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Where is Batwoman?

The headline in the National City Gazette startled Kara and she picked up the paper to read the story. Batwoman was last seen in Gotham a little more than seven days ago according to several different sources, the story said. 

‘Seven days?’ Kara thought to herself. She had been so busy, between Lena, Lex, and Leviathan, she hadn’t really given any thought to Kate or Gotham. She was so lost in thought that she jumped at the buzz of her phone notifying her she had received a message. She looked down at the screen and noticed Lena’s name. Puzzled, she unlocked the screen and saw Lena’s message.

‘Emergency in Gotham, may need ‘super’ assistance, please?’ Lena’s text message read.

‘Of course, want me to meet you there, or do we need to take the bus. If you know what I mean?’ Kara texted back.

‘The bus would be great, give me an hour?’ Lena responded.

‘Meet you at your office, will be dressed for work.’ Kara typed quickly.

***********************************

3 Weeks before…

As Lena grasped Supergirl’s hand, she looked into the blue eyes of her former best friend and saw a spark, something that had been missing before.

“Lena,” Supergirl spoke and her eyes dropped to the floor, “You know, this handshake, this isn’t going to work for me.” Then her head came up and it wasn’t Supergirl, it was her Kara staring back at her as she pulled her into a hug and squeezed as tightly as she could.

Lena leaned her head on to Kara’s shoulder and smiled as tears ran down her face.

“I’m so sorry, Lena. I never should have let you out of my life,” Kara whispered as she held tight to the brunette. “I hope you can forgive me?”

***********************************

An hour later, Supergirl touched down on Lena’s balcony at Luthor Corp. She smiled as Lena stood up and walked towards the glass doors, earning a smile in response. Since Lena’s visit to her apartment, six weeks before, their relationship seemed to be on the upswing and things were getting better every day. Kara sighed as the door opened and Lena’s smile seemed to get even brighter. 

“Kara, thank you for coming,” even with the smile on her face, Lena’s green eyes seem troubled. “Kate Kane, the CEO of Wayne Enterprises is missing, and her executive assistant has called me to come and handle some ‘business’ matters.”

Kara stopped smiling at Lena’s inflection on business, “Lena, what’s going on?”

Lena put her hand on Kara’s chest and pushed, causing the taller woman to step back. “Kara,” Lena began, as she turned to close the door, “Batwoman is missing, and Kate Kane is missing.”

“You know?” Kara’s mouth hung open as she stared, shocked, at Lena.

“Yes, I was in Gotham when you interviewed her. I was there on business with Wayne Technologies for Lex, and Kate and I met, got to know one another.” Lena frowned, “she told me about what happened during the--you know.”

Kara’s eyes fell, remembering the Crisis. “Lena, I wasn’t hiding anything, I didn’t know how much…” Lena cut her off with a raised hand.

“Kara, darling, this isn’t about hiding anything, this is about the pain you went through, alone. Kate and I have been talking a lot, especially the night you came to my apartment and called me a--a villain.” Lena spoke softly.

“Lena, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t…” Lena cut her off again, this time by wrapping her arms around her and hugging her fiercely.

“Actually, Kate said the same thing. Her exact words were, “Kara said what?” and then she spent an hour telling me that you were right and that I needed to get my head out of my ass,” Lena smirked.

“That sounds like Kate.” Kara tried to smile, but her normally stoic composure seemed brittle, like thin ice as she asked, “do you--do you think she’s okay?”

“I don’t know, Kara, I just don’t,” Lena’s eyes filled with worry. “But I do know that together, we will figure this out.”

Kara pulled Lena into a hug, “Thank you, Lee.”

Lena smiled even as worry overcame her thoughts, it was the first time Kara had used her nickname in a very long time.

The two women finally separated, and Kara grabbed Lena’s hand, “you ready to go, Lee?”

Taking a deep breath, Lena smiled tightly, “you’ll go slow, right?”

Kara nodded, smiling, then lifted Lena in her arms and gently took off.

****************************************

Setting down in an alley behind the Luthor’s hotel in Gotham about an hour later, Lena’s booted feet touch the ground, her hands still gripping Kara’s arm, “I--I thought you said slow.”

“That was slow, Lee. Are you okay?” Kara asked innocently, looking over Lena, her normally impeccable image looking slightly disheveled.

Standing up straight, Lena straightened her suit and fixed her hair, the shaking of her hands barely visible.

Kara’s glasses came up to her face quickly and Lena smiled, watching as her super suit disappeared, replaced by Kara’s jeans and a sweater. “You wore that to work?”

“Huh?” Kara answered, looking down,  “No, it’s been upgraded so I can change the look.”

Lena looked jealous, “that must save you a fortune on clothes.”

Nudging Lena with her elbow, “not everyone’s a billionaire.”

“Lex still controls the money,” Lena frowned, her memories of L Corp rising to the forefront of her thoughts, “and the company.”

“Oh, Lena.” Kara started to apologize when Lena looked at her smiling and the words stopped as her brain seemed to freeze.

“Not everything that has happened is your fault, Kara,” Lena smiled brightly, taking Kara’s hand and pulling her towards the street, “now let's head to Wayne Enterprises.”

A brisk walk later the two women entered the lobby and found themselves stopped at the desk.

“Your name and business?” the bulky security guard asked, standing up, looking down at Lena.

Lena looked the man in the eye, “Lena Luthor, to see Luke Fox.”

“And you have an appointment?” The guard asked, flexing his hands.

“Ms. Luthor was asked to come in,” Kara growled, stepping between Lena and the guard, becoming protective as she listened to the man’s attitude towards Lena.

The man reached out to move Kara and was only saved from being embarrassed by the timely arrival of Luke Fox. “Ms. Luthor! Ms. Danvers? Thank you for coming on such short notice.”

The guard stepped back, as Kara and Lena moved forward. “Luke?” They both asked at the same time.

“Upstairs, follow me,” Luke answered, his shoulders relaxing at the appearance of the two women.

The three of them filed into the small executive elevator and Luke pushed the button for the top floor. Lena winced as Kara’s hand suddenly tightened on hers. She looked over and saw Kara staring at the numbers. Kara looked down at their hands and was about to pull away, but Lena gripped her fingers and was rewarded with a wan smile as Kara looked back up at the red numbers looming above the door.

They finally reached the top floor and Kara released Lena’s hand and stepped from the elevator, her fingers twisting in her hair as she fought to get her nerves under control. Luke looked confused, but Lena’s eyes were soft as she looked at her friend. “Are you okay? How do you normally calm down?”

Whispering, Kara answered, “I listen to your heartbeat.”

“What?” Lena asked, “Kara? What did you say?”

