"Who'll give me five thousand for this beautiful nightstand? Five thousand, anybody? Ma'am, five thousand to you! Do I hear six thousand?!"
Alex tried to ignore the speakers as she focused on her target. She'd spotted the alien about a floor below her in the stairwell, and was now trailing behind her as she headed into the backstage.
She considered her options. Following their earlier plan would be a hassle if Maggie wasn't there, it really was a two-man operation. But waiting for her and regrouping wouldn't work either.
She considered calling in reinforcements. They could always go nuclear if that's what it took. But stealth was prioritized – those were strict orders from J'onn. The last thing they needed was every single influential person in National City breathing down the DEO's neck for taking away their favorite pastime.
Either she could take out the alien now, while everybody was seated in the theatre, or wait it out for a better moment. But that could take hours.
Now. She had to go now.
She shadowed the ignorant alien as she watched her toss her hair back and walk into a hallway that undoubtedly lead to the stage area…
… Guarded by two bodyguards. Of course.
The alien smiled at them and got waved through immediately. Alex barely had anything on her; there was a possibility that they would be searched upon entering, so bringing grenades and guns wasn't part of the plan.
But she did remember Kara hiding some extra equipment. According to the blueprints, the top floor of the theatre had a bathroom that wouldn't be frequented by guests, and Kara had left a duffle bag with some stun grenades and weapons.
Getting it would definitely cause her to lose her target. But upon checking her watch, she realized that time was running short anyway. The auction was already happening, and it was close to midnight.
Regroup with Maggie in the ballroom, get the weapons from the top floor, and improvise.
And only use the nuclear option when it was truly an emergency. She had to stick to her orders.
Alex stopped her pursuit, cursing herself. The one thing that they shouldn't have done, was let Jade out of their sight. But with Maggie's boss being in on it, that made things all the more complicated. She understood why Maggie was shocked and thrown off at the confession. But letting the man walk meant more danger.
They'd made the right call.
She pressed her earpiece. "Maggie? Can you hear me?"
She waited for a few seconds, until the answer came. "I'm here."
It sounded off, but Alex couldn't put her finger on it. She continued nonetheless. "Mags, I lost her backstage, there's security. We'll have to knock them out with the grenades Kara put upstairs."
"You go… arrange that."
The statement made Alex frown. "Everything okay over there?"
"Peachy." Maggie grunted. "Just… Get her, Danvers."
"I can't do it without you. Can't you let Kara fly in to take Cooper off your hands? So we can regroup? Look, I'll come to the ballroom and we can-…"
"No… no." She heard Maggie protest. "… You need to stay on her."
"Mags…" Alex started, completely confused at the weird answers her girlfriend was giving her. "Mags, if you're in trouble, can you say so?!"
"Everything's fine, Danvers. You can't let that alien get away. If she walks out of here… It's over."
Alex made a mental note to check up on Maggie later, as her worries skyrocketed with her cryptic behavior, but she knew that the mission was more important. Maggie was right; if the Ragh'tah walked out with an entire collection sold, they either wouldn't find her anywhere because she'd be long gone, or she'd come back to kill them both.
Why couldn't Maggie just let Kara fly in and take Cooper?
Her mind argued back and forth. Maybe Cooper knew about Kara and had brought kryptonite. Maybe he threatened to kill her, or Alex, and Maggie got spooked. Or maybe he…
No. Alex shook her head. Maggie was fine. She was talking, alert… And Alex needed to focus on the task at hand.
The upper floor bathroom. Retrieve the stun grenades, get into the backstage, and take out the Ragh'tah. Dead or alive.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we'll be taking a short 15-minute break before the next collection is presented!" She heard over the speakers.
Shit. Every attendee would be rushing to the bathrooms or bar. She needed to act fast.
She raced up the stairs, all the way to the top floor, and checked the hallway in front of her. It looked deserted.
