Saga One

Episode I: Superman

Chapter One: First Flight

The intense, scorching heat of the bright, yellow sun roasted the dry ground of the Mojave, fracturing the earth as if it were made of plaster. A lone figure walked this hazy scene, braving the brilliant star's penetrating rays in an unknown quest, drawing ever nigh to an unknown destination. Raising a hand to his brown face in order to catch a vagrant strand of long dark hair from his brow, he turned his eyes heavenwards and gazed upon the sprawling blue sky. A dark blot was on the face of the sun. Puzzled, he squinted as he shielded his eyes from the glare, the lone traveller gazed at the blemish on the face of Sol wondering what it could be. As he stared skyward the blot grew until it became apparent that it was not an anomaly peculiar to the star but, to his own atmosphere. His eyes widened as the blot became a blazing ball of fire raining from the sky. The traveller lunged to the ground as the fireball flew overhead at an unearthly speed, peering over his shoulder he watched as the nameless object left a trail of fire and smoke on its passage north. Thanking the spirits for his survival he regained his feet and continued upon his unknown odyssey to face many more strange and unusual sights. However, the flaming star continued its northern journey finding its resting place amongst an idyllic copse of Ponderosa pines, decimating them as it pounded its way into the hardened earth.

1860. 200 years later.

Jeremiah Kent wiped his sweaty brow as he stretched his aching back muscles, turning he admired the sweeping pasturelands now known as the Kent family ranch. His family ranch. Smiling at that thought he looked down at his eldest son Joseph in the deep well they were digging "time to get back to work, this well won't dig itself!" he called to him. Joseph, leaning on his shovel looked up "All right, Pa" Joseph hollered back from the bottom of the freshly dug pit. As his son filled a bucket with dirt Jeremiah hauled it out and dumped it to the side "how much further 'til we strike water?" Joseph questioned "hopefully not too far" his father replied. "Ah!" Joseph cried as his shovel hit something hard under the earth and the force of his thrust reverberated back up the wooden handle of the shovel, stinging his wrists. "What happened?" Jeremiah asked "I hit a rock!" Joseph responded. Joseph thrust his shovel into the ground again "Ouch!" again his wrists protested as his shovel struck a hard obstacle this time producing a metallic clang.

"Did you hear that?" Joseph asked his father, "Sure did…doesn't sound like any rock I've ever dug" he replied. Joseph felt around with his shovel "whatever it is it's under this whole area". "Well, dig around a little" Joseph began to clear the surface of dirt covering the mysterious object. "What the devil?" Joseph exclaimed leaning back both amazed and bewildered "What's going on? What is it?" Jeremiah asked straining to see what his son had uncovered "That ain't no rock" Joseph replied.

Emmeline Kent winced as a sharp rock stabbed at her foot through the thin fabric of her shoe, causing her to nearly spill the bucket of water she had collected from the stream. Blowing a puff of hair from her brow she thought of how good it would be once her husband and son had finished digging a well near their newly built ranch house. No longer would she have to walk to the stream every time they were in need of water. Lost in thought she almost didn't notice her husband, Jeremiah, standing on the hill their house was built upon with a baby in his arms. "Where did that child come from?" she queried as her mind raced, searching through numerous explanations for its arrival. There was no carriage, wagon, or rider in sight no one could have brought this child to their ranch. "You're gonna' have a hard time believing this one Em" Jeremiah replied.

"Just like Moses in the bulrushes" Emmeline said after hearing of how Jeremiah and Joseph had discovered a strange metallic container underground that, to their surprise, had opened to reveal an infant boy sleeping peacefully within. "We cannot just leave the child to an orphanage, we must ensure that he is well cared for" Emmeline implored "But we don't know how this child came to be in the ground Em" Jeremiah replied, "It Is a frightfully uncommon thing." "It doesn't truly matter now does it? Said his wife "It is here now, perhaps providence has sent us this child for a reason we cannot yet see." "Tis' miraculous" Joseph added hopefully "You see, Husband? Now I don't much care for any more protest out of you, this child is as good as family now." Jeremiah sighed, "All right then" was all he could say.

1872 Nineteen years later.

Clark Kent waited for the torrential Nevada rain to stop, hoping that she might not come to harm in the foul, tempestuous weather. The cold did not bother him, nothing much ever did, ever since he was young when the other children were at play or work he never received scrapes and bruises like they did. The Kent family had always passed it off as something of a joke, "Clark's got a rock like constitution" they would laugh, others never understood the private joke. But their light-hearted attitude could never truly ignore the proverbial elephant in the room, Clark was different and only the Kent family had an idea as to why. But not as to how, Clark shrugged his jacket uneasily, the rain was exceptionally loud in his ears under the pavilion. His hearing had been giving him problems lately, sounds seemed far louder to him than to others, he was even overhearing private conversations. Others perhaps may have found this enhancement in eavesdropping a blessing but, constant voices and sounds coming from other rooms was something of a torment to nineteen year old Clark. The rain began to let up and across the park the tailor's door opened and Miss Lana Lang exited through it. Clark smiled as he heard her soft footsteps crossing the swampy earth admiring her fiery hair as she walked to meet him under the pavilion. "Hello, Miss Lang, It's lovely to see you on this fine afternoon." Lana laughed as Clark doffed his hat to her "Why, its mighty fine to be seeing you Mr. Kent if I may say so." "You may." Clark replied, Lana blushed as she brushed a droplet of rain from her cheek, "Then may I also inquire as to why you asked me here this afternoon?" Clark bowed his head as he reached into his trousers pocket looking at Lana he dropped to his knee as he pulled out a ring. Lana's cheeks turned to beetroot as Clark proposed, "I asked you here on this fine, sunshiny afternoon in order to ask for your hand in marriage." "I suppose this is why mama said I could head into town today." Lana stuttered, "It may" Clark replied "though I didn't catch an answer there," "why of course Clark" Lana responded. Clark leaped to his feet, wrapping his arms around Lana, "just wait 'til I tell my sisters" was all she could say.

