Again THANK YOU SO MUCH for all the reviews/comments left I really REALLY appreciate it!! I'm so glad so many of you are enjoying this story because it really has been a blast to write ;)

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT:

Suicide Slums – 'Ground Zero':

Metallo bared his teeth in a threatening imitation of another smile, "First one wasn't free."

He charged - grabbed hold of Superman - but Superman spun round and used the forward momentum to toss him across the street and into a wall. He felt a violent wave of nausea cramp his abdomen as Metallo pushed himself out of the indentation he'd left behind. But he forced himself to stand tall. And wait; steeling himself for the battle inside his own body as much as the one in front of him.

"This just got interesting…" Metallo reached out a hand.

Ripping a light pole from the pavement he swung at Superman's head. It forced him to take a step back, but not out of fear as the smile on Metallo's face said it was. All he was doing was making room before lifting his chin; his irises turning from blue to red and a thin beam of light searing off the end of the pole. It fell to the ground, clanked, rolled, so Metallo jabbed the shortened pole at him - hitting him in the stomach and doubling him over.

It was the first sign he'd given that he had a weakness.

Angry at himself for showing it, Superman straightened, lunging forwards and grabbing hold of Metallo he began punching him – again and again and again and again. It was the kind of drop down dirty fight he hadn't had in a very long time. Then, costing him even more of his failing strength, he lifted the large man's bulk over his head and threw him through a crumbling building; leaving a gaping hole straight through its bowels.

There was a moment of silence. In the background the SCU unit cheered. Further away he could hear crowds of people cheering. They thought he had won. None of them could hear the punching sound of a fist through brick…

But Superman heard.

He used his telescopic vision to zoom in on the corner of the building, forcing the line of sight deeper until he saw where an arm had extended through the brick wall. The fist started to move horizontally at speed, becoming a blur and quickly tearing brick from brick. But before he had time to realize what was coming the building began to creak - the front - without lower support - started to shift. Then the entire front gave way, collapsing down on Superman and exposing the interior; opening a window on peoples lives.

Clouds of dust filled the air where he had stood. The distant cheering stopped. The SCU unit took cover, coughing the dust from their lungs.

As it cleared and a deathly silence settled, a brick shifted; toppling down over the mound as one large foot banged down and Metallo stepped over the rubble. He leered at the troopers,

"Who's next?"

There was a hum like a massive underground drill, the pavement erupted upwards and Superman exited the hole in a streak of blue and red, sending bricks and rubble into the air like confetti. He swooped, picked Metallo up with one hand on his shoulder, the other on his leg, lifting him over his head and slamming him into the ground with enough force to rattle half of Metropolis.

Without so much as pausing for breath Metallo was on his feet and charging. Tackling Superman to the ground, they tumbled through the weakened pavement and down into the sewers below. Waist high in water Metallo unfolded from the waist – standing tall while Superman rose to hover in the air in front of him. Inhaling deeply he blew ice cold breath onto the water; turning the sewer into an arctic cavern.

But with the last of the breath he looked weaker, paler, and it wasn't entirely due to the frosting of white clinging to his wet hair. The fight was taking too long. If he was going to stand a chance of winning, he needed to end it while he still had his powers.

Metallo laughed again, "That it? That's the best you got? It's starting to get to you isn't it? You can't beat me. You're a dead man flying. You just haven't accepted it yet…"

With a single punch the ice was shattered and he was free.

Lois watched as Superman flew upwards into the air again, his chin dropping as he set his feet on the ground and waited. Then she watched Metallo climb out of the hole after him. Her attention was so completely focused that the ringing of her cell made her jump,

"Perry? Jimmy?"

"No word yet."

"And Clark?" She held her breath as the fight continued in front of her.

"Nothing. I've got people checking the hospitals every fifteen minutes." There was a pause, "We'll find him Lois. If I know Clark Kent he'll be doing his job just the way you are right now. There's no better team."

Lois felt her throat tighten. If he was lying in a ditch somewhere she was gonna kick his -

For no apparent reason her gaze shifted to one of the buildings again. It was morning so the light was better, and this time there was no mistaking the figure sliding down a zip-line from one building to another. Then it was gone.

