Heroes vs Aliens: Deleted and Alternate Scenes

==Plot==
I enjoyed the CW's Heroes vs. Aliens crossover event immensely, but I feel the narrative could have been filled out or better told at certain points. This story is a collection of deleted and alternate scenes to address those points. It's also less of an "Arrow x Supergirl" crossover and more of an "Arrowverse x Supergirl" crossover. Rated K-plus for occasional language.
While it wasn't surprising that the Supergirl part of the Heroes vs. Aliens event was mostly standalone, it was pretty disappointing that there was literally under 60 seconds of total crossover footage. This chapter serves to expand that footage a little bit, as well as tie into some of the details of the Supergirl episode so that the crossover at least has a ripple effect for Kara and company. It also explains why Kara seemingly forgot she had an alien-killing virus on her Earth the whole freaking time.
As always, characters belong to DC Comics and the CW, and this is written purely for fun. Thanks for reading. I appreciate it.
...
==Transcript==
[Deleted scene, Kara's apartment, after Barry and Cisco make the jump to Earth-38 (Supergirl 2x08, "Medusa")]
"What're we up against?" Kara asked immediately.
"Wait," Barry blinked. He had expected at least a little more explanation would be needed before Kara would agree to help a whole other universe fight an alien war, but she seemed to be volunteering on the spot. "You don't even know what I'm going to ask," he said, nonplussed.
"Doesn't matter. You're my friend and you came all this way, so I'll help you."
Cisco let out a small, appreciative laugh. "I'm starting to see what's so 'super' about her."
Barry nodded in agreement as he took out and unfolded a glossy printed picture from his pocket, a screenshot taken from a grainy, black-and-white movie. The subject was a sideways shot of an emaciated monster. Bald head. Wrinkled, diseased-looking skin. A mouth full of wickedly sharp teeth. Evil, shining black eyes.
A Dominator.
"This," Barry said, as he handed her the photo. "This is what we're up against."
Kara's eyes widened as she took it from him, her hand trembling just the slightest bit. "Oh, that's not good," she muttered as she scanned the photo, apparently trying to convince herself her eyes were deceiving her.
"Do you recognize it?" Barry asked. "Our Earth doesn't have aliens, or at least, none that we know of. We're calling them the Dominators."
"Yeah," Kara replied worriedly. "Yeah, Barry. I recognize it. There's actually a Kryptonian name for them but," she paused, looking up and tilting her head from side to side, seeming to debate the translation in her head, "I'd say 'Dominators' is a reasonable English term."
"What do you know about them?" Cisco asked. "The Dominators apparently killed a bunch of people on our Earth sixty-plus years ago, and now they're back and we're fighting them blind."
"Not much, unfortunately," Kara replied. "Most of what I have are stories about them eating Kryptonian children at night and stuff like that. You know, the things parents tell their kids to make them behave. Half of Krypton didn't even believe they existed."
"But you do?"
"Yeah," Kara nodded. "My father didn't want my imagination running away from me, so he sat me down once and explained that the Dominators were real, but that Krypton…Krypton…"
Barry looked at Cisco, but his face was just as confused as his. Neither of them knew why Kara had just trailed off and gotten a faraway look in her eyes.
"Kara?" Barry asked, tentatively. "What about Krypton?"
"Huh?" Kara started, disoriented. "Oh! Sorry, uh, yeah. My dad told me that the Dominators were real, but that Krypton would always be kept safe. That," she paused again, and Barry could tell she was dealing with some emotions that still weren't clear to him, to the point that she momentarily turned her head away from him and Cisco. "That I would always be kept safe," she finished quietly.
Barry wasn't sure what Kara was currently going through, and his urgency in getting her help in protecting his Earth was warring with his concern for his friend. Luckily, Kara pulled herself together and put on a brave smile. 
"Anyway," she said, a little too brightly to cover her previous lapse, "my dad told me a little bit of what the Dominators are capable of, but they haven't been seen for generations, so your guess is about as good as mine."
He sighed. "I was afraid of that," Barry conceded. "Look Kara, I know it's a lot to ask, but we really have no one like you on our Earth. Is there any chance you'd—"
"Of course I'll come help!" Kara exclaimed. "I said I would, didn't I?"
"Yeah, Barry can be hard of hearing sometimes," Cisco deadpanned humorlessly.
Barry had to resist every urge in his body to wince as he saw Kara's eyes flick uncertainly between the two of them. Apparently Cisco's going to make sure everyone in two universes knows he's pissed with me. Not wanting to give Kara a chance to poke that particular bear, he gave her a relieved smile. "Thank you, Kara, really," he said, gratefully. "Okay, so Cisco can open a portal and—"
"Wait," Kara interrupted, holding up her hand. "We need to go to the DEO first."
"Why? We don't have a lot of time."
"I know," Kara assured him. "We'll be quick, but there might actually be something we can use to fight the Dominators. No promises, but it's worth a shot."
Despite his urgency, Barry figured he should defer to an alien's judgment in this case. "Okay, lead the way."
"Just let me get changed first."
Cisco turned and headed towards the door. "Sure, we'll go wait outside."
"Oh, no need." A whoosh of air passed by both Barry and Cisco, and suddenly Kara was standing in front of them, fists on her hips and "S" emblem emblazoned on her chest. Cisco whistled appreciatively as he checked out the details of her suit.
"My compliments to your tailor," he said, admiringly.
Kara looked at Cisco and gave a small, mischievous smile. "Actually, I think you're going to get along really well with him."
…
"Dude, sweet gloves!"
"Thanks. I see you're a man of good taste."
"What do they do, exactly?"
"Well, basically, they amplify my sensitivity to the molecular stability of the dimension I'm in, allowing me to more easily produce a breach to a different universe."
Winn stared at Cisco in silence for a few seconds before replying, in dead seriousness, "Okay. You need to explain to me how that works. Like, now," he finished, punctuating his excitement by pointing his finger to the ground.
Cisco grinned and put his left arm around Winn's shoulders while extending his right gauntlet forward for him to see. "It would be my pleasure." With that, the two tech nerds wandered away, chatting excitedly.
Barry shook his head in amusement. "You were right," he said to Kara.
Kara laughed. Cisco's excitement over her suit was all the evidence she needed to see that he and Winn were two peas in a pod. "I'm glad Winn has a kindred spirit. Most of his nerd rants are wasted on me."
Barry nodded slowly, clearly showing he knew what that was like. Kara couldn't help noticing there was almost a wistful look in his face as Cisco excitedly showed off every nook and cranny of his gloves to Winn. There had obviously been tension between the two of them back at her apartment, but given the circumstances, she wasn't sure now was the best time to ask.
He must have noticed her looking at him, because he quickly averted his eyes to scan rapidly around the DEO. They were standing at the foot of the stairs from the window in which she had flown them both in. (Kara figured Cadmus had eyes and ears everywhere, and she didn't know how they'd react to the Flash being back in National City, so she didn't let Barry run up the side of the building.) Taking in the floor-to-ceiling glass windows, polished surfaces, and bustling DEO agents, Barry remarked, "I have to say, your last DEO base was cool, but this one's even cooler."
"Thanks. Apparently, this has been here the whole time and nobody decided to tell me until a few months ago," Kara grumbled. "Did I ever tell you a bat bit me in the last one?"
Barry opened his mouth to respond, but Alex interrupted them as she called out from the other side of the room. "Supergirl!"
Kara and Barry turned around to see Alex and Eliza striding towards them, Eliza politely curious, Alex irritated. Before even reaching them, Alex spread her arms out in a "What the hell?" gesture.
"Seriously?!" Alex huffed as she stopped right in front of Kara. She gestured impatiently to Barry and Cisco with her hand. "There are procedures for bringing outsiders into the DEO, Supergirl!"
"Ugggghhhh," Kara groaned, playing the annoyed little sister role to perfection as she threw her head back petulantly. "Alex, it's fine! They won't even be here long, and by 'here,' I mean they literally will not be in this universe long enough to compromise us."
Alex stared. "What does that even mean?"
"Just trust me. They're friends of mine, they know my identity, and they need help."
Alex exhaled angrily through her nose, while behind her, Eliza put a hand to her mouth, amused to see her grown daughters still battling essentially the same arguments as when they were children. After closing her eyes and seemingly counting to ten, Alex relaxed. Slightly. "Fine. What can we do for them?"
"Well, that guy over there with Winn is Cisco Ramon, and this here," Kara said, gesturing to her side, "is Barry Allen."
Alex tilted her head as she extended her hand to shake Barry's. "Barry Allen? Where have I heard that name before?"
"I visited your Earth a little while ago," Barry explained, shaking Alex's hand. "I'm the Flash."
Alex's expression softened. "Oh, right. You're the speedster who helped my sister fight Livewire and Silver Banshee. Apparently you're as fast as she is?"
"Maybe faster. Our last race was inconclusive," Kara interjected. "Barry, this is my sister Alex, and my foster mother, Eliza." Barry turned to smile and shake Eliza's hand. "We don't have much time, so let's go into Alex's lab and I'll try to explain as fast as I can."
…
"So the multiverse is real, Barry and Cisco have powers that enable them to cross over to our Earth, and an alien race called the Dominators is currently attacking them," Alex summed up.
"In a nutshell, yes," Barry confirmed.
