Cover – Supergirl lies unconscious on the ground and surrounded by fire. A metal choker is around her neck and gauntlets of the same design are on her wrists. Their circuit-like designs glow green.
INFINITE SUPERGIRL
By KryptoKin
Tick…Tick…Tick…
Belle Reve Transport Truck
Metropolis, California, 10 days ago
The dimly lit highway was empty with the exception of an armored transport truck. Inside the square, grey vehicle sat Winslow Schott. He wore a white t-shirt and white pants. The mop of black hair on his head looked unkempt and his face was sans a pair of glasses. His wrists were bound together and chained to the floor of the truck.
"Why are we transporting this guy again?" the guard not driving the truck said.
"Don't know. Doctor Padresh wanted him transferred to Belle Reve."
The guard reached back and slid a metal slot covering open. Schott could be seen through the glass leaning against the truck with his head hung. "I still don't see why we're transporting the fat freak."
The explosion blew the truck sideways through the guardrail to the bottom of a ditch. The truck landed on its side. Two SUVs pulled up to the broken guard rail. Five men in black surrounded the truck. Two men attached explosives to the back doors. When the doors blew open, they went in and pulled out an unconscious Schott. They carried him to the highway and shoved him into one of the SUVs.
Schott woke up to come face-to-face with Marx, dressed in a grey, pin-stripe suit. "Good evening Mister Schott. How are you?"
Schott sat up and rubbed his head. "That drug you gave me was awful."
"If you hadn't taken it, you'd be dead."
Maybe I want to be, the inventor thought. "What's on the itinerary?"
"Supergirl. That man dressed as a bat may have threatened me but that's not going to stop me."
"Maybe…maybe we shouldn't go after her." Marx gave Schott a dark and deadly look. "Maybe we should leave her be."
Marx violently grabbed Schott by the shirt and pulled him towards him. "You listen here, you little %#$- &*#," he growled centimeters from Schott's face. "I am the one who told you to play crazy, I am the one who convinced them to transfer you, and I am the one who broke you out. So don't tell me you don't want to finish this to the end. Got it?"
"Y-Yes sir." Marx shoved Schott back to his seat.
"Good," he said while fixing his jacket and slicking back his hair. "Now, would you like water or juice?"
In the distance, a motorcyclist watched the SUV drive away. "Sir, they have him. What's next?"
Rickshaw High School
Kansas City, Missouri, 15 days ago
Graduation caps and silly string flew into the air with shouts of happiness. Boys and girls dressed in their respective dark-blue and silver robes smiled and hugged each other. Mary-Lou Jones and Kara Lang laughed and spoke with a group of students when Derrick Albright came through the crowd. He picked Kara up and kissed her.
Mary and the other girls smiled or giggled while some of the guys let out wolf-whistles. Kara blushed when Derrick set her down. "That was new," she said as she pushed up her glasses.
Derrick took his round glasses off and cleaned them. "I was excited."
"Clearly."
"Kara! Derrick! Mary!" Lana Lang weaved through the crowd of graduated seniors and people. "Derrick, Mary, your parents are looking for you. They're by the entrance of the stadium." Derrick and Mary ran through the crowd.
Lana took Kara's arm and walked with her. "How does it feel to graduate?"
"Twenty years overdue."
"What were the ceremonies on Krypton like?"
"A lot like this. You get dressed up in a white outfit that dons your family symbol. You're celebrated for passing your final test and you're initiated into your guild."
"Like your profession?"
"Mhm. Mine would have been science. My friend Dala and I planned to be in it together."
"You've mentioned her before. Was she your best-friend?"
"Yeah, her twin brother was Dal-Ur. They were brilliant. Way more than me."
"Kara!" In the distance wearing a ball cap, t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers was Katherine Kane. What's she doing here? Lana thought.
Kara greeted the airman. "Airman Kane, this is a surprise."
"Kate, just Kate."
"What are you doing here?"
"I thought I'd congratulate you on your graduation."
"A card would have sufficed." Kara frowned slightly. Her heart's racing, something's wrong. "Lana, go tell Derrick and Mary I'll meet them soon. I'd like to speak to Kate for a moment." Lana frowned then walked away.
Kate and Kara walked out of the football stadium. Mary, Derrick, and Lana watched in confusion as they turned the corner behind the stone archway at the entrance of the stadium.
What's on your mind?" Kara said when the two women were away from the noise.
"My father has ceased his investigation of you."
"Oh." That's not what I expected, Kara thought. "That's nice."
"He has bigger things to worry about."
"I see." There's something she's not telling me. "Anything else on your mind?"
"Watch out for Marx. He wasn't happy with the orders."
Kara placed a hand on Kate's shoulder. "Thank you for telling me this. But why tell me at all?"
"Not sure. There's something special about you."
"We're all special, Kate."
The former airman let out a snort. "You sound like my kindergarten teacher."
Kara smiled and dropped her hand. "I'll take that as a compliment. What's your new assignment?"
"Nothing. I left the military."
"Wow, didn't expect that. What's next for you then?"
"Neither did my father. I plan to move back to Gotham and live with my cousin until I get my bearings."
