Themyscira, Island of the Amazons
Twenty-nine years ago
"What do you think it is, mother? An act of war?"
"By who? Only the gods know of us, and if they attacked, believe me, we would know."
Queen Hippolyta and Princess Diana sat atop horses on the shore of Paradise Island. The two women had just witnessed something strange. Moments ago, something had fallen from the sky. Something roughly the size of a chariot. Specifically Apollo's chariot, Hippolyta had thought, seeing as how parts of it were on fire. But as it had fallen closer and closer to the island, the queen and her daughter had noted the peculiar shape of the object. Diana had suggested that they investigate immediately and get whatever answers they could, so as not to appear clueless when the others on the island inevitably started asking questions. The queen had agreed, and they had ridden out as swiftly as possible. They had stopped several yards short of the object, wary of what could very well have been a threat.
"If it is a weapon, it is certainly not one designed by Hephaestus," said Hippolyta.
"Could it be possible that someone else found us?" asked Diana.
"I don't know," Hippolyta answered, climbing down from her horse. Drawing her sword, she slowly approached the object. "We shall find out, I suppose."
"Mother, let me."
"No, Diana. I couldn't bear it if something happened to you."
"And what if something happens to you?"
The queen didn't answer. When she approached the object, she found herself speechless.
"Mother? What is it?" Diana asked anxiously.
"A vessel," came Hippolyta's awestruck reply.
"Carrying what?"
Hippolyta bent down to pick up what was inside the object, then walked back to show her daughter. In her arms, she held a baby.
…
Themyscira
The day after
"I have conferred with the gods, and they say they know not from where the child comes. I, for one, choose to believe them."
Hippolyta stood high on a pedestal, speaking to the Amazons, and holding the baby she had found the previous night.
"Believe them? How many children has Zeus fathered without Hera's knowing? This could easily be his," came a voice from the crowd.
"The child is male," the queen pointed out. "No son of a god would be sent here. They know better."
"And besides, the vessel is not of Olympus," spoke Diana. "It is not of mankind either, it would seem. The technology is far too advanced. His origin is unknown to us."
"And so he shall be named as such," said Hippolyta. "Paidi apo to agnostou, Child from the Unknown."
"Now wait mother, surely you don't intend to keep him?" asked Diana.
"I do," the queen said to her daughter. "Don't you see?" she said, this time to everyone, "we have been gifted a great opportunity. A child, a boy, from the stars, is ours to raise. He is neither of mankind nor of the gods, therefore he is not beholden to their rules or standards. The universe bestowed him solely to us. This is our chance to raise a man how we see fit. In time, he could be the ambassador to Man's World that we have surely needed! So we will raise him. We will teach him, train him, discipline him, and love him. Behold, my sisters, Paidagnos, Brother of the Amazons!"
…
Themyscira
Sixteen years ago
"Mother, I'm afraid," Paidagnos's voice waivered.
"Worry not. All will be answered soon."
Queen Hippolyta led her adopted son down a hallway in a temple he had been forbidden from entering until now. For over a decade, the Amazons had trained him in their ways, but none of them could have been prepared for what he had recently proved capable of. Paidagnos had developed extraordinary strength, speed, tough skin, even the ability to fly. He had begun to wonder if he really was descended from the gods, despite what the Amazons told him. But his mother had promised him answers, and now he would have them.
When the two of them reached their destination, Paidagnos was surprised. He had seen many a room designed like this one, save for the contents of it. In one corner sat what appeared to be a vessel, barely bigger than a chariot. In another corner, there stood what appeared to be a large crystal.
"Pai," Hippolyta said, "it's time you knew all of this. You were not made from clay like your sister. You fell from the sky."
"I don't understand."
"This," the queen pointed to the vessel, "is what you arrived in. In the dead of night, Diana and I found you, just a baby, in that vessel. We had watched you fall from the sky. We knew not where you came from then. But we do now. When we went back to retrieve this, we found that," she pointed to the crystal in the other corner now.
Hippolyta led Paidagnos to the crystal and told him to put his hand on it. When he did, an image of an old man's face flashed above the crystal, seemingly projected from it.
"Kal-El," the old man began, "I wish I could see you grow up for myself, but if you survive at all, it's important that you know who you are."
As the man continued to speak, the boy watched, eyes wide. Hippolyta had known this day would come, and even though part of her regretted it, she knew that it was necessary. She watched as her Child of the Unknown reacted to the message from his doomed birth father that she herself had watched many times, and she knew that from now on, his life would never be the same.
…
Themyscira
Four years ago
"Part of me wonders if I am really ready," Paidagnos said to his sister and mother. He was clad in red and blue armor to match Diana's, but his had been adorned with the symbol of the House of El, as he had seen in the message from his birth father.
"You are, I know it," Hippolyta reassured him. "You have been preparing for this day for twenty-five years, Pai. Besides, no matter how unready you may feel, imagine how Man's World will react. They have not witnessed a being of your power for hundreds of years. Generations have come and gone without the gods watching over them."
"I know. That will be my job now. Watching over them."
"Not to burden you further, Pai," spoke Diana, "but if you do not go now, you may miss your chance. You age as quickly as the humans do. You wouldn't want to wait until you are too old."
Paidagnos smiled. "You're right. I am ready. I must be."
"Yes, you must," said Hippolyta. "The world is in desperate need of a superior man. One raised without the troubles and vices they are so used to."
"Then I suppose it's time for me to go be that man." Paidagnos moved toward Hippolyta and Diana and hugged them tightly.
"Pai… Kal-El," the queen held back tears. "Go, my child. Go be the world's Superior Man."
The Boy from the Unknown said his final goodbyes to the women that raised him, then he rose to fly away. As he was almost out of sight, he turned around to wave one last time, holding back tears of his own.
…
Gotham City, New Jersey, United States of America
Present day
Kal-El the Superior Man walked discreetly down the street. He was dressed in civilian clothing (a hoodie, jeans, and a pair of glasses) so as not to be recognized. He was proud to be someone that Man's World looked up to, but like everyone else, he sometimes needed solitude.
Now was one of those times. He was in Gotham City following the strange case of what the media called the Bat-Man. Some idiot (a native of Gotham, a city that seemed to breed nutjobs) had dressed up as a giant bat, attempted to stop some armed bank robbers, and gotten himself killed.
Now, Kal wasn't particularly interested in the Bat-Man himself, but rather the bank robbers. Rumor had it that they were aliens. They weren't, of course. People in this city were just paranoid. Nevertheless, he had foiled their latest attempted robbery and turned them over to the GCPD. Now, as he walked back to the hotel he was staying in, he was just as amazed as ever by how many people ignored him. It was kind of incredible, really. Throw on a pair of glasses and relax your posture a bit, and surprisingly few people actually recognize you.
As he entered the lobby of the hotel, the desk clerk called out to him. "Yo, are you in two-twenty-one?"
"That's me," Kal answered, walking to the desk.
"Letter was delivered for you."
Kal took the envelope from the clerk, thanked him, and made his was upstairs to his room. Once inside, he opened the letter and began reading.
"Paidagnos of Paradise Island," he read aloud. Not many people in Man's World addressed him by his Greek name. He usually went by Kal. It seemed more friendly, in a way. As he read through the letter, he became excited. It was from Lex Luthor, President of the United States, and a man whom Kal had become friends with after their many encounters. Kal briefly studied the letter to verify its authenticity, then he gathered his things and went to check out of the hotel. The Superior Man had somewhere very important to be.