"They came here to recruit an alien," Kara added, pointing to herself, "in order to fight aliens, but it occurred to me that maybe we already have the magic bullet for them. Could we reproduce the Medusa virus and use it on the Dominators? If ever there was a violent alien race to unleash it on, this would be it."
"Medusa virus?" Cisco asked.
"Originally, it was a virus designed on Krypton to kill all non-Kryptonians," Alex explained. "Unfortunately, a rogue group called Cadmus got ahold of it, and after bioengineering it to spare humans, they tried to kill all alien life here on Earth."
"Our Earth, anyway," Kara clarified.
"Luckily, their plan was foiled and the virus rendered inert. I'm not saying yet that we're just going to hand over something that dangerous, but in theory we could reproduce the Cadmus formula for you to use on the Dominators."
Barry and Cisco were silent, both thinking hard. "I guess it might work," Barry began. "Except…I'm just not sure. Stupid of me, we should have brought Caitlin too."
Cisco rolled his eyes and got to his feet. "Well, at least one of us thinks things through and plans ahead," he commented snidely. Kara glanced at Barry and shot him a questioning look. His silent reply was as plain as day. Don't ask.
Cisco fiddled with some controls on his right glove with his left hand, holding his right palm face-up. After a few seconds, a light went on in the middle of Cisco's palm and a holographic projection of a computer screen appeared a couple inches above his 
hand. In the screen, Kara could see a brunette woman staring out.
The holographic woman spoke. "Hey Cisco."
"Hey Caitlin."
Kara was shocked and impressed. "Is she on…?"
"Our Earth, yep," Cisco finished proudly. "I fitted the gloves to include some limited communication functions."
"That's so cool," Winn muttered from the corner of the lab, to no one in particular.
"Cisco, what's going on? Do you need something?"
"Yeah, just one sec, Caitlin. Stand by to receive a biochem data transfer. I'll explain in a minute," Cisco said to the floating head. Addressing Alex and Eliza, he continued, "Look, your virus sounds like it might work, but Caitlin's our bioengineering expert. Maybe if you put what you have on the Medusa virus onto an external drive or something, I can send the information to Caitlin, and she can figure out whether it's a good idea."
Alex, looking uncomfortable at the idea of giving information on such a deadly virus to people she didn't know, turned to Kara. "Tell me one more time, Kara. Do you trust them?"
She looked at Cisco, who was silently pleading with his eyes. She looked at Barry, and remembered how he ran right behind her to fight Livewire and Silver Banshee, not really motivated by trading his services for assistance getting back home, but because he simply wanted to help.
Kara nodded. "I do."
Alex sighed. "Fine. Cisco, Winn, get over here. Apparently we need to set up an interdimensional conference call."
…
In surprisingly little time, a workable setup had Winn transmitting data and figures while Eliza explained the nuances of the virus to Caitlin over the connection, which Cisco maintained. Kara stood off to the side, letting the experts hash it out, and soon fell deeply into thoughts that went uninterrupted until she realized Alex was at her side.
"Hey," Kara greeted, snapping out of her trance. "Giving the pros some space?"
"Yeah," Alex agreed. "Too many cooks in the kitchen. A kitchen that, apparently, spans multiple universes," she finished in a dumbfounded sigh.
"Hey, I told you about Barry before."
"I know, but sometimes weirdness has to slap you in the face before it registers."
"Fair enough," Kara chuckled, before lapsing into silence.
"You okay?" Alex asked, nudging her sister with her elbow. "You look like you're in a universe all your own."
Kara shook her head, opened her mouth to explain, then simply sighed. Alex didn't press her and simply waited patiently. Finally, she said, "This whole thing with the Dominators just stirred up some memories." Kara paused to glance at Barry, who seemed lost in his own thoughts in another corner of the lab. "I didn't admit this to Cisco and Barry earlier," she continued, "but as a little girl I was actually really freaked out by the stories of the Dominators."
Alex nodded in understanding. "I don't blame you. That picture doesn't exactly scream, 'We come in peace.'"
"Yeah," Kara agreed. "I used to have nightmares about them. I didn't calm down until my dad sat with me, told me the truth about Dominators, and told me…told me that he would never let anything happen to me. That he would keep Krypton safe, and keep me safe, from threats like the Dominators."
Alex tilted her head back, finally seeming to get where Kara was going. "And you think he was referring to Medusa?"
Kara swallowed and nodded. "This whole time, I felt ashamed of my father for creating a virus that would target all other aliens. How could he make something so destructive?" She sighed again. "But Alex, these Dominators? They're bad aliens. If they had come to Krypton, in force?" she asked, shaking her head. "It's not like Kryptonians have superpowers under a red sun."
Putting an arm around Kara's shoulders, Alex hugged her close. "Well then, now you know. Your dad made that virus to keep his planet safe. To keep his daughter safe," she finished, squeezing her shoulders slightly for emphasis.
Yet another sigh. "I still don't know if that excuses him for making a bio-WMD."
"But what you do know," Alex countered, "is that he was motivated by his love for his family."
Kara turned her head and held Alex's gaze for a moment, then slid down a bit so she could rest her head on her big sister's shoulder, the Danvers sisters' equivalent of "thank you."
…
"Alright," Cisco sighed, shutting off the communications link with Caitlin. "I guess the virus is a no-go."
"Why? What's wrong?" Barry asked.
"As engineered by Cadmus, the virus is harmless to humans," Eliza began, "but according to Caitlin, metahuman physiology on your Earth is just different enough from normal people that the virus might recognize them as 'alien' and be just as deadly."
"We can't tweak the virus again to account for that?" Alex asked.
Cisco shook his head. "Unfortunately, there's still a lot we don't understand about the changes that occur when someone becomes a metahuman. There just isn't enough time."
Kara grimaced and looked apologetically at Barry. "I'm sorry, Barry. I thought this could work."
Barry shook his head. "Our Earth is facing its first-ever alien invasion. We gotta look at every option."
"So what now?" Winn asked.
"Now," Kara replied, "I go with Barry and Cisco back to their Earth, and we deal with the Dominators the old fashioned way." Turning to Alex, she asked, "You and J'onn good to watch over things while I'm gone?"
"Absolutely. Go do what you need to do," Alex assured her.
"I will," Kara said. "Don't be afraid to call Clark if you need anything. I still have so many embarrassing stories I'm holding over his head."
…
As Kara said her quick goodbyes, Barry and Cisco made their way to the outdoor platform onto which Kara had flown the two of them before entering the building. As Cisco got his shades and gloves ready, Kara caught up with them and turned to Barry. "So, what are we working with, exactly? Do you guys have, like, an army of metas?"
Barry tilted his head, considering how to explain. "Sort of. Metas. Vigilantes. A couple of criminals too, actually."
Kara did a double take. "Say what, now?"
"You'll see," Cisco assured her, his gear now in place. "Okay, next stop: Earth-1." With that, he raised his fist in front of him, and soon a swirling blue-and-white vortex of energy appeared in front of them. In a blink, Cisco had disappeared.
Just to be safe, as he was pretty sure she hadn't traveled via breach before, Barry reached over and took Kara's hand. "Might want to hang on," he said, in reply to her questioning look. "First time can be a little unpredictable." With that, he burst into superspeed, pulling Kara into the multiverse.
It was really disappointing that Barry's visit to Earth-38 in the Flash part of the crossover was just reused footage from Supergirl. Tying in to the previous chapter, "Legacy," this scene serves as an alternative, showing what happened in that chapter from Caitlin's perspective.
As always, all characters belong to DC Comics and the CW, and this is written purely for fun. Thanks for reading. I appreciate it.
...
[Alternate scene, S.T.A.R. Labs hanger, replacing the clip of Barry and Cisco visiting National City (The Flash 3x08, "Invasion!")]
As Caitlin watched the telltale swirling vortex appear and disappear, signaling Barry's and Cisco's departure for Earth-38, she felt her brain going into meltdown, which was ironic considering her current personal problems.
Malevolent metahuman ice powers were threatening to take over her mind and personality, a quality the S.T.A.R. Labs team had yet to encounter, as evil metahumans tended to have questionable virtues prior to gaining abilities, not after. An outburst of hers during a manifestation of said evil powers had directly caused the rift between two of her best friends, and while Cisco deserved to know what Barry had done, she still felt guilty for the hostility between them. An alien invasion was threatening the very survival of humanity, a spaceship from the future had just materialized out of nowhere in the sky, and now Barry was going to recruit an alien from another dimension to fight on their side.
It almost made the idea of an evil speedster who traveled back in time to masquerade as a scientist seem normal.
Things didn't get much easier when she went outside the hanger with HR and Iris to meet the Legends crew. Although she was happy to see Ray, Jax, and Professor Stein again, and was pleased to meet Sara, Amaya, and Nate, she stopped dead in her tracks upon seeing Mick Rory. She didn't care what Barry said about Leonard Snart, at least, having a shred of honor in him somewhere. They were still responsible for kidnapping her and almost killing her in order to get to Barry a couple of years ago and for kidnapping Cisco and almost killing his brother just so he would build them new guns.
Rory seemed aware, at least, of the discomfort he was causing and kept his distance from her. Sara and Ray tried to explain that he had been through some experiences that had, somewhat, changed him, but Caitlin wasn't interested. It was only when they consented that Caitlin would hold the two of them directly responsible if Rory stepped out of line before she was satisfied, and she stalked away back to the computers inside the hanger, Iris and HR hurrying to keep up.