"That shouldn't take long."
Kate stepped forward and hugged Kara. "Goodbye, Kara."
The blonde teenager reciprocated. "Goodbye, Kate."
Kara watched the redhead walk away into the parking lot. "What was that about?" Her focus shifted to Derrick, who took her left hand in his right. Together, they watched Kate get in her car.
"She came here to warn me about that guy, Marx."
"Sounds like a peace offering."
"Yeah, I think it was."
Rickshaw Mill and Waterwheel Museum
Twelve miles outside Kansas City, Kansas
"If Rickshaw High is in Kansas City, Missouri why is the mill in a different state?" Mary asked while she, Derrick, and Kara stared at the old building.
"Did you learn anything in history class?" Derrick said looking down at her.
"Nope." Kara smiled as she snuck a glance at her two best-friends.
"Aberdeen Rickshaw owned a lot of land back in the day." In the background, Mary pretended to fall asleep on Kara. "He lived in Kansas then migrated to Missouri to get more land. Not only did he build this mill but he also built our school or the original one anyway."
"I thought fieldtrips ended in high school," Mary said, pretending to wake up.
"This is the last time we get to spend together. I'm leaving for Kansas State, you're off to Trinidad, and Kara's leaving for Metropolis in a few days. I want to spend time together as friends."
"But at a mill?"
"It's historic."
"It's stupid."
"Are you here for the tour?" Adam Harper smiled. The handsome brunet wore a Ducati motorcycle jacket, a green t-shirt, jeans, and black boots. Prayer beads could be seen under his shirt.
"Okay, maybe not completely stupid." Kara smiled at Mary's comment.
Derrick shook Adam's hand. "Yeah, you too?"
"Yep."
"Let's go in then."
Marigold Research and Development
Metropolis, California, 5 days ago
Presented on a screen were schematics for a suit. Within the metallic chest piece, a circular core showed to be powered by a meteor rock. Marx read over documents on a touch screen console. On one of the documents the name METALLO PROJECT was printed at the top.
Schott, wearing safety glasses over normal glasses, soldered inside the compartment of a choker. Next to him were two gauntlets of the same design. He closed the compartment and slid his safety glasses to the top of his head. "The choker and gauntlets are done."
"Excellent."
Schott took a small cloth out of his coat pocket and cleaned his glasses. "How are we getting them on Supergirl again?"
Marx pointed to the schematics of the suit, "this is how we'll do it and this is the man who's doing it," then handed Schott a picture.
The picture was a military identification photo. The man had golden-blond hair, green eyes, a slightly-crooked triangular nose, and a square jaw. His name was printed on the bottom of the photo: JOHN CORBEN.
Rickshaw Mill and Watershed
A woman dressed in period clothing stood in front of a small group of people; this included Kara, Mary, Derrick, and Adam. Behind her on her left was the sign GIFT SHOPPE with a hallway leading to more exhibits on her right. "Now we have come to the end of the tour. Feel free to peruse the gift shop and displays."
The crowd dispersed. Derrick and Mary went to the gift shop while Kara and Adam appreciated the exhibits. Kara was reading a plaque in front of a wax display of a family when someone spoke. "Was that boring or what?" John Corben, dressed in civilian clothes, smiled down at Kara.
"I enjoyed it."
"History buff, huh?"
"Yeah."
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why learn so much about Earth?"
Kara frowned. Something's off about him. "I dunno. I like knowing things."
"Everything okay Kara?" Adam stood tall behind Kara. He was an inch or two taller than Corben.
"Everything's fine Adam. This man was asking me about history."
BOOOO-UUUUP! BOOOO-UUUUP! BOOOO-UUUUP!
The woman in the period clothes lifted her arms and stood in the middle of the room. "Alright everyone, please follow me. We need to exit calmly and carefully." The crowd followed the woman. Mary and Derrick were in the crowd when Mary stopped.
"Where's Kara?"
Kara Lang was carefully set down and laid against a wall. Volcana stepped back and frowned. "Creepiest body-double ever." She whipped her hair up and pulled a beam from the ceiling onto the Kara clone. She left the room and held her hands out as she walked down a hallway. The walls caught on fire and smoke billowed to the ceiling. When a strong gust of wind came from behind her and blew out most of the flames, Volcana smiled. Supergirl, who stood several feet away with her arms crossed, stared her down.
"Hi Baby Blue, how are you?"
"Why are you here?"
"To save your life." Supergirl frowned.
BOOOOOOM!
Vibrations shook the building and caused pieces of ceiling to fall. When Volcana asked, "What was that?" Supergirl had disappeared.
Percussion dived behind a display as Corben shot at him with a gun. "That all you got!" His face was covered with cuts and a gash on his forehead bled continually.
"You haven't seen nothing yet, kid." Corben pulled off his shirt to reveal the Metallo suit. "Activate protocol one." The core of the suit glowed. A green beam shot out of it at Percussion. He rolled out from behind the display and shot two vibrations at Metallo. The villain avoided one but got clipped by the other, knocking the gun out of his hand.
