You have to wake up. You have to wake up, now. Otherwise we'll all die. They are all relying on you. If we die, the planet does too. Wake up, this is not the end of it all. Not yet. I realized that I was talking to myself, begging me to wake up and survive. My body was stiff and I couldn't move anything. My chest wouldn't expand all the way and I couldn't take a proper breath. My head pounded as my heart worked double time to get the small amount of oxygen to my body. There was a stabbing pain in my side, along with a stiffness of my arm and neck. Why can't I move?

I was trapped. No one else was here; I was all alone in my hellish nightmare. I tried to think back to the last thing I can remember, but nothing came to my mind. No names or faces.

Panic started to rise in my throat and a breath escaped my lips. My eyes snapped open. Everything was blurry and disoriented.

How did I get into a bed? Different clothes? What am I attached to? Nothing made any sense.

Suddenly, my senses sense was on high alert for danger. Every color was brighter, every noise louder, every image clearer, every scent stronger. My head was positioned to look up at the white ceiling and I couldn't seem to get any range of motion. I ripped off the collar securing my neck in place and pulled myself into a slight siting position. My left arm was in a cast and my body was covered in injuries. My face ached and something seemed off with my vision. There was an extra pressure in my eye.

I could feel the adrenaline that ran through my veins as I became more aware of my surroundings. I was in Shade's facility. I was caught. The adrenaline ran through my body so quickly that I gagged; the saliva in my mouth thickened, and almost tasted rancid. My mind was yelling at me to run, but my body protested from the excruciating pain. I got up despite my better judgment and tried to dash through the door. I would rather run on broken bones than be dead.

A face and a name flashed through my mind. "Maya." I whispered in Kryptonian. She must be here too. She would've stayed by my side. I'm not going to let Shade kill her. If anything, I would kill him before he got the chance. My lungs burned as I tried to jog down the empty hall.

My legs felt heavy and my broken arm throbbed. "Maya?" I called out. I continued to run down the cold concrete halls. My voice became more panicked the longer I searched. "Maya? Maya!" There was a large commotion and people emerged from all directions. They started to come closer, as if they were going to take me down. I scoffed and grabbed the closest object. I threw the metal chair and it hit the person's head dead on. They crumbled to the ground in a heap. People were shouting at each other and at me.

I continued to fight until I heard a familiar voice speaking to me in Kryptonian. "Kara, it's okay. These people won't hurt you. They are here to help us." I shook my head. "No, we need to leave now! Before Shade shows up." She grabbed my arm. "Kara, we made it back to your Earth. Shade isn't here. You're at the DEO." I shook my head again, but this time it was to clear my spinning head. "No, you're lying! Shade has tricked you. And me." Air couldn't get into my lungs and I lost my balance. "Kara!"

I was sprawled out on the ground. The coldness from the concrete soaked up into my skin. Chills were sent down my spine and I felt sick.

I was crowded around and I felt like I couldn't breathe. They were going to take me away into the holding cells, I knew that they would. They were going to torture me again. I lashed out and punched and kicked my way from their reach. One person dared to get near me and I grabbed them by the throat and slammed them into a wall. "You will not take me hostage Shade. I am not falling for this hallucination again. I swear to Rao, I will find you, and I will kill you!" I shouted at I threw the person through the glass. Something hit the back of my head and I blacked out.

Names and faces flashed through my mind. Everyone I loved, everyone I cared for, were gone. I was stuck here, on this miserable excuse for Earth.

The only one that I trusted was Maya, and now Shade had her too. I was all alone again. My worst fear, being abandoned.

I thought back to Alex. I hoped that she was enjoying her life. Not having to worry about me. Maybe Barry found someone else. Maybe they all moved on. I hoped that they did. I was tired of being the source of misery. Maybe if I ever escaped this place, then I could get back to them. But that was a long shot. And I already missed my opportunity. The best situation would be to give up and hopefully be reunited in the Light of Rao with my family.

