Chapter 6 - NDAs
Cat stood in front of the Director's desk and handed back the paperwork. "Done," she announced. Lucy could not hide her surprise that Cat actually signed the documents.
J'onn took a look at the papers, and the numerous edits, and sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He handed the papers to Lucy, whose mouth dropped when she saw the edits.
"You can't edit government NDAs!" Lucy blurted incredulously, looking to J'onn, who sighed again.
"Well, I did. They were utterly unacceptable and at best, grammatically challenged."
"I wrote them!" Lucy balked.
"Now that is disappointing," Cat sniffed. "I would have expected the poor quality from the lesser Lane," she said, placing her hands on her hips. "But then, lawyers do love their run-on sentences. Why use plain English when you can pepper a document with unintelligible legalese?" she added flippantly.
Lucy growled and pulled out one sheet, holding it up as evidence. "Y . . . you changed the main point of this one!"
"Congratulations. You have proven a basic skill in reading comprehension," Cat said dismissively.
"Goddamn it, Cat…." Lucy snarled angrily.
"Lucy," J'onn cut in, shaking his head no, to Lucy's amazement.
Cat sighed, once again doing something she hated – explaining herself.
"I will not agree to the blanket requirement for government approval of anything I write about Supergirl. Your oppressive wording would restrict me from the freedom I have already exercised and is entirely unacceptable. The government has no need to approve CATCO reporting about her heroic deeds that are witnessed by the general public," Cat stated calmly but firmly. "I'm sure if we call your sister, we'll find she has no such government restrictions on content," Cat added with a thin smile.
"And she's the idiot that reported that he couldn't see through lead!" Lucy spat.
Cat frowned.
"I am fully aware there could be technical details or sensitive information that should not be published. If there are any instances where I deem an article sensitive, I will allow the government 24 hours to review it for any technical or medical information that might inadvertently harm Kara," Cat said, and slyly added with a thin smile, "or Clark."
Lucy quickly glanced incredulously to J'onn, who sighed.
"And you're free to publish anything you want about Kara's home?" Lucy shot back, annoyed, pulling out another edited NDA as an example.
"I will use discretion, of course. And I would require Kara's agreement to another interview and on whatever she is comfortable revealing about her home and experiences. If she doesn't agree, there's no story," Cat said simply. "I have no interest in putting her or her cousin in danger," she added firmly.
"But you already did, by letting Superman's enemies know she's his cousin!" Lucy argued, pulling out another edited NDA to object to.
"And wearing the same symbol on their matching primary color costumes while using the same super powers wasn't enough of a clue that they were connected?" Cat snapped, rolling her eyes. "I sincerely hope you are not assuming all criminals are idiots."
Lucy opened her mouth to argue, but Cat wasn't finished.
"The only way to guarantee I never write anything that could even remotely impact Kara is if I never wrote another article about Supergirl. But like it or not, Supergirl is news and someone else will fill that void! And that someone else might happen to report something, inadvertently or deliberately, you don't want published. Someone else, who might harbor resentment or bigotry towards aliens and want to create a negative narrative. Wouldn't you rather have the predominate news source on Supergirl, that has, yes, at times been very critical but always fair, continue to be the predominate news source?"
Lucy grimaced at the good points Cat was making. "We will need more than twenty-four . . . ," she grumbled.
"Lucy," J'onn interjected firmly, standing up from his desk. "I'll agree to the edited NDA's," he said, holding up a hand to stop Lucy's protest. "I trust she will do the right thing for Kara," he stated and added reluctantly "and Clark."
Cat beamed, not just for her NDA victory, but for the confirmation of Superman's identity — not that she needed it. Once she realized Kara's identity, all the nagging small oddities she noted during her time at the Daily Planet surrounding Clark Kent suddenly made sense. What a curious coincidence that her long-time public rival would also have a special relationship with a Kryptonian. Though, she was not the one who was drooling embarrassingly over a caped hero. She was Kara's mentor, Cat considered, though that was not quite right. Kara had taught her things too, like genuine goodness still existed. Which was no small task for her jaded, world-weary heart — a heart which her ex-husbands, gossip tabloids, and a long line of fired employees would swear didn't even exist.
"J'onn, you just got reinstated. This could make them reconsider," Lucy said worriedly, holding up the papers.
"I'll take that chance," he said confidently.
"Why?" Cat had to ask, a reporter to the core. "Why risk your job on me?" The question surprised Lucy.
