Hey all, thanks for reading so far. I've got a few more chapters to post but I don't wanna do it too fast ;) Feel free to R and R please I LIVE FOR THE REVIEWS!!!

CHAPTER 3: Family History

"I'm telling you Chloe the sky was on fire."

"Okay Lo I'll take your word for it." Chloe and Lois weren't the only ones discussing the crazy events at Metropolis stadium. The entire Daily Planet newsroom had been a bustle of activity since seeing Jimmy's pictures and reading the article that Lois and Clark had written.

"And that wasn't even the weirdest thing that happened. That helicopter should have rolled over all of us but somehow it came to a dead stop. Isn't there a law of Physics that says things can't just do that?"

"What can I say Lo, someone must have been watching out for you guys."

"Thats true. The only person besides Johnny Blaze that got hurt was Clark. It was weird. One of his hands was burnt and his jacket looked like he had been hit full bore by a piece of shrapnel."

"Come on Lois. Clark would be in the hospital if that happened right? I mean he is only a regular man right?" Chloe covered for Clark, knowing full well that everybody there would be dead if Clark Kent hadn't been around. The fact that he got hurt bothered her though. She made a mental note to check into her sources on all things weird to see if anything like this had happened before.

"Well he is a man, but I don't think there is anything regular about Clark Kent." Lois said in a far off voice. Chloe smirked at her.

"So Lois, how IS it working with the Clark Kent. Lot of late nights pouring over articles?" Chloe teased.

"Chloe!" Lois shouted. "Clark and I are just friends. I mean yeah before he left I think I was starting to feel something for him but I means its Clark. Prince of Plaid. I mean sure he always holds the door for me and yesterday he covered me with his body so I wouldn't get hurt and he makes me his mom's coffee every morning but I mean its just Clark right?"

"OH-kay Lois." Chloe just smiled at Lois. She decided not to tell her the office had a pool on when Lois and Clark would get together. Ever since they first met Chloe saw the sparks between Lois and Clark. She knew that two years ago they were one awkward situation away from being a couple and that Lois took Clark's departure harder than anyone would have expected. This was the one guy who had saved their lives countless times. Since Clark had come back Lois had been happier than she had been for two years and she noticed that Clark was totally at ease around Lois. He didn't act like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders when she was with him. Behind Lois Chloe saw the elevator doors open and Clark stepped off. She saw he had a bandage on his hand, no doubt to hide the fact that he wasn't burned anymore. Chloe watched Lois' face as she said. "Hey Clark!" Lois showed a glimmer of reaction before quickly turning and running up to Clark.

"Smallville hey!" Then looking at his hand she quickly grabbed it. "Hows the burn? Are you going to be okay." Lois noticed a bunch of the people in the office watching them so she quickly said. "Ya know I just need my partner to be able to type is all."

"Hey Lois. I'm okay I think its almost all better." Lois looked at Clark weird.

"Clark that was at least a second degree burn yesterday. You are so weird sometimes." Perry exploded out of his office.

"Lane! Kent! My office now!"

"What did you do now Lois?" Clark teased.

"Oh nothing Clarkie. Perry probably just wants to compliment on MY impressive article about the accident." Lois said with a smile as she walked to Perry's office.

"Our article! Our!" Clark said exasperatedly as he followed. Chloe smiled at their interaction and then sat down at her desk. Her phone rang and she picked up it.

"Daily Planet, Chloe Sullivan. Uh uh. Metropolis Morgue?" she looked at her watch. "Yeah I can be there in fifteen minutes." Chloe hung the phone up. "Jimmy you want to cover something weird with me!?" Jimmy Olson practically fell over himself.

"Yeah Chloe sure!" Their first and second attempts at a relationship hadn't worked out. The first time because of him and the second time because of her. Jimmy jumped at any chance he could get to spend time with Chloe one on one.

----

Perry's office was a cluttered mess as usual. Today he was in a very hyper mood, talking fast and loud.

"Yesterday Johnny Blaze died. Right?"

"Yeah Chief we both saw it ourselves." Lois said.

