Author's Note: Hi everyone! I'm sorry this chapter took so long. I hope that with the holiday season coming to an end I will have more time to dedicate to writing. I have several stories on the work table right now that will hopefully all be posted in 2017. Most SuperCat and maybe one SuperCorp.
I hope that you'll enjoy this chapter. I would like to thank Shipitlikeasteamboat for their constant assistance with this story and all of my others. IT is truly appreciated. Yet, please understand all mistakes are my own.
I hope everyone has a happy, joyous, and healthy Holiday Season/New Year!
Part 12
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Lois sighed heavily when she got Clark's voicemail again. Glaring at her phone she went through her contacts and found Lucy's number.
It took four rings, but it was finally answered.
"Lois, this isn't the best time." Lucy answered, and Lois couldn't help but smile because someone had finally answered her calls.
"Wait, please don't hang up. I can't get in touch with Clark."
"Lois. I cannot talk right now."
"Please. Lucy. I'm standing in front of Cat and she's about to murder me unless I can tell her Kara and Kalven are okay. Please…" Lois begged, eyes wild with her desperation.
Lucy growled into the phone, it sounded like she was pressing it against her chest, because it was distorted but Lois could still make out the sounds of an argument in the background.
"Put it on speaker phone."
"What?"
"Speaker phone!" Cat went to reach for the phone but Lois beat her to it and pressed the speakerphone button and held the phone out between them. The two women huddling close to try and make out what was being said in the background.
"Superman, Superman..! Woah, wait. Wonder Woman put down the sword! There is no need for this. You three need to calm down. Right now!" There were loud pops sounding through the phone that almost sounded like metal hitting metal.
"Damn it, Supergirl let him go! He's an ass but you can't kill him!"
Lois and Cat remained stock still at that particular order. Cat felt her face paling, sure now more than ever that Kara had been under the influence of Red K because of her.
This was all her fault.
She had put Kara in danger.
She had put Kalven at risk.
Cat felt her heart stutter in her chest, she should have stopped when she realized the lipstick was doing something to her. Gods, she never should have taken the bet to begin with.
Lois Lane never should have sent the lipstick to begin with!
"Do not make me restrain the three of you!"
"Kara, Kara stop!" That was Alex's voice.
Then both Lucy and Alex groaned and muffled apologies were spoken between the two (as if they were trying to get off one another after being pushed/tossed together).
"Stop. Now!"
Lois' eyebrows rose at the sound of her sister's authoritative voice and the muffled groaning and crash/bangs in the background.
"For Gods sakes, Diana. Be reasonable!"
"Clark, do not make me shoot you!"
There was a loud whistle and then two more crashes and Alex's disembodied voice saying: "Vasquez! Are you alright?"
"What in the world is going on over there, Lucy?" Cat asked, eyes wide as her mind conjured horrible images of the three super heroes fighting each other with human government agents in the way. Which was essentially exactly what was happening. What surprised Cat the most was that most of the orders were directed at Diana and Clark. If Kara was affected by the Red K why would the government agents be trying to stop Diana and Clark from subduing her?
Was it possible for Kara to have infected Clark just by being in close proximity? Could Diana even be affected by Red Kryptonite?
Cat felt dizzy with all of the unanswered questions she had.
"Lucy Lauraline Lane, if you do not answer me this instant I am going to release who is truly responsible for Red Tornado!" Cat threatened, her hands shaking at her side as she tried in vain to squeeze them together to stop the trembling.
Lois eyes slid to Cat, a part of her mind wondering just who WAS responsible for Red Tornado if it was prized blackmail material that Cat would use now, when she was desperate for answers and reassurances. It was something to keep locked away for another time. There were more important things to be worried about.
Lucy came back onto the line, out of breath and sounding as stressed as the rest of them. "As I was saying, Lois. Now, really, isn't the time."
"What happened? Is Kara and Kalven alright? Please, Lucy." Cat's voice broke. "Are they safe? Are they hurt? What is happening. Please…I need to know if I did this. Did I hurt them? AM I responsible for this?"
No, Lois thought, her chest aching at the broken pleas Cat was speaking into the small speaker of her cellphone, all her hopes and needs connected directly with the answers about to follow.