Metallo let go another blast from his chest the same time Percussion focused vibrations on him. The vibrations didn't stop the beam and just before it hit him Supergirl sped Percussion out of the way. She laid him behind a display.
Metallo recovered and pushed off the wall he had crashed into. "Come on out, Supergirl!" She stepped out from the display and stared him down. Another blast came out of his chest. She blocked it with her cape but got shove through a wall into another room. When she stood her knees buckled and she had to lean on the wall for support. That's not good.
Metallo stepped through the hole into the room. "You gonna outlast your boyfriend?"
Supergirl stood up straight. "Try me."
When Metallo saw sweat drip down Supergirl's face, he smiled. "I plan on it." He threw a knife at the lights above them and plunged the smoky room into darkness. "Tell me Supergirl, can you see in the dark?" Supergirl shook her head as she tried to focus and turned around in her spot. "What's wrong? Are your powers not working like they should."
Supergirl turned again. Where is he? I can't…I can't find him. A green glow shined through the smoke behind her. Supergirl's legs buckled and fell to the ground on her knees. Sweat poured down her face and her skin was a sickly pallor. "Pity, I was looking for a real fight." A pair of hands came from behind her and locked the choker around her neck.
"MJ! MJ, get back here!" Smoke seeped through the floors and doorways as Mary ran through the building.
"I know she's in here Dee-Dee! We have to find her!" A hand reached out and touched Mary's pant leg. She screamed and looked down to see Adam lying against a wall. "Adam?" Derrick stopped by her and helped Mary pick him up. They leaned him against a wall when he spoke.
"You have to get out of here, there's a maniac in the building."
"We're not leaving without Kara," Mary argued back.
He gripped her shoulders and made her look him in the eyes. "You both have to leave. He will kill you."
Derrick asked, "What about Kara?"
He knows she's Supergirl, Adam thought before answering. "Supergirl's doing her best. Now go. Please."
Derrick grabbed Mary's arm but she yanked away. "Kara, she has to find Kara."
Adam placed a hand on her shoulder. "She'll try."
Supergirl wrapped her hands around the choker. An electric shock from Metallo's gloves took Supergirl to the ground. He slapped on the gauntlets then kicked her in the stomach.
"Try to get out of that." A large vibration knocked him to the side into a brick wall.
"GET AWAY FROM HER!" Percussion, bleeding from head to hands, stood shakily as he coughed.
"Hahaha. If it isn't the boyfriend." Metallo shot a blast from the core the same time Percussion shot a vibration. They avoided their attacks. Percussion recovered and saw Metallo stood above Supergirl. He had her up by her hair and a blade to her neck. "I wouldn't try anything, pretty boy."
A flame behind Metallo flicked around his arm and pulled the blade away from Supergirl. Percussion focused a vibration at Metallo, right to the core. Blood spurted from his chest as the meteor rock penetrated it.
"Aaaaah!" he screamed as he let go of Supergirl. A final vibration from Percussion launched Metallo through a brick wall.
When Percussion ran to Supergirl, Volcana pulled him away. "Come on!" she yanked harder when he resisted. "We can't stay. Adam, we have our orders." Supergirl reached out to them from her position on the floor.
"I'm sorry." Percussion and Volcana disappeared through a doorway. Supergirl cough then collapsed to the floor as the fire consumed the room.
Outside, the people watched the mill burn. The glow from the flames shined on their faces. Mary gripped Derrick's arm; they stood at the front of the crowd.
"Where is she Derrick? Supergirl should have saved her by now."
"She'll be out soon. She probably doesn't want to injure Kara."
"Yeah, that's it, has to be."
When the left-side of the mill collapsed, the entire building exploded.
"NOOOO!" Derrick rushed forward and pulled Mary back. "KAAARAAAA!" Derrick continued to hold her when she collapsed to the ground sobbing out, "Kara…Kara…"
The woods near Rickshaw Mill and Watershed
Supergirl's face glowed with an orange light as she lay in the grass. Slowly, her eyes opened. The orange light flickered in her blue eyes as she sat up. She rubbed her hand across her neck and discovered the choker was gone, and so were the bracelets. When she shifted her gazed she slammed her body back into a tree, which caused several leaves to fall down near her.
Batman stood in front of her. The orange and yellow glow behind him accentuated his silhouette. "Relax Kara, I'm here to help."
"Who are you?"
"I'm Batman." That explains the outfit, Supergirl thought as she stood up, using the tree as support, and keeping her eyes on Batman. "Before we move forward, you need to know something."
"What?"
"The mill collapsed…" Supergirl looked past Batman and stepped forward. "…Metallo is missing…" She stepped past him and leaned against a tree. "…you've been asleep for a while…" She stared in horror at the scene in front of her. The entire mill was in flames. A multitude of fire trucks and men worked to put the fire out, but to no avail. "Everyone suspects Kara Lang is dead."
Tears fell from Supergirl's eyes as the orange glow of the flames lit her face. The two heroes watched in silence as the building burned and crumbled to the ground.
Author's Note: This issue was supposed to come out June of last year, so my apologies for the summer references. Don't forget to check out the second part of the 2-part finale of Infinite Supergirl: Year One, "Boom."