When she looked closer there was more movement from some of the other buildings… There. And over there. Friends of Superman? Then why the hell weren't they helping him?!

Sawyer's voice caught her attention. She was speaking into a hand held walkie-talkie, "Are you sure? Yes, sir. Right away," She yelled across to her second in command, "Dan, Federal Emergency Management wants us to get Superman out of there and evacuate the area. Now!"

"What?!" Dan looked as astonished as everyone else.

"You heard me. Hamilton at STAR says if he doesn't leave the area fast he's dead. Metallo carries something that's lethal to him." She was already issuing orders into her throat mic.

Closing her phone, Lois snapped her attention back to the fight in time to see Superman lurch backwards, a flash of red coating one side of his face. Blood? Kryptonite was real?! She frantically searched the buildings again. And his friends were watching him get himself killed?!

The words came out low before she even realized she was saying them, "Get him out," Then she repeated them with more force, "Get him OUT OF THERE!"

She swung on Dan as he asked Sawyer, "But why are we leaving?"

Lois pushed him; hard, "Just get him out! Aren't you listening?!"

Sawyer got in the way, her voice filled with authority, "We have orders to get him. So we get him."

"And who the hell's gonna go in there and get him?"

Lois swore like the General's daughter she was. Over her dead body was she losing everyone she cared about in one damn day!

An electronically enhanced voice sounded behind her, "Our team will retrieve him."

Lois swung around.

While Sawyer demanded, "Who the hell-"

"He's the Green Arrow." And Lois was ready to spill his green blood, "What team?"

He turned his head, only his mouth visible beneath his leather cowl as he spoke, "We're The Justice League. And the man in the red cape fighting for this city…"

Her eyes narrowed as his mouth curled into a hint of a smile - a high screaming whine drawing everyone's attention to the sky above as some kind of midnight black, unmarked, miniature Stealth jet flew dangerously low over the battleground.

Green Arrow raised his voice to be heard; "…when he makes it out of there… he's our new leader…"

Unknown Location – Middle America:

Pulling soft kid gloves onto his hands he continued watching the main screen in the communications center. Reporting from a news helicopter a voice was saying; "We have instructions to evacuate the area. SCU units seem to be pulling back. I don't know if that means there's an air strike coming but within the last few minutes we've had reports of an unusual aircraft flying over the area. We'll have reports for you as soon as information is available…"

The loss of coverage from the scene was little matter - his satellites were giving him all the visuals he needed. So he scanned the other screens. There were more of them there than he'd thought might surface and it was tempting to take advantage of the situation to begin the war. But he hadn't planned for so long only to show his hand before he had everything in place. He had a more important goal in mind.

"Miss Graves."

Mercy turned in her seat and looked up at him, "We're ready."

Finally. But before he stepped away from the screens something caught his attention. He lifted a gloved hand and pointed, "Close in there."

There was a moment's delay as the satellite received the command, the screen adjusting as he stepped closer and narrowed his eyes. Blood. The so called Man Of Steel was bleeding.

Metallo landed another heavy blow that sent him back several feet.

And Lex felt a satisfying surge of adrenalin. The imposter took a moment too long to recover. He was weakened. Bleeding and weakened. If Metallo managed what he thought he'd been sent to do on the very day that Lex finally retrieved the one thing he should never have lost... Lex smiled at the screen.

Then Corbin may prove to be more than the distraction he was meant to be…

"He's bleeding," Mercy seemed stunned.

"If Corbin loses I want that recording analyzed by every scientist we have. Find out what weakened him."

"Yes Mister Luthor."

Impatient to take advantage of the window of opportunity he'd created, Lex turned to the silent figure waiting to transport him to his destination. He stood still. Closed his eyes. Then he took a deep breath and savored the moment before opening them again,

"Take me to her."

Suicide Slums – 'Ground Zero':

It took a lot to get Sawyer to pull her team back and Lois respected her even more for her lack of trust. Not that that meant she didn't put up one hell of a fight when they tried to insist she went with them.

"You can't tell me what to do. Ever hear of freedom of the press?"

"Unless it escaped your attention several of my men risked their lives to get you out of there Miss Lane!"

Oliver had listened to them argue for two and a half minutes and he knew Lois well enough to know there would be even more time wasted if he didn't intervene, "Miss Lane can act as an independent witness."

