"Boy, I sure do envy Lois and Clark."

"Why's that, Chief?" Jimmy Olsen finished saving the last of his assignment onto a computer disk and began to shut his machine down. Usually at 7:30 PM the City Room of the Daily Planet had a few stray reporters putting the finishing touches on their respective projects. That usually included the couple in question. But today had to have been the most boring day anyone could remember. That included the Chief. Eventually they'd found something to do and Mullins and Jimmy had been sent off to cover the renovation project at the community theater. Now the day was over. The lights were out. And two lonely men were preparing to call it a day.

"Because Jimmy, right now those too are together, in love, and far enough away from a major crisis that they can brag about it."

"Apparently, so are we." Perry chuckled softly but was struck with the disappointment in the young man's voice. It was no secret that the more Jimmy worked on the streets, finding events and filming them, the more he blossomed. Soon, Perry mused, he'd be just as bad as the other two, which delighted him to no end. Jimmy sighed softly. "I guess if any couple in the world deserves a vacation it would be CK and Lois." Jimmy finished shutting down his computer and he and Perry gathered their things.

"Damn right Jimmy. I don't even remember the last time I gave those two a vacation. Hell, they were only on their honeymoon for two days before the city council story broke wide open. Then BAM!! Lane and Kent, back in action. Never complained, never faulted. Pulitzer worthy story, like always."

"I remember the last time they had a vacation."

"You do?"

"Yep. It was that whole Spencer Spencer fiasco." The two men stepped into the waiting elevator and the doors promptly closed behind them.

"Great shades of Elvis, that's right. Well let's hope that this vacation is uneventful and boring. That's just what those two need, a long boring stay in the country. No kidnappings, no bombs, no psycho's with guns. Just grain and barley, the American dream." Jimmy laughed as they exited the elevator and made their way through the front lobby. It was raining heavily outside. A very fitting ending to a very long and pointless day.

"Well, Chief, they certainly got a jump on the boring part. Can you believe that me, Lois and CK ACTUALLY played three rounds of "Candy Land" today?"

"Well don't that beat all." Perry chuckled softly and when it became apparent that he and Jimmy were headed in different directions he waved his hand in the air at his faithful companion. "Have a good night, son." He called.

"You too, Chief." Jimmy continued walking, but Perry stood at the curb anxiously trying to flag down a cab. A pointless exercise, but he had time. After all there was nobody to go home to. After a while he gave up and began walking down the street towards home, his mind once again returning to Lois and Clark. He was hoping against hope that the world would learn to behave itself for the next week so his two other kids, especially Clark, could relax and recharge their batteries.

Suddenly and wide smile spread across Perry White's face. And to his shock he was laughing out loud. Imagine, Superman playing "Candy Land". Now there's something you don't see every day.

........................................................................................................................................

For a moment Clark was sure he was going to faint. He'd never fainted before, never even came close (well, not without the assistance of Kryptonite of course), but he was sure he was going to faint. It wasn't so much what had been said, more like what hadn't been said yet. To his recollection he'd never made mention to Dr. Klein (or anybody else for that matter) about his birth parents. So how in the world did he know that he was even adopted? What did he know about his birth father? And how? And who the hell was this other guy. Clark could feel his face scrunch up in confusion and to his surprise, the second man, the one he did not recognize looked sadly away.

"Don't you think we should start from the beginning?" The second man asked giving Dr. Klein a bump on the shoulder with his elbow.

"Of course," he replied as he began to pace, "you know I'm no good at this." The second man just rolled his eyes and Lois found herself compressing a giggle. It was nice to know that she wasn't the only one who found that compulsive pacing irritating.

"Please allow me to make proper introductions." The second man held his hand out to Clark who look warily at it for a second then shook it slowly. "I am Nul-Zay," Clark's eyes grew wide and he heard his mother gasp. Nul waved his hand at the younger man and continued, "Please, allow me to explain. I was one of the few people privileged enough to be a Guardsman of your father, Jor-El. But beyond that, I was much more pleased to be able to call him friend. As his Guardsman, I protected him and the ones he cared about, including you. I was obliged to serve and protect, which I did until that fateful day." Nul's voice grew sad and his eyes noticeably moistened. "As a final act of respect and loyalty I wanted nothing more then to give my dear friend a proper burial. But for thirty years I was denied that."

"Why?" Clark croaked. He felt Lois lace her fingers with his and then squeeze his hand reassuringly.