“I use your heartbeat to calm down. Your’s or Alex’s,” Kara answered, her eyes suddenly downcast.

Lena peeked and saw Luke making his way down the hall, oblivious to Kara’s reaction. She lifted the blonde’s chin, “does it help?” She watched Kara nod and close her eyes, then whispered, “if it helps Kara, I promise, I’ll be here for you.”

Kara’s head jerked up at Lena’s words and saw a small smile play on the red lips of her friend, “thank you, Lee.” The Kryptonian then took a deep breath and followed Lena down the hallway.

*****************************************

Kara and Lena were sitting on a comfortable couch in Kate’s office, watching Luke pace back and forth behind a large, ornate desk. He would walk about ten steps, rub his face and turn around and walk back. Several times he opened his mouth like he was going to speak, then stopped and closed it tight again.

Lena’s patience was running thin, between Lex, Leviathan, her and Kara’s friendship, and now Kate’s disappearance she was at her wit’s end. “Luke, please sit down and stop pacing.”

“Right, right.” He took a breath and sat down behind the desk, lifting a folder and opening it, removing a single piece of heavy paper, “Ms. Luthor, the board of directors, under specific orders from Wayne Enterprises CEO, Katherine Alison Kane, has asked that you take over as acting CEO. Her instructions were to contact you within seven days if she failed to make contact with myself or any member of the board. If you accept, you will become Ms. Kane’s legal proxy which means you will control 51% of Wayne Stock. Your salary for this position will be…”

Lena interrupted, “Luke? What are you saying? Why would Kate do this?”

Luke paused and pointed at Kara, “because of her, Ms. Luthor.”

Kara looked shocked, pointing at herself “Me?”

“Kate said you never lost hope in Ms. Luthor or her ability to be a force for good, Ms. Danvers, and when she met her, she reached the same conclusion,” Luke commented.

Lena started to breathe faster, her heart rate rising quickly. Kara was at her side immediately, “Lee, calm down, deep breaths, relax.”

“You, you still believed in me, even after…” Lena’s breath caught, as her green eyes turned towards her best friend.

“Yes,” Kara nodded, her blue eyes shining, “I made a mistake, Lee, I should have told you sooner, I should have trusted you more…”

Still speechless, Lena continued to focus on the blonde.

“I was scared, Lena, scared I would lose you. And then you were gone, and I would have done anything to get you back. By Rao’s light, I almost did…” Kara trailed off, staring out the window for just a moment, then turned back, focusing on the green eyes that were staring so intently at her. “You were never a villain. I--I was a horrible friend, I have always said I would protect you, and I failed. I could protect you from everyone and everything else, but I couldn’t protect you from my own selfishness.” Kara finished and turned away again, staring out into the grey skies of Gotham, her arms wrapping around herself, trying to ward off a chill no one but Supergirl could feel.

Lena walked past the papers on Kate’s desk and stood behind Kara. Slowly, she raised her hand and placed it gently on her friend’s shoulder. She closed her eyes, to get her emotions under control and felt Kara turn and then strong arms wrapped around her shoulders, pulling her close and enveloping her in a cocoon of hope, safety, and love. Lena’s breathing finally steadied, and she turned towards Luke as her hand slid into Kara’s, “What do you need me to do?  Where is she?”

“One thing at a time, Ms. Luthor,” Luke responded, looking down at Kate’s desk and pointing, “I need these forms signed, then I will report to the board that everything is in order. After all that, we need to talk.”

Lena moved towards the desk, signing the papers, then looked at Luke who waved her around the desk to the chair that was now hers.

Lena moved slowly around the desk, taking the seat as Luke made his way to the boardroom, one floor below. “Kara, can you scan the room?”

Kara smiled and lowered her glasses, scanning the walls with her x-ray vision. “There’s a passageway there,” Kara said, pointing to the cabinet to Lena’s right. “It goes down several hundred feet.”

“The famous Batcave?” Lena smiled at the name, “Why do they call it that?”

“Clark said that the press named it, assuming that Batman had a hideout somewhere,” Kara explained. “It’s kind of like our Tower in National City.”

“Tower?” Lena questioned, a look of confusion on her face.

“Oh Rao, something else I forgot to tell you about, with everything that has been going on. I haven’t had the time to explain. I wasn’t trying to keep it from you,” the words tumbled out of Kara’s mouth. She took a deep breath, then added, “we have a base of operations in National City, a place no one except our group knows about. I wasn’t trying to keep it a secret.”

“Kara, darling, we have been a bit busy as of late.” Lena’s confusion lifted as she tried to calm her friend’s nerves.

“I know Lee, but I promised, no more secrets,” the blonde sighed. “J’onn set it up for us before Alex left the DEO. It’s a place for us to plan, train...a place for us to…”

“Hide from Lex?’ Lena asked concern showing in her eyes.

Kara nodded, her crinkle showing as she worried that once again secrets would come between her and Lena. “Lee…”

“Kara, I understand, I do. I know you didn’t keep this a secret out of malice or spite. Things between us are still awkward, but this--this communication, is how we can fix things. It’s why I told you I know who Kate is.” The green-eyed brunette got up and walked around the desk, approaching Kara. She took the blonde’s hands in her own, and smiled as blue eyes lifted from the floor, her heart skipping a bit as Kara grinned, “we will get through this Kara, one step at a time.”

“This hand thing still isn’t working for me,” Kara’s grin grew as she pulled Lena in for another hug.

Lena melted into Kara’s arms, a feeling of warmth once again overwhelming her, “I couldn’t agree more.”

**************************************

Luke entered the office a few minutes later and found the two women on the couch talking quietly. 

Kara turned first, watching as Luke moved toward the couch.  “Luke, is everything okay?” 

“Ms. Luthor, you are now acting CEO of Wayne Enterprises by unanimous decision of the Board of Directors,” Luke answered as he walked around the couch and sat down heavily in a leather chair across from the two women.

“So are you going to tell us what the hell is going on? What happened to Kate?” Lena demanded her nerves completely on edge.

Sighing deeply, Luke put his hands on the sides of his face and stared at the floor. When he lifted his eyes back up, both women were shocked by the amount of exhaustion and fear they could see behind his glasses. “Two weeks ago, Kate was shot at by the Crows. Their commander, Colonel Jacob Kane, decided that Batwoman is a threat to Gotham.”

“Wait a minute, Jacob Kane?” Lena interrupted.

“Kate’s father.” Luke mumbled, “Seven days ago, on a routine patrol, Kate disappeared. One minute she was on comms and her vitals were fine. The next, she was gone.”

“You’re saying that the newspapers are right, she hasn’t been seen or heard from in seven days. Luke, why didn’t you call?” Kara was devastated.