Sawyer stepped over to warn him, "Any of your so called 'team' takes one step outside of the restricted zone or shows any indication of being on the wrong side and we'll hunt them down – got it?"

"Understood."

"And if it wasn't for the fact we've been ordered out of the area by my superiors-"

"I understand your lack of trust in an organization you've never encountered before. But I can guarantee you, whether it's by Superman's hand or ours – Metallo is done."

Sawyer hesitated then; "All units have pulled back. The air is clear up to a four mile radius. You have two hours before I call in an air strike. That was our agreement with Superman," She turned on her heel and threw Lois a narrow eyed glare, "You're on your own Miss Lane. I expect an unbiased report."

The door of the Humvee had barely closed before Lois swung on Oliver, "Get him the hell out of there right now or every major newspaper in the country will have your secret identity on the front cover by the evening edition!"

"We're on his side!"

"Then why haven't you helped him?!"

He shook his head and lifted a gloved hand to his ear, "Arrow to Blue."

Superman was getting the hell beat out of him when the chip in the shoulder seam of his suit let out a note so high a dog wouldn't have heard it. Not now! Gritting his teeth he threw a series of punches and pushed Metallo backwards before he spoke in a low tone he knew the chip would pick up.

Lois was still glaring at Oliver when he got a reply, "Yes - I know you're busy. We have intel. No - it can't wait."

When she saw him flinch she looked past him in time to see Superman flung through the air and slammed off the corner of a building. As he righted himself he turned his head and looked in their direction.

Oliver answered whatever he'd said with; "Or we could just wait for you to get killed and take him on ourselves…"

The sarcasm in Oliver's voice made Lois punch him in the upper arm – and not in a friendly way. He turned his head so she could see her own reflection in his dark glasses as he added another comment with his first hint of frustration, "We've stood back haven't we?"

Lois' eyes widened. Superman had ordered them to stay back? Hadn't he known the danger he was in?

Superman moved from Metallo's path and fired heat vision at him in uneven bursts. His powers were fading. Rapidly.

Metallo blocked the beam with his hand, causing it to burn bright red. The skin hissed like burning meat, smoke billowing off it before it burst into flames that traveled up his forearm. And while Superman frowned at what was happening; the dying flames exposed a highly advanced metal skeleton with gears and joints.

He was a machine? No wonder he'd been taking the beating he had without it having any effect!

Turning his hand around and looking down at the metal fingers as he moved them Metallo studied them as if he'd never seen them before, or had been unaware they were there. Then his face contorted with anger, his chin rising and raw rage coating his voice, "Let's get this over with."

He tore open his tattered shirt, digging his metal fingers into his chest at the same time and ripping off a layer of skin to expose his metallic chest. But he didn't stop there; a series of layers opened and then a blinding burst of bright green light broke free.

Superman recoiled, staggering backwards. The container of liquid Kryptonite was surrounded by small clear tubes, like a heart pumping blood through veins. He hadn't been carrying it. It powered him.

Struggling for control as he staggered another step backwards, he rasped out the low words, "Alright. If you have something I can use I'll take it now."

Oliver's voice answered with; "We'll run interference. Stand by."

"What's happening?"

Ignoring Lois' question, he pulled something from his belt that snapped out into a bow when he jerked his arm, "Flash. Wonder. You're up."

An arrow soared through the air and landed inches from Metallo's feet; an incredibly loud bang and a flash of blinding white light making him jerk back and blink, momentarily disorientated. Oliver's version of a good old trusty flash/bang Lois surmised. Boys and their toys. And then there was a blur of color in her peripheral vision. Heading straight for Metallo it began to circle him at incredible speed, the huge man looking confused as he tried to see what it was. And while he was occupied a third figure flew down from one of the buildings and took Superman's place on the ground – allowing him to zip at a somewhat lower speed than usual towards Oliver and Lois.

She didn't realize there were people behind them until Oliver grabbed her elbow and dragged her around, "Back."

There was a dark skinned man dressed in a pewter colored suit she didn't remember seeing before. But the woman in fishnets she most definitely remembered, "Oh you gotta be kidding me!"

She jerked her elbow free as Superman joined them – the sight of his bloodied face and the lack of fluidity in his movements distracting her from the woman she owed a good right hook. To begin with.