Continuously scanning her surroundings, Alex walked over to the bathroom door with a raised gun. But thankfully, she was completely alone. She didn't waste any time in grabbing the tactical bag from a space behind a loose air vent duct, and zipping it open.
The first thing inside was her tactical gear. She considered putting it on for a brief moment, before realizing that it made no sense. As uncomfortable as it was doing a mission in her pantsuit, it was still an undercover op. She grabbed a few stun grenades and zipped the bag up again. She didn't have the space to hide an assault rifle, nor any of the other things inside.
Before she could tuck it back into the air vent, she froze.
Behind her, the door to the bathroom opened.
She immediately reached for her gun again, but it was too late.
"You must be Alex Danvers."
Alex lowered her hands slowly, looking the slender woman in the eyes. She didn't recognize her, but she obviously knew who Alex was.
"I'm glad you're here. I was starting to fear I'd have to do it all by myself."
"Who are you?" Alex asked, her hand moving towards one of the stun grenades in a hidden compartment of her pantsuit. She didn't like this situation one bit.
The woman smirked, and took a step in her direction. Alex could now see that she was wearing an elegant dress, that looked a little… padded.
Then, she realized that she'd seen the dress before. A prototype of bulletproof clothing that she herself had worked on a few months ago.
"Where did you get that?!" Alex hissed, now drawing her gun instantly and pointing it at the woman's head.
The blonde laughed, and shook her head. "You like the dress? I know that you helped make it. I should thank Milo for letting me borrow it."
"Who. Are you?!" Alex repeated, in a tone that told the woman that she wasn't going to ask again.
She sighed, leaning against the doorway and looking Alex in the eyes. "Violet Hayes. DEO operative, clearance level B. I was stationed in Metropolis, before I was asked to go on a mission in Australia. I came back when my entire family was murdered, and now I'm kind of doing the whole vengeance act thing. I'm sure you can empathize."
Alex's eyebrows had shot up in her hairline at the woman's confession. Maggie had vaguely told her about the lawyer that managed to get her out of jail being Ian's daughter. But this…
"If you're a DEO agent, then why did you pretend to be her lawyer?"
Alex was on edge. This woman could easily be the Ragh'tah taking on another identity. She needed proof.
Violet smirked. "I knew that waving my DEO badge around wouldn't get her anywhere. The NCPD isn't exactly on great terms with the DEO now that you threw your weight around with Holmes. Anyway, J'onn asked me to come and serve as your back-up. It was a last-minute decision, so I'm sorry you weren't in on it."
Alex opened her mouth to ask more questions, but then realized the task at hand. She was still on a mission. "Maggie's on the second floor, keeping Cooper detained. He's confessed everything to us – he helped murder those women. The alien is backstage, getting ready for her auction. Here." Alex shoved two stun grenades in her hands, which she tucked away immediately. "Do you have a gun?"
"Just my pistol. Couldn't bring anything else."
Alex nodded. "We need to get the alien before it can get up the stage or we're fucked. And we need to go help Maggie. She only has a stun gun, I assume she knocked him out, but we should check."
"Okay." Violet thought. "I met a Ragh'tah one of my first weeks stationed in Australia. A sculptor. Accidentally dropped one of his sculptures on the ground, he was ready to kill me had we not been in public. They hate when something happens to their artwork. That's why they're so on top of it."
"They'll probably-…" Alex started, but her face paled. "Shit, if they go get the artwork in the ballroom, they'll find Maggie and Cooper! We need to hurry!"
Alex and Violet raced back towards the stairwell, and to the second floor. Upon arriving, Violet pulled Alex back when they saw that the door was closed.
She leaned forward to whisper in her ear. "They could already be in there."
"Then what's your plan?!" Alex whispered back. Violet raised one of the grenades Alex had given her.
"Maggie is in there!"
Violet winced. "Necessary casualty. We need to be sure that we have the upper hand. If we enter and there are people inside, raising alarm, we need the element of surprise."