"Because his body was never found. Your mother has been laid to rest a long time ago, but your father seemed to have disappeared."

"Now this is where things get tricky." Dr. Klein cut in still pacing aimlessly. Nul sighed gratefully. "You see your father had a computer chip sewn into the lining of his pants. The purpose of this chip was to locate him no matter where he was in the universe. That way had he been kidnapped, or injured, or whatever, he could be found and rescued. Knowing this, we tried to use the chip to locate his body, but where unsuccessful. Whenever we attempted to contact the chip and gain coordinates, the reply signal was simply too weak and no useful information was retrieved."

"That is, until today." Nul continued. "This afternoon two of my assistants and myself entered a secret room buried deep in the ground and what we saw astounded us."

"What did you see?" Lois asked softly.

"On the computer monitor was a return signal from the chip that was sewn into Jor-El's clothing."

"It seems he was headed for Earth. The Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Martha's Vineyard to be precise." Dr. Klein continued, picking up where his friend left off. "He was encased in an asteroid, which we intercepted of course, and that's when things got really interesting."

"You mean there's more?" Clark gasped in disbelief.

"Yes, I'm afraid so." Dr. Klein stopped pacing and approached Clark. When they were face to face he continued, his voice soft and slow. "When were able to free your father, Kal, we realized something. Your father was still breathing. Your father is alive."

Fainting, definitely fainting. About to faint, feeling dizzy. The loud thud on the floor interrupted Clark's panic attack. He spun around and realized his mother was sprawled out on the floor. His father was desperately trying to wake her up with light taps to her cheek and soft words. Clark's head was spinning, he had a million and one thoughts he wanted to express and yet his tongue seemed immobile and there was a hard lump in his throat.

"Wait, Wait, Wait! Hold on a second!" Leave it to Lois to find her voice first. "How in the world do you know all of this, Dr. Klein?" His eyes fell to the floor, and Clark could swear he heard the Doctor trying to put his next words in the right order.

"Forgive me, Mrs. Kent, I have lied. To you both, repeatedly. My name is Ree-Jai. Jor-El was.. err.. is one of my best friends."

Martha Kent was joined on the floor by another younger Kent. Superman was down and out, leaving the remaining four people left to stare in wonder.

............................................................................................................................................

"I can't believe this, I just can't believe this! You how it is when you just can't wrap your mind around something?" Clark paced back and forth across the waiting room of Star Labs briskly. How long had it been? An hour? One hour and his whole world, his whole existence had been flipped upside down.

After a few minutes on the floor Clark had awoken to five sets of eyes analyzing him. He let out a little girly shriek and everyone jumped back a few feet. The next half an hour was a blur. Somehow he'd flown Lois and both his parents to Star Labs, though he vaguely remembered doing it.

Once they had arrived they were ushered into a small waiting room in a secluded part of the building. Nul and Ree had disappeared down a corridor directly ahead of them. Before leaving they said something about checking to make sure Jor was up for company.

"Son, sit down. You're going to ware a hole in the floor." Jonathan chuckled nervously but the gesture was lost on Clark. His mind was on overdrive and his emotions ran unchecked.

"SIT DOWN? HOW THE HELL CAN YOU TELL ME THAT!" He saw his father wince and released a long sigh. "I'm sorry," he began, this time much more calm. "I, I don't know what got into me."

"You're scared, sweetie." Martha said softly.

"You're right, I'm scared. I'm TERRIFIED! JOR-EL IS ALIVE! My BIRTH FATHER IS ALIVE! How the hell am I supposed to feel?"

"Clark, no one is asking you to decide that." Lois' voice was small and distant. She had been silent since they left Smallville but she wasn't sure why. She kept telling herself that she was hurting because Clark was hurting. Which he was. She'd never seen him so utterly confused, so pained. But deep down Lois knew that there was more to it then that. A part of her, a big part of her, the selfish part of her was very disappointed.

All week she'd waited and searched and schemed for a quiet moment alone with her husband, and all week she was denied. She was sure that their vacation would provide ample time to sit him down and tell him that they were expecting a baby. But now, she was starting to wonder it that would ever happen. How could she add more stress to his increasingly stressful life? How could she put the weight of being a father on his shoulders now?

Lois blinked back into reality when she felt Clark plop down in the chair beside her. She took his hand and squeezed it.

