A/N: I wrote this story years ago. I intended it to be a AU story that takes place after Superman 2. I have thrown some comic book elements in it. I hope you all like it and please let me know what you think.
Metropolis. Home to over ten million people. A city of business with buildings touching the sky. Everybody walking the streets lives their own life. Their lives are seemingly insignificant in this vast city of wealth and riches.
But one life is important. In fact, it's very important. If you look at the people walking you won't see him. You'll have to look up, because he is flying over head. With his long red cap, red and blue tights with the familiar 'S' shield symbol on his chest. He has short black hair and a seemingly perfect face with a look in his eyes. A look that showed more then it could ever tell. These eyes have seen things that no normal person could ever imagine in their wildest dreams.
This man, no not man, this Superman flew over the city looking down on the streets. He had his senses opened up so he could hear things for miles around him, looking for the slightest hint of trouble. But seeing none he grew tired and longed to be home. So, after one more quick scan of the city, he turned and made his way toward home.
It was a warm summer night, so the window to his apartment was open. His apartment was on the top floor of a thirty story building, just one of many in the huge sea of skyscrapers.
Superman flew in through the window and landed silently on the carpet. He did a quick scan of the room and saw nothing out of the ordinary, then he walked over to his dresser and slipped out of his costume and into his pajamas.
"I didn't hear you come in," A voice said from behind him.
"Well then I'm doing my job right," he said as he closed the top dresser drawer.
"Clark Kent, Mr. Stealthy." Clark turned around to see his wife Lois. She was standing there looking more beautiful then ever, even though she just rolled out of bed, with her black ruffled hair and enchanting blue eyes. Clark could go against the whole world, which he has, and come back and Lois would still be there.
Clark pulled her close and kissed her softly. As the day ended in Metropolis he found himself thinking, everything is perfect.
The next day the sun was shining over Metropolis. It was going to turn out to be a beautiful day. As people started waking up to do their daily routine, a meteor the size of Mount Everest came hurtling toward them on a fatal collision course. It would reach earth in less then and hour. The destruction would be catastrophic and there was no way to stop it.
As this news was being broadcasted across the world, Lois Kent was watching her TV in disbelief. She dropped the slip she had in her hand, momentarily forgetting about the positive reading.
"Oh my god," she whispered. She ran over to her bed and attempted to wake her husband. "Clark, wake up!" He stirred and looked up at her.
"What is it?" he said in a sleepy daze.
"Look!" She pointed at the TV. He took all the news in and his eyes became alert and serious.
"There's still time," All of a sudden there was a wave of blew and red when Clark disappeared leaving Lois to look at the slip and worry.
Superman flew across Metropolis faster then the eye could see. He stopped in the heart of the city and looked up at the sky. The gigantic meteor filled the entire sky. If that thing struck the city, millions would die. But there was still time. If he could hit it with his full strength the rock would break into tinnier pieces and he could dispatch them easier.
As he flew toward it he started to feel uneasy. Something was wrong, but there was no time to think. It had to be stopped.
Superman was less then a hundred feet away. He stuck his fists out and flew toward the meteor with all his might. He struck it with full force.
The surface broke. Instantly Superman felt himself weaken. His blood felt like it was on fire. His stomach kept turning and unimaginable pain was searing through his entire body. It was the familiar pain of kryptonite. The meteor was a huge chunk of kryptonite. Even though he was now powerless, his first hit had shattered the meteor into hundreds of smaller chunks. They still fell rapidly toward Earth.
Superman was beyond help. The kryptonite was all around him. It was all he could do to stay conscious. All he saw was green. There was no way he could stop these pieces from hitting his beloved city. But before he could do anything else a small fragment of kryptonite struck his back and went into his spine. His body went limp and everything started to go hazy.
"I failed," he gasped out before he lost consciousness. Superman's body and huge chunks of his home world fell toward Metropolis crashing into the streets and buildings in a green explosion.
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The events that followed in Metropolis will be talked about for years to come. The meteor pieces struck the middle of the city. A crater formed the size of a football field where the largest one had hit. The smaller fragments crashed through the buildings and spread a path of destruction ten miles wide.
In the aftermath of the incident a short young female reporter was covering the tragic events.
"Behind me is the aftermath of what appears to be a green meteor shower. This meteor struck the city at seven thirty-two this morning. Many of the once great buildings have been destroyed.
"The death toll has not been confirmed yet, but it is estimated to be in the thousands. All of Metropolis's citizens have gathered around to morn, not just for the victims, but for the one person that tried to stop this tragic event from happening. Our city's beloved hero sacrificed his own life to stop this.
"Now it is not clear what exactly happened, but Superman was said to be allergic to this green meteor, whether this is true or not in uncertain. Superman was not able to stop the meteor, just cushion it. Had he done nothing, the whole city would have been destroyed. For that, our entire city thanks him.
"But Superman's body was seen falling towards Earth.. It is believed that he is covered by tons of rubble and meteor rock. Though no body has been found yet, it is likely to believe that he did not survive. All of our prayers go out to this brave man that gave his life so that our city could live.
"So let us remember all the brave things Superman has done over the years. Let us remember the countless times he saved not just our city but the whole world. Let this day be remembered as the day The Man of Steel died."
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"NO! It's not true!" Lois yelled at her TV in a rage. She was moving as fast as she could to get ready and head down to the disaster site. Just as she was about to open the door to leave she heard a loud crash in her bedroom.
She ran in there to see the crumpled form of her husband lying on his stomach, surrounded by broken glass with a piece of kryptonite sticking out of his back.
"Clark……?" Lois ran to him and tried to lift him up. Clark let out a blood curling scream.
"My back……" Lois looked at the wound in his back and gasped. "Pull it out," he said in a breathless voice.
Lois pulled on the green rock with all of her might and managed to get it out. The wound began to heal itself and close up. She took the rock and threw it out the window.
"Are you going to be ok?" She asked him. But as she observed her husband lying on her stomach a feeling of dread washed over her and she already knew the answer.
"No," Clark breathed out. "I-I can't move."
"But I took the kryptonite out, you should be getting better." Lois said with tears starting to roll down her cheeks.
"No," he said again. "There is a small microscopic piece still in my spine. I can feel it. If I try to move it……I'll die."
"But…"
"Lois, I am paralyzed." Lois fell to the floor in a fit of sobs feeling grief and sympathy for her husband. . She remembered the pregnancy test from earlier. How was she going to raise a child with a paralyzed Superman?