Her alien gun and Violet's pistol wouldn't do much. She knew that.
She nodded, and stepped back as Violet walked over to the doors, opened the left one slightly, and threw one of the grenades into the room. Quickly, she shut the door again and waited for the small bang on the other side of the door.
Not as loud as a normal flashbang, not too loud to draw attention downstairs, but enough to disorient whoever was inside.
After that, Alex ran up to the door, and they both poured inside with raised guns.
"Holy shit." Violet cursed, the second they took in the sight.
The room was deserted, the dozen-or-so paintings on the wall still completely intact.
But a bloodstain with drag marks led their eyes up to the other side of the room, where a semi-conscious, huddled figure was leaning against the wall, slumped forward.
"No… oh God… no…" Alex whispered, as she ran to Maggie's side. The blood on her side was seeping out at an alarming rate, and she could see how pale the detective was.
Violet winced at the thought of hurting Maggie unintentionally, but she ran forward to put a hand on Alex's shoulder. "I'll hold them off if they try to come in, but make it quick, Danvers."
She was convinced that the agent hadn't heard a single thing she said. But she didn't need a reply, as she picked up Maggie's discarded stun gun, closed the door behind her, and waited in the hallway.
"M-Mags…" Alex sobbed, kneeling at her side and putting pressure on the wound immediately with one hand, putting the other underneath her chin to tilt her head up. "Mags, can you hear me?"
A weak, rattling intake of breath made Alex exhale in relief. "Babe…"
"-Lex…" Maggie moaned, her eyes remaining closed. "C-Cooper…"
"He shot you." Alex whispered, more to herself as a confirmation than a question. She scrambled for her earpiece and pressed against it with her free hand, already knowing that it was no use. "Agent Danvers, we need a med-evac in the second floor ballroo-…" She cut herself off when she saw Maggie moving forward, and had to release the earpiece to steady her. "No, stop… stop moving."
"V-Violet…" Maggie whispered.
"Yeah." Alex chuckled weakly. "S-she's a DEO agent. J'onn asked her to assist in the op."
Maggie's mouth curled up into a weak smile. "G-good. She's b-badass."
Alex took a shaky breath, as she tried to steady herself. There was still no communicating with the earpieces. A cellphone was out of the question completely. But she needed to get Maggie help, and fast.
"Come on. I'm getting you out of here, but you need to hold on just a bit longer." Alex decided, reaching forward to wrap Maggie's right arm over her shoulder.
The detective moaned, and Alex could practically feel the blood gushing out of her side. "I'm sorry about the flashbang, babe."
A weak laugh was the reply. As Alex pulled her out of the room, she was relatively unsurprised to see an array of unconscious, stunned tuxedo-wearing men on the ground. Violet herself looked a bit roughed up, but was smirking. "Haven't had a chance to practice that in a while. But I think they'll be asking questions in a few seconds, once they fail to show up with the paintings."
"I need to get her out, Hayes." Alex said, seriously. "Can you meet me back downstairs in the foyer? Try and scout ahead, see what the possibilities are for getting backstage. We're running out of time."
"Copy that, Danvers. But I have some unfinished business here first." Violet said, reaching for something in her bra. When she pulled it out, Alex saw that she was holding a pocket knife.
The blonde headed back into the ballroom.
Alex didn't bother to stay for the sounds of ripping canvas.
She had to get Maggie out.
"Hey, you doing okay?"
"Mmhm." Maggie grunted. "I seriously… N-need to marry you. A-as soon as possible."
Alex laughed weakly. "We'll do it as soon as we know you're okay."
"T-taking your word for it… D-Danvers."
"Wouldn't want it any other way."
Alex considered her options quickly. Most of the people downstairs would already be back in the theatre, but there would still be employees running around. But with the scramblers, she couldn't tell the snipers that she was coming out, and they would take a shot at them for sure. And the stage door was completely out of the question.
