A/N: Thanks for the reviews.
Baratta jennifer -Poor Kara will push herself ...
"What's the situation?" Supergirl asked landing next to the Fire Chief.
"Supergirl, I'm glad to see you." He said. "A twenty yard section of the tunnel cave in, we have mass casualties above and below ground. Right now we can't get to the ones below ground, but our bigger issue is we think the adjacent section could also collapse. We need to secure it, but it will take 30 mins for the team to get here." He explained.
"So what do you want me to do?"
"Expedite the rescue of those under ground?" He asked.
"On it. If you need me contact me on this." Supergirl said handing him a radio before tunnelling her way through the rubble to get to the collapsed section.
"Chief, we have a problem." A firefighter said running towards him.
"What is it Fitzy?"
"The earthquake damaged the gas line, there is a leak and we can't switch off the supply."
"Supergirl, this is Chief Williams. We believe there is a gas leak and we are struggling to shut off the supply."
"I can smell it, give me a second." She said before taking a deep breath in as she continued to rescue a man trapped in his car. Once he was free she flew him to the surface and exhaled.
"Want me to try shutting it off?" Supergirl asked.
"The engineers say they should be done in two minutes, but until then we need to avoid sparks."
"Understood." Supergirl said disappearing again to rescue the next casualty.
As she reached the car she was about to rip the door off when she heard a worrying crack just as the chief came back on the radio.
"Supergirl we need you to prop it up now." The Chief ordered forcing Supergirl to abandon the car she had reached and hurry to the unstable section. Seeing it buckle she immediately tried to hold it up.
Looking at the car she had abandoned, she saw the unconscious passenger and listened for a heart beat, relieved when she could still here it.
"How are you doing Supergirl?" Her sister asked over the radio.
"This is kinda heavy." Kara grunted.
"Several DEO squads will be there soon." Alex said.
"How long can she hold that?" Vasquez asked back in the DEO control room.
"I have no idea, ignoring the tunnel weight, there are a lot of buildings on top of that section." Alex said frowning. "My guess is not long. How far out are our squads?"
"Three minutes." Vasquez said causing Alex to tap the radio.
"The squads are three minutes out." She said.
"They have a plan?" Supergirl said, her voice quivering with effort.
"Yes." Alex said. "You just need to hold on a little longer."
"No." Supergirl suddenly cried.
"What's wrong?"
"The person I had to stop helping to hold this tunnel just died."
"That's not on you." Alex said. "By holding that section up you are keeping so many people alive."
"Something's happening." Supergirl said.
"What?" Alex asked.
"Don't know." Supergirl said before she saw a spark, a spark that quickly ignited the gas. Immediately she tried to use her freeze breath to quench the fire, but with the continual flow of gas was a fight she felt she was loosing.
"Supergirl, the gas will be shut off in twenty seconds." The fire chief said. With a target to aim for Supergirl kept blowing out, feeling herself get dizzy from the lack of oxygen and the weight of the section she was holding.
"Hang in there." Alex said over the radio.
"Gas is off." The chief reported causing Kara to stop using her freeze breath and inhale the limited oxygen that was available in the tunnel.
"You okay?" Alex asked her sister.
"Don't know how much longer I can last." Supergirl said, her voice trembling with effort.
"It won't be long now, the rescue squads are on scene." Alex said.
"I can hear them." Kara said, hearing noise in the distance.
"Supergirl." A woman said approaching, although Kara couldn't see her face due the helmet based light blinding her. "The teams are setting up now." She said, but as she spoke she saw how much Supergirl's arms were trembling. "Can you keep holding for another five?"
"If I have to." Supergirl said feeling the burn spread through her muscles.
"We'll be as fast as we can." She said as she heard shouts and bangs from all around.
"Supergirl?" A man said approaching.
"Yeah."
"Any chance we can borrow your heat vision?"
"What?" Supergirl asked.
"We need to secure the welds, but can't get our torches working."
"Where?" Supergirl asked.
"Just there." He said pointing at the roof.
