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Thanks to Hellacre for her editing.
Chapter 12 - Don't wanna miss a thing.
Day 6 (cont.)
Planet Fred - Exosphere - 8:30 AM
Diana was fascinated by the overwhelming silence. The cold was intense, even with the Kryptonian suit she could feel it. To help herself get in focus, she began reciting mentally all the relevant data she had memorized the days before from the tablet where Clark downloaded all the information that Bruce could record from the Javelin sensors about the planet and the surrounding ring.
"Ring's minimum distance to the planet: 39,000 Km/24,375 Ml
Ring's width: 5,000 Km/3,125 Ml
Ring's thickness: From 10 mt/32 ft to 250 mt/1476 ft.
Debris main composition:
Magnetite. Ferrimagnetic mineral. Fe3O4. Ferrous-ferric oxide: 78%
Copper, Cu: 6%
Lead, Pb: 6%
Carbon, C: 4%
Quartz, SiO2: 3%
Calcium, Ca: 2%
Other: 1%
Particle size: From 0.02 mt/6 eights of an inch to 9.5 mt/31 ft.
(The particles -pieces of debris- are constantly attracting and repelling one another, due to their magnetic properties, moving at different speeds and causing constant collisions.)
The ring completes a turn around the planet in 192 days
Ring inclination relative to planet equator: 5.2º"
It took her 5 minutes and 22 seconds to reach the inner ring border at her full speed.
"Damn, that reduces the time I have to look for the darn contraption." She thought, "I better hurry."
She lifted from the surface perpendicularly. According to their calculations, she must move 60º to her right for about 98 miles, to where, hypothetically, the beacon should be. Looking at the watch on her wrist she said,"That should be two o'clock. Thanks, Kal."
Dodging the chunks of debris coming in her direction, she began a methodical search pattern, zig-zagging from the end nearest to the planet to the furthest, moving in the same direction as the rotation of the ring.
Her hunter eyes didn't miss any interstice of the section she was covering in her route "Some rocks move very fast, and they collide rather violently. I hope they didn't crush the beacon. This is going to take us a very long time, unless we get lucky somehow." She checked her watch. "I have another 4 minutes". The oxygen reserves in her blood stream were running thin and she began to feel it in the form of impeding headache, so she felt the urge of picking up the pace.
"Stop, Diana. If you try to rush things up, you may miss something. I better return to Kal...I mean, TO THE CAMP, and come back tomorrow."
She took a mental picture of the last place she swept, to begin the next day in the same position. She knew with the particles in constant displacement it would be tricky, at best, to find the same place, but she was confident she could locate it again, with the help of a little math and physics, of course. She turned to face the planet. Due to her new position, moving west to the planet, she saw the two suns emerging from behind it, in a glorious cosmic sunrise. That put a smile on her face. "I wish Kal could be here to watch at this wonder with me," she thought. At the same time, she fell his pulling on the Lasso to warn her that her time was up.
"I was thinking about you too, dearest friend." She began her descent. She just has to follow her Lasso, as if it were Ariadne's Thread, to reach her point of origin. As she was moving down, Diana took a look around to appreciate this magnificent view of the cosmos.
"Space is nothing like a black velvet curtain with luminous pin pricks in it. There are a lot of shades and nuances in the background. Cosmic dust reflecting the light and colors from the stars and galaxies, nebulae shining from the stars getting birth inside them, strings of stars like diamond necklaces. Such a quiet beauty. I'm very fortunate I can be out here witnessing all this glory with naked eyes." The Amazon thoughts returned to Clark and how concerned he was for her safety. "Don't worry, beloved...friend, you'll be back out here with me soon, I put all this grandeur as witness of my promise."
The atmospheric re-entry was as hot as she expected, though Clark's suit deflected a fair amount of heat. "Thanks again, Kal". She shielded her eyes with her forearm to avoid blurry vision.