“Kate was very specific on this matter, Ms. Danvers. I was only to contact Ms. Luthor. Kate was hoping that you two would work things out.” Luke frowned. Then he looked at Kara expectantly...

“You know don’t you?” Kara asked.

“I do, Ms. Danvers, Kate has something in her possession, and I figured it out when you came to interview her for CatCo.” Luke paused, took a breath, “Kate didn’t tell me. She was incredibly protective of you.”

Kara stood abruptly and started walking around the room, pulling at the tips of her hair, playing with her glasses, and fiddling with her fingers, twisting them between hands. “I’m not sure I can find her now, I can scan the city, look for her. The trail is so cold, I can call Barry, or J’onn, maybe M’Gann,” then she stopped, looked out at the city, and wrapped her arms around herself.

Lena choked back tears as she watched Kara pace, ‘is this what she went through when she thought we were all gone. When I chose Lex over her.’ She stopped the thoughts and got her heart rate under control, and stood. “Kara, we are going to find her, darling.”

“Lee, she was there for me, when I lost everyone else, she--she helped me find hope,” Kara gasped. “She stopped me from making a huge mistake.”

Wrapping her arm around Kara’s shoulder, Lee whispered, “she helped me too, Kara.”

Luke stood up, and walked over, joining the women by the window. “I need to show you the cave.”

Sighing, Kara looked at Lena and asked, “Can I hold your hand again?”

“Always,” Lena responded as she gripped Kara’s hand and they headed towards the secret elevator and down towards the hidden headquarters of Batwoman.

*********************************************

As the elevator reached the bottom, Luke lifted the metal gate and stepped back, allowing Kara and Lena to step out onto the metal grating.

Lena looked around, “Not quite what I was expecting.”

“I beg your pardon, Ms. Luthor?” Luke asked defensively.

“Please, call me Lena, and I’m not trying to sound critical, but this equipment is a little,” she paused, “dated.”

Kara stifled a giggle that caught Lena’s attention. The raven-haired woman turned and smiled, placing her finger to her lips. Kara bit her bottom lip and stood up straight looking in every direction except Luke’s.

“My father and Batman built this, they cobbled everything together at first, then upgraded whenever they could.” Luke explained, “I--I am afraid I don’t know enough about the equipment to upgrade it all.”

“Luke relax, I have been building computers since I was nine years old,” Lena smiled. “Lex’s newest designs make me laugh, okay?”

“Sorry, Ms. L--Lena, I get a little defensive about my father’s designs.” Luke smiled weakly.

Kara pressed a button on the wall, revealing a weapons locker, “Oh, Rao, Alex would be in heaven.” Kara looked everything over. Then something caught her eye, “This--This is like Alex’s Hand of a Warrior. Why didn’t Kate use this?”

Luke looked over at the blonde, “Hand of a Warrior? We didn’t know what it was or how it worked.”

“Didn’t Bruce leave any instructions, programs, anything to help his replacement?” Kara asked.

“You know who Batman was?” Luke asked, shocked, “Ms. Danvers, how?’

“Kara, please.” she frowned, “Kate didn’t tell you everything then, we met a not very nice version of Bruce Wayne on Earth 99, I think it was. He killed the Superman of that Earth and would have killed me if Kate hadn’t stopped him.”

“She told me something along those lines, but not the whole story.” Luke looked away, and whispered, “no more secrets, huh Kate?”

“Come here, Lee,” Kara said. Lena approached and Kara took her left hand and slid the device onto her wrist, rolling her sleeve and noticing the watch she had given her. Smiling, she removed the device from Lena’s wrist and finished with the Hand of the Warrior. “Lee, I want you to concentrate on a weapon, any weapon, and see what happens.”

“Kara?” Lena asked, confused.

“Do you trust me?” Kara asked.

“Of course,” Lena responded. She looked at her hand, closing her eyes, she concentrated, picturing a weapon she had seen many times. A sudden increase of weight in her hand pulled her arm down and she cracked her eyes and saw it…

“Really Lee, Alex’s gun?” Kara smirked.

“Well, in my defense, I have seen it quite a few times,” Lena smirked back. Turning she lifted the weapon, sighted, and fired, striking an outcropping of rock about twenty-five feet away. “It’s real. Kara, you didn’t tell me it would be real.”

“Lee, that’s what it does, it manifests as any weapon you can think of,” Kara explained. “Alex could teach you to use it.”

“Alex! Kara, we should call Alex, she could help us,” Lena suggested.

“I’ll give her a call, you and Luke do your thing, okay?” Kara said quickly and pulled her phone out of her pocket. She brought up Alex’s contact info and pressed the green icon then lifted the phone to her ear.

“Kara Danvers, where the hell are you?” Alexandra Danvers’s irate voice echoed over the phone.

“I’m in Gotham with Lena,” Kara whispered, “Kate’s missing,”

Instantly there was a change in attitude, “Missing? How long? Do you need help? I can be there in a few hours?”

“Seven days, Alex. She’s been missing for seven days. We need your help, please?” Kara’s voice cracked a bit.

“I’m leaving right now, where are you?” Alex asked.

“Wayne Enterprises,” Kara answered softly.

*********************************************

Lena and Luke had moved to the computer monitors and started going over the data from the night Kate disappeared. They had an exact location, and Lena hacked into the city camera system. What she found caught her completely off guard. “All the footage from that area was deleted the night Kate disappeared.”

“Alex will be here in about three hours.” Kara asked, “you want me to do a flyover, Lee?”

“That would be great, darling,” Lena responded, taking Kara’s hand, “but, be careful, please.”

“Always,” Kara said as she pulled off her glasses quickly and her suit started to form around her.

“That is so cool,” Luke said, shocked.

“Fastest way out?” Kara asked.

Luke pointed up, “That tunnel, it’s a little tight, but it comes out at the roof.”

Lena grabbed at Kara’s fingers, “I’m right here.”

Kara took a deep breath, focused on Lena’s heart, and shot towards the tunnel.

“That’s so cool,” Luke said again as she watched the girl of steel disappear.

“Yeah, it is,” Lean smiled, as she returned her attention to the computer monitors. “Kara, turn on your coms.”

Kara exited the tunnel, stopping and hovering about fifty feet over the building. She reached up to her right ear and tapped her earpiece. “Sorry, Lee.”

“It’s okay, Kara, the site of her disappearance is six miles north of Wayne Enterprises, a parking garage.” Lena coached, “I’ll guide you in.”

Following Lena’s instructions, Kara landed at the parking garage a few minutes later and changed back to her alter ego. “Luke, I scanned coming in, Kate’s bike is on the third level.”

“We couldn’t recover it, it will only start for her.” Luke grimaced.

“Lee?” Kara questioned.