1918 Forty Years Later

It was a crisp and early morning, the grassy French fields were swept by a chilled April breeze making its way across the pastureland. Clark paused to admire the swish of the cool breeze on his face before he turned back to the work at hand. The American Expeditionary Force was seeing combat for only the second time in the war, the Imperial Australian forces would be taking the lead in the upcoming assault upon the German position. Hoping to instil confidence in the inexperienced American troops to the Allied powers. "So… you uh…nervous?" a voice to his left questioned, Clark looked at the young 18 year old private Samuel Wilson, who stood fiddling with his kit. "Yeah, I think we all are." Clark replied, "Those other fella's don't seem to be." Sam nodded in the direction of couple of American soldiers in their early twenties standing just out of earshot, laughing as they puffed on cigarettes. "Those kind of guys just hide it behind a few laughs and jaunts, inside they'll be shaking like a leaf." Clark responded, Sam grinned "yeah, 'spose you're right." Clark pulled out a crinkled photo of Lana out of his pocket smoothing it as he did so. "That your ma?" Sam asked, Clark stared at the photo. It had been years since he and Lana had married. Not too long after they had discovered they couldn't have children, most assumed Lana was incapable of conceiving but, Clark and the Kent family suspected otherwise. As time had progressed it soon became obvious that Clark was not progressing with it, continuing to look like a man in his early twenties even as Lana entered her forties. Eventually he was forced to leave as it was no longer conceivable that Clark Kent was just 'aging well' Lana told everyone in the ever-growing town of Smallville that he had died in a train wreck. Clark continued to live on the ranch using his 'special abilities' in order to keep out of sight of the ranch hands. "No, just someone special" Clark responded after a delay, "All right! Get up! Get moving!" came a shout from their CO, it was time. Clark and Sam hurried to get into formation as preordained by their NCO's, unslinging his rifle from his shoulder Clark gazed at the hulking mass of metal that was the Mark V 'tank' that would be leading the assault upon the German lines. The town of Hamel was an important strategic position to the allied powers and Clark's 131st Infantry Regiment was to be play an important role in its capture. Moving under the cover of darkness, the allied troops crept forward as the artillery began its destructive role in the bloody clash that was to come. It was at this point that tragedy struck, before they even reached their objective Clark's platoon was struck a devastating blow, not by their foe, but by their own artillery. He could hear it coming, he whipped his head around seeing it before anyone else. "Look ou…" the shell hit the ground in the front row of the platoon, blowing them into a dozen pieces of burning flesh. Clark shoved Sam to the ground, leaping on top him and taking the force of the blast upon himself as it blew the other young men around him apart. As the noise died in his ears he stood…not believing what he was seeing… bodies, arms, legs and unrecognisable pieces of flesh were strewn around him. Why had he come here? Why was he experiencing this horror? He had joined the army out of some notion of bringing justice to those who had killed civilians. Helpless civilians, men, women and children drowned because of a war far away that they had had no part in. Now he was here 'holding them accountable, they can't get away with such violence' but now that was the last thing he wanted to think about. "Aaarrrghh!" Sam groaned, Clark was yanked from the petrifying scene, seeing that Sam was alive he lifted him up into his arms and clambered out of the ditch. Clark walked as artillery exploded around him, the chatter of machine gun fire and the thunder of bombs as they hit the earth, created a cacophony of sound, one that he would never forget. Clark walked as if in a daze, clutching to the barely breathing but, alive wounded private until he reached a medical tent.

One Day Later

Sam beamed up at Clark as he entered the crowded hospital room, seating himself at the end of Sam's bed. "You're looking pretty good for a guy who just got hit by a flying pig!" Clark laughed, "I'm looking good! Look at you!" Sam exclaimed in amazement "the nurse told me what happened, that you carried me all the way back from the field, how did you do it?" Clark shrugged "I don't understand it myself all I remember is the explosion and arriving back at the tent" He always felt uneasy lying but, had been forced to develop a capable poker face very early in life in order to hide his unique talents. "You saved my life Clark, I can never thank you enough for it" Sam looked Clark straight in the eye, earnestly trying to communicate to him just how grateful he was. It was then that Clark realised what he was meant to do, what he needed to do. He needed to save people.