A/N: Starting a new story as TQM wraps up (still a few chapters to go!) Couldn't get this idea out of my head. This won't be a massive story, or anything, roughly ten chapters or so.

"We don't have to do this," Kara spoke.

The other figure turned around from her work on the server. Kara braced for an attack, but the villain only sighed. "Technically, we don't. But I need this data, and I don't believe you're going to just let me walk away."

"No."

Kara supposed it had been inevitable. It had been two years since Lex Luthor had challenged Superman on the streets of Metropolis. Two years, since Lex, facing defeat, had triggered a kryptonite explosion that killed himself, Kara's cousin, and fifty civilians. Two years since Supergirl had appeared to take the place of Earth's champion.

Lena Luthor hadn't been a major concern, at first. She'd cooperated with investigators, disavowed her brother's actions, and taken her place as the new owner and CEO of LuthorCorp. It hadn't been long before she renamed the company, reversed her brother's ban on alien employment, and ended its military contracts.

Kara had never met her. Supergirl had made National City her base of operations, and Lena Luthor had continued to reside in Metropolis. Still, Kara had taken a passive interest in the young CEO. While her friends viewed the Luthor as a possible threat, Kara couldn't help but admire her as she spearheaded her company's environmental and anti-poverty initiatives.

Until six months ago.

A new villain had arrived on the scene. Wearing a heavily upgraded version of Lex's exosuit, the figure had quickly become infamous throughout the world. Governments and corporations on every continent had been targeted, losing technology, data, and blueprints in quick and decisive heists. Dozems of political figures, military leaders, and powerful executives had been abducted and subsequently disappeared. Many inmates, all with potentially useful abilities, had been freed from the most secure prisons on Earth.

The press had, for some reason, dubbed this figure Vanity. None of the world's scattered superheroes had yet been quick enough to confront her in battle, much less actually arrest her.

Lena Luthor had never been officially connected to any of Vanity's crimes. Time and again, agencies investigating her came up empty. Every time Vanity showed herself in public, Lena had an alibi. She denied every charge against her smoothly and competently, and no charges against her had managed to stick.

Yet the evidence was overwhelming all the same. Every time a corporation went down in flames, L-Corp was ready and poised to take advantage. Data that had been stolen from governments and cutting-edge firms constantly resurfaced as projects from L-Corp's R&D division. And there hadn't been a single person Vanity had targeted for 'disappearance' who was not, in some way, an obstacle to Lena Luthor's interests.

In six months, L-Corp had established a virtual monopoly on most of the world's technology markets and was rapidly expanding into other fields. Lena Luthor now stood unrivaled at the top of the Forbes list. Even those who distrusted her- or hated her- had no choice but to do business with L-Corp if they didn't want to see their fortunes crumble.

Kara hadn't wanted to believe it. Lena Luthor had seemed to be one of humanity's bright spots, a badly needed beacon of light in a struggling world. Her initiatives had aided both humans and aliens alike, even as her brother's old supporters labeled her a traitor to everything Lex had stood for. Lena had been living proof that a person's last name did not determine their destiny.

Until Vanity had arrived on the scene. Using Lex's technology. Matching the height and build of a certain CEO. And doing everything in her power to make the world a better place for Lena Luthor.

And Lena's Luthor's denials, though legally insurmountable, never seemed as impassioned as they should have been from an innocent woman constantly accused of world-spanning crimes.

A month ago, Lena had stunned the world by announcing that she was relocating to National City. Three weeks later, she was officially settled in, with National City's L-Corp building now serving as the company's worldwide headquarters.

None of Kara's friends thought that it was a coincidence that she had just taken up residence in the home of the last Super.

Today, Vanity had broken into Lord Technologies with the same speed and precision as every other attack. Kara, perhaps the world's fastest hero, had been on the scene within a minute.

The figure in front of her was clearly feminine, even as she was clad from head to toe in a sleek black exosuit. Kara had seen the footage. Unlike Lex's battle suit, Vanity's was entirely nanotech. Kara automatically used her x-ray vision, but it couldn't pierce through the nanites. Apparently, they could copy the properties of lead.

Yet that was as much proof of Vanity's identity as Lena Luthor's visage. Only Lex had known of that particular weakness of Kryptonians; even Cadmus hadn't yet discovered the way to block Kara's x-ray vision. Lena Luthor had inherited all of her brother's notes, and (contrary to her claims) it appeared that she hadn't turned some of them over to the government's investigators.

Vanity stood before her, waiting for Kara to make the first move.

Kara obliged her, charging forward with a punch aimed at the villain's midsection. Vanity dodged to the side, responding with a backhand that landed above Kara's eyes.

WHAM!

Supergirl was actually staggered by the blow. Clearly, the footage hadn't done Vanity's suit justice. She was far stronger than Lex had ever been.

But Kara was Supergirl.

Vanity dodged Kara's uppercut and sidestepped a kick to her midsection, but a second punch caught her clean on the chin. The villain was launched several feet through the air; she crashed into a server, no doubt costing Lord thousands in property damage.