When the Amazon reached the stratosphere, she took a big inhalation to absorb whatever little oxygen she could. This removed the brick that was pressing her forehead and, from there, the way down was a lot better. Finally, she got their settlement on view range. She could see Clark looking in her direction. He had removed his shirt to work more comfortably and was waving at her. "That's a sight for sore eyes." She enjoyed the view, waving back at him.
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Planet Fred - Fortress of Solely Two - 8:30 AM
Clark got on his feet. Resisting the Lasso took its toll on him, although magic didn't have such a strong effect now that he was powerless. Still, under the spell of the Lasso of Truth he did say he loved Diana; a thing he was reluctant to admit even to himself. Of course, he felt physically attracted to her since the first time he laid eyes on her, as every hot blooded male. And some cold blooded too. And some women, gay or straight as well. But later on, as he began to know her better, he started caring about her. Their friendship grew as she reciprocated the feeling. Both instinctively went to the other for advice, consolation, support, or just to hang out. They really, really enjoyed the other's company.
In battle they just need to look at the other to know what to do. Together they were an unbeatable force.
He wanted to ask her out, but the timing was never right, either she or he was involved in a romantic relationship with someone else when the other was free. Clark wasn't even sure when his friendship developed into love, he just found himself thinking about her more and more for some time now.
But then the opportunity presented itself: they were alone in this castaway situation ad...
"Stupid Lasso! Get out of my head!" he roared. "What if she doesn't love me back? Worse: what if she does, but our coupling doesn't work?! We'll be stuck in this goddamn planet with someone we will probably hate, given enough time! That can't happen between Diana and me, do you understand, damn piece of rope?!" He took both fists to his temples and pressed hard, trying to calm down. Gradually, his respiration went back to a normal rhythm.
"That's better. Keep it cool, Kent. You are not going to do anything that might hurt Diana. The best way to show her you love her is doing everything in your power to make her stay as comfortable as possible, until we can return home. Let's get to work. I've wasted too much time already."
He took his alarm clock and put it inside a metallic bowl, to amplify the sound, an old trick he learned from his parents. He wasn't taking any chances with Diana's safety.
One last look to the sky, and he got to his tasks at the Fortress.
He wished the windows could have glass, but without his heat vision to make it out of sand, the shutters will have to be blind. No point in wishing the impossible. He lifted one of the window frames to check the joints. Since he couldn't find any nail, he had to resort to making dowels out of the same wood to secure the parts together, and glued them in place with the same rubber he used to seal the walls. It was working perfectly: once the rubber dried, the union held firmly in place. The roof was a different story. The standard repairing kit of the Javelin included a lot of rivets in case the estranium panels of the external hull got loose due to a meteor crash or any other incident; so they used them to secure the panels forming the roof to the frame they made with the wings structure, a task which fell to Diana.
He presented the frame with the window hole in the wall. "Alright! A perfect match!" he said proudly. He began to adjust it in place.
Putting his mind into the task really helped to calm him down. After a short time, he began whistling 'Pop goes the World'. Every once in a while he checked the clock. By the time he was finished with the second of the three windows, the heat made him take off his shirt. He was drinking some water when the alarm went off. Immediately he gathered all his strength to pull repeatedly from the Lasso. A slight reduction on the tension of the golden rope was the indicator Diana was coming back. He kept his eyes in the direction marked by the Lasso. He smiled when her figure was visible descending from the clouds, like a white angel with red wings. "That's a sight for sore eyes," he thought starting to wave at her.
Before she landed, Clark took off the Lasso from his waist. He didn't want it to force him to say something he may regret.
"Greetings, strange visitor from another planet!" he joked, making the Vulcan salutation sign with his right hand.
"We come in peace." She followed his lead. "I guess that description applies to both of us here," she said, coiling her Lasso.
"So, how it did it go?" Clark asked.
"No luck. But we're just starting. It will take time, though. I combed an angular section of less than one degree today. I ran out of oxygen very fast." Her face showed concern.
