Man of Tomorrow: Behold the Steel Soldier
CHAPTER I
The day after I'd defeated Brainiac and asked Lois out went smoothly. I had a little work to do, but other than that, it was pretty relaxing. With this being the case, when Jimmy and I got back to our dorm from work, I said, "I'm going to visit the Fortress in a few minutes." "What for?" he asked, "You had a long night last night. You should get some more rest." "I have to know what's going on with Brainiac," I said, "I have to make sure he's not going to pose a threat anymore." Jimmy sighed, saying, "Fine, Man." I got on my costume, flying back to the Fortress. Once I walked through the entrance, Kelex came up to me, saying, "Hey, wait. You should be resting." "Heard it before, Kelex," I said, "Where's Brainiac?" "Oh, you've come to check up on him, eh?" asked Kelex. I nodded. "All right, then," said Kelex, "Here you go." He pressed a few buttons on the screens along the wall, and a large section of the wall opened up. Brainiac's lifeless body was hanging from several cables, his eyes and diodes darkened. "So, without the kryptonite, he'll never be a threat, right?" I asked. "Unless someone manages to connect him to a network, yes," said Kelex, "He could go wherever he pleased if that happened. He's not the kryptonite, that was just his power source. He's an A.I. Those cables connected to him are keeping him inactive. I had to be very careful making sure they didn't connect to anything outside of here." "Good," I said. I had a thought, but I hesitated voicing it.
Kelex looked at me, saying, "What is it?" I said, "Well...Brainiac is an A.I. That means he can be programmed. What if you could allow him to feel happiness? Or any of the other positive human emotions? Would he turn around?" Kelex stared at Brainiac for a few seconds before saying, "It'd be a very difficult procedure. Who knows, though. Maybe." He looked back at me, finishing, "But maybe we'd be better off without the answer." I sighed, saying, "Okay, thanks, Kelex." I walked out of the Fortress, flying back to my dorm. By this time, it was around seven o' clock. Once I got in, I took off my costume, collapsing onto my bed. A few minutes later, my phone rang. I picked up, hearing Lois on the other end. She said, "Yes." "Really?" I said excitedly, "You'll go out with me?" "Against my better judgment, yeah," she responded. "Okay, uh, how about tomorrow at six?" I asked. "I think that'll be just fine," said Lois, "What movie do you want to see?" "I don't know, what do you want to see?" I asked. Lois eventually answered, "They came out with a sequel to that superhero movie from last year." I raised my eyebrow, saying, "A superhero movie, eh?" "I know it doesn't seem all that romantic, but I've always been into superheroes," she said. I smirked, saying, "I haven't seen that one yet. Okay. I'll set up a dinner reservation somewhere." "Sounds good," said Lois, "And by the way, don't be late, or it's off." "Deal," I said. Lois hung up, and I smiled.
I called Jimmy, who happened to be buying food. "Dude," I said, "She said yes." He laughed, saying, "Nice, bro. What's the plan?" I explained the date. Jimmy said, "I'm kind of surprised you'd go to see a superhero movie, especially this one." "Well, you know, once you get used the whole superhero thing in real life, it gets easier," I said. "Nice," said Jimmy, "Well, remember, just get some rest. I think it'd be preferable not to look like a zombie on your first date." "Got it," I said, "See you, Jimmy." "Bye, Clark," said Jimmy, hanging up. Meanwhile, Lois was talking to Paige on the phone, saying, "I did it. I said yes." Paige said, "Good. It'll go fine, don't worry. I've told you time and again, Clark is a nice guy." "He asked me outside my window in the middle of the night!" said Lois. "So what if his asking was weird," said Paige, "I think you'll enjoy yourself." "Well, you were the one who told me to say yes, so if it turns out bad, it's on you," said Lois. Paige said, "I'll be fine with that." Lois rolled her eyes, sighing and saying, "All right, bye." Paige said, "Bye," and hung up. Lois put on her jacket, walking out of her dorm and going on a walk.
The next day, I was terribly excited. I would finally get to date Lois. When we went into work, one of the more superior employees told me, "Hey, Clark. The boss has a little something for you." "What is it?" I asked. The employee said, "We got a robbery not too far from here. The robbers aren't heavily armed, and they've been explicit about their intentions not to hurt anyone. This'll give you some valuable experience, I tell you." "How long do you think it'll take?" I asked. "You'll probably be out of there by four o' clock." I smiled and said, "Perfect. Uh, do you mind if I take Jimmy with me?" "I don't think it'll be a problem," said the employee. I nodded, walking out of my little cubicle. I passed Lois on my way out, and she asked, "Hey, are we still on for tonight?" "Yeah, I've got an assignment, but I should make it," I replied. "You'd better hope you will," she said, "'Cause if you don't, you won't get another chance." "Got it," I said. I went by Jimmy, saying, "We got a job." "Great," said Jimmy, "Where?" "You'll find out," I said. We walked outside, and I hailed a taxi. Just a few minutes later, we were outside the bank where the robbery was taking place. It was surrounded by police cars and yellow tape. I walked up to one of the officers, saying, "Hi, I'm from the Daily Planet. Could you tell me who the senior officer here is?" The officer pointed to his right, saying, "Big guy, name of Porteau. You can't miss him." I thanked the officer, walking in the direction he pointed. I looked around, eventually seeing an officer with a nameplate that read Porteau.
