Lois tested the door knob and found it unlocked in the morning. True to his word, Zod hadn't come back that night. She hadn't seen him since he walked out the previous day. Part of her really wanted to stop drawing attention to herself and just stay put. Out of sight, out of mind, right?
But, she had to know what had happened to her sister and so, wearing the same clothes that she'd been in for three days now, she opened the door and stepped out into the hallway.
There was an extremely tall guard at the end of it, and she tensed, waiting for him to yell at her to get back in the room. But, he merely stared dispassionately. Gathering every ounce of courage she had, she squared her shoulders and walked right up to him.
"Excuse me? I'm looking for my sister." She started off polite under the circumstances, but firm. These freaks were not going to cow her no matter what they tried.
He just looked at her without interest.
Oh, so it was gonna be like that, was it? She gave him a snide look and spoke louder.
"Maybe you didn't hear me? I'm looking for sister, Lucy. She was dragged out of here yesterday with a broken arm. Ring any bells?"
Lois exhaled loudly when he still didn't answer her. "I know you guys have super-hearing... and apparently super-doucheness as well," she muttered. Pause. "Listen buddy, if you don't want to help me, fine. But at least tell me if she's still here."
Kor-Va didn't know what the word douche meant, but gleaned enough from her countenance and tone to infer that it was an insult. His expression grew steadily annoyed as she kept talking without taking a hint, and finally he growled in irritation. "I don't know where the human you seek is. Go away before I throw you back in that room."
She scowled at him and opened her mouth to retort, but just then out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tess walking past. She raced to catch up with her, calling back to the guard, "Thanks for nothing."
"Tess." Lois fell in step next to her, hoping for an ounce of humanity in the other woman. Tess eyed her distastefully and ignored her. "I'm looking for my sister."
"Have you tried a shallow grave in the outskirts of town?" Tess asked mildly.
Lois grabbed her shoulder angrily to force Tess to look her in the eye, but Tess was fast. She had Lois' face planted into the wall and her arm twisted behind her back in three seconds.
"Don't touch me," Tess warned.
Lois chuckled darkly. Then, slammed the back of her head into Tess's nose, spinning around quickly when her arm was released. "You want to do this the hard way? Fine."
Tess wiped the blood trickling from her nose and glared at Lois. "I've been waiting to finish what we started a year ago, Lois." Her body coiled like a snake, ready to strike. "I'm gonna mop the floor with your face." Then she lunged at Lois and wrapped her arms around her midsection, slamming her back up against the wall.
Lois hissed at the pain and drew her knee up into Tess' stomach, then slammed it into her face. "Bring it on, bitch."
Suddenly, they were both aware of another presence in the corridor with them. Both women stopped fighting for a moment to look over at Raina, who leaned up against the wall casually as if observing a play.
Tess looked at her warily and then glared at Lois. "Zod's little plaything attacked me. I was just about to teach her a lesson."
Raina smiled coldly. "Soon you will one of us, yes?"
Tess gave a short nod, not quite sure what Raina was getting at.
"Well, Kryptonians fight to win and show no mercy," she responded, sliding a hand into the front of her uniform and withdrawing a thin flat blade that, when held correctly in a fist, it stuck out between two knuckles. The horizontal metal handle was easily palmed. Though it was altogether only about three inches, Lois knew that it could easily kill her if stuck in the right place.
Raina smiled and tossed it to Tess. She only hesitated for a second, before tightening her jaw in resolve and sliding the blade between her knuckles.
"I guess I don't get one," Lois muttered sarcastically, crouching slightly and waiting for Tess' move.
She lunged forward slashing and laughed when Lois jumped back to avoid getting cut. Lois was a little nervous now that Raina had joined their little soiree. She got the feeling that the black-haired woman would love to sneak up behind her and stab her in the back.
Thankfully, Lois managed to kick Tess' arm hard causing the blade to skid down the hallway. Then, just to make her day a little brighter, Lois kicked a foot right across Tess' face and grinned.
"It's pretty bad when you can't even kill an unarmed girl," Lois taunted through gasps for air.
Tess yelled angrily in embarrassment and leapt at her, fingers curved like talons as if to scratch Lois' eyes out. In the span of a heartbeat however, Tess collided with what felt like a steel wall and was knocked back unconscious onto the floor. Air billowed around Lois and she tried to shield her eyes.
When they opened again, her heart skipped a beat. Zod stood between her and Tess' prone form, staring at Raina with a less than amused look on his face. Raina was no longer casually leaning and her stance was now respectful... and tense.
