The next morning dawned clear, bright and cool at the Kent Farm, and Clark once again found himself staring down into a crater the depth of the Smallville High swimming pool. Krypto, was of course, no where to be found, and this time, Bruce was on the hunt for the little dog, equipped with a kryptonite treated rabies tag. The tall corn around him rustled in the morning breeze, and Clark stood very still, and listened. Kara flew overhead, scanning from above for her dog, hoping to find him before Bruce did. The Kryptonian girl had not spoken to Bruce since they day before, and his relentless pursuit of Krypto had not gained him any brownie points with her, either.
"We can't keep him here, Clark." Martha had said, as she swept the kitchen clean of broken crockery. "He's too destructive now. When he's older and calms down, maybe." Clark turned, listening again. He could hear whimpering, and pinpointing the location of the cries, darted off in the direction of the dog.
Krypto was alone, on the edge of the cornfield, and Bruce was holding the little tag in front of him. His white tail hung between his back legs and Krypto was cringing, the effect of the Kryptonite already forcing him to be still.
"Come on, doggie. That's a good dog." He crooned, and Clark smothered a hard laugh. If only Gotham's hardened criminals could see the terrifying Batman in jeans and black t-shirt, trying to cajole a puppy.
"DON'T HURT MY DOG!" Kara wailed, sailing down from the sky, like an avenging angel. "BRUCE WAYNE, YOU WILL NOT HURT MY DOG!"
Hearing Kara's voice, Krypto barked, wagging his tail and then, mustering his strength, leapt twenty feet into the air and growled viciously at Bruce from the safety of his mistress' thin arms.
"Calm down, Boss. You can't let him run loose anymore. He's too dangerous." Bruce said, sliding the tag into a small lead box and then into his pocket. "You and Clark have to resign yourselves to that."
Kara landed, and looked up at her cousin, her cornflower eyes pleading. "Please, Clark, he's still a baby."
"Baby or not." Clark rubbed the back of his neck, thinking it over. "Mom's pretty upset at what he did to the kitchen last night."
'Because I forgot to feed him." Kara said, hugging the dog close. A quick blast of heat vision at his feet made Bruce jump back. "Don't come any closer. You will not touch my dog."
"Kara Lynne Kent!" Martha had followed the action out into the field. "That's enough. Apologize, right now!" Even Clark was surprised. His mother had only ever used that tone with him once, but he never forgot it, and was very glad it wasn't directed at him.
"Sorry." Kara and Bruce said together, and then surprised, they both grinned.
"Look, boss, I'll bring him to Gotham. He can live in the Batcave…" Bruce began, and Kara smiled a little. She did think Bruce was very handsome, with his dark gold hair and very dark eyes, more appealing than her cousin, who was the model of Kryptonian perfection. But Bruce Wayne trying to be accommodating was something even Kara could appreciate.
'I couldn't see him enough then." Kara said, as Krypto licked at her face. "Please Aunt Martha?"
"Oh honey, I don't know." Martha said, sighing. "It was hard enough having a super strong toddler on the farm when Clark was little."
"Please.." Kara begged, and three pairs of eyes moved to Clark, who was looking back at the house, trying to avoid making the decision.
"All up to you, Big Blue." Bruce laughed, patting his friend on the shoulder. "I'm so glad to NOT be you right now."
"Thanks." Clark laughed. He looked over at Kara, and raised his eyebrows. "He gets fed every day same time, no forgetting. And you work on training him. No messing around. Work him out at the Fortress every day after school."
"OH, THANK YOU!" Kara cried, throwing her free arm around Clark's neck and kissing his cheek over and over. "I LOVE YOU!" She sped off, still clutching the dog, whose tail had not stopped wagging.
"Marshmallow." Bruce muttered, and Clark grinned.
"Can't wait to see what you'll be like, Wayne, when you have a teenager to look after. Besides. Krypto is all she has left of home." Clark made a sad face at his mother. "Okay, Mom?"
"Oh, you." Martha laughed, kissing her son and then Bruce for good measure. "You'll spoil her, both of you. Of course it's okay."