"Of course you did, its reported in my paper that he died. So I want you to explain to me how it is that he walked into 2400 Club last night?" Perry threw a photo down in front of Lois and Clark. The picture showed the handsome face of Johnny Blaze, in his trademark black leather jacket and jeans, getting off his motorcycle with an attractive blonde on his arm.

"Chief are you sure thats him." Clark said.

"Yes I'm sure. Next time you report that somebody famous is dead make damn sure he's dead!"

"Chief I swear he was..." Perry cut Clark off.

"Lane! I thought you were supposed to be showing Kent what it means to be a good reporter!"

Lois started to say something but Clark cut her off.

"Chief this one was all my fault. Lois was talking to other survivors when I went to check on Blaze. The paramedic told me he was dead. I guess he lied. I'll be more careful about my sources next time." Lois gave Clark an affectionate look that neither Clark nor Perry caught.

"You damn well better Kent. This paper has a reputation to uphold. I'm giving you both the chance to make this one up to me. Lex Luthor is throwing his annual birthday bash tonight at Luthorcorp Plaza. The who's who of Metropolis will be there and I managed to get you both on the guest list. I'm sure Blaze will be there and you'd better apologize to the man and then get an interview with him! Kent do you have a tux?"

"Uhh no Chief."

"Get one. NOW! Your limo picks you up at 7 at Lois' apartment. Be there. Don't screw this one up you two. Now get back to work! Don't let me down! You're my star reporters! There's the door!"

Lois and Clark stepped out of the office. "So Lois, what are you doing tonight. Want to go to a swanky birthday bash for someone who hates my guts?" Clark smiled at her. Lois returned the smile.

"Well I'll have to check my schedule," she pretended to pull a planner out of the air. "Hmmm... yep well I had plans to sit around eating cold chinese and watching old reruns but I guess I could pencil you in for 7 o'clock. Go get a tux Smallville. I'll see ya tonight." Lois walked away towards her desk. Clark watched her walk away and thought to himself. 'I wonder if thats what Lois really planned on doing tonight. Maybe I should ask her out for real. But what if it just made things weird. Maybe I'll just hold off.' Clark climbed on the elevator. As the doors shut Lois gave him a small wave and a wink. Clark thought. 'Or maybe not.'

----

Lex burst into the library of his mansion where Lana was getting fit for her dress for the evening's party. "Out." he said in a cold voice to the seamstress.

"Well hello honey! Happy Birthday!" Lana spat sarcastically at Lex. "Thank you for telling me that you were leaving for... where was it again? Oh thats right I don't know where you went the past three days."

"Lana not right now!" Lex shouted. Lex had almost had enough. The beginning of their relationship was less than perfect and it had only gone downhill from there. Lex fell in love with Lana because she was the one person in his life he could trust. And if he could steal her away from the only person on the planet that had succeeded in making him jealous, the better it was. Though in Lex's mind he didn't lie to Lana as much as Clark supposedly did she treated him like he did. Every project, every trip had to be explained in the utmost detail or he got the cold shoulder for a week. Being one of the most wealthy women in the world for almost three years had changed Lana. Lex had witnessed her be just as cruel and vindictive as he could be. It was secretly one of the things he loved about her.

"Lex. Tell me where you were. NOW!" Lana said matter of factually. Lex sighed. It was no use and he needed her to be happy for appearances sake for his party tonight. All of the major players in industry, politics and entertainment in Metropolis would be there. He couldn't stand to lose face should his girlfriend decide to flip out at the party.

"Alright Lana. You really want to know. Are you ABSOLUTELY sure you want to know? I mean this revelation about me could change the way you feel about me! Its something that I know I intentionally kept you in the dark about for fear of losing you."

"Drop the sarcasm and tell me."

"Lana all I've been up to the past few weeks is researching into the Luthor family's past. I traced my ancestry back to a man named William Luthor who came here from England in the Colonial period of America. He was a wealthy founder of a colony in New England that was burned to the ground by Native Americans, they managed to kill everybody who lived there except William himself and his son Alexander. He went on to found Luthor and Son in Boston and he is the first of a long line of Luthor's who made it rich."

"Lex. I don't understand. Why wouldn't you want to tell me this stuff?"

"Lana. I love you. I was doing it to protect you."

"Protect me from what exactly Lex? Boredom at hearing your family's drawn out history?"

