Chapter Eleven

Showdown

Maya felt the wind in her face as she gripped the seven foot pry bar in her two hands and dashed as fast as she could to defend the farm and her new friend. The dirt under her feet kicked up in puffs of dust as she dug in bound after bound. Her heart increased its beating slightly and her field of vision narrowed to the police car at the head of the drive.

Deputy Johnston looked toward the house and noticed a teen girl running toward them carrying a stick or pole of some type. "Hey Ken," he called to his partner. "Head's up."

Deputy Farris nodded. "I see her." His eyes moved back to the imposing figure ten feet in front of him and edged up. "Hey Clark, what say we take a ride down to the station and have ourselves a little talk."

Hearing the quick footfalls behind him Clark turned his head at Maya's approach. He held up a hand to warn her away and as he did he heard the POP of a weapon discharge.

"NO!" Maya screamed.

She planted an end of the pry bar into the ground and vaulted into the air. At the same time Clark reached out and grabbed the leads to the Taser that was shot at him and pulled the weapon out of the Deputy's hand.

Maya whipped the bar around at the top of her arc, ten feet in the air and headed down centering on the skull of the man who shot her leader. Before the bar found its mark in deadly accuracy Clark gave a burst of super-speed and blocked the impact with his hand.

Maya's feet landed on the bumper and the hood of the police cruiser respectively. The sight of the thick metal bar a scant inch from his face drove Deputy Farris backward and to the ground.

"SHIT!" Johnston yelled from inside the car. Without even thinking he grabbed the transmitter from its cradle and yelled. "Officer down! Officer down! We're being attacked at the Kent Farm!"

Farris back-peddled a few feet and grabbed at his holster withdrawing his service weapon, and was joined a second later as Johnston did the same.

Johnston dropped to a crouch between the open door and the body of the car with Maya in his sights. Before he had a chance to flip the safety off his weapon Maya swung her staff around and knocked it out of his hands.

CRACK!

Farris centered his aim on the chest of his attacker and pulled the trigger on his own weapon, but instead of the usual result of the perpetrator falling to the ground a hand snapped out and grabbed the bullet. He readjusted his aim to the very large figure in front of him glaring with red eyes.

He never had another chance to pull the trigger again because the barrel was scorching hot. Farris dropped his gun and yelled out in pain.

The Deputy back-peddled again in panic. "What – what the hell are you!"

A half second later a blur appeared on Johnson's the side of the car slamming the door closed with him in the way.

"Diana!"

The Amazonian stopped at the sound of Clark's yell.

"I heard their guns," she explained.

He breathed in slightly in frustration. "I thought I told you to listen to Chloe."

She smiled brightly. "And I did, Kryptonian."

The faint sound of sirens sounded in the distance.

Clark looked around to see the rest of the girls halfway up the drive and Bart standing beside him. The red-costumed teen surveyed the scene. "This ain't good."

Farris scrambled to his feet and started running down the street to the sound of his back-up.

By the time the rest of them arrived Clark was beside himself. "The whole reason I came out here was to give you all enough time to escape."

Diana checked on the unconscious Deputy Johnston. "We will not let others fight our battle, Clark, and we will not leave a friend."

"Yeah!" Dee sounded from the behind Mary.

"This isn't a battle. They can't hurt me," Clark stressed.

"It's beside the point, Clark," Talia interjected.

He shook his head. "All of you will be …"

Mary laid her hand on his shoulder. "We're already in danger. We're wanted by the police. We're a team, big guy," she smirked. "Yanno, that all for one and one for all crap."

"That was the Three Musketeers," Talia snarked.

"There were four musketeers weren't there?" Dee asked. "Why'd they call it three musketeers then?"

"Biiite meee," Mary sang.

Diana laughed to herself at the camaraderie.

Clark looked down the road once more at the approaching police cars.

"Fine," he said in resignation. "Codenames only." He pointed at Maya. "Echo." At Dee. "Dead Girl."

"That's me!" she chimed.

At Talia. "Are you sure you want Cheerleader Girl?"