Faster than Kara had expected, Vanity was back on her feet.

Supergirl lashed out with her heat vision. A shield of nanites sprouted from Vanity's arm, deflecting the blue beams. The villain charged forward, bashing her shield at Kara's chest.

Kara dodged to the side- only to realize that was exactly what Vanity had expected. The villain had pivoted, arcing her foot into the air. Supergirl had just enough time to perceive that Vanity's foot had shifted into the shape of a sledgehammer before the blow connected with her forehead.

She staggered back, disoriented. Her eyes opened just in time to see the villain's palms sprayed out in her direction, each now boasting a small, ominous circle at the center.

Palm blasters. Kara's heart filled with dread. Lex' suit had possessed the same ability. The kryptonite beams had nearly killed her cousin more than once.

Yet the twin beams that now fired at Kara weren't the sickly green color of kryptonite. Two red blasts struck Kara dead in the chest.

For a moment, Supergirl was stunned. There was no pain. The beams barely even pushed her back. She dashed forward at the villain- only to find her speed virtually halved.

Vanity easily flipped over Kara's clumsy charge. By the time Supergirl had turned around, another two red beams had been launched in her direction.

What is this? Kara could feel it now- her strength was draining away. Vanity was now firing the beams in a continuous stream. The hero tried to move forward, but immediately discovered that she now lacked the strength to overpower the concussive force of the blasts.

Her vision now nearly blinded by the beams, Kara just noticed two small nanite compartments rise from Vanity's wrists. Then something was spinning through the air towards her- something black.

A coil of metallic, black ropes wrapped around Kara, encasing her arms and legs in an unbreakable embrace. As the beams of red finally vanished, Supergirl slumped onto her knees and fell forward. Her forehead hit the ground in a painful collision.

What had the Luthor done? Those red beams, whatever they were, had drained her to the point that she felt no stronger than a typical human. Kara desperately struggled against the ropes, but it was hopeless.

Kara knew what to expect now: a kryptonite blade in her back. Suddenly, she was terrified. What would happen to world with no Super to defend it- a world at the mercy of a Luthor? What would happen to her sister? James? Winn?

A tear slipped onto the floor. She wasn't ready to die. Not when she had so much left to live for. There was so much good she still could have done…so much of Earth she had yet to experience. But as soft, metallic footsteps approached her, all Kara could do was brace for the end.

Kara felt herself tugged upwards as a hand seized the back of her ropes. Too stunned to react, Supergirl found herself taken off the floor and deposited against one of the walls. She tried to leap to her feet, but the ropes were bound far too tightly for any real movement.

Vanity went back to the main server, untouched by their battle, and resumed downloading whatever data she needed. A thin nanite port was protruding from her arm, interfacing with the server and overpowering any firewalls Lord had set up as a defense.

Seemingly satisfied, the villain turned away from the server and faced Kara.

"Those will dissolve in eight minutes," she indicated the ropes. "Your powers should be back in twenty." Vanity's voice was filtered by her suit, and legally distinguishable from Lena Luthor's. But Kara's advanced hearing- not entirely gone- could tell they were one and the same.

"You're not going to kill me?" Kara demanded angrily. "Don't you want to finish what your brother started?"

Supergirl still couldn't see the Luthor's face, but she could tell it had tensed with anger. "I have no desire to hurt you, Supergirl. But I can't let you stop me. Every time you'll try, this will be the result," she jerked her head at the bound and powerless hero.

"I know who you are, now, without a doubt," Kara shot back. "I can't prove it, but I know. I'd hoped it wasn't true. After all the good you've done, proving a human could be more than a last name, I didn't want to believe it. Yet here you are, just another supervillain hiding behind a mask."

The villain's hand lifted into the air. A concussive blast issued from her palm, knocking out the room's last security camera. Then the nanites on her face retracted.

Lena Luthor stood before her. Kara couldn't help but notice that even with her face sweaty and her hair a mess, she was quite an attractive woman. She had seen pictures of the Luthor at her best, of course, but the hero got the feeling that they didn't quite do her justice.

"As I said, I'm not my brother," the villain stated, allowing the nanites to cover her face once again. "Do you honestly think you'd still be breathing if I was?"

The Luthor turned away. Twin jets of flame sprouted from her feet, and within a second she was flying out the window. Looking out at the city, Kara couldn't help but be impressed with her speed.

She could hear footsteps thundering towards her; security was no doubt gathering its courage now that the Luthor was gone. Sighing, Kara braced herself to explain that a villain had finally got the better of her.

\

"Kara, turn off the TV," Alex demanded. "You know how this works; the networks want their story. Do you think anyone really cares that Lord got some of his blueprints stolen?"

The hero bit her teeth into yet another potsticker. She, Alex, Winn, and James were sitting together in Kara's apartment, processing the aftermath of the day's events.

Kara and James shared a silent glance. Both having worked at CatCo for years, they had a better understanding of how the media worked than the others did. People might not care that Lord had lost some data, but they certainly wouldn't be happy to see that their hero had been defeated by a villain who seemed unstoppable.

