Aboard the timemobile, Clark Kent recalled earlier mental attacks by the Joker.

The way the guy filled him with red kryptonite.

The way the guy manipulated him into saving Edith Keeler.

It was during the Gathering of Heroes on Vulcan. When the Q and the Ancients decided to bring together Heroes from the multiple universes.

During that Gathering, Clark, while under the mental influence of the Joker, got in an argument with Jack.

After that was a blank spot, some type of memory loss. In fact, each time there was a mental attack by the Joker, Clark had no memory of the attack, no awareness of the manipulation of his mind.

Until now.

Now it all came back to him.

It happens, Clark realized as he walked across the Vulcan wilderness with Sam Beckett.

You're going through your day. You see something that reminds you of something bad, something upsetting.

That's what happened to Clark when he saw a woman with a baby.

It reminded him of Bruce Wayne's parents. When that happened, Clark slipped into a foul mood.

He was still in a foul mood when the others arrived.

And when you're in that kind of mood, you're an easy target for the Joker, Clark thought in his half-asleep state aboard the timemobile.

Colonel Jack O'Neill. Daniel Jackson. Major Samantha Carter. And Teal'c. They all materialized on what appeared to be a desert planet. (Tatooine? No, this was Vulcan, the sleeping Clark realized.)

"Never quite get used to that," O'Neill muttered.

"Come on, Jack," Daniel said. "You sound like Doctor McCoy complaining about his molecules being scattered across space."

"Please, Daniel. No 'Star Trek' references., I've got enough of that in my head." Shading his eyes, O'Neill surveyed his surroundings. Gathered in another part of the wilderness was what appeared to be a small mob of Starfleet officers and superheroes. O'Neill could hear the loud excited talking, and he could see colorful capes, costumes and uniforms. He even saw some Stargate Command uniforms.

O'Neill had no interest in meeting other verions of himself. The situation was crazy enough.

"Hey, guys." Sam Beckett spoke quietly while next to him Clark simply scowled, his arms crossed over his blue T-shirt.. "Good to see you guys again."

"Hey, Sam," Daniel said as Teal'c bowed and Carter grinned.

"Oh, yeah, Beckett," O'Neill said. "Like we don't see enough of each other as a time-traveling team cleaning up after the Joker."

"And there'll be more," Clark said with an edge in his voice.

"Yeah, there'll be more," Beckett said absently. "But how'd it go with General Hammond?"

"He thinks we're crazy," O'Neill said as he pulled off his backpack.

"We can't really blame him, sir," Carter said. "I mean, we were talking to him about how we've met all kinds of fictional characters."

Daniel nodded. "How is General Hammond supposed to take us seriously when we tell him we' ve met characters from TV? Like different versions of Kirk and Spock."

"Or our own version of Superman," O'Neill said, using his thumb to gesture toward Clark. "As well as more than one Batman and more than one Sheldon." The colonel shivered. "There really shouldn't be more than one Sheldon."

In response, Teal'c briefly lifted an eyebrow. Then: "And it must seem unusual to General Hammond that we are involved in a great battle with the Joker."

"It's weird to me, and I'm living it." After O'Neill put on his sunglasses, he continued to survey the area. "It would be one thing if the general didn't believe me But what about Daniel? Or Carter? Or Teal'c?" Turning to Beckett, O'Neill gestured toward Teal'c. "I ask you, Beckett: is this the face of a crazy man?"

As Beckett offered an uncertain look, Teal'c slowly turned to O'Neill, both eyebrows up in a wide stare.

"Okay, bad example," O'Neill conceded quietly.

"This whole thing is crazy," Clark muttered.

"If only General Hammond could be here to see this." Briefly, O'Neill looked back at the colorful crowd then turned back to his team. "So after the big pow-wow on Vulcan, what's our next mission? Do we save Millie the Model from Jabba the Hutt alongside the X-Men and Captain Picard's crew?"

Beckett shrugged. "Who knows what the Joker might do?"

"It's interesting you mention that, Jack," Daniel said as he adjusted his glasses. "Picard's crew and the X-Men have worked together to fix altered timelines. In more than one universe." O'Neill gave him a sharp look. "Right. Let's focus on the Gathering."

"I've been talking to some of the Heroes," Beckett said. "I even leaped into some of them."

"Now, Beckett, I don't mean to sound like Jonathan Kent. But-" Here, O'Neill waved a finger. "What have I told you about leaping into other people against their will?"

Beckett looked puzzled. "It's kind of what I do, Jack." He shrugged. "Anyway, besides the Breakdown in Reality, the Joker is planning something else. Something big. Not sure what."

"I can take him," Clark said. "By myself if I have to."

"Easy, Clark," O'Neill said.

"I'd just like to get away from here," Clark grumbled.

"Clark, this is not like you at all," O'Neill said. "Look around. Look at all the other you's you could meet."

Unknown to Clark and SG-1, this was when time stood still.

While time was in that frozen state, the Joker stood next to Clark with a piece of red kryptonite. As the rock glowed red, the Joker rubbed it against Clark's forehead, giggling and tittering as he did.