"Cat? Oh, uhm. Hi. Uh…no. No, Cat. You didn't do this." There was an accusing tone in Lucy's voice, one Lois knew was directed at her. "It was a false alarm. Kara and Kalven tested negative for Red K. You didn't infect them. They're both..." Lucy hesitated. "They'll be okay."
Cat left like she could slip right through the floor, her body nothing more than translucent air. She felt her eyes burn and her breathing hitch in her chest, her hands trembling a new with the news that they were okay. Kara and Kalven were alright, she hadn't infected them. She knew, she knew that there was more to the story, but right now she let the relief wash over her that she wasn't the cause of what was bothering the superheroes.
Alex's voice sounded on the phone, her tone deep and deadly. "Lois, I expect that lipstick tube in my possession before the end of the night."
"You'll have it." Lois promised, feeling an incredible weight come off her shoulders. She had been stupid and she deserved the anger of everyone involved, but at least Kalven and Kara weren't affected by the element. There was something to be said about small miracles.
As Lois looked at Cat she realized that Cat was going to fall flat on her ass if it weren't for the back of the couch she leaned on.
"Oh thank you. Thank you…" Cat whispered, ducking her head between her knees at the sudden rush of excitement that beat back the worried stress which caused an extreme nauseous reaction.
"Look, I can't talk right now. So, if that's it. I've got to go."
"No, wait. Put Clark on the phone!"
"Lois…!" Lucy whined, but groaned and did as her sister asked. "Here…hang on. He's cuffed at the moment."
"Cuffed?!" Lois shrieked, causing Cat to cringe as she looked to Lois and then focused on her breathing and not throwing up all over her designer shoes.
"It's your wife." Lucy stated, her tone nothing but impatient. "Hold it with your shoulder. I'm not uncuffing you. You're lucky you're not in a cell right now with what you tried to pull."
"A cell? Lucy, what's going on?" Nothing. "Clark? Clark Kent…what did you do!?"
"Hey Lois…" Clark sighed, glaring at Lucy as she remained close enough to hold the phone for him since he couldn't seem to keep it between his shoulder blade and his cheek.
"Don't you farm boy charm me. What did you do?!"
"There was a misunderstanding."
Lucy huffed, pulling the phone away from her brother in law. "He was in the midst of kidnapping Kalven when he got his ass kicked by two enraged mama bears."
Cat snapped her head up to look at Lois, two enraged mama bears? Who was the second? Diana? Hadn't that been who was fighting? Clark, Diana and Kara?
"Damn it, Luce. Give him the phone."
When there was silence for a few moments Lois unleashed her anger. "You idiot! You promised you weren't going to do anything stupid."
"But-"
"No! No. You will not. And cannot justify kidnapping. Ever. You are sooo hair brained. What did you think was going to happen?! They can't just let you go now! You tried to kidnap a child! A child Clark!"
"He's part mine! It's not kidnapping when-"
"You bastard! You've wanted nothing to do with him. You want to stick him in a stasis tube and pretend that he doesn't exist! You have no rights. You have NOO rights to my son!" Kara screamed, her voice sounded far away. Like the phone had been dropped as she tried to strangle Clark, who was gagging and gasping for breath.
"No. Let me go. Let me go. He was going to stick him in a stasis tube and hide him. He wasn't just going to kidnap him. He was going to kill him! Keep him alive but stuck for eternity in that pod!" Kara sobbed, screaming her rage over Clark's actions for all the hear—which included both Lois and Cat. "No...! No. Let go of me!" Kara screamed as someone strong enough to hold her back did just that.
Cat felt her lungs seize in her chest as she stared open mouthed at Lois and the phone she held with white knuckled fingers. Kalven was Kara's son. How. How….Kara hadn't been gone long enough to have a child when she was in Metropolis as Supergirl. Cat would have noticed. There was no way she wouldn't have noticed if Kara was suddenly gaining weight. There were too many signs that Cat would have had to miss and she knew, in her heart of hearts, that she would have known. She watched Kara far too closely not to know.
So how, how was Kalven her son? It didn't matter. Not to Cat, how Kalven came to be. Just as it didn't matter to Kara. Kalven was her son, and that, as well as his safety and health, were all that mattered.
Now, Kara's irritability with her family over her decision to take care of Kalven made more sense. Kara had to be under incredible stress if her own cousin—who had somehow contributed DNA to Kalven—wanted to erase him from existence. That was several steps beyond 'disapproving'.