Sarah looked at her reflection in the long mirror Gabe had taken out of storage. The clothes were perfect and felt great as was the new, modern haircut and highlights. No more pajamas and soft, harmless garments. It had been a month since she'd left the hospital and Sarah felt wonderful. She turned, looking at her posterior in the mirror with a groan. Still a size 6, and able to give her daughter's wardrobe a fair spin, but all the same, no one was 19 anymore EXCEPT Chloe. And Lois. Sarah laughed, the image of her Barbie doll like niece picking out clothes for her fresh in her mind. Gabe had given up his bachelor apartment in the city and bought what used to be Nell Potter's place from Lana, so that Sarah could work with Kara on a daily basis. Gabe did not know Kara's true nature, and Sarah didn't feel the least bit guilty in keeping that secret from her husband. After her stay in military base hospitals and being studied like lab rat, Sarah was not at all interested in seeing either of the young Kents subjected to such treatment. Chloe had been relieved, and the decision to keep 'just this one' secret from Gabe had done wonders at rebuilding their fractured relationship. Apparently, Chloe had needed another person to turn to for quite some time. Even the broad shoulders of the handsome Kent boy were not really a substitute for a mother.
Tutoring Kara also was good therapy for Sarah. She was waiting for her clearances, proving she was mentally sound, before The Kansas State Board of Education would reissue her license. Working with Kara would give Sarah a chance to re hone her skills, and it was not a bad thing that Bruce Wayne had insisted that Sarah be paid for what she would have gladly volunteered to do. Martha Kent had also been glad of neighbors that would not necessarily think oddly of Kara's bursts into flight, and the occasional mayhem that would surround the Kent farm from time to time. Gabe being away as much as six months at a time, sometimes at sea, sometimes on a different assignment was that much the better.
Sarah came down the stairs, pulling at the blue blouse she wore, not all that thrilled at the shortness of it. Styles had changed. She caught a glimpse of someone at the door, and she skipped down the last couple steps to open it. Lex Luthor stood there, holding a manila folder in his hand.
"Mrs. Sullivan. You are looking amazingly well. Is Chloe around?" He looked behind her, and Sarah pulled the door closer to her body, blocking his view.
'"No, I'm sorry. She's in Metropolis. It's Daily Planet day. She stayed with Lana last night." Sarah replied. "Can I help you with something?"
Lex's grey eyes appraised her cooly. "Well, some lemonade would be great."
Sarah smiled. "We don't do lemonade here, but I just made some fresh sweet tea." Lex's expression made her laugh out loud. "A Southern treat, Lex. Come on in. I'll even put mint in it for you."
Lex walked in and looked around. The Sullivans had never seemed to have money before, but now, with Sarah being well again, Lex realized that there must have been a great deal of frugality on Gabe Sullivans part, mostly to pay for his wife's expensive hospital stay. This house, slightly larger than the Kents, was gracefully decorated with a large collection of Victorian antiques. Sarah watched Lex's eye and then cleared her throat, sounding much like her daughter.
"A great many of Gabe's mothers things are here. She was quite a collector. My parents also, left me most of their furniture." Sarah handed him a tall glass of iced tea, trimmed with a snip of fresh mint. "Some of it dates back to before the Civil War. Saved from Yankees." She winked, drawing out her soft Savannah accent comically. "Well, I must say, it's not every day the local billionaire stops by."
'No, it's not." Lex smiled, sipping at his tea. "Mrs. Sullivan, I wanted to ask Chloe about Kara. She's supposed to be a relative of the Kents…."
"She is." Sarah said, sipping at her own tea. "I hear she's the image of her mother."
"So, there's no family connection between the Lanes and the Kents, then?" Lex asked, his forehead creased. "None at all?"
Sarah shook her head. "No. We're only recently transplanted to the Midwest, Lex. There's been a Lane in Savannah society for the past 300 years. Can I ask why you are so interested, Lex?"
Lex nodded, setting his glass down. "No particular reason. Just curious." He looked at his watch. "Well, since I'm down this way, I might as well stop over and see Clark."
"I'll show you out." Sarah said graciously, walking Lex to the door. "I'll tell Chloe you were by."
