Experiment 001
Chapter 4: So Many Questions, So Few Answers
Lex heard Alley scream and whipped around. She was slowly backing away from a man, probably in his late forties or early fifties. She tripped over the leg of her chair and fell to the floor; but that didn't stop her from backing away. She scrambled backward until she hit the bars of the railing.
Everything else in the shop went blank to Lex, all he saw was the man and his sister. He rushed to the railing and vaulted over. The man looked at him, surprised, not even realizing what was happening, until Lex's fist slammed into his jaw. The man fell back, hit one of the tables and landed on the floor, only momentarily stunned.
Lex knelt next to Alley, who was trembling with vacant eyes, mumbling incoherently in a language that was most certainly not English. He reached to comfort her, but she jerked away and screamed, "Inay-ta! Ta oy qualey ma Kal-El! Tsukai! Ta oy qualey ma Kal-El! Inay-ta!"
* * *
Clark heard the scream and looked up to see Lex running, faster than humanly possible, and punch the man making his sister so hysterical.
He started to move toward Lex and Alley, to aid in any way possible, when he noticed just how many people were staring at Lex. Lex also seemed to have everything under control.
Then Clark listened to exactly what Alley was screaming. He almost fainted.
He felt Pete staring at him, and knew that he has heard right. She screamed something about Kal-El...
* * *
Lex touched her cheek, but she obviously didn't see Lex. She kept trying to back away from everything. Lex was sincerely trying to help her. "Alley! It's me! Alley, it's Alex!"
She looked weakly at Lex, "Inay-ta," she begged. "Kal-El, ta qualey Kal- El." She started to sob, "Kal-El."
Lex studied her face, "English, Alley." He said softly, but the desperation he was feeling penetrated his voice. "Remember, English?" She didn't seem to understand. Lex gave an exasperated sigh, "Alley!" His voice was almost frantic, "I don't know 'Kal-El'! What does 'Kal-El' mean?!" He stared straight into her eyes. "Ta......" Lex closed his eyes to concentrate, "ta dio-sa kai 'Kal-El'."
Alley gazed hauntingly into his eyes, "Ta xia," she answered.
Lex shook his head, "I don't know those words, Alley! I'll help you find it, but I need to know what that means!"
A mocking laugh sounded behind him, "I don't know why you even try," the man Lex had punched said.
Lex looked up slightly, not fully taking his eyes away from Alley, "Lana, call the police."
"You can't have me arrested," the man laughed.
"You aren't allowed within a mile of her," Lex hissed.
"Last time I checked, you didn't have one for Kansas." He smirked, "You can't stop science, *Mr.* Luthor."
"You're not a scientist," Lex snarled, "you're a butcher."
"Tom*a*to, tom*o*to," he shrugged, "'Till next we meet." He turned and strolled calmly away.
Lex turned back to Alley, who continued to whisper, "Inay-ta."
Lex took her hand, "Alli-Oxah," he said softly, "ta inay-jo. Just let me."
Alley looked up at him. Something in her eyes flashed, and she threw herself into Lex's arms. "Alex! Inay-ta qualey Kal-El."
Lex hugged her, "I will, I will. It's all right. I'm here." He helped her to stand, "Come on." He kept his arms around her as he walked her to the door.
Alley looked around, fully taking note of just how many people were staring.
* * *
Clark watcher with the rest of the patrons, not knowing what to do. Alley looked straight into his eyes with a piercing gaze. Her mouth hardly moved and even Clark's super hearing barely registered the sound that came out, "Kal-El.....?"
Clark stared, not sure he had actually heard what he had thought. As soon as Alley and Lex were gone, he dazedly turned to Chloe and Pete, "I.....I gotta go....."
Chloe and Pete nodded, their minds to befuddled to comprehend what had just happened, let alone realize what Clark was saying.
* * *
Clark ran inside his house at top speed, calling to his parents. Jonathan and Martha stepped out from the kitchen, "What's wrong, Clark?" Martha asked.
Clark's opened and closed his mouth a few times, but no words came out.
His parents suddenly became very worried. Jonathan put his arm around his son and led him to a chair to sit down, "Clark," he spoke softly, "calm down. Just tell us what's wrong."
Clark swallowed, "I-I think Lex knows."
"What?" Both his mother and father shouted. "Why, Clark?"
"There's this new girl at school, Alley, she's Lex's sister. She was in the Talon with Lex and Lex said something about being 'from Krypton'." He shook his head, "Then, she started screaming in this weird language, I think it was Kryptonian, I understood a little, and she called me Kal-El!"
Jonathan and Martha looked at each other.
"And that's not even the strangest part!" Clark continued, his eyes growing wide with panic, "Lex was answering her that language!"
"Clark, slow down," his father coaxed, "are you sure Lex can speak Kryptonian?" Clark nodded. "Are you sure that it even was Kryptonian?"
