then we'll meet in the office to work on the time machine?" Alura asked and both women agreed.
"Wait, but Mom," Kara said, grabbing her mom's hand and hanging on the word for a moment, "You know that last night I talked about when I first got here? The one you and me and Dad spend together? That's tonight. Alex and I should be able to handle most of the time machine by ourselves, now that we have the mineral. Just-just make sure you don't miss tonight, it's important."
Alura gave Kara's hand a soft squeeze. "Of course."
4 HOURS REMAINING
The door to the office peeked open and Alura stepped inside as Kara flipped through a book, squinting at a page with a picture of the ancient time traveling device. She fingered through the text, tongue poking through her lips in concentration, brows drawn.
"Hi," she said and Kara jumped.
"Sorry," the blonde said, smiling and brushing hair out of her face.
"No, it's fine. I didn't mean to startle you," Alura said, taking a seat beside Kara on the couch. "How's it going? Where are Alex and your father?"
"It's going okay. Alex and Dad went into the little work room to try and refit the center of the machine to hold the mineral. I'm reading to double check that we've done everything correctly."
Alura glanced at the page, studying the image.
"Mom, can I ask you something? About Astra?" Kara rubbed her face and squeezed her eyes closed for a moment, bringing her hands to her cheeks. "I can't say much, I just—I need to know, did you love her? Do you—do you think she was a good person?"
Alura's gaze fell, eyes trained on her fidgeting fingers before she spoke and looked up to meet Kara's eyes again. "I think despite some bad decisions, your aunt had a good heart and I think she had good intentions."
"Do you miss her?"
"Sometimes, but I don't regret my decision. I think it's possible that I miss the memory of her most, or the idea of what might have been if things had turned out a little differently." Alura studied Kara, examining her daughter's expression. "Does that help?" Alura asked hopefully.
Kara nodded and tucked herself against her mother. "I think so."
Alura wrapped her arm around Kara's shoulder and pulled her close, pressing her nose into Kara's hair and closing her eyes. "I'm proud of you," Alura said. "There's never been a doubt in my mind that you would do incredible things. You've grown into such an amazing woman."
Kara scrunched her nose and felt blush heating her cheeks. "I love you," she said.
"I love you, too," Alura said, kissing Kara's head as the door from the small workroom flew open and both Alex and Zor-El entered boisterously.
"I love this kid," Zor-El declared, a hand on Alex's shoulder as the brunette beamed. Smiles immediately cracked across Alura and Kara's lips. "Me too," they replied simultaneously and Alex laughed.
"She's a smart one," he said, placing the time traveling object onto the table. "We got it figured out. Alex has the extra mineral incase it's required, but for now the device just needs to be monitored until it's recalibrated, and then we'll have you two back to Earth."
Alex watched as emotions fluttered and crumbled across Kara's face.
2 HOURS REMAINING
"Kara, I need to talk with you," Alex said, the two sisters were alone in the office as the time travel device neared its completion, while Alura and Zor-El spent time with young Kara.
Kara looked up, eyes wide and bottom lip pulled between her teeth. The fire was sparking, reality was becoming impossible to ignore. Regardless of how brave and okay Kara had acted after their arrival, Alex could see the weight Kara was struggling to carry, the sadness that was sinking heavy in her heart at the thought of leaving her parents, her planet, and her home all over again.
Alex caught Kara's eyes before speaking again. "A little while ago I was going through the pack from the DEO with your mother, we found some tablets… pills, really, with the ability to clear specific memories. They're made to diminish—eliminate, even—the effects of time travel on the timeline. Your parents have agreed to take them, in doing so, it will reconfigure their memories of our arrival. Since we're from a different time and planet—one you've adapted to—on a cellular level we vibrate at a different frequency, which tags the memories we exist in. It's complicated and even I'm not entirely sure how they work, but in essence, the pill will remove us from those memories and fill the holes. It's the safest thing to do, eliminates a lot of risks."
