WARNING: This chapter contains major sexual content and mild violence.
Chapter 12
Kal-El rockets through the city, darting and weaving between the buildings. For once, his daily duty is starting with Metropolis, as the unexpected snow at this time of the year has had some bad side-effects on the traffic in the city. Although he loves snow, he knows that it means extra work and he doesn't really need that now. Snow in October… really odd, he thinks, though he has a pretty good idea of where it's coming from: New Krypton. Its creation has disrupted the local weather systems around Metropolis in a significant way. As if people hadn't had enough with the earthquake itself… Another problem he's partially responsible for.
He soon arrives at the source of the sounds he heard from Lee's apartment and quickly scans the area to determine the gravity of the situation: it's a traffic accident, and a pretty bad one at that, but surprisingly no one seems badly injured. It looks like a car swerved from it's lane right into the side of a gas truck. A few other cars collided with each other just behind, and a fire has started in the third one. Most of the passengers have gotten out of their vehicles on their own, but some seem either stuck or paralyzed with shock.
Kal-El gracefully hovers above the traffic jam caused by the accident and quickly lands near the car on fire. He blows the flames away just in time, before the gasoline leaking from the truck gets to it. Firefighters and policemen are already arriving and cheer at his presence. As he helps a man to get out of his car, an officer comes up to him, saying, "Hey! Superman! Glad you could make it in time! If this gas had gone up in flames, it would have been a real disaster."
Kal-El looks at him with an annoyed expression. "Humans never learn," he snaps bitterly.
The officer looks at him, stunned, but the hero already regrets his words, "I'm sorry. I've had a really bad day…" and leaves him there, proceeding to go check on the remaining cars. Everybody is fine, as he thought, which is quite a miracle. He finally reaches the car that's half trapped under the truck and easily pull it out. A quick glance with x-ray vision assures him that its driver is ok but the woman seems to be having trouble opening the crumpled door.
"Let me help you, Ma'am," he says politely with his deep, warm voice while tearing the door off the car as if it was just a simple sheet of paper. He holds his hand out gentlemanly to help her get out, but gasps when his eyes lower onto her. "…Lois?"
She looks at him, still a little dazed from the shock. Realizing that he's staring at her like an idiot, his mouth dropped open, she says, "What?! Do I have something on my nose?" Would you please stop staring at me like that and help me get out of this fing car?"
He blinks a few times and it gives her a chill down her spine, but she doesn't know why. He suddenly regains his composure and straightens himself. "Err… yes, of course. What happened, Lois?" he asks while gently helping her out.
"Well… I was trying to light this damned cigarette…" She shows him the bent and broken cigarette, eying it with disgust, then tosses it away. "… and my fing lighter fell on the floor. I tried to reach for it and I think I pulled the wheel a little too far to the left, and with that damned snow, you know…"
He raises an eyebrow and crosses his arms. She presses her lips together, then says, "Don't you dare say anything! I know it wasn't exactly the smartest thing I've ever done. It was stupid of me to get distracted like that... absolutely stupid, ok!!"
"You're lucky you had your seatbelt on and the airbag to protect you, and you're lucky no one got hurt or killed in the process!" he scolds her.
"Hey, that's what you're here for, aren't you?" she snaps back, returning his glare.
He clenches his jaw and flashes a hurt expression at her. She immediately regrets what she has just said and brushes his left arm, sighing angrily. "I'm sorry… I didn't mean that… I… I had a pretty bad day."
His expression softens. Tell me about it, he thinks. "It's ok. I know you did…"
"No, I'm not talking about the Vanderworth blast… It's something…bad…that I did… to a friend… a close friend." She looks at her feet. Kal-El's heart leaps at that. Suddenly her head jerks up. "Wait a minute… You knew about the explosion and you didn't come to help us?!"
Taken aback, he raises one eyebrow and shrugs his shoulders, just about to say something when a few policemen come their way. Uh, oh… Lois is in trouble now… he thinks. He swiftly scoops her up in his arms before she can react and says to them, "Gentlemen, I'm taking this woman to the hospital. She's… in shock." He looks at her quickly.
She looks up at him quizzically, then suddenly becomes limp in his arms, theatrically putting her hand on her forehead. "Wow… my head…" She closes her eyes and leans her head on his shoulder, feigning a blackout.