“I’m accessing it now. I think I can remote start, but you will have to be on the bike,” Lena said absentmindedly as her fingers jumped over the keyboard.

Kara moved from floor to floor, checking everything out. She made it to the basement level and found a clue. “Lena, I’ve got something.”

“Kara, what is it? What did you find?” Lena responded.

“Lee, it--it’s her belt and a dart.” Kara frowned, “I think there is blood on the tip,”

“There are evidence bags in the fourth pouch on her belt, Supergirl,” Luke interjected.

Pulling a bag from the pouch, Kara tucked the belt and dart in the bag and grasping them tightly headed back up to the bike. “Lee, I’m headed back to the bike.” She reached the Harley and straddled it. “Okay, Lee, do your thing.”

Lena accessed the motorcycle controls and overrode the auto start feature, “press the ignition.”

She heard the satisfying sound of the bike revving to life. “You do know how to drive that, right?”

“You do know my sister, right?” Kara laughed, pulling Kate’s helmet over her head.

“My mistake, be safe,” Lena laughed back.

‘I have got to get one of these,’ Kara thought to herself as she made her way down and out of the parking garage. She stopped, got her bearings, and moved into the late afternoon traffic, headed back to Wayne Enterprises.

Moving smoothly through the gears, Kara listened for any signs of trouble as she steered the bike through Gotham. She found the lack of crime surprising. “Lena, I’m two blocks from the building.”

“Two blocks over, there is a parking garage, pull in to the first-floor corner closest to Wayne Tower,” Lena spoke guiding her friend in.

Kara pulled into the spot and the wall of the garage slid open, allowing her to drive through. She followed the wide tarmac down underground and emerged at the far end on a parking platform. Bringing the bike to a slow stop, she used her foot to set the kickstand, and stood from the seat, hearing the rumbling motor shut off. She kicked her leg over the bike and noticed Lena watching her. 

‘Wow,’ Lena thought to herself, “You look good on a bike.”

“I’ll have to get one. Maybe when all this is over.” Kara said, pulling off the helmet and shaking out her mane of blonde hair, then looked over her shoulder at the motorcycle. She pulled the evidence bag out as she walked forward and handed it over to Lena, “here’s what I found.”

The two women approached an older scanning device and Lena took the dart out and placed it on the sample plate, then moved back to the monitor bank and pressed a few buttons on the keyboard. The device scanned the needle tip, and then pulled up Kate’s DNA data and compared the blood to the new information. The test took just a few minutes, and Lena watched the whole procedure from beginning to end.

“Nerd,” Kara said as she peeked over Lena’s shoulder at the results. “It’s a confirmed match.”

“What, how?” Lena was surprised, “the results haven’t been completed yet.”

“There are multiple markers, I estimate a match of about 98.3%,” Kara smiled.

The printer generated the results and Lena snatched them up, “Ha, 98.2.”

Kara rolled her eyes and looked at Lena, “really?”

“No, it’s 98.3, how did you do that?” Lena asked.

“I know the science behind human DNA, it’s complex, but I could see the markers and couldn’t help but estimate the numbers,” Kara explained.

“Wait a minute! We will be discussing this later, brat,” Lena said, crossing her arms and cocking her hip.

“Yes ma’am,” Kara smiled. Then her frown returned, “Someone drugged her, Lena, then made her disappear. Lena, they didn’t care if someone found out.”

The elevator door opened and Kara turned at the smell. “Pizza and potstickers, Lena said you might be hungry,” Luke spoke, displaying three pizza boxes and a bag of potstickers.

“I’m not really in the mood to eat,” Kara admitted, her crinkle showing as she stared into the darkness of the cave.

“Kara, you have to eat,” Lena whispered, stepping behind her and taking her hand, “please, darling. For me?”

Kara turned back towards Lena and nodded.

********************************************

The two women and Luke were upstairs in the office finishing their food and Kara’s phone buzzed. Lena noticed a slight smile on Kara’s face and whispered, “Alex?” She watched Kara nod, and then whispered again, “send her to the cave.”

Kara answered the call, “Hey, Alex.”

“Hey, sis,” Alex answered, “want us to meet you at the hotel, or Wayne Enterprises?”

Kara smiled at Lena, “Actually, we have something to show you,” then she explained where the entrance to the cave was. As she was disconnecting the call, something dawned on her, “Wait, Alex, who’s us?”

Alex laughed as she answered, “you’ll see.” Then hung up.

Kara was still staring at her phone after Alex hung up, her mouth open, when Lena walked over, “Earth to Kara. What’s wrong darling?”

“Alex said, ‘us,’ not me. She brought someone with her,” Kara stammered.

“Well, let’s go find out, shall we,” Lena said, grabbing Kara by the hand and heading for the elevator. She smiled as the blonde’s long fingers wrapped around hers gripping tightly. 

Kara looked down at their interlocked fingers and smiled before Lena could turn and look at her in the elevator. For the first time in a very long time, she didn’t once look at the indicator for the elevator.

The doors to the elevator opened, and Kara stepped out of the elevator, still holding Lena’s hand in her own, their fingers entwined.

********************************************

Alex Danvers drove her black SUV through the lighted cave, marveling at the work it must have taken to create something like this in secret. “Wow!”

The two women in the vehicle with her were speechless as they watched the lights pass by.

*******************************************

The elevator door slid open as the SUV rolled to a smooth stop beside Kate’s motorcycle, and Kara and Lena exited, still holding hands as Alex and her secrets exited the vehicle.

“Caitlin? Nia?” Kara cried out as she dragged Lena across the walkway towards her friends. “Alex?”

Alex’s eyes drifted down towards the interlocked fingers of her sister and Lena, “I thought we might need a little bit more help, and since Kelly is barely speaking to me right now, I brought these two.”

“And you are very welcome, Alex.” Caitlin deadpanned, while Nia, who seemed to be looking out at the cave, failed to notice anything at all.

Alex’s eyes never left her sister’s hand, and Lena watched her closely, waiting for any signs of anger. She and Kara’s sister had never seen eye to eye on everything, but she suddenly felt as if she needed to hide. She tried to pull her hand away, and Kara looked back, her crinkle showing as she looked at their locked fingers. She pouted as Lena pulled again, locked her grip a little tighter, and waited for Lena to look up.

Lena finally looked up and noticed the pout. Then she looked at Alex, back at their hands, and then back at Kara.

“I don’t care what she thinks right now, I’ve known what I wanted since you showed up to help me take on Leviathan and stop Lex,” Kara smiled, “I was just too stubborn to admit it to myself, or anyone else.”

Lena’s face changed in an instant as a soft, dorky smile replaced her look of concern. Caitlin walked by Alex and handed her a twenty, then walked up to Lena, “Welcome back to the Superfriends, Lena.”