Front entrance it was. It wasn't the most subtle, but at least it was the least risk of dropping dead within five seconds. And the blood that was beginning to seep through her suit from Maggie's side made her see red.
If she ever saw Cooper again, she'd kill him.
They made it downstairs without too much trouble, as she forced Maggie to hurry up. "Come on, Mags, I know this hurts but you're almost there… please…"
She knew that Maggie was losing energy. That her fiancée was on the verge of consciousness, and passing out.
They made it to the foyer. The doors to the theatre were wide open, and she could hear that the opening introduction for Jade's artwork had started.
"Come on, come on…" Alex whispered, as she saw the entrance that would lead outside. A few more steps, and Maggie would finally get help. She could brief the DEO on their situation. She could ask for back-up…
She didn't expect the entrance door to be slammed shut.
"No, no, let us through, please, she's hurt!" Alex yelled at the woman who was now locking the door. As she turned around, she raised an eyebrow. "What is your number?"
"M-my… what?!"
"Your bidder card." The woman said. The cold tone of her voice was absolutely insane, Alex thought. Maggie was clearly dying, and that woman didn't seem to care.
"270." Alex spat. "Now let us through!"
The woman chuckled. "I'm sorry, miss Danvers."
Alex pulled her gun, her blood boiling. "I'm not going to ask you again, open the fucking door!"
"I'm afraid that's not an option."
Before Alex could turn around, she felt a hard impact on the back of her head.
After that, she was out.
The next thing she was aware of, was a low murmuring. People talking in hushed voices.
She tilted her head and opened her eyes, but found that the darkness didn't go away.
A few more seconds to gain her bearings, and she realized that there was something over her head. Probably a bag.
"Ladies and gentlemen, my collection today is connected to a very special story."
She heard Jade's voice. It sounded like it came from far away, but everything was distorted and blurry.
"… The reason why I called my collection 'the Other Half', was because I got to be part of a very unique and life-altering experience. I got to see, first hand, what true love can do to a human. How it can break somebody. It's all in the eyes, ladies and gentlemen. And to illustrate, tonight, I have two very special guests. My muses, the subjects of my inspiration!"
The bag was pulled from over her head. The bright lights shining in her eyes blinded her, as she now heard the chants and shouting of the crowd below her.
She was on the stage.
In front of her, slumped forward in a chair, was Maggie. She'd obviously gone through the same process of being taken. But she looked like she was ready to pass out.
"And tonight, ladies and gentlemen, aside from the beautiful collection these two have made possible, while my other work is being auctioned, I'll be painting a new set, right in front of your very eyes!"
The crowd went absolutely insane. Yelling, cheering and clapping. Alex felt sick to her stomach.
"Now, don't worry, no humans were harmed here! We just brought them up on stage. But it looks like this one here managed to get herself into a bit of trouble before the big show." Alex watched Jade pull Maggie's chin up to face her.
"G-go to h-hell." Maggie grunted.
Alex wanted desperately to do something. But she realized that they'd taken her gun away during her unconsciousness. She was defenseless, completely at the mercy of the alien in front of them. But this time it wasn't just the two of them. It was an entire room full of people, ready to bid on their agony.
"Ten thousand!" Somebody shouted from the audience. They were already bidding.
Alex clenched her eyes shut, before looking up at Maggie. "Mags, we're going to be okay. We're going to get out of this…"
The detective didn't respond. Alex didn't know if it was blood loss or just exhaustion, but she gave up on trying to get Maggie to talk to her quickly.
Another scan of the room, wincing against the bright lights, made her notice a small figure up on the balcony. All the attendees were downstairs on the seats, but the blonde figure was unmistakably out of place, as she glanced down at the room below her.
Before looking right at Alex, and raising a finger to her lips with a smile.
A small smirk fought its way up to Alex's face.
She wasn't going to go down without a fight.