#padawanton

Or rather, for him- though since he’s been unusually elusive since after she came back from Fort Rozz, she may have to settle for asking his Legion compatriots instead.

Nonetheless, she remains curious about Brainiac 5, even several months after their first meeting.

To begin with, she hadn’t been sure at the time that he was real- as she was growing up on Krypton, she most often saw Coluans projected from the computers they inhabited, in the form of holograms. She’d expected, when she reached for his arm to pull him inside of her mind-prison, that her hand would pass right through him, but it hadn’t. And once she realized that, she questioned it as well but thought it would be rude to ask, given that such a question would harken back to a difficult time for both their planets.

There were many moments like that, many times when she wanted to ask him something but he was just out of sight, busy with something that required him to be away from the DEO or away with Imra for some purpose he couldn’t explain. And when he was there, both of them were busy, leaving little time for any personal conversations, if any at all. And then, once Brainy had fulfilled his purpose in her century, he’d left, taking all of Kara’s missed chances with him.

So it was no wonder that when time finally caught up with them, allowed for an opportunity for Kara to ask any question she wished, it was a month after Reign’s defeat.

And, accordingly, a month after Brainy returned to the twenty-first century- this time not of his own volition.

“You’re not wearing your image inducer.”

Querl turned from the balcony, away from the city- which, for a moment, he had almost imagined as the city he’d called home for the past seven years- and towards Kara, who he really should have heard landing.

“I hadn’t noticed.” He said. “I was not planning on going anywhere, so there was no reason to hide my face.”

Kara nodded, looking out at the city herself.

“I’m sorry you have to do that.” She said. “I… should have done something. Gone with you, to that store, or asked Alex or someone to do the same thing. This century is supposed to be a safe place for you, away from your ancestor. You shouldn’t feel unsafe because of its people.”

“It is alright, Kara.” He tried to reassure her, though his mind was too full of memories of other riots he’d caused to put much effort into it. “You had faith that your city’s residents would treat me better. I’m only sorry that they did not live up to such trust.”

“So am I.” she answered. “The next time you’re ready for a grocery store shopping trip, though, let me know. I’ll be there- or, if you’re not comfortable with that, I can always bring your groceries here. Alex has a fridge I’m sure she’d let you use.”

“I appreciate that.” Querl said. “Thank you.”

“No problem.” Kara answered. “Can I… ask you a question? After the one I just said, I mean.”

“Of course.”

Kara paused, figuring out how to phrase it.

“Why did you call yourself Brainiac 5?” she finally said. “Why did you choose that as your superhero name?”

Querl stared at her, and as though he was expecting the answer, said “Why did you choose Supergirl?”

“I didn’t.” Kara answered, almost automatically. “Not when Cat Grant was ready to give me a name, after she realized National City finally had its own superhero.”

“When you saved your sister.” Querl recalled. “And the rest of the people on the plane.”

“Yeah.” Kara told him. “I… I didn’t know if I could, at first. I’d used my powers a lot when I first came to Earth. I was… a little careless. I wanted Alex to see what I could do, to show her that I was just like my cousin.”

“And you wanted to help people.” He answered. “You always had the heart of a hero.”

Kara smiled.

“I did.” She said. “But it got me in trouble. Jeremiah and Eliza always told me there were people who didn’t trust people like Kal and I- and that was why Kal called himself Clark Kent, to protect himself. It was why Jeremiah gave me my glasses, to keep my identity a secret too. And it was why…”

She paused again.

“Why Jeremiah was taken away to the DEO, to protect me. After that, I was a lot more cautious. I still wanted to be super, but that could wait- and it did, until I saw the plane, and I knew. It was my moment, and I haven’t looked back since.”

“Even though you have faced so much adversity?” Querl asked. “Your own aunt and uncle, my relative, the rulers of Daxam, Reign and the Worldkillers and so many others…”

“Yes.” Kara said. “And somewhere in that time, I realized that I did choose Supergirl. It’s a name I’m proud of now, when at the beginning I was embarrassed about it, cringed whenever I heard it on the news or saw it on magazines.”