She squirmed for a moment. "Kind of a mouthful, huh?"

"Nocturne," Diana said from behind them.

Talia turned and eyed the Amazon as she remembered the vision she told them about. "Yeah, Nocturne's cool."

At Mary he winced and turned to Diana. "Bloody Mary?"

Diana smiled and nodded.

Mary sternly interjected. "And that is NOT B.M. for short."

"We know Bart is Impulse," Clark added.

"And you're Boy Scout," said Bart. "Can we find some bad guys to fight now instead of the police?"

"Boy Scout?" Dee winced. "That's kinda lame. Diana, what's Clark's name?"

"Superman."

Clark cringed and tried to change the topic and turned to Bart. "We need radios like before."

Bart nodded. "Be back in a flash."

"Diana, I want to make sure they don't try to come at us from behind. Take Nocturne and patrol the south end. Dead Girl, you and Bloody Mary … we have got to come up with something different; that name screams violence."

"S'okay, Supes. It fits," replied Mary.

"Fine you two I need over in the back forty." He thought for a moment. "This is a defend only situation. Do not attack them. Once this is over with I want to be able to say we did what we had to do."

With a second thought he added, "Echo, can you get off the police car."

"My foot's stuck."

He looked down at the where her foot was and noted that the metal was bent around the sides of her foot. Clark set his hand on one side and pushed down bending the metal to the side. "Great," he whispered to himself. "Destruction of public property, assault on a police officer."

The team split up to their respective assignments and Echo hopped down off the car.

"I guess you don't have anything to cover your face?" he asked.

She shook her head. "I don't care if they know who I am."

Clark nodded to himself. "Stay to my side just in case."

A red blur stopped at his side. "Sorry for the wait. I got Chloe set up with the infra red and motion sensors inside."

He handed Clark an earpiece and then one to Maya. "Where you want me at Superman?" Bart chuckled a little at the name.

"Find a vantage point. I don't want to be surprised."

He tapped his earpiece. "Watchtower, you there?"

Chloe's voice came back. "I have everyone on screen, Supermaaan," she teased. "And I'm Shaman now."

"Uh, okay."

'Too many names,' he thought to himself.

Echo alerted on her com. "Here they come."

She stood to Clark's right and behind him far enough back to work her makeshift staff.

"Remember, don't hurt any of them."

Echo gripped the bar of metal and set her face in grim fashion.

0

Three patrol cars and one SUV approached from the west and Clark heard sirens from the east. Farris met the first car at the edge of the Kent property and Clark focused his hearing.

"…Johnston's down, probably dead. I don't know how he did it."

"Where's your weapon?"

"It melted."

"Have you been drinking, Farris?"

"No, I swear. It's melted. Beams shot out of his eyes."

"Uh huh." "Tell you what; why don't you have yourself a sit-down on the road over there and think about that again. Mallard, pull up behind the cruiser there."

The first car engaged and followed the Sheriff's instructions. Once he shut off the engine Sheriff Adams alighted from the car and pulled up on her utility belt. Clark noticed that she didn't bother with unsnapping her weapon holster.

"Missster Kent," she began. "Halloween was almost five months ago."

Her eyes took in the scene and the unconscious body of Deputy Johnston. "Mallard check out Johnston."

"He's just unconscious, Sheriff. He was about to shoot my friend. I couldn't let that happen."

Sheriff Adams set her hands on her hips. "And what reason would he have had to do such a thing?"

"Your deputy tried to taze me with my back turned. Echo defended me." Clark said matter-of-factly.

She looked at Clark's feet and saw the discharged Taser. "Uh huh. Mister Kent, you're wanted for questioning in regards to the disappearance of Lana Luthor. I sent my boys out to pick you and your mother up."

"She's lying, Sheriff."

A grim smile crossed the Sheriff's face. "And exactly how would you know that Mister Kent."

Clark had no air of embarrassment about him when he answered. "I eavesdropped."

"The room I talked to her in is sound-proofed. You wanna tell me how you managed that one?"

