Lois Lane was cautiously happy these days. Her professional life was on the fast track, as she was working on two stories that she just knew would peak the interest of the Daily Planet Readers.
Then there was her private life. And honestly, Lois didn't know where she wanted it to go.
It had been a week since she had been introduced to Orin Curry Jr. on Orin's yacht. It had been a week since Orin's wife died, since Lois even knew he had a yacht or realized the extent of his royal, underwater background.
Orin's heritage was a headache she did not need. Lois much preferred his 'surface dwelling' side of the family, meaning Thomas and Mary. They were actually keeping Orin Jr. for a week while Orin himself, went out of town with a few members of the JLA. Lois didn't know what to think about that part of his life either. It was almost as if she were in the same situation she had been in with Bruce.
Lois had never had those worries when she was with Kal-El, that was for sure! He just wasn't the super-hero type. But Kal-El had a host of other problems that gave her a headache, to think about. And unfortunately, she had to, since Kal-El was part of a story she was working on.
It concerned the Alpo being fed to the prisoners at the prison Chloe was running. Lucy had called her and begged her to write a story exposing the whole damned thing. Lois called Chloe and was surprised at how civil her cousin sounded. Chloe wanted Lois to have lunch with the Kryptonian prisoners to prove that they were not on Alpo.
Lois was not unmindful of the fact, that Chloe could just switch the menu around for her, and feed the prisoners decently during the amount of time she was there. And Lois had a plan for that...
She was planning on visiting Kal-El, then having him show her where the trash bins were. Surely, Lois would find some Alpo cans in the garbage. But she was also mindful that that might not prove anything either. After all, there were guard dogs on the premises.
And of course, Kal-El did not know she was visiting, though she suspected Chloe had probably told him by now. Maybe he would not want to see her? If he refused her, Lois would have no choice but to just accept that. But HE was the one in prison! So Lois really didn't want to hear any attitude from him!
Lois decided that if Kal-El did not help her, she would have to think of something else. But before she visited the prison, she had other worries a/o another headline to chase-that would be the one concerning impostor Thomas Wayne Jr.!
Lois was now on a country road in Smallville and she turned right to get to the Kent Farm. She knew Congress was on vacation and that Martha Kent would be home here. Lois, Bruce and her readers needed answers, as to how long Martha Kent knew that Thomas Wayne Jr. was THE Thomas Wayne Jr.! He had supposedly been stillborn and had a death certificate!
But not these days! This piece of crap was now trying to get his hands on Wayne Enterprises while Bruce was on house arrest! Lois knew that Bruce and herself were in a strange place, relationship wise, but she just could not sit back and let this happen. Bruce had spent his whole life alone and that experience had hurt him deeply. Lois planned to prove that this guy was a fake, so that Bruce was not lead on to believe that he actually had a brother that could possibly care about him, in this world.
And Lois wanted to know how and why Martha Kent would go along with such a scam? It had always been her impression that Senator Kent was about as honest as they came, second only to her late husband, Jonathan Kent. Many people thought that, which was the reason the public seemed to buy this story. Lois knew she could face a backlash from the reading public if she didn't have all her ducks in a row on this one.
When she pulled up outside of the house, Martha Kent and the impostor himself-the man that called himself Thomas Wayne Jr., were talking on the porch. 'Mr. Wayne' looked as if he were headed off someplace. Lois parked and got out of the car. She smiled as she walked up to the steps, just stopping short of walking up them. The impostor was good looking, but he didn't look like Bruce. And Lois had seen plenty of pictures of Bruce's parents. She didn't think 'Thomas Jr.' looked much like either of them!
"Hello, Senator Kent. I was hoping I could speak to you about your impostor relative here..."
Thomas smiled.
"Now, now, Miss Lane. That is no way to go about getting a story. If you want us to talk, you should try a little civility." he told her.
"You're trespassing, Miss Lane," Martha said firmly, "I think you should leave. Next time make an appointment and I would be happy to talk to you in a more formal setting. But this is my home...something you ought to know since you broke in here at one point."
