Chapter 7:
Have serum will travel
"Lois where are you going? Let's just wait for Clark to get here."
She rolls her eyes at Chloe floating a little in the air.
"Just let him know where to meet me. I'll take Mike's house first; see what I can gather from where they were playing video games. Have Clark take Jack's house and we'll meet on the far south side of Lana Corp tech lab."
Chloe winces and nods as Lois takes off into the sky. A few moments later Clark appears as Superboy.
"Where's Lois?"
Chloe points to the sky but before he can take off again she explains the plan.
Lois sneaks through an open window into the Bambize house. She speeds downstairs into the basement where the boys were injected. Using her x-ray vision she scans the room for anything unusual. Stopping at the couch she notices small green particles, stepping away from the area Lois scans the room for anything unusual. With a jolt the lights are flipped on and she turns to see two figures squinting in the newly lit room.
"Supergirl?"
It's Mike's parents looking clueless.
"I'm not really here."
They look confused at each other as Lois rushes through the room in super mode collecting any evidence she can find. It's barely enough time for the pair to blink and with a whoosh they're left alone.
Mrs. Bambize looks to her husband who was rubbing his eyes the entire time.
"You saw that right Stan?"
He shakes his head heading back up the stairs.
"I'm not sure anymore Barb let's get some rest."
A few minutes later Lois is waiting outside of Lana Tech Labs for Clark. She smiles as she hears him approach with a gust of wind he's next to her empty handed.
"Did you find anything Clark?"
He nods.
"Both parents work at Lana Corp now, but more importantly they're making almost 90,000$ each a year as…"
"Night Security."
He's stunned as Lois finishes his sentence; she gazes at the lab before turning back to Clark with her jaw clenched.
"It was Luthor Corp's way of protecting their third shift Lab technicians."
Clark was still confused.
"I maybe new to Smallville but most lab techs don't make that large of a salary right?"
She smiles.
"Way to sneak around Lane."
He blushes slightly.
"One peak at a pay check stub isn't that big of a deal."
She smirks before taking a deep breath.
"It's happening again Clark."
"What's happening again?"
She looks him in the eyes trying to find the words.
"33.1 is back up and running."
She takes off into the air heading to the building with Clark following her, in an instant she's flying through the ventilation system with Clark in tow. With a jerk she stops and turns directions finally ending in a large room.
They hover over the lab for a few minutes before Clark gets the nerve to ask her for more information.
"So what exactly is 33.1?"
Lois motions to the room.
"This is 33.1, come on."
She leads him to a corner as a few technicians enter the lab.
"Didn't you wonder why Lana and I aren't exactly friends anymore?"
He shrugs scanning the room before answering.
"I always thought she was a little too interested in your powers."
Lois nods before smiling at Clark.
"Yeah that and she denied this even existed."
Clark tried to find fault in the lab but couldn't understand why it would ruin a friendship.
"I don't see anything wrong here."
Lois scoffs before pointing to a wall on the far side of the lab.
"Look through that wall Clark."
He tries to do as she asked but can't.
"Lead walls?"
"Exactly good for keeping out radioactive rays and we can't see through the damn stuff. Perfect for subject 304 or Albert as we called him, poor guy blew up his parents when they wouldn't let him go to London for the summer."
Clark looks shocked.
"He's?"
"Meteor infected Clark, Lionel was smuggling them out of the asylum. Black market meteor freaks and it looks like Lana's picking up right where Daddy dearest left off."
"But I never heard anything about this in the papers or.."
She laughs before grinding her teeth.
"No, Lionel made sure this was all kept out of the papers. Lana assured us that we were wrong about her father; it's what finally ended our friendship. When I found out that not only was she lying but she was helping him."
Clark gazed at Lois as she said this. Her face was filled with determination but also with pain.
"It must have been hard, to see the friendship end up that way?"
She turns to him grateful but also amused.
"Let's stop talking about Lana for a second and focus on what I found."
She holds up a piece of fabric it has a small stain on it. Clark uses his x-ray vision to zoom in on the small molecules absorbed in the cloth.
