Kara smiles widely as she flies the pod over the top of the Jewel Mountains, her grin only growing as she begins her descent onto a cut-out of one of the mountains that has been specifically designated for the parking of pods.
She pulls the pod in close, slowing right down so she can gently manoeuvre the pod into a free space. Despite being one of the most beautiful sights on the planet, not many people visit for a close look; they fly over the top and maybe hover for a little while as they take in the view.
From the moment the opportunity presented itself to her to come here, Kara knew that she's not a hovering person. She wants to get up close and personal with this mountain. After all, she's going to have some beef with it in the future, or her past, or both.
There are probably two dozen other pods and small ships parked up, and Kara takes a good look at them as she climbs out of her pod and offers a hand to Lena to help her down, ignoring Alex when she then outstretches her hand for assistance that doesn't come.
"Really?" Alex huffs as she looks over to see Kara helping Lena steady herself against the rocky ground before she helps her straighten out her dress, which had gotten a little rumpled during the pod ride.
Kara glances over at her, an eyebrow raised in question for a brief moment before she realizes that Alex is waiting for her to help.
"Oh, sorry." Kara makes sure Lena is steady with a quick flick of her eyes over her body, lingering for just a moment on her chest…just to make sure she's breathing. Yep, that's it.
Moving herself away from Lena, albeit reluctantly, Kara steps back towards the pod to offer a hand to her sister, who takes it and squeezes as hard as she can as punishment for forgetting her, making Kara snatch it back with a yelp.
"Hey!"
Alex ignores her, helping Kelly down, then Esme, then Nia. Kara watches as they move to stand with Lena and her heart jumps a little at the sight of her family.
They all look so beautiful; all of them look almost Kryptonian. They're all wearing dresses, something Alex complained about for a while, but they have to blend in so they're overlooked, and they all have faint swipes of make-up across their faces in patterns their alien minds never would have chosen.
"Why are you looking at us like that, weirdo?" Alex sighs, her hands on her hips and her stance wide, making her look like a tomboy toddler forced into a bridesmaid dress at a family member's wedding.
"You all just look so…"
"So?" Alex glares at her, waiting for the mocking descriptor.
Kara searches for the right way to describe them for a moment, her brain racing for a way to explain despite the look she's on the receiving end of. "You look like my home."
The words force the breath out of their lungs. The only one unaffected is Esme, and that's just because she's too busy gaping up at the mountain, the glittering shine of the jewels laced into the rocks catching her eye and refusing to let go.
Lena's lips curve up into the softest of smiles, a hand reaching out to draw Kara near. As soon as she's close enough, she pulls the blonde into an embrace, not crushing or firm, just tender enough to make her feel her presence without being overwhelming.
By the time Kara is released from the hug, Alex has righted herself, her hands off her hips and standing in a much more graceful manner. Kara's words reminded her that no matter her feelings or grumpiness, she has to be respectful of Kara's culture, and she has to open herself up to these experiences. This is Kara's home planet, a part of her, and she's getting the chance of a lifetime right now in getting to see it, something she'll never get the opportunity to do again. She has to right herself and take in everything this place has to offer. For her sister. She's lived by that motto before. She can live by it for a few more days.
Locking eyes with her little sister, Alex sighs. "Ready to go?"
"Never been readier in my life." Kara grins. "Come on, you're going to love this!"
She scoops her niece up into her arms, settling her onto her hips before using her free hand to grab Lena's to give it a quick squeeze before she lets go. It's not completely appropriate to hold hands or show any kind of intimacy in public except with a child, so she's already schooled the group on acting accordingly. She just had no idea it would be her having the most amount of trouble with it.
All of them walk towards the large opening of the mountain with slack jaws. They can see the glistening beauty of the jewels already, a mixture of beautiful greens, striking blues, deep reds, shining oranges and delicate pinks surrounding them, and that's just what they can see from the pod parking lot.
As they move as a collective towards the entrance, it's not hard to see that the jewels are only increasing in quantity the closer they get to the centre of the mountain, almost as though the plain old grey rock is a mere afterthought in the creation of such a beautiful masterpiece nature designed long ago—nothing but a coating to protect the glory that lies within.