"What, may I ask, is going on here?" He was calm but Lois knew enough about Zod to know that didn't mean anything.
Raina answered. "I found the two of them fighting. Tess was winning." That last part was added a maliciously.
"That's a lie," Lois angrily spat, "I was kicking her ass." For some reason, she could not let Zod think she was losing to Tess. Her pride couldn't take any more wounding.
Zod abruptly held up a hand at which Lois stared, practically seeing red. Who the hell did he think he was? She was about to let all previous promises and vows of obedience fly out of her head, when Zod spoke, directing his question at Raina.
"You didn't think to stop them?"
Her eyes flickered. "It was equal. Tess isn't one of us… even if she wants to be. I didn't think your humans were so pathetic that they couldn't handle a little fight."
Lois stepped forward furiously, her chest running into Zod's raised hand. It was like a steel bar. "Pathetic? Listen sister, I think I just kicked your little stooge's ass in a fight that was hardly fair. Don't get your panties in a twist just because it didn't turn out quite how you'd hoped."
Raina started forward with a snarl and Lois tried to get around Zod's hand, but he knocked his subordinate back and Lois was no match for his strength. Oddly enough, Raina was far easier to subdue than Lois because Zod was her superior. Respect and obedience was drilled into Kryptonian soldiers from birth. She knew her place if nothing else.
"I'm sorry, sir. It won't happen again." Her tone was respectful, but the look she shared with Lois was definitely not.
Lois didn't back down and squared her jaw stubbornly. She hadn't forgotten that this was the woman who had Oliver in her clutches.
Zod dismissed her and she turned to walk away, but stopped with a small smile.
"I wanted to thank you, sir."
His eyes narrowed, but she continued. "For sparing my human's life. He is quite…," here her eyes flickered to Lois, "charming."
Lois went red and spat at her feet. The black-haired woman laughed and looked slyly at her general.
Zod thought Oliver Queen was anything but charming and he'd had about enough of Raina's annoying, petty jibes. It grated on him whenever Lois became agitated on Queen's behalf and Raina seemed to be instigating it. He quickly slammed her against the wall and spoke so that only she could hear.
"What are you playing at, Raina? Don't think that I don't know you're up to something."
Her temper flared and she could no longer bite her tongue . "And don't think that your human plaything cares anything for you. We've wiped out almost her entire species with you leading the charge, General. Nothing you could ever do will make up for that."
He was stunned by her audacity and for once was speechless as he tried to regroup his thoughts. What in the name of Rao was she talking about?
Raina continued bitterly. "Are you going to keep her? If you have children? Or just get rid of her and pretend that they aren't half human?" Her tone conveyed the disgust that thought invoked.
A good general never let the enemy know what he was thinking. Or friends who were trying to out maneuver him. His smile was cold and thin. "What I decide to do with her is none of your business." He leaned in close to her ear. "If I had wanted you, I would have you. But, I don't. Try for a little dignity, Raina."
Zod could see in her eyes that he had wounded her, but didn't care. He knew exactly what she was capable of and could not afford to be misunderstood. Lois could die because of it.
Angrily, she pushed him away and tried to regain some of her pride. "If that is all?" she asked stiffly and sped away in the blink of an eye when he inclined his head in assent.
Lois swallowed as she realized it was just the two of them now. He turned to her, still annoyed.
"What are you doing out here?"
Her mouth was dry but she raised her chin and answered. "I want to know what you did with my sister. If she's still here I want to see her." She held her breath and waited to be ridiculed for trying to demand anything, but it didn't come.
"Fine. Follow me." He turned and began walking in the direction she had originally started in.
After she was sure she had heard right, she stepped over Tess' unconscious form and walked quickly to catch up. "What? Why?"
She couldn't see his almost-hidden look of satisfaction. "Why shouldn't you see her? Her arm has been healed and she's as good as new."
Lois couldn't believe her ears and was instantly suspicious. "Why? And how did you heal her? Broken bones take at least six weeks to mend."
"Six weeks for humans, maybe," he answered pompously, "Under the red sun our bodies don't break or age or decay. Our blood is like an elixir for your kind. Her bones healed quickly."
"But, why would you heal her? And why, if she's better, is she still here?" Lois didn't trust anything Zod did, whether it seemed good or not.
"What would be the point of not healing her? After all, her broken arm was for your benefit not hers. No need for her to suffer needlessly and if we had let it alone, her arm would have been useless, crushed beyond repair."
Lois snorted. "If you care so much about human suffering, why don't you let the ones in your little cattle pens outside have their lives back?"