"I don't know! But I understood some of the things she was saying! She said that she needed to find Kal-El. And Lex said that he would help her!" He went to slam his fist on the table, but stopped just in time, "She looked right at me!"
Clark," his mother soothed, "you can't know if Lex knows that you are Kal- El. You don't even know if this girl really is from Krypton. Have you seen anything that would prove she was like you? Any powers?"
"No, but she knows."
Jonathan sighed, "I hate to say this Clark, but why don't you talk to Lex, see if you can find anything out. If he can speak this language, he should know where it came from."
Clark thought for a second. But shook his head, it just wouldn't work!
"Just try, Clark," his mother said, "that's all you can do."
Clark nodded, "I'm just so confused. What is she is from Krypton?! What if she's here to make sure I conquer everything?! And if she sees that I won't, what if she tries?! I don't know what to do! Should I be Kal-El? Should I tell her who I am?!"
Jonathan clapped his son on the shoulder, "Clark, you are Clark Kent, our son. Nothing will ever change that. Nothing. You are what you decide to be, not what some message in a spaceship says. Or what a Kryptonian girl says."
Clark nodded; he was just too weary to argue.
A/N: I'm SOOOOOOOOOOO sorry! I had a lot of trouble with this chapter! You people have no clue how hard it was to write. ::Sigh:: The whole thing had me stumped. Hope that it isn't too confusing. I tried. I still don't think it sounds great, but it was the best I could do. Ah well, keep the reviews coming! I also fixed some of the mistakes in earlier chapters......no major changes though.
Silverfey: Thanks for calling it original; I try really hard to do that. And the language...well, it didn't take very long to make up, actually. The hard part is remembering what words I already have and re-looking them up. It's cool though, I don't mind. It's really quite fun. Now I know how Roddenbery felt making up Klingon and Vulcan. And about the whole related- ness: why not? It's not like I'm going to have them fall in love or anything!
DuMont: :-P I stick my tongue out at you! Truthfully, my computer just hates me cause I make it work way to hard on the spelling errors as it is.
Circe: You ACUTALLY like thunderstorms?! You're crazy. I remember that we had thunder once. It scared me to death. Hahaha, its like 90 out here! I'm going swimming already! :-P
Knight/m: You and I would totally get along. I dress weird and I wear my makeup like Death from my favorite comic book The Sandman. Neil Gaiman rocks!
William Rayne: I hope that you found this chapter interesting as well. Thanks for the comment of Lex; I hoped that it wouldn't seem too bad.
Well, that's all for now! Bowdees!
Chapter 4: So Many Questions, So Few Answers
Lex heard Alley scream and whipped around. She was slowly backing away from a man, probably in his late forties or early fifties. She tripped over the leg of her chair and fell to the floor; but that didn't stop her from backing away. She scrambled backward until she hit the bars of the railing.
Everything else in the shop went blank to Lex, all he saw was the man and his sister. He rushed to the railing and vaulted over. The man looked at him, surprised, not even realizing what was happening, until Lex's fist slammed into his jaw. The man fell back, hit one of the tables and landed on the floor, only momentarily stunned.
Lex knelt next to Alley, who was trembling with vacant eyes, mumbling incoherently in a language that was most certainly not English. He reached to comfort her, but she jerked away and screamed, "Inay-ta! Ta oy qualey ma Kal-El! Tsukai! Ta oy qualey ma Kal-El! Inay-ta!"
* * *
Clark heard the scream and looked up to see Lex running, faster than humanly possible, and punch the man making his sister so hysterical.
He started to move toward Lex and Alley, to aid in any way possible, when he noticed just how many people were staring at Lex. Lex also seemed to have everything under control.
Then Clark listened to exactly what Alley was screaming. He almost fainted.
He felt Pete staring at him, and knew that he has heard right. She screamed something about Kal-El...
* * *
Lex touched her cheek, but she obviously didn't see Lex. She kept trying to back away from everything. Lex was sincerely trying to help her. "Alley! It's me! Alley, it's Alex!"
She looked weakly at Lex, "Inay-ta," she begged. "Kal-El, ta qualey Kal- El." She started to sob, "Kal-El."
Lex studied her face, "English, Alley." He said softly, but the desperation he was feeling penetrated his voice. "Remember, English?" She didn't seem to understand. Lex gave an exasperated sigh, "Alley!" His voice was almost frantic, "I don't know 'Kal-El'! What does 'Kal-El' mean?!" He stared straight into her eyes. "Ta......" Lex closed his eyes to concentrate, "ta dio-sa kai 'Kal-El'."
Alley gazed hauntingly into his eyes, "Ta xia," she answered.
Lex shook his head, "I don't know those words, Alley! I'll help you find it, but I need to know what that means!"
A mocking laugh sounded behind him, "I don't know why you even try," the man Lex had punched said.
Lex looked up slightly, not fully taking his eyes away from Alley, "Lana, call the police."
"You can't have me arrested," the man laughed.