The hero smiles apologetically at the dubious policemen and takes off quickly with Lois in his arms.
When they are high above the city he flies slowly in the direction of her house. Lois has put her arms around his neck and gazes silently at the lights below. She still loves these flights; it's an experience like no other. No sound, just the air in her face and his incredible warmth. She looks sideway at his face; his expression is calm, soothing. She lets her thoughts drift, unknowingly brushing the back of his neck.
He feels her fingers on his skin and it gives him chills all over his body. Lois… So tough, yet so fragile, he thinks. But... what was she doing here in the middle of Metropolis traffic when she was supposed to be back home with Richard and Jason?
"What is your name?" she asks him suddenly, looking straight into his eyes, putting a screeching halt to his wandering thoughts.
He stops in mid-air and looks at her, stunned. "Wh... what?"
"What's your name, your real name? When we first met, I gave you the name, or should I say, nickname, 'Superman', but you never gave me your real name. On our first interview, you said that you had one, but... I mean… How could you not tell me what it is at least when we were-? I mean… You gave me a child and I still know nothing about you, not even as simple a thing as your own name!!" She begins to feel angry again although she didn't intend to.
"Err… you never asked…" he replies honestly.
"Well… I'm asking you now," she says, looking at him defiantly.
He sighs and looks away, gazing at the city. She shifts impatiently in his arms. He looks back at her with his impossibly deep blue eyes. "Why do you care now?"
She's struck by his answer that echoes with Clark's words to her earlier. She's hurt them both and slowly starts to realize how much. Unable to hold his gaze, she looks below and says softly, "Why haven't you visited us in the last few days? Jason's been asking about you."
"I thought that… you made it clear that you didn't want me to interfere with Jason's life… or yours… anymore…" he slowly speaks as each word burns his throat.
"I… Well, you know… Jason is just a kid... and you made a great impression on him when you saved us on the boat, so it's normal that he wants to see his hero…" she answers, peering at his reaction.
He looks at her for a moment with an odd expression. "Kal-El…"
"What?" she says, frowning.
"My birth name is Kal-El."
Without another word he tilts forward, flying again. As they pass over the city, she mouths the name silently, mesmerized by its sound and the realization that he's just given her something precious.
Richard paces the bricks of the patio. The argument he'd had with Lois had been pretty ugly. Of course they had to argue… He couldn't keep his anger to himself any longer, and just couldn't let her get away with what she had done to her partner and whatever had happened on the dock, that forced Lee to take a bath in the river. He told her how he despised her recent behavior toward Kent and even toward Superman. Ok, the latter might have deserved a good punch on the nose, assuming it would have any effect on him but, God, he had already paid for what he'd done; losing the woman he loved and losing the right to be the father of his own son… What could be more devastating?
But Clark… well the poor soul did nothing wrong but leave without 'Mad Dog Lane's' permission. He had his reasons, and good ones it seems. It was common knowledge at the Planet that Kent had always had a crush on Lois. Richard could easily understand the poor guy's feelings at the time, when she was lost in her turmoiled relationship with the super hero. Who could compete with that?
He has had sympathy for Clark since the first day he met him, and he knows Jason has too. Now he's beginning to understand why: Kent is a genuine, kind person, one of the few left in this world that you can rely on, who helps old ladies cross the street, who'll give you his last dollar when you're broke in front of the coffee machine, one of the few who'll quit this world on tip toes if you don't pay attention. Clark almost died on his five years trip and nobody cared... Well, nobody knew either, but... In a way, Lois hit him where it hurt with her accusations, forcing him to reveal himself a little, which was good because his story appeared to be so weird. They finally learned what really happened to him, and that truth explains his behavior a lot better than Lois's rambling about a conspiracy with Luthor.
Suddenly something catches his attention. He turns around to see Superman drifting down from the sky, with Lois in his arms. His jaw drops as the hero lands and puts Richard's fiancée on her feet. He feels quite intimidated to be in front of him for the third time. It's not just his super-powers… it's the fact that this being comes from another planet. Everything about him exudes greatness and power mixed with some sort of genuine innocence, he thinks, seeing him fit and healthy now, and not dripping wet or laying injured in his seaplane.
