ULTIMATE SUPERMAN
Chapter 5: Exploration
(I Apologize, yet again, for the rampant Mary Sue-ness of this story. It's really just a way for me to pass time and to vent the problems of my life and drag these poor innocent characters in… I'm sorry… really… I am…)
Los Angeles, CA
August 23rd, 2001
Josh and Clark were issued their room/elevator keycards and they promptly moved their things upstairs. What they found looked about as they'd expected: a normal hotel room, the only difference being the addition of a second desk against the far wall. Within a few minutes, the room had undergone disastrous changes. Boxes were scattered everywhere, their contents distributed around the room in patterns that seemed to suggest that they were intended to be organized, but had stopped somewhere short. The view out the window wasn't exactly spectacular, given that it consisted mainly of the freeway and a beer ad-emblazoned moving company building.
They seemed to be the first ones to arrive on the fifth floor, but they left their door open in case anyone else should chance by. They were located just off the floor lobby, so they'd figured that anyone moving in would probably pass by their door. They were right. By mid-afternoon, with everything now organized and the room a bit more creatively arranged, they'd met most of their fellow fifth floor residents. For some reason, the girls on the floor seemed to be spending a lot of time standing near the door to Clark and Josh's room. When Josh suggested that it might have something to do with the fact that his roommate stood well over six feet tall and boasted a rather impressive physique, his fellow Kansan turned a bit red and retreated to his side of the room.
Around nine, Clark decided he needed some fresh air.
"Hey, Josh, I'm gonna run out for a while."
"I think that I should be able to console the throng of disappointed women. Have fun."
Clark sent a mocking scowl towards his roommate and headed for the elevator. Even this late in the evening, the hotel was still bustling with students checking in and running about, getting to know one another. It was going to take a while to transition from the "nothing-happens-after-ten- o'clock" mentality of Smallville to this unsleeping attitude of Los Angeles, he could see that right away.
Outside, his enhanced senses still made him grimace at the level of pollution in the air here. If not for his x-ray vision, he doubted that he could even see the mountains beyond downtown. He wandered for a while, taking in the sights of a campus alive with activity, people moving in, saying their goodbyes to parents, first meetings between people who might become lifelong friends. The sounds, the sights, all the sensations of a city over millions flooded into Clark, leaving him all at once exhilarated and breathless. He could hear the single voice of a girl crying already with homesickness, he could smell the scent of the marijuana being smoked atop the roof of a nearby dorm, and he could see the tense faces of the officers in the helicopters that circled the area, still feared as one of the most crime-ridden neighborhoods in America, despite the efforts of city authorities.
In his senior year, Clark had discovered the full extent of his abilities, and was still learning to cope with them. Right now, that was becoming extremely difficult. As he moved deeper into the campus, he began to feel as if it were swallowing him, the intensity of the activity was unlike anything he'd experienced, but he wanted to be open to it, he wanted to feel the pulse of life around him, so he went on. He quickly found himself across campus, moving toward the fringes of the area actually controlled by USC. This was The Row, and it was here that the intensity took on a whole new form. He'd heard stories from his father about the debauchery that went on within the Greek system when he had attended Kansas State in the late sixties, but those stories hadn't prepared him for some of what he saw. Not even the most daring girl back home dressed like some of the girls he saw wandering down 28th street. Even the most tolerant parents back home would never have allowed their son to be as intoxicated as some of the students Clark saw inside some of the houses. He understood that it was "all in fun", but there seemed to be something about this place, something like barely-chained chaos that just begged to run loose.
When his father had shown him where he'd come from, and he'd learned what he was capable of, he knew what his mission in life was to be. He'd always wanted to help people, to protect people. Thankfully, Smallville was a quiet little Kansas town where very little happened. Here though… this would be his testing ground. Here he would prove to himself that he was capable of carrying out this mission in life.
Growing slightly nauseated at the sights he observed, Clark turned back toward the main body of campus, feeling a sense of relief as he left the Row behind.
In her room, Lana was sitting on her bed across from Bethany, quietly reading. She was slowly getting used to the near-constant sound of cars rushing past her window, and she found that her roommate was a girl one easily got along with, even if she did have a rather boisterous personality. Out the window, she saw the Radisson, and wondered what Clark was doing. He'd shared his secret with her just before they'd graduated, the night after the big homecoming game. He'd tried to tell her that this meant he couldn't be with her any more, but she'd refused to let it go at that. She'd almost let him simply fly away, but a sudden surge of will stopped her. She'd held on to him, unwilling to let things end like that. As she'd talked to him, she had seen something change in his face. He'd been so afraid that this new mission in life meant that he had to be alone, that he couldn't ever truly share with anyone, but she knew better. She remembered the conversation clear as if it had happened yesterday.
"I know you better than you know yourself, Clark. You can't do this alone, it's not right."
"But you don't understand… Lana, I'm not normal… I'm not human."
"Clark, I believe that it isn't your blood that makes you human. Wherever you came from, I don't care." She put a hand to his chest. "This is what makes you human." She took his hands, clasped them in hers, and held them against her heart. "This is what makes me human." She kissed him. "That is what makes us human."
"Lana…"
"Clark, you can't go through life alone. It's connection that makes us human. You want to help people, great. But how can you help humanity if you set yourself aside from it?"
"Lana…"
"No, Clark. Don't argue with me, you know I'm MMRPH!"
He silenced her with a kiss. "Lana… shh. You're right."
The memory brought a smile to her face. She hugged her book to her chest and thought eagerly tomorrow, and the next day, and every day, because she'd be with Clark.