"Sooooooo," HR began, awkwardly attempting to break the tension. "What's the problem with the bald guy?"
"He's a notorious Central City criminal," Iris explained. "He actually usually rolls with a partner, Leonard Snart, and for some reason Barry thinks Snart is worth redeeming."
"Goes to show when Barry's wrong, he's really wrong."
Caitlin didn't need the glances from Iris and HR to know that came out harsher than she'd intended. Then again, her brain was melting down, so could she really be held responsible? After all…aliens.
"Okaaay," HR continued, again valiantly trying to continue the conversation. "So where's Snart?"
Iris shrugged. "No idea. It is a little weird; whenever they made the news they were practically inseparable."
"Fascinating," HR replied, tapping his chin with his miniature recording microphone, looking deep in thought. Suddenly, and somewhat alarmingly, his face split into a big grin. "I'm going to go interview him! This'll be great for my book!"
And with a twist on his heel, HR walked away.
Iris turned back to Caitlin, and Caitlin felt the need to apologize, given the many different ways Iris was close to Barry. "I'm sorry, Iris. I didn't mean to take a shot at Barry like that."
Iris shook her head. "Barry told me what happened to you and Cisco because of those creeps. I'd be mad, too."
Caitlin sighed and glanced to where HR was now passionately trying to coerce Rory into an interview, a request Rory showed precisely zero interest in granting. "I know everything pales in comparison to the threat of alien apocalypse, but—"
"Hey," Iris interrupted, putting her hand over Caitlin's. "Your feelings matter too, and they should have told us Rory was going to be here." She glanced back to the scene of HR sticking his microphone practically into Rory's mouth while asking rapid-fire questions, rolled her eyes, then turned her head back. "I'll talk to Barry when he gets back. Make sure he keeps watch over Rory along with Sara and Ray. And if that's not enough, I'll punch the bastard myself."
"Thanks, Iris," Caitlin smiled gratefully, squeezing her hand.
"Anytime," Iris smiled back. "Now, I'm going to go reel in HR before he gets himself killed."
"Good call," Caitlin replied, and Iris hurried off.
Caitlin sat back in her chair, feeling calmer after talking with Iris, and she was content to watch from a distance the various personalities of Star City, Central City, and the Waverider interact, but the peace was short-lived as an indicator lit up on the computer screen sitting in front of her. She clicked the flashing icon, and suddenly her screen was filled with an image of Cisco in an unfamiliar lab.
Wow, an impressed Caitlin thought, Cisco actually got the interdimensional communications to work. Cisco had briefed her before leaving that he might need to make a call, however, and she knew his time could be limited, so she kept it short.
"Hey Cisco."
"Hey Caitlin," Cisco smiled back, obviously pleased with his latest success.
A voice offscreen that Caitlin couldn't fully hear. Cisco turned his head away from Caitlin to answer it.
"Our Earth, yep," Cisco replied to the voice. "I fitted the gloves to include some limited communication functions."
Another voice. By now, Caitlin was getting curious.
"Cisco, what's going on? Do you need something?"
"Yeah, just one sec, Caitlin. Stand by to receive a biochem data transfer. I'll explain in a minute."
Biochemistry from another dimension? Caitlin thought excitedly. Yes, please.
…
This is insane, Caitlin thought several minutes later, pouring over diagrams and data on a virus designed by an alien race to kill other aliens. And I thought humans were xenophobic.
Cisco had quickly brought her up to speed on the situation and introduced her to both Eliza, that lab's apparent astrobiology expert, and Winn, their technical expert. (Or something along those lines.) Eliza got right to the point in explaining the details of the virus, enabling Caitlin to skip the basic questions and go right to the pointed inquiries that would help her evaluate this weapon. Despite the seriousness of the task, she couldn't help feeling some amusement glancing at Cisco and Winn, whose eyes glazed over as she and Eliza discussed the viral genome and pathogenic mechanism of the Kryptonian bio-agent.
That amusement was, of course, sadly short-lived as Caitlin shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I just can't support using this virus here on our Earth."
"These aliens are trying to kill us, Caitlin."
"Yes Cisco, I'm aware of that," she retorted sarcastically, "but Eliza's work looks sound to me, and what her research is saying is that the virus doesn't target aliens so much as it infects everyone and is simply ineffective in humans and Kryptonians."
"So?"
"So," Caitlin replied, "we happen to have at least two physiologies here on our Earth: human and metahuman."
Cisco winced. "Let me guess: our physiologies are different enough that the virus might think we're 'aliens' and kill us?"
"Bingo," Caitlin confirmed, "and metahuman diversity is as varied as the energies released when the particle accelerator exploded. There's no telling how any one metahuman will react to the virus."
"Crap," Cisco muttered. "Okay, thanks Caitlin. We will return to Plan A then."
"Recruit an alien and start punching?"
"Pretty much. What could go wrong?" With that, Cisco cut the connection.
Caitlin sat back. He's going to regret saying that out loud, she mused.
[Alternate scene, S.T.A.R. Labs hanger, replacing the clip after Oliver asks to speak with Kara privately (DC's Legends of Tomorrow 2x07, "Invasion!")]
As Kara jogged towards him, Oliver saw the polite confusion on her face as to why he wanted to speak with her and knew he'd have to choose his words carefully.
"What's up?" she asked.
Oliver took a deep breath, then said, "While we're meeting with the President, I would like you to keep a low profile."
"Why?" she asked. "This is your President; don't you think she should have as much protection as possible?"
Oliver looked down, trying to decide how to answer. Kara picked up on his hesitancy, and her voice hardened. "It's because I'm an alien. Is that it?"
"Look, Kara," Oliver began, extending out a placating hand. "I'm not trying to make this personal—"
"Great job so far," she interrupted, sarcastically.
"—but I don't know how things work on your Earth," he continued, trying to soften his tone further as her eyes got narrower. "Our Earth has been through the wringer lately. We're dealing with our first-ever alien invasion—"
"Which I'm trying to help you with!" Kara snapped in a low voice.
"Yes," Oliver agreed. "But before you got here, half a year ago, a madman got control of nuclear launch codes and destroyed a city, a town called Havenrock." He was relieved to see Kara ease off, if only slightly enough that he could continue uninterrupted. "Tens of thousands of people died in an instant."
"I'm sorry," Kara replied, softly to let him know she meant it.
Oliver nodded before continuing. "A few years before that, a particle accelerator exploded in Central City, bathing our world in who-knows-what. Some of the results were people like Barry," he said, nodding toward the Scarlet Speedster talking with Ray and Sara, "but many more were people with powers and an intent to hurt others with them."
"That's not my fault," Kara shot back, defensively.
"I'm not saying it is," Oliver replied, "but our world, this Earth, is changing fast, and it just hasn't adjusted yet. I don't want to scare even more people by telling them there's another alien here."
"What makes you so sure they'd be scared?" Kara demanded.
"Because I'm scared of you," he said in a low voice.
Kara put her hands on her hips, saying nothing, although Oliver could almost hear her grinding her teeth. Something told him this wasn't the first time she had encountered this sort of attitude, which would explain the quiet ferocity with which she was arguing with him.
"Kara," Oliver began again, "we don't have a Supergirl. We don't have…," he trailed off, looking around the hanger as if hoping the right words would be painted somewhere for him to read, "…some immigrant from the stars to give us perspective as humans. To teach us all how to be heroes." He looked her straight in the eyes. "We had to learn that ourselves, and we're not ready for this kind of change."
By this point, Kara had crossed her arms over her chest, angry still but also seeming to listen closely to Oliver's words. After he finished, she walked right up to him so that her left side was against his left side, allowing her to talk in his ear without actually looking at him.
In a low voice, she said, "I can't tell if you're genuinely concerned about your Earth's reaction to me, or if you're so insecure in yourself that you can't handle something that you don't understand on first sight."
Oliver bowed his head.
"I should have known. This is actually very typical on my Earth, you know. Anti-alien sentiment," she huffed. Oliver wanted to argue he wasn't "anti-alien," but at the moment he wasn't sure he could saying anything convincing. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised it's the same over here. The Flash was all I knew about your world, but it looks like he's the exception, not the rule."
"Kara—"
"Save it," she snapped, still low enough so that only he could hear. "I came here to help Barry, and I know he thinks the world of you. For his sake I'll do what you want. Outside of a dead president, a knocked-out cyberwoman, and your merry band of vigilantes in Star City, no one knows about me anyway, do they?"
"No," Oliver agreed, unsure of what else he could say.
"Fine," she finished, although "fine" was not how Oliver would currently describe this interaction. "You're the one calling the shots, after all. I hope, for your sake, you only have one dead president this week."
With that, Kara turned around and stalked off. Oliver had to give her credit. Despite her cheery demeanor, she was far more perceptive than he gave her credit for. Still, after everything that was happening, the last thing the world needed was more panic over yet another alien. This was the right move.
Wasn't it?
...
Author's note: I've always, always loved Martian Manhunter's eulogy to Superman in the Justice League cartoon episode "Hereafter, Part I." I couldn't resist using a bit of it in this chapter.