Wait a minute… He's here with Lois, my Lois in his arms? What the… he suddenly thinks to himself. "Lois…" he starts, his light blue eyes darting to her.
"Before you say anything, I crashed the rental car into a truck," she just says, trying to keep her composure in front of her fiancée.
"You what!?!" he starts, eyes wide, but she cuts him off right away.
"I know. I wasn't paying attention… but don't worry, I've been given the lecture already," she says, eying Kal-El over her shoulder.
Shocked, Richard looks at her, then at Superman, who just flashes a lopsided smile at him. Before he can say anything more, Jason suddenly appears out of nowhere from behind him and runs to Kal-El. As the little boy hugs him tightly, he glances at Richard and Lois who stare at the scene in shock.
"Err… Hi Jason…" he says softly to the boy, kneeling to be at his eye level and roughing up his hair.
The little boy says genuinely, "I knew you'd come tonight. I heard Daddy and Mommy scream a lot at each other and I know that when Mommy is angry, she always does dumb things after that and gets into trouble; that's what Daddy always says…"
Superman stares at the pair who are now both wide eyed. Seeing their crimson faces, he starts to giggle but stops immediately when Lois flashes a 'don't-even-try-it' glare at him.
"Well… Jason, it's really cold tonight and... I think it's time to go to bed. I'll come back to visit you soon, I promise," he says to the boy, quickly glancing at Richard and seeing his appreciation.
The young man just nods as Lois takes the hand of her son and leads him inside. Turning to face Superman, she says, with a soft voice, "I… forgot to say thank you… for rescuing me and for the little show in front of the police…"
"That was… nothing. Goodnight Lois, goodnight Jason," he says, smiling gently.
She smiles back and Jason waves at him, then they disappear into her house, leaving the two men on the patio. Richard sighs. It's been a really awkward day. Noticing that the Man of Steel is about to leave, he says, "Err… Thank you… for saving her…"
Kal-El smiles and nods, then turns his back to him, hovering away. But before he disappears out of his sight, Richard says much lower, "… and thank you for not trying to win her back from me…"
The hero shuts his eyes a few seconds and speeds up, soon disappearing through the clouds.
Dawn is just two hours away in Metropolis. Superman flew back to the city a few moments ago after having stopped a menacing hurricane in Japan, dealt with more than eleven massive car wrecks all around Russia and Europe and saved the survivors of an airplane crash in Brazil. Finally, he has some time for himself before going to bed for an hour or two for some much needed rest. Hesitating a moment, he tries to choose between going up to the stratosphere and heading east to recharge, or going to take a look at the Vanderworth property, and finally decides for the second option. Although his scar is slightly itchy again, a clear sign that he's pushing his limits a little too far, sun can wait and the police will be back to investigate at the estate in a few hours.
He quickly dives down and flies unnoticed through the city until he reaches the river shore. He lands in the crater amidst the ruins, just where the crystal structure used to be, and starts to scan the area underneath. Finding what he's looking for, he digs easily through the debris and grabs a small chunk of dark crystal. He squints at it, making it roll into his hands, and quickly tucks it away between his back and his belt. With a last glance at the ruins, he takes off and heads back to his apartment.
Getting there at super-speed, he lands on his balcony, making sure that no one has noticed him. He enters his living-room and puts the crystal on the desk placed near the empty bookshelves. Heading to his bathroom, he casually brushes his shield with his right hand, mouthing a word in Kryptonian. The suit immediately brightens and disintegrates into his original clothes, his necklace now hanging back in place. He stops, startled, realizing that he's bare-chested, but quickly cracks a smile, remembering where he left his shirt. His cheeks flush a little at the delightful thought of Lee's naked body under it as he disappears into the bathroom.
A few moments later, after a well deserved shower, he's seated at his desk with a cup of tea, looking at the crystal, thinking. He senses the residing vibration emanating from it and the feeling is unpleasant. This crystal, like those from the crystal landmass, is corrupted. It's obvious that Luthor has used the Vanderworth basement to experiment on Kryptonian crystal technology. From the size of the structure Clark saw, that maniac must have tested just a minuscule fraction of the 'land-growing-crystal' before throwing it six days later into the ocean and somehow managing to associate it with kryptonite.