Nia, who suddenly seemed to remember where she was turned and walked up and placed her arms around both women, “you need to go out tonight, Kara, you and Alex, somethings going to happen.” Then she pulled away, and both women noticed a soft purple glow in her eyes.

Alex looked at Kara “We will talk about this later,” looking down at her sister’s hand. Then she looked at Lena, “It’s nice to have you back. I’ll need a way to get around tonight, and a good map of Gotham.”

Lena nodded, speechless.

“You can take Kate’s bike, Alex.” Kara interjected, “Lee can program it to work for you.”

Lena nodded again, “I can--I can do that.”

“Kara, can you excuse us a minute, I need to speak with Lena,” Alex smiled at her sister, “and no eavesdropping.”

Kara looked at Lena, then at Alex, then back at her friend, “I’ll be right over there with Nia and Cait.” Then their hands slowly separated and Kara made her way over to her friends.

***********************************

Lena swallowed hard as Alex looked her over, “Are you okay with this? Whatever this is between the two of you?”

Lena blinked, not expecting that question at all, “We--we are trying…,” she swallowed, “we want to--to fix things. Between us, I mean.”

“Lena,” Alex began, “we have never been close, but you are a friend, and you’ve been hurt. I want to make sure you are okay.”

“Are you sure she’s not listening?” Lena asked, peeking at Kara.

“I’m positive,” Alex smiled.

“Admitting this to you first, isn’t something I expected to do,” Lena spoke quietly, mentally preparing herself for the words she was about to speak. “I’ve had a crush on your sister since she walked into my office with Clark Kent over four years ago.”

“No way, Lena,” Alex responded sarcastically. “The only two people who weren’t aware of that were you and Kara.”

Lena’s head dropped as she blushed, “I thought I was hiding it.”

“Flowers, lunches…,” Alex said as she counted her fingers, “buying a company.”

“So maybe not so good…,” Lena smiled as she trailed off, staring at Kara over her shoulder.

“You think,” Alex laughed.

***************************************

Kara was standing on the other side of the cave with Caitlin and Nia, peaking over her shoulder every few seconds, watching the conversation between her sister and Lena. “What do you think Alex is saying?” Kara’s concern causing her voice to crack.

“Kara, it’s nothing, it’s a big sister thing,” Nia laughed.

“Kara, how long?” Caitlin asked.

“Lena, I’ve been in love with her since we first met,” Kara blushed, admitting her feelings for the very first time, out loud.

“Why don’t you just listen in?” Nia asked.

“I promised Alex I wouldn’t eavesdrop,” Kara admitted, pouting at herself. “I just can’t.”

***********************************

Lena and Alex broke up their meeting and headed in the direction of the other three women. The mood shifted, and the group grew solemn as Lena stepped beside Kara, their hands finding one another’s again.

“Kate Kane is missing, and as you all can see, there was a little more to her than the CEO of Wayne Enterprises,” Lena started. “She is also Batwoman. She has been missing for the last seven days. Kara found evidence earlier today that she was drugged and taken, so we are working on the theory that Kate is alive somewhere.”

Alex watched Kara struggle with her emotions as Lena spoke, she could see the turmoil in her sister’s eyes that one of her friends, someone as close as Kate had disappeared. She would be blaming herself, she could feel the wave of guilt emanating from her sister. Kara could hide her emotions from everyone, but not Alex, she could see behind the mask, behind all the strength.

Kara was listening to Lena, but at the mention of Kate being alive, she momentarily let her mask slip, and a single tear came to her eye. Kara reached up, trying to wipe the tear away, and caught everyone’s attention. “I’m sorry,” the Kryptonian said. “I need some--some air.” Then she was gone, shooting up the escape tunnel towards the grey skies of Gotham.

All four women looked up as their friend shot up and away. Then three sets of eyes turned to Alex, unasked questions showing in their expressions.

“She and Kate, they--uhm, she, Kate, she kept Kara from making a huge mistake during their battle to save the multiverse.” Alex paused, just a moment, “I don’t know the whole story, but Kara had given up--we were all gone--and she wanted us back…”

Lena saw Alex choking up, and took her hand, continuing the story, “there was some sort of magical book, a book that gave its user the ability to recreate their reality. She was going to bring all of you--all of us back,” she swallowed. “Kate stopped her.”

“Stopped her? Why?” Nia asked.

“The selfishness of the act would have cost Kara her soul, she was--is the Paragon of Hope,” at the confusion in Nia’s and Caitlin’s eyes, Alex paused and looked at Lena.

“Kara is one of seven defenders of the multiverse, she represents Hope.” Lena spoke up, “she lost that hope when Argo City, Earth 38, and then Earth 1 were all destroyed one after another. Now, the person that helped her through that is gone, and she is blaming herself.”

“Do you think we can find Kate?” Caitlin asked.

“The drug that was used on her. It was a strong sedative, and a chemical combination I have never seen before,” Lena answered. “I’m glad Alex brought you, Caitlin, between the three of us, maybe we can work out what it was for.”

“Show us,” Alex almost commanded, “please?”

Lena led them towards the bank of computers where she had spent her time this afternoon. Reaching for the printer, she handed a copy of the results to Caitlin and watched as she and Alex studied the paper. “While you three look over that, I’m going to check on Kara, she probably headed up to the roof.”

Alex smiled softly as the young brunette made her way to the elevator, then whispered, “she’s coming to find you, Kara.”

********************************

Kara was sitting on the patio of the large penthouse apartment at the top of Wayne Tower, wearing her jeans and a sweater, her feet bare, and her legs crossed. Her eyes were closed and she looked to be meditating. She heard Alex’s whisper, but was so upset, she couldn’t bring herself to relax, she couldn’t shake the feeling of guilt that was threatening to overwhelm her. 

As Lena closed the doors of the elevator to head up, the evening sun finally broke through the dull, grey clouds that seemed to absorb the colors of Gotham. The rays struck the Kryptonian and she closed her eyes and felt the warmth wrap around her like an old friend. She settled down, allowing her body and mind to stretch out and relax as she began to feel reinvigorated by Rao’s light. 

She was still sitting there when the elevator to the penthouse slid open and Lena emerged. Lena approached the patio doors and slid them open, expecting Kara to turn at any moment. To her astonishment, Kara seemed oblivious to her arrival, and it wasn’t until she stopped moving that she realized Kara was talking…

“Rao, light of Krypton, you have given me these gifts to protect this world and save so many people. You have sent stars from the sky to love and protect me, Alex, Eliza, Nia, Cait, and so many others. Then you graced me with a portion of your very essence, and even after I failed her, you allowed me to orbit her once again. Thank you for bringing Lena back into my life.” Kara prayed, whispering the words as she faced the sun.