A lot of bright red energy poured into Clark. A lot. For a long time.

"This is very special red kryptonite, Clarkie-boy," the Joker said. "You're getting almost like an IV drip of the stuff." He whooped with laughter. "It'll not only make you crazy it'll mess with your memory. You're going to be crazy and out of it for a long, long time, boy."

The Joker leaned in toward Clark and raised his eyebrows up and down. "And I need you out of the way, Clark. So my newest timeline can't be changed back. Ever."

Next to the Joker was an invisible Time-Blaster. Inactive. For now.

Here, the Joker tap-danced as he spoke to each team member.

"Enjoy Belle Reve, O'Neill," the Joker said. "You, too, 'Doctor Daniel Jackson.'" He said the name in a deep mocking voice. "And you have fun there, too, 'Doctor Beckett.' Whoo hoo!"

As he leaned in toward the other two, he put his gloved hands around them. "As for you, Carter and Teal'c, I've got some very special plans for you."

Rubbing his gloved hands together, the Joker threw back his head and laughed.

Then he stopped.

"Too much?" he asked.

Leaping and kicked up his heels, the Joker left the scene.

"See you later, losers!"

"The colonel's got a point, Clark," Carter said. "And there's not just different versions of you. There are Heroes from all over the multiple universes. You have a rich variety of people you can meet."

"You've already met some of them," Daniel pointed out.

"Whee," Clark said.

"You were enjoying it before," Beckett said. His confused look was similar to the one Daniel wore. .

"There are still more Heroes we may encounter," Teal'c said.

O'Neill stepped toward Clark. "Seriously, Clark, what is going on with you?" Clark crossed his arms as he visibly sulked. "Once this little pow-wow is over, you and I are going to have a long talk about this little attitude of yours."

"You're not my father," Clark said in his most irritated voice. "You had a son. You lost him. Remember?"

The others stared. "Clark," Carter said in a shocked whisper.

Swiftly, O'Neill moved toward him. "If you didn't have powers-"

Clark advanced. "Go ahead. On Vulcan my powers switch on and off. Go ahead. Take your chances, Jack. Yeah. COME ON!" he roared.

They all just stood there in silence.

"Clark," Carter said. "There's obviously something very wrong with you."

That was when Clark did something very unusual.

He fainted.

For the unconscious Clark, some strange things happened in his mind.

At first, he found himself looking through the eyes of someone else. What he saw was all blurred but it was a familiar sight. It was He was his family's farm.

Nearby was a woman. She was blurry, too, but Clark could make out patches of gray in her dark hair. The woman was talking but it was like Clark was hearing her while submerged in water.

Then he was plunged into darkness.

For a moment, he was alone. Silence. Nothing.

Then out of the darkness appeared a chalk-white figure with a big yellow glowing smile. He walked with his hands in his pockets, his shoulders hunched as he engaged in a casual stroll..

"Clarkie-boy! How's it going?"

The purple-suited figure placed a hand on Clark's shoulder. "Nice outfit," he said.

When Clark looked down, he saw he was wearing a blue "Star Trek" uniform with silver insignia.

Looking up, Clark made a face. "Who are you?"

"I'm a friend, Clark." The clown-faced man wiggled his fingers as he placed his hand on Clark's back. "In fact-" The figure sprouted a second head. "I, Clark, am your new best friend," he said in the voice of Sam Phelan. As the second head popped out of sight, the green-haired figure whooped with laughter. "Just kidding! But not about being your friend. I am your friend, Clark."

Clark shook his head. "No, you're him. You're...the Joker. You're evil. And-and dangerous."

The Joker pulled out a ventriloquist dummy that looked like Lionel Luthor. "Oh, no, Clark," it said in Lionel's voice. "You mustn't see things that way. I only want to help you, Clark. I want to help everybody. Yes, I just want to be helpful." The Joker threw away the dummy and laughed. Then he waved his hands. "How do you like it here, Clark?"

Wincing slightly, Clark looked around. "Where are we?"

"I'm so glad you asked! We're inside the mind of Captain James T. Kirk." Leaning into Clark, the Joker spoke in an eerie raspy whisper, a voice much like that of Gollum. "The deep dark recesses of his mind."

"I saw...my farm," Clark said in confusion.

The Joker waved his gloved hands. "That was just a dream Captain Kirk was having."

Clark stepped back. "Wait. You're that guy. You're the Joker. I'm supposed to stay away from you." His face twisted up in confusion. "At least I think I am."

"See? That red 'K' is already messing with your memory." The Joker put his arm around him. "Oh, it's okay. I just need to show you something." He waved a gloved hand. A giant screen appeared.

At first the scene unfolded like a giant movie scene. Then it was like Clark was actually inside the movie, and it was happening all around him.

There was a woman. In a bonnet. Dressed kind of like a Salvation Army woman. Or maybe one of those old-fashioned carolers.

A truck was heading right for her. The woman held up her hands.

Clark lunged forward but the Joker pointed his finger and he froze. "Uh uh," he said. "Not yet, Clark."

The entire scene froze. There was the gray truck with its bright white headlights and the woman holding her hands up as she was about to be hit.