He laughed and they turned a corner. She noticed a flash of gold at his throat and her heartbeat quickened. It was a reminder of the job she had to do.
As if he could read minds too, his expression flashed to one of predatory cunning. "Why don't you tell me how the ring works? I've had it for a bit now and the urge to put it on is growing by the day."
He caught her so off guard with his question that she couldn't speak for a moment. Then, "Why haven't you?"
He shrugged as if it didn't matter. "I have what I want now and I don't wish to put that in jeopardy. What if I somehow traveled to another time where I was powerless?"
She sucked in a breath. So he knew what the ring did. If he ever gathered the courage to actually wear it, all would be lost. She had no idea what triggered it, but she had merely slid it partway on and popped up here. Zod was wearing it against his chest, touching it everyday, and yet was still here plaguing her.
Lois could only hope that if she actually succeeded in getting the ring away from him, it would work for her. She cleared her throat and replied nonchalantly.
"I doubt fate is that kind," she said with sweet sarcasm. "You could always let me test it out for you?" She held her hand out toward him, knowing he would deny her. Lois just liked being a pain in the ass to him.
"Your wit, Miss Lane, never ceases to amuse me." Zod scowled, stopping in front of a door and turning the knob.
The discussion was no longer important to her.
He opened it and Lois rushed past him, seeing to her relief that he hadn't been lying. Lucy was laying on a bed, covered in a sheet, and looked better than she had before her arm was broken.
She smiled and Lois rushed over to her. Zod planted himself by the door and made no secret that he was listening to their every word.
"Lois, I can't believe you're here. We thought you were dead when you disappeared."
Lois teared up instantly. "I'm sorry, Lu. I don't remember anything." She couldn't talk to Lucy about the ring while Zod was there.
"I don't have much time before they take me back to the farm," Lucy whispered, talking about the Kent farm that was now a camp that housed humans. "Whatever they want you to do, just do it, Lois. They're aren't like us. There's no way to fight against them."
Lois swallowed and whispered as softly as she could. "I'm going to find a way out of this, and when I do you're coming with me."
Lucy panicked and darted a look at Zod. "No, please Lois, whatever you're doing don't involve me. There's nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. If you run, they kill you. No second chances."
What?
She couldn't believe her sister wouldn't even try. Lois nodded numbly after staring for a few moments. If her sister was telling her to stay put, then something was seriously wrong. Compared to Lucy, Lois was downright a homebody.
She gripped her sister's hand tightly and faked a smile. "Don't worry about me, Lu. You just take care of yourself and I'll see if we can talk again." She had to get out of there. She knew that her sister was only scared and being practical, but the concept of surrender was so foreign to Lois that Lucy almost seemed like a stranger now. To give in so easily…
She shook her head and walked out of the room, her thoughts so preoccupied with her sister that she barely even noticed Zod.
"Satisfied?"
She looked up and glared. "I'd be more satisfied if you and your group of maniacs would find some other planet to terrorize."
"It's not as if we had a choice," he pointed out. "And if Kal-El and his father hadn't tried to deny us what was rightfully ours, this all could have been peaceful."
He didn't miss the flash of pain across her face at the mention of Clark and he scowled. A part of him, the size of a sliver of wood, felt the tiniest bit of remorse for having caused it. But, the greater part of him couldn't understand why she would still have feelings for Clark. Or even what had attracted him to her in the first place.
Obviously, she liked a man with power and a hero complex. First Queen then Clark. Perhaps it would be far easier than he had previously imagined to gain her loyalty.
She stiffly walked beside him and tried to put as much distance between them as possible but it was hard in the narrow hallway. However, she couldn't miss this opportunity to find out more about her captor.
"How can the two of you come from the same place and be so different?"
He knew who she was comparing him to, but instead of getting angry, he merely smiled at her like she was a child who didn't know anything. They turned the corner to the hallway that lead back to his room.
"Kal-El betrayed us and chose humans over his own kind. It was pathetic how much he wanted to be one of you and yet never would."
Her temper rose. For once she couldn't wait to get back to the room where she wouldn't have to see his face anymore.
"Clark was a hero who saved the lives of countless people on a daily basis."
"Clark was weak," he snorted, "and narcissistic. He only loved this planet because he craved the power and glory that came with it. Any one of the humans he fought for would have gladly given him up to save their own lives."
Her jaw clenched briefly and she looked at him in derision. "You know nothing about humans or what we're capable of and one day that will be your downfall.