They'd begin to doubt Supergirl. And the world's fear of Vanity would only increase.

"I still don't understand what she wants," Winn mused. "Obviously, her goal isn't to destroy the last Super, and she hasn't made any moves against aliens. Does she just want more money?"

Kara almost hoped that was the case. If Lena Luthor had been connected with Cadmus, Supergirl would be in a holding cell right now having her DNA extracted for unthinkable experiments. Yet somehow, she didn't think greed was the Luthor's motivation.

"Any chance the DEO knows something?" Kara asked.

Alex scoffed. "They're too busy monitoring aliens. That's all Henshaw cares about. He'd arrest you if the President would give him the go ahead. Face it, Kara, we're on our own with this. I would still be one of their agents if I thought they did any good."

"So what do we do?" Winn asked.

Kara shrugged. "We don't have any evidence against her. Next time she shows up in that suit, I'll have to catch her. Now that I know to dodge those red beams…whatever they are."

"I'll do some research," the tech wizard promised.

James was quiet. Kara knew he was thinking back to the last time a Super and a Luthor had clashed.

"James," Kara began, "Don't worry. We will stop her. And I don't think she's as dangerous as her brother. If she wanted me dead, I would be."

The photographer rounded on her. "You can't be sure of that!" he reminded her. "There's no telling with Luthors. Maybe she left you alive because she has plans for you; Lex tried to use Clark as a pawn more than once. If anything, she seems even smarter than he was, and you always try to see the best in people. I just- I worry about you."

Kara smiled at him. Even if dating hadn't worked out between them, James remained one of her closest friends. She'd depended on him a lot over the years, especially since he had in depth knowledge of how Clark had operated. Without advice from him and Lois, Kara doubted she would have gotten far in the heroism game.

"I'll be fine," she assured him. "I won't see her again until she makes her next move. Based on her pattern, we have a few days at least. Plenty of time to figure out what she's capable of and how to stop her."

\

"Danvers!"

Struggling to keep her smile in place, Kara hurried into Snapper's office. Ever since Cat Grant's recent departure, Snapper had wasted no time making clear that he doubted Kara's ability to be a reporter. He was forced to keep her on in accordance with Cat's wishes- as James frequently reminded him- but that didn't stop the man from making Kara's life difficult.

She marched into his office. "Yes?"

"You're going to LuthorCorp. Lena Luthor's granted us an exclusive interview and I'm sending you. Stick to her plans for the company and her reasons for relocating to National City. No conspiracy theories," he warned.

"What?!" Kara sputtered.

Snapper glared at her. "You wanted to be a reporter; now we see if you have what it takes. If you don't like it, go home."

She was being sent to interview Lena Luthor? It had to be Catco's hottest scoop within months. Any of their reporters would have killed to have this chance. And Kara would gladly hand it over to them.

"Why me?" she managed.

Snapper rolled his eyes. "Ever heard of 'trial by fire'? Do this well and you can take a break from puff pieces. Besides, you're a woman of her age. Should find it easy to relate to her. Go."

\

The entire way to L-Corp, Kara's mind was racing. Was Snapper hoping she'd fail so he finally had an excuse to get rid of her? Did he consider her so expendable that he was sending her in case the Luthor was planning some terrorist plot? Or did he actually want to test her abilities as a reporter? None of the explanations seemed quite right to her.

In desperation, she called her sister.

"Alex!" she blurted out. "I'm on my way to L-Corp. Snapper's making me interview Lena Luthor for an exclusive! What do I do? What if she realizes who I am? She's-she's already seen Supergirl! What if-?"

"Kara!" Alex's voice interjected. A pause. "You can handle this. Just…just don't panic. Remember, Lex never found out who Clark was. That's how the Luthors work; they're so arrogant they could never imagine someone with your power working a day job. You haven't been caught yet." Alex took a deep breath. "Why is Snapper sending you, anyway?"

Kara shook her head, even though her sister couldn't see her. "No idea! But I'm not sure about this. I'm not allowed to ask her any questions about Vanity, aside from getting her general reaction. What if I slip up? I'm pretty sure Cat found out."

"You worked with Cat for over a year; this interview can't be more than an hour, and after that Lena Luthor will never see Kara Danvers again," Alex replied. "You've done far tougher things than this."

Kara wasn't so sure.

\

"Kara Danvers. Here for an interview with Ms. Luthor?"

The secretary at the front desk stared at her ID. "Fine," the woman said curtly, handing it back along with an elevator pass. "That card will get you to the top floor. Speak with Ms. Luthor's secretary." With that, the woman returned to her computer screen.

The reporter nodded. She made her way to the elevators, glancing back at the metal detectors situated at the entrance. L-Corp had stricter security than any corporate building she'd ever seen. The design of those metal detectors led Kara to seriously doubt they were checking only for metal.

She stepped into the elevator, ran the card over the scanner, and hit the button to the CEO's floor. Kara took a deep breath as the elevator rose rapidly. She could do this. She was Supergirl.