Pain slowly started to grow throughout my body and it pulled me from my unconsciousness. I was stuck in my own head. My body was too heavy to move. And my eyelids were glued shut. I heard some people talking and some mechanical drilling. "Any luck?" A voice asked. "No, not yet. But it seems to slowly be cutting the- damn it!"

"What happened?"

"The metal snapped the drill bit. I need to get a new one."

"Go to Vasquez, I think she has a diamond drill bit."

The person left and other entered the room. "Has she woken up yet?" The new voice asked. "No, she's been out since Hunt sedated her."

"Good. She shouldn't have. Those sedatives that she was given are enough to knock out an entire army."

There was a still silence around the two people. "There is something that I don't understand. If she is wearing a kryptonite cuff to dampen her powers, then how the hell did she destroy half of the place when she woke up?"

"That will be something that we figure out after we get the cuff off her and when she realizes that we aren't here to hurt her, Alex."

"I know that, J'onn. But it scares me. What happened on that Earth?"

The door opened again. "Agent Schott. Any progress?"

"No, my last drill bit broke. But now I'm on to a diamond drill bit. Hopefully we can get the emitter off her."

"Go ahead, Winn. Just be careful."

"Don't worry, Alex, I have a steady hand."

The drilling started again and pain began to increase. I cringed as the pain exponentially began to increase. "What's happening?"

"Shade must've created a defense mechanism. The levels of kryptonite must be increasing as I drill."

"Stop Winn! Don't hurt her." One voice cried. "No, Agent Schott, keep going. She needs the cuff off."

The two voices bickered for a few seconds. "Agent Schott, keep drilling. The sooner we have the cuff off, the quicker we can study it and help Kara. Go." He commanded. The drilling continued. The pain got so intense that it felt like I was choking on the air around me. I couldn't get a breath in. My ears were ringing, and I could barely hear the voices yelling. I grimaced as the pain only got worse. My senses started to shut down as the kryptonite levels were rising to the maximum setting.

"It's okay Kara, it's almost done!"

The pain disappeared and I gasped. My eyes shot open and I glanced down to my wrist. The cuff was gone; and I could feel my powers begging to come back. There was a fire raging inside my body, inside my heart. It was a mistake for Shade to remove the cuff. Now there was hell to pay for what he has done; for imprisoning me here on this Earth. I felt weak and strong at the same time. "I will find you, Shade. You made a mistake and there is no hiding now." I pushed through the people surrounding me. They shouted as I hobbled down the hallways. My right leg seared with pain as I ran.

I gulped down air as my lungs burned. My powers yearned to be used, but my body twisted with pain. Yelling and shouting was following me as I burst through the front doors. I expected the yellow sun's rays to beat down on me and give me strength, but instead, the moon and stars greeted me. "No." I cried and fell to my knees.

The voices were gaining and I knew that it would be the end of me. I tried to get up, but I stumbled over the dirt. I landed on my face. I stayed in the dirt. I give up. They win.

The voices finally made their way over to me. A pair of merciful hands were put on my back. I was flipped over gently and I stared up at the sparkling stars. They blurred as tears stung my eyes. "Kara, baby girl, can you hear me?" Those hands stroked my face softly as I heard more footsteps approach.

The person stood up and commanded the others. Soon, I was put onto a stretcher and brought back in. But I was put into a different room.

Gentle hands lifted me from the stretcher and laid me down. I heard a buzzing noise before lights were turned on. The solar bed. I relished in the warmth that the bed gave me, along with the strength that started to return to me.

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. For the first time in a very long time, I drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

I woke up some time later and I could feel power burning in my veins. I pulled myself off the bed and slowly looked down. The cuff was gone, I had a cast on my left arm. I could feel my body trying to heal itself. I tried to get up, but noticed my leg was set with a splint. I dragged over to the mirror and looked at the reflection. There were several fresh scars, a fading black eye, and white of that eye was red due to the bursting of the capillaries.