Something in her tone caught his attention and he paused in front of the door to his room to look at her. She looked back at him angrily and his stomach clenched with the familiar lust he'd come to associate with her. He'd felt it with Tess, but as many things do, it had drifted away from him after awhile. He'd continued to use her because it suited him, but he neither respected nor liked her that much.
Lois turned the doorknob quickly and slid inside, trying to close it before he entered. Feeling the wind against her face a second later told her she was too late.
He was standing in the middle of the darkened room. The curtains were drawn and there was a fire roaring in the hearth. Her stomach lurched.
"You lit a fire already?" He couldn't be that fast.
"I was on my way here when I heard the commotion in the hallway. I ordered the guard to have one started."
"Why did you stick up for me?" she said curiously with a slight edge to her voice.
He laughed outright, running a hand through his hair. He looked oddly boyish at that moment and once again Lois was confused. How could this man be such a monster and still look so innocent at times? He was truly alien to her.
His expression sobered and he eyed her thoughtfully. "You are referring to Raina. The argument between us." He walked close to her and she didn't move away. "She had thought that her and I would become... something more than what we are."
Lois was truly confused and couldn't hide it in her voice. His nearness was off-putting. "I don't get it. Why wouldn't you want her?" As psychotic as Raina was, it was her experience that beauty trumped mental stability when it came to men's opinions of women.
"She is beautiful," he agreed, lightly running the tip of his index finger over the strap of her tank top. "And a very exemplary soldier- until lately," he muttered offhandedly. Then he refocused on her and the fact that she hadn't knocked his hand away. "But, I don't wish to share my bed or my gene pool with her. Her last lover met with a very suspicious end."
Once again, she thought, how would that be a bad thing for her? She pasted on a false smile and looked up at him.
"Well, lucky me."
"Yes," he agreed, "lucky you."
This was her chance. His hand lingered close to her neck and she could feel her heartbeat speed up. There were no more Get Out of Jail Free cards left for her. She swallowed every ounce of the pride that was making her arm twitch with the need to punch him in the face (because, let's face it- his face would break her hand) and decided once and for all with an iron resolve what she was going to do.
Men had been doing it for thousands of years. There was nothing wrong with a girl using whatever she had in her toolbelt to get the job done. Nothing whatsoever.
Lois groaned inwardly. She hadn't ever had that much success in using her sex appeal as a method for distraction. Thanks Dad, she said silently, for my awesome tom-boy childhood.
Lucy would've already had the ring.
She swallowed. Then raised her hand slowly up until her fingers slid over Zod's. The air between them shifted though neither actually moved.
She stamped out the lingering residual echoes of her dying pride and raised her eyes confidently to Zod's. His burned fire, but she didn't move away. Somehow she knew that Zod, being the control freak that he was, wouldn't allow his Kryptonian powers to get away from him unless he allowed it. Hopefully, he wouldn't.
And, it was important that he not think she was afraid of him.
Her voice was low with fear and apprehension, but hopefully it would be interpreted as husky and seductive. "Let's stop with the pleasantries, shall we? We both know what you want."
Without taking her eyes off his, she slowly drew his hand up to her lips and kissed it. His skin was warm and felt oddly human.
Every signal in his brain was telling him to rip her clothes off and take her right then and there, but he merely twitched his head slightly to the side, curiosity getting the best of him.
"Why the change of heart? I had expected, despite your promises, more resistance than this." People rarely surprised Zod and when they did, he had to ferret out every detail to be fully satisfied.
"I thought this is what you wanted."
"Yes," he agreed, allowing her to continue stroking his fingers, "but you've made no secret of your distaste for me and my kind-,"
"Not your kind," she corrected, "just you."
Which confused him even more. What was her game? "Which brings me back to my previous question." Zod slid his other hand up over her shoulder to cradle the back of her neck. He made sure that his touch was very gentle.
She stiffened but didn't push him away. Her answer was hopefully suitable. She was counting on his prejudices against humans to work in her favor.
"I appreciate what you did for my sister. You could have left her one arm short but you didn't. Thank you." The dull buzzing in her ears was making it hard for her to hear him. Why couldn't they just get this over with?
He cocked an eyebrow, ever suspicious. "Given that I'm the one that caused her distress in the first place, I'm not quite sure how that endears me to you."
She shrugged. "I guess you don't know as much about humans as you think you do. We made a deal," – coercion, more like it- "and as far as I know, you've kept up your end of it. You have haven't you?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at him.
He nodded slowly, knowing she wasn't talking about Lucy. "Queen is still alive."