"Tell me when it is enough." She said using her head vision on the metal.
"Enough." He said. Once she had stopped he said. "Now here." He said shining a laser pointer on another joint. After several more welds he said. "That's fine – we're done."
"Done done?" Supergirl asked, knowing she was seconds away from dropping the load.
"Almost." He said checking one of the joints. "Okay. You can let go." He said causing Supergirl to relax her arms slightly. When the roof didn't gave she lowered her arms.
"Thanks." He said.
"Sure. But we have more victims we need to get out." Supergirl said disappearing further into the tunnel and pulling out more victims.
00
When Kara finally returned to the apartment, covered in soot and grime her daughter approached her and asked.
"Mom."
Not getting a response the teenage Alex repeated. "Mom?"
"Sorry?" Kara asked.
"What's wrong?" The teen asked.
"Nothing. I'm fine."
"Why don't you go have a shower? I'll make dinner."
"I'm not hungry." Kara said. "But I will shower."
Having watched her mother disappear into her bedroom the teenage Alex was about to call her aunt when the front door opened.
"She's in the shower." The teen said to her aunt.
"She say anything?"
"Just that she wasn't hungry. It's because of the tunnel collapse isn't it?"
"Yes." Her aunt confirmed.
"It was really bad wasn't it?" The teen asked.
"Yeah." Her aunt replied before saying. "I need you to do me a favour."
"What?"
"I need you to go to my place and make sure your grandmother doesn't do anything stupid, while I talk to your mom."
"You could have just asked me to go." The teen pointed out before saying. "I'll just pack my things." With that she disappeared to her bedroom returning a few moments later with a bag, Chewie by her feet.
"You'll make sure she is okay?" The teen asked her aunt.
"Of course." The older Alex said.
"Okay." The teen said leaving the apartment. Once she had gone her aunt took out her phone and fired off some messages.
-00-
"Alex, what are you doing here?" Kara asked when she emerged from the shower and saw her sister.
"There is no way I wasn't going to be here. Alex is over at my place so you don't need to be strong. So how are you?"
"So many people died." Kara said sadly.
"I know. But a lot didn't because of you." Her sister reminded her. "You have to focus on that." She said as the doorbell rang.
"I'll get it." Alex said moving to the door and letting her friend into the apartment.
"Lena? What are you doing here?" Kara asked.
"I assumed you were going to be sitting here blaming yourself for this afternoon, so I am here to stop that."
"I'm okay." Kara said.
"And yet this box of doughnuts." Lena said waving the box. "Has been in your apartment for twenty seconds and has remained untouched."
"I'm not hungry."
"Which is all the proof we need that you are not okay." Lena pressed.
"Guys, I appreciate what you are doing. But I am okay."
"Only you aren't and if we leave you, you are going stew all evening. Plus, you have only just persuaded Alex it is okay to go, as in go away, to college. You really want her to doubt that?" Alex asked.
"That's low." Kara said.
"But justified." Lena countered.
"I really don't want to talk about what happened." Kara tried.
"Okay, but you can not talk about it with us here." Alex said.
"I really won't be good company." Kara pointed out.
"That's fine." Lena said sitting on one side as Alex sat on her other side.
"We'll sit here and watch movies until you want to talk." Alex said.
00
As the trio watched the movie Alex felt a tremor coming from her side, turning she saw her sister was fighting back tears.
"It's okay." Alex said pulling Kara in for a hug.
"No it's not, so many people died, because I wasn't strong enough."
"Kara you did everything you could." Lena said. "You were in an impossible position and while people died, you saved thousands by stopping a full collapse."
"Then why do I feel like such a failure?"
"Because you are a good person who sets themselves impossible goals. While the rest of us gave up on a perfect world long ago, you still strive to make it." Lena said.
"But that means you are going to have days like these." Alex said. "Even though you aren't to blame."
"That's not what the world thinks." Kara said. "I heard them while I was flying back, they were blaming me for not helping."
"You did help." Alex said. "You did more than anyone else. And yes it wasn't enough, but that is on us not being prepared, not you."