I'd forgotten what a rush it was to write multiple chapters one after another. It's a wonderful feeling and kind of addicting. Which is bad, because there's no way I'll be able to get something out tomorrow, I know that already.

Well, enjoy what you've got! Kara catches up with her mother, Alex and Slade investigate, and Mon-El is still a hero, even on Krypton.

***

Mother and daughter were still crying when Alura took a deep, rather shaky breath to try and calm and stepped back, still holding onto Kara's hands. "How," the blonde stammered, swallowing hard. "How are you alive?"

"Your father created a shield to protect Argo when Krypton exploded," Alura explained, smiling through her tears. "We would never have sent you away if we had known it'd work! I thought you were dead!" Kara sniffed, blinking back tears; she could see out of the corner of her eye that Mon-El had shuffled back a few more steps, gaze averted to give them what privacy he could. "I don't understand," Alura went on, shaking her head. "I saw your pod get knocked into the Phantom Zone!"

Kara nodded in confirmation. "I was stuck there for years, but somehow, my pod got loose, and I fell to Earth with Kal-El."

"Kal made it?" Alura's eyes lit up at the thought of another family member surviving. "He's – he's alive?"

"He got there first," Kara confirmed, smiling widely. "If I had known – " Her throat got clogged, and she swallowed so she could keep speaking. "If I knew Argo was here, if I knew you were alive, I never would have stopped searching for you!"

Alura smiled at her words, then she finally noticed someone else was with Kara. She blinked, then tilted her head. "I recognize you," she said. "The Prince of Daxam."

Mon-El cleared his throat, stepping forward when he was addressed. "There is no more Daxam," he said. "I'm just Mon-El now, ma'am."

"There's no more Krypton, either," Alura said. "Only Argo, and you are welcome here."

Mon-El smiled, bowing in acknowledgment. "Thank you."

Alura looked back at Kara, still shaking her head in disbelief. "If you didn't know I was alive, and you weren't searching for me, what brought you here?"

Kara took a deep breath. "Earth," she answered. "Earth is in trouble. When Krypton exploded, the followers of Yuda Kal sent three pods after me, each with a Worldkiller."

"A Worldkiller?" Alura's eyes widened in horror.

"I stopped two of them, but one remains," Kara nodded. "Reign, and she's terrorizing Earth. She's hurting people I love, murdering indiscriminately. And we think we found something that could stop her, and we followed its radiation signature here."

Alura looked at the building, and she nodded in recognition. "Harun-El. The Black Rock of Yuda Kal."

Kara brightened. "You know what it is?"

***

"After the fallout, ashes and destruction poisoned the air," Alura explained as she led Kara and Mon-El down into the building. "We had nothing to protect us as we hurtled through space. The young and the old were the first to become sick. They struggled in our new atmosphere, their lungs more vulnerable, more weak, but after the fallout passed, the shield kept our atmosphere more hospitable." She stopped in front of a twisting mass of black rock. "It is what your father gave his life for," she said quietly. "There was no more time. Argo was in constant darkness. We were running out of air. We were dying. Your father repurposed his unfinished research to create a livable environment. He believed that the Harun-El could act as a shield for the city, and he was right. His legacy keeps our air breathable and shields us from invaders. It keeps us hidden."

"That's why we didn't detect you in our scans," Mon-El realized. "Why there were no signs of life."

"And why we can't get in touch with Earth," Kara deflated. She would have loved to contact Oliver and tell him what she found. "No signal can get out."

"Exactly," Alura nodded. "We mined all the Harun-El left. All of it is here, and every ounce of it means one more moment of life. Because of that, we have none to spare."

Kara swallowed, shaking her head desperately. "There's gotta be a way," she said hopefully. "We only need a little bit!"

"It is not mine to give," Alura said sadly, taking a deep breath. "But I will call a meeting with the High Council."

Kara sighed in relief. "Thank you."

"It'll take a few hours to gather the members," Alura nodded, offering a small smile. "In the meantime, I was hoping to get to know my daughter."

Kara grinned widely.