"Barely," she muttered, forgetting herself for a moment. Hopefully, Oliver's broken bones weren't too bad. There wasn't much a person who wasn't invulnerable to pain could do for ribs anyway.
Zod had an idea and extricated himself from her grasp. He walked away toward the door and called for Kor-Va.
Lois had no idea what was going on, but a ball of dread coiled in her stomach. Had she misspoken? What was he going to do?
The guard who was always at the end of the hall appeared in the doorway looking stiff and serious as usual. "Yes, sir?"
Zod looked briefly at Lois and then back at him. "I want you to do something for me. Take some of your blood to the human in the prisoner's quarters and give it to him. If you encounter any resistance from the others tell them it's on my orders. If the prisoner resists, knock him out and then administer it."
He nodded and turned to leave.
Lois was dumbfounded and stood there silently as Zod closed and locked the door. She realized that he was beginning to unbutton his shirt, but it didn't really register in her brain. If the alien gave Oliver his blood, wouldn't that heal him?
Zod noticed her confused expression and chuckled, shrugging off his shirt. "I'm not a monster Lois, even though you think I am."
She gulped at his half-nakedness. Was it better or worse that he was so attractive? Would it make it easier?
He sobered his expression and softened his eyes. "I can't help that I'm different. Though we may look alike, we are not the same. When you attempted to escape I was so enraged that I wasn't thinking clearly."
He drew close and took her hand again. "I regret my actions regarding your sister... and Queen." That last part was difficult. He didn't regret shit regarding Oliver.
She didn't believe him but was confused as to why he would lie.
"You don't have any idea what me and my people have been through," he whispered, raising her hand to his lips. "We were thrown into this world that we knew barely anything about with no idea as to what happened. Our families are all dead and our home planet, Krypton, destroyed."
She swallowed and shook her head. "You could've made this your home- at least tried to fit in."
He sneered. "And then what? Pretend to be humans for the rest of our lives? Attempting to avoid detection by your governments? Krypton lives on through us. How long before even that knowledge was gone? Two generations?"
"You didn't even try."
His temper was slowly starting to get the best of him and he tried reigning it in. "Until your planet has been blown up, I doubt you can fully understand our feelings."
She raised an eyebrow and refrained from saying the obvious. "You have them?"
"Of course." He gritted his teeth and then forced himself to calm down. "Lois, it's the way of everything, even on Earth, predator or prey. All things have their place. Your race was the dominant one in this world for a long time, but now things have changed. You can either accept that or die out trying to fight us."
Plastering another fake smile on, she glanced down for a second at the gold chain gleaming against his chest. Her frustration was mounting and she was about to lose her temper with him. He could make all the sense in the world, but nothing changed the fact that she would never accept his people's presence here.
"I understand your logic." She could tell that he was taken aback by her agreement with him. "Consider though what you would do if someone had come to your planet and killed and ravaged it. Would you have simply rolled over and played dead?"
His mouth turned up on one side. "Out of the twenty-eight known galaxies, Krypton was the greatest. We were the most technologically advanced and the most feared and respected." He smiled and ran his fingertips along her cheek. "And the most hated. I wouldn't want to see a race that could have conquered us. It would be a terrible thing."
From what Clark had told her during the brief time they'd had together, she was fairly certain that Zod was telling the truth, despite his inflated ego. But, how could someone not have any empathy at all? How could he not feel that what he was doing was wrong?
Psychopath, she decided.
Zod saw the conflicting emotions across her face and smiled inwardly. Since she had not retorted he figured that he must have silenced her on the subject. An amazing feat indeed since she never shut up.
He lifted his arms up to his neck and slid the chain over his head, watching her face carefully. He knew the real reason she was so compliant today and it had nothing to do with his treatment of her sister or her ex-lover, but everything to do with her desire to get the ring back. He had half a mind to put it on right now and see what happened.
He was sure that it had time-traveling capabilities but he couldn't risk being transported to, oh say, a little over a year ago. He hadn't had powers then and he certainly didn't want to go through what he'd had to do to get them again. Too many of his people had been killed that night and it was only by Clark's mercy and misplaced goodwill that he had survived.
He saw her eyes widen slightly though she tried to pretend that she didn't notice. "I'm just going to put this away for safe keeping." Then before she could blink he was across the room, dropping the ring into a box and shutting the lid. In another blink he was right in front of her again, this time so close they were touching.
She gulped and tried to back up, but the bed hit the back of her knees and she had to steady herself to keep from falling. How was she going to get the ring now?
"Afraid I'm going to steal it away from you?" she challenged, jutting her chin out. Maybe he would feel like his manhood was threatened and put it back on.