"No Lana, William Luthor orchestrated his own death to escape revenge from a man named Noble Kale who was supposedly following him since the attack on the first colony. I found William's tomb where all the men that went in with me were attacked and killed by something. That something claimed to be Noble Kale and it said it would have its revenge on the Luthor family." Lana's face had gone white. "Lana whats the matter?"

"Lex, while you were gone I received a package in the mail. It was the journal of a man named Noble Kale who was hired as a mercenary by a man named William to help settle and protect a colony in New England."

"Lana who sent it to you?"

"It only had a note that said 'The rider looks forward to dance with you.'"

"Lana go get me that journal right now." Lex demanded.

----

Chloe smelled the sickly smell of preservatives and chemicals in the autopsy room of the Metropolis morgue. Behind her a flash lit the dim room as Jimmy took a picture of the charred table where Johnny Blaze was lain the night before. "Thank you for coming down here on such short notice Ms. Sullivan. I saw in the paper today that Johnny Blaze went to a club last night. But last night I swear he was laying right there dead." The man said with a shaky voice as he pointed at the table.

"Thank you for the tip. Why is the table blackened. It looks like it was on fire." Chloe observed.

"It wasn't. Johnny was." The man said ominously. Chloe shot Jimmy a look who just shrugged at her. He'd seen weirder things in his day.

"Tell me from the beginning. What happened?" Chloe said as she got out a tape recorder.

"Well..." the man started. "Johnny was brought in with multiple severe fractures and burns. He had been dead for at least four or five hours when we finally got to work on him. Then last night as we were about to start on him the lights in here went out and then his head started on fire. Before I knew what was happening he jumped off the table, all he had for a head was a flaming skull. My partner managed to say 'Mr. Blaze?' and this thing said to us 'No, My name is Noble Kale!' Then a crack in the floor opened up, the thing jumped in, the crack closed and then we went to the bar to have a drink because you don't see that sort of thing every day."

"The bar huh? How many pitchers did you have?" Jimmy asked.

"Jimmy!" Chloe scolded.

"Listen I know how this sounds but its the truth." Chloe shut her recorder off and put it away.

"Well thank you for meeting with us and calling us. I promise I'll look into this further. And I'll give the Inquisitor your name. This is really the kind of story they cover. Lets go Jimmy." As Chloe and Jimmy walked out of the building Jimmy said

"Noble Kale huh? Cool name."

"Yeah..." said Chloe thoughtfully.

----
Lex held the journal in trembling hands. The last few entries provided some clarity to who Noble Kale was.

Oct 11th

Meeting M. again tonight. William is away on business in Boston. I do not think he suspects anything but sometimes I wish he did. He does not love her and a duel would solve everyone in this colony's problems. I could end his miserable existence and lead this place to prosperity. I know he has been stealing the food and medicine shipments from London and selling them in Boston. I take pleasure in knowing his wife loves me.

Oct 12th

Wonderful news. William and his son must travel back to England for the better part of a year to deal with some pressing business. He has left me in charge of the settlement. M. told me last night she had something important to tell me.

Oct 13th

M. is carrying my child. I did not think it possible but I am thankful for our good luck. The child will have come to term before William returns. I will escort M. to a native village nearby where she can carry the child away from the eyes of the town. They will think she has gone back to London with her husband.

Dec 2nd

William has stopped sending shipments. Does he mean for us to starve to death? I have become friends with the local natives. They are helping us surive the winter.

June 5th

We have made it to the summer. William returns in a fortnight. M. is in labor. The timing could not be better.

June 6th.

M. has had my child, a son. We have named him Bartholomew Kale. His existence must not be known to anyone. He will stay with my friends at the Native village.

July 8th.

William suspects something. I have arranged for Bartholomew to live with some distant family in Charleston. He will be safe there.

July 15th. (The script was no longer written in ink but instead looked as though it had been burned into the parchement.)

Dead. Everyone. Vengeance shall be mine. My family shall be cursed and I shall rest.

Lex thought back to the painting. M. must have been Miriam Luthor. That meant that somewhere alive today Lex had a half brother hundreds of times removed. The heir that Kale had spoke of. Lex got out his cell phone. "Markus. I want you to look into something for me."