The Black Coats
Written By: The Ascended Ancient
Chapter X: "Containment"

At the Kent Farm, Clark helps his parents pack for their long weekend in Metropolis.

"You sure you can keep the farm in order while we're gone?" Jonathan asks as he finishes loading up the truck.

"Everything's going to be fine, Dad," Clark assures him. Jonathan gets in the truck, where Martha is already waiting.

"Be careful, son," Jonathan says.

"I will." Without another word, the Kents drive off.

A short distance away from the Kent farm, several Black Coats watch as Jonathan and Martha Kent drive away.

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Later that day, Clark is hard at work in the fields of the farm. Of course, with all the super-powers he has, farm work really isn't all that taxing for him.

Elsewhere on Kent property, a soldier takes aim with a tranquilizer dart gun. A moment later he fires. A dart filled with sedative shoots through the air, striking Clark in the back of his left shoulder. As the needle of the dart makes contact with Clark's shoulder, it shatters, and the rest of the dart bounces harmlessly off of him.

Startled, Clark spins around and looks for his assailant. The soldier, however, is hiding, and Clark can't find him. Fearing additional attacks, he races for the house.

Back in the field, the soldier pulls out his radio.

"Target has proven to be impervious to standard weaponry," he says.

"Understood," the man on the other end of the line replies. "Proceed with phase two."

"Yes, sir."

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Clark Kent turns the corner onto a major road. In the background we can see his house. He searches the horizon with his x-ray vision to make sure no one's watching, and then he takes off at super-sonic speeds.

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In the I.T.C. compound, Josh Hammond and Jeremy Woodward watch the drama unfold in the command center. They have an aerial view of Clark going super-sonic.

"I want all satellites turned towards Smallville!" Josh says urgently. "We cannot loose him!"

"Yes, sir," one of the other soldiers says. Josh turns to Jeremy.

"Lock down the town," he tells his second-in-command. "I don't want this kid getting out."

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Clark Kent races down the streets of Smallville at super-sonic speeds. It isn't long before he reaches a military roadblock at the fringe of the town. He simply jumps over them without even slowing down.

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"Sir," an I.T.C. soldier says to Josh Hammond, "we've been searching Smallville with our spy satellites for over four hours. There is no sign of Clark Kent." Josh sighs in frustration.

"So either he's gone underground," he says, "or he got past our roadblocks."

"The kid is bulletproof and super-fast," Jeremy tells him. "Who knows what other kind of powers he's got?"

"Well, I guess we should be thankful we have a few powers of our own," Josh says with a smirk. He walks over to a security monitor showing the occupants of a holding cell. There are two people in it: Jonathan and Martha Kent.

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Later that evening, at Metropolis General Hospital, Clark Kent waits anxiously. He'd arrived several hours earlier, expecting to find his parents there. The fact that they had never shown up was causing him a great deal of concern. For the billionth time Clark gets up and walks over to the front desk.

"Look, are you..." he begins, but the orderly cuts him off.

"Mr. Kent, I promise that the moment we hear anything about your parents, you'll be the first to know," the orderly says in a reassuring - if not slightly annoyed - tone. "Now, please, sit down." Clark sighs with frustration and walks back over to his seat. On the way he passes a television monitor showing the news. He just glances at it at first, then does a double take. On the screen are pictures of his parents. He races over to the TV and turns up the volume.

"...missing since earlier this morning," the announcer is saying. "If anyone knows anything about their whereabouts, please, call us at 917-438-2791."

Clark walks over to a pay phone, puts some change in, and dials the number. The phone rings a few times before someone picks up.

"Hello?" a male voice says.

"This is Clark Kent," Clark says with barely concealed rage. "What did you do to my parents?"

"You're parents are fine, Clark," the man reassures him. "And they'll stay that way for the next eight hours. If you don't surrender to us by then..." He doesn't bother to finish his sentence.

"You hurt them, and I swear I will make you pay!" Clark isn't even bothering to conceal his rage now.

"Now, now, Clark," the man says mockingly. "As long as you do exactly as we say, there'll be no need for anything to happen to them. Oh, and by the way, your parents are being kept in a secure facility that's not a part of our Smallville base, so don't try and pull off some heroic rescue attempt." The man hangs up, and Clark does the same a moment later. He has a look of defeat on his face.

End of Chapter X

Author's Note: So, will Clark give in to their demands, or will he find some way around them? Stay tuned for "Captivity", Chapter XI of The Black Coats to find out.