Apparently, he was very secure with his manliness because he didn't say anything or move to go get it. He simply lifted his hand toward her face and stared down at her, his gaze like a magnet.
She nervously tried to back away, but found she had nowhere left to go. This was really going to happen. Her nerves, she was sure, were literally frying in her brain at this very moment. His fingertips ghosted over her cheek and down her throat, finally sliding back behind her neck. His hand was warm, almost hot. Her eyes collided with the expanse of his bare chest and once again her stomach turned over with nervous tension.
"What are you doing?" she asked stupidly. She felt like a deer in the headlights, stuck and unable to move.
"You know what I'm doing," Zod answered softly, yet confidently. Sex was something that he used to get what he wanted. He had never been unfaithful to his wife and had loved her more than any other except his son, but he also hadn't been above using his looks and charm to persuade women to do what he wanted.
It was only a matter of time before Lois succumbed, and being human probably meant she was emotionally weaker than the women of Krypton. Some part of him thought that would be a shame. It would ruin his image of her, if only slightly.
But, it was inevitable.
Zod gave her one last smile that was more of a smirk before he bent his head down to hers and kissed her. Out of instinct and aversion to everything about him, she tried to move away, but he'd had the foresight to keep his hand on the back of her neck. There was no escape.
After a few seconds of Lois being frozen in place, Zod darted the tip of his tongue out to graze her lips, moving his hands down both arms to pull her closer to him. He was trying to be careful so that he didn't break her, but sometimes it was hard. He remembered that Shor-ra had killed two humans accidentally.
"Come now Lois," he murmured against her mouth in between kisses, "You can do better than this."
God, he was the most hated thing she'd ever met. There was no way around it and no rationalizing it- she was a traitor. Willingly swapping spit with the destroyer of earth and the murderer of her friends and family.
The only thing that made her feel better was the thought of getting back to her own time and completely annihilating him and all of his friends. She would even forgive Clark for not trusting her. Together, they would kick Zod's ass all the back to whatever sociopathic galaxy he'd come from and then finally be together.
Grudgingly, she brought herself back to the present and focused on the man in front of her. It would take all sorts of cunning to get that ring and there was no one, in her opinion, more qualified. Growing up in her father's house had made her very adept at sneakiness- when the occasion called for it.
She took a breath and pressed herself closer to him, feeling him stiffen slightly in surprise. Opening her mouth, she allowed him in, mingling her tongue with his. Her fingers slid up his neck and lost themselves in his short dark hair, playing with it absently as he clutched her hip and brought her closer.
Suddenly, he broke off and stared at her.
She exhaled in frustration. God, one minute he was pawing her while she threw herself into her task, and the next he was back to the same old crazy suspicion of her motives. Her irritation mounted with each passing minute spent in his company.
"Listen," she began with an annoyed look on her face, "if we're doing this, it might as well be enjoyable. Right?" She spoke quickly to get the chit-chat over with.
It seemed to work because after one last suspicious look, he captured her mouth once again. His hands went to her waist, sliding up until he felt her bare skin. He felt her hands on him as well and it drove his desire up several more notches.
He groaned and slid her shirt up further, hating the fabric that was in his way. He broke off the kiss again determined to remedy that. The fastest way to his end goal was to simply rip the shirt itself right down the middle and that's what he did causing her to gasp in shock and surprise and just a bit of fear.
God, he was caveman.
Her breath was coming in short gasps, pushing her breasts up against the fabric of her bra as he eyed her like tiger about to pounce on a gazelle. She couldn't help but take a step backward. It didn't matter of course because he was right in front of her, invading her personal space again, in the blink of an eye.
Up until now, the touching hadn't been that intimate, but without her shirt the length of their torsos molded against one another with only the scant lace of her bra as protection. As abhorrent as kissing him actually was, at least when they were doing that she didn't have to endure his stare that seemed to have quite a bit of crazy behind it. So she grabbed his face once again and drew him back in.
While his lips were busy, with one of his free hands he unclasped her bra and jerked it off. He felt her pause and attempt to draw back but he didn't let her. Taking hold of her, he moved them with lightening fast speed to the bed.
She gasped and thankfully didn't shriek like she wanted to. "Don't do that," she hissed, ignoring his attempt to charm her with a smile. "Jeez." She put a hand over her racing heart and suddenly became very aware she was totally naked from the waist up.
He felt her stiffen and sighed. "I suppose my attempt to take your mind off things didn't work, did it?"
