Supergirl

by Jo Whittemore

  Switching to a strictly digital format (as is the mayor’s wont) favors the well-to-do who can afford e-readers over the lower class who can’t. While some devices will be made available to the public, they won’t be enough to accommodate all, and we return to the Middle Ages, where knowledge is a privilege, not a right. Well done, Mayor. Here’s hoping the voters still have enough intelligence to skip your name on the ballot come election time.

  Kara gritted her teeth. Snapper had set her up for failure from the beginning! He’d trashed the mayor, knowing the man would never want to talk to CatCo again, and then assigned Kara the interview, leaving out how difficult he’d made her task.

  But Kara had been in plenty of difficult situations and wasn’t about to let this one stop her. It was time for another visit to City Hall.

  “Can you e-mail that article to me?” she asked Vicki, providing her e-mail address.

  “You got it,” said Vicki. “Any other teeny-tiny favors?” she asked with a smirk.

  “I’m all done,” Kara said, crossing her heart. “Have fun at your new job, OK?” She hugged Vicki. “And stay out of trouble.”

  Vicki hugged her back. “We’re reporters, Kara. We live for trouble.”

  Kara smiled to herself. She supposed the same was true of superheroes.

  It was a much more confident Kara Danvers who strode up the steps of City Hall.

  Once again, Ms. Binder the information clerk greeted her with a cheery smile. “Welcome to City Hall! How can I help you?”

  Kara studied her for a moment, listening to the woman’s words. I probably can’t help you, but it’s polite to ask.

  Ms. Binder posed as someone official, but no matter what Kara said or did, the clerk had no real power.

  Good.

  “The mayor’s office is on the second floor, right?” Kara pointed above them.

  Ms. Binder’s smile didn’t slip an inch. “You’ll need an appointment.”

  “Not to see his assistant,” said Kara, striding toward the elevator.

  “Miss?” The clerk’s voice lost its cheer as Kara pressed the up button. “Miss, you can’t—”

  The elevator dinged and the doors opened. With a defiant glance at Ms. Binder, Kara stepped inside.

  “Have a lovely day,” she said, waving as the doors closed.

  She smiled at her reflection in the elevator’s brass panel as she pressed the button for the second floor. One gatekeeper down, one to go, she thought.

  Kara steeled herself as the elevator doors opened again. She followed signs that led to an open rotunda outfitted with a massive mahogany desk. Behind the desk sat a young woman who looked annoyed to be alive. The nameplate on her desk read COURTNEY KEVALIER.

  “Can I help you?” she asked Kara without a hint of a smile.

  “I’d like to speak with the mayor,” said Kara.

  Courtney’s desk phone rang, and she held up a finger while she answered it. “Mayor Lowell’s office.” She frowned. “Yes, I know there’s a young woman on her way to see me. I’m looking at her now. Why did you even let her upstairs?”

  Kara tried to focus on Courtney’s words without being annoyed that they were about her.

  Unlike Ms. Binder, there was authority in the assistant’s voice, and no sense of self-importance. There was, however, concern. But not for herself.

  “What would have happened if she’d made it to the mayor?” Courtney barked into the phone. “Don’t let it happen again if you want to keep your job!” She hung up and returned her attention to Kara. “Why are you here?”

  “To interview the mayor,” Kara said. “My boss—”

  “Oh, God.” Courtney sneered. “You’re with CatCo, aren’t you? Well, the mayor’s busy.” She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms.

  “I don’t believe that,” said Kara. “I’m pretty sure he’s just upset about an op-ed piece Snapper Carr wrote.”

  Courtney’s face was a mask. “The mayor’s busy,” she repeated.

  “Snapper attacked the mayor’s digital library initiative,” Kara continued. “And if I’m not mistaken, that’s pretty important to Mayor Lowell.” She chuckled. “I mean, it even made the City Hall calendar.”

  Courtney picked up the handset of her phone. “Would you like security to show you out, or can you find the exit on your own?” Her scowl was one of annoyance, but Kara caught the protectiveness in her voice.

  This woman would do anything for the mayor.

  Kara clasped her hands behind her back. “You know, Ms. Kevalier, silence can be more dangerous than the truth. If the mayor refuses to speak to a member of the press, people might think he’s hiding something.”