He didn't look at her, "Make it quick."

Oliver faced him, "Environmental anomalies. There have been surges of radiation exceeding acceptable levels in various places in Metropolis within the last few weeks. None of em longer than fifteen or twenty minutes."

Lois frowned, "How do you know that?"

"Satellites."

Superman was obviously following the conversation better than she was, "Was there anything radioactive in the area?"

"Yeah. Metallo. Watchtower connected the dots early this morning. The surges coincide with every time he's made an appearance. He isn't human."

"I know. He's advanced robotics. Running on liquid Kryptonite."

Lois watched as Oliver exchanged a look with his companions, "Does someone want to tell me what's going on?"

They ignored her, the dark skinned man asking; "Human brain?"

"Would make sense." Superman answered.

Lois was just glad it made sense to somebody, "If it's Kryptonite then you can't fight him. Let them do it."

It made him look at her for the first time, "No."

"Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't that stuff your not-so-secret-weakness?!"

Oliver answered, "It siphons his abilities. Eventually his nervous system shuts down."

Lois raised and dropped her arm, "See?! Not so secret!"

Superman frowned darkly at him.

But the fact that someone had finally decided to use a little honesty went a long way with Lois, "Don't blame him. He's not the one playing kamikaze! What good are you to Metropolis if you're dead?!"

He clenched his jaw and turned away, throwing terse words at Oliver, "She shouldn't be here. It's not safe for her. You want to help then stay back. If it goes wrong - don't let him past the perimeter. Aim for his chest – take out the cylinder of Kryptonite and he should run out of power…"

"Whoa – hang on. We brought you a present." Oliver jerked his chin at the dark skinned man who stepped forwards, the sound of Velcro being pulled as he opened a pouch at his hip and reached in, "It might buy you some time."

Lois asked the obvious, "What is it?"

Something that looked like an aerosol came out of the pouch…

Another one was tossed past Lois' face and caught one handed by Oliver. And when she looked she saw they all had one. Next thing she knew they were forming a circle around Superman and spraying him from head to toe. He looked as confused as she felt, his chin dropping to watch what they were doing for a brief second before he looked up and lifted his brows.

"Integrating Polymorphic Barrier." The man in pewter answered.

Lois was sorry she'd asked.

"A work-in-progress. No guarantees," Oliver informed Superman, "Theoretically it should be exactly what it says on the can; a barrier. Keep acquired energy in and foreign energy out. It won't stop it happening. All it is is a short window. You stay out there much longer without doing something about the Kryptonite-"

Superman nodded.

They all stepped back. And Lois swallowed away the constriction in her throat before taking a deep breath, "You better come back. You're needed."

Oliver smiled, "What she said."

"Perimeter."

"On it."

Superman turned and started to walk away. Then he stopped and looked over his shoulder, "Thank you."

When he shot back into battle in a blur of red and blue Oliver lifted his hand to his ear, "Fall back."

They split up and ran off at varying speeds; Oliver grasping Lois' elbow again as she asked the one thing she needed to know, "Why won't he let you help him?"

"He just did."

"He could still die."

"He knows that."

"Then why-" She yanked her arm free again as the battle recommenced, "Why is he doing this alone?"

Turning to look back at the scene so that his cowl obscured his face, he answered in Green Arrow's altered voice, "Lead by example. He'll die before he'll put another life in danger. Today's the day he demonstrates that to the world."

Then he looked at her, "And if he wins it's a whole new ball game…"

Lois lifted her chin, "Then I'll make sure the world understands."

Oliver sighed, "Not leaving, are you?"

She smiled, "Over your dead green body."

"Stay under cover and we'll watch out for you…"

"You bet your ass you will."

Gotham City – Wayne Manor:

"Arrow to Watchtower. Update."

She continued watching the satellite feeds spread out in front of her in the cave while she replied, "Still clear. Nothing within the perimeter."

"Flash and Wonder are out. Flash took a hit at the end but he's fine."

"Roger that." Pushing the high heels of her shoes against the floor she rolled her chair along the curved counter to access another keyboard - the sound of police radio transmissions, ground to air communications, news reports and the back and forth of the rest of the team on the ground mixing together to form a symphony she'd was at ease deciphering. It was why the alarm caught her attention in the middle of it all,

"Watchtower to Knight. I've got a breach."