She looked at him oddly. "Why the hell would you want to take my mind off things?" God, he was so weird. Was Clark this way too? She'd always thought he was weird, but attributed it to growing up in Cornland. That would make anyone strange.
"You don't know much about men, do you?"
"I know plenty about men," she snapped.
His expression darkened. "Oh really? I guess I shouldn't be surprised, between Clark Kent and Oliver Queen."
Was he calling her a slut? She bit her lip in a valiant effort to keep from spitting on him. Angrily, she retorted, "Oh that's nothing. Before Ollie it was Arthur- he loved fish way too much though- and let's see, before him I ran through a few frat boys, some soldiers, -,"
"Enough," he ordered witheringly. He was pretty sure she was just trying to anger him and it was working. He wasn't someone who enjoyed sharing his things with others. "On Krypton women were not as promiscuous."
She smiled. "Your loss. I guess your precious Krypton didn't have everything, did it?"
His lips tightened. He was suddenly aware that his hand was still on her bare waist and gave her a thin smile. Slowly moving it up, he looked down and stopped just as the pad of his thumb touched the slow curve of her breast. She inhaled sharply.
"I demand respect, Lois, from all of my subjects."
"I'm not your subject. I'm your prisoner remember?"
She thought he would open his mouth and spew some lie about how he was really keeping her safe and that he never wanted this, but he surprised her by agreeing and it made her remember who she was really dealing with.
"Yes, you are my prisoner. Just because I allow you to live here instead of down in the cellar with your lover doesn't mean that I won't throw you back where I found you." He leaned close to her face, relishing the fear that crossed it and flicked his tongue out over her lips briefly. "In the muck at the Kent farm with the rest of your kind."
There was a strange glint in his eyes that scared her and she tried to calm him down before everything was lost.
"You're right," she said quietly, not moving, "You have shown yourself to be merciful and I haven't been very grateful. It would be stupid of me to make a martyr of myself."
She could feel his body relaxing against her and let out a barely audible sigh of relief. His fingers traveled down her stomach to the tops of her jeans. He slowly unbuttoned them, then unzipped the zipper. There was a challenge in his eyes as if he was waiting to see what she would do.
"We could be great together, Lois," he whispered, leaning down to kiss her neck. He opened his mouth and licked the sensitive flesh by her collarbone, all the while moving his hand lower, pushing down the tops of her jeans to grant him better access to her.
Zod was an extremely skilled lover and he knew precisely where to touch a woman, even an unwilling one, to get a reaction. Lois would be his tonight and she would damn well enjoy it. Her self-loathing once morning came could only work toward his advantage and allow him to further manipulate her. He couldn't afford to let even one person in his life be outside his control.
When he touched her he could feel and hear her reaction. It pleased him, though he wasn't egotistical enough to think it was of her own volition. Whatever the reason, knowing that she was responding to his touch made his own desire rise dramatically and he moaned against her neck, dragging his lips across her skin to her lips where he kissed her deeply.
His body was warmer than a human's. Being so close to him was causing a light flush along her chest just above her breasts and along her cheekbones. His fingers stroked her between her legs and without even meaning to, she parted them a little to give him better access and flexed her hand that was lying loosely upon him just barely into his back.
A human wouldn't have noticed the slight movement, but Zod smiled at the knowledge that he was getting to her. He moved with amazing dexterity and speed until, after only a couple minutes, her face contorted and he swallowed her moans with his mouth, relishing the feeling of her convulsing body under his.
Lois was very beautiful even when she wasn't lying naked in his bed, but after sexual release, even Zod had to concede she looked amazing. Her eyes were slightly glazed and chest was heaving, though she was valiantly trying to gain control of herself.
That wouldn't do, he thought. He liked it when Lois was speechless.
He shifted his weight to one side and unbuckled his pants. Now that he had his powers, all that was left of his Kryptonian heritage, not much could cause him to become out of breath. Except for sex. It was one of the few pleasures he had left in life on this accursed planet. Even with a red sun, it wasn't the same.
To maintain the balance of power, even in the bedroom, he stopped unbuttoning his pants to sit up on his knees and grip the edges of her waistband. He smiled at her and pulled them down, discarding them carelessly on the floor when he was finished. It was only fitting in this situation that she be fully naked first.
Lois couldn't tell from his expression what he was thinking and it was slightly unnerving. It wasn't like she gave a damn what he thought of her, but she didn't want to be humiliated. Being naked in front of anyone, especially your mortal enemy was horrible. She'd never had any complaints, but then again, she'd never slept with an alien from outer space before.