  Courtney paused with her fingers over the keypad of her phone. “So that’s your play? Threatening the mayor?”

  Kara shook her head. “I’m not threatening. I’m telling you what will happen. My boss wants me to interview Mayor Lowell, and I have no problem filling a half-page space in CatCo magazine with the words ‘Mayor Lowell declined to comment.’”

  The mayor’s assistant gripped the handset so tightly her knuckles whitened. After a moment, she returned the handset to its cradle and reached for her computer mouse.

  A few clicks later, she cleared her throat and asked, “Would Thursday at one o’clock be OK?”

  “That would be great,” said Kara, making a note in her phone. “I will see you—and the mayor—then.”

  “Looking forward to it,” said Courtney without a hint of enthusiasm.

  Kara nodded and walked briskly away before the mayor’s assistant could change her mind and call security.

  When Kara reached the ground floor, she heard a sobbing hiccup that made her slow her steps and glance to the side.

  At the information desk, Ms. Binder was wiping her eyes and shuffling the same stack of papers over and over.

  Kara chewed her lip and approached the desk. “Ms. Binder?”

  The information clerk blinked back tears and pasted on her perfect smile. “How can I help you?”

  Kara rubbed her hands together. “I’m sorry I got you in trouble. I really needed to see the mayor.”

  Ms. Binder shook her head. “You were just doing your job. I should be doing mine better.”

  “Oh, no!” Kara reached out to the woman. “Please don’t think that. I’m sure nobody could do this job better. I’m just . . . really desperate to impress my boss,” she confessed.

  Ms. Binder let out a weak laugh. “Oh, I’ve been there.”

  “Anyway, I’m sorry again. I hope you have a lovely day.” Kara tapped the desk with her index finger. “I do mean that.”

  The clerk smiled at her, and this time it was genuine. “You, too, hon.”

  Kara resumed her stride but didn’t walk as tall anymore.

  She’d finally set up an interview with the mayor, but for some reason, it didn’t feel like a victory at all.

  13

  Alex had never felt more victorious. She and Dr. Wanabi were looking at a microscope slide they’d magnified and projected onto the wall. The slide contained red blood cells interspersed with scarlet-colored crystals of orichalcum. An hour earlier, white blood cells had been barraging the crystals, and the crystals had been twice the size.

  “The white blood cells have finally stopped attacking the orichalcum,” said Dr. Wanabi. “I can feel the difference in my body.” He rubbed his arm where Alex had drawn blood.

  Since Dr. Wanabi had been responsible for creating the supercitizens, he agreed to be the guinea pig for finding the antidote.

  “It looks like the orichalcum in your blood is getting smaller, too,” said Alex. “Did our antidote do that?”

  Dr. Wanabi shook his head. “I used my enhanced mental powers to work out this formula, which used up a large portion of the orichalcum in my system.”

  “Huh.” Alex rubbed her chin. “So the orichalcum will leave people’s bodies once they’ve maxed out their powers. I mean, if it doesn’t kill them first.”

&
nbsp; “Well, that’s what our antidote is for,” Dr. Wanabi reminded her. “To keep the supercitizens’ immune systems from overreacting to the orichalcum.”

  “James will be happy to hear that,” spoke a voice from the doorway. “Kara will not.”

  Alex and Dr. Wanabi turned around. Mon-El was leaning against the door frame, hands in his pockets and a troubled expression on his face.

  Alex gave him a small smile. “She’ll come around. Do you know if she and James got the broadcast out?”

  Mon-El nodded. “It aired twenty minutes ago, and Winn’s already been slammed with phone calls.”

  Alex’s smile widened. “Even more good news!” She clapped Dr. Wanabi on the shoulder. “If you need me, I’ll be in the control room,” she said, hurrying into the hall. “Mon-El, you coming?”

  “Uh . . . should someone stay with him?” asked Mon-El, hitching a thumb in Dr. Wanabi’s direction.

  “We used the last of our orichalcum to make the antidote,” Alex said in a soft voice. “And I’m pretty sure his former friends would rather kill him than take him back. He’ll be fine.”