"What are we going to do?" He asked softly. "I mean seriously, if he lives what are we going to do? If he dies.." everyone winced slightly as a few tears rolled down Clark's cheek and settled on his lips. It was a natural reaction for Lois to wipe them away with her thumb.

"If he lives then we'll welcome him into our family." Martha said simply. Clark opened his mouth to respond but snapped it shut again when Ree and Nul entered the room. Ree seemed to survey the present company before speaking.

"Jor-El is resting peacefully. His vital signs are stable, and I think he would enjoy some company." Nobody spoke as Ree and Nul lead the Kent family through a series of hallways and finally stopped at a large door. "I want you to know, that I really appreciate this. It warms my heart to know that he won't have to go through this alone."

Having said that Ree opened the door and instantly the family could hear the continuous beep of various hospital machines. As curious as everyone was, all eyes were on Clark. He froze in the doorway momentarily, and then took a hesitant step into the room. Lois and the older Kents spilled into the room behind him. The room was bright and filled with machines that were continuingly spitting out numbers and percentages. Lying on the bed in the center of the room was a tall man dressed in a white hospital gown. His features were strong and sophisticated, yet he was very pale.

"My God." Clark finally breathed. Nul went to the right side of Jor's bed and checked the output on a few of the machines. When he was finished, he rested his hand on his friend's forehead. Even in his daze Clark heard Nul begin to whisper. It was in a language he'd never heard before, though deep down it seemed familiar. He heard Nul use his Kryptonian name and that got is attention. Nul looked up and scanned the crowd. Clark was pale. Too pale for his liking. Lois seemed lost in thought and both the elder Kents were crying.

"I told him that his son is here to see him and that he has a very pretty Daughter in Law." Lois smiled shyly.

"Does he speak English?" She asked. Clark smiled. That was his Lois, always the reporter, get to the bottom of the story no matter what.

"Yes. He does, but only when he has to. He always preferred to speak in Kryptonian." Nul said whispered a more words and then stopped. He looked to the elder Kents. "I am sorry, what were your names again?"

"Jonathan."

"Martha." He continued to talk in fluid foreign phrases.

"I told him that the wonderful people who raised Kal are here too."

"Could you rely a message for me?" Martha asked.

"Of course."

"Tell him that I hope he wakes up because I'd love to talk to him." Nul smiled and relayed the message quickly. An uneasy silence fell upon the room and Nul and Ree exchanged nervous glances. Even though Jor was comatose Nul felt like he was in charge of introduction Son to Father. He looked up and noticed Lois standing on the opposite of the bed. He smiled slightly. He knew that she couldn't suppress the characteristic Lane curiosity for very long. Martha joined her after a few moments. Both woman studied Jor-El and soon a round of tears fallowed.

"Look at that nose," Martha whispered softly, "if that isn't Clark's nose then.. then.. God, he's so pale."

"We're hoping that a few days worth of fresh sunlight will help him heal, of course we won't know that for a while now." Nul stated.

"Is he going to live?" The three people standing at the bed snapped up their heads to view Clark. He was still near the doorway, eyes fixed on the floor tiles. His voice was so small that it was almost lost in the beeping of the machines. If Martha's heart weren't breaking at his obvious pain she may have found it cute. Lois didn't like the way he was shifting his weight for one foot the other, it was making her nervous and edgy.

"I will not lie to you. We honestly don't know. I will say this however, statistics show that a people who have a supportive family unit in times of sickness recover quicker and more completely." Clark only nodded, his eyes never rising off the floor.

Everyone was startled when the door opened. Clark reluctantly stepped farther into the room allowing a short Asian woman to enter. She surveyed the room and her expression grew almost remorseful. "I'm sorry. I really hate to interrupt but it' time to give Mr. El his medications. I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask everyone to leave for a short while." To everyone's surprise, Clark groaned loudly. "I promise I'll come and get you as soon as I'm finished." She added quickly.

Clark watched his wife and parents exit the room fallowed by Dr. Klein and Nul. For a few long seconds he stood in the doorway studying the man before him. The man who had given him life. The man who had sent him into the great unknown. The man who allowed Jonathan and Martha Kent to love and raise him. Made it possible for him to meet Lois and find his purpose in life. The Asian woman shot him a glance that instantly told him that he had to leave but that she didn't want to be pushy. "I'll be back.." Clark whispered and then as he turned to walk away he added "Father.."