Rain

Lena had always loved the rain. The smell of the freshly cleansed earth, the soft steady rhythm of water droplets against the window pane. Curling up on the porch with an oversized sweater, a hot chocolate, and a good book; as the gentle rhythm of the rain lulled her into a sense of calm, security. She loved watching the rain. She was particularly fond of thunderstorms.

She remembered as a child, Lex sneaking into her room in the middle of the night to wake her; in the event of a storm. The two would sit at her bedroom window; whispering excitedly so as not to wake Lillian, and simply watch the lightning dance across the sky, just beyond the realm of their oversized-backyard.

Those were much simpler times, before her beloved brother had descended into madness. Before he had tried to kill her. Looking back, it was so hard to see sometimes just how he had become like this. How her big brother; that same little boy who wore dorky Batman pyjamas to bed every night when he was 7, was the same person that had hired a hitmen to kill her only a few months ago. Things had changed. They had grown up; and though her brother had since been incarcerated, she could never quite give up her love of watching the rain.

A soft rumble could be heard somewhere off in the distance. Heavy rain continued to fall from the sky, as the water droplets bounced harmlessly off the glass walls of the L-Corp building. Lena looked up briefly when the power began to flicker, but it held out.

It rarely rained here. National City had garnered somewhat of a reputation for its constant sunshine; and she supposed that was one of the reasons Supergirl must love it here. The prolonged exposure to Earths yellow sun would charge her Kryptonian cells, and leave her feeling refreshed all the time. She wondered if that was how Kara always managed to be in her constant state of Sunny-Danvers bubbly cheer. Yes, rain was rare; but that didn't mean they were immune to the occasional spell such as this.

She glanced at the clock hanging on her wall, from where she sat at her office desk. She had sent the remainder of her employees home over an hour ago. It was late, but that was nothing new. She always worked late.

The first real flash of lightning illuminated the sky outside, and she waited in anticipation for the inevitable crack of thunder that was sure to follow.

CRASH!!

3 things happened in sequence.

One: There was a crash of lightning, knocking out the power and shrouding the room in complete darkness.

Two: There was a loud thud from across the room; that sounded kin to that of a door being slammed shut, and an accompanying gust of wind; as if someone had suddenly opened a window.

And three: Something was touching her.

Or more like had plowed into her, as the force of the impact had almost knocked her over. There was now a noticeable weight pressed firmly against her back. Something had wrapped itself securely around her midsection, and then again around her neck; squeezing tightly with a vice like grip. There was something pressed into the crook of her neck that felt cold and wet, and was accompanied by an inescapable dripping sound that echoed throughout the room. She felt a sudden chill.

Knowing who she was, she automatically assumed the worst. This wouldn't be the first time someone had tried to kill her; or even the second or sixth. The eminent attempts on her life had become predictable; to the point she was no longer surprised when hitmen showed up at her door. It would almost be easier to start scheduling her Daily Death Threats into her day planner just to save time. She was sure she would have really appreciated it after her 10:00 meeting at Edge Industries last Tuesday.

No, the attempts on her life were nothing new. The big question was: What was it this time?

Alien? That was a possibility. It was no secret that she was the sister of the worlds most notorious alien hater; and since President Marsdin invoked her Alien Amnesty act, there was certainly no shortage of alien immigrants in the country. Not to mention the Daxamites in particular; who held a hearty grudge against her for her recent construction of the lead bomb that drove away Rhea's invasion. But she was fairly certain the atmosphere in its present lead-infested state would ward off all potential Daxamite threats; knowing the severity of the lead allergy found in their kind. That said, that ruled out only one of the several hundred species of Aliens living in National City alone.