Superman: New Heights
Chapter Four
Clark walked into the bullpen of the Daily Planet, only to bump into another worker. He seemed to be on the leaner side, with blue eyes and curly ginger hair.
"Oh hey! You must be Clark! I'm Olsen, James Olsen," said James.
"I'm guessing Perry told you about me, James?" asked Clark, adjusting his glasses.
"Oh, call me Jimmy. And actually, it was Lois. She hasn't stopped talking about you," replied Jimmy. A surprised look crossed Clark's face.
"Oh, really?" asked Clark.
"Yeah. She keeps talking about how you're bright-eyed and bushy-tailed from Smallville, and how Metropolis will more or less straighten you up," said Jimmy.
"Ah, of course," chuckled Clark. Just then, his phone began to ring. Clark pulled out his phone and realized that it was someone who hadn't called in a really long time. Almost a whole four years, in fact.
"Uh Jimmy, I need to take this. But tell Lois I'll see her in a few," said Clark, beginning to walk away.
"Sure thing!" replied Jimmy, practically racing through the bullpen. Clark picked up the phone, eager to speak to the person on the call.
"Hey Lana, w-what's up?" asked Clark.
"Hey Clark. You're in Metropolis now, right?" she asked.
"Yeah, I'm actually at the Daily Planet right now. How are you settling in?" asked Clark. He heard a sigh from Lana's end.
"Not good. Only my first few days on the job and there's already something shady. There was some explosion at Lexcorp, but no one from the higher-ups is divulging any information," replied Lana.
Clark suddenly remembered the explosion that had somehow transported him to the Fortress of Solitude at the Arctic Circle. The memory of the crystal also reformed in his head. Along with the memory of the scientist, Rudy Jones.
"Hey, I remember one of our reporters mentioning a source of theirs, who claimed that there were some experiments taking place at Lexcorp. With some diamond thingy?" asked Clark, trying his best to be oblivious.
"I probably shouldn't be telling you this, but yeah it's true. Lexcorp…Lex Luthor, was trying to harness some sort of technology but it seems to have backfired," replied Lana.
"What about a scientist? Rudy Jones?" asked Clark. Lana seemed to audibly shrug.
"All I know is the technology backfired and led to a massive explosion. Luthor is going to put out a statement soon, but as far as I know, no scientist worked in that laboratory. Official reports say that it was all run by Luthor himself," replied Lana.
"Right. Sorry, Lois wanted some information about it," explained Clark.
"It's okay, don't worry. I'll tell you more about it over a coffee?" asked Lana. Clark swallowed hard before responding.
"Uh yeah, yeah sure! Does today evening work?" asked Clark.
"See you there!" replied Lana enthusiastically, before cutting the call. A confused Clark made his way back to the bullpen, to Lois' cubicle.
"Ms. Lane? I had an…idea for something you could investigate," said Clark. Lois stopped clacking away at her keyboard and turned back to look at him. Clark forgot what he was going to say when he stared into her green eyes.
"Well, Smallville? Are the crops dying?" she asked. Clark snapped out of it and cleared his throat.
"Yeah so, there was an explosion at Lexcorp. Maybe we could investigate that?" suggested Clark.
"I asked Perry for that. Apparently, Luthor already tweeted out a statement regarding the explosion, claiming it was a gas leak," replied Lois, turning back to her article.
"Well, a source of mine claims that it was actually some experimental technology that blew up, and may or may not have led to a scientist going missing," replied Clark.
"I see. And who is this anonymous source?" she asked.
"Lana Lang. She's an intern at Lexcorp's research facilities," replied Clark. Lois chuckled as she stood up.
"First rule of journalism, Smallville: Never reveal an anonymous source," explained Lois, picking up her coat and walking to the elevator, pressing the button to go down.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" asked Lois, calling to Clark.
"Wait, I can come?" asked Clark, surprised.
"You want to learn about journalism, don't you? Now come on, it's time we see if your source is correct," replied Lois. Clark quickly shuffled to the elevator and got in with Lois.
"What about Perry? Didn't he disapprove of this idea?" asked Clark, a little nervously.
"He'll take back his words once we get the information we need," replied Lois, the elevator doors closing.