"See that woman right there?" the Joker said.. "Well, of course you do." Giant tears squirted out of his eyes. "That is Edith Keeler. The love of Captain Kirk's life." As he squirted tears, the Joker pressed two gloved hands against a white cheek.

Clark stared. Clasping Clark's shoulder, the Joker directed him to another part of the scene. "Now, Clark, look over here. See this? Hmm? Here is poor Captain Kirk holding back Doctor McCoy who just wants to save poor Edith Keeler."

Wiping his eyes, the Joker sniffled. "And look at Mister Spock. Just standing there watching it all. So cold-hearted. So heartless. Well, he is a Vulcan after all. Those boys just don't care. No-sir-ree, they just do not care at all."

"Yeah," Clark said with a slight frown.

With a loud flapping noise, the Joker waved his hands. "Captain Kirk has to let poor Edith Keeler die even though he loves her." The Joker pulled up his shirt, revealing a giant red beating heart. "He loves her," he said in a choked whisper. As he sobbed loudly, more giant tears flowed down.

"I don't get it," Clark said. "If he loves her, why is he doing this?"

Holding up his gloved hands, the Joker rolled his eyes. "Oh, some malarkey about how her peace movement stops America from entering World War Two and then Germany rules the world. Or some such nonsense. Blah blah blah blah blah." With an exaggerated glum look and his tongue out, the Joker shook his head.

"Well, Clark, you can relate to this, can't you?" As he wrapped a long arm around Clark, the Joker wore an oh-so-sincere look with such a big smile. "What if you had to let Lana die? Just to save some unknown future? Think how awful that would be for you. How unfair!"

"Lana," Clark whispered.

"Yes, Lana," the Joker said, clasped hands to his cheek again.

In the darkness, footsteps.

"Why, look," the Joker said in mock surprise. "Here's Captain Kirk now."

Kirk stood there in his gold tunic and black pants with black boots. "Gentlemen. How are you?" he said. "I'm Captain James T. Kirk of the starship 'Enterprise.'"

"Yes, yes, yes," the Joker said in a snippy voice. "Thank you for the formal introduction." He put his face right next to Clark's. "Clark, I need a little favor. Be a lamb, won't you?"

"Be a lamb." Grinning broadly, a tall lanky Sheldon Cooper now hovered over Captain Kirk..

"Yes, be a lamb," the Joker said. "Tell Captain Kirk he should resign from Starfleet."

"Be a lamb," Sheldon said. "Be a lamb...be a lamb...be a lamb..."

"Think what it would be like if a truck headed for Lana." As Clark winced, the Joker wiggled his fingers. "Yes, think about that."" Once again, he thrust his face into Clark's face. "Clark. When you see Edith Keeler about to be hit by a truck, you will see Lana. But for now, tell Captain Kirk to resign from Starfleet."

Clark had the strange sense that something was not right here. But he couldn't really put things together in his mind. It was like his brain was all scrambled.

"Be a lamb," Sheldon said.

"It's the only pr-r-rincipled thing to do," the Joker declared, one finger lifted high, one hand on his purple lapel.

With a blank look on his face, Clark turned to Kirk. "You need to resign from Starfleet."

With a solemn look, Kirk nodded.

"Thanks, Clarkie-boy," the Joker said with a giggle..

"You're a lamb," Sheldon said with a grin.

This was followed by a great rumbling noise. Clark had an uneasy feeling.

As the Joker walked away, he moved his arm up and down like the leader of a marching band. He even blew a whistle while wearing a tall feathered hat.

"Oh, by the way, Clark," the Joker said. "Could you do me one more teensy-weensy favor? Should you somehow end up in the past and you see Edith Keeler, would you save her from that truck?"

"Be a lamb," Sheldon said.

"SOMEBODY...SA-A-AVE...ME!" The Joker sang loudly in a screeching voice.

O'Neill placed a hand on Clark's shoulder. "It's the only decent and right thing to do, Clark."

Jonathan had a hand on his other shoulder. "The colonel's right, Clark. This is what you do: you save people."

Behind Jonathan, Sheldon and Kirk both nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, sure," Clark said with a grin. "No problem."

The Joker cackled loudly. As he walked away, his voice echoed through the darkness.

"Thanks ever so much, Clarkie-boy!"

Clark opened his eyes. Carter was running her medical tricorder over him.

"What happened?" he asked.

"You fainted," Daniel said.

"I'm guessing you don't usually do that," Beckett said.

Clark shook his head. "Where are we?"

"This is Vulcan," Teal'c said.

"You don't remember?" from O'Neill.

"No," Clark said. "Last thing I remember...actually, I don't remember much of anything."

"According to my readings, sir, he's perfectly fine," Carter said.

"For him," Daniel said as he and Teal'c helped Clark to his feet.

"Whatever was wrong with him before seems to be gone now, sir," Carter said.

"What do you mean?" Clark looked at O'Neill. "Is everything all right?"

O'Neill winced slightly as he spoke in a quiet voice.

"Yeah. Everything's fine now."

Author's note: The delay in posting new material resulted from problems with the old computer. The new computer works great.