***

Winn almost fell out of his chair when a bag of take-out was plopped in front of him. "I hope that's the correct order," Lucy peered into the bag. "You look like you're running on fumes."

"You'd be right," Winn sighed as he sat up, and he perked up when he got a whiff from the bag. "Oh, Lucy Lane, you are a lifesaver."

"Well," Lucy drawled, delivering take-out bags to Curtis and Felicity as well.

"I mean, I have been staring at a stupid computer monitor for about thirty-six hours," Winn continued. "I haven't slept, haven't eaten anything, haven't even had time to go get my damn pizza bagel out of the microwave – "

"So eat," Lucy pointed sternly.

Winn wilted. "Yes, ma'am," he turned away.

"So you haven't heard anything?" a quiet voice asked.

Winn almost dropped his burger, spinning in his chair to see Ruby standing nearby. "No," he finally shook his head. "Not yet."

Ruby nodded, deflating. "I haven't slept, either. I'm exhausted, too."

Winn could only smile sadly in reply.

***

Country music blasted in the bar Alex and Slade walked into, Slade making a face at the music. "Not a country fan?" Alex smirked.

"To be fair, I've heard worse from Mon-El on karaoke night," the Aussie grimaced.

Alex barked in laughter. "I'm telling him you said that."

"Go ahead," Slade snorted. "I don't think he'll be offended."

Alex surveyed the bar, then tapped his arm and pointed at a man drinking right at the bar. He nodded in response, and Alex walked over first, leaning against one of the chairs. The man paused in his drinking, looking at her, then downed his glass, put it down, and stood up. "Where are you going, Sheriff?" Alex slid in his way.

"Far away from you," Collins said roughly.

"That's right," Alex smiled sweetly. "That's because you prefer to shoot from a distance. Or behind the back, like a coward."

Collins winced, and Slade raised an eyebrow, making a mental note to ask Alex what that was supposed to mean. "Kenny Li was a long time ago."

"I'm not talking about Kenny Li," Alex shook her head, then looked at the bartender and said, "Three of whatever he's having."

Collins sighed when he saw Alex pull out her D.E.O. badge, disguised as an FBI badge. "I'm not surprised," he grumbled. "You sent me to jail when you were – "

"Seventeen, apparently," Slade finished cheerfully, taking the glass sent his way.

"It was definitely seventeen," Alex gave him a look.

"Yep, it was seventeen," Collins nodded, frowning up at him. "Who are you?"

"Someone who's here to watch her six," Slade answered. "And making sure you don't kill her. Or hurt her, even though I know she can take care of herself." He raised an eyebrow. "Unless you want to try and argue with me. You won't win."

He took an intentional drink from his glass, and Alex had to cough to disguise her laughter when she saw Collins swallow hard. If there was one thing Slade Wilson knew what to do, it was how to intimidate people. She turned back to Collins, then bluntly said, "You're trying to kill me."

Collins did a double take. "Are you kidding?"

"You tried to shoot me this morning at the park," Alex nodded.

He scoffed. "At the park?" he repeated dubiously, then laughed. "Man, are you still seventeen?"

"You don't even care about the countless kids that you could've hurt trying to get to me," Alex growled angrily. "Then again, what's one more dead kid to you, right?"

"I owed a debt for what I did!" Collins glared at her. "I paid my debt!"

"What you did was murder a teenage boy!" Alex spat.

"And I have to live with that!" Collins shouted in response, Slade watching every move he made carefully. "Forever!"

Alex scoffed. "Oh, you want me to feel sorry for you?"

"Why would you?" Collins snorted, shaking his head. "I don't even feel sorry for me. Every time I close my eyes, I see that young boy's face. The future that I stole from him. I see the blood bursting out of his body. I can feel the weight of the gun in my hands. I wasn't a good person. I was corrupt. I never thought of myself as a killer . . . kid killer. But it turns out, I was a monster. And I deserved everything I got." He turned and glared at Alex. "But I'm not trying to kill you, Danvers. What the hell difference would that make? It's not gonna bring Kenny back. It's not gonna save me. I'm already damned."

He turned back to his drink, finishing everything in one gulp again. Alex looked at Slade, who nodded once and finished his as well, then stood up and followed her out. "Well?" she asked quietly, pulling out her phone.