"He's not your son! He's a clone, Kara. He was made! He wasn't born. He's not natural. He's not yours. Just like he's not mine. He's no ones! Why can't you just listen to me...clones aren't. They aren't good, Kara! They have no sou-unpght ugh...uft..."
"Diana! Diana! Stop! That's enough!" Lucy ordered but Hank was already busy holding back Kara and there weren't any other super powered individuals in this bunker to hold Diana back as she landed blow after blow after blow to Clark's face and abdomen.
"Diana! You'll kill him! Stop!" Lucy yelled, panicking when she saw how Clark had stopped responding to the attack. He was just on the ground with Diana on top of him, her fiats reigning down blow after blow, and shit! There was blood.
"Hank!" Alex ran over to Kara and wrapped her arms around her sister, knowing Kara wouldn't throw her off to kill Clark. Hank took that chance to tackle Diana off of Clark, the two ended up wrestling upon the ground, the electrical fizz in the air crackling as they broke through the dais in the center of the room.
"Clark? Clark can you hear me? Clark?!" Lucy sounded panicked and closer to the phone now. "Vasquez! Get medical!"
"Clark?! Lucy...Lucy what's...hello? Lucy?!" Lois stared at the silent phone in her hand, the line dead. Lois took in three long lung-fulls of air to keep herself calm.
Lois then went and sat beside Cat, both their backs against the couch. For a moment Cat said nothing-though her mind was reeling with everything she'd learned. Or thought she'd just learned about Kalven. Although Cat could not begin to rightly express her anger towards Lois, she still offered the woman a small amount of comfort by resting her hand on her knee and squeezing it.
They'd been in a similar position, way back when, when they'd both thought the worst had happened and Superman had been defeated. This time they weren't worried because of DoomsDay but because of Wonder Woman and Supergirl, who by all accounts were in their right minds, and willingly attacked their comrade.
When enough time had passed, Cat turned her head so she could stare at Lois. The woman seemed calm, but Cat knew she was internally screaming and clawing at her very sanity and self-control, trying to break free.
"Kalven is Clark and Kara's clone?"
Lois nodded, her movements sluggish as if she was in shock. "And Diana's."
"Who cloned them?" Cat's eyes were wide with shock and disbelief. But she took what Lois said as fact. As unbelievable as it seemed. The woman was far too gone to lie.
"Lex Luther."
"Lex Luther, I thought he was in prison!"
"His clone was. Now the real Luther is dead." Lois didn't even blink, she stared ahead as she relayed the information. "There were other clones but Kalven was the only one the Justice League could save. The others were..." Lois' eyes misted over for a moment as her voice caught in her throat. "They had already died."
Cat wondered if her eyes would remain permanently wide, perhaps giving herself cat eyes and just another reason for others to crack a joke at her expense. "How many were there?" Cat's voice was soft as her heart ached for the lost lives.
Lois shrugged, the first true movement the woman had made since they began their conversation. "I don't know. They found twenty trials. But there had been others. We can only prove there were twenty though." Lois swallowed down the bile that rose as she thought of all the innocent lives that had been lost, that hadn't had a chance to truly live outside the walls of a lab. "The files say many of them were long dead. Others had just died the day before." Lois blinked, remembering the haunted look in Kara and Clark's eyes after that mission. All members of the Justice League had needed time to recover after that mission. It wasn't a surprise that Luther had finally met his maker, not after the atrocities they uncovered.
"There were clones of them all. Mixtures of all members of the Justice League. The only ones that ever lasted longer than the first phase of testing were those with Diana or Kara's blood. Lex collected the newer samples and copied the process used with Doomsday. You remember Doomsday, yes?" Both women shuttered in remembrance of that dark time in Metropolis, of the fallen hero who'd saved them all. "It was...there were so many, Cat. And almost all of them were created using Kara's blood. Something about her blood having active red sun radiation in it making it more viable, more valuable." Lois didn't truly understand the science as much as she probably should, but essentially the Kryptonian cells were easier to use as they were fresher, had more red sun radiation, and were the best for the cloning process because the original process was a Kryptonian science.
"Kalven was the only one to survive?" Cat was slowly starting to understand why Kara was so determined to take care of Kalven, and to do it on her own. She obviously didn't have the support of Superman or the Justice League, well, most…of the Justice League. Wonder Woman seemed invested in Kalven, far more than Cat had ever suspected.
