"Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself."
- George Bernard Shaw
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The morning sun filled the bedroom, which caused Kara to slowly flutter her eyes open. But when she reached over towards Barry, she was surprised to find he wasn't there. She fully opened her eyes, sitting up, confused as to why she was alone.
Where's Barry?
But before she could think of anything else, she heard someone knock at her door. So she quickly got up, walked out of her room, down the stairs of her loft, then opened her front door to be met with a — blue man. He looked at her almost surprised, utterly in shock to see her. "It's you."
"Can I help you?" Kara asked.
"Now you're talking to me," he said, feeling as though he might freak. But he didn't. "Supergirl is talking to me."
Quickly, Kara grabbed his arm, pulling him inside the loft. "Inside. Now."
He walked into the living room while she closed the door, and he admired the living place without actually saying anything. "I am Brainiac-5," he introduced once she walked into the living room as well. "Half-computer, half-organic lifeform, all Coluan, and not to brag, but a 12th-level intellect," But Kara just stared at him confused. "My name is Querl Dox, but the Legionnaires just call me Brainy."
"Legionnaires?" Kara questioned at Brainy walked deeper into the living room, examining all the nice things. "Did Mon-El send you?"
"Yes, yes. To make sure that your neural pathways are clear and intact. Your brain is in truly remarkable health for someone languishing in a coma," Brainy told her, but she was even more confused.
"Uh, I'm sorry, did you say coma?" She asked and he looked at her.
"Mmm, did I bury the lede?" He asked. "You've been in a coma for two days."
"I'm in my loft," she said.
"Oh. You mean the physical manifestation of the place in which your subconscious feels most confused? That loft?" Brainy asked as he walked past her, and towards the door.
"If I'm in a coma," Kara said, looking back at him. "How are you here?"
"Mon-El woke me up from hyper sleep to communicate with you on behalf of him and your DEO compatriots. 31st century technology. It's also what's keeping you alive," Brainy explained.
"Alive?" Kara questioned.
"Reign defeated you," Brainy said, in a quite obvious tone. "Don't you remember?"
Slowly, everything began to come together. The fight. Being plunged down. On the debts of death. Barry failing to catch her in time. Barry crying with her in his arms. Alex operating on her. "Stay with me, Kara, stay with me—"
"No," Kara said, shaking the thoughts out of her head. "This is crazy. This...Reign is still out there. P...People are dying, I have to wake up."
She then ran for the door as Brainy looked unsure. "I don't think you're listening to me," he said as he followed her. But when he turned the corner, he found her hands gripped around the door knob, pulling and crushing. Nothing was working. "Can we just, maybe, relax a little bit?"
"Damn it! It won't open!" She yelled before facing Brainy, panting and gasping, while keeping her back against the door.
——— ~ ❉᯽❉ ~ ———
Meanwhile, Brainy gasped, opening his eyes, staring at a beaten Supergirl, in an tank filled with water on the Legion's ship. He looked awkward before turning around looking at the group with them. Barry, Iris, Alex, Mon-El, Winn, Imra & J'onn. "Well, the good news is her mind is active and alert."
"Oh, thank God," Barry muttered, relief washing through him. The only thing he needed now was her back in his arms.
"Yes. The bad news is," Brainy said and Barry looked at him. "She is very angry."
"Well, I'm sure she loves being trapped inside a mind prison," Winn sarcastically said.
"I don't think she was appropriative waking up without Barry either," Brainy added.
"She never is," Barry said.
"You're speaking with her right now, even as you're speaking with us?" J'onn asked and Brainy nodded before pointing at the piece of technology on Kara's forehead.
"The crown connects to my internal Al core. It translates her brainwaves to English and sends electronic signals back to her," he explained.
"These tanks have incredible healing power, so she just needs to rest and let it do its work," Imra explained to the worried family. But Barry looked at Mon-El, choosing his words carefully, a question resting in the back of his mind.