“And you also chose to embrace your family’s legacy.” Querl finished. “Making a name for yourself, both tied to Kal-El and to accomplishments outside of simply being his cousin.”

“Exactly.” She said. “I’m guessing that it wasn’t the same way for you, though.”

Querl nodded, looking slightly embarrassed.

“My apologies, for not answering your question.” He said. “However, you are correct- but like you, I have also lived under my family’s legacy for as long as I can remember. Unfortunately… when I was young, I did choose it.”

Kara stayed quiet, nearly reaching for his hand.

“All I once wanted was to be like my mother.” He continued. “I strove to claim my own Brainiac title, to have a roomful of planets and their knowledge at my disposal, a library of worlds all for myself. She was so distant, so cold, even in my earliest memories. And I thought… if I could make her proud, become who she wanted me to be, she would love me.”

Querl twisted his ring around, looking down at the ground below before looking at Kara once again.

“It did not work.” He said. “And that is a great understatement. I tried, I didn’t think I was doing anything wrong, but eventually- in more ways than one, it took longer than I’d like to admit- I saw the error of my ways- and of hers. She didn’t take that well, as you can imagine.”

“I can.” She said, but he didn’t elaborate. Instead, he said, “It was because of you.”

“What?”

“That I chose my superhero name.” he continued. “When I joined the Legion, at first I thought they were not serious. That they would never truly want to take me on, have me among their ranks. I was, after all, a Brainiac. But one day changed all that.”

“What happened?”

“I visited a museum, that featured figures of the past.” He said. “And one of them was you- was Supergirl. I read about your history, how you stood for hope, help, and compassion for all. The same words that Mon-El mentioned he and the Legion stood for, when he first approached me. I realized that, if you were genuine in those ideals, he must be too. And if he could have those things for me… I could believe them for myself.”

“And you do.”

“And I do.” He echoed, turning to her, smiling. “You're constantly giving me hope. I can see hope for myself through you, and I've never felt this way before. That's why I'm here. Before every Legion member puts on his vestments, he must have a call sign. Or she, or they, as the case may be. I had not yet chosen mine, but right then, I realized that I had- I would still be Brainiac 5, but what that name stood for would be different. Unlike my family, I would be a hero. A Legionnaire, someone worth looking up to in the face of adversity. And I’ve never regretted such a choice.”

Kara smiled.

“I’m glad you haven’t.” she said. “You know, you and Winn have a lot in common. I bet he’s in the future reinventing his own family’s legacy right now, helping your team fight your relative.”

“I hope so as well.” Querl answered. “And I trust he’ll return to show us that.”

He shouldn’t have- right now, knowing the things he did, he should have called Kara or Alex, or whoever, and told them everything. Let them decide what to do with that information- whether they wanted to keep inviting Brainy to game nights or not, and based on their attitudes about Lex, he was definitely guessing the latter. And given how their conversation had gone, he should have- he didn’t know. Gotten back at Brainy, hurt him in some way or another that could compare to how Brainy hurt him.

(And we shouldn’t even be friends in the first place, some part of Winn that sounded uncomfortably like his father reminded him. He hated you, when we first met. He looked down on you and your technology so much that it took him months to so much as admit we had something good to offer to the world. How could you stand to be around someone like that?)

But, looking at Brainy now, at the tears that had just fallen down his face, and thinking about his and Kara’s conversation from earlier- how he forgave her despite all the dangerous situations she’d put him in just by being around her- made him pause.

Because Brainy would protect him too, working with Lex Luthor or not, and Winn had literally signed up for Brainy’s former position in the Legion. So of course danger was in the job description, and of course Winn would forgive both of his super-friends for what they’d brought him into.

“I… have work to do.” Querl answered. “But… could you stay, for just a little bit longer?”

Winn felt himself nodding in agreement even before the words came out.

“Sure.” He said, and Brainy smiled again as he stepped closer, gripping his arm.

“I apologize, if that was too forward.” Brainy continued, looking him in the eyes, studying Winn’s new uniform- that bore a significant resemblance to his own first costume, long ago. “I… I missed you, as well. And I’m sorry I didn’t get to say it earlier.”

Winn smiled back at him, reaching into his pocket.

