The following story is meant for entertainment purpose only; not meant to infringe upon any copyright laws. No profit was or should be made on the following material. Story written: 2011.
This is Book 2 of 3.
1. Superman: The Last Son of Krypton (COMPLETED)
2. Superman: The Man of Steel (CURRENT)
3. Superman: The Man of Tomorrow (COMING SOON)
SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF STEEL
Chapter 1: Commission Ceremony
Krypton-20 orbital cycles[years] before extinction
This was the biggest day of a Kryptonian's life: Commission day. This was the day that graduating young men and women chose the path that their lives will take. Once their path was chosen, it would define them for the rest of their lives. The graduates had a year to think about how they would want to serve Krypton; Jor-El needed pretty much all of that time.
Unlike his friend, Dru-Zod, Jor-El was torn between two different callings. His desire was to serve Krypton through science. During his education, he had shown great promise in this field. It was something that he absolutely loved. It was the same field that Lara Lor-Van, the love of his life, was pursuing.
His other option was to follow his closest friend, Dru-Zod, into the military. Jor-El was a very handsome and agile young man. He proved very knowledgeable when it came to military tactics. He scored high on his military career assessment exam, but he did not enjoy this type of work nearly as much as science.
So now, Jor-El had just moments before he had to choose whom he was going to follow: his closest friend or the love of his life. Dru-Zod choosing his destiny directly in front of him did not help the pressure. His friend had continued to pressure him to go with him.
"Dru-Zod, come forward and choose your destiny."
There was no mistaking his excitement as he stepped out of line and walked down the narrow passageway. He had no internal conflict like Jor-El. He had come from a long line of military generals. There was no doubt in his mind that he was destined to be Krypton's next great general. He would lead the military of Krypton against the forces of Darkseid. He would, one day, make the dark lord submit to him, and he would be praised by all of Krypton.
At the end of the path, there was a round platform. Standing shoulder-to-shoulder around the platform was every single member of the Krypton council. As Dru-Zod placed his first foot onto the platform, it lit up. In the heart of the platform was a crystal podium. In the empty slots of the podium, there were crystal rods of numerous different colors; each color represented a different career.
The chamber, normally used for the Kryptonian councilor session, was deathly silent as he walked up to the podium. From among the sea of many color crystal rods, he pulled out a red crystal. He turned around, took a step away from the podium, and held up it up for all to see. "I, Dru-Zod, choose to serve the Kryptonian Military Force. I vow to serve to the best of my ability, in the interest of Krypton and its citizens."
With his confirmation completed, he brought the red crystal down in front of him, and snapped the crystal in half, thus finalizing his commission into the military. Dru-Zod stepped off the platform and made his way back to his position in line. Jor-El's nerves were on end, knowing that it was his turn to choose.
When Dru-Zod returned to his position next to him, he leaned into him slightly. "Do not forget, Jor-El. Pick the red crystal, and join me in the Krypton military," he whispered.
"Jor-El, come forward and choose your destiny."
He let out a deep sigh as he stepped out of the line. He made his way towards the platform, but with much less certainty and speed than his predecessor. His forehead was damp with cold sweat. His heart was beating wildly in his chest as all the eyes of the council were now on him.
He stepped up onto the platform and made his way to the podium. Every second felt like an eternity, and he began to imagine that everyone was starting to get impatient. He reached the platform after what felt like forever. The time for his decision was right now.
Dru-Zod stood in line with a grin on his face. He had no doubt that his friend would make the right decision. Together, they would take on Darkseid's army and bring it to its knees. He could not imagine doing it without his closest friend.
He waited with anticipation for his friend to chose the correct crystal, turn around and reveal his decision to the council. After what felt like a long wait, Jor-El finally made a decision. He could see his arm reaching for a crystal, but from his angle, he could not see what color he was choosing.
It was not until Jor-El turned around until he got his first glimpse of the crystal he chose. Jor-El stepped forward from the platform, and held up a blue crystal in his right hand. "I, Jor-El, choose to serve as a Kryptonian scientist. I vow to serve to the best of my ability, in the interest of Krypton and its citizens."
Dru-Zod watched in utter surprise as Jor-El finalized his commission and snapped the blue crystal in his hands. The decision had been made, and it was not the one that he had anticipated. His very best friend had just betrayed him.
The moment the ceremony officially came to an end, Dru-Zod shoved his friend harder than he had intended. "What did you do? We were supposed to join the military together. We were supposed to change Krypton for the better."
Jor-El had anticipated this reaction, and had not been looking forward to this conversation. A part of him felt like that his friend had every right to be angry with him. He did have a slight feeling of guilt pricking his heart, but there was also a strange feeling that he had made the right decision. "I am sorry, my friend. I know you had a dream of us working together, but I feel that I can best serve my planet through science, not by violence."
"What do you know?" Dru-Zod snapped. "Science is not going to defeat Darkseid."
"On the contrary, science may be our only hope of survival. There is only so long that we will be able to hold his army at bay. I have an idea that could potentially end the war in its tracks. I believe I have discovered an alternate dimension, one which there is no escape from. I call it the phantom zone. If my calculations are correct, I am certain that I can build a portal into this phantom zone, where we can imprison Darkseid for all eternity."
"You speak nonsense, Jor-El," Dru-Zod growled. "Darkseid cannot be imprisoned by any of science's toys. I have no interest in capturing him alive; he must die for his crimes."
"Killing is never the answer, Dru-Zod. It is what sets us apart from him."
Dru-Zod glowered at him with disgust. "Then perhaps I have been mistaken. Perhaps it is better that we do not work together." He turned his back and walked off.
Jor-El decided that it was best that he allowed him to cool off. Dru-Zod had always been someone with a quick temper. He could never see beyond his own wants and desires. It was a trait which often got the two of them into many quarrels; but in time, they had always managed to patch things up. Jor-El had no concerns of losing his friendship. They have weathered worse conflicts than this one.
"Are you well, Jor-El" Lara asked, coming up from behind him and placing her soft and petite hand on his shoulder.
"I am fine," He assured her by placing a hand on top of hers.
He turned around to face her, keeping her warm, gentle hand between his two hands. "We have finally accepted our commission as scientists for Krypton. It is now time that we focus on our impending betrothal."
Lara smiled; her dark blue eyes as lovely as ever. They leaned into each other, and their lips met. They lost themselves in the passion, not caring who was watching around them.