"You're from the future, did you know this was going to happen?" He asked and Mon hesitated at first. "Did you know this was going to happen to my wife?"
"No," Mon swore. "But she's through the worst of it, she'll live."
"When will she wake up?" Barry asked.
"We don't know," Mon said.
"Well, Reign is still out there. I don't like our odds without Supergirl by our side," J'onn said.
"I mean, Reign's been quiet, maybe she got injured too," Iris said.
"Let's hope so. It's only a matter of time before she strikes again," Alex said.
"And if she does," Barry said and Alex looked at him. "I'll kill her myself."
CatCo Worldwide Media
James was watching the news in his office that morning, the footage of his friend being brutality beaten taunting him, when Lena walked in, the same look in her eyes. "It's been two days since the world saw Supergirl be brutalized and still not a word about her whereabouts or well-being."
"She'll turn up," James assured.
"I hope so," Lena said before looking at him. "And Iris's the only reporter who had a knack for tracking her down. Is she in yet?"
"Iris?" James asked looking at her, but remembering that Iris wouldn't come in til Kara was healed up again. "She...No, she's, um...no, she's not, actually."
"Odd, neither is Kara," Lena pointed out and James nervously chuckled as he walked around his desk. "Jimmy, I was thinking, when Iris gets in, maybe we should all have a little...a little talk about what happened."
"Oh, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Okay," James stammered.
"Yeah?"
"Yes, we should. Yeah," James said before clearing his throat.
"It's just that, you know, we all work together, and we're Iris's best friends, and you guys used to date," Lena said and James looked at her confused. "So she should know that we kissed."
"Definitely but — Iris and I never dated," James said and Lena crinkled her eyebrows.
"No?" She asked and he shook his head. "Not even a little fling?"
"Nope, she was always hung up on Mon-El. I mean, maybe, I was a little bit into her, but nothing ever happened between us," James explained.
"Well still. I come from a family that lied and we all know how that turned out, so-"
But then they heard glass breaking, like something was thrown through a window.
The two ran out of the office, to find their employees screaming in terror, standing away from the windows.
On the ground was a dead man, and floating through the broken window, was Reign. "Why have you come here?"
"To deliver a message," Reign said.
"We are not your messengers," Lena sternly said but Reign chuckled.
"Yes, you are," she said before pointing out a random employee. "You. Turn your camera on me." He quickly did as she said, and once the camera was on, every station across the city was getting it. "This man was thief, condemned by his own actions. You've allowed sun to take root and fester like a weed. And, worst of all, you have looked away. Apathy is the greatest sin of all. From now on it will be punished in kind. There will be no more mercy. There will only be justice. I'm here to help." And just like that, Reign flew off, leaving everyone concerned.
The Legion's Ship
"I'm here to help."
"She's declaring war on criminality in National City," J'onn said as he, Mon-El, Barry, Alex and Winn all watched the news.
"Not just against the criminals, it's against the entire justice system," Alex said.
"We have to stop her," Barry sternly said.
"Without Supergirl?" J'onn asked.
"I mean, we have a literal legion of superheroes here," Winn said as Mon turned to them, along with Imra and Brainy who were at the monitors.
"I owe you all my life," he started in a calm tone. "And I hope you know that I would do anything I could for you. But, unfortunately, this can't be our fight."
"What?" Barry asked, his eyebrows raised.
"Surely we can help them somehow," Imra said.
"If we die now we will endanger the future," Mon said and Iris eyed him.
"What do you mean?" She asked.
"We're on a mission-"
"Careful," Brainy told him, and Iris eyed him oddly.
"Our involvement here could jeopardize that. I can tell you what we do know. We know that Supergirl lives. And we know that eventually Reign will leave," Mon explained but it was very vague.
So vague that Winn hysterically chuckled.
"So...that's — that's all you can tell us?" Barry asked. "That's all you got?"
"We really don't know much at all," Imra said.