  She cleared her throat as she approached Winn’s computer, where he was talking with J’onn. “We’ve found a way to stop the side effects of the orichalcum, and it looks like it dissolves with use. What’s your good news?” She pointed to Winn and J’onn.

  “We don’t have any yet,” said J’onn.

  Alex’s eyebrows lifted. “What? But Mon-El just told me you got a ton of calls.”

  “Yeah.” Winn scoffed and handed her a stack of papers. “Lots of winners.”

  Alex shuffled through the tips they’d received. “Supercitizen wants to help, supercitizen wants to help, man saw a bear with a picnic basket . . . ha ha ha.” She held up a piece of paper. “What about this one? A woman saw a little girl walk into a mirror.”

  Winn blew a raspberry and made a thumbs-down gesture. “It wasn’t a mirror; it was a doorway. The little girl had a twin sister, and they were dressed alike because they have cruel parents.”

  Alex snickered and kept reading the papers. “Man, there are a lot of supercitizens who want to help fight the bad guys once we find them.”

  “It’s too bad none can actually lead us to them,” said J’onn.

  Alex tossed the papers on Winn’s desk. “I take it your search of hospitals and clinics didn’t turn anything up?”

  “I’m pretty sure the evil supercitizens have someone with healing powers,” said Winn. “There were at least two nurses living at Shady Oaks.”

  Alex sighed. “Well, it’s still early. Someone’s bound to spot something.”

  She felt her phone vibrate against her hip, and when she pulled it out, Maggie’s name was on the screen.

  “Oh no, I was supposed to meet Maggie for coffee!” She answered the phone and walked off the control room floor. “Hey, sweetie! I am so sorry, but we’re still trying to track down those supercitizens who took the orichalcum.”

  “I thought something like that might have happened,” said Maggie. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

  “Only if you have a police dog trained to sniff out Atlantean metal,” Alex said wryly. “We have no idea where these people are hiding.”

  “Hmm. Have you factored in distance decay?” Maggie asked.

  “Uh . . . since I have no idea what that is, I’m going to say no,” said Alex.

  Maggie laughed. “The farther you get from something, the less likely you are to interact with it,” she explained. “For cops, it means people don’t tend to commit crimes far from home—”

  “They commit them closer to home,” Alex finished for her.

  “Bingo,” said Maggie.

  “Sweetie, you are the best. When I’m done here, I’m bringing you the biggest slice of tiramisu you’ve ever seen.” Alex hurried back to the control room.

  Maggie laughed again. “Just remember this the next time NCPD needs a favor. But I will also take the tiramisu.”

  Alex ended the call and gripped the back of Winn’s chair. “Can you map all the crimes committed since we quarantined Shady Oaks yesterday afternoon?”

  “Absolutely,” he said, pressing each key with a flourish.

  “Something on your mind, Agent Danvers?” asked J’onn.

  Alex watched the video wall as recent crimes began to appear on a map of National City. “Maggie thinks the evil supercitizens will be committing crimes close to their hideout. If we can find an area with an increase in crime since yesterday morning—”

  “We can find our supercitizens,” said J’onn. He turned his attention to the video wall, too.

  “Looks like we’ve got a hot zone,” said Winn. “Near the Theater District.”

  Alex shook her head. “There are hundreds of places to hide there.”

  Mon-El bent over Winn’s computer. “Can you check the rooftops of the buildings?”

  “Uh, sure,” he said, zooming in on aerial footage. “What am I looking for?”

  “Bee Breather had to keep his pets somewhere,” said Mon-El. “They must have a hive.”

  “Clever.” Winn pointed at him and grinned. “And I can do one better. Every warm-blooded creature puts off a heat signature, right?”

  Mon-El gave him a dubious look. “You’re going to look for a bee’s heat signature?”

  “I’m going to look for a cluster of them, since bees swarm in, well, swarms,” said Winn. He tapped a few keys and gestured to the video wall. “And there we have it.”

  An aerial camera focused on the roof of a building that was accented with concrete angels on each corner. At the roof’s center sat a large wooden beekeeper’s box.

  “The Imperial Theater,” said J’onn.