"What is it?"
"It's what they injected into those guys making them go Rambo at the Talon. I'm thinking meteor rocks infused with something."
Clark gives her a weird look as she shrugs.
"It's Smallville, anything weird around here is usually infused with meteor rocks. We have a science geek at school who loves identifying this stuff; we'll bring it to her tomorrow."
Clark nods trying to process everything she's telling him.
"Okay so then why are we here?"
Lois smiles holding up the plastic bag with the piece of cloth from Mike's couch.
"She's not going to be able to get much out of this. We need more, think you can handle it Lane?"
With a grin Lois speeds through the lab searching for the chemical, Clark follows close behind.
"Got it."
They both leave the lab undetected only stopping outside of the Kent farm where Chloe and Pete are both waiting for them in the barn.
"So I'm guessing you two found something?"
Chloe asks leaning over her laptop with a smirk.
"That or they decided to take a detour to some romantic city again."
Pete smiles wide as Lois gives him an evil glare.
"No, we were actually trying to figure out what happened to Mike and Jack."
Lois hands Chloe the plastic sandwich bag that contained the cloth and then the vial they stole from the lab.
"Mike and Jack both remember playing video games before waking up in the squad cars outside of the Talon. Before they blacked out, they both described a small prick on the back of their necks, we checked them out they're injection marks."
"They were definitely drugged then?" Pete asks as Clark gives him a nod.
"This is the same substance we found in the lab."
"I'm guessing it gets its green hue from meteor rocks."
Pete chimes in Lois gives Clark an 'I told you so look' as Clark shakes his head at the humor of it all. Pete notices the exchange.
"You see here in Smallville…"
"Lois already clued me in, anything wacky can be blamed on Meteor rock, it's our Kevin Bacon."
His friends all look up at him oddly, Clark smiles trying to make light of his comment.
"Seven degrees of Kevin Bacon…"
Lois laughs at Clark as Chloe squeals in triumph.
"I got through, just give me one sec."
Everyone crowds around Chloe as she types furiously away trying to beat down the firewalls on her laptop.
"What has she gotten through?"
Pete puts a hand on Clark's shoulder.
"Chloe broke into the Luthor database last year. Lionel found out and completely restructured his systems; she's been working on getting back in ever since."
Lois shook her head at the two boys before watching the screen as Chloe continues typing.
"Chloe how do you know how to do all this stuff?"
Chloe stops for a second looking at her cousin thinking. Lois, annoyed gives Clark a fiery glare.
"I don't know cuz…"
"Can we talk about this later; right now I think she was making progress."
Chloe laughs at her friends before looking back at her computer.
"I never thought I'd say this but we're lucky Lionel was killed. They've been doing network maintenance transferring everything over to Lana Corp, there's a chink in the wall."
She smiles as the screen lights up giving her access to the needed files.
"We have 30 seconds."
She plugs her USB drive in trying to copy as many pages as possible. After about twenty seconds the screen goes black as the entire room exhales a breath.
"I'm really stoked that you guys trust me enough to give me these things."
Lois rolls her eyes as the small blonde, a petite freshman in a lab coat gushes stealing glances at Pete and Clark.
"No problem Anna you're the best so."
She blushes again.
"Right okay."
She leans over her microscope making an odd face.
"And this was injected into the back of their necks you say?"
Chloe nods as Anna leans in again adding drops of liquid from a dropper.
"Hmm, it looks like stem cells."
Clark looks clueless as the others nod waiting for more information.
"I'm sorry Anna, I may be new here but you can tell that all from a standard issue microscope?"
Everyone looks incredulous at Clark, Anna just smiles, adjusting her microscope.
"If you paid attention Clark you'd know that this is the standard issue microscope that they use in most pre med. labs that I've been taking for four years now. And stem cells are pretty easy to ascertain once you know what you're looking for."
She looks up; the confidence from behind the microscope melts as she blushes under his gaze.
"But I'm just a dork who thinks science is fun."
Clark smiles apologetically as Lois clears her throat.
"And?"