"This is my wife's life we're talking about," Barry said, angry slowly fuming into his tone.
"In the year 2455, Earth experienced a third-degree extinction phenomenon," Brainy said.
"Humanity came together, but Earth suffered catastrophic destruction. It wasn't just loss of life, it was its history, culture, art, music," Imra said.
"It was everything interesting," Brainy added in.
"Mon-El taught us everything we know. From Aristotle, Shakespeare, Bon Jovi," Imra continued.
"But we have some gaps. And, unfortunately, even if we know the end result, we don't necessarily know how it happens," Mon explained but Alex and Barry tensed.
"So we know that Supergirl lives, and we know that Reign leaves, eventually. But before she does, she could slaughter...thousands," Alex softly said.
"Yeah, so, what do we do now?" Barry asked.
"The Sundown Protocol," J'onn said and they all looked at him. "A highly-classified contingency plan to take down Superman if ever he turns against us. Red sun grenades, sound bombs, Kryptonite darts, everything we'd need to take down a rogue Kryptonian on the loose."
"Sorry, but we don't have any more Kryptonite. Clark got rid of it all," Winn said.
"Clark got rid of it for a reason, and a reason that Kara agreed to," Alex said.
"That was before Reign. We still have the Kryptonite from Coville's probe, right?" J'onn asked and Winn exhaled sharply, nodding.
"Prep whatever you have to, but before you use it, there's someone I have to talk to," Alex sternly said.
Albatross Bay Correctional Facility
Walking into the visitors room, Alex saw a beaten Thomas Coville sitting at the table, waiting for her. "Ooh! Your eye!" She then sat down across from him. "What happened to you?"
"Oh. I was spreading the truth to my fellow inmates. They would have preferred I lied," Coville said.
"Do you want to spread a little truth to me?" Alex asked and he eyed her. "I'll pass it along to Supergirl. You're her biggest fan, right? She said that you knew about the reign of the beast. What else do you know that can help us beat her?"
"Beat her?" Coville questioned. "She's already won."
"No. Supergirl's still alive," Alex told him.
"She was supposed to rise, find her faith, and deliver it. But Supergirl refused her faith and she failed the test," Coville said but Alex shook her head.
"Supergirl will defeat her," she assured. "You just have to help us stop her."
"Supergirl lost so that Reign can prepare us for what comes next," Coville said.
"Never underestimate Supergirl," Alex told him.
CatCo Worldwide Media
That night, James was walking towards his office when Lena caught up with him. "Hey. Just put out a press release telling the city that CatCo is no longer under siege and urging the public to stay calm."
"Calm?" Lena asked, the two them stopping in place in his office. "The streets are desolate. People are barricading themselves in their homes. The city is terrified."
"Yeah, but there are people out there working to rectify the situation. Okay?" James said before placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry." But almost immediately, Lena pulled herself away from his touch, leaving him confused. "Um-"
"Jimmy, I know why you were acting strange earlier on," Lena said.
"No, you don't," James said.
"Listen, there's no reason to explain. We're both adults, we're just not a match," Lena said, causing James to chuckle.
"No, no, no, no, no, no, no. I wasn't...No. no. I didn't say that. It was...It was Iris," he stammered.
"You're acting awkward because you used to like her?" She asked.
"No. No, that's not it, either," James said before clearing his throat. "She's just—"
"Just what?" Lena asked.
"She's sick," James made up.
"She's what?" Lena asked.
"Kara is sick. Iris is taking care of her," James continued on and Lena looked surprised. "She has the flu. It's just a really, really, really, really, really bad flu. It's just...you know how people get when they get the flu, they get vulnerable."
"God, she won't mind me knowing. I'm her friend. You know, I should go over there," Lena said before she started to leave the office.
"Yeah, that's good. You're a good friend," James said before he looked back at her. "But-"
"But, what?" Lena asked, looking back at him.
"Soup," he muttered up. "Sick people love soup."
