Clark whizzed over to the Luthor mansion. The grounds were oddly quiet, and the house was dark. The front door was ajar and flapping in the breeze. He stepped through the open door and into the foyer. A few feet before him lay two of Lex's bodyguards. They were sprawled on the marble floor, hands wrapped tightly around their weapons. There faces were frozen in fear; their eyes wide and their jaws agape as if caught in mid scream. Clark bent down to check on them. Their bodies were cold and lifeless. "Lex?" He called, his voice echoing through the empty, cavernous hallway. There was no answer.

As he walked further into the mansion he saw a faint light escaping from underneath the study doors. He sped down the hallway, throwing the heavy doors back. The room seemed empty. "Lex?" He called.

"I was wondering when you would make another uninvited appearance."

Clark heard a familiar voice come from the opposite end of the room.

"I know how much you enjoy barging in here like you own the place, so I thought it was only a matter of time before you came here. And so I was right." Lex's desk chair slowly swiveled around. Fine leaned back against the chair, smiling.

Clark felt a surge of anger and rushed towards him. "What have you done to Lex? Where have you taken him?"

"Taken him? Why I haven't taken him anywhere. He's right here." Fine gestured to the right of him where Lex materialized out of thin air. He was suspended above the ground and surrounded by a pulsing green light. His body was still and unresponsive.

"What did you do to Lex? The same thing you did to his bodyguards?"

"No, Clark. They were insignificant and they were taken care of immediately. He's very much alive. He's too important."

Clark felt enraged that Fine could take human life with no remorse. "Why did your ship take him?"

"He needed to be prepared."

Clark could feel his patience slipping away. He didn't have time to play guessing games; he wanted answers. "Prepared for what?"

Fine got up from his chair; he placed himself directly in front of Clark. "When Zod was thrown into the Phantom Zone, his body was damaged beyond repair. He now only exists as a life force that needs a body to inhabit. " A twisted smile formed on his lips. "Lex was chosen to be the vessel for Zod." Clark looked up at Lex's limp body, dangling like a grotesque marionette. Fine thrusted his arm forward and opened up his palm. There in his hand was a glowing dagger with Kryptonian symbols etched on the handle. "I have asked you before, and you refused. But I will give you one last chance" Fine said gravely. The dagger began to float towards Clark, and now hovered in front of him. He watched as it hung in the air. It was translucent and crystalline. It looked as if it had been made from his fortress' walls. "Take this dagger and kill Lex. He is only an empty shell, waiting for Zod."

Clark stepped back in horror. "You said he was alive."

"He is. For now." Fine snarled. "Lex must be killed so Zod can use his human body. And you must do it Clark."

"No. I will never release Zod, and I would never kill anyone" He responded ,his voice firm and unwavering.

Fine closed his eyes and began to shake his head. He turned on his heel and walked back to the desk. He pulled Lex's laptop towards him and slowly opened up the cover. "I gave you several chances Clark. Never say I didn't try." He lifted his fist high into the air and brought it slamming down onto the keyboard .There was a bright green flash and a deafening explosion. The overhead lights exploded and the room was thrown into semi darkness. The only light came from the setting sun; it's orange flames streamed through the stained glass windows.

Clark looked around in confusion. "What have you done?"

"It's obvious you will need convincing." Fine answered. "I've always wondered what the inhabitants of this planet would do without their precious technology. The world would be thrown into chaos. Humans would be reduced back to their primitive roots; back to the filthy animals they sprung from." He walked back towards Clark again. He held up his hand and the dagger glided closer to him. "Minutes from now, electricity, computers and everything the humans rely on will be gone; from Smallville, to Metropolis and around the world. There will be nothing they can do. They will be thrown into a never ending dark age. But you can stop it all from happening." The dagger twirled in front of him. The green light encompassing Lex evaporated and he silently floated over to them. Clark noticed his eyes were pure white and his skin had a grayish cast. "You've grown up alongside these humans. You can't tell me you don't have some of the instincts that they do? The blood lust? The urge to kill?"

"No. I never would kill anyone."

Fine looked desperate and the dagger began to twirl even faster. He moved behind Clark and gave him a hard shove forward. Clark was fixated on Lex's ghoulish appearance and felt himself loose balance. He stumbled forward a few steps. He heard Fine's voice in his ear.

"You mean to tell me that you would risk the lives of billions of innocent people over the life of one who has betrayed you?"