"Though we gather here today, bound together in sorrow and loss, we share a precious gift. We are all of us privileged to live a life that has been touched by Superman. The Man of Steel possessed many extraordinary gifts, and he shared them with us freely. None of these gifts were more remarkable than his ability to discern what needed to be done, and his unfailing courage in doing it, whatever the personal cost. Let us all strive to accept his gift and pass it along, as an ongoing tribute to Kal-El of Krypton, the immigrant from the stars, who taught us all how to be heroes." - J'onn J'onzz, Justice League, "Hereafter, Part I"
[Alternate scene, S.T.A.R. Labs hanger, replacing the clip after Barry finishes telling the team about Flashpoint (The Flash 3x08, "Invasion!")]
"Look, you can't go back and just change things like that Barry," Sara fumed, as everyone around her stood quietly, too stunned by the news of Flashpoint. "You know how hard it is for me to not alter events, to bring my sister back? But I don't, because I know the implications!"
Ray stood up slowly, shock and disappointment on his face. "All those aberrations we spent the last eight months traveling through time trying to correct…you just decided it was okay for you to create your own?" he asked, quietly.
Jax shook his head in frustration. "We should have told him before."
Sara's and Ray's heads snapped to Jax. "What do you mean, 'before'?" Sara asked. "You knew about this?"
"Yeah," Jax nodded, "me and Stein. There's a secret room on the Waverider. We found the message there."
Sara's hands went to her head and she turned around, too outraged to even form complete sentences. Ray picked up the slack for her. "And you didn't tell the rest of us because…?"
"The message was clear. Future Barry said no one but Rip was supposed to hear it."
"Yeah, well, Rip's not here, is he?" Sara snapped. "Our job is to fix time aberrations, and you've just been sitting on this giant one the whole time? What the hell were you thinking?"
"Hey," Jax countered, standing up himself in anger, "I'm just as responsible as you for protecting the timeline. How many times have we heard that knowing too much about our future is dangerous?"
"Well, it would have been useful to know now! We could have cleaned up Barry's mess!"
Barry opened his mouth, ready to apologize again, but Jax stepped up to Sara, pointing at her face. "Don't do that. Don't act all high and mighty about Barry screwing up! You know it's more complicated than that."
"No, it's not!" Sara replied angrily. "Jax, you know what happens when you mess with time!"
"Yeah, I do now," Jax retorted, "In fact, I seem to remember us going on a mission in Russia months ago. Do you?"
"Of course I do," Sara shot back.
"Well, then you know we let Stein get captured, and we ended up making a timeline where Star City got burned to the ground by an army of Soviet Firestorms."
Felicity's head whipped around from the computer where she was working. "Wait, what?!"
Ray stepped in. "Jax, we prevented that timeline from happening. There's no way we could have stopped Stein getting captured."
"Yeah?" Jax countered, turning on Ray. "Then how about Norway, huh? When you lost a piece of your suit and gave Savage advanced tech to blow up Central City?"
"Dude, that is not cool," Cisco pointed out.
"Those were accidents, Jax," Sara said, although she was backing down on her anger as the Legends' previous missteps continued to undermine her outrage. "Barry intentionally went back and changed things."
"And you're going to stand there and tell me you didn't want to do the same with Damien Darhk?" Jax asked. Sara glared, about to protest that she had already admitted that, but Jax kept going. "After all the times we've screwed up time, you're going to judge Barry for making a mistake?"
Sara turned her head and looked at Barry, who had the grace to meet her eyes, owning up to his actions. She turned away and said nothing.
An uncomfortable silence filled the hanger as invisible cracks between the teammates grew wider. It was interrupted by an alert on Felicity's computer, which she hurried to check. "Lyla's sending an S.O.S. The Dominators kidnapped the president!"
Barry immediately began walking towards the hanger exit, his hands on his headpiece. Sara stepped in front of him and held up her hand. "You're not going."
"Sara…" Oliver began.
"No," Sara said firmly. "We've been drilling all day against Supergirl. She's all the superpowered muscle we need right now. Her we can trust."
Barry slowly took his hands off his headpiece. "Okay," he acknowledged, defeated. "I'll stay. Good luck."
"Hey, come on!" Oliver exclaimed. "Barry is the fastest man alive. We need him with us!" He looked around, but Sara, Ray, and Dig all stood with their arms crossed, clearly unwilling to budge on the issue. Jax, Kara, Thea, and Mick didn't seem willing to start a civil war. "I don't think we should go without him," he finished, quietly.
"Then stay here, Oliver," Diggle replied, a hard edge in his voice Oliver hadn't heard since he had kidnapped Lyla during his undercover scheme in the League.
Kara looked around at the rising tension and stepped forward. "Actually, it's fine. It's fine," she repeated, extending a placating hand each to Oliver and Diggle. "We're not quite sure what we're facing, so it's a good idea to keep some backup in reserve, right?" She looked around, hoping someone would help her diffuse the situation, but she mostly saw pairs of eyes shooting daggers. She pressed on. "So Oliver, you hang back with Barry. I'll go with the team, and we'll find the president. We'll radio if we need help."
"Sounds like a plan," Sara declared. "Let's go." With that, Sara strode off, getting herself equipped as the team began to follow her out. As Jax walked past Barry, Barry stopped him and muttered quietly, "Thanks, Jax."
Jax shook his head, his eyes somber. "I'm not defending what you did, Barry. You've got a lot to answer for."
Barry nodded. "I know." Jax walked away, and Barry went up to Kara, who looked at him with concern.
"I'm sorry I pulled you into all this. I didn't want to cause so much trouble."
Kara shrugged. "Honestly, I'm not entirely following this whole time travel stuff. My problems are almost exclusively alien-related." She reached over and rubbed his arm. "But I do know you never meant for all this to happen. I still believe in you, Barry."
Barry gave a small smile, grateful for her support. Kara smiled back and turned to follow the team before turning back around with a question. "When we do get the president, how will we keep him from getting abducted again? Bring him back here?"
Cisco stood up from where he was half-sitting on a computer desk. "That's a good point. Bring him to S.T.A.R. Labs. We'll put him in the pipeline."
Oliver turned his head. "Isn't that your metahuman prison?"
Cisco shrugged. "We used it once to hide from time wraiths. I figure it's as good a place as any to hide the leader of the United States." Looking over at Kara, Cisco continued, "Let the team know we'll be waiting for them at S.T.A.R. Labs. Once you find the president, Ray and Jax should know the way."
Kara wasn't sure she liked the sound of "metahuman prison," but now hardly seemed the time to bring it up, so she raised her hand to signal she understood. "Will do." With that, she jogged to catch up with Sara and the rest, red cape billowing behind her.
Oliver walked over to Barry and, noting Barry's distressed state of mind, put a hand on his shoulder. "Stay alert, Barry," he advised. "They're going to need us before this is over."
"Yeah," Barry muttered, then reconsidered his un-team-leader-like tone. "Yeah," he repeated, a little more forcefully, and turned around to face the rest of the group. "We should get to S.T.A.R. Labs."
[Deleted scene, Queen's mansion (Dominator's dreamscape), after Oliver says goodbye to Thea (Arrow 5x08, "Invasion!")]
"I love you, Thea," Oliver whispered.
She wanted to say it back. So, so badly, she wanted to tell her brother she loved him one more time, but she couldn't open her mouth. Even in an alien dreamscape in which the life of the Queens was molded to perfection, she was still faced with an impossible choice: a perfect life with her parents and the rest of her loved ones, or a hard, painful journey with the big brother that through all their fights and disagreements growing up had always been, deep down, her hero.
Her brain just didn't trust her mouth to say the words, so all she managed was a little nod into Oliver's shoulder. Then he was gone.
Is this worth it? Thea asked herself, looking around at the happy guests milling about the mansion and surreptitiously wiping her eyes. Can I be happy here?
"Someone would like to talk to you," a voice to her right said.
Thea jumped, startled, and saw the smiling face of Malcolm Merlyn as he held a phone out to her in his left hand. "Oops, sorry," Malcolm chuckled, holding out his other hand in a placating gesture. "Didn't mean to scare you."
Flashes seared across Thea's brain.
Pointing a gun at him at a train station and pulling the trigger. 
Apprehensively watching him slowly tip a ladle of boiling water over her hand.
Swords flashing as she fights him in the Bunker, even as she debates in her head whether she's willing to strike a killing blow against her father.
"Um," Thea responds, trying to sort her memories with her current reality, "no, it's…it's fine. Uh, who's on the phone?"
"Why don't you find out?" Malcolm smiled mysteriously, once again holding out the phone to her. Thea shrugged and took the phone, shivering slightly as her fingers brushed his hand. Didn't Ollie cut that hand off?
Thea put the phone to her ear as Malcolm walked away to speak with someone else. "Hello?"
"What's up, Speedy?" Tommy.
More flashes in her mind.
His considerate demeanor as he opens the door of his car for her to take her home, after she made a drunken fool of herself at Laurel's CNRI fundrasier.
Watching his and Laurel's discomfort and embarrassment as she blurts to Oliver in a club how they had been seeing each other after his "death."
His no-nonsense, protective attitude as he gets between her and her dealer, telling the guy to stay away from her, permanently.
She let out a sigh. "Only Ollie can call me that, Tommy."