"Thank you, Mrs. Sullivan." Lex turned and studied her face. "Your eyes are green."
'Yes." Sarah smiled. "Gabe's are brown. Chloe's are hazel. But I think Lois' are green too. "
"Right." Lex smiled, and took Sarah's hand. "Thank you for the iced tea."
"You're welcome." Sarah shook his hand and then waved goodbye as Lex walked down the porch and to his car. Lex waved as he drove away, but did not turn into the Kent farm. Sarah nodded slowly and then picked up her phone to call Chloe. She wasn't sure if Lex would go to the Planet to talk to Chloe about what he really wanted, but Sarah figured a warning wouldn't hurt.
As it turned out, Lex did not go to The Daily Planet. Instead, he drove to the warehouse district of Metropolis, to the block of warehouses he personally owned, a gift to himself. Lex pulled his car into a parking space and walked quickly to the first building entrance. Taking out a key card, Lex swiped it quickly through the reader and then waited. The industrial steel door swung open on it's own, and Lex walked through, and then stopped. Before him was another door, and a lighted panel.
"Please place your palm on the panel, and slowly say your name or password." A mechanized voice instructed. "Your identity and voiceprint must be established and authenticated prior to entry."
Lex slid his palm onto the panel and when it glowed green, he gave his password.
"Julian"
"Identity confirmed." The door slid open and Lex found himself face to face with an armed security guard.
"Mr. Luthor, follow me, please." The guard said, turning sharply and walking down the corridor. At a large steel door, the guard stopped, and quickly punched a series of numbers onto a pad. The massive door groaned, the cylinders crunching away from the frame with several loud clacks, and then opened.
"Dr. Starke is waiting for you, Mr. Luthor. Go in. " The guard nodded in Lex'
direction.
"Thank you." Lex went through the door and then stopped. There were no words he could find to express what he was seeing, so Lex struggled for something to say, overwhelmed. The sound of a crying baby had completely immobilized him.
"Ah, Mr. Luthor." Dr. Starke appeared, tall and elegant in his white lab coat. "I think you will really be pleased with our progress." Dr. Starke gestured to a single glass incubator. "A perfect clone, created from the DNA in that hair sample you gave us. I know we were originally concerned with the second strand of DNA, but it didn't create a problem after all." Starke went to the incubator and opened it, gently lifting out the contents. "Mr. Luthor, I'd like to introduce you to Karen 1"
"Karen 1." Lex took the baby and looked down into her face. The eyes were still half closed, but Lex could see their color, a rich blue that would not change as the child grew. He looked up at Dr. Starke. "Pleased is an understatement, Doctor."
"The DNA sample you gave us was quite extraordinary, Mr. Luthor. You were right to say that it would not be simple extracting it. We had to use a green meteor rock laser to split it, but we managed." Dr. Starke beamed proudly, and Lex looked back down at the baby in his arms. He could see the seeds of beauty in this child, potential that would bloom into the radiant perfection of the original, and Lex was again overcome. He'd like to think that this was what every father felt, holding his first child, but Lex reminded himself that this child was not his, at least not biologically.
"How many of these are there?" Lex asked, and the Doctor cleared his throat.
"Ten samples, Mr. Luthor, but just the one child." Dr. Starke nodded. "100 success. We can begin age acceleration on your say so."
"Wonderful." Lex replaced Karen 1 back in her incubator, and then turned to Dr. Starke. "And what happens to the nine samples when I only. Needed. ONE?"
Dr. Starke took off his glasses and wiped them clean, stalling for time to think.
"If the test subject is unremarkable but healthy, the samples can be used for infertile couples. The application of the process is completely groundbreaking. There are plenty of families who would welcome such a perfect little girl. My wife and I, for instance, since our own daughter died, we'd…."
Lex drew in a deep breath, cutting Dr. Starke off. "And if she is 'remarkable'?"
"I can't tell you how valuable the government would think cloned alien DNA is, Mr. Luthor." Dr. Starke replaced his glasses. "The cloning process alone would greatly interest them."
"Make sure your t's are crossed, Doctor." Lex said, taking one last look at the perfect infant in the incubator beside him. "I don't want any loose ends."