"Look, Esme." Kara points up to the ceiling as they make their way down a tunnel that is lit with small lanterns that make the space bright, even with the scarcity of light sources. What light the lanterns produce is enough, the rays from them ricocheting off each individual jewel and lighting the room with a myriad of colours that form the most wonderous mess of rainbows.
Esme looks up at where Kara is pointing and grins broadly. The 'ceiling' of the tunnel is the first part to completely rid itself of the grey rocks and is made up of a solid mixture of orange and blue crystal, the colours lapping each other like a wave caressing the sand on a beach of a planet the mountain has never seen.
"It's pretty!" Esme giggles, reaching her arms up as though she might be able to reach it.
"Hold on a second," Kara says, settling Esme down on her feet for a moment so she can readjust her hands onto the little girl's hips and raise her up over her head so she can get a better look at the jewels.
Esme keeps her arms stretched up and giggles as Kara sets her down atop her shoulders and spins them around lightly as they bask in the magnificent array of light.
"And this is just the beginning. I've heard that the centre of the mountain is even more breathtaking." Kara stops spinning, afraid to lose her footing if she gets too dizzy. "Want to lead the way, Ms Esme?"
"Yeah!" Esme answers, clamouring to get put down so she can get in front of the group and lead them deeper into the Jewel Mountain that is more than living up to its name.
Lena slides up beside Kara. "This place is beautiful."
"You haven't seen anything yet, just wait." Kara grins. "You'll see what I mean when we get there. I've seen pictures of it before, and if those pictures so much as remotely capture the beauty of it, we're going to be in for a sight that we'll be treasuring for the rest of our lives."
Lena strides beside Kara, purposefully letting the back of her hand brush against Kara's as they walk. "I look forward to it."
Alex and Kelly murmur to each other quietly, admiring the jewels they can see, not sure where to rest their eyes due to the vast abundance.
Soon enough, they exit the tunnel and find themselves in a large open space, the hollowed centre of the mountain caused by mining back when the jewels were being harvested. Nowadays, there are so many jewels around the planet that all mining has not only been ceased but made a punishable offence due to the amount and the way the new jewels could bring in more wealth to the economy and throw it completely out of whack.
The council is nothing if not bossy.
"Oh, Rao." Lena gasps as she finds herself in a place that she's certain must be heaven. No place can physically be this enamouring. This beautiful. This serene. It's impossible. If this is a dream, it's one she hopes to never wake up from.
Even Kara, who was hyping this up and somewhat prepared for what was coming, is speechless. The beauty and grandeur of the place is something she can't even begin to describe; her brain empty except for one simple word that just doesn't seem to cut it—pretty.
The space is absolutely massive. They're in a large domed area, every surface made of pure jewels of varying colours, no patch going more than a couple of metres before switching to another colour, the place a symphony of pure joy and serenity.
A few other people are milling about, which was expected since there were other pods parked up when they arrived, but none of them pay them any mind, their heads too busy swivelling around to take in the great sights that behold them.
"Kara…" Nia is the first to find her voice.
"I know."
Letting her eyes rake over every inch of the place, Kara comes to a realization about the Fortress of Solitude back on Earth. The design, made of ice, not jewels, is modelled after this place. Grand walls, large beams, a glistening shine that only serves to leave visitors speechless and activate the same part of someone's brain that works when they get to cuddle a puppy. Pure ecstasy.
Esme is running her hand across a nearby beam, letting her fingers brush over the crack between two jewels, one pink and one orange.
Kara stands on one side of her, Kelly on the other, as she drops one hand onto her niece's shoulder while the other joins her niece in pressing her fingers to the cool surface. She traces each crack and each subtle bump of them. "Whatever you grow up to be, Esme, I hope it brings you as much joy as this moment does right now," Kara says, a certainty in her voice that has Kelly eyeing the side of her face with scrutiny.
"I hope for that too." She says after a quick evaluation. "What makes you say that?"
"It's something my father would say to me when I was little when he would take me with him to nearby planets. He would wait for a moment when I would look particularly happy, and then he'd say that. That feeling is what helped me realize that I love reporting. I felt the same joy I feel right now when I first started and I just…knew."
"I didn't know that about you."
"It's not something I think about often, and to be honest, if it weren't for this mission, it would probably be one of those things I just don't think about and then one day, without me even realizing, I would forget. Knowledge never to see the light of day again."
