Hello! I hope you are having a great day and that this update makes it even better! I still don't own anything related to Supergirl. Welcome to the seventh chapter of Trade-Off. Enjoy!
Chapter 7
Lena Luthor wouldn't know how long it had been since Kara was tossed outside the warehouse doors if it weren't for the pain. She had eleven broken bones: two broken fingers, a broken radius, four broken toes, a broken metacarpal, a broken metatarsal, and two broken ribs. She had fourty-four lacerations. In other words, she'd been stuck with her mother for almost twelve hours.
Lillian had decided to take a break from the torture and had given Lena an hour to rest and sleep on her decision, which is why the numbers of injuries almost didn't add up. Unfortunately, the hour was almost over. Lena had fifteen minutes left.
"Lena Luthor. I never thought you deserved the Luthor name and that you were a coward for not standing up to aliens, but now I know different. A coward wouldn't have lasted as long as you have; you just still don't deserve your last name," goaded Lillian as she abandoned her chair to start circling the pole Lena was chained to.
Great. I thought it couldn't get worse. I'm a literal genius; I should have known hearing her voice would be part of the torture, Lena sarcastically thought. I hope Kara is okay.
"Well, mother, I only keep the name because my father had the guts to adopt me after my biological mother's death. If you in any way think I want to be associated with you, I would reconsider," Lena retorted as her mother put a hand to her heart in mock sadness and hurt.
"Is that any way to speak to the woman who took you in?" she asked, stepping closer.
"Honestly, I might rather have died than be stuck with you," replied Lena.
Lillian laughed, then leaned forward, glaring into Lena's pained emerald eyes. "That can, of course, be arranged. The only reason you're not dead yet is because there may be hope for you yet," she threatened. "Better not make me change my mind."
Lena rolled her eyes. "Mother, Kara is my friend. I'm not going to betray her for you," she promised, perhaps foolishly given Lillian's statement.
"Lena, dear, you do have Luthor blood in you. We don't trust easily, and we don't forgive. Lex, your dear brother, trusted Superman. He believed in him, just as you believe in Supergirl. Then, he realized Clark Kent, his best friend, was in fact Superman, and he had been lied to on two fronts. The Supers don't trust humans; they harm them in their fights against other invaders. Why should you trust them?" Lillian asked. "What makes you believe in Supergirl, and why do you continue to do so?" Lillian's timer beeped, signaling that the hour of rest was over.
"Oh, Lena, better decide if false trust is worth the pain," Lillian said, grinning eerily.
Alex and J'onn were beyond frustrated. Alex with herself, and J'onn with himself.
Alex was beating herself up because she should have known. All of her training, all of her expertise, and she neglected to check the warehouse.
J'onn was angry because he should have told Alex to check the warehouse regardless of any terrible injuries, and now a civilian was in grave danger, if not already dead.
Soon after Kara had made them realize their error, she had slipped back into unrestful unconsciousness.
Now the DEO was up against a Supervillain without a Superhero. After two hours of planning, they were set to move.
They argued over how to approach the warehouse. Eventually, they decided to use helicopter and go in with twenty heavily armed agents. Both Alex and J'onn would go on this mission, and Vasquez would stay behind for Supergirl. If it went according to plan, the agents would drop in, grab Lena, and fly out, hopefully without any conflict. Their goal was speed, not strength; they couldn't afford a full-on fight without Kara.
Now Alex and J'onn were sitting silently in one of the five black helicopters, being annoyed at their respective selves for their respective reasons. They had five minutes before they dropped out of the sky.
The minutes passed agonizingly slow, even as they were thinking hard. Finally, they were clear to stand at the door and slide it open.
"Sir, Ma'am, good luck," said the pilot. Each helicopter had two pilots and two jumpers.
"Thank you, agent," J'onn responded. He and Alex nodded at each other, double checked their jump lines, and hurled themselves into space. All around, they saw fellow agents falling to the same goal. All of them were equipped with special, circular blades that would cut through the roof in less than a second, enough time for their lines to slow their free fall so they could storm the room.
Alex hadn't known what she was expecting as soon as she burst through the warehouse, but she certainly didn't think about what she saw.
As her boots touched the ground for the second time in less than a day, she saw nothing but darkness.
Then, she saw Lillian Luthor bent over on the ground over a still figure, crying silently.
"Lillian! Hands up and surrender to us Lena Luthor!" ordered J'onn as the ten agents all trained their weapons at her.
Lillian slowly turned.
"I killed her. I killed my daughter! SHE'S GONE! HELP HER!" screamed Lillian.
Alex' breath caught in her throat as Lillian's movement allowed her to see Lena. If she thought Kara had looked bad, that was nothing compared to Lena.
Her skin, usally pale, was stained crimson with her own blood. Her lips were blue, and her body looked utterly broken.
The agents rushed forward, rendering Lillian unconscious.
Aled and J'onn ran forward to check on Lena. Was Lillian lying, or did Lena truly give her life for Kara?