"I cannot track that explosion to the source, you guys!" Winn's voice exclaimed through Kara's earpiece. "The radar's not picking up any underwater signals."
It wasn't long after her takeoff from L-Corp that Kara spotted several small explosions at the city's eastern edge. Pockets of smoke and rubble littered the streets, the result of some strange projectiles originating from somewhere in the harbor. As she began her descent from above the skyscrapers, Kara nearly met a missile head on. It was not the military-grade ammunition she was expecting, but instead a fiery blast that missed her by inches, exploding violently into a burst of emerald in the air.
"Whatever that green smoke is can't be good." She noted.
"Likely toxic," Winn confirmed, "zero out of 10, don't recommend."
Kara made a beeline for the ground. Among the chaos of dozens of civilians scrambling in the street was J'onn, helping direct people to safety as Kara landed next to him.
"Submarine?" Kara inquired, shielding a father and daughter from flying debris as they ran to shelter.
"Some sort of aquatic vehicle." J'onn responded, signaling to Maggie and Alex who were perched on a nearby rooftop. "But it's camouflaged, so coordinates are unknown."
"Danvers, Sawyer, stay on the waterfront!" J'onn directed as the pair scanned the premises, "Supergirl, find the source of this fire!"
Kara was already diving into the harbor. "Flying" underwater could only get her so far due to the drag. Kara's powers equipped her better for the air than sea and she couldn't breathe underwater, so she knew she had to conserve as much energy as possible. She relied on her enhanced hearing to locate the target as she moved deeper. After about one minute she started to pick up a faint heartbeat. She surfaced briefly to refill her lungs, then resubmerged to follow the sound.
Another burst of green light exploded off to her left, the flash illuminating an automated rover. The device was no bigger than a coffee table, but was capable of producing dangerous projectiles, such as the one rocketing towards the surface. Kara attempted to propel herself toward the source, but was suddenly jerked downward. The unexpected movement caused her to inhale water, lungs burning as she was dragged into the depths.
"Lured by the siren's song, are we?" A smooth, tenor voice echoed. "Should've fastened yourself a bit tighter to the mast." Kara twisted around to find a hand gripping her ankle, squinting to get a view of her attacker.
He was human. Or at least mostly human besides the fins in place of feet. Donning what looked like a black wetsuit, the man was bald with stubble, speaking and moving as if he were on land. If she weren't preoccupied with the lack of oxygen, Kara would have wondered how his voice was coming through so clearly.
Kara squirmed in his vice grip, trying to break free to no avail. Kara's struggling only served to deprive her further of her lung capacity. She knew her threshold for escaping was limited before she passed out. Her captor's pupils were intensely dilated as he fixed her with a curious stare, a smirk pulling at his mouth.
"It seems the Supers don't come equipped with sea legs." He taunted, then swung Kara forcefully against a nearby reef. Kara's back made contact with the jagged object, once again causing her to inhale water, but loosening the man's hold just enough for her to kick free. She bolted to the surface, gasping and coughing as she made contact with the brisk spring air.
"Nat…City…Guard," Kara sputtered out to her radio. Levitating above the bay, hands outstretched above her head to speed up her breathing recovery. "The weapon…100 yards…southwest of…National City Guard docks."
"Copy. On it!" Winn replied.
Kara could see the DEO chopper in the distance, preparing to disable the rover. She took one more deep breath - chest still burning in protest - and dove right back into the depths, determined to track down the aquatic stranger.
A flash of movement out of the corner of her eye caught Kara's attention. She pursued it, realizing the man was fleeing the scene. But he was too swift, disappearing as he zipped through a school of bluefish that left Kara swatting away flailing fins and surprisingly sharp teeth. Swimming with as much vigor as she could muster, Kara resurfaced and dove down three more times, trying to catch any trace of the man. It wasn't until the concerned voice of her sister came through the radio that Kara reluctantly returned to the shore.
"A merman, Kara?" Alex asked with a confused tilt of her head. She and Maggie shared a skeptical glance, while J'onn looked intrigued. Winn typed rapidly on his keyboard.
"Yes! Well, does it still count as a mer-person if he had legs instead of a tail?" Kara shrugged, pacing the DEO lab.
"Ask Hans Christian Andersen." Maggie quipped.
"He had fins for feet, so clearly he's an alien." Kara ran a hand through her hair exhaustedly. She could still smell the ocean brine.