He laughed. "Too bad, Thea. You're listed in my phone as 'Speedy.'"
Thea shook her head, even though Tommy couldn't see it. "Aren't there lives you should be saving?" she asked teasingly.
"Well, I've got a break between shifts here at the hospital," he replied, "so I thought I'd call Dad and see how things are going at the big wedding bash."
"Pretty well, minus a certain best friend of the groom. Can't you tell your patients to not be sick for a day?"
"I did. They didn't listen," Tommy chuckled. "I gotta take care of them, Thea. That's the job."
"Yeah well, you are good at taking care of people," Thea replied. "You've taken care of me after a drunken night."
"I have?" Tommy asked. He sounded confused.
"Yeah, remember?" she asked. "I had too much after the CNRI fundraiser you held for Laurel, and you took me home."
"I don't remember that. Oliver held that fundraiser for her, didn't he?"
Thea started to speak, then froze as her recovered memories swam confusingly with the dreamscape. Originally, Tommy had held that fundraiser to support Laurel, but if Oliver hadn't gone missing, he'd probably be the one to throw that fundraiser instead…
"I, uh…" Thea stammered over the phone, "yeah, I guess I forgot. It was so long ago."
"Although," Tommy continued, "Oliver told me every time he had to be your emergency pickup after a night out. You'd always call at some ridiculous hour, but he always wanted to make sure you were safe."
Thea didn't remember this, but she felt a punch in the gut all the same as she thought of Oliver. Once again, she didn't trust herself to speak.
"What's Oliver doing, anyway?" Tommy asked, oblivious over the phone to Thea's feelings. "Any chance I can talk to him?"
"He's…he stepped out for a bit," Thea lied, unsure what else she could say given Oliver's decision to leave. "Something came up."
"Ah, too bad," Tommy replied. "Well, I'll try again later. I want to make sure he's not getting cold feet and planning to flee on a yacht or something."
"Mhmm," Thea replied, desperately trying to keep the tremble out of her voice. "He'd love to hear from you."
"Same," he replied. "Okay well, good catching up with you, Thea. Take care of yourself."
"You too."
"Bye Speedy."
"Bye." The line went dead.
Thea took Malcolm's phone from her ear and slowly put it down on the table in front of her. He always wanted to make sure you were safe.
"I want you to be well. I want you to be happy."
Thea clutched her head. What am I doing?
"You look like you could use a drink."
Thea looked up and came face to face with a tray of champagne glasses and a charming smile. Roy.
The weight of his body on her couch as she sits covered with a blanket, trying to recover from the side effects of her bloodlust.
The shock on his face when she shows up at his auto shop, after Felicity had revealed to her what he had gone through to fake his death and save her brother.
The feel of his lips on hers as she cups his face, distracting him from the needle the doctor was sticking into his arm.
"Roy? What're you doing here?"
Roy cocked an eyebrow, and the tray of glasses he was holding in front of her started inching away. "Okay, maybe you shouldn't have a drink."
"What?"
Roy continued to stare at her. "I told you I wanted to earn some extra money? You said I could add this gig on top of my Verdant shifts?"
"Oh," was all Thea could muster. The memory flashes weren't stopping, and she was growing more and more disoriented between what was happening now and what had happened before.
"Are you okay?" Roy asked, putting the tray down and putting a hand to her cheek in concern.
She felt herself lean into the touch of his hand, and her brain started to calm down. Roy was here. Did she have to make it any more complicated than that?
"Yeah," she said, covering his hand with hers, pressing it gently against her cheek. "Yeah, I'm fine. Weddings take a lot out of you, you know?"
"You're telling me," Roy replied, looking around at the guests. "You Queens are fancy."
Thea chuckled. "It wouldn't be a Queen family celebration otherwise."
"As a kid from the Glades, I cannot express how uncomfortable I feel."
"Aw, I don't know. You're fitting in pretty well," Thea teased, reached over to fuss with the bow tie of his waiter's uniform.
"Yeah, well, a short lifetime of low wage service jobs will help with that," he quipped.
Thea smiled at his self-deprecating humor and almost commented on how much more he had made of himself as Arsenal, but she stopped herself. Ollie never became the Arrow. He never saved Roy when he was kidnapped. He never trained Roy to become Arsenal.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Roy asked, concern returning to his face. "You look a million miles away."
Thea nodded weakly. "Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry about me."
Roy continued to stare at her, and she was disturbed to realize that, like the Roy she knew, the Roy in front of her could see through her attempts to mask her feelings. Luckily, he chose not to pursue it and instead picked up the champagne tray. "We'll talk later, okay?"
"Okay," Thea agreed. "Thanks for your help tonight."
"Anything for you."
As Roy carried away the tray, Thea watched him go. He talked the same. He felt the same. He acted the same.
But he's not the same.
He wasn't her Roy. The Roy she knew sought out the Arrow because he wanted to make more of his life. The Roy she knew gave up his life as he knew it in order to exonerate her brother and take the fall as the Arrow of Starling City. No matter what, Thea's love for him was not in doubt, but she also knew that Roy considered these events as defining moments of his life, and that he would feel like a lesser man without those events in his history. To live in a world where his personal crucibles were erased like that would be an insult to the man Roy became.
She had lost Roy once when he faked his death.
She had lost Oliver once when she thought he had drowned on that boat.
I can't lose my family again.
Almost without realizing it, she was striding away from the table, heading towards the exit of the foyer. Before she could get there, her parents were suddenly in front of her, practically materializing out of thin air.
"Thea, are you alright?" her mother asked.
"You and Oliver, what is going on with you two?" her father added.
Thea knew she couldn't hug her parents. She couldn't end this, whatever this was, by holding her mom and dad, because she knew she would never let go. Instead, she put a smile on her face. "Nothing, Dad," she assured him. "I'm actually going to go check on Oliver and make sure he's okay. I'll take care of him," she added. "I promise."
To her relief, she saw their faces relax slightly. "I'm glad to hear that. I hope you two always take care of each other," her mother replied, a small smile of her own on her face.
"We will," Thea affirmed. Then, before her nerves failed her, she gently squeezed between them, feeling their presence one last time, and found herself out of the foyer and away from the guests.
She had a sneaking suspicion this dreamscape had thrown Tommy, Roy, and her parents at her in a last desperate attempt to ensnare her, but instead they had just reminded her of what she still had to fight for. Taking a deep breath, she looked down at herself before rushing up the staircase to change.
For better or worse, the actual job of taking care of her brother was way beyond what a bridesmaid's dress could take.
for reading. I appreciate it.
...
[Deleted scene, S.T.A.R. Labs hanger, at various points after the team starts training against Supergirl but before Barry discusses Flashpoint with them (The Flash 3x08, "Invasion!")]
"So let me get this straight," Diggle said, trying desperately to keep his brain from exiting his skull and running away. "On your Earth, you're called the 'Girl of Steel'?"
"Yup," Kara said brightly. "My cousin's called the 'Man of Steel.'"
"And that's because you're bulletproof?"
"Yup," Kara said again. "Well," she amended, "I guess I'm also knifeproof and punchproof and…you get the idea."
Diggle narrowed his eyes. "I don't buy it," he said slowly, raising a finger slowly to be level with Kara's shoulder. Experimentally, he prodded her and, sure enough, his finger crumpled against her without so much as swaying her.
"Told ya," Kara snickered.
Diggle, refusing to accept his senses, poked her shoulder a couple more times, his finger folding each time as if running into a steel column. "Hugging you must be impossible," he muttered.
"Well, actually I can relax my body if I choose to. Try to surprise me with a punch and, yeah, you'll probably break your fist, but if I see you coming at me for a hug, I can soften up," she explained. "Here, try it now," she finished, wiggling her shoulder.
Diggle poked yet again in the same spot, but this time Kara's shoulder gave under the pressure as if she were just a normal person. Kara thought this would put Diggle more at ease, but instead he withdrew his finger as if he'd been burned. He put a hand to his face as if he were suddenly developing a headache. "Oh, this is so weird," she heard him mutter, as he turned around and walked off without a word to her.
Kara sighed and tilted her head a little, feeling a little concerned she wasn't making a good impression with the team when Felicity sidled up to her. "Don't worry about Dig. He's a very meat-and-potatoes kind of guy, that's all," she reassured her. "He got used to Barry, so he'll get used to you."
"How did he react to Barry having powers?" Kara asked.
"He drooled a little bit," Felicity recalled. "Also threw, like, all of his French fries into the air," she added, miming the action by flipping her hands up suddenly.
"Really?" Kara giggled. "That's sort of adorable."
"Yeah," Felicity replied fondly. "Don't worry, once Dig gets to know you, he'll be one of the best friends you could ever have."
…
Diggle stood to the side, taking a break from getting his butt handed to him while the rest continuing training against the brick wall that was Supergirl. He wanted to watch something one more time, to reassure himself he wasn't hallucinating.
As Ray flew in his suit and attempted to distract Kara, Professor Stein and Jax clapped hands together. There was a burst of yellow-and-orange flame, and then suddenly Stein just…wasn't there anymore.
Now it was just Jax standing alone, except his head and hands were now flaming, and his eyeballs had gone completely white. He was now flying through the air, shooting fireballs at Supergirl while dodging and weaving as Firestorm.