"Definitely meteor rock, and stem cells the other qualities I'm not sure but we're running a lab tonight, I'll get my hands on some of the diagnostics and let you know by tomorrow."
Lois smiles taking the vial in her hands she pours half of it into another vial and hands it to Anna.
"You're great thanks."
She blushes as they leave her to her microscope heading to the Torch work room.
"What was that about Clark?"
Lois turns on Clark as soon as the door is closed.
"What was what?"
"The whole twenty questions with one of our informants?"
Clark smirks at the word informant; Chloe raises her eyebrows as Pete looks away not giving any help.
"I'm sorry I wasn't prepared for a fourteen year old genius I didn't get the heads up."
Chloe rounds the table heading to her laptop. With a few keystrokes she brings up a file for Clark.
"Not just an informant but a meteor infected friend. We helped her and she's helps us."
Clark reads the profile for Anna.
"Meteor infected, what is she super brained?"
Lois gives Chloe a look as Clark reads on.
"Oh, her IQ's off the chart, well at least she didn't blow up her parents."
Lois narrows her eyes at Clark who puts up both hands in surrender.
"I'm sorry, won't happen again."
Lois breaks her façade smiling before pulling out her article for Chloe.
"This is a little early Chlo but I was thinking early bird and all that."
Clark pulls out his article as well with a smirk putting it atop of Lois's.
"I was thinking along the same lines."
Lois reads the headline and laughs.
"'Smallville High Crows win the first Homecoming game in twenty years against arch rivals.' Clark that game hasn't even happened yet."
Clark nods, "True, hence why I wrote two articles just in case." He shows the second article.
"I thought you two had decided this whole competition thing was going too far."
"I think Clark likes a good dose of competition."
Everyone looks to the source of the voice; it's Lex who has just entered the room.
"Sorry to disturb you guys, but Coach has asked me to round up the team for a quick meeting with the seniors before practice."
He smiles at Lois before looking at Pete and Clark who follow him out of the room.
"Wow Lo, I think Clark might be right about Lex."
Lois looks up from reading Clark's article her pen is in her mouth, she was intent on reading it.
"What? What did he say about Lex?"
Chloe smiles watching her best friend comb over Clark's article.
"That he still has a thing for you."
Lois rolls her eyes at a certain part of the article looking up at Chloe for a second she gives a half smile.
"Lex having a thing for me? I think that all the hints I've been dropping about being friends and the fact that Clark and I are in the middle of something I'm sure he's not thinking of me like that… well not anymore."
Chloe not sure presses the issue further.
"I don't know Clark said something about his heart rate accelerating when he sees you."
Lois looks up from the article blushing.
"Who Lex? When he sees me?"
Chloe walks away from her desk closer to Lois.
"Maybe Lex isn't as over you as he's been letting on."
"You think Clark is going to ask me to Homecoming?"
Chloe stops mid-step she blinks for a second to gain composure pinching herself she laughs.
"Did I just hear that question come out of your mouth?"
"Well, did he say anything to you about it?"
Chloe's eyes widen as she tries to contain a snort.
"Well yeah he said something about you and the phrase 'Not Happening' I believe."
Lois sighs finishing the first half of the article in her hand before flipping the page.
"Yeah but I still want him to ask."
She tugs on her lip a bit as she reads more of Clark's article.
"He's actually good."
Chloe nods smiling proudly.
"He is, question is can ace reporter Lois Kent take the competition."
Lois looks at Chloe smiling sarcastically before retorting.
"I said he was good, I never said I was worried. Besides I've been thinking maybe Supergirl can be Superboy's sidekick, if Clark Lane doesn't mind being Lois Kent's sidekick."
Chloe looks surprised as she thinks over the comment.
"Supergirl takes a backseat to Superboy, trading superhero for super reporter?"
Lois smiles at the idea.
"You have to play to your strengths."
Later that night as Clark climbs the stairs to his room Chloe pops out smiling. He can tell she has that 'I've got something to tell you' look and isn't surprised when she follows him into his room."
"How you managed on being an only child I'll never know."