"I know a haunted man when I hear one, and he's haunted," Slade answered, holding the door open for her. "He was telling the truth."

"Damnit," Alex seethed, dialing J'onn's number on her phone as they returned to their motorcycles. "J'onn, it's not Collins," she said.

Slade didn't hear anything else as he swung onto his bike, checking everything was in order before revving it. He heard a click from Alex's bike, and he looked over to see her look surprised and examine her controls. "You OK?" he asked.

"Seriously?" Alex asked in disbelief, leaning over the handlebars to check everything. "I just got this!"

Slade got off his bike to help her look, then caught sight of wires just by her foot. His eyes widened in understanding, and he ran forward. "Alex!"

Alex's head whipped up, and getting the warning in his voice, she scrambled to get off. Slade grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back, dragging her to the ground just as the bomb on her bike exploded. Alex instinctively ducked her head, and Slade turned her away from the blast, grimacing from the heat of it. Alex cautiously peered over her shoulder, eyes wide, and Slade turned around to see the smoldering remains of her bike. He sighed in relief, then looked at her. "You OK?" he repeated.

"Yeah," Alex swallowed hard, nodding numbly. "Yeah, I'm good. Thanks."

"You're welcome," Slade nodded, hugging her tighter when she slumped against him. "That's why I've got your back."

***

"Thank God Slade caught this," Oliver muttered, looking over the remains of Alex's bike with Malcolm, Laurel, and Dig.

"Alex would've been dead instantly," Malcolm nodded in agreement. "Good thing he was here."

"I was so sure it was the Sheriff," Alex berated herself from where she and Slade were with J'onn.

"We'll figure this out," J'onn promised.

"The list of people who want me dead is endless!" Alex protested.

"All the more reason to cull it," J'onn pointed out.

"J'onn, Ruby could potentially lose Sam!" Alex burst out. "I haven't told her that because I can't, but I keep thinking it, and if I'm gone – "

"Ruby can't lose anyone else," Slade finished.

"Exactly," Alex nodded, then she narrowed her eyes. "Screw the list," she announced. "If this guy wants me, he can come and get me. It's our turn to hunt."

Slade understood immediately. "You want to set a trap."

"Like I said, I'm already a target, right?" Alex nodded eagerly. "So let's draw this guy out and take him down."

J'onn looked dubious, but Slade nodded. "Your lead, Danvers."

Alex grinned ferally.

***

Saturn was visible through the clouds as Alura led Kara to her residence, and when they stepped inside, Kara was immediately drawn to the plant with pale pink flowers on it. "I remember this flower!" she grinned, walking down the steps and hurrying over to look at it closer. "This is a Dar-Essa! You kept one in my room when I was little."

"It was a gift from Grandmother for your first birthday," Alura confirmed.

Kara sighed happily, sniffing the flowers with a smile. "Yeah, you used to measure it to see how tall it was." She paused. "It was, um . . . wasn't it supposed to – ?"

"Grow as you grew?" Alura finished, smiling as Kara kept touching the flowers. "Yes, I got it for you when you were so little, but you outsped the Dar-Essa. You grew so tall so fast."

"I can't believe it survived the fall," Kara marveled.

"It's strong," Alura nodded. "Like you." Kara turned to look at her, and Alura sighed, looking down. "I feel as though I've let you down."

"Mom!" Kara protested.

"No, please," Alura shook her head, stopping her from saying more. "I – I shouldn't have accepted that you died. I had always taught you to hope, but I gave up."

"I could say the same," Kara argued. "I gave up hope. I thought you had died with Krypton."

"But here I am," Alura smiled, reaching for her hands. "And here you are. So, tell me about your life? I've missed so much."

"Uh . . . " Kara trailed off, laughing nervously. Where in Rao's name was she supposed to start? "OK," she finally decided, sitting on the closest bench. "I was taken in by this amazing family. Jeremiah, Eliza. A sister, Alex."

"A sister?" Alura perked up, sitting next to her.