A quick battle ensued, but of course the Girl of Steel continued to win the day, knocking Firestorm into the ground. Another burst of flame, and suddenly…there was Professor Stein again, sitting there knocked on his butt next to Jax. No flaming heads or hands, and everyone's eyes had their normal pupils.
Diggle's hand snatched out to grab Cisco's arm when Cisco happened to walk past him. "Cisco," he said, in complete seriousness while pointing at the Firestorm duo, "how the hell does that work?"
Cisco, initially confused and mildly alarmed by the intensity of Diggle's question, looked to see where he was pointing and then shook his head. "Dig," he said softly, as if trying to calm a toddler in the middle of a tantrum, "that is a very long story." He then gently extricated himself from Diggle's grip and walked away, while Dig continued to stare as the Firestorm duo gingerly stood up and dusted themselves off. Not noticing that Cisco had walked away, his hand was still hanging mid-grip in the air.
Walking back to Diggle, Cisco gently pushed his hand back down to Diggle's side, and then he went about his business, smirking and shaking his head again.
…
"Barry, I really have to know. If you're superfast at everything, what about when you do normal things? Like, when you're eating, how long does it take for you to…you know?"
Barry stared back at Diggle, his mouth literally full of food as he held a burger between his hands. He stared back at Diggle, willing him to see the awkwardness of the situation, but Diggle just continued to stare intently, clearly hoping for an answer.
Luckily, Caitlin came to his rescue.
"I'm so glad you asked that, Dig," she said brightly, stepping directly into his line of sight to shield Barry from view and give him an opportunity to finish his lunch break. "After two years of studying Barry's powers, I can give you a biomolecular explanation of how his metabolism and physiology have changed on a cellular level," she continued with enthusiasm, putting a hand on his shoulder and steering him away from the Scarlet Speedster.
"Actually Caitlin," Diggle began, trying to break free, "it's really just this thing that's been bugging me so—"
"As it should!" Caitlin exclaimed, her grip on his shoulder still iron-strong. "How does superspeed affect normal human bodily functions? It's an important question, and one I'm happy to go into deep, deep detail with you!"
Diggle continued to protest weakly, but Caitlin determinedly strode away with him in tow, beginning her long-winded scientific explanations as she took a quick peek over her shoulder. Barry smiled gratefully at her diversion and gave her a thumbs-up. Finally swallowing, he mouthed, "Thank you, Doctor Snow."
Caitlin gave a little nod and smile before returning her full attention to Diggle, launching into an explanation of superspeed digestion as Diggle continued to regret his question with each passing second.
…
Diggle leaned against a desk with his arms crossed, watching from a distance as Sara conversed with Iris and Felicity. Shortly after John Constantine had rescued her soul, Sara had set off on her own in an attempt to heal her mind and body, and thus Diggle had never gotten to spend much time with her since then.
Before, as the Canary, Sara had mostly been a serious, haunted individual. Her experiences on the island and in the League of Assassins had seemed to harden her mannerisms, and while she was loyal and kind, she had also been distant.
Now, watching her as the White Canary, Diggle was surprised to see her smiling and joking around with the other women. The weight of the world hadn't been taken off her shoulders, exactly, but she seemed to have finally found the strength to bear it without letting it crush her.
Sara had literally been given a second chance at life, experiencing a revival after a year in a grave. How did that feel? Did she see anything…beyond? Was there anything fundamentally different about her life now compared to what it had been then?
Straightening up, Diggle stood up to go talk to Sara. This was such a sensitive topic, but his brain kept needling him for answers. He'd just have to phrase his question very delicately…
Suddenly, the manic smile of Harrison Wells was in front of him.
"John, right?" he asked enthusiastically.
Diggle took a couple steps back. "Yeah," he confirmed. "John Diggle. And you're Dr. Wells."
"Oh, no no no," was the hasty reply. "I'm no doctor. I'm a novelist. Call me H.R.," he continued, still with a manic look in his eyes.
"Right…" Diggle said, unnerved that this was the same face that had made Barry's life hell a couple years ago. "Nice to meet you. Anyway, I was just going to—"
"Actually," H.R. interrupted. "Oops, so sorry to interrupt. But, now that I have your attention, would you be willing to answer a few questions for this book I'm writing?"
"Um, what kind of questions?"
"Well, really questions about you. Most of my research has been in Central City on this Earth, but I would love to get a perspective away from all the metahumany things happening there. You're from Star City, correct?"
"Yeah," Diggle answered again, cautiously.
"Occupation? Well, you know," H.R. chuckled, waving his hand to indicate the surrounding hanger and superheroes, "aside from all this."
"Uh, ex-military."
"That makes sense. Family?"
"Yeah, a wife and son."
"Really?" H.R.'s eyes widened. "Can you tell me about them?
"You want to know about my family?"
"Of course," H.R. exclaimed. "What's the point of all this," he said, waving his hand around again, "unless there're loved ones to defend?"
Diggle gave a small smile. He sort of liked this version of Wells. "Well, yeah, I guess that's true."
H.R. smiled in response. "What's your son's name?"
By the time H.R. had finished his interview, Diggle had forgotten what he had wanted to ask Sara.
…
Oh, this is bad. Colors zipped by his vision at lightning speeds.
Why did I decide to do this? Air rushed past his face, too fast to comfortably breathe.
I can't, I can't, stop, stop, stop. Suddenly, he did stop, conveniently right in front of a trash can into which he immediately vomited.
Barry pulled his hand away from Diggle's collar and scratched the back of his head awkwardly as he tried not to stare at Diggle puking after a speed run. "Are you sure you want to keep doing this?" he asked worriedly.
Diggle thought about nodding his head but wasn't sure his stomach could take it, so he grunted affirmation instead. "You might need to superspeed me without warning during this fight. I gotta get used to the feeling. I think I'm—"
Which is as far as he got before retching again.
Barry grimaced and timidly patted Diggle on the back. "Sorry, man."
Diggle groaned and straightened up. "It's fine, Barry," he said, wiping his mouth. "Hope I'm not offending you or anything."
"Offending me? What do you mean?" Barry asked, confused.
"You as a speedster has always freaked me out, but I never thought it would literally make me puke," Diggle explained with a little smirk.
Ah, Barry thought, amused. "Nah, it's cool," he chuckled. "So I'm a metahuman and I make you sick. I get it, I see how it is, Dig."
Dig laughed weakly in response, before straightening up. Sighing, he flexed his neck. "Okay, let's try this again."
"If you say so," Barry sighed, before grabbing Diggle's collar and going for another super run around the compound. We're gonna need a bigger trash can, he mused idly.
…
"So," Diggle struggled, pointing at Jax. "Stein physically merged with you?"
"Yeah," Jax confirmed, his blank white eyeballs continuing to unnerve him. "He watches my back for me, makes sure I'm not ambushed."
"Uh, how does he 'watch,' exactly?"
"Look, it's better if you don't—"
Diggle leaned forward, expecting Jax to finish his thought, but Jax had suddenly gone still, his brow furrowed.
"No, that's too complicated."
Dig looked from side to side, not sure if Jax was still talking to him. "What's too complicated?" he asked, confused.
Another pause, then, "Come on, Grey, I don't want to repeat all that mumbo jumbo."
"What…what is happening?" Diggle asked, alarmed.
Jax held up his hand. "Just a sec, Dig. I'm talking to Grey…er, Stein."
"Right now?"
"Yeah."
"I don't hear anything."
"He's talking to me in my head," Jax explained, pointing at his own face. Then, in the same breath, "Grey, that doesn't make any sense! Can't I just—" Another pause. Diggle's eyes got wider and wider as he watched Jax debate with…well, no one, as far as he could see or hear. Finally, heaving a big sigh, Jax looked at Diggle again. "Fine. Okay Dig, this might be a bit confusing, but basically—"
"No, no," Diggle interrupted, holding up his hand. "I learned my lesson with Caitlin. I don't want to know." Immediately, Diggle turned around and quickly scurried away.
A small smile tugged at Jax's lips. Meanwhile, in his head, Stein chided, "Jefferson. I wasn't saying anything."
"I know, Grey. I just wanted to freak him out."
…
Diggle walked up to Kara as she chatted with Felicity with his hands behind his back. "Hey, sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable earlier," he said as the two women stopped talking and turned to him. "I can barely wrap my head around metahumans, and aliens are just throwing me for another loop."
Kara shook her head. "That's okay. I'm learning, too. I, uh," she said, chuckling at herself in embarrassment, "I'm actually not used to a world that hasn't heard of either me or my cousin. Sorry, is that really self-centered?"
"Trust me, if you existed on our Earth, with all the powers you have, everyone would know your name," Diggle assured her. "Speaking of which, I heard you have x-ray vision. Is that true?"
Kara nodded. "It is."
"Prove it," Diggle shot back mysteriously. "What am I holding behind my back?"
Kara lowered her eyes to Diggle's midsection and narrowed her eyes. She raised her head in confusion. "A donut?"
Diggle smiled. "Okay, now I'm really convinced." With that, he pulled his hands from behind his back, revealed the donut resting in a napkin, and then offered it to her. "Barry mentioned you like donuts," he explained.
"Aw, thanks, that's really sweet," Kara beamed, taking the donut. As she did, Diggle flipped one of his hands over, holding out his fist.
"Welcome to the team, Kara."