"I had amnesia, okay? I didn't know what I was doing. And I've tried to make 'appointments' but I can't seem to get one with you. And I think my readers will want to know how you could've helped steal a baby from the late Thomas and Martha Wayne! Jesus, Martha Wayne had YOUR same first name for God's sakes!"
Thomas began to walk down the stairs towards Lois. Lois backed back a bit.
"Get off this property now. I will not stand by and allow you to impugn my cousin's integrity."
"That's right. She's your 'cousin' because her father raised you, right? So did he actually bribe a nurse to tell Martha Wayne that her son died or what?" Lois asked, her manner increasingly sarcastic as the encounter wore on.
Martha Kent decided to put an end to this.
"Miss Lane, step inside and I will tell you everything."
Lois raised a brow at her, then looked at Thomas, who looked displeased.
"Martha, we don't owe her an explanation."
"No, you don't owe me anything! But I'm not here just because I want a front page story for my paper. I care about Bruce. He's been alone since his parents were murdered and if it had not been for Alfred Pennyworth, there is no telling where he would be."
"Where he is, Miss Lane is on house arrest. I care about my brother too. You assume that I'm trying to take over Wayne Enterprises but has it ever occurred to you that I'm really trying to protect it for him? And clearly, he is not well. So I'm not about to give kudos to Alfred Pennyworth on anything here. It sounds like my little brother could have used his big brother."
"A long time ago." Lois answered. "But you 'came out' with this story when he was the most vulnerable."
"Miss Lane, please! Come inside and I will tell you everything! Tommy, we need to set the record straight here." Martha told him.
"No we do not." Thomas said calmly. "A DNA test proves I am Thomas Wayne Jr..
"One that could have been doctored." was Lois's reply.
"Which is why I plan to tell you as much as I know about the situation." Martha said.
"What's the matter, Miss Lane? Do you not want to hear something other than your truth?" Thomas needled her. Lois said nothing to him but faced Martha.
"I wouldn't be here if I didn't want to hear what you had to say." Lois said. She then began to walk up the porch steps just as Thomas's cellphone rang. It was Tess.
"Yes." Thomas answered.
"We have a problem." she told him.
"With?"
"The Kal-El clone." Tess answered reluctantly.
"Tess, this is a very bad time to be telling me that." Thomas said in a tight voice. Lois half turned back towards him as she was about to step inside the house. She had heard him say 'Tess'.
"He escaped. Three days ago. I had hoped to get him back by now but...I don't think he will be present when we give our demonstration in front of General Lane. Can you get here?"
"Oh. You can bet I'll be there." Thomas said, hanging up. He then smiled phonily at Lois.
"I'm afraid it will be my cousin and yourself alone. I have business to attend to."
Lois was tempted to ask if it was with Tess Mercer, but decided against it. Considering how Orin felt about Tess and LuthorCorp, it would probably be best to stay out of whatever this was-for now.
Lois had to force herself not to remember her time in this house with Kal-El, as she began to pepper Martha Kent with questions.
"Tell me how this all went down? Meaning who's baby did Martha Wayne get instead of her own?" Lois asked, poised to write in a small notebook.
"Why don't we begin with some background instead?" Martha offered. "I was married to Jonathan Kent for many years. But by year five, we knew something was wrong. That we could not have children. And I was between depression and begging Jonathan to leave me, so he could find someone who could give him the big family he had always wanted.
Lois stared at her but said nothing. Martha continued on.
"My father knew of my distress. He actually used to do business with Lionel Luthor, but on a much smaller scale. Lionel wanted to help."
Lois sighed! Martha tilted her head.
"What?" she asked.
"Lionel Luthor is involved in this? Was he different back then? Meaning did he come across as trustworthy back in the day? Because let me tell you, if Kal-El and I wanted a child and couldn't have one, Lionel Luthor is the last person we'd turn to."