"I read your mind," he said candidly, making Lucy nod reluctantly.
Cat eyed them with alarm, hoping that was another one of his bad jokes. She pursed her lips at the uncomfortable thought.
"And in principle, I agree that positive publicity about Supergirl would be a good thing," he said. "And the President seems to believe in you too," he added with a small shrug.
Cat smiled with some relief.
"What?" Lucy blurted, confused.
"President Marsden authorized Miss Grant's access to the DEO," J'onn explained.
"How the hell did you manage that?" Lucy demanded.
"College friend," Cat said breezily and shrugged. "She owed me a favor." Which was true, but she had also given one hell of a sales pitch to the President on how access at this time would help her and the DEO provide positive press coverage of Supergirl's heroism, which would help bolster public opinion in favor of the Alien Amnesty Act that Olivia was trying to get passed. But, of course, she quickly added that CATCO was not blindly pledging allegiance to her administration; if they found anything unsavory, CATCO would be calling her out on it.
Olivia had laughed and told her "I'd expect no less, Cat."
"We'll need to discuss timing of your article, since our hero is still fighting for her life," J'onn said bluntly.
Cat took an uneasy breath and nodded.
"Here," he said, turning his laptop around for her inspection, surprising both women.
"Some satellite video files that should be useful. Lucy can download them on a flash drive for your editing. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a base to run," J'onn said gruffly and left them alone with the computer.
To say Cat was eager to access the information would be an understatement. She felt a thrill, like she did when she grabbed the video camera from the young "Jimmy" Olsen, to view the damning evidence on the crooked State Senator she and Lois had been investigating. Of course, it was her lead that got them the dirt, so she deserved first look. Lois had always has a superiority complex since she never had to "humiliate herself" as a gossip columnist; yet it was thanks to her widespread network of "gossip" contacts that Cat got a solid tip.
She managed to beat Lois' grabby hands, which a swift elbow to the abdomen made possible. Unapologetic, she stood her ground, prepared for the inevitable physical retaliation when Clark, the only one who could tame that Metropolis shrew, came into the office and "mediated" between them - but unfortunately not before she had suffered some nasty scratches. And yet, inane jokes continued about Cat's claws!
In hindsight, it was amazing they ever managed to finish that award-winning article. But then, as competitive as they were with each other, they were smart enough to recognize fighting political corruption was far more important than their robust egos. And once they managed to agree on a common goal, they worked surprisingly well together.
Lucy exhaled and opened up the media program for Cat. She had not anticipated J'onn providing Cat Grant so much access so quickly. It was like Cat had some kind of mind control over their resident Martian. Though, it didn't hurt to have the President's endorsement. She frowned and rubbed her temple, knowing it was too soon for another dose of aspirin - she already took four. She didn't need an ulcer, which Cat Grant seemed determined to give her.
"You've seen the satellite feed?" Cat asked, getting a somber nod as the first feed came up.
"This first video is from a low-orbit geostatic NASA weather satellite at 190 kilometers," she said, greatly pleasing Cat that there was more than one satellite capturing the heroic event. "Once Kara lifted the prison ship several kilometers from the surface, we were no longer incapacitated and managed to track her," Lucy said flatly, not exactly thrilled she was going to watch it again.
Cat noted the tense look on Lucy's face, which tempered her excitement with a dose of dread. Her gaze locked onto the computer screen when the video started. The picture swiftly tracked over the Earth's surface as the satellite camera was repositioned to find the ship. It finally stopped, locking onto a small metallic speck and zoomed into focus. The speck slowly grew larger as it came closer to the satellite.
"That . . . was the prison ship?" Cat said with quiet amazement, leaning towards the screen to get a closer look at the fascinating structure.
"Yes. Fort Rozz. Myriad was on it," Lucy explained. "Fort Rozz arrived about thirteen years ago, when Kara's pod arrived. Apparently, when Kara's pod got stuck in the Phantom Zone, one of the alien criminals, Indigo, figured out a way to use her pod to get them out."
"So why did the Kryptonian criminals wait so many years before attempting world domination?" Cat asked, seeing the image of the ship get larger. She squinted but could not see Kara, whom she presumed was beneath the massive structure, pushing.
"We're not sure," Lucy admitted. "The original reason to implement Myriad was apparently to prevent humans from destroying Earth."
"Yes, I had the displeasure of hearing Non pontificating on how planet-wide thralldom would help save our planet," Cat said shaking her head, then asked curiously, "Who was Astra? Kara mentioned her when trying to convince him of helping without Myriad."