She laughed and bumped his fist with hers. "Thanks, John."
"My friends call me Dig."
"Thanks…Dig."
With that, Diggle walked away, and Kara smiled at her donut for a moment, happy to be bonding with these new people from a new Earth. Feeling a nudge, she turned her head to see Felicity smiling at her.
"What'd I tell you? One of the best friends you could ever have."
[Deleted scene, S.T.A.R. labs hanger, continuing the team's training session against Supergirl after Oliver says, "Let's go again" (The Flash 3x08, "Invasion!")]
An arrow splintered apart against her chest.
I wonder if Game of Thrones exists on this Earth. Wait, they may have more seasons out; I might spoil myself.
Bullets bounced off her back.
I don't think I've seen Oliver smile once since I got here.
Energy blasts dissipated against her forearms.
Where did Barry run off to? He's the only person I sorta know in this whole group.
Fire whirled around her legs, tickling her.
Hold up. Pizza's still a thing on this Earth, right? That's gotta be in every dimension.
Kara wasn't quite sure how well she was preparing the team to face the Dominators. As extensive as her powers were, the Dominators were likely coming in with some sort of invasion force, and ganging up on just her might not prove to be the most effective tactic. Then again, apparently not a single person here outside of Barry had met an alien before today, so maybe this was how they acclimated. By…trying to pulverize her.
That effort had to pause as Ray and Mick exited the fray, Ray because Kara had accidently mangled part of his suit, and Mick because he was hungry.
"Sorry, Ray!" Kara called out apologetically as the two walked towards their timeship. "That was totally an accident!"
"It's okay. I can fix it," Ray called back. "I think," he muttered to himself, which Kara's superhearing still picked up.
"Hey, send out Nate and Amaya while you're back there," Sara called out. "They should get in some training too."
"Will do. You kids have fun," Mick replied sarcastically. Then the two were out of earshot.
Oliver clapped his hands. "Okay. We don't have to just stand here while we wait for them. Again. Everyone on the line."
Kara glanced at the rest of the team, saw their grimaces and heard their quiet curses. "Sorry," she muttered.
Thea, who was closest to her, muttered back sarcastically, "You know, if you accidentally kill my brother, I'm not sure I'd be mad."
…
By the time Nate and Amaya arrived, everyone else was flat on their backs…again.
Since she had come all the way from another universe to fight as well, Kara had decided to commandeer some practice time for herself, foregoing her flight advantage and taking on the team hand-to-hand. Over a year since revealing herself as Supergirl, Kara still had to endure regular sparring sessions with Alex or J'onn, or sometimes both, in the Kryptonite training room. (Apparently every DEO base had one, a detail Kara was sure Clark didn't know about.) As such, by keeping her powers in check, she thought she could get a pretty good workout against this group while putting her training to use.
She was not disappointed.
Oliver, Thea, Sara, and Diggle all seemed to have extensive combat experience, either from military training or from some crazy cult called the "League of Assassins." (That doesn't sound very heroic, Kara mused.) She was obviously still invulnerable, and they learned very quickly that direct strikes to her face or, for that matter, anywhere else, would likely result in a bruised or broken fist. However, between the four of them and an assortment of chokeholds and submission techniques, they at least did a commendable job in limiting her damage.
Then Oliver grunted, in his typical growly voice, "I said, don't hold back."
Kara rolled her eyes. In a matter of seconds, all four of them were sent flying.
"Well," Amaya said, as she surveyed the disheveled bodies arrayed around Kara. "Looks like this is going well."
"Not to fear, reinforcements are here," Nate chimed in, cheery as always. He jogged up to Kara, triggered his powers, and squared up to face her, his skin now showing a metallic sheen.
"Let's see how you handle a man of steel," he said, clearly meaning to sound cool. He charged.
Kara made sure Nate got close enough to see the smirk on her face before she struck. Nate flew back across the room and slammed into a wall, cratering it.
"No offense, Nate," she called out, "but 'Man of Steel' is taken."
A weak, metallic thumbs-up indicated Nate would not debate her on that fact.
This just left Amaya, who looked wary, though not intimidated, by Kara's power. "Guess it's just me now" she remarked.
Kara crossed her arms over her chest. "Let's see what you got."
Amaya touched her hand to the amulet around her neck, and a bluish-white apparition formed around her briefly, a shape Kara thought looked vaguely like a rhino. She wasn't sure of Amaya's capacity to take damage, so as she charged the Kryptonian, Kara stood her ground and decided to let her take the first shot. She expected she'd get a good idea of Amaya's power then.
What she did not expect was to get sent flying across the room, pulverizing a stack of empty crates.
The hanger went dead silent. Everyone stood in shock at the Girl of Steel getting tossed so dramatically. Kara, meanwhile, sat up in her pile of splinters, wood chips falling out of her hair. "That was…different."
Amaya gave an easy smile. "You getting up, or are we chalking this up to a win for me?"
Oh, so she wants to play. Okay then, Kara thought. She dusted herself off and began approaching Amaya, now warily respectful of her abilities. As she did so, Amaya touched her amulet again, and Kara saw the form of a snake surround her. Assuming that meant nothing good for her, she quickened her pace and threw a right cross, putting the weight of her superstrength behind it.
Amaya responded with serpent-like reflexes, deflecting the punch and sidestepping to catch Kara's wrist with one hand, popping her in the face with her other fist for good measure.
Kara's eyes widened. "What did you say your powers were again?"
"My amulet lets me channel the spirit of any animal I call upon." Amaya quickly slapped her amulet yet again, and Kara had a brief impression of a gorilla before Amaya twisted her grip on Kara's wrist, shifting into an armbar. "But without it, I'm still a fifth-degree black belt."
"Terrific," Kara muttered. She negated and escaped the armbar by flying up and over Amaya's head, but Amaya still proved to have an answer for most of Kara's abilities. Bigger animals like that rhino and gorilla enabled her to land actual, direct strikes against Kara. When she tried to blow her off her feet with her superbreath, Amaya channeled an elephant and steadied herself with the extra weight. Kara's use of flight was matched with kangeroos and eagles, which awarded Amaya with impressive leaping and flight powers.
Eventually, it was Kara's superspeed that tipped the scales. Amaya tried to counter with a cheetah, but the Kryptonian, fast enough to make Barry Allen break a sweat, was able to get behind her and put her in a sleeper hold (one of Alex's favorites). After a brief struggle, Amaya slapped Kara's forearm, signaling her surrender.
Kara released the hold and stepped back, putting her hands on her hips to catch her breath, while Amaya bent over at the waist to catch hers. When Amaya stood up, Kara was waiting for her with a hand raised.
"You are awesome," Kara gushed, emphasizing every word.
Amaya laughed, then gave Kara her high-five. "Not so bad yourself," she replied, as scattered claps echoed around the hanger. Everyone had heard the commotion and come to watch the spectacle, and Kara and Amaya rewarded them with mock bows.
"I think I need a break," Kara declared, exhaling loudly.
"I think I need a nap," Amaya responded.
…
The crowd around the two powerhouses dispersed as everyone returned to their regularly scheduled alien preparation tasks. Nate and Amaya limped back to the Waverider to recuperate from their encounters with Kara. Kara also intended to rest but was instead beckoned by Oliver to join him, Sara, Ray, Diggle, and Barry in a mini-conference.
"I caught the end of your fight. She really made you work," Barry marveled.
"Yeah," Kara agreed. "I should find out more about that amulet."
"It's an ancient totem originating in Africa," Oliver explained. "A family heirloom, I think."
"How do you know that?" Kara asked. She looked at Sara and Ray. "I thought she was part of your crew."
"We met a descendant of hers," Barry explained, indicating himself and Oliver. "A granddaughter, I think. She has the same amulet."
Kara stared at Barry, then jerked her thumb behind her in the direction of the Waverider. "Amaya looks like she's in her twenties. How can she have a granddaughter?"
"Amaya joined our crew in 1942 when we time traveled there. She's not from this era," Sara explained.
"But, but," Kara struggled, "if she's here now, how can she also have a granddaughter now?"
"Um, it's easier if you don't think about it too much," Ray advised.
Kara blinked. And I'm the weird one for being an alien?
"The important point is that her powers are derived from magic," Oliver finished.
"Magic, huh?" Kara asked, thoughtfully. Almost subconsciously, her hand started rubbing her ear. Barry picked up on it immediately.
"What're you thinking?" he asked.
"Silver Banshee," she replied.
"Who?" Sara asked.
"When Barry came to my Earth," Kara began, "he helped me fight someone who called herself Silver Banshee. She had this, like, supernatural scream as her power."
"Oh yeah," Barry remembered. "It was so strong, it even made Kara's ears bleed."
"Yeah, and she didn't break her fist punching me in the face," Kara added ruefully.
"Sorry, I'm not following," Ray ventured, his eyes bouncing between Barry and Kara.
"We ended up capturing Silver Banshee," Kara said, "and in prison she's mentioned that her powers are derived from some ancient magical curse."
Oliver was quickest to see the point. "So you're saying aliens are weak against magic?"
"Maybe not weak, per se," Barry corrected. "I think it's just a matter of magic being so distinct that aliens have no special protection against it."
"So we need more magic users on our side. That's what you're saying," Sara finished. She looked around the group. "Any ideas?"
There was silence. "Ragman?" Diggle finally asked.