"Kal-El? The Kryptonian you stayed in my home with?" Martha asked patiently. Lois sighed again, this time from discomfort.
"I was just citing an example. I've used Lionel as a source before and sometimes his truth and the actual truth don't quite mesh." Lois said quickly. She could have kicked herself for saying that! Why the hell had said that? And why hadn't she said 'Orin' or even 'Bruce'?
Martha noted her discomfort but did not comment any further about it. She continued her own story.
"I didn't think about who or what Lionel was, though Jonathan never liked him. I just wanted to give my husband a child. And Jonathan agreed to let Lionel look into the adoption process for us. But that was all he agreed to. He always told me he would love me whether we had children or not. I just didn't believe that, I guess."
Lois's heart went out to Martha and she thought of her own baby for a moment, before shaking off any melancholy and continuing on.
"So, Lionel found Thomas?"
"The baby he was going to get for us, was from a poor woman from Gotham. The baby was stillborn. Martha Wayne gave birth the same night. Lionel arranged for Thomas to be ours. I didn't know any of that at the time."
"But your father raised Thomas? Jonathan and yourself never had any children?" Lois questioned.
"My father showed up with Thomas, days after we agreed to let Lionel look into it. Jonathan didn't like the tone of it. He suspected Thomas belonged to someone else and refused to take him in. He specifically told my father to give the baby back to his real mother." Martha said in a hollow voice.
"But your father didn't?"
"No. And when Jonathan saw that he hadn't, he thought it was best if we limited the amount of time we spent with my father. If I visited him, it was alone. The only thing that stopped Jonathan from telling the authorities was that I begged him not to. My father had always wanted a son." she said wistfully.
Lois closed her notebook.
"I don't know what to say or what to write. Lionel Luthor is not a man that you can get around. He could buy the Daily Planet and squash this story. I'm going to need to talk to Bruce though."
"So, there will be no story?" Martha asked.
"Senator Kent, I didn't believe Thomas was related to Bruce. That isn't the case anymore. Worse yet, even if I wrote what you told me, you could be implicated as well. So for now, no, there will be no story. Now, I have to get over to the Kryptonian prison..."
"You're working on the Alpo scandal?" Martha asked, now standing up.
"Yes." Lois answered.
"Coincidentally, that's my next stop as well. Chloe Sullivan asked me to come and have lunch there, to prove that the prisoners were not being served dog food."
"Today. There's no telling what they'll get for dinner after we leave." Lois said huffily. Martha said nothing to that. Lois Lane looked nervous and Martha suspected it wasn't because she might be served a bowl of dog food!
Meanwhile, Thomas let himself in to an undisclosed warehouse on the outskirts of Smallville, using a special key card. Ordinarily, he would have been annoyed with this news about the Kal-El clone. But Lois Lane, in her own way, was dangerous.
It was not the story of his origins, that Thomas feared Lois would discover. It was something else altogether. And the idea of facing Martha's disapproval, caused him to wince briefly as he walked down two long hallways, until he pulled another key card out and entered a room full of pods and Tess Mercer.
Inside of them, were cloned Kryptonians. He walked over to Tess, then stopped short when the clone of Kal-El appeared from a shadowy corner!
"What is this?" Thomas asked tersely. "I thought you said he escaped?"
"I did," Kal-El said smoothly, "from the Kryptonian Correctional Facility. The clone you are speaking of, is currently in my place."
Thomas's mouth dropped open! He looked from Kal-El to Tess.
"What's going on here?"
"What's going on is this, Thomas: the Kryptonians are going to take control again. I will own LuthorCorp outright. Kal-El will make sure that you alone, are the true heir of the Wayne fortune." she informed him.
"But there is a condition," Kal-El warned, "I want you to make sure your 'brother' is remanded to Arkham. I will not stand for his interference in my relationship with Lois ever again. And I now know that Lois has to see him as unfit for her to truly forget him."
Thomas didn't answer at first. This way seemed easier.
"I think you're underestimating Bruce's friends in the JLA. And Lois. She's pretty..."
