Agent Liberty’s passions might lie in anti-alien prejudices, but he clearly isn’t against the use of otherworldly elements to advance his desires. None more so than when he facilitated the return of Parasite on the latest edition of Supergirl. With the Graves siblings removed, Agent Liberty found himself with even less constraint than before. His first action: plopping that parasite right into Jensen’s ear. Now, it’s Supergirl v. Parasite: round two.
Parasite Returns
The newly empowered Jensen very quickly learns of the power he now yields, sucking both the pyromancy and lifeforce out of a imprisoned alien in front of Agent Liberty. Liberty dispatches him to attack downtown National City. The attack draws out Supergirl, who soon realizes she is contending with a new iteration of Parasite. Jensen steals her powers, using Supergirl’s heat vision against her. Alex arrives, stunning Jensen, but the former DEO agent avoids capture by absorbing another alien’s shapeshifting powers. Alex and her new supervisor, Col. Haley, devise a plan to capture Jensen using plutonium blasts and stress Supergirl to stay away from the fight due to the nature of Jensen’s powers. She agrees and Brainy begins constructing the items needed to once again take down Parasite.
Stolen Hearts
Forced to the sidelines, Kara’s focus shifts toward her journalistic endeavors. She lands an interview with a reclusive alien healer named Amadei. He expresses concern over the growth of anti-alien sentiment within humanity, choosing to reemerge publicly in an effort to bring the communities together. While he is unable to heal humans, his closest-held desire is to be able to heal the human heart. He might not get the chance to fulfill that goal, though, as the amulet embedded in his chest is stolen. With no trust in the police and Amadei on death’s door, J’onn and Kara take up the case.
A mind-reading and facial scan lead the duo to the home of Elizabeth Hawkins. Their investigation forces her mother to reveal that Elizabeth is the product of a one night stand with Amadei. J’onn is unconvinced since Elizabeth was the last thing Amadei thought about before falling into his coma. Kara’s concern that her article made Amadei a target leads her to research his previous interviews, revealing that Elizabeth’s mother lied about the brief nature of her relationship with Amadei. When confronted, she admits the truth. She deliberately kept her half-alien daughter from contacting her father, causing a rift between herself and Elizabeth. Her rhetoric turns discriminatory toward aliens, admitting that she stole the amulet for the Children of Liberty.
Prose & Pugilence
James concerns about the co-opting of his vigilante alter-ego, the Guardian, by anti-alien hate groups continue to grow. Lena sees the boost in popularity as an opportunity to speak truth to the misinformed. James remains undecided between Lena’s position and his desire to publicly disavow any connection to fringe commentators, such as Ben Lockwood, aka Agent Liberty. Lena recognizes Ben before informing James that the mayor named him keynote speaker at the annual media summit.
Ben wastes little time confronting James and Lena at the conference. James and Ben argue over the discriminatory, fear mongering nature of Ben’s online news program, but no disagreement will keep Ben from looking to Guardian as a symbol of humanity’s hope. James later realizes that such a reputation could hold some advantages, deciding to use the Guardian as a way to uncover those responsible for the rise in anti-alien violence. James contacts Ben, setting the plan into action.
Chain Of Command
That call finds Ben irate after his Jensen-centric plan failed once again at the hands of the DEO and Supergirl. Jensen’s parasitic abilities have been stabilized and strengthened with the addition of Amadei’s amulet. The uber-charged Jensen attacks a vigil for Amadei, absorbing multiple alien powers. Col. Haley orders Brainy to surround the area with a protective dome as Alex and other DEO agents close in with Uranium-powered proton packs. Jensen soon finds himself trapped between Supergirl and Alex. His heightened power level means that it’ll take more power to take him down. Unfortunately, an attack from Alex at that level would kill everyone within the dome. Haley orders Alex to take the shot, but she instead convinces Jensen to surrender. He removes the amulet, causing him to succumb to the parasite.
Haley and Alex’s surprisingly cordial working relationship faces its first test following Alex’s choice to disobey a direct order. Haley congratulates her on handling the situation, but her anti-alien tinged criticisms of J’onn’s performance as DEO head doesn’t sit well with Alex. She defends him to Haley, causing the rift to properly form. Haley reminds Alex of the chain of command, forcing her to salute her as she walks away.
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