I traced the scar on my nose and sighed. In the reflection, I saw Maya standing outside the door, waiting. I turned around and hobbled over to her. She smiled as she rushed onto the room. We hugged and I held onto her tightly. "Maya, you're alive. You survived."

"I am. Everything is okay. Thank Rao that you are okay. You gave us all quite a scare."

"All?"

She pulled away and nodded. "What do you remember?" I shrugged. "Nothing specific. It's all a blur of pain and shouting. Like a nightmare." She placed a hand on my shoulder. "Kara, we made it back to your Earth." My stomach dropped. "No, you're lying." I paused and looked around. This place looked familiar. "A-aren't you?"

She shook her head slowly. "No, we made it. Shade threw both of us back into the portal. We were brought back to your Earth. The DEO, that's its name isn't it, found us."

"What happened to me? I don't remember anything before the storm."

"Apparently, they found me first, unconscious in the desert. I was brought back here. Then they discovered the breach that you and Shade went through. They said that you and Shade looked like you were fighting to the death, no holds barred. You were finally gaining the upper hand, but the humans stepped in and distracted you. Shade took a cheap shot by throwing you into a helicopter. You were knocked unconscious. They took you back here and tried to get you to heal." I shifted my weight as flashes of the fight crossed my mind.

"Take it easy. Some people are a little on edge after you were brought here." I bit my lip. "What did I do?" She sighed heavily. "You woke up and attacked; nearly destroyed half the DEO. But it's not your fault, Kara, you thought this was another ruse concocted by Shade."

"Oh." She rubbed my shoulder soothingly. "Your family really wants to see you." She stated. I tried to walk further, but pain tore at my leg. I spotted crutches in the corner and I eyed them with loathing. Maya noticed what I was looking at and brought them to me. I pushed myself out of the room with pain ringing in my body, but especially my arm and chest. The first person I saw was Alex. She was nervously pacing back and forth while rubbing something between her fingers.

As soon as I made it into the hallway, she stopped pacing and dropped her hands. "Kara." She breathed. I forced a fake smile and she seemed convinced. She ran over to me and held me tight. My ribs protested and I groaned. "Easy, I'm still healing." I pulled away from her. I leaned heavily on the other crutch as I held onto my ribs with my casted hand. She held my face in her hands.

They moved down to my shoulders and she gently squeezed them. Her eyes locked onto mine and I could see tears at the brim. She brushed a stray hair behind my ear.

"Oh, god Kara. I thought I lost you." Her face changed to anger and she punched my shoulder. I grimaced and hobbled for a second to regain my balance. "You are so senseless! Sacrificing your life! Damn it, Kara! Do you know how much your life means? To everyone here? You are not indestructible. You can die, Kara. You are-"

I rolled my eyes and cut her off. "Enough, Alex! I don't need this big sister act. I get it. Okay? I was stupid, reckless. But it was for the better of everyone. I saved lives! It was a gamble and I took it." I stated hotly and stared her down.

Surprise and concern crossed her face. "Kara?" She seemed lost. "What happened to you? What happened to my sister?" She whispered to herself, but I heard it anyway. I lessened my glare as I realized that this was my sister, not my enemy.

After a second of searching internally for some type of answer to something to quell her unease, her hand went up to something around her neck.

I stared at what was in her hand. "My mother's necklace. I thought I lost it." I whispered. She raised it away from her chest. "I found it in CatCo after you and Shade went through the portal."

Alex began to take it off and I shook my head. "Keep it Alex."

"But Kara, it was your mother's."

"I know, but I want you to hold on to it. I trust you with it. Okay?" She let it rest back on her chest. I took a deep breath to relieve the tension inside my body. There was a stabbing sensation in my chest and I held my side. I groaned.