But the Vanderworth crystal structure exploded. Why? His eyes suddenly widen. The painful pulse… it was a countdown… a countdown designed to be heard by Kryptonians from afar to alert them that the structure was unstable. A warning signal. But it was designed to work on Krypton or from space, not on a planet with a dense atmosphere like Earth. The air amplified the signal far too much for his special hearing. He happened to be investigating the Vanderworth mansion just as it was starting and he found himself too close to it; that's why the pulse hurt him. Everything becomes clear now; Jor-El had told him once about similar kinds of security systems. Luthor stole his technology but misused it, and what was grown out of that had a self-destruct program embedded inside it. Oh, my… that means that that monstrosity I sent orbiting into space is going to explode as well, and some of it will fall back to Earth, causing horrible damage! But when?
He searches his memory for what Jor-El has taught him about corrupted crystals and the ratio between size and degree of corruption and he tries to calculate the delay of the orbiting continent's auto-destruct with what he already knows. The ratio is not linear but exponential; with all these different elements in the equation, the task will be difficult without the help of the FOS crystals. Clark picks up his briefcase and digs into it, finding his notepad and a pen. He starts to write in Kryptonian at a fast pace and the paper is soon filled with equations, calculations and symbols.
Too focused on his scribbling, Clark doesn't notice that his front door has opened, and he literally jumps from his chair when a hand touches his bare left shoulder. He turns around, trying clumsily to hide the many sheets of paper full of Kryptonian symbols on his desk. Relieved, he realizes that it's pointless when he sees Lee standing there just behind him, still in his shirt, smiling gracefully.
"Lee… What are you doing here? What time is it?" he asks, having lost track of time.
She pulls on his shoulder to make him turn around completely in his swivel chair and steps closer, settling herself between his thighs, pushing them apart slightly. "I came to give this back to you…" she says in a sultry voice, slowly undoing the buttons of her shirt, exposing her pale skin little by little.
Alarmed, he tries to protest, "Lee! Whahmff…" but she's leaned against him and captured his mouth voraciously, wrapping her arms around his neck. At first he tenses up, trying to pull her away, but his own body soon gives in and he finally returns her kiss hungrily, his hands rapidly finding their way under her now opened shirt. She rolls her shoulders, allowing it to fall on the floor, and leaves his mouth a second to nibble his lower lip while her hands wander across his bare chest and torso, drawing her nails across his sensitive skin. He groans loudly, his eyes shaded with lust, while his hands dance over her beautiful body. She suddenly jerks her head away and moans, feeling his burning warmth as he cups her breasts gently, his thumbs rolling over her nipples. She clutches his raven hair violently as he bends forward and runs his tongue across her breasts, kissing and ravishing every inch of her soft skin and kneading her flesh urgently. Her right knee pushes into his thighs and presses against his desire, rubbing it gently through the smooth fabric of his pajamas, causing him to gasp for breath and arch back on the chair, his eyes fluttering closed. She takes immediately advantage of the moment and dives into his exposed throat to cover it with hungry kisses, licking and suckling her way down to his collarbone and up to his left ear for a quick nibble. She traces his jaw line with more kisses to the other ear, her hands woven into his thick hair, keeping him in place, feeding herself with each moan, each groan she elicits from him.
Her cool writhing body pressed to his own is a delightful torture. "Lee…" he huffs, his hands cupping her backside zealously, but he can say no more, suddenly drawing a sharp breath, feeling her heat against his lower belly as she shifts her position to straddle his strong hips, making the chair creak dangerously. Resisting the urge to thrust when she starts to move her hips slightly, he desperately seeks her mouth, and when their lips lock, he whimpers loudly into her, running his fingers through her soft hair, trying to keep control of himself.
While her right hand grabs the back of his neck to make sure he doesn't break the kiss, her left hand slowly wanders down to his belly, then, insinuating itself between their bodies, it slides beneath the elastic waistband of his pajamas. The contact of her palm cupping him firmly makes him gasp loudly. As he breathes heavily, his hands snap away from her body and reach behind him to clamp the edge of the desk, cracking the wood beneath his fingers. He draws away from their kiss and arches back at her exquisite touch as it sends fire and lightning throughout him. He throws his head back, mouth gaping and eyes shut tightly, bracing himself. Her hand slides slowly up and down his erection several times, and he's unable to keep himself from crying out in sheer ecstasy.