"And she's so much more than that," Kara gushed. "She's a friend. She's a hero. She's . . . she's amazing. Um . . . " She took a deep breath. "Fort Rozz crashed on Earth."

Alura's smile faded. "Fort Rozz was my greatest shame," she lamented, looking at Kara. "The prisoners? They all survived?"
Kara got her hidden meaning. "Astra survived," Kara said. "Non, too."

Alura closed her eyes in pain. "I've thought of her so much," she whispered. "I should've listened to her, but the way she did things was so – "

"Wrong," Kara finished for her.

"Yeah," Alura agreed.

"Her and Non tried to bring terror to Earth for a while, but she changed," Kara said. "Well, she was changing . . . before she died. We gave her Kryptonian burial rites."

Alura sighed, standing up and pacing. "On Argo, we learn from Krypton's mistakes. We look to our past for edification. My mistakes were the biggest of all. I sent so many to suffer at that prison without a second thought."

"You just – " Kara sighed, looking up at her. "You did what you thought was right."

"So did Astra," Alura pointed out. "But I was wrong. It took losing you, losing everything, to learn that." She swallowed nervously. "Can you forgive me?"

"Of course I do," Kara stood up, hugging her. "Of course."

Alura sighed in relief, hugging her back, and Kara rested her head on her shoulder. It felt so good to be able to hug her mother again.

"I noticed this as well," Alura straightened, and Kara looked down, seeing the cord her mother was tracing. "But you keep it hidden under your suit."

"Yeah," Kara smiled brightly; Alura noticed it was far brighter than how she had smiled so far. "Well, I almost never take it off, including when I'm wearing this, so it's a pretty big giveaway."

She adjusted the cord so she could take the arrowhead pendant out from under her suit, and Alura smiled, looking closer. "It's beautiful, Kara," she marveled, carefully reaching out. "May I?"

"Of course," Kara nodded.

Alura smiled, picking the pendant up and examining it. "Did you make this yourself?" she asked.

"No," Kara shook her head, taking a deep breath. "It's from my fiancé."

Alura's head shot up, and her eyes brightened in delight. "Fiancé?" she repeated, smiling widely.

"Yeah," Kara nodded rapidly, giggling at her mother's excitement. "I met him . . . oh, a year and a half ago?" she tried to remember. "But we didn't know each other very well until he asked for my help saving his family and team. Then I needed his help, and that was when we really started falling in love with each other." She swallowed hard. "He's saved me so many times, Mom. He asked me to marry him towards the end of the year."

"I'm happy for you, Kara," Alura smiled, squeezing her hand. "You haven't said his name yet."

Kara blushed; how had she forgotten that? "Oliver," she answered. "Oliver Queen."

"Kara Queen," Alura tested the name, smiling. "I like it."

"Me, too," Kara admitted, blushing even redder. "Um . . . " She fiddled with her hands, then showed her mother the ring she had worn for the trip; considering they wouldn't have been on Earth, she had seen no harm in taking it with her. "He calls me angel," she whispered bashfully, ducking her head.

"He does?" Alura gasped, laughing at Kara's very red face, trying to hide behind her blonde hair. Kara nodded meekly, and Alura smiled, looking at the black gold metal and the gemstones arranged into a heart and angel wings. "Kara, I am so happy for you."

"If I had known what we were coming into, I absolutely would have brought him," Kara brushed her hair behind her ear. "He's a hero like me, but since we thought we were only going to find a meteorite and Mon-El's able to breathe in space, we didn't think it was a good idea for anyone human to come."

Alura nodded in understanding. "No matter what happens at the council meeting, I hope to meet him," she said.

"Of course!" Kara looked at Alura as if she had grown two heads. "Now that I know you're alive, I want you at the wedding!"

Alura smiled widely. "And I can meet this family of yours, too."

"Yes!" Kara laughed. "Yes, please! Oh, and there's so many more for me to tell you about!"

Alura nodded, sitting down across from Kara and listening to her daughter launch into tales.

