SMALLVILLE

Metropolis Nyghts

Disclaimer: I do not own the Smallville characters or anything else associated with it or Superman. The other characters are mine, but taken from the World of Darkness universe, full credit to White Wolf on that one.

The Elementals and their systems are of my creation and are copyrighted.

Enjoy the story!

Chapter One

A World of Darkness

Clark could not get the image of the broken Lana Lang out of his mind. It would haunt him until the day he died. But now he had a chance to change things, to make sure Lex Luthor would not cause Lana's car accident. He had toyed with the idea of not telling her, but knew there would never be another chance for the two of them if he pulled away again.

There was a knock on the door, and Clark knew who it was. He had lived this day once before already. He put on his classic grin when he answered the door. Lana was smiling up at him uncertainly. To her, there had been a lot of tension over the past few months. They were still together, but the couple was struggling. She had not been able to be intimate with him since before he...

No, he's alive and here now. Don't worry about silly things like that. You love him, girl! He just has to straighten up!

"Hey," she said softly. "You know you can tell me anything, right? I can handle it, I promise. No matter what, I believe in you, Clark."

Clark let out a long sigh. She was right. She did stay with him, and then Lex Luthor destroyed everything. He would die himself to make sure that did not happen again if he had to.

"Okay," he finally agreed. "Come on, let's take your car."

The pair turned on their flashlights as they entered the Kawatche Caves, their beams piercing the darkness like daggers. Strange, alien symbols loomed over them against the walls. It was eerily dark this time of morning, and it set Lana on edge. Still, she remained silent. If Clark was going to share his secret, she did not want to say anything that would set him into retreat.

After a short time, they came upon a large, black pedestal. Clark climbed upon it and offered Lana his hand. "It's a good thing you dressed warm today," he commented as he brought her to stand next to him.

"Why?" she asked. "Where are we going?"

The couple was suddenly surrounded by bright light, and when it faded, they were standing amidst a crystalline palace in the arctic. Massive pillars of ice and crystal crisscrossed several hundred meters overhead, giving the place the ominous feeling of a tomb. Despite her misgivings, Lana knew she could trust Clark. He would never allow any harm to come to her, she believed that.

"Welcome to my Fortress of Solitude," Clark said softly. "This is a monument to a long dead world, a world called Krypton. It was destroyed many years ago, and fragments of it were sent to earth. The first shower to reach Earth hit Smallville Kansas in the 1980's."

"The first meteor shower," Lana confirmed.

"A lone man named Jor-El, and his wife, Lara were the only two who foresaw Krypton's imminent destruction, and sent their infant son away on a small ship. That ship crash landed with the first meteor shower."

Lana had not yet caught on, but the story was captivating. She had a sinking feeling, however, that it might not end well, and a strong suspicion that Clark was somehow related.

"That boy was found by a farmer and his wife, and raised to be just a normal boy. They were Jonathan and Martha Kent, Lana. My adoptive parents."

Lana's eyes widened in shock. Everything hit her at once and the shock of it sent her reeling. The thought that he could be lying or joking never entered her mind. He was too honest for that. When he came out with the truth, it was always straightforward.

"So... were you there... in the tornado?" she asked, trying to calm her racing pulse.

Clark nodded. "I have always been there, whether you saw me or not, protecting you. I always will. I love you, Lana, and the only times I have ever hurt you were because I either had no control, or I was trying to keep you out of danger."

"Oh, Clark," she breathed, placing a hand against his cheek. "I wish you had told me sooner."

With that, she buried her face in his chest, holding onto him tightly. He was the only thing around to support her right now, and she intended to use every bit of it. The man she loved was from another world, but she knew she was safe with him.

She barely noticed when Clark scooped her up in his arms, cradling her effortlessly. Her eyes opened in surprise, however, when she felt gravity give way and the icy wind whisk past. She looked down, and realized that the ground was suddenly very far away. Lana let out a squeal, burying her face into Clark's neck.

He laughed softly as they alit on the surface of one of the top spires, gently setting her on her feet. She looked up at him, and his gaze slipped to meet hers. Clark could lose himself forever in the infinite depths of her green eyes, and knew that soon he would have the rest of his life to.

Lana took a small step back when Clark dropped to one knee. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a lump of coal. After a firm squeeze from his hand, he opened his palm to reveal a pure, uncut and unpolished diamond. There was a wave of intense heat, and fire shot from Clark's eyes, cutting and shaping the diamond into a perfect princess cut. When he was done with that, Clark pulled a small box out from his other pocket and opened it to reveal a white gold band and setting for the diamond. After setting the stone in place, he offered it up to Lana.

"Lana Lang, will you marry me?"

"...Yes," she said softly. "I will marry you," she affirmed, this time her face splitting into a broad grin. She was going to marry Clark Kent, the man of her dreams. He had always been the one she'd loved, and he would be the one she would spend the rest of her life with.

Clark slid the ring on her finger, unable to keep the large, goofy grin off of his face. He scooped her into his arms, preparing to take her home so they could begin making preparations. Then he would take care of Lex Luthor.