Lee's mouth finds his again, and Clark lets go of the desk to pull her to him fully, his hands moving up her back as his arms encircle her. The warmth of her breasts pressed against his chest is almost too much to bear, and he realizes she's stopped stroking him as her hands clench his waist. She rocks her hips against his, pressing closer into him, settling into a position that makes Clark groan loudly, breaking their kiss. He grasps her hips and arches into her, his breaths becoming quick as he feels her intense warmth through his pajamas. The sensation is electrifying, and he simply can't hold back any more.
He moves to slide his pants down past his hips, when suddenly he hears a distant female laugher echoing all around him… His eyes snap open and he finds himself alone, still seated on his chair, panting. "Lee? Lee!!" he yells as he gets up, frantically looking around. What the hell is happening here? he thinks to himself as he rushes to his front door, opening it. But he backs off immediately when Lex Luthor steps into the doorway, gracing him with a bright smile.
"Lu… Luthor!" Clark stammers, slowly stepping away. He trips on his chair and falls heavily onto it, horrified to see his darkest enemy in his apartment.
"So… partner… how are things going? I see that you did great at the Vanderworth estate," the bald man says, walking past Clark and looking casually at his Kryptonian notes.
Clark is so stunned that he doesn't even try to hide them. "Partner? What are you talking about?!" he starts to scream.
Luthor looks at him, surprised. "Yes… of course! We're partners. You don't realize how much we need each other, my friend." Clark stiffens at that. "You provided the technology, I used it. You left Earth, I was free. I messed things around, you saved the day and got praised for that. See… we're partners!" he finally says, leaning forward to emphasize his words, smirking.
"No!! You're a sick man, Luthor! I have nothing to do with you!" Clark snaps back, standing up menacingly. But as he says that he suddenly realizes that his enemy has just disappeared.
"Don't you realize that YOU made ME! There has to be a Luthor wherever a Superman stands." Clark hears the voice echoing just behind him. He spins around and realizes that he's no longer in his little apartment, but on New Krypton, right where he was beaten. Luthor stands on top of the stairs like that fateful day and laughs evilly.
Like that day, Clark starts to feel nauseous and cold. Kryptonite, of course. His breathing becomes difficult and pain slowly intensifies in his body. Before he gets too weak, he tries to reach Luthor, determined not to let him get away this time. He stumbles uneasily as his knees threaten to give way at each step, his bare feet burned by the deadly green mineral fused with the crystal, bleeding. "I… I'll stop you…" he barely manages to say, starting to wheeze.
Just as he reaches the stairs, Luthor vanishes again and reappears just behind him, but as Clark turns again, he discovers to his horror that Lee and Lois are now here with them. Yet, both seem oblivious of their surrounding, expressionless, not responding when he desperately calls out to them.
"What do we have here? Two women you care for a lot, don't you?" Lex says as he walks slowly around the reporter in pain.
Clark, now half hunched over from pain and cold, flashes a deadly glare at him. "Leave them alone, or else I…"
As if he hasn't heard his words, Luthor continues, "… and they care for you… well, each one only loves one half of you. Isn't that grotesque?"
Clark closes his eyes, desperately trying to breathe and praying for all this to stop. "Please… leave… them… alone…" he whispers, no longer able to voice the words loudly.
"You have to find the one that can love both of you and you can't have them both… Tell me, Kal-El… which one would you choose? The one who loves Superman or the one who loves Clark Kent? Who are you? WHO ARE YOU!?" the maniac yells, suddenly making Clark's eyes snap open as he was slowly drifting into unconsciousness. Horrified, he sees Luthor placing himself between the two women, pointing a gun at each one of them, aiming at their heads.
"No… don't… please… don't…" he pleads, tears wetting his cheeks. He falls on his knees and chokes, clutching his chest from pain. He can't let him kill them, he can't let that happen. He gathers all the strength he has left and stands up. "Don't do it…" he says a little louder, clenching his jaw.
Luthor stares at him oddly, then says in a very calm voice, "If you don't choose one, you lose them both."
He fires.
"NOOOOOOOOOO!!!"
Disclaimer : The 'dream' sequence was written in cooperation with my dear friend Saavikam who publishes 'Aftermath' here too and edits my story. THANKS!!