The Return Chapter 516, a supergirl fanfic

"What's wrong with her?" Steve asked a few hours later as he stood next to Alex looking into the isolab where the unconscious Kara was lying hooked up to various tubes and machines.

"We don't know. But her cells are breaking down, almost attacking themselves."

"So she's in pain?" Steve asked.

"Yes." Alex confirmed. "But we are doing all we can."

"Can I sit with her?"

"Sure. But you need to wear a hazmat suit until we know it is safe."

"Of course." Steve replied.

"Let me know if you notice any changes. I need to call Alex and then go back to the lab."

"Alex, is she going to be okay?"

"Honestly? I don't know." Alex said.

"Are you okay?" Steve asked.

"No." She said walking off.

"Mom? How's aunt Kara?" MJ asked when his mother entered his sister's area of the infirmary.

"Not good, but holding on." Alex said.

"Can we see her?" MJ asked.

"No, not at the moment it is too dangerous." Alex said. "For now I just need you guys to stay here."

"Okay." MJ agreed.

"Good." Alex smiled before approaching her daughter and asking. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay."

"Her pain has increased." Diz said.

"How much?" Alex asked frowning.

"Not much, but they lowered the pain meds so it is probably nothing." The younger Kara said while glaring at Diz.

"Well let's make sure of that." Alex said squeezing her hand. "A doctor will be in, in a minute. But I need you to be honest with them. I need to get back to your aunt, but if anything changes let me know." She added just as her daughter tightly squeezed her hand and asked.

"You okay?" The younger Kara asked.

"I will be when this is over." Alex said before leaving.

"I thought you were with Alex?" Jane said when Matt came into the house alone.

"Her aunt phoned and after that she wanted some time alone."

"And you gave it to her? You're an idiot." Jane said walking out of the house before calling back. "Bring out some food."

"Okay." Matt said as he watched Jane march off towards the workshop.

After a few minutes Jane saw Alex sat down on the ground, her back against the wall.

"Hey." Jane said sitting down next to Alex.

"Hey." Alex replied.

Realising she had no idea what to say Jane sat silently for a minute before finally she said.

"Before when I've seen Supergirl I kinda believed she was maybe invulnerable -"

"She's not." Alex said.

"I know, and now I know who she is, it makes it really hard, I can't even start to imagine what it is like for you." Jane said.

"I don't want to talk."

"That's fine, but I'm not letting you sit here alone." Jane said. "But Matt will be back in a minute with food if you'd prefer to wait with him. So what can I do?" Jane asked.

"You don't have to do anything. This is my problem."

"Technically your mom saves the world, so she is kinda everyone's concern." Jane said. "But more importantly Matt is my best friend and he cares about you, a lot. Which makes you part of this weird extended family and so you are also my concern." She pointed out. Getting no response she added. "If you want, I have hundreds if not thousands of questions about planets, space ships, your powers. I could keep you distracted for weeks."

"I think you are overestimating how exciting my life has been." Alex said.

"How many planets have you been to?"

"Umm-"

"More than one?" Jane asked.

"Yes."

"That's way more exciting than my life." Jane commented.

"Exciting isn't always good." Alex pointed out.

"I'd take exciting over this red neck town." Jane countered.

"What's wrong with this town?" Alex asked.

"They don't like different. Well they don't like people who don't conform. Like me." Jane said before asking. "Did Matt tell you how we became friends?"

"You saved him from a bully." Alex recalled.

"No, that's how Matt became my annoying shadow, some would say stalker." Jane smiled. "We didn't actually become friends until a couple of years after that."

"What happened?"

"When I was twelve I was outed."

"Outed?" Alex asked confused.

"Some one found out I was gay and told the whole school. Overnight I became a pariah. Matt tried to protect me so first went into school really early every day to remove the graffiti. Then he started to stand up to everyone, killing his own social life. Not that I gave him any thanks. But at the time my dad had gone on another business trip and I was kinda living by myself."