"Oh," Kara said, immediately dropping her gaze as silence filled the space between them. Her voice was barely a whisper when she spoke up again. "So they won't remember this, won't remember seeing me or meeting you?"
"No," Alex said with a shake of her head. "I wanted to clear it with you first."
Kara shrugged, her shoulders sagging, her hands hanging limply by her side, fidgeting with her suit. "What choice do we really have?" she asked, defeat dripping from her posture. Alex could sense her sister's resignation, her acceptance of reality; could see the devastation in Kara's faraway gaze. Kara was gutted, her hands were shaking, her heart aching so loudly in her chest she thought she might never be okay again. How could she have so much, just to have it taken away again?
"I don't know," Alex said, reaching out to take Kara's hand just as Alura and Zor-El entered the room.
"It's time," Alura said and Zor-El continued, "I've been monitoring the device and it's ready for you to go home now, we must hurry before the mineral exhausts itself again."
Kara choked on a single word. Home. She wasn't sure where that was anymore. It felt as though her heart were being torn into two. She felt her mother take her hand, lead her to the room where the device was situated.
Kara watched breathless as they gathered around the small, little stone that held so much power. She watched, as Alex and her parents exchanged goodbyes and thank yous and words that no one should have to say, sharing sadness that no one should have to feel.
Kara felt numb as she hugged her father, held him tight in her arms and tried for one last time to memorize his scent, his security, his voice as he told her he loved her and she repeated the words back, meaning them with all her heart and then some.
"It's time to say goodbye, love," Alura whispered to Kara.
The blonde nodded, summoning all her strength to hold back tears. She didn't want this. Didn't want to say goodbye. She didn't want her mother's last impression of the older version of her to be of a crying, heartbroken mess, so she tugged a small, hollow smile across her lips.
"Bye, Mom. I love you," Kara said through the sob lumped in her throat. The time traveling device vibrated on the table. Their time was fleeting, waning, a speck in infinity.
"I love you, sweet girl." Alura brushed a long lock of blonde hair from Kara's face and tucked it behind her ear. "My Kara, you are so brave and so strong; don't ever stop being you, okay? Don't ever stop shining. You were made for extraordinary things."
Kara nodded. "Okay," she said, barely trusting her voice.
"Promise me you'll take care, that you won't be too hard on yourself?"
"I promise," Kara said, her words shaking and strained. "I love you."
"I love you, too. So incredibly much." Alura pulled Kara into a tight hug, rubbing her back for a slow moment until they parted. Kara's heart immediately lurched at the absence.
Alura placed something small and metal into Kara's hand before turning.
Kara clutched the object and watched, with a watery gaze, as her parents stepped away and raised the pills to their mouths. Within seconds their eyes grew cloudy, a temporary indicator that the tablets were working. Kara's dad stepped through the doorway, but her mother lingered. Kara took a moment, as she and Alex clasped hands and reached toward the device that would propel them through space. She studied her mother, taking her last chance and hanging, desperately, to the final sliver of a second they shared together.
Kara looked at her mother, she saw the arms that held her through nightmares and rocked her back to sleep when she was a baby. The hands that'd brushed away tears when she cried because she'd gotten her first less-than-perfect grade on an exam in her second year of school. She saw the lips that whispered reassurances and I love yous and sweet words every time they were needed—words that made Kara feel better on bad days before her mother even knew what was wrong. Kara saw the hair she'd played with as a kid, the smile that'd greeted her every morning as daylight streamed through the bedroom window. She saw the legs and feet that'd chased after her as a toddler, when she'd tottered around the house, learning to walk. She saw the fingers that'd patched her up when she'd fallen; the fingers that'd patted her gently and helped her up and set her back on her feet. She saw the woman that'd loved her and raised her and stood by her side every day. She saw the woman she had to say goodbye to, for the second time, no matter how much every cell in her body shouted in resistance.
Kara's heart wanted to break, she wanted to scream, she wanted to cry, she wanted to stay frozen in time forever with her parents. She didn't want to leave.
Her fingers brushed the time traveling device, a flash of light set the room in blinding white.
They were gone.