"…and everything was finally feeling almost normal again." Kara whined as she shuffled into her sister's lab, the place feeling just that bit more intimidating when most of the equipment was more eye level or above.
"Let's not get worked up yet, we don't even know what this…" Alex gestured haphazardly in the blonde's direction as she gathered her supplies, "…is yet. Now hop up on the table."
Kara rolled her eyes, her sister, always the scientist. Sighing she spun and marched up to the table only to find it a bit, higher than normal. She tried to jump up on it like she would if she was just visiting the brunette on any other day but her body only got about half way.
Huffing the superhero used her foot to scooch over a small step stool which allowed her to finally flop her butt down on the table. She looked up and saw Alex trying to hold back a grin.
"So…" Alex began with clear amusement in her voice, doing very little at hiding it, Kara just glared back at her, "…how are you feeling?"
Kara went to answer only to feel her body shiver at all the eyes peering into the glass wall separating the lab from the rest of the main floor. DEO agents gathered, huddled together whispering, and pointing. Alex turned to see what caused Kara's hesitation and anger coiled deep in her gut, she glided over to the open door slamming it close and flipping a switch which dropped blinders over the glass wall for some privacy.
The time flew by now that prying eyes had been averted. The two went through several tests, questions, experiments and to say the blonde was not at all happy with the results was an understatement. Her body was slightly weaker than an average human her size…
"Probably due to the rapid dispersal of yellow sun radiation." Alex had stated, "That might change once all of the red sun radiation takes over."
Her powers no longer existed which sounded right if her body was now absorbing the yellow sun as a red sun, she never had such powers on Krypton.
"Is there anything you can do?"
Alex shook her head gently as she laid her hand upon Kara's thigh, "There really isn't. I'm not sure what he did to you…"
A knock broke the conversation as J'onn came strutting in with Winn following puppy style after him, "Since you apparently think the medical staff here can't do their jobs, Agent Danvers, where are we with your findings?"
Alex knew she should have let others help but Kara just seemed so shy and vulnerable especially when the other agents had been watching them so minimizing the direct contact to others felt like the appropriate thing to do and Alex thought that very hard, hard enough to cause J'onn to almost reel back with the loudness but he stood his ground and gave an almost unseen nod.
Feeling satisfied that her boss and friend would forego any more lectures she plowed on.
"Her powers are gone and the yellow sun radiation is almost at 5% and falling quite quickly. I was able to draw blood without the help of our kryptonite needles, strength below what is standard for her height and age on earth and her intelligence seems on par for her correct age….other than knowing who she truly is I would just think…"
"…she's human?" J'onn concluded while scratching his chin, "Kara, do you know anything about how this could happen? Anything in the fortress maybe?"
"I am not aware. I can ask Clark….Clark, reporter, Oh My God Alex I have a paper due in like…"
Kara floundered for a moment in search of a clock.
3:45PM
"…two hours. Snapper is going to kill me."
The blonde slid off the bed intending to head straight for the door and fly back to CatCo; earlier she had only intended to take a small flight around town. Clear her head, relax and wait for her meeting with a contact where she would don her work clothes and get the facts needed to finish up the fluff piece Snapper Carr was slamming down her throat.
"Kara," Alex began as a hand snaked out and grabbed her upper arm officially holding her place, though glancing back the blonde had to choke back a surprise sob as it wasn't her sister holding her arm but Winn, her best friend. Water collected slowly in the corner of her eyes; he was the weakest of them all in strength and he held her there like it was almost nothing.
She knew rationally that this was logical, Winn was no slouch when it came to working out lately especially with his job here at the DEO and he was a full grown man compared to her small lanky teenage body but the mere thought caused a feeling of floating panic to seize her chest. She tugged back her arm needing to dispose of the contact to hopefully gain control before she lost it in front of her friends.
Winn was not holding on very tight, intent on letting go as soon as Alex had Kara's attention so when the blonde pulled away so strongly and suddenly, she slipped right out of his grip, tripping over her feet and headed toward the ground.
No one was fast enough.
The blonde slammed down on her butt, the pain radiating up through her spine. This pain was different than any of the other times she had felt hurt. Before it felt more like discomfort, far away, sore aching muscles or maybe a quick sear across her flesh before a soft uncomfortable throb but this….
She quaked as the sharp sting shook her core, traveled along her skin and twisted up in her stomach. Her breath hitched and her eyes swam with tears.
"Okay everyone out," Alex growled.
The others looked on for a few more moments and Kara sat there stunned and hurting before shuffling out in silence.
Alex moved slowly toward her sister, "Kara, are you okay?"
She bent down right next to the blonde who looked up, sad pitiful eyes locking with brown orbs of concern, "I fell…" she breathed out in almost awe of the situation.
"Yeah, you did." Alex almost fell back when the body of her sister collided with hers; arms circling her waist and a head thrust into her shirt as tiny sobs escaped the young girl.
"Alex I fell," she mumbled again, clutching the back of her sister's shirt, "I fell and I…it…it hurt but…and I…I'm crying…why? Why, Alex, does this feel….I feel…"
"Shhh, Kara its okay. Breathe, okay. Take small breaths, concentrate on my heartbeat." Kara wailed louder, clutching her sister closer and Alex felt like an idiot. The girl did not have her powers and could not use her super hearing to focus in on her heart and shut the rest of the world out like she normally would in panic situations such as this.