"What?!" Kal-El snapped and began to move towards Thomas in a menacing manner!
"She's PRETTY devoted to him!" Thomas blurted out. "I just left her with my cousin, Martha Kent! She's planning on writing up a story about how my origins make no sense."
"I'll deal with Lois. And she will be too busy caring for our son to be bothered with you. I have to get back to the prison. Lucy is helping with the wedding plans."
"Lucy?" Thomas asked. He didn't especially care for how much had went on behind his back! This whole cloning project was to be split between Wayne Enterprises and LuthorCorp!
But, he did not have full access to certain divisions of Wayne Enterprises, no thanks to Bruce and Lucius Fox, who treated him like primordial ooze. If the Kryptonians regained control, this would not be a problem but...
The point of this had been to control the clones. Now, the Kryptonians would be back in power and in control of them. It just didn't seem like a 'good deal' for man kind!
But Kal-El and Tess were watching him closely, and in the end, he wanted what was his. He was the oldest Wayne brother. He should be running Wayne Enterprises. And Bruce was sick. This hero complex, the money he spent trying to give himself a secret life...it was sick. And he was no doctor. They had good ones at Arkham that could help his little brother.
"Yes," Tess said, "Lois's sister has been helping us. Probably to stick it to Lex."
"I don't follow you?" Thomas asked. Kal-El answered.
"Lucy discovered that Lex and Lana Luthor have my son. She is planning a quick wedding ceremony for Lois and myself at the prison. After, we will fly to the White House and retrieve our child."
"Whoa!" Thomas cried out. "Lex is the president...Lois doesn't have powers...I mean she could be hurt as a human by Secret Service or something."
"And that would bother you?" Tess asked through narrowed eyes.
"Lois will be safe. Neither my wife to be, nor my son will be harmed." Kal-El said. "But your concern for my fiancee is touching."
Kal-El didn't sound like he thought it was touching, so Thomas decided not to mention Lois Lane again.
Meanwhile, the clone, known as Bizarro to some, entered Chloe's office. He had all of Kal-El's memories of most people. In some cases, the feelings didn't match. But he was good at pretending.
He saw Zod sitting at a desk outside of Chloe's office, reading a newspaper. Zod looked up when he came in.
"Kal-El," Zod sighed, "you should be happy that for once, that we will have something other than Alpo."
Bizarro grinned!
"But you have not been eating it, have you?"
"I think we had this discussion before." Zod said blithely and returned to his paper. Bizarro's response to being ignored, was to rip the paper out of his hands!
"You have the nerve to sit there and speak to me like that?! Where is your collar?" Bizarro asked in an accusatory tone. Not that it really mattered. Lois's cute younger sister was already on the grounds. She would be disengaging the power grid that made these collars work. His of course, did not work the same way, but he had to look the part.
"Warden Sullivan trusts me. I do not need one." Zod sniffed, just as Chloe's office door opened and she stepped into the doorway.
"What is all of this noise about? Kal-El? Why are you here? Why aren't you getting ready for your precious Lois to arrive?"
"I need to speak to you first." Bizarro said stoutly. Chloe sighed dramatically and then motioned for Kal-El to come in to her office. Once he was inside, Chloe locked eyes with Zod briefly, before closing the door. Zod stared at her closed door. An odd feeling ran through him suddenly. Kal-El had seemed different in some way. But Zod could not pinpoint how.
Meanwhile, Bizarro saw that Chloe had a can of Alpo on her desk. There was also a generic looking can of beef stew, sitting beside it.
"Is that your plan when Lois arrives? To tell them that you've been feeding us beef stew the whole time?" he asked.
Chloe smirked!
"No. Actually, I plan to mix the Alpo in with Lois's beef stew. This brand looks a lot like the Alpo. It will be just our secret, okay?" she grinned, fluttering her eyelashes at him. Bizarro just stared at her.
"Oh come on, Kal-El! I was just kidding!"
But Bizarro continued to stare at her.
