Superman: The Ark of Krypton

By

Jason Richard

Kara looked over the information as she sat in The Ark of Krypton. She had no idea that Lex Luthor's criminal empire was so expansive. Intergang was the focal point, but it had its hooks into all sorts of illegal activity.

And it was expanding too. Not just Metropolis, but criminal organizations across the state of New York. Kara wasn't sure where they would start. Hopefully, Miss Lane had already worked that out.

Part of her was amazed that she was doing this. It wasn't long ago that she was just an ordinary girl and a student at a university. She never imagined herself protecting a planet, and wondered if she would ever go back to normal. Whatever normal happened to be on Earth.

Still, she figured she had work to do, so she finished reading the notes and got up to fly away.

…

It was the middle of the night at Lexcorp, and all the lights were off. Deep in the vaults, where the most valuable scientific discoveries were locked away, the Colu probe rested, still as a stone. Suddenly, however, it began humming as it came to life. It ran a scan, light enough so that it wouldn't be detected doing so, and observed its container carefully.

The cage, though primitive by Colu standards, was well designed. If the probe left the cage it would be detected immediately, and that would be a problem. The probe would have to reach its target in a more…subtle way. It found that it could start connecting to the Earth's communication systems. That would good. If it could lay the right trap, then it could get the target, The Ark of Krypton, to come to it.

So it began that process.

…

"Sir," said Brainiac, transmitting in a frequency that Superman could hear. "I think I've got something. It's Earth technology, but the software algorithms are more complex than normal. Should I look into it?"

Clark, sitting at his desk at the Daily Planet, spoke into the receiver he had hidden in his collar. "Go ahead, but don't do anything yet. Just observe and get as much information as you can."

"Understood," said Brainiac.

…

Clark, meanwhile, poured over his desk of world news, technological advances, and strange phenomena. No matter how much he looked over, however, he couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. If there were Apokolips agents on Earth they were hiding their presence well.

He put down the papers he was reading and thought. He trusted Brainiac to find something but didn't wish to remain idle himself. If he was going to find something he needed a new angle.

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. As Superman, he'd flown around the world a few times, but could neither see nor hear anything suspicious. If was really going to go for a new angle, it had to not only be something he couldn't normally find as a journalist, but also something he couldn't normally see as Superman.

Not exactly a small order.

But it was getting late, and at the moment he didn't have any ideas, so he decided to sleep on it. Maybe Brainiac would find something. Maybe.

…

Late that night, in Luthor's office, the man himself saw a blip on his building's security, and it was of course where the Colu probe was under lock and key. Apparently, it was sending a signal, giving off its location. A pointless gesture. Everyone already knew where it was. What exactly did it hope to accomplish with this? Apparently, it was using a light signal. This was probably to avoid detection, but it seemed this advanced race had underestimated Lexcorp technologies, a thought that filled the businessman with pride.

Still, this begged the question. Could it be trying to draw the Ark to it? That didn't seem likely. Still, this could prove useful. He was still waiting for Superman to outlive his usefulness to the planet, but if he really did plan to use the probe against Superman, it might prove easier than even he realized.

So despite the probe sending that signal out of his facility, Lex Luthor decided to do nothing to stop it.

...

...

Hey guys,

Just wanted to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a happy New Year. And as always, thanks for reading.

Jason.