An Ocean of Fire- Supercorp AU

8- Midnight Blue

The door to her wing groaned open quietly, and Kara shut it as gently as she could behind her. She tilted her head to the side and stilled, listening for Lena's heartbeat. She found it thumping in a slow, even rhythm.

So the Princess sleeps. Good.

Kara padded past the doors to the two bedrooms silently, entering her own at the end of the hall, shutting herself off from the world.

She turned a small brass knob beside the door and the natural gas lamps lit the room with a soft glow. She tugged off her shirt and tossed it in the general direction of her closet, pouring herself another small drink from her own bar before sitting heavily down into a chair before her fireplace. A well-placed shot from her eyes had it roaring before her. She groaned as she tugged off her boots, finally feeling herself relax for the first time in weeks.

She sank back into the cushions and sipped her drink slowly, feeling the warmth course its way through her body. She stared down into the fire as it settled her, her mind turning over the myriad of things that had happened in such a short span of time.

The drink swirled slowly in the bottom of her glass.

What had started as a simple reconnaissance mission – based on reports that the Luthorians had been amassing new kryptonite weapons – had turned badly, very quickly. She closed her eyes as the memories of it raced through her.

She had been flying low and slow over the treeline along the Luthorian border, barely paying attention. She wasn't over dangerous territory yet, and these sections of the forest were hardly ever patrolled.

So she was shocked when the whistling arrow sank into the right side of her chest.

Pain erupted across her eyes, and she barely had time to scream before it tripled. Spikes on the arrow end clicked out ominously as she realized the arrow was tied to a rope.

It went taught and the spikes sank into her back as her attackers began hauling her down to the ground.

She gritted her teeth in furious anger and blinding pain, grappling with the air, the rope, anything, trying to break their hold – but the kryptonite-tipped arrow was slowly draining her energy, her resolve, and the white-hot pain in her back and chest were causing the edges of her vision to fade.

By the time she was below the tree line, she barely had the ability to swing her fists. Kryptonite-laced ropes snaked around her ankles and torso and yanked her to the ground. She struggled and tried to scream, but there were just too many of them.

Everything went black after that.

By the time she woke up again, she was chained in the dungeon. The arrow had been removed, the tear allowed to heal, before she was placed in the manacles.

Likely Lex trying to keep her alive as long as possible. By her best estimations, she had been down there for two weeks before Lena came.

Angry tears slipped down her cheeks, and she let them fall.

Alex had insisted that the intelligence sounded suspect, but she had refused to listen. When the knight captain rejected the mission, Kara stole away just as the sun set, intent on making the trip overnight and returning before dawn with confirmation or denial of the claims.

She had, instead, flown directly into a trap. Once more, her arrogance had the best of her.

Kara drained her glass and set it down gently on the table beside her, rising to her feet and stripping off the rest of her clothing.

She stepped into her own bathroom and turned on the shower, allowing the gloriously hot water to pound across her back and shoulders. She took her time, washing away all traces of dirt, dust, tears, and blood from her body. She stayed there until the water ran cold.