"What?!" Chloe snapped. He began to move towards her.
"Do you know what I was thinking?"
"How could I possibly know that?"
"I was thinking," Bizarro continued, "about that time we made love in the woods. On the Luthor property. Do you remember that? It was on a tree log. You were afraid someone would see us. That only heightened the excitement of everything."
"Oh, you remember that, hey?" Chloe asked sarcastically.
"Yes. And everytime we were together. Zod wants you."
"What if he does?"
Bizarro moved closer to her.
"I still care about you, Chloe. And I won't let him hurt you like he hurt your mother. I couldn't stand it." he whispered.
"Because it's Zod, right? Look, stop pretending to still care about me! You didn't care when I went blind or was in that horrible condition that Darkseid left me in! And now on the day that your precious Lois is coming here you..."
Bizarro's mouth suddenly covered hers in a hot kiss that Chloe tried to end! But almost just as quickly as she tried to shove him away, Chloe wrapped her arms around his neck and gave herself fully to him. Bizarro's arms pulled her more securely into his embrace and he moved her towards the couch...
But Chloe pulled out of his embrace! She looked him up and down!
"You sicken me! What? Your locked up here with me instead of Lois? So I guess I'll do under the circumstances, right? Get out of here, Kal-El and don't ever try and pull anything like that again!
Bizarro's response to her tirade, was to move his fingers to the v-neck of her dress. He began to caress the valley between her breasts.
"Lois gave my son away. If she had ever loved me, there is no way she could have done that. I accept that and my circumstances. I also accept the fact that the best thing that ever happened to me, is standing right in front of me." Bizarro said huskily, covering her lips with his again, silencing her angry protests. Chloe did not resist his kiss or move to stop him, as he began to take off his prison uniform. His length sprang forth and Chloe felt his member press against her thigh! She weakened in his embrace and he pulled her down onto a couch and covered her body with his. Chloe's heart began to beat wildly as 'Kal-El' hiked her dress up around her thighs and tore off her underwear! He then spread her legs with his hips and entered her sharply! He quelled Chloe's cries with his lips, held her arms over her head with one hand and used his damnable, piston of flesh to move within her at a juggernaut like speed!
Chloe felt an electric tingle course through her body and her loins felt like liquid fire as she matched his rampant pace! He seemed to get bigger with each movement...
He WAS getting bigger! Zod, having been unable to help hear the commotion, burst into Chloe's office to witness the sight of 'Kal-El's' buttocks clenching and unclenching spasmodically as Chloe began to shrink! Her screams went from being deafening to barely audible! When she seemingly disappeared, Bizarro rose and it was in that instant, that his skin began to distort!
Zod backed up a bit, knowing that this was not Lor-Zod! At that moment, Bizarro yanked his collar off effortlessly, just as Lucy hurried in carrying a Styrofoam cup with a plastic top. Holes were poked in the top.
"Is it over?" Lucy asked, eyeing a naked Bizarro before giving former lover, Zod, a cool hello.
"Yes." Bizarro said and reached down to gently pick up the shrunken Chloe. Lucy had put Kleenex into the cup so that her cousin would have a soft landing.
"Hey Chloe!" Lucy cooed as Bizarro put her in the cup. "Sorry about this but we couldn't have you shrinking anyone while Kal-El and Lois got married."
Zod gaped at Bizarro and Lucy! There had been plans made behind his back to usurp what he had tried to build here! And now he had little choice but to beg for Kal-El's forgiveness before he found himself in the same shape as the Earthlings, in this new Kryptonian run world.
He could hear screams from within the prison. The collars were off, his people were free and the Earthlings that ran this prison, were dying. Jor-El had found a way for Chloe Sullivan to shrink. But the manner had been so crude and unthinkable! Zod wondered if any Kryptonian would have had the power to do what was done to Chloe, or just this clone of Kal-El?
Meanwhile, Lois Lane and Senator Martha Kent, who had driven to the prison together, has just arrived.