Bruce's gravelly voice sounded in her ear, "Where?"

Tapping on the keyboard she brought up the schematics of the house and grounds, a frown forming on her face when the lights flashed, "Everywhere."

Suicide Slums, Metropolis – 'Ground Zero':

When Superman used speed to attack him the same way his friend had Metallo yelled in rage, "Needed a break did you?! Couldn't fight me alone? Bring em all! Bring as many as you want. When you're dead I'll take your precious city apart block by block to bury them all!"

Another side swipe rocked him to the side, but when Superman attempted the same tactic twice he grabbed his foot and slammed him off the ground. Superman twisted, kicked back, shot upwards – it was just enough to loosen his hold so he could fly higher.

"Come on! You want a piece of me you gotta come take it!"

In a sudden surprise move Superman flipped over backwards and slammed into his torso. Metallo's face contorted, he roared through gritted teeth and then his expression went blank.

Leaning in, Superman lowered his voice and spoke directly into his ear, "If you insist…"

Leaning back, he jerked his elbow and began to stagger backwards; one laborious step after another. He dropped his chin and struggled for breath as he looked down at the glowing container in his hand. The League's protective layer had given him the extra time he needed. And he was thankful for that. But holding the leaking container in his hand was too much.

Metallo stared at him in horror, almost as if the sight of what had been inside him was abhorrent to him.

Another staggered step and Superman turned, dropping onto one knee and then fighting to get up again. He … needed … to … throw … it …

Sweat mingled with the blood on his face as he concentrated on focusing his mind. My name is Clark Kent. I have to hold onto that. Even when everything else is fading. Kryptonite does that. First step nausea. Then my head wants to explode. Then every fiber of my body burns. It burns so hot I start to crave death. My name is Clark… Kent…! I've dealt with Kryptonite poisoning before. Never this much. Never this long. My strength. My sight. I can feel my powers slipping away. Is this how it ends? It can't! My name is… I just have to hang on… I have to remember my name…

"Over here!"

Dragging in a short gasp of excruciatingly painful air, his lips drawn back against his teeth as he dragged the toe of his boot and tripped himself onto both knees - he looked in the direction the voice had come from. It took a second to blink her into focus. Lois? Lois.

"Throw!" She was running towards him.

Lois. Still there. He yanked his arm back and threw the leaking container as far as he could.

She had to run backwards to catch it, loose hair flying wildly, head tilted back as she focused on the container. She reached up cupped hands, jumped up into the air and caught it with a triumphant grin aimed his way before she turned on her heels and sprinted away.

Clark smiled. Breathing was still painful but just the sight of her seemed to restore some of his strength.

"Hey! Green boy!" She yelled at the departing Oliver, who turned, "Catch!"

The container tumbled end over end through the air again into Oliver's hands. For a split second he stared at it. Then he turned and broke into a run, reaching over his shoulder for an arrow. A few more seconds doing something Clark couldn't see and then he stopped, raised his bow – and the container was shot far, far into the air… it arced, it kept going…over buildings by the river it then descended towards the water.

Lois spun and looked back at him.

But he was already getting to his feet and lifting his face towards the skies, his fingers curling into his palms. The pendulum had swung. In a matter of minutes the tide had turned. Thanks to the people who cared about him. There might not have been enough light from the clouded sky to restore his strength but he wasn't dying yet… and while he had breath left in his body…

He pursed his mouth into a thin line and turned.

Metallo was marching towards him. Whatever was left of the liquid Kryptonite in his artificial veins obviously enough to keep him upright for a while longer. But he too was weakened. The playing field was much more even than the piles of rubble and debris might have suggested.

Lois watched as Superman lifted Metallo and tossed him away. He rolled along the ground, stood up, leaped over a car and then caught the roof in his hands and flipped it onto its side for cover. How could he still do that? Her gaze flew back to Superman as he walked towards him. Did he have his strength back? How much time did he need to recover from that kind of exposure to the stuff that could kill him? Her gaze shifted to Metallo. If he was still able to do that to the car then he still had to have some of the liquid inside him. And if he still had it inside him - then even if Superman had his strength back –

"No." Her feet started to carry her forwards.