Lena covered her mouth, and was about to step back inside, her eyes watering from unshed tears when she heard Kara continue…

“I’ve lost one of my stars, I have failed you. Please grant me the strength and the vision to find Kate, please. It was her light that rekindled my hope during my crisis of faith…,” Kara paused, her senses suddenly alert, “Help us find her. In Rao’s name…”

“In Rao’s name,” the whispered words escaped Lena’s mouth before she could stop them.

“How much did you hear, Lee?” Kara asked, her head hanging.

“Do you really see me as your sun, Kara?” Lena asked, biting her lower lip, frightened of the answer.

Kara nodded her head slowly, “When I first met you, I knew. Somehow I knew that I was destined to follow your light.”

Lena gasped at Kara’s admission, “K--Kara, what are you saying?”

“When I failed you, Lena, I discovered true darkness. I was lost, and none of the stars that Rao sent to protect me could light my way out. Alex tried, Nia, everyone. I was lost, so I kept coming back to you like a moth to flame just to feel the sun again,” Kara's head was hanging down. She finally looked up and Lena saw the tears spilling down her cheeks. “I missed you so much, Lee, I failed you and I lost you. Now I’ve--I’ve failed Kate…” Kara stopped talking as the sobbing shook her whole body.

Lena stepped forward, dropped to her knees, and wrapped her arms around Kara, “Oh darling, you didn’t fail her, this isn’t on you.” She pulled her hero into her chest and whispered in her ear, “We will find her, sweetheart. I’m right here, and I’m not leaving you ever again.”

“But--but, Lee I hurt you,” Kara sobbed, “I’m so sorry.”

“Shh, Kara, Shh,” she cooed as she kissed the blonde’s hair. “I’m here, I’m right here.”

Kara lifted her eyes, bright, brilliant cerulean orbs that captured the emerald green of Lena’s. Lena’s mouth was suddenly very dry and she paused to stare at the beautiful woman curled in her arms. She swallowed and licked her lips, the moisture causing her red lips to catch Kara’s attention. Then Kara bit her own lower lip, as she took a deep breath.

“Kara, can--may I ki….,” Lena was interrupted as Kara’s lips met her own and she felt herself pulled down closer than they had ever been before. A soft sigh escaped Kara’s mouth as Lena’s tongue slid between her teeth, and long manicured fingers ran through her long blonde hair. Kara’s arm looped around Lena’s neck and held her close, feeling her orbit shift, as lonely stars met to become one united sun.

The kiss ended, much too soon, and Lena smiled as Kara stood with her arm wrapped around her waist. Then she rested her head on the tall woman’s shoulder as she heard Kara whisper towards the last light of the sun, “Thank you, Rao, I’m finally home.”

********************************

Downstairs in the cave, the elevator doors opened and Luke stepped out to see three women he didn’t know standing around the planning table looking over some paperwork. He stopped and stared, then slowly backed up as Alex was suddenly wrapped in a blue glow and her Cobalt costume formed around her, Caitlin disappeared, replaced by the cold eyes and white hair of her alter ego, Frost, and finally, Nia’s blue and white formed around her, her brown eyes hidden behind a glowing wave of blue energy. 

“Who are you?” Alex snapped. 

“Uhm, uh, I--I’m, yeah, I’m…,” Luke stammered.

Suddenly Supergirl was standing directly in front of him, blocking his view of the other three heroines. “Stand down!” She cried out. All three women relaxed as Kara continued to speak, “he’s on our side, he works for Kate, so just relax.”

Alex stepped forward first, “he knows?”

Kara nodded, “he figured it out after Lena visited Kate.”

Alex swept back the hood from her head and held out her hand, “Alex Danvers.”

Luke looked down and with a shaking hand accepted Alex’s handshake. Caitlin and Nia introduced themselves as well and after introductions were made and Lena had made her way back to the cave, a strategy meeting started. At the end of the meeting, Alex and Kara had assigned sectors of the city for them to patrol.

“Lee,” Alex smiled, “I need the bike for tonight.” She was walking past the weapons locker where the Hand of the Warrior was stored when the one on her right wrist started to vibrate, “Kara?”

Kara smiled and walked towards her sister, pressing the button to open it. Alex’s eyes went wide as she saw the second Hand, resting in its supports, vibrating at the same rate as hers. She reached in and the device leaped from its spot and secured itself around her left wrist. Her costume changed slightly, as it took on a more armored, metallic look, “what’s happening?”

Kara shook her head, and Lena immediately ran to the computer monitors and started scanning the cave. Caitlin joined her and called out, “relax, Alex, relax.” She checked the readings again, “it’s forming a neural link Alex, it's reacting to your panic. Relax, and just let it do what it's doing.”

Alex listened to Caitlin’s voice and took a deep breath, then she focused on Kara’s calm blue eyes and took another breath, ‘Kara won’t let anything happen’ she thought. She could feel the alien weapon working its way up both her arms, sliding across her back until the two ends connected. As they met, Alex felt a strange sensation, like an itch she couldn’t scratch as the Alien device fused itself into her skin and formed a cobalt blue tattoo around each arm and across her shoulder blades. The feeling finally subsided and she looked at her hands.

Kara watched her sister, then smiled as she wrapped her hand around what was happening. “It’s a symbiote Alex, it's sharing with you. Think about your costume, make it go back to normal.”

Alex concentrated and her costume's armored look slowly faded and returned to its original look. She smiled and pictured something else, something she wasn’t sure would work. Slowly, she started to rise off the floor, floating awkwardly into the air in front of her sister.

“Alex!” Kara was bouncing up and down, “you’re flying, you’re flying! Alex, you’re flying!”

“How do I land?” Alex asked, a look of utter horror on her face, “I didn’t think it would work.” As the words left her mouth, she fell from the air and landed in a pile on the floor of the cave.

Everyone in the cave started to laugh, loud raucous laughs that at first caused Alex to get red-faced. Kara tried to stop, but snorted, which caused Alex to giggle. Kara started laughing again and then Alex couldn’t hold it any longer and started laughing with the rest of them. “I am never letting you forget that landing, not ever, Alex.”

Between her laughs, “Kara, I’m just glad you didn’t have your phone.” Then she leaned on her sister as they laughed and Kara looked over at the other three women, laughing harder as Nia held up her phone, the video playing of the landing, over and over again.

**********************************

The laughing subsided and the five women and Luke stood around the table, reworking the strategy from earlier.

“Something is going to happen tonight, I had a vision of a woman in black, but I couldn’t see where she was, only that she might need your help,” Nia tried to explain, “there was a man in bandages, and a gun, but I couldn’t see where.” Nia was struggling, trying to force the vision to return.