Chapter 5: Exploration
(I Apologize, yet again, for the rampant Mary Sue-ness of this story. It's really just a way for me to pass time and to vent the problems of my life and drag these poor innocent characters in… I'm sorry… really… I am…)
Los Angeles, CA
August 23rd, 2001
Josh and Clark were issued their room/elevator keycards and they promptly moved their things upstairs. What they found looked about as they'd expected: a normal hotel room, the only difference being the addition of a second desk against the far wall. Within a few minutes, the room had undergone disastrous changes. Boxes were scattered everywhere, their contents distributed around the room in patterns that seemed to suggest that they were intended to be organized, but had stopped somewhere short. The view out the window wasn't exactly spectacular, given that it consisted mainly of the freeway and a beer ad-emblazoned moving company building.
They seemed to be the first ones to arrive on the fifth floor, but they left their door open in case anyone else should chance by. They were located just off the floor lobby, so they'd figured that anyone moving in would probably pass by their door. They were right. By mid-afternoon, with everything now organized and the room a bit more creatively arranged, they'd met most of their fellow fifth floor residents. For some reason, the girls on the floor seemed to be spending a lot of time standing near the door to Clark and Josh's room. When Josh suggested that it might have something to do with the fact that his roommate stood well over six feet tall and boasted a rather impressive physique, his fellow Kansan turned a bit red and retreated to his side of the room.
Around nine, Clark decided he needed some fresh air.
"Hey, Josh, I'm gonna run out for a while."
"I think that I should be able to console the throng of disappointed women. Have fun."
Clark sent a mocking scowl towards his roommate and headed for the elevator. Even this late in the evening, the hotel was still bustling with students checking in and running about, getting to know one another. It was going to take a while to transition from the "nothing-happens-after-ten- o'clock" mentality of Smallville to this unsleeping attitude of Los Angeles, he could see that right away.
Outside, his enhanced senses still made him grimace at the level of pollution in the air here. If not for his x-ray vision, he doubted that he could even see the mountains beyond downtown. He wandered for a while, taking in the sights of a campus alive with activity, people moving in, saying their goodbyes to parents, first meetings between people who might become lifelong friends. The sounds, the sights, all the sensations of a city over millions flooded into Clark, leaving him all at once exhilarated and breathless. He could hear the single voice of a girl crying already with homesickness, he could smell the scent of the marijuana being smoked atop the roof of a nearby dorm, and he could see the tense faces of the officers in the helicopters that circled the area, still feared as one of the most crime-ridden neighborhoods in America, despite the efforts of city authorities.
In his senior year, Clark had discovered the full extent of his abilities, and was still learning to cope with them. Right now, that was becoming extremely difficult. As he moved deeper into the campus, he began to feel as if it were swallowing him, the intensity of the activity was unlike anything he'd experienced, but he wanted to be open to it, he wanted to feel the pulse of life around him, so he went on. He quickly found himself across campus, moving toward the fringes of the area actually controlled by USC. This was The Row, and it was here that the intensity took on a whole new form. He'd heard stories from his father about the debauchery that went on within the Greek system when he had attended Kansas State in the late sixties, but those stories hadn't prepared him for some of what he saw. Not even the most daring girl back home dressed like some of the girls he saw wandering down 28th street. Even the most tolerant parents back home would never have allowed their son to be as intoxicated as some of the students Clark saw inside some of the houses. He understood that it was "all in fun", but there seemed to be something about this place, something like barely-chained chaos that just begged to run loose.
When his father had shown him where he'd come from, and he'd learned what he was capable of, he knew what his mission in life was to be. He'd always wanted to help people, to protect people. Thankfully, Smallville was a quiet little Kansas town where very little happened. Here though… this would be his testing ground. Here he would prove to himself that he was capable of carrying out this mission in life.
Growing slightly nauseated at the sights he observed, Clark turned back toward the main body of campus, feeling a sense of relief as he left the Row behind.
In her room, Lana was sitting on her bed across from Bethany, quietly reading. She was slowly getting used to the near-constant sound of cars rushing past her window, and she found that her roommate was a girl one easily got along with, even if she did have a rather boisterous personality. Out the window, she saw the Radisson, and wondered what Clark was doing. He'd shared his secret with her just before they'd graduated, the night after the big homecoming game. He'd tried to tell her that this meant he couldn't be with her any more, but she'd refused to let it go at that. She'd almost let him simply fly away, but a sudden surge of will stopped her. She'd held on to him, unwilling to let things end like that. As she'd talked to him, she had seen something change in his face. He'd been so afraid that this new mission in life meant that he had to be alone, that he couldn't ever truly share with anyone, but she knew better. She remembered the conversation clear as if it had happened yesterday.
"I know you better than you know yourself, Clark. You can't do this alone, it's not right."
"But you don't understand… Lana, I'm not normal… I'm not human."
"Clark, I believe that it isn't your blood that makes you human. Wherever you came from, I don't care." She put a hand to his chest. "This is what makes you human." She took his hands, clasped them in hers, and held them against her heart. "This is what makes me human." She kissed him. "That is what makes us human."
"Lana…"
"Clark, you can't go through life alone. It's connection that makes us human. You want to help people, great. But how can you help humanity if you set yourself aside from it?"
"Lana…"
"No, Clark. Don't argue with me, you know I'm MMRPH!"
He silenced her with a kiss. "Lana… shh. You're right."
The memory brought a smile to her face. She hugged her book to her chest and thought eagerly tomorrow, and the next day, and every day, because she'd be with Clark.