Lucy paused an uncomfortable moment before answering. "General Astra In-Ze designed the Myriad technology to solve Krypton's problems, but before she could implement it, she was arrested and sentenced to Fort Rozz by Kara's mother. When they arrived on Earth, she saw similar environmental problems and decided to apply it here. She was Kara's maternal aunt, who was married to Non, and twin to Kara's mother."
"Good God, I thought my family was complicated," Cat blurted, then looked at the image of Fort Rozz with dread, wondering if Kara had pushed her into space. "Was . . . Astra on the ship?" Cat asked hesitantly, with great concern.
"No. Astra died before Non first implemented Myriad for mind-control," Lucy explained, causing a small sigh of relief from Cat, who frowned again.
"Kara didn't . . . ," Cat asked worriedly, knowing the pain it would forever cause Kara if she had killed her aunt - whether justified or not.
"No," Lucy responded uncomfortably, understanding Cat's concern.
Cat knew there was a story there, from Lucy's agitation. "But someone did kill her," she said. "Non?"
Lucy shifted uneasily. "No. But he might have wanted to after Astra helped Alex understand the Black Mercy."
"What on Eart . . . What is a black mercy?" Cat asked, hating the feeling of having to play catch-up with everything non-Earth related, which was quickly becoming overwhelming.
"Cat . . . ," Lucy shook her head, wanting to kick herself for being a blabbermouth.
"Lucy, please tell me," she said softly.
"I wasn't with the DEO during that time," Lucy hedged.
"But you know about a situation with this Black Mercy?"
Lucy stared at her a long moment before relenting. The President apparently trusted her . . . and J'onn did read her mind.
"A black mercy is a telepathic parasite that attaches itself to a host, who is put into a dream state as their life is slowly drained until eventual death. The parasite then moves on to find another host," Lucy reported grimly.
Cat's eyes widened in alarm. She was never a space enthusiast, unlike Carter. Learning there were things like that telepathic parasite out there was certainly not going to convince her to become one.
"Non used it to get Kara out of the way without immediately killing her, which Astra had forbidden," Lucy relayed.
"Astra protected Kara from the other Kryptonians?" Cat asked with surprise.
"It seems so. Kara had said Astra was hoping to recruit her. But Kara had hoped she could persuade her Aunt to stop the aggression and convince her that Kryptonians could live happy and meaningful lives with humans."
Cat wondered if there was any moment where Kara was tempted to be with her kind, and more importantly, family.
"Whether or not Kara would have eventually succeeded, we're unsure. But Astra did tell Alex how to free Kara," Lucy said without even considering the possibility Kara would choose the Kryptonians over humans, Cat noted.
Cat looked at her. "How does one get freed from a telepathic alien parasite? I assume it is more complex that just plucking it off like a leach."
"Yeah. Alex tried pulling it off at first and quickly realized it would kill Kara. The key was that Kara had to reject the dream state to free herself. So the DEO managed to get Alex hooked up to Kara's dream to convince Kara that she wasn't living on Krypton with her family and that it was all fake."
"God," Cat exhaled, stunned. "Kara lost her home. Again," she said softly, unable to imagine how much pain that caused her.
"Yes. Non was . . . cruel."
"Where is he?" Cat asked quietly, her anger smoldering as they focused on the video image of Fort Rozz.
"Dead."
Cat nodded. "Good."
Fort Rozz filled the entire screen, just before there was only static.
Cat blinked. "She flew the ship into the satellite?" She asked incredulously.
"And you're alive to complain about it," Lucy snapped, causing Cat to roll her eyes.
"Lucy, I am just trying to understand what I am seeing," she said, getting Lucy to exhale with irritation as she called up the next video feed. "And it wasn't a CATCO satellite, so I really have no complaints. Although, we will have to edit out the crashing into the satellite part," Cat added.
"Do you think this is all some sort of joke, Cat?" Lucy hissed. "Getting Alex to bring you here, changing the NDAs, being snarky about the satellite she took out while saving all our lives?" Lucy's voice cracked. "God Damnit, Cat! It's not about YOU and your story!" she spat. "It's about KARA. It's about J'onn," she declared passionately. "It's about keeping this agency functioning and protecting Earth from aliens who don't care about humans and protecting those aliens who do. And you . . . YOU waltz in, becoming a liability for all of this," Lucy argued with great frustration.