"Unfortunately the oxygen recycling system of the Javelin was aft, and got destroyed with the explosion of the fuel deposit, and the last portable tanks were with me and in your E.V.A. suit, and both burnt during our entry. I don't think the helmet would be of any help, would it?" The Kryptonian hoped he could be more helpful.
"No. It only would narrow my view angle. It's what it is; it just will take a little longer." Diana began to unfasten the cape.
"Hold." he said. "Don't undo the cape. We just have to instruct the system to save the configuration of the suit as it is now, so we don't have to arrange it every time." He squatted in front of her. Diana's proximity made him a little nervous, but he tried to dismiss it and flipped the buckle open. Inside there were five kryptonian symbols. Clark pressed one of them and closed the buckle back. "There. Now the cape will be stored with the rest of the suit. You just have to punch the same code as when you activated it and it all will retract to the buckle again, now it will be prepared for you next time it activates."
"I wondered where do you put your cape every time you change into Clark Kent. When I took off your suit from you to nurse you," -the thought of the sponge bath crossed both their minds- "I removed the cape before closing it," the Amazon recalled.
"Yeah. How did you know the sequence code?" Clark wanted to know.
"It's in your database, silly: in case of medical emergency there were instructions on how to remove your uniform. It would help if you warn people that you wear nothing underneath," she teased.
Clark's face turned crimson. "I'll be right back." And she went inside the Javelin with a big grin on her face.
After changing to working clothes, the Princess shouted, "Kal! I'm going to check on Bruce to see if everything is alright!"
"Okay. Take your time. I'm good here!" the reporter shouted back. He was adjusting the third window in place when she came back, her face was serious "Everything okay?"
"Yes. It's just that it saddens me deeply to see him like that," she sighed.
"True. I really miss him barking orders and chiding everyone," Clark smiled.
"Including you," she replied, pressing her forefinger against his chest. "Sometimes I ask myself why you put up with that. First time he tried the bat-glare on me, I almost punch him out of the Watchtower. He never attempted that with me again."
"He respects you more than he does anyone," he confirmed.
"Sometimes I think you should put him in his place. Why don't you?" She looked deep into the Kryptonian eyes."When he starts giving you attitude I swear I could shout in your ear, 'Say something, Kal!'"
"Yeah. Sometimes I want to," Clark said.
"Then, why don't you?" Diana took a spoonful of water and started to drink.
Without neglecting his work, the former Man of Steel tried to explain. "See, there are two things to consider regarding my relationship with Bruce. First, I grew up concealing my abilities and who I really am in front of humans, in order to protect my secret identity and those closer to me. I had to let some bullies think they have me submitted back in high school (of course, I had my ways to make them pay for that), so this isn't very different."
"But you don't have to protect your identity in front of us..." Diana interrupted.
Clark stopped her with a gesture. "Second, and more important: the most valuable thing Bruce has is his self confidence. That certainty that there's nothing he can't do. This is more important than his considerable set of skills and even more than his extensive intelligence. He needs to be on top of any situation, the slightest doubt could get him or someone else killed. I even have to let him think that all his plans to take us Leaguers down in case we went rogue can work. Oh, yes, I know about them. In fact, I might have contributed with some ideas of my own, without him noticing. A few of them may actually work if the conditions were ideal. That's who he is, and because of that it's perfectly normal, in his case, to have trust issues. He must be always scheming, planning. Always a step ahead of everybody. And most of the time he is. He worked his ass off to achieve perfection, and he won't take anything less than perfection, not from himself, not from anyone. The thing with you is that you ARE perfection, so he's got nothing to reproach you."
"I..." She was about to protest.
"Shush, woman! I'm talking here." he chided her. Diana's mouth dropped open. Clark ignored her. "My point is, I'm not going to undermine that confidence arguing every single decision he makes. The rare times he's wrong, I find a way to let him know, otherwise, I play along. I know it could be hard for you to take orders, because, being a Princess, you are used to be in a position of authority and you take crap from nobody. But even you must admit that Bruce is a far better strategist than any of us."