Kara's desire to keep Kalven didn't surprise Cat, and it shouldn't have surprised Clark either. If it had, Cat had to wonder just how much Clark knew about his 'younger' cousin. Kara would never abandon a child with her DNA, whether she gave birth to him or he was created without her knowledge or consent.
Lois nodded stiffly in answer.
The math wasn't adding up. If this all happened five months ago, how old was Kalven really? "How old was he five months ago?"
"Five months ago Kalven was still a toddler—two or three maybe. They kept him in the maturation tube to help him heal after the surgeries and transfusions that kept him alive. He only left the maturation tube a month ago and he's about nine now."
The time table matched. Kara had returned to National City for the last few months in preparation for Kalven's arrival. She made sure there was a decent cover—court trouble with the adoption—and ensured that she would be free to help Kalven settle into his new life with her. Cat had to wonder though, did Kara's leave from CatCo also mean Supergirl was going to be taking a vacation as well?
"My god…" Cat leaned back heavily, the couch moving a bit at the added weight. She closed her eyes and pressed her fingers into her temple to try and relieve the pressure that had built up there. "Kalven is Kara's son." Cat finally said it out loud, trying to accept the information rather than just understand it.
"Technically he's her clone with a few other samples of DNA, but yes, a high percentage of Kalven's genetic makeup is Kara. So, she can be considered his mother."
"What's high?" Cat's voice edged, wondering just how much of Kalven's DNA was contributed from Diana and Clark.
"Seventy percent."
"And Clark and Diana's?"
"Twenty-five percent Diana, five Clark. It's why Kara was even allowed to take custody of Kalven, to decide his fate. There aren't exactly rules for these sorts of things, no laws. She had to legally adopt him and it's caused some trouble. Many of the members of The Justice League didn't want to even let Kalven have the surgeries that helped save him, especially not the transfusions."
"What do you mean transfusions?" Why would he need surgeries and transfusions to begin with? He had the DNA of three of the strongest super heroes on this planet, what could hurt him enough to make him need surgery?
"Kara and Diana each donated blood and transfused their blood to help Kalven live. He was very sick. The experiments that helped create him weren't…humane." Lois shuddered at the memory of learning just what experiments had been run on the poor boy from the day he had been 'born'. "Lex didn't want a human clone. He wanted a super soldier, like Doomsday. But immune to kryptonite thanks to Diana's blood. Kalven was more mutant-ish monster than human five months ago. But with the transfusions from Kara and Diana, it altered his DNA. The DNA he was originally created from was fractured and recycled so often from the original sample it made sense that a new dose of their blood would help."
Lois spouted off the science behind Kalven's survival as she could recall them all. She'd spoken at length with Bruce, Diana, and Barry. She'd needed to understand why Clark was so angry over the situation, why he was so resolute in his decision that Kara shouldn't be allowed anywhere near Kalven.
"As we both heard…" Lois lifted her phone and twisted it about in the air, "Clark has a very strong opinion on the matter. He doesn't recognize Kalven as Kara's son. He just sees another danger, another clone that will try and destroy everything."
"Like Doomsday."
"Yes," Lois sighed heavily and pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her chin there. Clark's fear that Kalven was going to just be a soul-less intelligent child version of Doomsday haunted his nightmares. But his fears were just that, fears and sadly unfounded. Since the transfusions Kalven had been nothing but innocent and 'human' even though he was seventy five percent Kryptonian.
"He's just afraid that Kalven will hurt Kara. That he'll turn on her, and she'll love Kalven enough at that point to let him kill her."
Cat didn't say it, but she suspected that Kara loved Kalven that much already. She would never raise a hand to hurt that boy.
"That doesn't make him trying to kidnap him, right." Cat had to say, because from what they heard, it wasn't even just kidnapping that Clark had tried to commit, but attempted murder. Of a child, all because he was afraid of the future.
"No…" Lois sighed heavily and finally turned to look at Cat. "It doesn't. I'm not defending his actions—or my own—I just don't know what to do about it, Cat. He's so stubborn when it comes to this, he won't see reason."