  “We’ve got ’em!” Alex shook her fist triumphantly. “Winn, assemble a—”

  J’onn held up a hand. “Let’s not rush into this situation half-cocked, Agent Danvers. We don’t know what kind—or even how many—supercitizens we’re up against.”

  Winn changed his view of the building. “I count at least fifteen human heat signatures.”

  “And who knows if there are more roaming the streets,” pointed out Mon-El.

  Alex rubbed her forehead. “You’re right. OK, what’s our plan, then?” she asked J’onn.

  “That, I haven’t figured out yet,” he admitted.

  There was a whooshing sound behind them, and Kara appeared, phone pressed to one ear and a scowl on her face.

  “She took it the wrong way!” Kara exclaimed into the mouthpiece. “Do I look like the kind of person who threatens people?” She held the phone away from her ear and stared at it in shock. “Well, you know what you look like?” Kara asked the person on the other end. “You . . . look like a guy who’s about to be proven wrong!” She stamped her foot.

  Alex shook her head. Snapper.

  Kara listened to her boss speak for a moment, pressing her lips into a tighter and tighter line. “I will not apologize to Courtney Kevalier. I played her game to get the interview, and she’s just upset she lost.” Kara shook her head. “I won’t do it. No, I won’t. No, I—” Kara stared at her phone again and growled. “Yeah, you better hang up!”

  “Hey, honey. How was work?” Mon-El intoned.

  Alex sucked in her breath. Mon-El was already on Kara’s bad list, so it probably wasn’t a great idea to tease her.

  Apparently, however, Kara was more upset at Snapper than at her boyfriend.

  “Snapper is unbelievable,” she told Mon-El. “Do you know why Mayor Lowell canceled my interview? Because Snapper, who arranged that interview by the way, trash-talked him. Snapper set me up to fail!”

  Mon-El frowned. “Maybe Supergirl could talk to the mayor.”

  Kara shook her head. “I don’t want to play that card. Besides, I managed to get the interview.”

  “That’s great!” said Alex. “So why all the yelling?”

  Kara rolled her eyes. “Because I just lost the interview. Apparently, Mayor Lowell’s assista
nt told him I was dismissive and threatening and bullied my way into an interview.”

  J’onn crossed his arms. “What? That doesn’t sound like you.”

  “No, it doesn’t.” Alex put an arm around Kara. “Dismissive? My little sister would never blow someone off.”

  “Exactly,” said Kara. She cleared her throat. “Except I kind of did.”

  “What?” Alex glanced at her sister.

  “I apologized after!” said Kara.

  “So you might have been dismissive. But threatening?” Mon-El scoffed. “I’m sure you didn’t say, ‘If the mayor doesn’t talk to me, it’ll hurt his career.’” He chuckled, but stopped at the guilty expression on Kara’s face. “Did you?”

  She fiddled with her glasses. “Not in those exact words . . .” She grimaced and dropped into a chair. “Aww, man! I did threaten and bully.”

  Alex squeezed her shoulder. “I’m sure it’s not that bad.”

  Kara gave her sister a look of disbelief. “The mayor called my boss, Alex.”

  “But you didn’t get fired.” Alex smiled hopefully.

  Kara slumped in the chair. “How are things going here? Did you come up with an antidote?”

  “Eh,” said Alex, tilting her hand from side to side. “We can stop people’s immune systems from attacking the orichalcum, but it won’t be out of their bodies until they fully use it.”

  “That’s . . .” Kara squinted. “Would that be considered good news? I mean, you get to keep your new power.” She gestured at Mon-El, who frowned.

  “I told you, I wasn’t asking for myself,” he said. “Since it doesn’t really matter anymore, I might as well tell you. I was asking for James.”

  “James?” Kara bowed her head and chuckled ruefully. “Mon-El, I’m sorry. I misunderstood.” She glanced up at him, her eyebrows slanted in sadness. “I’m really . . .” The rest of the sentence caught in her throat, and she got up without another word.

  “Kara.” Alex reached for her, but Kara raised her hands defensively and wriggled past.

  “I’m gonna check on Pryll,” she said.

  She ducked her head again and made a beeline for the prison cells.

  “Kara, wait.” Mon-El chased after her, leaving Alex to exchange awkward glances with Winn and J’onn.