“Well, if you’d said it just a few minutes earlier, I would have gotten out this little container of Coluan dirt-“ he said, drawing it out and presenting it to him- “and smashed it over your head or something, because obviously that would’ve been a load of crap. So, I’m glad you waited.”

“So am I.” Brainy said, taking the dirt and placing it on his desk. “Thank you. I don’t have anything to give you in return right now, but hopefully…”

He shook his head, and opened his arms slightly- and Winn got the hint, as he embraced Brainy in return, the two of them much closer now in position than their first disaster of a hug.

“Yeah. That works.” Winn answered.

“I almost didn’t believe I’d get the chance to do that again.” Brainy confessed, once they were apart. “I had many nightmares, if you can believe it. I saw your operation failing countless times, my relative ending your life in ways I cannot even begin to describe.”

“You don’t have to, I get it.”

Brainy nodded.

“I supposed you wouldn’t.”

“Besides, I almost lived through way too many of those, I’m sure.” Winn said, reaching for Brainy’s hand, and Brainy let it be held as they came close again. “But I’m still here, Querl. I’ll help you with whatever you need, before I go home. I promise.”

“Thank you.” Brainy answered, looking at his face again. “I truly mean that. But I just have one question.”

“Anything.”

“Why did you wear a mask, earlier? Over your eyes, I mean.”

Winn laughed, allowing himself to relax.

“I don’t really wear it in the future.” He said. “I did at the beginning, until your friends started laughing at me for it, and Ayla helpfully explained that none of you guys really had secret identities. But in the present day, it was definitely needed- I didn’t want anyone to think I was the other Toyman, you know?”

“Of course.” Brainy said. “I… considered wearing one of my own when I became a Legionnaire, to conceal my Brainiac heritage.”

“Given your name, I guess that was kind of pointless.”

“Indeed. And that reminds me- I did not get a chance to show you…”

He deactivated his image inducer, and Winn stared as he looked at Brainy’s true form.

“Wow.” Was all he could say, examining Brainy this time- the blond hair and bright green skin, the purple uniform hiding beneath his DEO clothes with what he knew were three bright white Coluan life projectors on his chest.

“If this is what you’d always looked like, maybe I would have reconsidered some of what I thought about you, when we first met.” Winn joked. “Probably would’ve thought the same things as before once you opened your mouth, though.”

“I know.” Brainy said. “And I would have said the same things to you. So it’s nice to see that humans never change, really.”

“This one human, in particular.” Winn specified. “Yeah. And speaking of other humans, I really have to get going. You’re okay here?”

“I will be.”

“That’s good to hear.” Winn said, miming a zipping of his lips, that Querl knew meant he’d keep his secret. “We’ll talk again later, okay? I want to hear all about your new look.”

“I look forward to it.” Querl answered as he sat back down.

Perhaps it would be as difficult as he now saw, working with Lex Luthor, letting his friends think that his alignment with such a villain was an indication to Querl’s own morality, or lack thereof. Perhaps there was a chance that, after the inhibitors had just been removed, his father’s worst fears would indeed be realized.

But… there was also Kara, and Winn, how they’d reassured him he was good, and forgiven him despite him causing them almost unforgivable pain.

Through them, he could see hope that everyone else would forgive him too.

Even before he was hired full-time- when Alex had first pulled him from Catco to figure out a way to shut Indigo down, he imagined himself failing. Pictured who he soon figured out to be Brainiac 8 choking him again, and this time it would be permanent, as he was seconds away from finishing the malware he was trying to use against her.

And, in reality, that had almost happened. But he’d succeeded, and Kara had stopped the missiles Indigo had launched toward the city, and everything was okay.

That alone had given him a confidence boost- combined with everything else they’d done together, finding themselves becoming a natural team. It was only the next step to leave Catco behind, and he hadn’t had any regrets about it. Besides, it wasn’t that far away, he could visit any time.

But this? Leaving any recognizable places behind, only knowing a couple of people?

It was almost unthinkable, if he hadn’t found himself agreeing to it already. If Mon-El and Imra hadn’t told him they knew he could do it, given what he’d done with another virus, to another Brainiac.