"The DNA sample from your boot isn't bringing up any matches," Winn chimed in, keeping his eyes on the screen. "At least not in this database."
"Maybe the saltwater washed it off? Too little to trace?" Alex offered.
"Or he's from further away than we thought?" Maggie added.
"The guy referenced The Odyssey though," Kara countered, "He's familiar with Earth culture."
"Something isn't adding up here." J'onn mused, "and we know he'll return."
"You bet." Winn warned, snapping his laptop shut. "Someone who goes this far, rigging a rover into a freakin' flame thrower? He has plans for something." Hoisting the confiscated device onto the table with an exaggerated grunt, he added. "Though I gotta admire the craftsmanship. This is Metropolis Tech-grade mechanics."
"No traceable DNA on that either?" Kara inquired.
"Nope, this beauty was operated remotely." Winn's statement was met with a collective sigh.
"He wasn't working alone." Kara concluded.
"Maybe if we did a full autopsy on this thing, we could get some answers." Winn explained. "But I'll admit, I don't think even my programs are compatible with this level of engineering. We're gonna need a bigger bot."
Like the rest of the group, Kara nodded defeatedly, but then she felt an inexplicable tinge of excitement as an idea occurred to her.
"I think I know someone who can help."
"An unidentified aquatic vessel opened fire on the streets of National City this afternoon, resulting in twelve injuries and several demolished establishments in the Port District. Despite intervention from Supergirl…"
Lena's head snapped up from her spreadsheets to watch the eveningnews. It was already 9pm and no end to project proposals in sight. Swirling the Scotch in her glass, Lena turned her full attention to the TV as a video of the event was shown. The reel consisted of Supergirl emerging weakly from the water, then cut to an invasive closeup of her face, hands hoisted above her head in an effort to breathe. Lena found herself studying the image, intrigued by the reporter who moonlights as a heroine.
A tentative knock at the window broke Lena out of her reverie, nearly jumping and turning to the source. It was none other than the subject of tomorrow's newspapers and Lena's current musings. Supergirl gave a quick wave and an apologetic smile. Lena returned the gesture and hurriedly turned off the TV, feeling a flush creep over her face. She questioned her reaction to her visitor. It wasn't as if she had been caught in some compromising act, right?
Smoothing out her skirt, Lena opened the door to a gracious superhero.
"Supergirl! To what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?" Lena began, all the while reminding herself to not refer to her as Kara.
"Ms. Luthor, I'm so sorry to bother you this late," the blonde began, "I know we haven't officially met before."
"No time like after hours, right?" Lena joked, receiving a nervous laugh in response. "No worries, you're a welcome break from all this." She gestured to her desk, paperwork, and three empty coffee cups.
"Right," Supergirl smiled sympathetically, "I assume you rarely get a break from work?"
"Look who's talking." Lena replied. "Can I offer you something to drink?"
"Oh, no, that's very kind. I, um," the Kryptonian picked at her nails, "Well, I'm here to ask for your assistance with something."
"Would it have anything to do with the harbor incident?" Lena smiled knowingly.
"Exactly. Well, we recovered a rover, a weaponized rover. Their programming would take months for our labs to process and decode, and by then this threat may be insurmountable. But with L-Corp's state-of-the-art technology…" Supergirl trailed off, a slight hitch in her voice. Lena sensed that Kara was deeply uncomfortable asking, but needed Lena's resources.
"Bring it over tomorrow," Lena insisted, "I'm sure we can figure it out."
A relieved smile crossed Supergirl's features. "You have no idea how crucial this is."
"Nonsense," Lena insisted, laying a hand on Kara's shoulder. "I can't guarantee anything, but maybe I can get you some answers."
"And whatever compensation you feel is appropriate," the heroine began quickly, "I'm sure we can work something out."
Lena let her hand drop from Kara's athletic frame. "I'll keep you posted."
"Thank you so much, Ms. Luthor!" Supergirl beamed, a sincere appreciation evident as she locked eyes with Lena. "I'll let you get back to work. I could bring the rover by midmorning?"
"Of course!" Lena assured her, her own sense of urgency driving her participation. There was something unnerving about the circumstances of the attacks, and the sooner she could assuage her own fears, the better.
As Supergirl wished her a good night and took off from the balcony, Lena decided she wouldn't mind getting to know Kara Danvers a bit better in the coming days.