Using his heat vision Superman seared off both sides of the car, leaving Metallo with little cover, "Come out Metallo!"

"Give me one good reason!"

"Gas tank…"

Metallo realized he'd made a mistake as Superman fired his heat vision again; piercing the fuel tank. The blast rocked Lois back several steps. Okay. He seemed to be doing alright for now. She looked from side to side for cover and saw a pile of rubble halfway between them and her. Best of both worlds.

Flames engulfed Metallo as Superman reached out, grabbed him and then flew upwards to get clear of the heat as he punched him in the face. He felt the skin on his knuckles split before he landed heavily on his feet and Metallo grabbed fistfuls of the suit. Frowning hard as he looked down Superman saw the trickle of green liquid spurting sporadically from the open tubes like pulsing arteries. Then he looked up and saw Metallo smile.

Yanking on the suit to bring him closer, he leaned close and lowered his voice to speak directly into Superman's ear, "Last dance."

He curled sharp metal fingers into the material and ripped through to tear the skin beneath, then jerked his knee up into Superman's stomach and doubled him over.

Superman curled upright, Metallo released a hand long enough to throw a fist in his face; snapping his head back and splitting his lip to send a splattering of bright red blood into the air.

Then he picked him up by an arm and a leg.

Obscured from their line of sight Lois tripped on some of the rubble and automatically threw out her palms to break her fall. Grimacing at the pain in her shoulder she scrambled less than gracefully up the large mound, unprepared for the sight that greeted her when she dropped to her stomach at the top.

Metallo was repeatedly slamming Superman into the ground; cracking the pavement. She was close enough to see that each slam was slower than the one before but she was also close enough to see that her guy was in trouble. When Metallo lost his grip he landed a punch, but his second swing missed. And Metallo caught his arm and tossed him backwards.

Another burning car exploded as Superman tumbled and rolled over the debris until he stopped less than ten feet away from her. When he stayed down Lois' breath caught in her chest, "No!"

Another car caught fire and exploded as she frantically flailed her arms and legs to get to her feet; loosening the rubble and bricks beneath her and sending them bouncing in a waterfall down the mound. And she was so focused on the still figure on the ground she couldn't hear the roar of the flames or the chain reaction of explosions around her anymore. It was as is she'd been beside a bomb when it went off and she'd been deafened. All she could hear was the loud rasp of her own breathing and the thudding of her heart.

She'd got to her knees when she saw him move. She was on one knee by the time he dragged his feet underneath him and laboriously began pushing upright. The sound of her erratic breathing sounded even louder in her ears as she used her good arm to push off her knee. He slowly straightened.

In. Out. In. Out. Her breathing grew louder as his chin lifted and she was given a full view of his profile; blood running down his face from the wet, unruly mess of his dark hair. She saw him frown. Her chest started to ache. She could practically see the moment he sensed she was there. And then he turned his head and looked directly at her…

And her harsh inward breath stopped dead as the world tilted underneath her feet. No. No, it couldn't –

His frown deepened when he saw her expression. Then he glanced down at the ripped material of his suit where long lines of torn skin were seeping blood onto the material.

He looked back at her.

Lois still hadn't taken another breath. There was no way she was seeing what she was seeing. It couldn't be. It wasn't possible.

As if he'd made a decision or had felt a burst of strength, Superman jerked his face away and she saw him gain several inches in height as determination squared his shoulders and a muscle jumped in his clenched jaw. Then he launched himself forwards, head down - and when he made contact with Metallo he ran; moving him the way any normal man without superpowers might in a fight to the death. They got closer and closer to the inferno. But he kept going.

And to Lois's horror they disappeared into the flames.

She knew her vision was wrong. It had to be. In the most intense moment of her life she'd thought she'd witnessed the death of the most amazing man she'd ever known and her heart had confused the pain she felt with the soul deep fear she'd been ignoring for Clark's safety. Left brain. Right brain. The mind saw what it wanted to see. It filled in the blanks. And the very fantasy Clark had once teased her on having about how Superman really looked had transformed into the man she was in love with.

She was in love with him? She was in love with him. She was in love with him and she'd chosen now to face up to the reality of just how much?!