"John! Come in already!" shouted the woman through the window in her house. However, John seemed preoccupied with his telescope, staring into the sky.
"Anytime today…" he told himself, gazing through the telescope, holding a grainy black and white picture of what looked like a UFO, along with a second picture of a small grey alien wih a large forehead.
Just then, a black figure zoomed past John's vision, and he fell back in surprise.
"Oh my God," he whispered, staring at the creature hovering above him. It was completely black, with what looked like a black metallic chestplate. Its eyes were a steel blue, and it stared straight at John.
"A-Anna!" shouted John. But before Anna could even come out of the house, a concentrated laser beam pierced through the humanoid's eyes, and in an instant, John was vaporized into a crisp.
Anna let out a blood-curdling scream upon seeing her husband being obliterated, before the humanoid zoomed away again, past a sign that read: "Smallville Farms."
Clark gazed in awe at Lexcorp Tower. He'd had a bird's eye view of the place, but he had never seen it from the ground up. Its majestic spire on top of the building stabbed the clouds above, and the opaque glass windows glistened in the sun.
Lois confidently strut through the doors of the tower, a notepad in her hand and a voice recorder in her pocket. Clark hurried behind her, as he took in the massive, marble-tiled lobby.
"Smallville, go handle the receptionist," ordered Lois. Clark walked up to the woman behind the counter in the lobby.
"Can I help you?" she asked.
"Uh…I'm here to meet a friend," bumbled Clark, while Lois snuck in as the receptionist was distracted.
"Her name is Lana. Lana Lang. I wanted to ask if she would be free for a coffee in the evening," explained Clark. He noticed stacks of papers strewn about her desk behind the counter. The papers seemed to have the names of different employees who worked at Lexcorp.
However, one name seemed to catch Clark's attention. He peered closer and noticed a name scribbled out of a pink paper.
"Rudy Jones…" thought Clark, reading the paper.
"Hey, Smallville!" called Lois in a hushed voice. Clark turned to his left and saw her entering the elevator.
"Hey, I think there's a bug there!" called out Clark, pointing behind the receptionist. As soon as she turned around, Clark used his super speed to pick up the pink paper and rush to the elevator doors.
He slowed down just before he reached and managed to get through the doors.
"Wow, that was fast!" remarked Lois. Clark shrugged.
"High school football paid off, I suppose," reasoned Clark, as the elevator began to move up.
"You played football?" she asked, in awe.
"It's that surprising?" chuckled Clark, adjusting his glasses.
"I mean…you don't really strike me as the adventurous type. Like, I'd imagine you as the type of guy to sit home and read a book on a Friday night. Uh, no offense," remarked Lois.
"None taken, you're actually spot on correct," replied Clark. Lois cocked her head to the side.
"So, what do I strike you as?" asked Lois. Clark thought for a second, before opening his mouth.
"You seem like the adventurous, and most definitely a brave type. But I'd also imagine you as the type of journalist who'd stop at no matter what to achieve her goals. Especially when you get a big story," replied Clark.
Lois seemed taken aback. "Please, Vicki Vale had a much bigger scoop about Batman. I've been on a year-long dry spell," sighed Lois, scratching an itch on her left arm.
"What about Superman?" asked Clark. Lois turned back at him, and he could practically see the cogs turning in her head when he brought up Superman.
"You know what? An exclusive interview with Superman would definitely put me back on the map. Thanks, Smallville," said Lois. Clark blushed a little, but luckily the elevator doors opened and he walked out before she could notice.
To their left was a large glass door. Clark used his X-Ray vision and saw a massive oblong table in the middle of the room. Lex was sitting at the end of the desk, seated next to another room that Clark seemed to recognize, but could not place where.
"There. He's in the board room," said Clark. Lois nodded and walked up to the door, and opened the door without even knocking.
"Agreed, Mr. Wayne. This is why I feel a merger is a perfect opportunity. Imagine what Lexcorp and Wayne Enterprises could-"
Before he could finish, Lois entered the room and cleared her throat.
"Is this a bad time?" asked Lois. Mr. Wayne looked back at Lex.
"It seems so. We can discuss this at a later date," replied Mr. Wayne.
"Fair enough, Mr. Wayne," replied Lex, trying his best to not seethe in front of him and Lois, and the bespectacled journalist standing behind Lois.