Instead of words, Alex shifted until Kara's ear was laid upon her chest and she held her closer, her other hand pressing on Kara's other ear, drowning out the other sounds. The blonde could not remember a time she sensed such warmth surrounding her, such security but it was exactly as she imagined a strong hug from Alex was like.
Kara didn't understand what was happening. She knew this was stupid. She knew she was twenty six, that she had fallen down before and that this was not a big deal, that she wasn't a child…even teenagers did not act this way which just made the ache in her heart grow and her hands clutch harder at her sister before getting scared she was holding too tight and she tried to pull away.
"I'm sorry, I…hurt you…" her words murmured with hiccups and salty tears.
"No, sweet girl, you weren't hurting me." This again made Kara feel worse and yet better as she wrapped all her weight and strength into Alex who just rocked her back and forth in a strong hold.
After a few moments Kara seemed to be able to relax though neither girl released their strong hold on each other.
"Did it really hurt that bad?" Alex whispered, sweeping some hair away from her sister's face. Kara pursed her lips in thought for a second before shaking her head.
"I think…it just scared me, mostly, I mean it did hurt. If felt different." she babbled without taking her ear away from her sister's chest where she could hear Alex's heartbeat. It was low and more of a thump than the strong sloshing and pumping she was so used to, "I still have my paper."
Alex wanted to laugh at how pitiful Kara sounded about writing an article but she also knew that her sister took her work, whether as Supergirl or a reporter, very seriously. She clamped down most of her amusement so as not to sound outright teasing, "Kara…I think what is happening now is more important."
Kara went to protest but Alex bounced her up and bit more, mostly to reshift the weight on her legs, and hugged her closer, "Shhh…I know what you do is important but look at the situation. I can call James and let him know what is going on. I'm sure he will help keep Snapper off your back. I also think you should call in sick for a few days, just until we figure something else out."
The blonde huffed even while still clutching the back of her sister's shirt, "I hate taking work off. Snapper is already mad because I missed two deadlines when dealing with the submarine at the pier."
"He…no never mind. I will call you in, we will say you lost your voice okay. Then we can try and relax the rest of tonight. Pizza and movies. We can shift around your sun room to make it feel cozier…"
Kara nodded, that sounded pretty good before she realized what Alex was saying, "I can't go home?"
Alex shook her head, "I don't think that is a good idea. We don't know how this is affecting you beyond what we see. You have no real immune system."
"I had a cold before." Alex just smiled gently at her sister.
"I know. But you still were absorbing the yellow sun. I don't think you could have gotten much worse but your system is returning to how it was on Krypton and that…that system has not been subjected to the Earth's atmosphere."
Kara finally sat back, her fingers clutched together in idle nervousness, "So you would feel better if I stayed?"
Alex nodded, "Exactly."
Meanwhile:
Outside the lab.
Oliver Muse, a mousy looking fellow with ear length hair that barely counted as regulation, a man so plain and quiet that he was easily over looked, scurried down many different hallways that lead further into the depths of the DEO. His hands shook somewhat with concealed nervousness even when he knew that this part of the facility was mostly abandoned. The subdivision had housed several containment units for a while before being decommissioned once the new containment units with specs on holding much stronger aliens and meta-humans were built a few sections over. Until the board could figure out what to put in here the area had been cautioned off.
No one would think to look here for him or anyone else. The perfect place to keep cover, to rebuild and take over. An inside job. Oliver shuffled over to a console he threw together, pressing a few buttons to activate and connect through a secure connection.
"Welcome Agent Muse." The computer wrote in a typewriter fashion.
"Log in needed: …" He quickly typed in his password before looking over his shoulder as if someone might be standing behind him before pressing enter.
"Transmission sending…"
"Hello Agent Muse. Has the serum been administered?"
Oliver quickly typed his reply that yes, the serum had entered Supergirl's blood stream and that no one suspected him. He explained that the hypno-charm had done its job of convincing the entire DEO that the Music Meister infiltrated the main bay instead of just a hologram of the Music Meister that Oliver had beamed down from the second floor before shooting Supergirl in the neck with a kryptonite laced dart.
"Very good. What is the subjects conditioned?"
Agent Muse wiped his brow before continuing on. He explained that he had not been able to hear much once the alien's sister ushered her into the medical bay, "…but age has been reduced and powers seemed to be gone."
"Excellent. Once the subject reaches critical age we will follow through with Phase 2. We will be in touch."
"Wait…" Oliver tried to type before the large printed words of Transmission Ended floated across the screen, "Damn it."
The man slammed his hand on the console in anger, he did his job and they couldn't even reward him with one look to make sure, to ease his conscious even just a bit. Before he could do anything in retaliation his phone rang.
"Agent Muse."
"Agent, please report to your squad. We have a situation downtown."
"On my way."
He clasped his phone shut, closed down the computer and rushed away from the area. Ready to take part in stopping another alien trying to take over his home world.