The crash of tumbling masonry snapped her out of her hypnotic state and whipped her gaze beyond the wall of flames to where a heavier wall was collapsing around the two dark figures. The flickering red and orange of the fire made it difficult for her to see who was winning but she knew she couldn't just sit and wait for the outcome. She had to see it with her own eyes. And the heart that was crushing into an agonizingly painful ball in her chest demanded that she be there, even though she knew she was running to Superman and not to Clark.

It seemed to take forever to get to them. Lois knew she was running fast because she had cramp in her sides, but it was like a waking nightmare; like one of her dreams where she was running in slow motion.

And then she could see them.

Metallo fought with the last drop of liquid left inside him. And then he looked up as a swaying Superman jerkily raised his arm and made a fist. Finally. Finally he was free. Luthor had lost and in his own way; he had won. His mouth curled into a weak smile as he forced the words out with what strength he had left;

"Do it. It's what I came here for."

The fist shook, the arm trembled, the dark brows folded so low over fiercely intense blue eyes wavered. And as the image started to fade there was a whispered, "No."

Clark's eyes widened as he saw the light dimming in Metallo's eyes; leaving them dark, dull, empty pits. In one brief moment he'd been given a glimpse of the human trapped inside the artificial body. There had been a soul in there. Life. And he'd taken it.

The harsh reality of it swayed him back on his heels. He let go of the metal arm he'd been holding and stumbled backwards. No. Underneath all the anger and murderous rage had been someone driven insane by the prison of his body. And he'd killed him. He'd crossed the very line he'd been so sure Bruce would cross before any of them. What had he done?!

Tiny slithers of green liquid trailed the ground beneath his feet as he felt his body shutting down. And he didn't even have the will to fight for the last ounce of strength to try and get away from it. What right had he? He stumbled over rubble, twisted his ankle, stumbled again. What had he done?

Lois saw him fall.

She caught his shoulders before his head hit the ground. Lifting a hand to his bruised face she turned his head in her lap and looked down as thick dark lashes flickered weakly upwards.

"Lois."

Her mouth trembled into a smile, "I'm here. Tell me what to do."

"I killed him."

And Lois could hear the soul-deep agony in the whispered words, "He didn't give you any choice."

"Wanted to die…"

The words were so low she had to lean closer to hear them, a wave of panic overwhelming her when his eyes started to close, "Stay with me!"

He looked up at her again. And she was emotionally flattened by how much he looked like Clark. Then she forced herself to snap out of it, "Light. You need to get into the sunlight."

She forced her feet out from underneath her, twisting and rising as she supported his head and looked around for the nearest pocket of light beyond the shadows of the broken building they were under. That one was closest. It looked a million miles away but it was probably less than twenty feet.

Bending over she lowered his head to the ground and pushed her hands under his armpits. The first tug barely moved him – and she'd forgotten about her shoulder, "Mmfphh – okay – you're gonna have to help me out here. You weight about five hundred pounds. Try and push with your feet."

"Lois-"

"Push godammit! I don't give a crap how guilty you feel – you're not dying on me!" And now she was even talking to him like he was Clark.

When she tugged again she kept her gaze fixed on his legs and could have laughed with hysterical relief when she saw them moving. It wasn't pretty or graceful but it was effective. Slow. But effective. And inch by hard won inch they got closer to the light. Gasping for breath and fighting waves of nausea from the pain in her shoulder she grunted and groaned her way through the last two feet,

"Next. Time. Fall. Closer. To. The. Light. You hear? I'm a reporter – not. An. Amazon. Warrior. Princess…"

When they'd managed to get him into the sunlight as far as his waist she fell onto her ass and then struggled to get his head back into her lap. His gaze sought out hers as she continued gasping for breath; "Is this enough?"

He kept looking at her.

"Please tell me this is enough…"

When he continued staring she had a moment of fear that she was too late. And then she saw the miracle beginning to happen. The warm yellow light bathing his face seemed to glow brighter around the open gashes on his skin, then there was a low sparkling and she saw the edges closing in. The 'S' on his chest rose and expanded as he took a deep breath, and another, and another. The warmth began to return to his eyes and the blue intensified. And Lois blinked to clear her vision as the last of the cuts healed and he blinked up at her.