Kelly reaches over, ready to give her arm a squeeze, but when Kara flinches back, she remembers that she's not allowed to do that.
"How about we make our way around here and then we can explore the other tunnels a little?" Kara changes the subject, already looking around for the rest of the group that have already wandered off and aren't paying attention to her at all.
Kelly nods, squinting to find Alex, spotting her over by Nia just a few metres away, partially obscured behind a pillar. "I don't know how this could get any better, but I have a feeling we're about to witness something life-changing here."
"You have a good gut instinct," Kara says, spotting Lena and making her way over to round her back in with the group.
As soon as they're all together again, Kara starts pointing around the open space and draws their attention to the tunnels off the main area that they're all reluctant to leave despite the promise of more magnificent views.
"Ok, keep your voices down now. We don't want to be caught speaking English or any other language that isn't some form of Kryptonese around other people. We don't want questions."
"We'll be quiet as a mouse." Alex nods firmly, hearing the underlying nerves to Kara's words, unhappy that the trip has to be tainted with a veil of secrecy Kara deserves to be free from.
Kara forces her lips up in a quirk, really wishing she could hug someone, preferably Lena, but she can't. "Alrighty then, let's get going, lots to see."
Kara leads the way and all of them take notice of how she takes them the long way around to the first tunnel so they don't get close to the other small groups and couples milling around. They don't mind though. It gives them all the more time to take in the once-in-a-lifetime sights this part of the mountain allows them to grace their eyes with.
There are more tunnels than any of them initially thought, only four being visible from the main section. However, upon further inspection of the tunnels, each one only goes for a few metres before they split into many more tunnels, some only two, some as many as five or six.
"Looks like this could take us a while to explore," Kara mutters after darting her eyes around to ensure she won't be overheard. "Want to just work our way left to right and do each sub-tunnel in the same way?"
"Yeah, or maybe we could split up?" Nia offers instead.
"No." Lena deadpans. "We can't split up in case anyone tries to talk to us. Kara is the only one that can speak Kryptonese."
"Nobody is going to talk to us, and if they do, I'll just smile, nod and pretend to be mute. There are mute people on Krypton, right Kara?"
Kara nods. "Yes, but they all speak KSL."
"What's KSL?"
"Kryptonian Sign Language." Kara shrugs. "And it's mandatory learning for every Kryptonian child too so everyone speaks it, so in fewer words: nodding and smiling won't get you anywhere. You're stuck with us."
Nia pins her gaze on Lena's, a somewhat distraught look coating her expression. "Is she joking? Please tell me she's joking because she's freaking me out."
Lena shrugs. "How would I know? I didn't go to school here, not was I born here, if my memory serves me correctly."
Nia's face drops into an expression that is the epitome of both disappointment and bemusement. "You're not funny."
Lena smiles at her, wide and dazzling. Kara swoons a little at the sight and can't help but think that her smile outshines every last jewel in this place. She breathes out through her nose in an amused, barely there laugh as she realizes how corny that thought is.
"I think I'm hilarious."
Nia rolls her eyes. "Can I go and explore on my own or not?"
"We can explore the sub-tunnels alone but stay in the same main tunnel," Kara says. If anything happens at all, turn around and find someone in the group, and if there are people in the tunnel, turn the hell around. No taking chances." Kara gives in, already feeling her anxiety rise at the thought of Nia doing something stupid. For a smart woman, she's been known to make some questionable choices, not that she can say anything; she's made plenty of bad choices herself.
Lena, Alex and Kelly all shift nervously.
"Are you sure that's such a good idea?" Kelly asks.
Kara doesn't look completely sure but she nods anyway. "Maybe not, but I want this to be a good trip and if that means I have to let loose a little and trust you guys to be safe and smart, that's something I'm going to have to do. Plus, it won't be much fun for me either if I have to play babysitter and walk around as an anxious wreck every time I see one of you walk past another person."
"We'll take Nia. You and Lena go alone then." Kelly says, finality in her voice.
"Wait, I don't need a babysitter." Nia scoffs.
"That's very much debatable." Alex snorts. "How's the hand?"
Huffing, Nia rests her hands on her hips in a move that is reminiscent of Kara's Supergirl pose back on Earth, a pose she hasn't done in a long while and one she's actually happy to have grown out of the habit of doing, pressing her fingertips into her hips in every anxiety fuelled situation was probably going to cause some serious damage one day.