That was too much insult for Diana "Excuse me? I'm a trained warrior who comes from a nation of war oriented people! I think strategy, I eat strategy, and when I sleep I dream of strategy! How dare you, you...!"
"Before you gut me, hear me out." There was a cold determination in Clark's voice which made Diana listen. "You are a great strategist, but, like me, you have a significant flaw: you are invulnerable"
"What's that have to do with anything?" Her voice still tinged with resentment.
"Everything" said Clark, with a scholastic tone "Bruce is so vulnerable that a single butter knife wound could terminate his life, so he takes that into consideration when plotting an attacking or defending situation, to make sure that doesn't ever happen, not to him, nor to anyone of us. Me? Sometimes I don't even bother to duck to dodge a blast from an enemy weapon, because my invulnerability will take care of that.
You are much better than me in that regard because of your training. Still you tend to consider things more in terms of attack than defense. I noticed that when we spar: you privilege the assault and sometimes neglect your guard, because..."
"...I let my invulnerability take care of that," she said pensively. "This is the first time I look at it from this point of view, Kal!" She looked at him with admiration. "I'm beginning to think that you are more than just a pretty, burnt face," she teased.
"Uh...Gee...thanks, I guess." He answered, "So, you see, I have to let Bruce be the boss for his own good. Many times an enemy sees me following Batman's orders and start thinking how dangerous this guy must be that he can boss Superman around. In the long run, we all benefit from it. He is a most valuable member of the League, and I am positive that we all will miss him the day he won't be with us anymore. Don't worry about this little dance he and I usually perform. I know I have his respect as much as he has mine. I wouldn't work with him otherwise."
"Okay. I understand now. Just tell me something: why are you so subtle and 'kid gloves on' with Bruce and so blunt and bold with me?" Diana asked with her arms crossed over her chest.
"Uuh...Hummm...It's just that...I...," he stammered, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Yes? Do I have to use my Lasso?" she took her hand to her hip.
"No. No Lasso. Truth is I can talk to you. I mean, really talk. I feel this connection. Even though we come from very different backgrounds, we have very similar ideas. I don't have to pretend when I'm with you. I don't have to be Clark Kent, nor Superman, not even Kal-El." He took advantage of his labor to avoid looking at her face. "I can be me. I don't know if it is this 'Avatar of Truth' thing you have, but I can't lie around you."
Except about how I feel about you, he thought, turning to finally look at her. Diana was looking at him with such tenderness in her eyes that his heart melted right there. He was holding the leaf of the door, when he saw her face, his hands became unresponsive and the door fell on his left foot. "Owww! Son of a..."
"Kal!" Diana swiftly held the door and helped him sit on one of the stools. "Are you alright?"
"Yes! Is just this stupid door...!" he said, rubbing his foot.
"Oh, Kal. How can you be so clever one moment and so clumsy the next?" she asked trying not to laugh.
"Dunno. Talent, I guess." And they both laughed at the situation.
"And you forgot putting gel on your face and hands." She went to retrieve the jar where they have the 'glycos'.
"I didn't forget. I just wanted to work without bugs...bugging me uumpff!" He was cut in midsentence by Diana smearing gel on his right side of the face.
"There! Now, give me your hands," she ordered.
"Try not to enjoy this so much, 'nurse Ratchett,'" he said.
"Stop being such a big baby! It's for your own good!" the Amazon chastised him.
"Yes, mom..." He rolled his eyes.
"Okay now. You've said that we have half the gravel needed for the floor. I think I'll go smashing some stones to make the rest," the Princess said.
"Great!" he answered. "After I'm finish with the door, I'll begin digging the ditch around the Fortress to prevent water to enter inside."
"Sounds like a plan." She extended her fist, which surprised Clark, but he did the fist bump anyway. When she left, he thought with a smile. "What an incredible woman!"