Letting out a shaky breath of relief she smiled down at him, "Hi."

"Hello."

They stared at each other for a long moment. Lois' fingers unconsciously moving in the thick strands of his matted hair she asked; "Better?"

"Yes."

"But you still need to…" She jerked her chin upwards.

"Yes."

As he sat up she suddenly remembered the rest of his team. Where were they? She was about to ask as she scrambled to her feet when a large palm appeared in front of her face and she realized he was standing over her. It made her smile. Ever the hero, wasn't he? And yet somehow she knew the way she felt about him was completely different to the way she felt about Clark. The man whose hand she placed hers in had just fought and defeated potentially the worst threat the world had ever seen. He was now the greatest hero the world had ever known. And he was the leader of a new team of heroes who would help guard the planet – even if they needed a little work on the whole 'teamwork' aspect in her opinion…

She let him draw her to her feet and slowly lifted her gaze to the emblem on his chest and the smooth, unblemished skin beneath the torn material of his suit. A symbol of hope. The world needed him so much more than she did. Because she had Clark Kent. And thanks to Superman restoring her hope she had the faith to believe they would find a way to make their relationship work.

Her gaze lifted and she looked into his eyes, "Can you do something for me? When you come back?"

"Anything."

"I need you to find Clark for me. He's missing."

Something resembling surprise flickered across the blue of his eyes, his voice deeper than before; "Clark?"

She nodded, "Clark Kent. My partner." One shoulder lifted and dropped, "Best friend. And more than that…I...well I-"

The smile was slow and incredibly warm, "Lois-"

He let go of her hand and lifted his large one to gently brush a strand of hair off her cheek.

His expression changed when she backed away from him.

She shook her head, her voice husky, "No. I'm sorry. I can't love someone like you. I don't even know you. No-one can. You live above us and if we tried bringing you down here, we'd just end up showing the worst sides of ourselves. Trying to love you would be selfish, because you're not just here for one person, you're here for all of us. And I am selfish. I'm selfish and needy and what I need you could never give me."

He stepped forwards, "Lois-"

"I'll drag you into the light anytime you need me to and I'll stand up for you no matter what anyone says about you. I'll always be here. But that's all I can do. You have to have known what you were doing when you decided to do what you do. You made a choice."

"I did."

She nodded, "So did I. About five minutes ago."

"I understand."

"You couldn't possibly," Her smile was weak, "Or what it took to make it. But it's alright – there's no way you could. You should go. There's a lot to do. Where is your team?"

"Nearby. But they're not my team. I work with them. And after today I'll be working with them more. I might not be around as much."

"That's not what they say." Her smile grew, but she didn't feel any of the effects of it, "They said you were their leader. And they obviously need your help. Metropolis knows you'll be here if it calls…"

He stared deep into her eyes, the familiar warmth in his voice replaced with a flatter tone than she'd ever heard from him before, "I'll always be here Lois. Even when I'm not. Remember that."

"I will." She breathed.

Still staring into her eyes he took a step to the side. And Lois watched as he slowly lifted into the air, the shredded ends of his war weary cape shifting in the air the higher he got.

He lowered his chin as he got higher, gaze still locked to hers as he got smaller and smaller. So she stood there and watched him disappear; feeling a cold numbness settling in on her.

When he was gone she lowered her chin and turned around, wandering back through the devastation as the first signs of life started to reappear. But she didn't look at them, she kept staring straight ahead – past fires and falling masonry and incoming rescue vehicles and police officers and running soldiers in combat gear. Then she walked around the barricades and through the crowds; unaware of the wide eyes staring at her appearance.

She walked onto the bridge as traffic started to move and horns sounded. Past a screaming child in the arms of its harassed mother and into downtown Metropolis with it's crowds of businessmen and shoppers and tourists who stepped out of the way and mumbled as she went by.

She didn't see any of it. She didn't even see the Daily Planet insignia as she pushed through the revolving doors…

"Lois?"

Perry's voice was the first thing she heard in the sudden silence that descended on the bullpen when she stepped out of the elevator. But she didn't say anything. She just walked to her desk, sat down, and pulled her chair in tight. Then she took a deep breath and reached for her keyboard.

And started typing; "WHY THE WORLD NEEDS SUPERMAN..."