"Please, call me Bruce," said Wayne, standing up and shaking Lex's hand.
"Bruce Wayne?" asked Clark to himself, glancing at him as he walked out. Bruce gave him a similar look while he walked out of the room, as if he vaguely recognized Clark.
Lex cleared his throat and sat back down. "Is there a reason for rudely interrupting an important meeting?" asked Lex, sarcastically. Lois scoffed as she pulled up a newspaper article titled: "Lexcorp Explosion- Gas Leak to Blame."
Lex eyed the article, but rolled his eyes and sighed. "I've said countless times to many other reporters, it was a gas leak explosion, nothing more," replied Lex, getting annoyed every second.
"So the rumors about an experimental technology being tested are baseless?" asked Lois.
Clark noticed a nearly imperceptible twitch of Lex's eyebrows, and it seemed like the iota of tension from him had dissipated into the atmosphere. He plastered a smile and looked back at Lois.
"I think you should recheck your source, and if they're even reliable," replied Lex. "I can't say anything else because for all I know tabloids like the newspaper you work for would sell an arm and a nose for a baseless conspiracy," he continued.
Lois sat in place, before smiling and nodding.
"Fair enough. I'll recheck with my source," said Lois, standing up and walking back to Clark.
"W-What about Rudy Jones?" asked Clark, shooting Lex a "gotcha" look. Once again, his eyebrow twitched, and Clark could hear his heartbeat rising.
"Rudy Jones? I don't think I've ever heard of that name," replied Lex.
"He's a scientist here at Lexcorp. He worked for you, and he's gone missing," prodded Clark. Lex simply shrugged his shoulders.
"If there were a Rudy Jones working on something that you claim is "experimental technology", then don't you think I would remember his name, or acknowledge the fact that he's missing?" asked Lex.
Lois shot Clark a glare, who instantly shut up.
"And who are you?" asked Lex, looking at Clark.
"Clark Kent. I'm an intern at the Daily Planet," explained Clark. Lex squinted a little, then nodded. Lois grabbed Clark by the arm and the two of them walked out of the room.
"Wait, how did you two gain access here?" called out Lex, but Lois and Clark both got into the elevator in the nick of time.
"Are you sure about your source?" asked Lois.
"100 percent. Something definitely happened regarding experimental technology, and the lead scientist has gone missing," said Clark.
"Look, I want to take down billionaire douchebags just like everyone else too, but we don't know if Jones was ever even real.
"That's when Clark pulled the paper out of his pocket, and showed her the scribbled name.
"I got this from the receptionist's counter," said Clark. "But I can't figure out what it is,"
Lois' eyes went wide. "It's a death certificate. The upper portion is torn out, but his name and other details are clearly visible. This proves that Jones is…I mean, was an actual person," she continued.
"Exactly," said Clark, as the elevator doors opened up.
The duo walked up to the door, when all of a sudden, a huge slab of concrete came barrelling down the street, crushing any cars on the way and creating what felt like an earthquake.
"WHAT THE HELL?!" shouted Lois, ducking to cover. Another piece of debris went flying into another building.
"Clark! Take cover!" shouted Lois, looking around for him.
But Clark was nowhere to be seen.
Superman flew to the top of Lexcorp Tower and got a bird's eye view of the situation unfolding. A completely opaque, humanoid figure was hovering in the air, picking up huge slabs of concrete from buildings and hurling them to the ground.
Superman flew down behind him, and cleared his throat.
The humanoid turned around, his eyes as blue as the deep sea, and his stare as cold as an iceberg.
"Kryptonian detected…anomaly…Eradicate," said the figure. Before Superman could even reply, a beam of concentrated heat vision flew through the figure's eyes and hit Superman in the chest.
Clark flew into the wall of a building, as the figure rushed to punch him. Superman moved at the exact second before unleashing a kick to the figure's chest, who went flying across the street.
"Eradicator function…activated," said the figure. Superman zoomed back down to the ground to get a closer look. That's when the figure's skin began to turn blue and red. The armor around his chest and legs turned blue and his sides were an opaque black.
A deep, blood-red cape seemed to emerge from his shoulders onto his back. It was as if he became a twisted mirror version of Superman himself.