Oliver shook his head. "He's too inexperienced. Besides, I'd like to keep at least a few people guarding Star City."
"Could we bring in the present day Vixen?" Barry asked.
Ray shook his head. "I've done some research into Gideon's archives. Magical items seem to have a higher sensitivity to abnormal chronometric distortions."
"In English?" Diggle asked.
"If we bring past and future versions of the same magical amulet together, it'll be bad," Ray clarified.
More silence. Reluctantly, Oliver pulled out his phone. "Well, there's one other person we could try," he said, looking at Sara, who returned his gaze with some trepidation.
"Are we really that desperate? He still gives me the willies," Diggle complained.
"If it's a magic user we need, he's the obvious choice," Oliver said, pressing an entry on his phone.
"Wait, what's going on?" Kara asked. "Who're we calling?"
She found out after a few seconds of ringing, after which an English accent came up over Oliver's speaker: "Oi, this is John Constantine. If you feel you've reached this message in error then, sod off you lucky bastard. The rest of you, don't leave a number. And lock the door. Cheers!"
This was followed by an automated message: "We're sorry. This mailbox is full. Please try again later."
Kara could tell that Sara and Diggle were not sorry to pass on this mysterious individual, whoever he was, as Oliver hung up. "Looks like Amaya is our main magic user, then," Barry said.
"Looks that way," Oliver agreed. "For now, we'll keep Supergirl and Vixen on separate teams. If they're our best hope against the Dominators, we don't want them on the same mission just to leave us exposed elsewhere."
"And the Dominators don't seem all that into magic anyway, so Supergirl's still our invincible ace in the hole," Barry said, nudging Kara with his elbow. She rolled her eyes and lightly shoved back, only knocking him off balance for a few steps.
"Yes, but she's only one ace in the hole, while the Dominators have an army," Oliver declared as the group spotted Ray and Mick coming back into the hanger. "Break time's over. Back to training!"
Kara sighed and rolled her eyes at Barry as everyone, reluctantly, began gearing up again. "What did he shoot you with when he trained you?"
"That time, two arrows in the back."
"Owww," Kara winced. Then she paused. "Wait, that time? There were other times?!"
...
Author's note: Since this was touted as the big DCCW crossover, I wanted to give shoutouts to Vixen and Constantine, since they exist in that universe as well. Also, I always thought it was a wasted opportunity in Season 4 of Arrow, after having introduced Constantine, to not have an episode where Oliver is trying to call him and the audience just hears Constantine's voicemail message from that tv show's old marketing. Thus, I decided to use the message in this chapter. (I guess it belongs to the CW? Or maybe NBC still?)
[Deleted scene, cargo bay of the Waverider, after the end of the Arrow section of the crossover (Arrow 5x08, "Invasion!")]
She found him staring into space.
Wandering alone, he had found his way to the cargo bay and was sitting on a crate, staring out a small porthole in the corner, still dressed in the grey rags the Dominators had thrown over them as prisoners. Most people would assume they were witnessing a classic Oliver Queen brooding session, but Sara Lance was not most people. To her, he didn't seem self-pitying or sulking. If anything, he seemed reflective.
"Hey you," she said softly, hoping not to startle him too much, but when Oliver turned around, he wasn't remotely surprised. Apparently League of Assassin training was no match for spending years on a creepy island, having to be alert at all times. In his hands was a green bundle of cloth, leather, and military-grade Kevlar. It was his Green Arrow suit, faithfully reproduced by the Waverider's replicators. She herself had already changed back into her White Canary gear.
"Hey yourself," he said. Sara sat down next to him on the crate as he returned his gaze to the porthole, outside of which the stars were zooming by. Nate, with Gideon's help, was navigating the Waverider back to Earth as quickly as possible, but the Dominators had taken Oliver and the others far out enough that it would still be an hour before they got back to Central City, giving them a rare chance to recuperate a bit. Ray, relatively unscathed from their experience, was now speeding through the construction of yet another ATOM suit, having lost the last one when they were abducted. (Thank goodness for dwarf star alloy in the Wild West.) The rest of them…needed a little more time.
"How's Diggle?" Oliver asked, breaking the silence.
"Sleeping," she replied. "Gideon gave him something for the pain and says he'll be on his feet by the time we get back."
"Good. And Thea? I was trying to find her earlier after that meeting on the bridge."
"Resting in my room. She…she said she wanted to be alone for a while."
He nodded. "I guess not even a timeship can distract you for long after something like that."
She smirked humorlessly. "By 'that,' I assume you mean a shared dreamscape where everything is actually right in our lives and there's no more pain and loss?" she asked sarcastically.
Oliver sighed. "Yeah, that would be what I mean." He paused, then asked slowly, "When we get back to Earth, can we take her back to Star City first before meeting up with the others? She's had enough."
Sara didn't quite like the idea of sidelining one of their own with a showdown against the Dominators still looming, but she wasn't about to turn down a big brother's request. "Consider it done," she said. She noticed Oliver's hands running over the hood of his gear, seemingly admiring the detail with which the Waverider duplicated it, but the faraway look in his eyes suggested he wasn't really paying attention.
"You know, that dreamscape was meant for you."
Oliver eyed her warily. "What do you mean?"
"I talked to everyone. Thea's first memory is sitting with you to give you a wedding gift. Dig's first memory is swinging in as the Hood to save you and your dad. As for me and Ray, our first memories are both seeing Laurel, your fiancé. The rest of us were there to fill out your perfect life."
Oliver nodded slightly in agreement. He seemed to have reached the same conclusion. "Why would the Dominators choose me?"
"I think," Sara said, slowly, "that they were betting on you being the most willing to trade in your current life for a new one."
Oliver lowered his eyes to the green bundle in his lap, his hands still kneading the hood inch by inch.
"How close were you?" Sara asked. "To staying like Thea wanted to?"
Oliver's eyes flicked up to meet Sara's. It was all the answer he needed to give. "I see," Sara replied, softly.
They both turned their heads back to the porthole, gazing into the vastness of space for a little while.
"I didn't think I'd question my decision to leave," Oliver began. "The memory flashes kept coming, especially once you, Dig, and I started to realize something was wrong."
Sara nodded. The sensation of three arrows in her gut, and the rush of air past her ears as she fell off a rooftop, had been a particularly jarring recovered memory.
"My parents, they…they tried to convince me to accept the life I had been given. I walked away."
A pause.
"Thea tried to convince me that we weren't needed in our real lives anymore. I walked away."
A breath.
"But Laurel…at the end, she didn't do any of that. She didn't. All she did was beg me not to go." Oliver looked back down at his hands, still examining the hood. "And I…I…"
"Almost didn't come with us," Sara finished gently. She didn't need Oliver's silence to know she was right. However flawed that dreamscape had been, in the moment it truly did feel like they had all been with their loved ones again, and it had been one of the hardest efforts of Sara's life to look at Laurel, look at her sister, alive and well before her eyes, and hug her goodbye. She couldn't imagine what it had cost Oliver to leave everything behind.
"Sitting here, looking back on it now," Oliver said, "I think in my head, I realized it was all a cheat. That there are still so many wrongs I need to right before I can be that happy. Too many demons left to face," he finished with a sigh.
Sara leaned back on her hands. "How'd you come up with all that?"
In answer, Oliver lifted his hands, holding up the green cloth. At first, Sara didn't understand. The hood? Why…?
Oh.
Oliver smiled sadly as he read Sara's sinking expression. "The Waverider did a good job, but you and I both know this isn't Shado's hood anymore. Not really."
The words didn't exist that could adequately explain Shado's importance to her, Oliver, and the trajectory both of their lives had taken since she had entered, and exited, their lives. No duplicate, however intricate, carried the emotional weight of that hood. "I'm sorry, Ollie," she began, putting her hand on his forearm for a moment. Oliver shook his head.
"It's not your fault," he assured her. "And in fact, this has just reminded me that the legacies of everyone I've lost continue as long as I'm breathing. Not in some family mansion. Not in a green hood. They made me into who I am now, and to respect the lives they led, I have to keep doing what I think is right."
Sara stared at Oliver for a moment, then gave a small, incredulous smile as she leaned over, bumping him softly with her shoulder. "This from the rich playboy who peed on a cop?"
Oliver smiled, a small miracle only a select few could achieve. "Sometimes, I think you know me a little too well."
"Hate to remind you, Ollie," Sara said, "but that was in the papers. Everyone knows that."
Oliver chuckled. "True," he conceded, "but somehow you know the right time to say the right things to me."
Sara tilted her head from side to side, not disagreeing. "I guess I'm just that special." When Oliver didn't reply, Sara glanced at him to see him looking at her. "What?"
Oliver shook his head, still smiling. "I haven't seen this side of you in a long time, Sara." By "in a long time," she knew he meant "since before Lian Yu."
She shrugged. "A lot has changed since then."
He sighed in agreement. "No kidding." They lapsed into silence.
Nothing could make them forget the massive fight that awaited them back on Earth, but between mirakuru soliders, magic, time travel, and aliens, they had experienced too much, both individually and together, to not be mindful of the chances they were given in life. Sara and Oliver thus turned their heads back to the porthole and watched the stars again, determined to appreciate this small window of peace.
/end
Thanks for reading, everyone.
Category:Crossovers