“Nia, stop,” Kara looked to her friend, concern reflected in her eyes. “You can’t keep pushing.”

“It’s your friend, I’m trying to help,” Nia pouted

“By Rao,” Kara giggled, “where did you learn that?”

Giggling back, Nia pointed at her friend, “you!”

The two young women settled down, and it was decided that Cait and Nia would take to the streets while Kara and Alex would cover the skies. “No one takes on anything by themselves, including you,” Alex ordered, pointing at Kara.

Lena attached a small unit to Kara’s chest plate. “Activation code is Rao.” Then perching on her tiptoes, Lena kissed Kara lightly on the lips, “Good luck.”

Alex’s mouth dropped open, she looked at Lena, then at Kara and back again, “uhm, that progressed quickly?”

“Quickly? Really, Alex?” Kara asked, shocked, “we have known each other for more than four years.”

This time Alex smiled, “Let’s go find Kate, Supergirl.”

“Uhm, Alex,” Lena crossed her arms, “you might want to change.”

Concentrating, Alex’s uniform slowly took on the armored metallic look she was thinking about and she found herself floating again.

The heroines started their patrol and Lena spun in her chair, taking on the overwatch position, “Comm check, ladies.”

“Supergirl, check,” Kara said, as she headed north.

“Cobalt, check,” Alex said as she slowly turned to the south.

“Frost, check,” Caitlin said as she tightened her arms around Nia’s waist as they sped from the parking garage.

“Dreamer, check,” Nia smiled from under her helmet, as they shot to the east.

“I have the overwatch,” Lena said, concentrating camera coverage into the western part of Gotham, the part controlled by the Wonderland gang.

*************************************

Two hours into the patrol, Lena saw something on the cameras in the western portion of Gotham.

“Supergirl, Cobalt,” Lena called into the, “we have caped activity in the western part of the city.”

“On the way, overwatch,” Supergirl responded.

“Meet at Ace Chemicals, Supergirl?” Cobalt asked.

“Gotcha, Cobalt,” Supergirl responded.

Kara landed on the water tower at Ace Chemicals, gently setting down and scanning the area for Batwoman. Cobalt landed a few moments later, creating two boot sized dents in the top of the water tower. “Might want to work on those landings, sis,” Kara said, looking at the dents.

“Your first landing wasn’t much better,” Alex smirked, “that poor tree never stood a chance.”

Kara stuck her tongue out, then her hearing picked out the sound of a cape flapping in the wind.

“This is Supergirl,” Kara said, “I’ve got something.”

Kara launched into the air, slowing enough for Alex to catch her, and headed in the direction of the cape. Four blocks later she got a look at the black fluttering cape as a young woman swung on a thin wire across Crime Alley.

“That’s not Kate,” Alex whispered into her comms.

Kara scanned the face of the woman, “the mask is lead-lined, Cobalt.”

“Get ahead of her, Supergirl,” Alex recommended.

Kara shot ahead two blocks and hovered, waiting for the bat to appear. She heard Alex cutting through the wind and saw the cape open as the woman dove between two buildings. Her patience was tested as the cable shot towards the building she was close two and she waited until the woman launched herself, swinging across the street to spring the trap. Diving down she snatched the cable and blasted into the sky, towing the surprised bat with her.

One hundred feet above the city she started to reel the cable in, one slow foot at a time until she was holding the little bat by the hand.

“Want to tell me where Batwoman is?” Kara growled, as her eyes flashed blue, then a bright brilliant orange.

The woman attempted to struggle in Kara’s grip, but Kara just smiled wickedly at her and shook her head, then a Batarang was yanked from the woman’s belt and it bent as it struck Kara’s invulnerable skin.

“Don’t you idiots ever learn, you see the symbol and still try to stab her,” Alex said as she floated up beside her sister, shaking her head at the little batgirl. “Back to the cave, Supergirl?”

Kara’s eyes flashed to red, never leaving the masked woman’s face, as she nodded to her sister. Her grip tightened as she flew up and headed towards the cave under the Wayne building.

“Dreamer and Frost, we have a suspect in custody and are headed back to the cave, disengage from patrol and return to base,” Cobalt commanded into her radio.

“This is Dreamer, we are RTB, Cobalt,” Nia smiled as she gunned her engine and felt Caitlin’s grip tighten around her waist.

*************************************

The masked woman was handcuffed to a table in a side room while the five women discussed what to do with her.

“Good cop, bad cop?” Alex suggested.

“I’ll be the bad cop,” Kara growled, her eyes flashing again.

“Darling, I think you should allow your sister and me to try first, okay?” Lena asked, “this is more personal for you than for us.”

Kara peered at the door, her normally sunny disposition hidden behind bared teeth and glowing orange eyes, “Fine, Lee. But I’ll be right here if you need me.”

“I know, sweetheart,” Lena said as she turned towards Alex, “After you, Cobalt.”

The two women entered the room and Lena seated herself across from the silent, masked woman. Alex relaxed as she leaned over the shoulder of the handcuffed woman, “Where is Batwoman?”

The woman’s head moved, looking directly at Alex, then back at Lena. Through the mask, Lena could see the edges of the woman’s lips as they turned up in a smile. “Alex, it’s a tr…” She was cut off as the woman’s, now free arms, drew back and struck Alex in the temple, stunning her. Lena never hesitated as she jumped up and slid across the table, her heeled boot catching the woman in the throat and pushing her away from the stunned heroine. To her surprise, the masked person grabbed her ankle and pulled her forward, spun her around, and snaked her arm around Lena’s throat. Lena could feel the pressure begin to press against her windpipe…

“That was a huge mistake!” The blonde woman said as she held the masked woman several feet off the floor with one hand while supporting the smaller brunette with her other.

The woman was struggling against the grip of an unforgiving hand wrapped around her neck, her arms batting helplessly as fingers that could rend steel clenched just a bit tighter, when a voice boomed over Kara’s earpiece, “Stand down, Kara!”

Kara’s hand loosened and the woman fell to her knees, “Kate?”

“She’s working for me, Supergirl.” Kate’s tired voice confirmed.

“Where are you? What is going on?” Kara’s voice cracked, “Are--are you okay?”

“Follow Ryan, she’ll lead you to me. I’m safe for now, but my city’s not.” Kate explained, “I’ll tell you everything when I see you in person.”

Kara looked to Lena and Alex, who was nursing her head, and they both nodded that they had heard everything. Nia and Cait came through the door and nodded as well, then four sets of eyes turned towards the masked woman on the floor, holding her throat.