"That was a one-off and you're mean for bringing it up." Nia points at Alex. "But point taken."
Lena rubs her forehead, not in the mood for bickering to ruin this beautiful day. "Alright, how about we go and start exploring, huh? I don't know about you but I'd like to get through a lot of these tunnels before sundown."
"Great idea." Kara jumps on that chance and they all make their way to the tunnel on the far left. She notes the words etched into the Jewels above the tunnel. "Tunnels one to four this way." She points to the sign.
Kara leads the way, stopping where the tunnel splits off. "Lena and I'll take the ones on the right first; you guys start at the left. Remember what I said about leaving if there are people already in there."
Kelly nods at her, her face sincere where Alex and Nia's are dismissive, and Esme's is just full of pure excitement. "You got it, boss."
They part ways, Lena taking Kara into the tunnel that is the furthest on the right while the others go in the one on the far left.
As soon as they are a good way into the tunnel, which is reminiscent of the original tunnel they walked through yet somehow at least ten times more beautiful, Lena slips her hand into Kara's, squeezing it tightly a couple of times before she loosens her grip, ready to tear her hand free the moment she so much gets an inkling there are other people around.
Lena takes in the sight of the Jewels around them, her jaw practically dragging on the floor. They seem to mould into each other differently here, like they are trying to paint a picture but the subject of which is known only to mother nature herself. "It's…"
"It is." Kara breathes. "The pictures I've seen of this place don't do it justice. I can't believe so many people opt to just fly over the top of the mountain rather than coming down here and actually searching it themselves."
"Why would they do that?"
"There are myths regarding this place, and well, Kryptonians are nothing if not superstitious."
Excitement and interest fill Lena's body and her grip tightens on Kara's hand as she shakes it with a complete lack of grace. "There's a myth and you didn't think to tell me that earlier? Blasphemy. Tell me everything you know, tour guide."
"Hey, I'm more than a tour guide!" Kara playfully hisses.
"A hot tour guide?"
"Much better." Kara nods seriously.
Lena smiles at her, her affection for the blonde palpable as their hearts beat in time with the click of their heels against the stone and jewels beneath their feet.
"I don't know the full story and it's a little hazy at this point, to be completely honest with you, Lena. I can probably tell you the basics of the myth but that's one of the few that my brain hasn't been able to keep a hold of through the years."
With their hands still joined, Lena uses her other hand to trace her fingertips up the soft skin of Kara's wrist. "You could always ask your parents for the myth or look it up yourself while we're here. You have a chance to get back some of that knowledge you lost while you're on Krypton, Kara. You can find the answers you once knew. Until then though, I would love to know what you remember."
"I hate it when you speak sense."
"So always?"
Kara bumps her shoulder into Lena's. "You wish."
Lena shakes her hand impatiently. "Come on, tell me what you know before curiosity eats me alive."
As they keep walking down the tunnel, the light glistening through the jewels that surround them, she takes note of a carved stone sign and points at it. "If you can wait a minute, it looks like there's something to do with the myth just up ahead. Looks like we found the right tunnel to start with."
"What does it say?" Lena squints at the foreign letters.
Kara shakes her head, tutting slightly. "And ruin the surprise? Not a chance."
Lena pouts a little but schools her features quickly. They'll be back on Earth soon enough and there's not going to be any room for her to be pouty when she's back in a boardroom. The thought of sitting behind her desk all day working on spreadsheets, documents, blueprints and whatever other boring stuff she usually deals with makes her feel antsy. She's gotten used to being active now and the thought of giving that up makes her uncomfortable. Maybe she'll have to get Jess to purchase a desk treadmill for her—after they've stopped her brother, of course.
It takes several minutes for them to reach the end of the tunnel and Lena finds she doesn't mind the wait. The silence is comforting, the knowledge that they are both simply basking in the wonderful sights, their closeness and the feeling that somehow, their souls are binding themselves to the walls of this tunnel, a part of them to be left behind when they leave. They don't even mind that soon enough, this mountain won't be here, and if that means a part of their entwined souls is left floating around the universe, maybe they can find comfort that they're ever exploring and ever learning, even if they physically can't.