And really, as much as he’d disagreed with Brainy before, it had always been kind of fun to have a challenge, someone to rival him. Knowing what he did about Brainy’s family… there was no way he could’ve said no.

If it was his dad causing so much chaos and pain, making sure somehow that he wasn’t able to stop it, he would’ve hoped someone would be there in his place.

But what about the other side of this equation? Brainy being in his place, staying here, unable to know anything of what was happening in his own time? Not knowing how his arrival could impact the present day, or the future?

For him, it must be just as bad. And though Brainy might have some idea of what Supergirl and the others will face soon, Winn doesn’t- and he’s thinking of that, all those possibilities, as the hours tick down to his departure.

“I can’t protect you.” Winn finds himself saying, when they end up coming face to face with one another again. Brainy’s eyes lower, and he takes something out of one of his pockets, before placing it in Winn’s hand.

“Then let me protect you.” Brainy answers. “I… it’s one of my very first inventions, and it has served me well-“

He hesitates, and Winn wonders what kind of story could be behind that, before he continues.

“It has served me well.” He states again. “I call it a forcefield belt- it does as the name implies. It should protect you in most combat situations.”

“Most?”

“Mon-El or Imra could tell you of its weakness. But that scenario is unlikely.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive.” Brainy says. “I know that my first gift to you was…”

“Deceptive?” Winn finishes, thinking of his reaction when he found the bug. He’d been so excited, to expand his dirt collection all the way to the thirty-first century, but seeing that Brainy had had an ulterior motive had lowered his opinion of it significantly.

Not enough to throw it away, of course. But he had kept his distance from it since then.

(He wasn’t going to think about the hug that was almost something else)

“Perhaps.” Brainy concedes. “But this one has no secrets. I want you to be safe, and come home to your friends- your family.”

“And I’m going to make sure you come home to yours too.” Winn answers, putting the belt in his own pocket before holding his arms out to Brainy.

Brainy gets the message, and as they hug, Winn’s thinking of things he could give to him, either now or (hopefully) when he gets back.

(he doesn’t even know if he wants to call him Brainy now. Because Brainiac 5, a superhero who’s smarter than him in every possible way, just charged him with a mission that’s more important than anything he’s ever done before. More, even, than the DEO- more terrifying than going to another planet for the first time, or being the man in the van for James, or seeing his best friend plummet backwards off the Catco roof before she told him she saved a plane.

Winn, if he chooses to accept it, is going to the future. Something beyond his wildest dreams, that he can’t picture right now- to replace someone who, again, is better than him. And, for that matter, having to sacrifice more. He can’t say no, not if it means keeping him safe, making sure that he has some place to go home to eventually.

And knowing his own capabilities, it’ll take him a long time to even attempt curing the AI plague)

(But at the same time… there’s still a selfish part of him, that doesn’t want to give all this up. And a part of him that’ll miss Brainy, that will want him around when he’s in the future.

However.

Winn thinks back to the last time they had to say goodbye to each other, what Brainy said and did in those moments, and realizes Brainy’s probably going to miss him too.

Which is, if also weird, pretty nice.)

“What were you trying to do?” Winn says.

Brainy, still there, now with his image inducer off- and looking down at the table in the conference room like he’s trying to memorize every part of its surface- looks up at him, startled.

“You’ll have to be more specific.”

“When you left, the first time.” Winn answers, holding his hands out, like Brainy’s in front of him and he’s about to take hold of his face.

“Well, first of all, I wanted to give you a gift.” Brainy says. “My intention was quite clear- don’t tell me you’ve forgotten.”

“Don’t get smart with me.” Winn tells him, almost as a warning, even though he doesn’t mean it anymore.

Brainy still frowns, but sees his smile, and returns it with one of his own.

“But you make it so easy.” He says. “Regardless… I suppose it was to celebrate how we were no longer rivals. I grew fond of you- and Supergirl, and the others. Even when you did or said things I could not understand.”

“Yeah, we’re like that sometimes. But to be fair, you did those kinds of things too.”

“Oh?”

Winn nods.

“Yeah- like trying to grab my face, for instance. Did you really think that was how we hug, in this time?”

Brainy shakes his head.

