Superman: The Ark of Krypton

Chapter 75

by

Jason Richard

Superman knew if he tried to fly up that chain would pull him back down. He wasn't used to being so slow thanks to a gravity belt, but that was the situation he found himself in. The only course of action, he figured, was to go at Lobo directly, so he flew forward and aimed a punch with all his might.

Lobo caught the punch with the palm of his hand, but the force of it was more than he anticipated, as with a sound of thunder upon impact he had to plant his feet just to stay standing, his feet leaving craters in the ground as he did.

With his other hand Lobo threw a punch of his own, but Superman caught that, only for Lobo to headbut him, smashing him into the ground. With these super powered blows sounding through the night, some would have been forgiven for thinking that a thunderstorm was nearby.

Lobo then grabbed Superman by the leg and swung him around, smashing him against the ground over and over and sending dirt flying every time he struck. Lobo then threw Superman away, sending him crashing through the tree, knocking over countless numbers of them.

As Superman crashed into the ground and the trees shook the forest where they landed Lobo pressed a button on his glove, summoning his ship. Superman was getting weaker, so all he had to do was wrestle him into the box he was given, and the rest would be history.

Superman, meanwhile, got up unsteadily. He had less energy than ever now, and would be powerless if he used much more. Lobo had made a mistake however. Throwing him away gave him a chance to fly away. Then again as Superman began to fly he could feel the drain on his internal energy.

If he could remove this belt he could get rid of the gravity field, but he'd have to fly far enough away so that the nuclear explosion wouldn't harm anyone. If he did that, however, there was no guarantee the energy he had left by that point would be enough to save him from the blast. Still, if he was going to get to the sun and recharge he would have to risk it. He flew as fast as he could...and realized that a human vehicle could keep up with him. That wasn't good.

For of course Lobo was chasing him on a ship that could go much faster than that, and it was giving him chase. Within moments it would be right on top of him, so as Superman flew through the trees he swerved, letting it sail past him.

The ship quickly turned around and Lobo, from the cockpit, grinned sadistically as he flew in. Superman dodged again as the ship crashed into a few trees. The ship turned around for another pass and Superman dodged again, only to find that Lobo was no longer in the cockpit. As the flying object sailed past him a door opened in the side and Lobo poked his head out, throwing his hook and chain at Superman.

The chain wrapped around the hero and Lobo yanked him inside the ship. As Superman tumbled inside he flew up, only to be met with Lobo's fist, then another, then another, and as Lobo wailed on him Superman actually started to feel the punches, and they didn't' feel good.

After a few moments of getting knocked around Superman able to throw his own punch, but it barely budged the gigantic grinning alien. Lobo did stop attacking, but only because there was no point anymore. Superman's solar energy was running dry, and he collapsed on the floor of that ship, unable to move. The last thing he could remember before passing out was Lobo dragging him into a giant black box.

…

Superman woke up in complete darkness, and felt groggy as he sat up. Grogginess. That was a new feeling for him. With his Super powered eyes he was just barely able to see his surroundings. Barely.

It was a large, featureless black box made of a glossy material. As he stood up he put his hands on the wall and quickly realized he wouldn't be able to break through it. He didn't have enough energy left. The gravity belt was no longer around his waist, but the healing of his wounds must have used most of his reserves. He had some solar energy left, but not much.

He was trapped, who knew where, and he couldn't punch his way through. In the dark Superman grimaced. How was he going to get out of this situation?