"You aren't allowed within a mile of her," Lex hissed.
"Last time I checked, you didn't have one for Kansas." He smirked, "You can't stop science, *Mr.* Luthor."
"You're not a scientist," Lex snarled, "you're a butcher."
"Tom*a*to, tom*o*to," he shrugged, "'Till next we meet." He turned and strolled calmly away.
Lex turned back to Alley, who continued to whisper, "Inay-ta."
Lex took her hand, "Alli-Oxah," he said softly, "ta inay-jo. Just let me."
Alley looked up at him. Something in her eyes flashed, and she threw herself into Lex's arms. "Alex! Inay-ta qualey Kal-El."
Lex hugged her, "I will, I will. It's all right. I'm here." He helped her to stand, "Come on." He kept his arms around her as he walked her to the door.
Alley looked around, fully taking note of just how many people were staring.
* * *
Clark watcher with the rest of the patrons, not knowing what to do. Alley looked straight into his eyes with a piercing gaze. Her mouth hardly moved and even Clark's super hearing barely registered the sound that came out, "Kal-El.....?"
Clark stared, not sure he had actually heard what he had thought. As soon as Alley and Lex were gone, he dazedly turned to Chloe and Pete, "I.....I gotta go....."
Chloe and Pete nodded, their minds to befuddled to comprehend what had just happened, let alone realize what Clark was saying.
* * *
Clark ran inside his house at top speed, calling to his parents. Jonathan and Martha stepped out from the kitchen, "What's wrong, Clark?" Martha asked.
Clark's opened and closed his mouth a few times, but no words came out.
His parents suddenly became very worried. Jonathan put his arm around his son and led him to a chair to sit down, "Clark," he spoke softly, "calm down. Just tell us what's wrong."
Clark swallowed, "I-I think Lex knows."
"What?" Both his mother and father shouted. "Why, Clark?"
"There's this new girl at school, Alley, she's Lex's sister. She was in the Talon with Lex and Lex said something about being 'from Krypton'." He shook his head, "Then, she started screaming in this weird language, I think it was Kryptonian, I understood a little, and she called me Kal-El!"
Jonathan and Martha looked at each other.
"And that's not even the strangest part!" Clark continued, his eyes growing wide with panic, "Lex was answering her that language!"
"Clark, slow down," his father coaxed, "are you sure Lex can speak Kryptonian?" Clark nodded. "Are you sure that it even was Kryptonian?"
"I don't know! But I understood some of the things she was saying! She said that she needed to find Kal-El. And Lex said that he would help her!" He went to slam his fist on the table, but stopped just in time, "She looked right at me!"
Clark," his mother soothed, "you can't know if Lex knows that you are Kal- El. You don't even know if this girl really is from Krypton. Have you seen anything that would prove she was like you? Any powers?"
"No, but she knows."
Jonathan sighed, "I hate to say this Clark, but why don't you talk to Lex, see if you can find anything out. If he can speak this language, he should know where it came from."
Clark thought for a second. But shook his head, it just wouldn't work!
"Just try, Clark," his mother said, "that's all you can do."
Clark nodded, "I'm just so confused. What is she is from Krypton?! What if she's here to make sure I conquer everything?! And if she sees that I won't, what if she tries?! I don't know what to do! Should I be Kal-El? Should I tell her who I am?!"
Jonathan clapped his son on the shoulder, "Clark, you are Clark Kent, our son. Nothing will ever change that. Nothing. You are what you decide to be, not what some message in a spaceship says. Or what a Kryptonian girl says."
Clark nodded; he was just too weary to argue.
A/N: I'm SOOOOOOOOOOO sorry! I had a lot of trouble with this chapter! You people have no clue how hard it was to write. ::Sigh:: The whole thing had me stumped. Hope that it isn't too confusing. I tried. I still don't think it sounds great, but it was the best I could do. Ah well, keep the reviews coming! I also fixed some of the mistakes in earlier chapters......no major changes though.
Silverfey: Thanks for calling it original; I try really hard to do that. And the language...well, it didn't take very long to make up, actually. The hard part is remembering what words I already have and re-looking them up. It's cool though, I don't mind. It's really quite fun. Now I know how Roddenbery felt making up Klingon and Vulcan. And about the whole related- ness: why not? It's not like I'm going to have them fall in love or anything!
DuMont: :-P I stick my tongue out at you! Truthfully, my computer just hates me cause I make it work way to hard on the spelling errors as it is.
Circe: You ACUTALLY like thunderstorms?! You're crazy. I remember that we had thunder once. It scared me to death. Hahaha, its like 90 out here! I'm going swimming already! :-P
Knight/m: You and I would totally get along. I dress weird and I wear my makeup like Death from my favorite comic book The Sandman. Neil Gaiman rocks!
William Rayne: I hope that you found this chapter interesting as well. Thanks for the comment of Lex; I hoped that it wouldn't seem too bad.
Well, that's all for now! Bowdees!