Chapter 8: Held

"There is more hunger for love and appreciation in this world than for bread." – Mother Teresa"

Above ground, New Mexico

Superman dived towards Earth at an unimaginable speed. If Lois was being held captive, the people responsible were going to pay. The ground shook as he hit the hearth, shattering it like glass, he didn't need sight to know where he was going.

Underground Facility, Area 51

The compound was on a high Code Red Alert. The perimeter has been breached.

"Commander, your orders"

"Let him pass, I was expecting this"

"But sir…"

"LET him pass!" he ordered.

Fortress of Solitude, Arctic

"Mr. Wayne?" Johnny looked at the billionaire surprised at his presence. "What are you doing here? How'd you find this place? Do you know about my dad?" he began asking questions like any normal child would, but then it all became immediately obvious considering the circumstances surrounding the secrecy of Bruce Wayne being his Godfather and his very own dad being Superman.

"Your father wanted me to stay with you"

"What do you mean? He was just going out for a few hours," he repeated from his earlier exchange with his dad. He looked at his watch, a gift his dad gave to him when he turned sixteen. It's been a few hours. "Where is he?"

"Jonathan"

"Something happened, didn't it?" Johnny already knew the answer to that question. After what he has learned since his time in the Fortress, despite how brief it had been, his dad wouldn't have left him if there wasn't a good reason for it. "What happened?" he asked once more.

"He found something," he answered cautiously. "We don't know for sure yet what it is"

"What is it?"

"It's more like 'who'"

"Okay, then who is it?" Johnny asked, worried.

"Maybe we should hold off and wait until your dad gets back," Bruce recommended but Jonathan Lane Kent stood steadfast.

"I'm a law student, Mr. Wayne, I can tell when someone wants to tell me something but can't. Please, tell me what's happening to my dad," he pleaded.

"Johnny, sit down and I'll explain"

Underground Facility, Area 51

"Jesus, Commander, what the hell is Superman doing here?" He saw Superman descend from the ceiling like a tornado through various security monitors.

"He's here for Lois Lane"

"How did he even know we had her?"

"According to her file, before the explosion, they had been good friends. I imagine her presence back on Earth alerted him, and now… well… he's come here for her." He pointed to another monitor where Lois Lane was being held.

"What do we do?"

"Play it by ear"

Clean Room, Area 51

Superman arrived without trouble. He scanned various rooms and noted some of them were lined with lead. His blood boiled at the possibility that someone didn't want him to find her.

He closed his eyes and focused on her heartbeat almost immediately.

There it was.

Beating

Relieved, Superman moved forward when a force field suddenly appeared, making him take a step backwards. It was designed with fragments of Kryptonite in it. They knew he would come, and that only meant one thing. The woman on the other side of this wall was his wife. It was Lois.

"Careful, Superman," a voice appeared over the intercom. "We mean you no harm"

"Then pull down your shields," Superman says, his voice never betraying his deep emotions.

"Not until we talk first"

"No"

"Superman, it's been twelve years, you can wait twelve minutes"

With no other choice, Superman had to agree to the terms. He needed answers as well, and whoever this person is could possibly provide him that.

Fortress of Solitude, Arctic

Jonathan sat numbly. Bruce Wayne had just finished explaining what has been happening for the last half hour and where his dad has gone, but his thoughts on the situation became irrelevant once he heard the one name he thought would never be used in present tense ever again.

"Mom," he repeated to himself in a whisper.

"Johnny, are you okay?" Bruce asks in concern, all too aware of the impact his revelation made on the poor boy.

Johnny looked at him blankly. "Why wouldn't I be okay, you just told me my mom could be alive. Everything's just fine," he tried to make himself believe. After all these years, his mother could be alive.

"I know you're in shock right now, but I don't want to build your hopes up. This could just be another elaborate plan to get near your dad," Bruce says in an attempt to rationalize the situation.

"By using my dead mother," he replied with glistening eyes. One thought remained engraved in the forefront of his mind.

His mom is alive.

"Johnny, please." Bruce reached out to take his hands with his own, but he was met with resistance.

Johnny stood up and away from Bruce, brushing both hands through his hair as if the action would somehow give him all the answers. He couldn't just stand there and do nothing while his dad was out there alone, looking for what could be his mom.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" Bruce says as Johnny quickly made his way towards the Fortress exits.

"What do you think? I'm going to help my dad"

"The hell you are. He put you under my charge; I'm not letting you go out there. In case you've forgotten, it's freezing out there"

"I'm invulnerable"

"Not yet, you're not. You're body is still adjusting to the changes, I'm not letting you walk out of here," Bruce defiantly argued against his Godson.

"My PARENT'S are out there!" In some hidden corner of his heart, it felt good saying that out loud and know that there was some truth to it.

Bruce gripped both his shoulders, shaking him. "Listen to me, Johnny! Your father knows what he's doing. If you're mom's alive and she's out there…" he loosened his grip on the boy. "He'll find her, okay." He saw the tears begin to fall from his eyes. "He'll find her"

More than anything, it'd be Bruce who'd know how it would truly feel to lose a loved one.

While Jonathan did lose his mother, he still had his father and grandparent's to share the love and loneliness he felt for most of his young adult life. He understood the child's need to go to his father and help, but he had to understand that remaining where he was is the best choice, despite it being the choice he didn't want.

Conference Room, Area 51

"Superman," the stranger announced. "It's an honor to finally meet you"

"Cut the chit-chat and tell me who you're holding captive?" Superman responded in a dominant voice, disregarding even the man's name.

"I assure you, Superman, we're holding no-one here captive"

"My sight explains otherwise"

"Believe me, Superman. Miss Lane is here strictly for observation"

His heart skipped a beat at the mention of her name. It truly was her behind those walls.

"Observation… why?" Until he puts down those shields, he had nothing else to do than fish for answers.

"After we sealed off the LexCorp Plant due to extreme levels of radiation, we kept up surveillance to monitor it in case something happens," he began to explain in detail. "Three months ago, our monitoring stations noticed an influx of energy occurring inside, and after days of negotiation, we made the decision to open it back up and see what was happening inside"

Superman stood sternly with arms crossed across his chest, both paying close attention and keeping a close ear to his wife's room.

"Imagine our surprise when we saw the long dead Lois Lane, huddled in the corner, shaking and barely clothed, uttering words we couldn't understand. She didn't speak a word, and wouldn't allow any of our specialists near her, but the radiation was so high, we couldn't risk the exposure, so we gassed her"

"You what?" Superman replies in anger.

"Sleeping gas, Superman," he added reassuringly. "Once we've stabilized her, we moved her to a secure location…"

"Lined with lead," Superman interrupted.

"It was lined with lead long before that, Superman. Even various other governments have made strides to keep super prying eyes and ears away from them"

Understanding the logic behind it, "Then what happened?" Superman had him continue.

"After we moved her, preliminary reports indicated that she was suffering from malnutrition, other than that, she was in remarkably good health"

"Has she…" Superman began to ask reluctantly.

"Changed?" He nods. "She aged just as normally as we have, other than that, we kept her rested." The man reached into his pocket and removed some kind of remote device. "I believe you wanted to see her," he says, pressing a button, aiming the remote on the far right wall. "It may be hard to believe, Superman, but not all government ran sanctions are corrupted"

Soundlessly, the wall descended and clear glass appeared before it.

Superman gasps, it was really her.

"Lois"

To be continued…