"Your target, ladies and gentlemen, is Lionel Luthor," Owen said. He was a well-built man, standing around six foot two and weighing about two hundred forty pounds. His long black hair fell down past his shoulders, framing piercing violet eyes. He spoke with a voice that commanded respect, but at the same time was kind.

"He is currently staying with his son, Lex Luthor, in Smallville. Lionel is bad news for us," he continued. "There are experiments going on at Luthorcorp on enough people like us to spread an epidemic into the supernatural population. Njord and Riley, you two are on recon detail. Scout out the house before your team moves in to get a layout and coordinate your strike."

Njord, a big, burly man a head taller than Owen, nodded. His looks contributed to everyone giving him the nickname, Avalanche, but that was only the surface of the pond. Riley, an olive-skinned woman with fetching blue eyes and dark hair was an exact opposite. She was petite and athletic in frame, dwarfed by her much larger friend.

"Sounds good to me, are we actually killing him or am I going to do the traditional intimidation stuff?"

"You mean ripping people's arms off and beating them with them? Then no," Owen scolded. "I just want Lionel Luthor dead, understand? You cut the head off of the snake, and the body dies. If you manage to corner Lex, go for it, but don't go out of your way to kill him. We can get him later if he doesn't dump his daddy's projects."

"Fine by me," Njord said. "What backup do we have?"

"Squad A will consist of Konrad and Wolfe, and Squad B will pair Draven and Quinn," Owen said. "They will follow you into the mansion once you have cleared a path for them. After that they will seek out and help you eliminate Lionel."

After a moment of silence, Owen nodded. "Okay, you all know your assignments. Any questions? No? Good, get out of here."

Lex Luthor sat behind his desk in the Luthor Mansion. He hated it when his dad visited, but there was little he could do. After all, he did own the place. What he needed to do was talk to Lana. He had called her several times, and she finally answered only a few minutes ago. She had agreed to meet him, and had said she wanted to tell him something as well. He was hopeful that it would confirm his suspicions.

He had just begun to drink heavily when he heard something shuffle across the ceiling. He looked up, but saw nothing. Deciding it was nothing, he went back to his drink. A few minutes later, he heard the shuffling again, this time knocking a lamp off of a table behind him.

Now Lex knew something was up. He reached for the intercom button on his desk phone to call security, but as he did, the door to his office burst open. Clark walked in, and Lex immediately forgot about the lamp.

"Clark, what can I do for you?" he asked, managing not to slur, but only barely.

"You can stay away from me and Lana," Clark replied, his gaze venomous.

"Clark, I want nothing more than for the two of you to be happy," he tried to explain.

"LIAR!" Clark roared. "Look, either you stay away from us, or I'll put you out of our lives for good."

"That sounds dangerously close to a threat, Clark," Lex replied, mentally cursing himself for slurring.

"Take it however you want, you drunk idiot," he snapped. "But sta-"

He was cut off by a sudden scream within the mansion. It sounded like Lionel, and the gunfire that followed told the pair everything they needed to know. Clark decided to remove Lex from the equation entirely, and walked over to him. He grabbed the lapels of his jacket and threw him hard into a pillar, knocking him unconscious. That felt really good, even though he knew it should not have.

With one distraction down, Clark supersped to where he heard the scream, and the sight that greeted him stopped him dead in his tracks. Lights flickered on and off, and the space itself seemed to distort, twisting the room in a sickening fashion. The lights blew, sending bolts of electricity arcing across the room. One of these caught a flammable surface, which immediately burst into flame and began to make its way across the room uncontrolled.

Things were quickly getting out of hand, and as the sprinkler system triggered, Clark braced for the cold water that never came. When he looked up, the water was floating to the ceiling and bouncing off rather than the other way around. It was as though gravity had reversed, and it made him wonder just what he had run into.

"I told you not to do that! There are Sleepers in the house!" a voice suddenly yelled. Clark's head twisted to see who it was, and his eyes fell on a muscular fellow holding a Desert Eagle. He was firing at a pair of guards taking cover with Lionel behind a grand piano. The man's face was covered by a black bandana, sunglasses, and a black hat, but Clark would find out who he was.

"Sorry! I couldn't help it!" shouted another voice, this one in a Norwegian accent. This came from another fellow across the balcony from the first. The only thing Clark could make out on him was spiky blonde hair underneath a hooded robe. He was big fellow, however, easily as large or larger than Clark himself.

The gunfight was ferocious, but the strange conditions made it impractical. It was almost impossible to aim through the warped room, and Clark used this to his advantage as he sped up to the first man. He was going to end this raid now.

Konrad was spraying blind fire at the guards when a large hand suddenly grabbed the nape of his coat and hauled him to his feet. A moment later, Konrad was face to face with a very angry 18 year old boy with nearly black hair and bright blue eyes. He felt his breath leave him as a forehand slammed into his chest, sending him flying backwards across the room.

He landed heavily against a armoire, crushing it beneath the force of his landing. Konrad did not know who this guy was, but he had just pissed off the wrong person. The man stood, and suddenly his visage shifted. He became the epitome of perfection by human standards, and silver and white eagle's wings burst forth from his shoulders, flaring out to their full breadth. A halo of golden light encircled his head, casting a faint glow around the rest of him. His eyes were bright, filled with the limitless possibilities and expanses of the universe. It was as though he had become an angel.