"Weren't you twelve?"

"Yeah, I may have lied to my dad and implied I was staying with Matt, who he thought was my friend not my stalker. I didn't want to ask for help from anyone so I just lied and stayed at home. Only Matt figured it out. He came round and I refused to let him in. So he slept on the doorstep."

"Matt slept outdoors?"

"Yeah. And he was eaten alive by bugs. His screaming at three woke me up. He was covered in bites. And really freaked out. Full blown panic attack and he wouldn't calm down."

"What happened?"

"I called his mom, who came running and took control. After Matt had fallen to sleep she figured out what had happened and really laid into me before making me pack a bag. After that Alison made sure I never stayed by myself again and I started the long road to redemption."

"With Alison?"

"No Matt. He was really ticked at me and he can hold a grudge. He didn't talk to me for a week, which was super awkward as I was living with him."

"A week?" Alex asked.

"Yes, so I go off lucky on that one. His longest is twenty three days."

"What did you do for that?" Alex asked as they heard someone approach.

"Hey." Matt said sitting down next to them. "I bring food." Feeling he had interrupted he asked.

"What were you talking about?"

"Your grudges." Jane said.

"Have you found a cure?" Steve said when Eliza entered the isolab several hours later, without a hazmat suit.

"Not exactly, but there is no longer a risk to others." Eliza said. "The problem is Kara was hit by three different poisons and they have interacted in ways we hadn't predicted."

"Which means the antidotes you can give J'onn and Barry don't work on her?" Steve guessed as he took off his hazmat helmet.

"That's right, for now it is trial and error." Eliza said. "The good news is she isn't getting any worse."

"Can I do anything?"

"Just be there for her." Eliza said.

"I meant for you. This can't be easy."

"It's not. But knowing someone is looking after her is comforting." Eliza said as Lena suddenly banged on the window. "I have to go." Eliza said rushing from the room.

Hearing her phone buzz Alex immediately looked at it before explaining. "It's Steve."

"Has he heard something?" Matt asked.

"No, he was checking up on me." Alex said sending a reply.

"And how are you really doing?" Matt asked.

"I'm angry and frustrated and scared." The teenage Alex reeled off. "I shouldn't even be here. What if they come after you again?"

"Indomitable knew I was connected to you, so I doubt your physical location has much to do with it." Matt said. "Besides we beat Indomitable."

"We?" Alex asked.

"Well you. I tried and failed."

"I got stabbed." Alex reminded him.

"And we are both okay." Matt said.

"I know am I am the last person to offer relationship advice, but maybe you guys should consider, I don't know, normal dates." Jane said as they heard a rumble in the distance.

"Looks like another storm. We should get inside." Matt said.

"What they gave her, intentionally or otherwise, is having the same effect on her as the modifications did to Indomitable." Lena said as she stood in a lab with Alex and Eliza.

"You mean they are turning her into a nuke?" Alex asked.

"Yes." Lena said. "Her body temperature is increasing and by my calculations she has under four hours."

"So what do we do? What about bone marrow, could that help?" Alex asked.

"Where would we find any compatible?" Lena asked.

"Argo? Her cousin?" Eliza asked.

"He's not a match." Alex said recalling a previous disaster. But Indomitable was stabilised by the transplant, can we mimic the effect?"

"Maybe. Well if we think outside the box." Lena said.

"What are you thinking?" Alex asked.

"Nanites. But, if they work and Kara regains her powers, I don't know what Kara's body will do to them afterwards."

"Does it matter?" Eliza questioned.

"It does if they try to defend themselves or cells they think are right. I'll need to make sure there is a kill switch."

"How long?" Alex asked.

"An hour." Lena said.

"Any thing I can do?" Barry asked entering the lab.

"Why aren't you in the infirmary?" Alex asked.

"I'm fine." Barry said. "I just want to help Kara."

"In which case you are with me." Lena said leading him from the lab.

Seeing Alex pick up a tablet Eliza asked.

"What are you doing?"