"Right here," Kara announces as she sees what appears to be a large table on wheels with a single small pickaxe lying atop it and a small sign tangling from the table's edge.
"Ok, so the myth is that there was once a powerful Kryptonian warrior that used to climb to the top of this very mountain to fulfil challenges. This meant that the council couldn't moderate them. He would fight whoever challenged him, or whoever he challenged, to the death and he won every time except once."
"Of course he did." Lena shifts her eyes between Kara and the table, confusion building up in the little crinkle forming between her eyes. She's sure Kara said it's illegal to mine in here.
Kara nods. "The last time he was ever challenged, it was by his daughter."
Lena's mouth drops open in surprise. "Oh?"
"He had spent years teaching his daughter that a true warrior never turns down a challenge, and as such, he agreed. However, when it came time to fight, he lay down his sword and allowed her to kill him. She had to challenge him because the council hated him for finding a way to get around their rules, and they were systematically taking every bit of wealth and power he had. Killing him ensured that it all stayed within the family. She had no choice, nor did he if he wanted his family to remain in good stead. He's known as one of the bravest warriors that has ever lived, and it's not because of the blood he spilt on this mountain, but it's for allowing his blood to be spilt for the good of his family."
Now Lena is confused again but for another reason. "You say that like it's true. How can it be a myth if it's true?"
"Because that part is true, the myth is this." She picks up the pickaxe. "It's said that his soul is part of each and every jewel in this mountain now and only the truest, the bravest, and the most loyal can mine from the mountain without misfortune falling upon them. However, if you are all of those things, you will be granted good luck for life. This is the only place in the mountain where it's legal to mine from, and yet barely anyone ever does for fear of the myth."
"You should do it. We need all the luck we can get." Lena smiles.
Kara shakes her head. "No. I can't. I'm not loyal in the eyes of Rao. You are. You're all of the things needed to be granted good fortune. Take it." She holds the tool out to Lena, who backs away.
Holding her hands out in surrender and continuing to move away from Kara, Lena argues. "I'm not. I don't know what you mean about you not being loyal, but you're better than me in all of those categories."
"Lena, I fight for a planet that is not my own. I'm betraying my parents and refusing to help save this planet to save Earth. It won't work for me. For you, though, you're all of those things and more. Please, take it."
Her hands shake as she tries to resist the urge to do as Kara says, but Lena manages to keep them where they are. "I can't."
"Yes, you can," Kara says with more conviction than Lena has ever heard her convey before. "There is nobody truer than you. You survived the Luthors trying to make you into their moulded little puppet for evil throughout the most formative years of your life and still came out a good person. You're brave. You came here on a mission to a planet you know is destined to die to help protect Earth. You're loyal…you're here with me. You're the perfect person for this, and nobody deserves good luck more than you. Please take it."
Lena can't help it. With tears streaming down her cheeks, illuminated by the lanterns and the cascade of colours it has collected, Lena takes it.
She takes a deep breath and lines the point of the pickaxe up against the wall. "I…" She trails off, not sure where she is going with the sentence, but then snaps herself out of it, shaking her head and steeling herself before she swings.
The first hit barely does a thing but the second causes a small crack in the jewel of the wall. "How is this even doing this? These jewels must be super hard, like diamonds."
"It's made of jewels itself. Look closer." Kara whispers into the air, not wanting to break the moment.
Before her next swing, Lena holds it up to the light and sees a colour that the mountain has yet to display. Green.
"Kara."
"I know. I guess it is good for something, huh?"
"Kara, it's kryptonite."
"I know. Keep going." Kara turns her back to the wall. "A couple more good hits."
Lena does as she's told, swinging until a small chunk breaks free of the wall. It's a light pink, almost clear, not really her colour, but it means so much more than that now. According to the myth, this will either be her good fortune for life or her downfall. She knows which one she's hoping for.
She clears her throat, picking it up and then placing the axe back on the table. As she does, she lets her eyes fall onto the sign. "What does it say?"
"Those who are worthy never believe they are."
Lena whips her head around. "No, it doesn't."
Kara nods, confirming that she isn't lying. "Come on, put that in your pocket and let's keep going. There are a lot of tunnels for us to explore still."
Lena allows herself to be pulled away from the mining area, shock coating her bones almost as much as Kara's unwavering faith in her coats her soul.