“No- however, for that, you did misread my intentions. Would you like me to show you what I meant to do, before I was interrupted?”

Winn isn’t afraid anymore- of Brainy, or the potential of his hands around his face.

(That fear resurfacing when he gets to Colu, however, is entirely possible.)

But he doesn’t think about it now, when Brainy walks over to Winn, and places his hands on his shoulders, as he gently kisses his forehead.

“Oh.”

Brainy pulls back, and smiles.

“Do you understand now?”

All she remembers is moving here, into this town- working alongside her second cousin, Jordan Kent, as well as William Queen, the son of one of her mom’s friends. The three of them, as a team, were trying to stay inconspicuous, making sure that the people in the town were unaware that Brainiac 6, the second Superman, and the second Overwatch were in their midst.

Of course, there wasn’t really much going on in the town, and really only one of them would have been necessary to protect it. But Alexa didn’t want to be alone, and William and Jordan were like brothers to her, so they agreed to stay with her while she adjusted.

Soon enough, though… things started to go wrong.

Whether it was comedic misunderstandings, or Jordan accidentally being exposed to some kind of Kryptonite before they were supposed to volunteer at a talent show together- or something truly weird, like someone in a beekeeper suit emerging from the middle of the street, or everything but a toy helicopter being in black and white until it all turned to color instantly- they happened, and even if they couldn’t be fought directly, the three of them were still on guard, waiting to figure out more about what was happening.

After all, of their generation, they were three of the most intelligent superheroes in training. If anyone could figure things out, it was them. They just needed information.

And they had started to piece together what they knew. Anything out of the ordinary that each of them had noticed, they’d written down… but really, there was no rush. This was their home, and they were children of superheroes- weird things followed them regardless of wherever they went. The unexpected was practically expected.

Still, however, none of them had expected the twins.

They’d appeared on the doorstep of Alexa’s house, and when asked, they said their parents were Clark Kent and Lois Lane. Jordan had perked up at that, and shown the two girls a picture of his parents- but they weren’t familiar with them.

(William reminded him that, even if it had been hidden at first, there were still other universes- and in their specific universe, Clark and Lois could have any number of appearances. But he remained discouraged, and was equally curious about their true appearances)

According to them, however, their father had given up his powers- and seeing as how they had just seemed to exhibit powers of their own, they needed training. Which was how they’d found Alexa’s house.

(Alexa didn’t question how they knew her, if they were from another universe- she only assumed that they knew her father, or another version of her father- or even knew that her cousin was in this town, going by what was once their father’s alias, and left it at that)

Of course, when they were starting to train, one of their next-door neighbors had to come along- and Alexa had just managed to get William and Jordan out of sight when Kenny came in, needing something with which to repair his house.

(Due to an accident which, she assumed, the twins had caused with their heat vision.)

“I didn’t know you had twins.” He commented, watching the two of them work on crafts together, sitting on the floor of Alexa’s living room.

“Yeah, I… adopted.” She said- knowing that she wasn’t yet old enough to do so, but hoping that he wouldn’t know. “Temporarily. They’re my mom’s cousin’s kids, I’m just watching them for a weekend.”

“I see.” He said.

Alexa looked over at them, smiling wistfully.

“I was a twin.” She admitted, turning back to Kenny. “I had a sister- her name was Astra.”

Kenny stared at her, whether because of her name or for another reason, she wasn’t sure, as she started to softly sing a Kryptonian lullaby- one that she had learned from her mother, and had started to sing to the twins sometimes to get them to sleep.

“She was killed by Brainiac 4, wasn’t she?” he said suddenly.

And her world stopped.

Kenny didn’t have to clarify- she already knew. Was already starting to remember.

She saw the green, glowing dagger coming towards it- her sister acting as a shield, letting it sink into her body, knowing that it was made of Kryptonite. She’d tried her best to fix it… but nothing seemed to work, and Brainiac 4 was standing over them, her smug smile clearest in her mind.

Her eyes burned, until suddenly they didn’t- with no goal in sight, only to make sure that she paid for what she’d done to her sister.

And she’d gotten away. In her grief, Alexa had let her get away.

