Superman: The Ark of Krypton
Chapter 19
By
Jason Richard
After walking out of STAR Labs with the codes he had gotten from Dr. Hamilton's memory, Rudy made a complicated plan to lure Superman to him. He figured holding up a convenience store or a bank or something could backfire if the cops got involved. He wouldn't have any power without Superman, after all, and really didn't want to get shot.
No, he figured the best way to draw out Superman was to play the victim. He just needed to engineer a situation where Superman would be the best person to save him, and when Superman got close, that would be it.
He went back to his apartment to prepare for his next move. It had to be something safe enough to ensure that he wouldn't get hurt, but dangerous enough to bring out Superman. Something...high up. Fortunately the apartment complex he lived in, though a cheap one, did have several floors.
All he needed to do was go up to the roof, use rope to climb down just a little, tie himself down, and then call for help. So long as he kept the rope hidden, Superman should show up
It suddenly occurred to him that there was a part of his mind telling him that this was a bad idea, that there were too many things that could go wrong. It also occurred to him, as he rooted through his apartment getting everything that he needed, that this part of his mind was getting quieter and quieter.
He took a moment in that filthy apartment to rub his chin to realized that the part of his mind that was opposed to his idea was what he took from Dr. Hamilton and the Lawyer. It also occurred to him that their memories seemed to be slipping from his mind as well. He also tested his stomach, and sure enough he no longer had the hard stomach of the lawyer who exercised and took some self defense.
He snapped his finger in frustration. He didn't get to keep whatever he took, Rudy realized. He'd have to capture Superman and keep him prisoner if he wanted continuous access to his power. Oh well he thought, he'd just wing it. How hard could it be?
He walked out of the apartment with a big grin on his face, blissfully unaware that he had forgotten the rope for his plan.
…
This sudden showcase Lexcorp had decided to throw out did get Lois and Clark inside the areas Clark couldn't see through, but that didn't mean he immediately found what he was looking for. There were a lot of devices around here, but nothing resembling an alien artifact.
All he knew was that it had to be a power crystal like the one that activated his pod before. He had already found the other device, which had to be the navigation system. So he was looking for some sort of glowing crystal amid the crowd of reporters, but so far nothing was popping out at him.
And what really killed him were a few rooms he still couldn't see into. As he as the rest of the press were led through that room, Lex Luthor talked about the various pieces of technology. It remained to be seen if those other rooms were part of the tour, or if they'd be passed off as storage closets and whatever else Luthor could come up with.
Lois found one of her contacts fairly quickly, and took him to a corner to have a little chat. Clark didn't listen to them, though, and just looked for the alien artifact.
Fortunately Lex Luthor did lead them into another room, so for the moment, Clark just waited until he could find the power source he was looking for.
…
Rudy, in a trench coat and hat to hide his purple skin, went to the roof, climbed down the drain pipe, and got ready to call out for Superman, when he remember the item he had forgotten. Upon the sudden realization that there really was nothing stopping him from falling to his death he closed his eyes and gripped the drain pipe with all his strength.
Unlike his plan, his cry of, "Help! Help!" was in earnest.
…
After three rooms Clark was almost ready to give up, but then he saw it. With his X-Ray vision he saw it. A crystal the size of a baseball rested on a pedestal on the other side of a big machine. Clark eagerly stepped around to see it, and then something happened that hadn't happened to him in a long time.
When he was little he had gotten the occasional scrape or bruise from an accident, but for the first time in a long time since he had first gotten his powers Clark Kent felt pain. Real, burning, overwhelming pain all over his body, and it started the moment he stepped within a few feet of the crystal. The distinctively green crystal.
He stepped away, panting, hoping no one in the crowd would ask him what was wrong. He took a moment to catch his breath, then stood up straight, and looked at the crystal.
Apparently he had, at least, found the source of radiation that could harm him, as his pod specified. That was a given, but was this also the power source the pod mentioned? Being harmful to him didn't mean that it wasn't. After all, humans used electricity for power, and that could easily hurt them.
Actually, it was quite likely. Looking at the crystal, he realized it was attached to some wires, and was powering a nearby computer on it's own. There was no question. This substance, whatever it was, could be used as a power source. It had to be what he was looking for.
Either way, he couldn't leave it there. Something that could kill him could be real bad if it fell into the wrong hands, and if Lois was right about his Luthor's black market connections…
He didn't like it, but he knew he had to steal this thing. Not now though. It didn't seem to hurt any of the human reporters that got near it, but Clark would have to come back with a plan to deal with it. He sighed, wondering how this could get possibly get any more complicated.
And that's when he saw Lois heading into a room marked, "Staff only."
Great, thought Clark. He had a feeling she was going to resent him for this, but he figured he should probably make certain she was okay. If she really did run into black market arms dealers, things could get nasty.
And it was right at that moment when he heard Rudy's cry for help. Normally Clark listed for that word in the city with as much attention as possible, but right now it was the last thing he wanted to hear.
"Not now," Clark mouthed, as he used his superhuman vision and hearing to get a lead on the person who needed so much help.
…
A crowd started to form around Rudy, who by this time started calling for Superman. If he needed to be saved anyway, he might as well draw in the person whose powers he wanted to steal. He continually cried, "Help! Help!"
Untill…
"Rudy?" said a voice above him.
Rudy looked up to see his landlord.
"Oh thanks goodness your here!" he said, all the while thinking, dogonit, what the heck are you doing here?
"How did you get yourself in this position?" asked the Landlord. "And are you okay? You look a little...purple…"
"Just a rash," said Rudy, telling the first lie that came to mind. "Doctor told me to get some sun, so I was talking a walk out on the roof when I slipped over," said Rudy...realizing just how clumsy that made him sound. "Please you have to get me down before I fall! Get Superman!"
"Like I've got the guy on speed dial," said the Landlord. "Besides, I know you're not supposed to look down in these situations, but there's a fire escape right below you."
Rudy didn't look down, but figured the Landlord was telling the truth. He did notice out the corner of his eye that the gathering crowd was using their phones to take pictures, or videos...probably to post him online. Not a one of them was making a call...like 911.
How the heck did he miss the fire escape? He was starting to miss being smart, a thought he realized was rather odd.
"I can't look down!" cried Rudy, panicking. "What if I slip off that too!"
Man that sounded pathetic, Rudy realized.
The landlord sighed, moved away for a second, then returned, throwing a rope ladder over the side of the roof, next to Rudy. Rudy looked at it, stunned.
"Strangely enough," said the Landlord. "You're not the first person to get themselves into a situation like this, so this time I was prepared."
I decided to do this on the one building that had this? Thought Rudy. What odd luck.
Rudy, desperate to keep his victim ploy going, said, "I can't move! I'm afraid of heights!"
"Then why, out of all the places in the city to get some sun, did you pick the roof in the first place?" said the Landar.
Rudy didn't respond for a second. It was a good question.
"Only Superman can save me!" said Rudy, who wasn't buying it himself. Man, thought Rudy, I sound like a complete and total moron. How did I get myself into this?
…
Back at Lexcorp, watched the scene play out with his super vision and hearing, Clark decided he could let this one slide for a moment. He doubted even this Rudy guy would be foolish enough to get himself killed, what with everything around him protecting his life. He'd have to try to get killed, from what Clark saw...though he'd keep an ear out for the guy just in case.
At the moment Clark wanted to make certain Lois was okay. She might resent his interfering, so he wouldn't move in unless she was in real danger.
Right now, he was just an observer, and he was observing two people who might need his help.