Oh God. She vowed to never say that phrase in that context ever again. It made her picture a naked green little man and she grew nauseous. The memories of what she'd just done were more than enough to make her sick. She didn't need to help her gag reflex out any more than necessary.
Focus, Lois. Stop the mental ramblings.
Zod stood up slowly and dropped his pants to the floor causing Lois to once again swallow hard. He was perfect and knew it. There was not an ounce of shyness about him, which was more than could be said about her. She expected him to get back into bed, but he surprised her by picking her up effortlessly and throwing her up against the wall, taking her breath away for a moment.
"Our first time should be unconventional, don't you think?" he whispered into her ear, running his lips across her cheekbone lightly.
Oh God. What the hell did he mean by 'unconventional'? If he was about to try some weird kinky alien stuff, the world could go screw itself. There was no way she would go through with that. Over his shoulder, her eyes caught sight of the box the Legion ring was in.
Clark, she thought, why didn't you trust me? I could've been gone from here already.
The pain and anger in her heart was swift and she hated it. Both emotions. Not even the fact that she was willingly letting Zod touch her could distract her from it.
"Did I hurt you?"
A low voice succeeded in doing what she couldn't by herself. It ripped her thoughts away from Clark and her pain and drew her attention back to her situation. Zod was staring at her and she was confused for a second until she realized that there were tears in her eyes.
"Not this time," she whispered absently. Then she did something that surprised both of them. She grabbed his face with both hands and brought hers down to his, kissing him hard and tightening her legs around his waist.
The air changed around them and he knew that she'd simply been submissive before. The Lois he'd been wanting all along had come out to play and it made his heart skip a beat in anticipation. He gripped her tighter, trying to keep some control over himself, but it was hard. Her hands ran over his shoulders and across his chest, digging her nails into the muscles below his collarbones and causing the blood to rush to his cock.
She moaned and threw her head back against the wall as he placed himself at her entrance and pushed forward. Zod didn't give her time to adjust to him or to become used to the idea of being with him sexually. He simply thrust up until he was buried to the hilt and exhaled through is nose.
He moved inside her slowly at first, wanting to savor the moment. His hand slid from her waist up to a breast, pressing hard and bending his head to taste it. The only thought going through his head was the craving to be deeper in her and he thrust faster.
Lois was no longer in her right mind. In those few moments of time, all she wanted was Zod. There was no Clark, Chloe, Oliver, or Legion ring. There wasn't even a world. There was only what her body was feeling and how she could prolong it.
Zod broke off and moved quickly away from the wall to the bed, instinctively keeping his body from crushing her, but never stopping their rhythm. He stretched out over her and braced his weight on his forearms, grabbing her leg that was slung low around his hips and hooking it over his shoulder.
He drove deeper into her, his desire mounting until he lost control of his abilities, moving faster than humanly possible inside her. The pressure behind his eyes was increasing and just as he came, he turned his head to the side and opened his eyes.
Three successive bolts of fire shot from them and exploded a dresser in the corner. He collapsed on the bed next to Lois and stared up at the ceiling, breathing rapidly.
Lois had no idea what had just exploded. She assumed the sound had simply been in her head when she came once again, but glancing over at the charred remains of a piece of furniture in the corner of the room she guessed not.
Sorry, Lex.
Her breathing took far longer than Zod's to come back down to a normal pace. He was already up and walking naked over to a pitcher of water across the room. He wiped his mouth nonchalantly after he was done drinking and then opened the box beside it to check on the ring.
Jeez, paranoid much?, she thought in derision. He didn't put it back on though. Just turned back around to stare at her with that look that always put her on edge and drunk slowly from the glass he held in his hand.
Then he walked back to the bed where she didn't dare move a muscle and eased back as if nothing had happened between them. Glad, you enjoyed yourself, she thought in irritation. Don't expect an encore.
He sighed and stretched his arms out above his head, turning ever so slightly to look at her out of the corner of his eye. He smiled at her very obvious discomfort in the aftermath of what they'd just done. She already had a white sheet draped over her body to prevent him from seeing her, he though in amusement. He could rip it away from her if he chose, but he'd let her keep it for now.
No one could ever say that Zod wasn't merciful and compassionate.
She rolled over so that she wouldn't have to endure his scrutiny and stared at the wall across the room by the door. Then a thought occurred to her. Great. She didn't have a shirt anymore since General Ass had ripped it off her. Would he give her another one? Or make her beg?
Somewhere in the mansion Oliver was here. That knowledge made her feel better and worse at the same time. What would he think of her now?