Things weren’t clear after that, but she didn’t need them to be.

“What did you say?” she asked, a tear slipping down her cheek. “What did you say, just now?”

He tried to make up for it, smiling at her.

“I said, Alexa, you’re going to do a great job taking care of them.” He answered. “Should I say it one more time, for good measure?”

“No.” Alexa said. “What did you say about Astra?”

“Astra? Uh… Hey, if you need me to babysit, I’m free any time.”

Alexa shook her head.

“No, I think you should leave.” She said.

“Oh, Alexa, don’t be like that.”

Kenny looked nervous- if that was even really his name. She looked at the pin he wore, that had a logo she didn’t recognize on it.

“What is that?”

“What?”

“That.” She said, pointing at the pin. “That symbol.”

“I, uh… I…”

“Who are you?”

Something she genuinely didn’t know- but right now, wanted out of him more than anything.

(More than most things. There was still only one thing she truly wanted most in the world, and she wasn’t there right then)

“I don’t…”

“Who are you?”

“I…”

Alexa took a step toward Kenny, who seemed to be trembling, unable to say anything.

I’m a friend of your mother’s, he wanted to say. I work with her, and your aunt, and your father, and their friends. I know that you created this simulation with your father’s powers, and you trapped yourself inside of a mind-prison like your mother once did. You are dealing with a great deal of grief- and I know how that feels. We all know how it feels. We want to help you. You just have to let us.

Please, Alexa. Let us in.

“Alexa…”

No. she whispered, in his mind- though it was layered over by another voice. There is no place for you here.

~

“Alexa? Where’s Kenny?”

“He left. He… had to rush home.” Alexa said, easily.

She wasn’t sure how long she was going to keep lying to William and Jordan- or how long it would be until they figured out at least some of the truth.

But this was her new home. She was going to make sure it stayed like a home should- safe, comfortable, with no intrusions.

~

She appears in their living room.

Astra sees her first, and (for once) stays completely silent, making sure she can’t be seen, as the other girl scans the room, a near-transparent green shield held up in front of her. Like she’s expecting someone to jump out and attack her, which of course Astra is not going to do.

Because, most notably, this girl looks almost exactly like her.

Or like a combination of her and Alexa- she wears a uniform with a pink and white S-shield on it, and the majority of the uniform is purple, with pink and white boots and what looks like a white partial skirt over purple leggings. She wears pink fingerless gloves, too, and a Legion ring. Her hair is blonde, and her skin is green, and Astra can’t stop staring.

Neither can Alexa, for that matter, when she comes downstairs- which is how she’s discovered too.

“Hello?” Alexa says. “What are you doing here?”

“You must be Alexa.” She answers, smiling. “Mom’s told me all about you.”

And at that, Astra has to barge in. She’s curious! She can’t help herself, and nobody would ask her to stop, at least for this.

“Who’s your mom?”

“Oh, right, she never mentioned it.” The other girl says. “Sorry- you’ve met your dad’s doppelganger, right? Director Querl?”

“Yeah…” Astra says. “And?”

“Well, my name’s Maya. I’m her daughter- with Supergirl. We call her Superwoman now, but… that’s how most people know her, and…”

“Oh.” Is all Alexa can say.

“Don’t say ‘oh’ like that makes sense!” Astra answers. “How are you here?”

“You know how difficult travel to alternate dimensions can be.” Maya tells them both. “And combined with time travel… let’s say I’ve spent a lot of time between worlds. Even for me, it wasn’t the easiest thing, but now I’m here, and I figured I’d meet the alternate versions of my parents- and, I guess, the people who would be my sisters.”

If he awoke at all, that is- it was far more likely that he’d find himself in the Coluan collective, alongside his other selves, or in his own mind-prison, trapped between life and death (on the chance that Kara and the others were to find him in time, which was low). And, were either of those to happen, he was fairly certain he would be able to tell- though he hadn’t entered the collective for over twenty years, he still had memories of entering it in childhood, and he was familiar with mental simulacrum from his time spent in his own during cryo-sleep, and his time in Kara’s when she was in her own coma.