"Eradicator…online," it said, and in the blink of an eye, it grabbed Superman by the throat and zoomed down the street, throwing him into a building. Superman managed to get on his feet and fly toward the figure, punching it in the face.
The figure tumbled down but managed to stand, while rushing towards Superman at a breakneck speed, grabbing his face and throwing him into a store.
"Too many people here," thought Superman, flying out of the store, grabbing the figure's arm, and then flying high into the sky.
The figure kicked Clark away and unleashed its heat vision. Superman unleashed his and the two beams clashed, making it seem like a giant sword made out of pure heat was between them.
Superman began to strain as the figure let out a huge optical blast, one that Superman could not counter, and the knockback sent him reeling. The figure grabbed Superman by the throat and flew higher and higher, past the mesosphere of the Earth.
It then punched Superman upwards into space.
"Getting hard to breathe…never been this high…" thought Superman. The figure flew up behind him, grabbed his cape and pulled his back onto his knee, before flying from under him and uppercutting Superman.
Superman managed to stay awake as he rushed towards the figure, punching it in the chest and its face, but to no avail. Clark felt as if he was punching the hardest metal known to man.
The figure let out a cold, icy breath, which seemed to freeze Clark in place. Before Superman could break free, it zoomed towards him and grabbed him by the face, and then flew back to Earth at super speed.
The two of them landed in the middle of the Sahara desert, with Superman's face pushed into the ground. Before he could try and escape, the figure used its heat vision on Superman's back.
"AAAARGHH!" shouted Clark, having never felt pain like that before. The adrenaline rush caused him to zoom out of the figure's grasp.
"Son of El," hissed the figure, with a voice that was equivalent to nails on a chalkboard. Superman flew back to him, readying his fist for a punch. However, the figure grabbed Superman's right fist and pushed him to his knees.
Both their eyes grew red with heat. Clark could feel the figure's grip tighten on his wrist. He had never felt pain like this before, and he knew that if he fought anymore, there was a high possibility that he could die.
The figure slammed Superman onto the ground and began to repeatedly punch his face. For the first time, Clark could taste the blood in his mouth as every punch from the figure led to more of it. The figure began to punch his chest and his side as well, trying to weaken Superman.
"A smart guy should always know when it's best to throw in the towel," remembered Clark, reminiscing about his father and the values he taught him.
As the figure continued to punch Superman's face and ribs backward, Clark took in a deep breath and let out an icy freeze breath directly onto the figure. The figure let go and staggered back.
Superman delivered one punch to the figure and sent him flying back about 500 meters, before boosting up into the sky and retreating, the pain all over his body still throbbing.
Rudy was wearing an oversized hoodie he stole from a homeless person, as he walked to the gates of Lexcorp Tower. EMTs were present at the scene due to Superman and a fight he had with an all-black figure.
"Superman…" thought Rudy, a twinge of hate in his tone.
"Can I help you?" asked Lois, who saw Rudy standing and staring at the Lexcorp symbol for minutes. His skin was also turning more and more purple.
"You can't help me. Not at all," said Rudy, and that's when the horror began. He began to feel hungry again.
"No…no please, not here!" he exclaimed, dashing away from the place and into an alleyway. He stumbled upon entering the alleyway and landed right in front of a sleeping homeless person.
"No…please," begged Rudy, but the pain in his whole body was unending. Reluctantly, he placed two hands on the man's shoulder. The man, who was still asleep, seemed to shrivel up and crumble.
Rudy stumbled back, only to realize he was now a whole foot taller than before, and his skin had turned a darker shade of purple. He quickly buried his hands in his pockets and rushed away.
"Only one person can help me…" he thought, looking at the Lexcorp symbol on top of the tower.
Superman flew as far as his body could take him. His vision began to blur more until he just managed to see his destination. After one final push, he crash-landed in the Arctic Circle.
"That thing…it knew I was Kryptonian…" thought Superman, limping into the Fortress of Solitude.
"Have never felt…like this…" groaned Superman, falling to his knees.
"My answers…are here…" he thought, before falling on his back.
"Shit…I had to meet…Lana…" he finally thought, picturing her in his brain. Exhaustion seemed to overcome him, as he closed his eyes and drifted into sleep on the icy grounds of the Fortress of Solitude.