"Finding a backup plan. Just in case." Alex said. "If your estimations are right. I have three hours until I need to tell the President that Kara is a threat. I want to do everything I can to ensure I don't need that conversation."

"Well, seeing it is only Kara that is reacting like this, let's go back to all the compounds she was exposed to." Eliza said bringing them up on screen.

"Except this isn't all of them. Barry gave her what we thought was an antidote. That needs to be included." Alex said typing at a keyboard.

"I'm ready." Lena said returning to the lab an hour later.

"So are we." Alex said.

"So which do we go with?" Eliza asked.

"The nanites." Alex said.

"Really? Why?" Lena asked.

"When they tried to turn her into Imperium that scrubbing unit you put in her worked against all the chemicals."

"But they were all Kryptonite which made the job easier. It is a different problem this time with far more risks." Lena said.

"I know. But she already has so many chemicals in her." Alex said. "Either way is a risk, I just think the nanites are less of a risk."

"Want to try them on me?" J'onn asked from the doorway.

"J'onn?" Alex said before hugging him. "How are you feeling?"

"Hung over."

"Hard to picture you drunk." Alex replied before pulling away.

"So can I help be a test subject?" J'onn asked.

"The nanites are programmed to Kryptonian DNA, they would be rejected immediately by your body." Lena said.

"But moral support is always appreciated." Eliza said hugging J'onn.

"So are we going with the nanites?" Lena asked.

"Yes. But we keep the chemical option on standby." Alex added.

"You have a cure?" Steve asked when Alex, Lena and Eliza entered the isolab.

"Maybe." Alex said trying not to sound too optimistic.

"Anything I can do?" Steve asked.

"No, just stand back, we aren't sure how she'll react." Lena said as Eliza adjusted the lamps in the room, allowing Lena to inject the nanites into Kara. The group then watched and waited and waited.

"Should something be happening?" Steve asked.

"I thought it might, maybe they failed." Lena said looking at her laptop.

"Maybe not, look at her temperature." Alex said. "It's rocketing."

"You think it had the reverse effect?" Eliza asked.

"Get J'onn in here." Alex barked over the radio before looking at the readings.

"Look at this." Eliza said pointing to a monitor. "Her cells are returning to a normal shape."

"And the nanites are working." Lena said. "It's just taking time." She added as Kara started to gag.

"Easy." Alex said, although Kara still seemed unconscious. She then looked at Steve and said. "Help me get this tube out."

Nodding Steve assisted Alex as Lena and Eliza kept looking at the scans.

"Body temperature is still rising." Eliza said as the door opened.

"What's wrong?" J'onn asked.

"Kara's temperature is spiking. It's possible she is about to become unstable. Half a degree more and you need to move her." Alex explained as Steve finally pieced together what they were worried about.

"Come on Kara." He said squeezing her hand as they all watched the temperature gauge moments before one of the alarms started ringing.

"She's gone into cardiac arrest." Steve said putting his hands on Kara's chest, ready to start CPR only for Kara to suddenly gasp as her heart restarted. Moments later her eyes flew open and she screamed in pain.

"Kara." Alex called. "What's wrong?"

"It's the nanites." Lena said. "Her body is fighting them."

"Can you deactivate them?" Steve asked.

"They aren't finished. Deactivate them and we may end up back we we started." Lena warned as she looked at her laptop.

"How long do you need?"

"A minute."

"She can't take a minute." Steve said as Kara started to have a seizure.

"What do you want me to do?" Lena asked Alex.

"Keep going, she can take it." Alex said, hating herself for making that decision.

Knowing better than to argue Steve silently watched until all of a suddenly Kara went deathly still.

For a moment no one in the room breathed as they silently watched Kara, each blocking out the various alarms ringing and then not ringing round the room.

Snapping back to reality first Alex moved over to Kara and grabbed her hand.

"Kara, can you hear me?"

"Al … " Kara slurred.

"I'm right here."

"Hurts." Kara said before passing out.