Lois moved from Tao as fast as she could, once he let go of her hand; tears streaking down her face, her breath coming in ragged gasps.
"I don't understand, why tell me?"
"It was Chloe's wish, and she means the world to me. To eliminate fear of the unknown there must be understanding." His face was expressionless.
"You poor, poor man," she whispered.
"I didn't show you that to feel sorry for me, I've done my grieving. To fight the good fight for Clark, we need to be on the same page." He stood and held his hand out to her. Lois just looked at it like it was green and tentacled. "Please, I've trusted you Lois with my very life, you can trust me." He finally smiled. Lois gulped and took his hand.
"And he'll be safe?" she asked wiping her tears on her sleeve.
"Very," Tao held her wrist gently as he led her back to the farm house.
Lana was dressed and ready for Zod in record time. While in the shower her thoughts lingered to how she royally messed up her life. Had she trusted Clark, hadn't been so needy and clingy that she could have been him, and not in one of the pits of hell. If she were pregnant she was irrevocably tied to the bastard trying to take over the world.
She would have been thrilled to be carrying Clark's child, but the life possibly growing in her was the ultimate betrayal, a tool for her husband to start an army of Supermen. She couldn't hate the child; she just hoped that he would learn to love and not to hate.
"Don't you look pretty wife," The voice was Lex's but the look wasn't.
"Thanks so where are we off to today?" she tried to be cheery.
"Well there was a change of plans, we were going to head into Italy, but we need to head to India instead."
"So, the servants will pack, we'll go and do just a little shopping here and then head to the air port." Lana only nodded. "Are you sure you're alright?"
"Yes, just a little upset stomach this morning," Nerves, Fear, regret. "I should be fine after breakfast."
"Alright, then let's go." He spoke and politely and gently escorted her out of the suite.
Chloe and Tao had moved the furniture in the living room so there was just open space. Chloe and Lois sat in a chair's by the kitchen entrance. Clark stood in the room waiting for Tao. Tao entered his face devoid of all expression and then he sat.
(In Kryptonian,) "Sit cousin." Clark obeyed. "Close your eyes and open your mind; listen to the sound of my voice and only the sound of my voice." Clark nodded. Tao bowed his head and held his hands out in front of himself, palm up. The Ra house symbol appeared on one palm, the El on the other. "I call to me the fragments of the crystals left from the construct… I call to me the fragments of the crystals left from the construct." The heat in his palms was agony the marks blazoning red as if on fire. His palms then shimmered and two distinct crystals appeared in each palm. "Of the great house of El, the son must learn from the father," A small light appeared behind Clark. Tao closed his eyes again. "Of the great house of El, the son must learn from the father," he spoke louder, the concentration evident on his face. Tao opened his eyes and looked beyond Clark. Behind him stood an image of Jor El, in a great robe with the house of El emblazoned on its front.
"There is hope nephew." The image spoke. "You found the fault in the construct, and have saved my son."
"The time for him to learn in a steady pace has passed. The destroyer draws near, he needs you uncle, faster than even he's prepared for."
"And he will learn, I will not be compromised again,"
"Who? Who breached the chamber?"
"You in your wisdom know. Stop him; he must not come into power."
"Than educate my cousin and together we will stop him." Jor El nodded.
"The father becomes the son, and the son becomes the father." The image spoke. He put his hands on Clark's shoulder and light surrounded Clark. It was dim at first and then it grew in its brilliance. It was so bright that Lois and Chloe had to close their eyes. The light resonated out of the house until in one bright flash it was gone and so was Clark.
Tao still sat in his meditative pose, sweat pouring down his body, he was speaking in an unending stream of Kryptonian and the room brightened one more time. It then flashed and where Clark had sat was a small red velvet box.
Tao seemed to come back into himself. Across from him Clark was gone, and in his place was the box, the keeper of the stone that held Clark in training. Tao heard sniffles and turned to see Lois and Chloe both in tears. Chloe smiled and moved to him kneeling at his side.
"Is another Wow coming mate?" he teased. "Cause if it is, I'm going to have to buy a bigger place for my rather large ego." She just kissed his cheek.
"Nah that was alright, I've seen you do better." He kissed her gently and turned back to Lois.
"Come," he spoke softly She sniffled loudly then came to him. He stood with Chloe; he then leaned to pick up the box. "Hold your hands open for me." He whispered. Lois did as he asked. He placed the box into her awaiting palms. He let go of Chloe and put his hands on top of Lois'. "When he's ready and his training's complete, this box will return to you. All you need to do is open it," he smirked. He closed his eyes and moved his hands and the box was gone. Lois gasped and looked at Chloe's boyfriend in wonder.
"I don't," she spoke confused, she never got to finish her sentence.
"Lois?" a familiar voice rang from behind them. They all turned to Martha Kent standing in the kitchen, luggage at her feet. "What in the world is going on here, and why is Oliver Queen in my living room?"
Somewhere deep in the void of space a small flat object was tumbling towards earth. One of the cells of the Phantom Zone had been chipped off the larger prison. Inside was the one called the destroyer; a beast the world had never seen before, an evil like no other.
The destroyer had been planning his escape, he knew that the collision would set him free and he had been planning for his freedom for a very loooong time. Early at the thought grew in desperate crescendo the prison passed an inocous humanoid planet. The prison collected a prisoner floating alone in space, a criminal from the long dead Krypton.
He had been a thief and then he killed a fondness for blood had him banished from the planet. The destroyer sought him out, called to him in his dreams. He sent him visions of untold power and strength and the promise of as much blood as his soul craved. The thief broke out of his cell seeking the thing that beckoned to him.
When the thief found the cell, he couldn't find a door, but the beast pulled him through the wall as if he were ghost. He seemed to phase right through it. The man had never known fear until it stood in front of the large spiny beast. He wanted to scream but couldn't. The beast stared into his eyes, his gaze hypnotizing.
The beast had his pawn; this man-thing would help him. He was tired of the prison, could feel it in his spines that his freedom was coming, and there would be a new world to destroy. The skinny pale thing would hide him in plane sight. The beast reached and clawed humanoid in front of him. The man screamed, it sent a thrill into the destroyer. He closed his big red eyes and kneeled over his prey. There would be no kill; this was a trick he picked up from the last leader of his tribe, before he killed him. He bit the screaming humanoid, and then it was silent. The beast then stuck one finger into the wound and watched as it slipped under the skin of the humanoid. What seemed like an eternity, his form was tiny, felt cramped, but he would have a mask, a place to hide. He curled himself tight into the essence of the being. He would rest, save his strength. Let the conscious of the humanoid take over and when it was time, when he was called or when he was freed, he would tear himself from this shell and do what he does best….destroy all in his path.