"Careful Miss Danvers. You had a punctured lung and a few broken ribs. Not to mention the broken hand, fracture to your right tibia, lacerations to your head and body, and a possible mild concussion. You shouldn't be up, let alone using crutches. If anything, a wheelchair, but-" A new voice stated. I glanced over to him.

"Who are you?"

"Oh, sorry, Derek Hunt. I'm in charge while Doctor Hamilton is away." A surge of pain washed over me and I grimaced. "Rao." I mumbled. "You okay Kar?" Alex asked and grabbed onto me as I swayed. His brown eyes looked at me. "I'm sorry everyone but I need to take Miss Danvers back to the med bay. I want to run some tests and see how her injures are faring."

I followed him back into the isolation room. I sat down on the bed and he brought out some medical equipment. He checked my heart rate and temperature along with other standard vitals. After that, he turned the solar lamps on high and let me sit there for 30 minutes. He came back after the time was up with a list on his clipboard.

"You seem to be running a bit hotter than the usual 98."

"How hot?"

"Just a few degrees hotter. And your blood pressure and oxygen level are higher than normal."

I nodded. "That's fine. I guess you're not totally up to date with alien physiology." He smirked. "No, not entirely. Your body is completely amazing." He stated. His eyes widened as he realized what he said. "Oh god. I did not mean that."

He ran his hand through his hair. "I'm so sorry! I did not mean that. I mean that your physiology- alien physiology- is intriguing. Mr. Allen is going to kill me if he finds out I said that." He put his head in his hands. I laughed softly. He looked up at me through his fingers. "It's okay Agent Hunt."

"Just Derek."

"Um, okay, Derek. I have a hotter temperature and higher blood pressure is because I have 30% more blood in my body than the average human adult female. Since my body can take more damage and do things that humans only imagine, I need to supply more blood. And that also means I have a higher metabolism."

Derek's attention turned to my wrist. "How does it feel?" I looked down to the black cast. "Healed." I answered before grabbing it with my other hand. "Whoa, whoa, what are you doing?" I smiled as I shattered the cast. He looked down at the cast and then back to my face. "Holy-" I moved my wrist experimentally. He grabbed my wrist gently and ran his fingers over my skin as he studied it. "Damn, I've read about your fast healing, but this- this is a miracle."

He looked down to my leg. "And your leg?" I shrugged. "No pain. I'm sure it's healed." I tried to use my x-ray and I looked at my leg. "The fracture is almost non-existent." I pulled off the splint. I looked to my arm, and then to my chest. "My arm is fully healed, and my ribs barely have a crack in them." Derek was staring wide eyed at me. "Fascinating."

I looked back to him. "I don't mean to be ungrateful for your help but-" He understood right away. "Hold on, you are still severely dehydrated. Give me a second." He hooked me up to a large IV line.

"Okay, come back immediately if you feel nauseated, lightheaded, or anything else out of the ordinary."

Everyone was still waiting for me, and the aura in the hallway seemed a lot happier, but Alex was no longer there. Astra was the closest one to me. She smiled and gave me a gentle hug.

"Kara. I'm so glad that you're back. I really missed you, Little One." I hugged her back cautiously. "I missed you too Aunt Astra. It's good to be back."

I made it through everyone waiting there. The reunion was filled with everyone else in happy tears. But not me. I felt like someone is missing. And I immediately knew who. I pulled Cisco aside. "Where's Barry?" I asked. He sighed. "Kara, Barry took it hard. He changed. He was never happy after you left. He became the Flash almost 24/7. We rarely see him. He doesn't answer his phone. But my best bet is he is on top of the CatCo building."

"Cover for me, will you?" He nodded and I snuck out of the DEO. I took a deep breath and waited for a ray to hit my skin. As it did, I felt even more power surge through me. I smiled and I took off into the sky. The air rushing past me was refreshing and it gave me life. I looked down at the stillness as I flew over National City. I never knew how much I missed this. I missed my powers, my family, my world.