The escaped creature.
It turned—and Kara instantly recognized it. Dragon-like, with four enormous wings and glowing eyes.
Her heart sank.
"A War Kite…" she breathed.
A creature from Krypton—bred for battle. Engineered to be fast, ruthless, and nearly unstoppable. But how was it here? On Earth?
Below, soldiers were already trying to recontain it, shouting orders and firing stun weapons. But the War Kite was tearing through them, unpredictable and unstable—clearly altered. Experimented on.
This wasn't her fight. She had the antidote. She had to get it back to Jacob. She had to find a way to return this baby to whoever was looking for it.
She took a breath, turned, and launched upward.
But just before she could gain altitude, the War Kite's eyes locked onto her.
It paused—then let out a mechanical shriek.
Kara didn't wait to see what it would do next.
She bolted toward the main shaft—but instead of taking the elevator, she shot up the emergency stairwell, the small alien tight in her arms.
The War Kite was following.
And she could feel it.
Unstable. Dangerous.
And getting closer.
Kara thought to herself, Good thing this one isn't as big as the ones back on Krypton.
If it were, she'd already be in serious trouble.
It was still huge—just a bit larger than a horse—but that only made things worse in some ways. The stairwell was wide enough for it to follow. And it did.
Its wings folded tight as it shot upward through the shaft, shrieking in pursuit.
Kara flew hard, the baby alien clutched tightly in her arms, glancing at the glowing floor numbers as they raced past.
-20… -19… -18…
The War Kite was fast—faster than anything that size should be—but she pushed harder, her breath tight, the air around her vibrating with its howls.
-10… -5… -2…
Finally—1. The main floor.
She burst through the stairwell door and landed hard. There it was—the metal entrance to Area 51, the same one they'd come through when this whole mission started.
But Janet and Jake were still there—frantically trying to override the lock panel.
"It's not opening!" Janet hissed, fingers flying across the screen. "Come on, come on—"
Kara glanced back.
The War Kite was already there.
Its wings scraped along the walls, eyes burning, its breath thick and distorted like a storm trying to scream.
Without hesitation, Kara turned and unleashed her freezing breath.
A blast of supercooled air slammed into the creature, slowing it just enough—but not stopping it. Ice crawled over its body, but cracked just as quickly under its shifting, unstable form.
Far from enough.
Janet let out a gasp as the lock finally clicked. The door slid open.
"In! Now!" Kara shouted, already rushing forward.
They dove through, and Kara followed—slamming the heavy metal door behind them.
CLANG!
The whole wall shook as the War Kite collided with it a split-second later.
Kara didn't stop—she turned back to the door and blasted it with one final freeze breath, icing over the edges to reinforce the seal.
The pounding came again. Harder.
But for now—it would hold.
She exhaled, backing away from the sealed door, heart still pounding. "Let's go."
Even though Kara was a powerful Kryptonian, she had never truly trained to fight stronger opponents. Sure, she could defeat weaker threats—humans, small-time aliens—but the War Kite was something else entirely. And holding a baby alien in her arms, fighting wasn't even an option.
Escape was the only choice.
"This way," Jake called, already sprinting toward the ladder in the far corner of the tunnel. The hatch above glinted with sunlight—freedom just a few feet away.
Janet climbed first. Jake followed right behind.
No more questions. They climbed fast, emerging from the hatch into the blinding daylight of the desert. They had been inside Area 51 all night—it was morning now.
The air was dry and still. No military trucks. No guards.
"Let's go…" Kara said, leading the way.
They crossed the open sands quickly, hearts still pounding—until suddenly, something dropped from the sky, landing hard in front of them.
Kara's eyes narrowed.
A green glow pulsed through the settling dust. A man stepped forward, floating slightly above the ground—encased in a glowing emerald aura, the Green Lantern insignia burning on his chest.
Guy Gardner. Member of Justice Gang—except at that time, it wasn't fully formed yet.
"Kryptonian," he said, voice amplified and sharp. "Put the creature down. Hands where I can see them."