"Very carefully Clark. So cuz, I have it from a very reliable source that you should ask a certain brunette to the Homecoming dance this weekend, because she'll say yes."
Clark sits on his bed confused as Chloe grabs his phone.
"Wait but Lois said under no circumstances would she put on a dress and parade around like some trophy on my arm."
Chloe chuckles as she hands the phone over to Clark.
"Yeah that's like Lois talk for 'you better ask me because I already have the dress picked out.'"
She leaves Clark alone with the phone.
Twenty minutes later Clark is still sitting on his bed trying to find the perfect way to call Lois, with a smirk he opens his window and takes off into the night's sky.
A knock on the door sends Martha to see who it is while Jonathan and Lois rewind the home videos they were watching. Martha comes back with a smile leading Lex into the living room.
"Honey it's Lex."
Lois stands up awkwardly as Jonathan follows shaking Lex's hand.
"Hey Mr. Kent, um Lois I was wondering if I could ask you something? It's about school."
Lois and Lex excuse themselves to the kitchen while the Kents watch on in wonder.
"What do you think this is about?"
Jonathan shakes his head as Lois and Lex sit at the Kitchen table.
"So I'm late."
Lois looks at the clock and then back at Lex.
"You are?"
He smiles and laughs.
"Yeah I should have been standing here three years ago asking you this very question but I didn't, so now I'm here."
Outside Clark could hear Lex's voice in the kitchen and slowed to the ground approaching the door. He saw Lois flinch as she sensed him but didn't let on.
"So I know you and Clark are together, it's pretty obvious that he likes you and you like him. So I preface this by stating you can't blame a guy for trying, even if he is a few years late."
"Okay."
Clark looked on he could hear Lex's heart begin to beat rapidly with every second that went by, Lois's heart fluttered as well. He took his eyes away nearly defeated.
"So I'm just going to ask then, Lois will you do me the honor of going to the Homecoming dance with me?"
Lois smiled and it was too much for Clark to take he took off. He was annoyed at Lex, the way he talked, how easy going he was with Lois. She never gave him stern looks, or growled lightly under her breath at his comments.
After about five minutes of flying something collided with him in mid air.
Lois laughed as Clark grabbed her by the shoulders not believing his own two eyes.
"You took off so fast Clark I didn't get to talk to you."
Her laugh was infectious and Clark was unsure if it was because Lex had just asked her to the dance, or because she was amused by his dramatic exit.
"I'm pretty sure I saw enough."
Lois smirked flirting with Clark as she floated a few feet away from him.
"Look, I'm sorry I've been on edge lately."
Clark leaned back slightly enjoying the rare occurrence of Lois apologizing.
He cracked a smile taking a deep breath.
"So what was your answer to Lex?"
Lois laughs enjoying the breeze from so high up.
"I told him no of course, I don't think we'd have much fun going as each other's date."
She laughs again shaking her head at the last part of her statement. Clark couldn't help but smile as she met his gaze. Clark felt all inhibition leave him as he usually did when flying with Lois and seized her shoulders. She wasn't stunned by his forcefulness at all as they kissed it seemed like forever since their last embrace. The shootings had put a damper on any romantic atmosphere last weekend. When they finally parted, it was all the confidence he needed.
"Lois, will you go to the dance with me?"
She smiles, "No Clark."
And leans in to kiss him again. He wasn't sure if he had heard right and as they parted again she smirked winking at him.
"I want to go to the dance, but not as a couple, we should all just go and hang out make it a group thing."
"A group thing, what does that even mean?"
Pete shrugs as Lois, Chloe and Anna lay down the lab results on the table.
"Dopamine, infused with meteor rock and stem cells acted as a temporary stimulant, the stem cells fused with the cerebral cortex until they eventually…What was the word you used again Anna?"
"Metabolized."
Lois smirks triumphant the boys look on as clueless as ever.
"Which means what exactly?"
Chloe chimes in trying to put it in lamens terms for them.
"Our theory is it temporarily turns them into meteor freaks."
Anna shifts uncomfortably at the term but doesn't let on.