"Maybe he needs to see them together. To see just how precious Kalven is. How innocent." Cat shook her head, "He's such a sweet little boy. A little boy who'd never had an ice-cream cone until the other day." Cat feels her throat start to clog up with her emotions, her eyes misting with unshed tears. "If Lane has to lock up Clark to ensure Kalven's safety…" Cat left the sentence hanging, unwilling to finish it with the threat that lay at the tip of her tongue. "Kara and Diana have chosen their side. Clark has chosen his. Now it's time for him to leave National City and sulk somewhere he can't hurt them, again."
Cat had yet to process just what Diana's relationship with Kalven was going to be if she returned to Metropolis, but those thoughts were left for another time. A time where she could truly devote enough mental strain on the new equation she found herself in the midst of.
Kara (Kalven + Diana) + Cat (Carter + Adam) = Unknown
With Diana now in the role of biological mother, currently in love with Kalven's other biological mother, where did that leave Cat? Should she gracefully bow out and allow the three to make one happy super hero family? Or should she fight for Kara, as she had finally decided to? What was the right thing to do now? Was there even a right or wrong action to take?
*BANG*BANG*BANG*BANG*
Cat and Lois' head shot towards the door to the suite.
"Mom! The bolt is on." Carter called from the other side of the door.
Cat stood and offered her hand to the frazzled elder Lane.
"Not a word about this to Carter."
Lois mimed locking her lips, her eyes softening a bit as she watched how quickly Cat's demeanor changed as she went to let her son into the suite.
The second the door opened Carter rushed into his mother's arms and hugged her tightly. Cat held on just a bit tighter than usual and kissed the top of Carter's head. She refused to let the tears fall when they formed. It would only worry Carter.
"What's wrong?" Carter asked, his eyes scrunched and the line of worry formed across his brow. "Are you okay? Why do you look so sad?"
"That's my fault, squirt. You know how I sometimes can't help myself and make your mother cry with how gorgeous I am." Lois interrupted, causing Carter's eyes to widen as he looked around his mother's side and saw Lois standing in the midst of the hotel suite.
"Aunt Lois!" Carter didn't run to Lois, but he did stumble in his hurry to say hello. His hug was much faster with Lois then it had been with his mom, and he was quickly back at his mother's side after greeting his god mother. "Are you here for the Gala as well?"
Lois and Cat's eyes both widened at the same time. During the drama that had unfolded they had (almost) forgotten about the Gala taking place in less than four hours.
"You bet. I wouldn't miss this. I hear it's going to be the party of the decade." Lois offered with a bright—somewhat reassuring smile—as she met Cat's eyes. "There's just something I have to take care of first. But I'll see you both there."
"Promise?" Carter asked, seemingly excited to have his godmother back in town. Even if he was curious to know what had really happened between his mother and her on again off again friend.
"I promise I will do my best to be there."
Carter's smile faltered, but didn't fall away completely. He knew his aunt well enough to know what that non-committal promise meant. "Be careful."
"You must have gotten your smarts from your father."
Cat rolled her eyes and huffed good naturedly at the dig.
"No…" Carter giggled as Lois shook her head at just how perceptive and intelligent Carter Grant was. She ran her fingers through Carter's hair, messing up the curls as he giggled and pulled back, trying to fix it as soon as her fingers weren't causing a mess.
"Oh yeah. No way your mom is as smart as you."
"She's smarter. Except with science. But she's the best with math!" Carter gushed, feeling his mom squeeze his shoulder and keep him close as Lois walked around them.
"Math-really? Well that's a bit surprising." Lois winked at Cat as she walked towards the door. "I'll be in touch. If I don't end up finding you two tonight, have a fun time!"
"We will." Carter promised, as Cat stared at Lois her eyes narrowed, her worry evident.
"Do be careful and keep yourself out of trouble. I may be the most powerful woman in this city but even I will have trouble bailing you out before midnight."
"Wouldn't want you to miss your Princess or Flying Crusader tonight at the ball, would we?" Lois chuckled as Carter stared at his mom with a questioning eyebrow raise and Cat glared at her.
"What does she mean, mom?"
Thanks for that Lane, Cat thought as Lois closed the door behind her and disappeared. Cat couldn't very well focus on what trouble Lois was going to get herself into in her mission to save Clark she had a very impatient—and intelligent—son to talk to about her intentions with Kara and/or Supergirl.
End Chapter 12