Curly hair and brown eyes met the gaze of the four women, as the black and yellow-clad woman stood on shaky legs and spoke hoarsely, “I’m Ryan, Ryan Wilder. You can call me, Batgirl.”

*********************************

Luke once again shook his head, as Ryan, or Batgirl, explained that for the past year, she had been under tutelage from Kate, learning to hone her already considerable skills, to take Batwoman’s place should anything ever happen.

“Where have you been hiding?” Lena asked.

“The Wayne property, outside of Gotham. The manor itself is in ruins, but there is a pretty modern cabin by one of the lakes,” Ryan answered nonchalantly.

“Is that where Kate is? Is she okay? Is she hurt? What happened to her?” Kara’s questions came rapidly, so fast that all Ryan could do was sit, dumbfounded.

“Did anyone understand that?” Ryan asked, looking around the room, from face to face.

Alex looked down, the make-up on her face making her look scary to the young Batgirl, “where is Kate?”

Ryan swallowed, “she’s in the cave, the one under the old manor. That’s where she has been training me.”

Cold blue eyes captured her next, “Is she okay?” Frost asked, a stream of cold air escaping her mouth and causing the dark-skinned woman to shiver.

“She was injured--her father cornered her--he--he shot her,” Ryan responded.

“Shot her?” Luke asked, clearly agitated, “there were no signs on the suit's biometrics.”

“She figured out how to loop the signal, so you couldn’t see what was going on,” the woman responded, “actually, I did, you've been getting false signals for months.”

Luke growled, “another lie, dammit Kate.” He turned and walked away.

“Is she hurt?” Lena asked, her fingers wrapping tightly around Kara’s, “did the bullet injure her?”

Ryan looked at Lena, “you’re that Luthor chick she’s been talking about, right. The bullet hit her in the back, but didn’t penetrate the suit.”

Lena blew out a breath, “but?”

“According to Alice, it did some damage to her lower back, she is having problems walking,” Ryan answered, concern in her wide brown eyes.

“Alice?” Luke exclaimed, “why is Alice helping her, and you?”

“I--I don’t know, Kate brought her to the cave, she was unconscious and hurt. Kate brought her in and said she was attacked by someone with a wrapped face,” Batgirl said.

Everyone turned and looked to Nia, who was standing with her arms crossed, “told you so.”

“You are going to take us there?” Kara asked, “Now?”

Ryan looked up at Supergirl and swallowed, “yes ma’am.”

*******************************

Alex’s Black SUV rolled down the dirt road, following Ryan’s directions. Batgirl was in the second seat between Kara and Lena, her hands in her lap, “At the fork, go to the left, and drive directly over the log, so it can scan the vehicle.”

Following the instructions, the vehicle rolled over the invisible device and the cave entrance was activated by a sensor in Ryan’s suit. Alex continued forward, following the lighted pathway towards Kate and her secrets.

*******************************

“They are on their way in, Kate,” Alice smiled, helping her sister into the electric wheelchair they had found among Bruce’s things.

Alice walked beside as Kate rolled herself down the metal grating ringing the parking pad, her hand never leaving her sister’s shoulder. Her thoughts turned to the day Kate disappeared, her panic, and Ryan’s heroic act that saved her.

A Warehouse on the Westside of Gotham

Alice lay on her cot in the cell, staring up at the ceiling. She’d lost count of the number of days she’d been here, waiting. She’d been beaten twice by the beast she’d created, but that had been days or perhaps weeks ago. Now she was simply fed and left alone.

She was lying on her side staring at the wall when she heard the sound of footsteps on the concrete. She rolled slowly onto her other side, and closed her eyes, feigning sleep

“What are you doing here?” One of the guards yelled. Then Alice heard the sound of leather striking flesh and heard a grunt as a body hit the floor.

“Alice,” she heard a sharp whisper, “Beth!”

“Katie?” Alice gasped.

Batwoman appeared at the door, brandishing the key and looked into her sister’s eyes, “you’re coming with me.”

“Kate, he’ll come for you!” She whispered harshly, “if you take me, he’ll come for you.”

The door opened before her, and Kate wrapped her arms around her sister, “it’ll be worth it, Beth.”

*****************************

The vehicle pulled to a stop and the right rear door opened. Kate watched a red boot touch the grating, followed by a blue-covered leg. The regal sigil of the El family followed next, then a mop of blonde hair.

Kara's brilliant blue eyes came up and met the jade green of Kate’s and a look of concern crossed her face. Kara’s eyes roved over the woman before her, taking in the situation. Then she was moving forward, faster than the eye could follow.

“Oh Kate,” Kara sniffled, “Why didn’t you call, why didn’t you let me know what was going on?” She dropped onto one knee, looking at her friend in the eye.

Kate smiled at Kara, then looked over the blonde hair as the rest of the people stepped from the vehicle. She winked at Alex and saw a slight blush in the new heroine’s cheeks, then raised her eyebrows as Ryan stepped out the same door as Kara. The young Batgirl looked down at the grating.

“You didn’t tell me how to fight Supergirl,” she said to the ground.

“I didn’t think you would attempt to fight her, or attack Lena,” Kate said, a smirk coming to her lip as she laughed.

Lena, Nia, and Caitlyn stepped from the other side of the vehicle and Kate’s smile grew even larger.

“Kate,” Lena said, concern in her voice, and her eyes locked on Alice. “You scared the hell out of us.”

******************************

After introductions, Beth was welcomed to the group and Kate prepared to explain everything that had happened…

“After the run-in with my father, Beth and Ryan convinced me that my problem wasn’t going away anytime soon, and I am in no condition to fight him now.” Kate began, “I had to disappear, so we set up this elaborate ruse that would allow me to disappear and allow Ryan and Beth to work from the shadows, while Luke and a few of my other friends and family would be safe.”

“Kate, we would have come if you had asked,” Kara said earnestly. Everyone nodded.

“I know Kara, but…,” Kate paused,

“He’s got the bullet, doesn’t he?” Lena asked, gripping Kara’s hand tightly.

Kate nodded, her expression turning harsh, “he swore he would get her if she set foot in Gotham, and you two were still at each other’s throats.”

Kara’s head was bouncing between Kate and Lena, listening to them, not believing what she was hearing, “wait, Lena, you know about the bullet, and you’re not angry with me.”

Lena turned to Kara, raised her hand, and stroked the blonde’s cheek, “after Kate told me about the crisis, I asked her about it, and she was honest.”

“That’s why you were so willing to make the suit, wasn’t it?” Kara asked.

Lena stood on her toes, kissed Kara’s cheek, and responded, “nothing is going to take you away from me again.”

Kara blushed, then turned to Kate, “we have a hell of a team here Kate, now you want to tell us who we are going up against?”

Kate took a deep breath, “He calls himself, Hush.”