"Well I guess my work here is done let me know if you need anything else."
They all nod as she leaves before turning to one another again.
"I guess we should be more pc about the whole meteor freak term Chlo?"
Chloe frowned for a second before running over to her laptop.
"You got something?"
Chloe shrugs while typing away.
"Remember two years ago that girl Missy Huberton?"
Pete nods, "Yeah she broke into your locker Chloe and then we think had a little crush on you?"
Chloe shivered the memory away as she spun her laptop to face everyone else.
"She swore she didn't have any control over what she was doing."
Lois nods before adding in her two cents.
"Yeah but she was meteor, infected girl could turn things into ice, I say…"
Lois stopped staring at Chloe finally on the same wavelength.
"So there's some sort of meteor freak controlling all the other meteor freaks out there?"
Clark catching on as well shook his head.
"Not just the meteor infected but they've found a way to temporarily infect everyone else too. Imagine the possibility if this actually works."
Pete jumping in adds his theory.
"But why would they test this on two boys so publically?"
Lois smirks at the idea.
"Lana Corp didn't, but whoever is controlling the meteor infected has to be a part of 33.1. Which means he or she has no other choice. I know I'd do whatever I could to get out of there."
Pete chimes in again.
"Okay so say this person let's call them puppet master gets control of a meteor freak sends them out with serum to infect two young teenage boys and have them hold up the Talon here in Smallville?"
Chloe nods.
"Of course, what does Smallville have that no other town or city does? Two super heroes and why not give them a clue by holding up the very building owned by the one keeping them hostage. Eventually someone, like us is going to connect the dots."
Clark narrows his eyes trying to piece together his thoughts.
"But why not just break out yourself? Why lay the trail of breadcrumbs instead?"
Lois smiles at Clark before answering.
"Because no-one comes out of 33.1 alive, the best way to get this puppet master out is to do it from the outside. And since the location of 33.1 changes on a weekly basis we have about forty-two hours to break them out and get them to a safe house."
"Great, so do we have a plan?"
Lois nods.
"Sure do, I have to pick up my dress from the seamstress."
Clark looks on as Chloe shrugs.
"I mean for breaking into 33.1."
Pete laughs.
"They usually move facilities on Sunday; it takes them about two hours first the patients and then the labs."
"Right and that's where Superboy and Supergirl come in. We swoop in, grab the Puppet Master drop them off where they'll transported to somewhere safe. Chloe you'll take care of that right?"
Chloe nods while typing on her computer.
"I'm already on it."
Clark looks clueless.
"Who do we know that can handle something like this?"
Lois sighs shaking her head at him.
"We've made friends along the way. I'm wearing red by the way Clark, so you can match the corsage."
Clark looks up.
"I thought we're going as a group?"
"We are but I thought you'd want to know."
With that said Lois leaves the room as Chloe and Pete stifle laughs.
"She said it was a group thing."
They both shrug leaving Clark to stew in the confusion.
Sneak Peak at Chapter 8
"Green Arrow Lois?"
She rolls her eyes as they head down the hallway.
"Yes Green Arrow of Star City."
"The green tight wearing arrow wielding Green Arrow?"
Lois laughs nodding, "That's the one."
"You're friends with him?"
Lois shrugs.
"Actually he contacted Chloe, put two and two together and realized that she had the ins with Supergirl, don't worry though he knows Superboy's on board."
She gives his hand a squeeze reassuring him he smiles and leans in to kiss her as she pulls away.
"PDA in high school Clark please not yet, baby steps."
He laughs as she keeps his hand in hers.
"And handholding is Ms. Kent?"
She smiles swinging the hand back and forth.
"Baby step number one. Speaking of did you get the red corsage?"
Clark nods as the enter the empty room of the Torch.
"Yes, is there anything else I'm to get for this group thing that you wouldn't go as my date to?"
He smirks at her as she wrinkles her nose leaning seductively forward staring into his eyes.
"Well a limo would be nice."
He makes a face as she laughs.
"Just kidding, I'll drive us down."