"It's not my decision to make, who lives or dies."

"Then you would feel perfectly fine with putting everyone you care about in danger? Your mother, Lana….that little blonde reporter?" Fine paused for a moment. He saw Clark's shoulders tense at his last words.

"I would hate to see what is happening in Metropolis right now. The mayhem, the lawlessness as people realize their precious computers and cell phones don't work; all of the lights out in a big, dangerous city. Imagine all the things that could happen to a pretty young thing on those dark streets."

Clark spun himself around and grabbed Fine by his shirt, flinging him across the room. He crashed into one of the shelves lining the walls, sending books tumbling everywhere and covering him in debris. Clark felt panic overtake him. "Chloe." He could feel his heart shatter. He knew his mother was safe at home with Lois. But Chloe was alone in Metropolis; she had no idea what was going down and there was no way to warn her. He felt his blood begin to boil. He would not let innocent people become pawns in this game between him and Fine. He reached out and clasped his hand around the dagger. It began to glow brighter and the symbols on the handle turned a vivid red.

Fine propped his body up from the mess he was buried in. "Do it Clark. Save the world, save your precious humans."

Clark gripped the dagger even tighter and could feel his cheeks burning with fury. There was no way releasing Zod would save anyone. He knew doing so would seal the doom of the planet.

"Do it Clark. Kill Lex. Release Zod."

He knew he could never kill Lex, but he couldn't let the world be compromised in the process. "Fine started this and now I will end it." As if moving in slow motion; he spun around, aimed, and let the dagger loose. It flew through the air like a bullet and sliced into Fine's chest.

"I knew living with the humans had made you weak." Fine said with a look of triumph as he saw the dagger protruding from him. He grabbed the dagger with both hands and his eyes rolled back into his head. His body lifted into the air and a blaze of green light came pouring out of the wound.

"What's going on?" Clark barked as the light streaked across the room and slammed into Lex; his eyes began to glow bright green and his body shook violently.

"I knew you could never kill a human; but an artificial intelligence like me would not be difficult." He screamed. "Just threaten the lives of your beloved humans was all I had to do! And now you've opened the portal for Zod!"

Clark stepped back as Lex's body began to shake even harder. He heard Fine let out a guttural scream and he disappeared. Suddenly Lex's body stopped shaking and he landed hard on the floor. Clark rushed over to his side. Lex opened his eyes and stood up. His expression was cold and emotionless. He began to walk around Clark, his eyes scanning him up and down. "Lex?" Clark asked with uncertainty. He looked the same, yet his aura was decidedly different.

"You've grown Kal El. The spitting image of your father." He said; his voice deeper and his tone malicious. Clark stepped back and watched as Lex slid something off his wrist. He held it up and the sun's dying rays glinted off the metal surface. It was some sort of bizarre bracelet with Kryptonian etchings on the surface. Suddenly there was the sound of footsteps and they both turned to see Lana run in through the door.

"Lex!' She screamed, her voice breaking with emotion.

"No Lana, please!" Clark yelled as she saw her run towards Lex.

"You're here! I thought I'd lost you." She threw her arms around him. Lex stood unmoved, his arms stiff at his sides. "What did they do to you?" Lana sobbed, placing her hands on the sides of his face and looking up into his eyes. "You look….different." Clark watched helplessly as Lex lifted her off the ground. Lana's eyes grew wide with fear. "Lex, stop! You're hurting me!"

"Who is this Lex you keep speaking of?" He snapped and threw Lana across the room.

She landed and slid a few feet across the floor. She groaned and her body slumped as she lost consciousness.

Clark tried to speak, to go to her aide, but he could not move.

"No more of this!' Lex yelled. He held up the bracelet again and let it go. It whizzed past Clark, shattering the closed window as it vanished into the distance.

Clark felt a sudden, overwhelming sense of dread. Somehow he immediately knew what was happening. He had felt the same sensation before. It was during the last meteor shower, when the two Kryptonian's had tried to send him into the Phantom Zone. That time he was able to save himself. This time was different. Lex bowed his head slightly and Clark felt an intense force slam into him and he was soon air bound. He felt himself being sucked backwards, as if in a vacuum. He was soaring; the world was a blur beside him. Soon he was able to see the earth below him; the glow of humanity slowly being distinguished, continent by continent. He reached out but felt an invisible force confining him. He was trapped.