I walked up to him, saying, "Excuse me, are you officer Porteau?" He turned, saying, "Yes. And you are?" I shook his hand, saying, "Clark Kent. I'm a journalist from the Daily Planet. This is my friend, Jimmy. He'll be taking photographs, if you don't mind." "Sure," said Porteau, "And by the way, you've got quite the grip, Mr. Kent." "Yeah, I get that a lot," I said, laughing lightly. I cleared my throat, pulling out my recorder and saying, "So, how did these guys get in?" "One of them got hired as a janitor here," said Porteau, "Today, when there was a minimum of people in the bank, he called in his three buddies. A white van pulled up, two of them hopped out, and the third drove off. He probably figured he'd pick them up somewhere else." "So, how did you guys get here so soon?" I asked. "Well, these guys aren't exactly geniuses," said Porteau, "They managed to miss a clerk hitting the silent alarm." I nodded, stopping my recorder, and saying, "I think I'll continue in just a little bit. Do you mind if I use the restroom in the next building? I'll only be a minute." "Not at all," said Porteau, "Go ahead. We'll be here." As I walked past Jimmy, I whispered, "Get your camera ready now." Jimmy smirked. He didn't know until that moment that I was wearing my costume underneath my clothes. While it was extremely uncomfortable, it worked surprisingly well.
I saw a phone booth just outside the building I was looking to go into. I almost went in there, but of course, it was made almost entirely of clear plastic, so I just said to myself, "Nah," and walked into the building. I went into their bathroom, quickly taking off my outer clothes, revealing my costume. I pulled my mask and hood out of my bag, putting them on and speeding out of the building. Though it caused a large draft, I managed to go fast enough that no one noticed. I flew into the air, saying loudly, "Officers! How about some assistance?" I had deepened my voice terribly, and I caught a glimpse of Jimmy shaking his head and scrunching up his face. He mouthed "NO" several times. I nodded slightly, clearing my throat. Officer Porteau said, "Maybe. Do you know what to do in this kind of situation?" "Don't worry," I said, floating down and putting on a gruff voice, "I'll get the people inside to safety, and those criminals won't stand a chance." Porteau nodded, saying, "Fine. We'll distract them first." I nodded back. Porteau walked over to the negotiator, giving him instructions. Eventually, I heard him say through his megaphone, "We're sending in one of our guys. Stay put, and he'll provide you with some of your demands." I quickly went through the front, grabbing every hostage inside and running out. I put them all down behind a large truck, saying, "Stay here." I ran back over and into the bank, standing in front of all the robbers in my own attempt at a heroic stance. I actually looked kind of stupid, considering I was standing with my legs spread and my fists on my hips.
"Who're you?" said one of the robbers. "I'm Superman," I said. "Superman?" said a robber, "The superhero who's been on the news?" "No, the one with a cooking show," I said sarcastically, charging forward. I punched the robber in the gut, sending him across the room. He crashed into one of the wooden counters. "Yes, of course, the one on the news!" I said loudly. The other three robbers pulled their handguns on me, firing several times. The bullets felt like nothing on less sensitive areas, like small flicks on more sensitive areas. Eventually, they stopped. "You done?" I said. One of the robbers said under his breath, "Oh, #$&." I quickly lunged forwards, grabbing one robber by his ankle and throwing him into one of his buddies. They were both knocked unconscious. I turned to face the third robber, saying, "You might just want to turn yourself in." The robber dropped his gun, holding his hands in the air. "Ha," I said, "You've done yourself a buttload of good." I walked out of the bank, going to Porteau and saying, "They're ready for you in there." "Thanks," said Porteau, shaking my hand. I made sure to shake his hand very lightly and carefully. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm sure I have other things to attend to," I said. I flew off, circling back and climbing through the bathroom window of the building next to the bank. I quickly threw my clothes on and threw my hood and mask into my bag, waiting a little bit. I walked out a few minutes later, going up to Porteau.
The three robbers I'd attacked were already being treated in ambulances, and the other, unharmed robber, was in police custody. "What happened?" I asked. "Superman happened," said Porteau, "I'm surprised you missed it." I said nervously, "Well...When you've got to go..." "Yeah, okay," said Porteau. I cleared my throat uncomfortably, taking out my recorder and saying, "So, tell me exactly what happened." Porteau gave me an accurate account of what transpired inside the bank. I nodded once he finished, saying, "And, uh, what are your personal thoughts on his motives?" "I don't think he's in it for the glory, at least," said Porteau, "I mean, he didn't stay for the press. I think he's an okay guy. But as for everyone else...I can't say what they'll think." "Sure," I said, "Of course. Well, thank you, sir." "Anytime," said Porteau. I turned off my recorder, walking over to Jimmy. "Did you get anything?" I asked. "Plenty," said Jimmy, scrolling through the photos, "This'll do just fine." "I'll say," I said, "Okay, I'm going to interview some of the witnesses. You can take some more photos. And then..." Jimmy interrupted, "You've got to get ready for a very hot date." I raised my eyebrows and grinned, walking over to the witnesses and hostages. Later, I was putting on a tie as the finishing touch on my outfit for my date with Lois. "You ready?" asked Jimmy. "Yeah," I said, "Is the car gassed up?" "Uh-huh," said Jimmy. We'd managed to get Jimmy's car shipped to Metropolis. I walked out of our dorm, getting into Jimmy's car and driving the short distance to the girls' dorm building. Lois walked out in a beautiful red dress, her hair newly done and her makeup near-perfectly applied. "You look great tonight," I said, opening the front door for her. "Thanks," she said, smiling. I smiled as well, closing the door after she hopped in and sighing contentedly.