Kara instinctively stepped back, shielding the red alien in her arms.
"I don't want a fight," she said, calm but tense.
"Not what I heard," Guy Gardner snapped, already raising his ring-hand. "You broke into a military installation, attacked multiple soldiers, and stole classified biotech. You're not walking away."
"What—?" Janet started. "No, that's not what happened—"
But Guy cut her off, his voice firm. "Stand back, civilians. This doesn't concern you."
A green construct snapped to life—like a massive clamp, glowing with hard-light energy, aimed directly at Kara.
Kara narrowed her eyes. "Come on, I don't have time for this. I need to save my friend. He's sick."
Guy scoffed. "You expect me to buy that? After everything you did? No. Stand down."
Kara turned to Janet and Jake, eyes urgent. "Take the alien—go. Get as far from here as you can."
Jake stepped forward, and Kara carefully placed the small, groaning creature into his arms. He stuffed it gently into his bag, wrapping it in his jacket as best he could.
"Oh, this thing is really gross…" Jake muttered under his breath.
Janet didn't even look back. "Let's go," she said, already moving.
Kara turned back toward the Green Lantern, already floating forward with his ring glowing hot. The tension crackled.
Kara shot forward like a bullet, fist raised. Guy barely had time to reinforce his shield before she crashed into him, the force of her momentum sending them both flying across the desert floor. Dust exploded around them.
Guy skidded to a stop mid-air, catching himself with a green platform beneath his boots. His ring flared.
"You wanna go full Kryptonian? Fine."
A massive spiked mace hurtled toward her. She spun, dodged it, and countered with a punch that rocked his shield.
Guy snarled. "Alright, gloves off, lady!"
He summoned a barrage of wild shapes—buzzsaws, wrecking balls, even a literal green middle finger aimed at her with a smirk.
Kara rolled her eyes. "Really?"
She zipped past it, blasted him with heat vision, then caught him with a kick that sent him spiraling. For a second, it looked like she had the upper hand.
But then—
Guy grinned.
"See, this is where rookies blow it."
The ring flashed, and a cage snapped around her mid-dash, locking her in glowing green bars. She slammed into them, stunned.
WHAM. A construct hammer knocked her to the ground.
She hit hard, coughing, dazed. Sand burst around her.
"You fight like someone who's used to winning," Guy said, floating down over her. "You're strong… but strength isn't the only thing that matters." He paused, lowering toward her. "It's about how we fight."
He pointed his ring. A pulse of energy shot out—tightening the cage, draining her.
Kara struggled, breath short. "I wasn't… trying to hurt you."
"Too bad." He leaned closer. "Because I was."
The green cage closed in, glowing brighter as its constructs constricted around her. Kara grit her teeth, trying to push back—but her strength was slipping fast.
Then—
WHAM! A massive middle finger construct rose from beneath her, flipping up with brutal force.
CRACK! She was launched upward, stunned.
Midair, Guy was already waiting—his ring glowing.
He summoned a giant green fist.
BOOM.
The punch slammed into her chest like a meteor. The sky spun.
Kara hit the ground hard, rolling across the sand in a heap. She didn't move.
Guy hovered above, lowering slowly, ring still glowing.
"Hmm," he muttered. "Not so tough now."
Kara groaned, trying to rise—but her limbs barely responded. Sand clung to her skin. Blood on her lip. She blinked up at the sun.
Too slow.
Guy Gardner didn't wait.
THWUMP! Another green fist crashed down.
Then another.
WHAM. CRACK. THUD.
One after another—construct fists rained down in brutal precision, slamming her back into the earth. She tried to shield herself, but her arms were too slow. Her breath caught. A pained gasp.
"Stay down!" Guy shouted from above, voice sharp, unrelenting.
But Kara didn't. Couldn't.
BOOM.
The final punch landed with a sickening thud, the impact sending dust flying in all directions. Kara's body went limp in the crater she'd made, eyes fluttering closed.
She didn't get up.