Echo eyed Mallard who unsnapped his weapon's restraint strap. "Superman," she whispered.

She hefted her staff.

Clark X-rayed through the car and saw what she was alerting him about. "Sheriff, you might want to tell your deputy to holster his weapon. I don't want Echo to hurt him."

Adams' eyes went wide and angry. "Mallard! Is your weapon clear?"

The deputy look properly abashed. "Uh…"

"Holster that side arm and go sit with Farris," she barked.

"But…"

"If I have to repeat myself you're going to be looking for a job tomorrow morning." She watched as Mallard secured his weapon and then turned back to Clark. "Now Mister Kent would you like to go change out of your jammies before we go down?"

Clark grimaced. "Do you have an arrest warrant, Sheriff?"

Sheriff Adams ran her tongue over her teeth in mild frustration. "Do I really need to do this, Mister Kent? We can save ourselves…"

Clark kept his demeanor calm and forthright. "According to Kansas State Code of Justice section 12 subsection C paragraph 2 you need to bring a warrant with you when you arrest someone for conspiracy, Sheriff."

He watched as her eyes narrowed. "That goes for Echo as well. I was well within my rights to refuse your deputies access to my property and was attacked without provocation. The only action we took was in defense of private property and in our self-preservation. I'm sure my lawyer will be most insistent that I press charges of trespass and assault. However if you like we can go our separate ways until you produce that warrant?"

The Sheriff leaned back and tipped her hat up. "Wooo doggies, Mister Kent that was a mouthful. I'm sure an old bo-hick country sheriff like myself didn't understand a word of that lawyer-eze rigmarole that was spewing from your mouth. But I'll tell you this. I'll be back and I'm leavin' my boys here to make sure you don't get anymore smart ideas."

She turned to leave but before she got two steps Clark called her back. "Sheriff, if you still want to talk we can do so inside. I just don't want me or mine arrested because of Lex Luthor's insistence on getting out of jail."

The Sheriff looked somewhat wary, but nodded her acceptance. "Right behind you, Mr. Kent."

He tapped his earpiece. "Diana, front gate, Impulse backup Nocturne. Echo, you're with me. Shaman, we're coming in." He turned to Sheriff. "Coffee, Sheriff?"

0

The three of them walked in and saw Chloe at the table with two open suitcases atop.

"Their holding the ground, Diana's cool."

"Miss Sullivan, may I assume that you're Shaman?"

An uneasy grin was returned. "Hi, Sheriff."

She went over and helped herself to a fresh cup of coffee before leaning against the counter. "So, Mister Kent…"

Clark looked down before he started. "Hold on a sec. this might be more believable if we're on even ground."

He lifted his bracelet to his mouth. "Casual mode, home."

Clark's Superman costume melted back into the jumpsuit and then out again to his red coat, t-shirt, and blue jeans. Sheriff Adams' cup slipped a little spilling half its contents to the floor. Her jaw also opened a little in awe at what she was seeing.

"I'm not exactly from around here, Sheriff Adams."

0

"An Alien?"

"Right."

"Meteor rocks?"

"Kryptonite actually."

"Super powers?"

"Uh huh."

"Right," Sheriff Adams nodded. "I'll be right back with that arrest warrant."

At that moment the screen door opened and Nocturne ran inside. She stopped and looked at the trio around the table. "Sorry, pee break."

Off she ran to the bathroom, and Sheriff Adams dropped back into her seat. "That girl was blue."

Clark nodded. "Uh huh."

0

"We have incoming," announced Chloe. "Green Arrow and Cyborg."

"Can I have some more coffee?"

0

"Boy Scout, what's the situa…ahh hello Sheriff," Green Arrow said as he opened the front door.

"Superman," Chloe corrected.

"You're not helping," Clark said as he rolled his eyes.

Cyborg stepped inside. "You can't go changing your call-sign like that, Boy Scout. Gotta be a consensus, and Superman screams EGO."

The Sheriff's radio squawked and she answered. "Go home. Leave me the SUV."

Clark smiled. "Call everyone in, Chloe."