"Okay, I'll get her some soup," Lena said before she began to walk off again.
"Minestrone...Yeah. Soup. Tomato, chicken noodle, anything that could," James called out but then he ran over to his desk, grabbed his phone, and dialed Winn. "Winn, I need your help right now."
——— ~ ❉᯽❉ ~ ———
Pacing around in her loft, Kara angrily plopped down onto her couch as Brainy lifted up some carpet. "This is torture."
He then looked back at her, standing straight again, holding his hands together. "Out of all the 4,237,642 versions of our first meeting that I envisioned, you calling it torture...wasn't one of them," he said before he walked over to check her pillows. But she noticed how odd it was that he was checking her pillows.
"What are you doing?" She asked.
"Checking for brain damage," he answered. "In simulacra, like the one we're in now, brain damage could present itself in any number of ways. Mildew, mold. Rats indicate neurological issues. It's just to prepare you for reality re-entry."
"Reality re-entry?" Kara asked and he looked back at her.
"If you're not properly prepared when we wake you up, you could go into shock. Some people die immediately," he informed.
"Yeah," Kara awkwardly muttered, but then realization hit her eyes. "Wait, though. Does...Does that mean I'm ready to wake up?"
"Did I bury the lede again?" Brainy asked as Kara got up. She laughed triumphantly before heading towards her front door, where Brainy followed.
"Yes! Okay, do I need to do anything?" She asked.
"Well, your loft is the manifestation of your subconscious. And that door seems to be the only way in or out. My assumption, walk through it," Brainy explained and Kara nodded before she turned the doorknob again. But nothing happened.
She sighed frustrated before looking back at Brainy. "It's not opening."
He then tried to open the door himself, just for the same results to happen. "You should be fine."
——— ~ ❉᯽❉ ~ ———
On the Legion's ship, Brainy and Barry faced the tank where Supergirl was in as the tank slowly began to drain. "It's draining. She's ready."
Barry stepped towards the tank, waiting for her to open her eyes as the water continued to leave the tank. "Kara, it's me." But as the water continued to drain, Supergirl still didn't budge. "Why isn't she waking up?"
"She should be fine," Brainy said, but not even he knew what was happening yet.
——— ~ ❉᯽❉ ~ ———
As Kara continued to rattle at the doorknob, trying to get out, Brainy poured himself some freshly hot tea. "Why won't this open?"
"Your body is fine. We drained the tank, you suffered no ill-effects from the hibernation," Brainy assured and Kara looked back at him.
"Then why am I still stuck in my brain?" She asked.
"There's nothing wrong with your brain. We've ruled that out," Brainy said.
"Well, you're the 12th-level intellect. Why don't you figure it out?" Kara asked as Brainy took a sip of his tea.
"Well, that rules out the physical," he said but Kara gave him an odd look before he walked over to her dinning table. "So, barring another explanation, I would have to say the only thing keeping you here is you."
By this, Kara scoffed to herself. "Well, that doesn't make any sense, cause I'm the one that wants to get out of here," she said before looking back at the door. "Why won't this thing open? It opened for me earlier."
"To let me in. Going out," Brainy said before Kara tried to punch the door down, just for it to backfire. "Different story. Is there some reason your subconscious might be-" But Kara tried to punch the door again. "Preventing your escape?" She looked back at him, walking towards him to get a distance away from the door. "Self-preservation, perhaps?"
"I'm not afraid," she said.
"You were badly beaten," he said as Kara faced the door again. "Fear is a logical response to that stimulus." But Kara didn't care what he had to say. She just wanted to get out.
She used her laser heat vision on the door, hoping it would cut down the door rather than punch it, but it did no use. "I am not afraid!" This time, she used up all her anger building up in her, screaming, balling up her fists as heat vision lasered through her eyes, straight for the door.
But all that anger caused all kinds of things around her to blow up, including Brainy's cup, leaving him in discomfort.