***

Mon-El crossed the bridge back to the marketplace, his and Kara's cloaks under his arm. He saw the boy with breathing problems again, then took a deep breath and rounded the kiosk. "Excuse me," he politely greeted the blonde woman folding clothes. "My friend and I were in trouble earlier, and we needed to borrow these so we could, uh . . . " He looked down at his suit. "Fit in."

"You mean you needed a disguise," the woman smiled, and when Mon-El nodded, she explained. "The daughter of the great House of El back from the dead. That's all anyone could talk about today."

Mon-El couldn't help but chuckle. Oliver was an important figure in Star City as its mayor, and Kara was important on Krypton as the daughter of a great house. Oliver's gonna get a kick out of that. "I'm afraid I don't have any money to pay you for these," he began.

"Oh, keep them," the blonde woman held up her hands. "It's a gift. It's my honor."

Mon-El nodded thoughtfully, then made a decision. "Well, perhaps I can give you a gift in return." He nodded past her. "Your son, he has Thalonite lung?"

"Yes," the woman nodded, turning. "Val?" The boy put his toy down and walked over. "Krypton eradicated the disease when I was still a child, but much was lost," she explained, putting an arm around her son when he joined them. "This is Val."

"Hey, Val," Mon-El crouched down, smiling. "I'm Mon-El." He looked around, then lowered his voice slightly. "You may not believe this, but I'm actually from the future." Val's eyes lit up, and Mon-El plucked a device from his utility belt, one he had recovered from an extremely grateful Sam Armand before they had left Star City last time. "So is this," he held it up. "This is called a . . . " He trailed off. "You know what? It doesn't matter what it's called. What matters is that a really, really smart friend of mine? He made it. His name is Brainy, so it's gotta work, right?" Val giggled, and Mon-El smiled; the boy's emotions were infectious. "Can I see your arm for a second?"

Val looked up at his mother, and she nodded, looking curious. "Yeah."

Val held out his arm, and Mon-El supported it with one hand. "It's a built-in size," he explained, pressing the device against his forearm. "It's a vaccine and booster." He smiled when it beeped. "It'll automatically detect hostile cells and deploy antibodies. He should wear it for a week. And then . . . " He carefully reached up and lowered the breathing device Val was using for his nose. "Maybe you can find someone else who needs it and give it to them." Val inhaled deeply without a rasp, then blinked and looked up at his mother with a wide smile. "See?" Mon-El grinned.

She gasped, leaning down and looking at Val. "It's a miracle!" she grinned, hugging him tightly.

Mon-El watched with a happy smile, then turned and walked back towards the El residence. Even in a Kryptonian city, he could still be a hero in some way.

***

"Convince me otherwise."

Max looked up from checking his company's records when he heard Lena abruptly speak across from him at her desk. "I'm sorry?" he asked.

Lena took a deep breath, walking over with a tablet. "It's a last resort if Kara doesn't come back in time," she answered.

Max looked at what she had, and his eyebrows shot up. "Flooding her system with Kryptonite?" he asked in shock.

"It would work," Lena nodded, swallowing hard. "But she would OD, and Sam would die."

"Sam or the world," Max mumbled, rubbing his temples. "God."

"I want to believe Kara will come back in time, but if she doesn't . . . " Lena trailed off.

Max sighed. "So I'll be the devil's advocate here, because God only knows how many times I've been the devil." He leaned forward. "What would Sam want you to do?"

"She wanted me to heal her," Lena said hopelessly.

"You didn't hear me," Max shook his head. "What would Sam want you to do now with the choice that you're presented with?"

"She'd choose Ruby over anything," Lena answered immediately, and she swallowed hard, realizing what she just said. "Even her own life. She'd want me to protect her daughter."

Max smiled sadly. "Then let's hope Kara gets back before you have to put that answer to work."

***

For those of you who wanted Oliver to go with Kara instead, this hopefully explains why. Because of the Harun-El interference, there was absolutely nothing to suggest the meteorite had Argo City on it. It would have been a "go out into an abandoned, lifeless part of space and scrape off some rock" mission, and Kara and Mon-El knew what best to look for, not to mention Mon-El's Legion ring allows him to breathe in space while humans (without the ring) can't.

Don't worry, you'll get Oliver meeting the family soon. ;)