In both of those situations too, at least initially for the former, there was one more reason Querl would be able to tell if he was there-because he would be alone. Sure, he would find others eventually, but for the sake of the timeline it would be preferable if he were in solitude as much as possible. And as for the other…

Well, he hoped that Kara would use his spare Legion cruiser and the technology inside it to place him into a healing tank and communicate with him, as he once had with her. But there was no sense in hoping for unrealistic things- especially considering what he had done, and how she might react to it.

Then again, she did stand for hope, so if he were to place his in anyone…

If he were conscious, he would just wait and see.

And eventually, he opened his eyes- finding not the Leviathan ship, that had seemed to shrink and press down on him as the radiation infused his skin and bones and organs, until he felt as though he were the one being placed in the bottle, but the pale lights of the Legion cruiser, dimmed for his benefit- and two figures, sitting by his side, holding his hands.

“Kara?” he asked, recognizing her features, before turning to the figure on the other side of his bed. “Winslow?”

“Hey, Brainy.” Winn said, squeezing his hand. “Welcome back to the land of the living. Uh… are you okay?”

“I’m sorry.” Kara continued, gently kissing Brainy’s forehead. “For… I don’t even know how much. Just know that all of this is not your fault, and you’re still a hero- and I should have been a better friend. And thank you for not dying.”

Querl struggled to sit up, not letting go of either of them, but found it took too much effort, so instead he relaxed- and then tensed, making Winn and Kara look at each other briefly before focusing on him again.

“Lex.” He gasped out. “Is he- has he been taken down?”

“Yes.” Kara answered. “Lex is gone.”

“Everything’s fine, Querl.” Winn said, now in the habit of thinking of him by his real name. “You just focus on regaining your strength for now- it’s okay. You can rest.”

Querl felt his eyes watering, looking up at them and processing the news he’d just heard. Slowly, he began to smile, squeezing both of their hands.

“Thank you for not leaving me alone.” He said.

“If those aren’t tears of happiness, please stop crying.” Winn answered. “We’ll be here when you wake up- I promise.”

“We will.” Kara echoed. “And we can talk about everything later.”

Of course Querl noticed.

His son (he no longer hesitated to think of Kajz in that way, rather than as his clone, or another version of himself) had in turn noticed how he was different from his older sisters. While he was an exact copy of Querl himself at the age of eight, minus the personality inhibitors that had marred Querl’s face for most of his life, Astra and Alexa looked similar to him, and each had his twelfth-level intellect, but had additionally inherited the powers of their mother.

(Sometimes, Querl feared that Kajz didn’t see Kara as his mother- that because they were too different, or didn’t share blood, they couldn’t possibly be family. He wasn’t worthy of being raised by her, not with where he had come from, who had contributed to his DNA. But just as with Querl himself, Kara had taken him in as a part of her family, and treated him just as she did her daughters.)

And though, of course, there was no favoritism in the Dox-El household, the aforementioned realities still existed. Querl- naturally- related to his son, had anticipated what he might think of their situation, and though it probably took longer than it should have to think of a solution for his problem, he still found it.

(It was his responsibility as a father to make sure that none of his children left the others behind, in any sense of the phrase)

So when young Kajz was twelve, and Astra and Alexa, as teenagers, went out into the world as Supergirl and Brainiac 6, Querl pulled the youngest member of their family aside.

“Kajz?” he said. “I believe it is time, for me to give you this.”

Kajz stared at him, as Querl held out the small box, and hesitated before accepting it.

Once he opened it, he found a Legion flight ring, and belt buckle, both shining golden and looking like they came right from a recruitment of a new Legionnaire in the thirty-first century.

(Which they had- Querl had gotten the founders’ permission to take a set of their initiation materials for his son, and they’d understood)

“Father?” he asked. “Is this really…”

“A forcefield belt and Legion ring, yes.” Querl said. “Both of my own design. To make sure you have flight and invulnerability, like your sisters. I currently do not have any devices that grant heat vision or super-senses, or X-ray vision, but given time, that may be- oh!”

Kajz interrupted him before he could finish the sentence, throwing his arms around his father.

“Thank you, Dad.” He said. “Can I try them right now?”

“You certainly may. Just be careful.”