"Be angry with me all you want, Lucy, but I am not the enemy," Cat countered firmly. "You say you are protecting aliens . . . from people like Maxwell Lord?" she asked distastefully, recalling his asinine kryptonite bomb plan, which also came with some collateral damage - hundreds of thousands of human deaths, not to mention keeping Kara and Clark away from National City for fifty years.
"God, I wish it was just people like Lord," Lucy said in exasperation. "But it isn't. There are powerful people in the government, our government, who will never trust aliens because they are a potential threat," she said, knowing one of those people was her father. "There are people in our government who want to eliminate them, just because they are not human — in spite of all the good some of them do, like Kara."
"Lucy, I want to protect Kara too - and all the aliens who care about this planet and its people. And I think protection is not just a physical thing. It can also be an idea, which can establish laws. Positive public opinion will help reduce the power of bigots and help shield her from whatever a paranoid faction might want to do."
"That's a really nice sentiment, Cat. But the fear these people have? It runs so deep. Public opinion, or the Alien Amnesty Act that the President is trying to pass, or hate crime penalties don't matter to them," Lucy responded gravely.
Cat eyed the younger Lane, knowing Lucy had far more insight on the threat than she did, which would have to be remedied. But for now, Cat needed Lucy to recognize she could still help. "That is unfortunately not surprising. But that doesn't mean we stop fighting that fear with every resource we have. Lucy, prejudice and bigotry are diseases that thrive in ignorance. And I can help fight that ignorance," Cat said emphatically, then added, "the pen is mightier than the sword."
Lucy looked at her a thoughtful moment. "The swords are a reality we can't ignore. And we are at a big disadvantage because we don't know where most of them are."
Cat nodded uncomfortably. "While reporting the truth about what K . . . what Supergirl has done for all of us may not eliminate the threat, it might help reduce it. It is good for her, and frankly, us," she declared. "And I . . . we owe it to her to protect her in any way we can. Trust me do my part, Lucy," she said with a conviction that was hard to argue with.
"The DEO will still have to approve of timing and scope . . . with Kara's condition still in question," Lucy reminded softly.
Cat nodded. "Of course."
"Maybe with your pen, our swords will be mightier," Lucy offered awkwardly.
"Why baby Lane, are you waxing poetic?" Cat feigned a gasp.
"God forbid! That's Lois' job," Lucy blurted uncomfortably.
"Well, for a novice, you've already surpassed your sister's eloquence," Cat said with a smile.
"Which I'm sure you'll be telling her that the next time you clash."
"Moi?" Cat said innocently, prompting Lucy to shake her head.
Lucy was well aware of the infamous rivalry between her sister and Cat. She always thought Lois' stories about her were huge exaggerations. But getting to know Cat Grant better, she was beginning to wonder.
"So, the next video?" Cat asked.
"There are three more video feeds, but I recommend this one," she said, opening up the file. "It's from the International Space Station's camera," Lucy explained. "You really can't see much from the other two satellites. But I'll put them on your flash drive, in case you think you can get something out of them."
"Thank you," Cat said politely.
Lucy played the file and the resolution was much better. And more importantly, Supergirl could be seen, Cat noted, thinking through the editing for an on-line publication and well as for TV. While the on-line version would likely be longer, the collision would not be included in any version she published.
All editorial thoughts were halted when she saw Kara finally push the enormous ship away from Earth and then just . . . float away, motionlessly . . . accepting her fate. The image, on the surface, seemed so calm, yet it provoked enormously tumultuous emotions.
Cat had learned to her hide her emotions in the media business, especially when seeing horrible things. A woman reporter had to be cold and ruthless, as both Lois and she knew well; being labeled supreme bitches was far better than being labeled emotionally soft if a woman ever wanted the same opportunities and respect as men. Yet watching that sweet girl, who had come to Earth after losing everything and struggle to fit in, willingly give the ultimate sacrifice for her adopted planet — Cat could not stop the tears from falling. She wiped her cheeks.
"Could you . . . skip ahead?" Cat asked with a cracked voice, unable to continue to watch any more footage of the hero, her assistant, her . . . friend, just floating in the cold vacuum of space . . . alone.
Lucy, fully understanding the need, sped the video forward to the rescue.
Seeing the small, silver spacecraft arrive and retrieve the motionless hero was not as triumphant a moment that Cat wished it to be; Kara's condition was still unknown. But when she saw the rescue, she couldn't help but think there were two heroes on the screen.
"Thank God for Alex," Cat said softly, prompting a nod of agreement from Lucy.