Konrad could tell his opponent was thrown off-balance by this shift, but before he could take advantage, the boy was flattened by a very large invisible shape landing atop him. The shape began to claw and bite at his victim, but could not seem to get through. The angelic creature charged into the fray of bullets, judging their path by the curvature of the spatial distortion and dodging them easily. He landed in a hail of fire from his own bullets, filling the guards' chests with hot lead. The pair toppled over, dead, as he landed.

As he brought his gun to bear on Lionel's temple, there was a thunderous roar that shook the house to its foundations. Konrad looked up to see Njord and Riley go flying away from the boy, both clearly visible. The former was in a much different form than he had been in the briefing. Now he was an eight-foot tall pure white bear. Over eight-hundred pounds of muscle and claws and teeth to boot made him a very intimidating creature, even amongst others of his breed.

Konrad was forced to duck behind cover as two more security guards began firing at him from the cover of the doorway. The piano had served his former adversaries well, so he decided to use it. This was shaping up to be one tough fight.

Clark was getting extremely frustrated. The more he pounded on the gigantic beast before him, the madder and more ferocious it had gotten. It seemed to have as much endurance and strength as he, which was frightening. Still, it did not seem capable of hurting him, which was a relief. Still, there was a good chance Lex would have Kryptonite stashed somewhere in the house. If that happened to get freed during the chaos, it could pose a deadly threat.

He was about to meet the bear in another charge, he was thrown off of his feet by a powerful telekinetic blow. The force sent him flying across the room, landing hard against a painting. When they both fell to the ground, a safe was plain to see set into the wall. Clark got to his feet, grunting as he recovered from the shock of the attack.

It seemed apparent that the blow had been struck from the small woman approaching from the other side of the room. She was looking daggers at him, and he had a bad feeling that things were not going to end well. He entered superspeed, moving to rush over to her and gently knock her out of the fight without having to actually harm her.

Before he even made it halfway, a lightning bolt leapt up from one of the sparking electrical panels, striking him directly in the chest. Once again, Clark hurtled through the air, feeling an intense burning pain throughout his body as though the yellow sun itself had struck out at him in anger. There was a loud whistle, and more guards suddenly poured into the room. As if on cue, a grenade rolled forward to meet them, seemingly out of nowhere. The guards looked down at it, and immediately fell into panic when they realized what it was. Men dove behind whatever cover they could find, but as they did, two slipped and fell, getting trampled by their allies.

When the grenade went off, it was enough to make Clark wince away. The light was brilliant, and the fragments responded to the explosive force, slicing through the bodies of the guards who had not gotten out of the way, and shredding the two that had been trampled.

What the hell is going on here!? Who the HELL did Lex piss off this time! The U.S. Military?

Riley was getting angry. They were attempting to harm Konrad, and he was too far away for her to protect. Still, it was nice to work with Njord again. She remained calm as she made her way carefully about the battlefield, using her powers where they would be most effective. She was avoiding employing her pyrokinesis, relying instead on the telekinetic abilities she possessed.

She watched as her lover and fellow Demon, Konrad, dropped behind cover under a hail of gunfire. He was completely pinned down, and the guards had already pulled Lionel to safety after the grenade went off. Things were beginning to turn sour. Then there was the strange boy that survived an invisible mauling from Njord without so much of a scratch, but there would be time for thought on that later.

Right now, her primary concern was the protection of those she cared about, and despite the sudden intervention of Quinn and Draven wreaking havoc with the grenade, they were losing. She made a decision, and though she was not usually a leader on the battlefield, time and experience had taught her when it was time to use the better part of valor.

"Fall back!" she shouted. Although she hated guns, she brought hers up to bear as she ducked behind a bookcase, sending covering fire into the midst of guards for Konrad. To her delight, he got the message and took off running back towards Wolfe, who was busy dealing with the boy. They would get out of here alive, but they had to be careful about it.

Wolfe wove a spell of lightning before him, chanting a single word in Atlantean as he gestured with his pistol at Clark. Electricity burst forth from a light socket, crashing once again against Clark's chest. Wolfe could feel reality itself about to rebel from the spell hitting the same target twice, and drew the punishment onto himself. Deep, purplish welts appeared on his flesh, and he felt the pain of a dozen whips stinging at once.

Still, the boy rose from the ground, undamaged but slowed. Wolfe did not know what to think of this. He was amazed at the boy's fortitude, but it did not stop it from being extremely frustrating. Clark got to his feet, and before Wolfe could react, the boy was upon him. The Mage's eyes widened in surprise and then horror as he was sent flying through the air. His gaze came to rest on Konrad, who was hurriedly sneaking up the stairs. Wolfe grimaced a moment before impact, and the force of their collision caused them to tumbled down the stairs in a pained heap of grunts.

"Wolfe! Get us out of here!" he heard Riley shout. Quinn and Draven both suddenly vanished, and Wolfe knew it was time to retreat. He summoned up power and opened a gateway back into their main base in Metropolis, and a moment later he and the rest of his team winked out of existence.