Hey guys, I just wanted to take this short time to express to all of you how sorry I am for taking so long to write this last chapter of Superman: Origin's time on Krypton. I've been very busy lately, between being on vacation, hanging with friends and family, and working on my podcast "Across the Airwaves" (which you ALL should check out by the way), I've been swamped. But I'm back and I'm hopefully going to get back into the story and will hopefully be coming out with new material soon. This chapter is a bit longer (it's more like two chapters in one, but oh well!) because I wanted to end the Krypton arc to move onto getting baby Kal-El to Earth, but until then, enjoy "Last Day on Krypton"!
Jor-El has been travelling for months now, finding evidence of Krypton's (and their Red Sun's) impending doom. He then went to the Council to try and convince them of what was happening. It did not work. He tried to show them that Brainiac was not only keeping this from them, but could also be behind it. They didn't believe him. The only person on the planet, besides his loving wife, who would believe Jor-El, was his friend, Krypton's very own General Zod. Zod just tried to over-throw the Council with his wife and second-in-command Ursa-Zod, Commander Ur-Non, and a bunch of other soldiers who were just following orders, thinking that it was a training exercise. Unbeknown to them, they were wrong.
"Why do they need to see me at a time like this?" Jor-El thought to himself, "They got Zod, they think I'm insane, so why can't they just let me be so I can save Kal?" Jor-El, now shaven, was recognized by the Council's guards and they opened the doors to the Science Center's meeting room, which also doubled as the Council's meeting place, and court room.
"Jor-El, thank you for joining us" said a Councilman.
"As if I had any other choice, what is this about Council? Why bring me in on Zod's trial? He made his choice, what can I do to help him?"
"You, and you alone, will be the one t decide his final fate once the Council votes"
The Kryptonian crest on the floor opened and, in a status field, up rose General Zod, Ursa, and Non, the ones behind the rebellion.
"Jor-El, please tell this terrible trio their crimes" commanded a Council member.
Jor-El looked at Zod who looked right back. "I don't see any crimes against Krypton, Council" said Jor-El, trembling.
"You don't see any crimes?!" screamed one of them.
"General Zod lead a full-fledged invasion attack on the Council, trying to over-throw us and destroy Brainiac! Ursa and Non valiantly agreed to lead the soldiers into battle along-side the General! How can you tell us that they committed no crimes against Krypton!?"
"Council, with all due respect, they only committed crimes against you, not against Krypton, they believed that by over-throwing you, that Krypton would have a better chance at survival." Replied Jor-El.
"Then you support their actions? Would you stand up there with them?" asked a Councilwoman.
Jor-El paused. He knew he believed in Zod's cause, because he himself kickstarted it. He knew he needed to be up there to help his friend, but what about Kal-El? What about Lara? They couldn't possibly finish the final calibrations to the ship without him, even with Kelex there! There was only one choice here, and it was killing him. He knew this would cause the friendship, the brotherhood, between him and Zod to be destroyed. He knew that this would mean that he would be called a hypocrite by the Council. And he knew that we would be one less of a Kryptonian being. But he also knew what was about to happen to Krypton, and that he needed to be there for baby Kal.
"No Councilmen, I do not" answered Jor-El, heartbroken, torn, and humiliated.
Zod only stared at Jor-El, eyes blazing like fire, just wishing he were free to knock some sense into his ex-best friend, his former brother.
"Then it's time to come to a vote" said a Councilman, "All in favor of sending Zod and his allies to eternal punishment in the Phantom Zone, say 'Guilty'."
"Guilty"
"Guilty"
"Guilty"
"Guilty"
"Guilty"
"Guilty"
"Guilty"
Each Councilmember said it, and as each said it, their heads faded away, leaving only Jor-El, Zod, Ursa, and Non.
"The vote must be unanimous Jor-El," said Zod "You alone have the power to condemn us if you wish, or to set us free, and you alone will be held responsible by me."
"Zod… Dru, I have to, if I don't then I will be banished with you. I need to save Kal. Without me, his ship won't be completed and he will die here with all of Krypton while the four of us will be spared in a living Hell, forever."
"You would know Jor-El! You and Vril-Dox built it! Along with that AI that this world so desperately cherishes."
"I am sorry my friend." Jor-El says as he takes the Phantom Zone projector out from his personal pocket dimension.
"Is that what I think it is?" asked Ursa.
"Yes it is milady. That's the original Phantom Zone projector. The Council uses a more, un-Kryptonian way to send us to the Zone, while Jor-El's is more, Kryptonian." Replied Non.
"I am truly sorry my friends." Said Jor-El. "I am required to give you any last words."
Zod looks up at Jor-El with burning anger and hatred in his face and eyes, "You will bow down before me Jor-El! I swear it! No matter that it takes an eternity! You will bow down before me! Both you, and then one day, your heirs!"
"If that is all…" says Jor-El as he activates the Phantom Zone projector.
"Kneel before Zooooooooddddddd….." And then, they were gone.
Jor-El is left alone and weeps once again for his friend, until an unwelcomed guest makes himself known.
"Kryptonians are weak and emotional. What has just transpired will break you at your core" said the Brain Inter Active Construct.
"Brainiac! You? You ARE controlling the Council!" accused Jor-El.
"No, I am simply telling them what they want to hear. You see, they know Krypton is doomed, and I offered them protection." Said Brainiac.
"And they bought that?"
"Yes, in fact, I am going to preserve them, and their precious city."
"Kandor? How?" asked Jor-El.
"Look outside Kryptonian, it has already begun."
Jor-El ran outside and saw a giant skull-faced ship, with Brainiac's emblem on its forehead, flying over the city. Eight tentacles came out of the bottom and a bay door opened up, sending androids down to terrorize the city.
Just then, the giant viewing screen on the Science Center turned on with Brainiac's emblem for all to see. "People of Kandor, your leaders have served me well. Krypton will be destroyed in the next few hours, but you will not, you will be among the few survivors, and you alone will live alongside me in my ship."
People were terrified. They tried escaping the city, but the androids were all blocking the path. Jor-El ran back inside the Science Center and grabbed some of the most powerful and dangerous devices from the Science Vault, including the two power Orbs (also known as the Alphahedron and Omegahedron) and the Starblade (which has the power to kill a Kryptonian under the influence of a yellow sun) and sent them to his pocket dimension so that Brainiac could not get a hold of them. Jor-El then ran back outside right as Brainiac's ship started glowing. A force field started to fall upon the city. Jor-El knew he was trapped, but there was one way out, it was risky, but worth a shot. He ran, once again, into the Science Center to the lab, he knew that some Science Guild members were experimenting with teleportation, just like the guys in Argo City were with force fields (and obviously, where Brainiac got his), so he searched for the device. "Found it!" he exclaimed to himself! He started up the machine and type in the co-ordinates to his home. ACTIVATE? It was risky, but needed to be done. YES.
Lara was watching the holo-news in horror, watching Kandor be abducted by a machine, praying to Rao that her husband got out safe. And just then, Kandor is gone and Brainiac's ship flies towards Krypton's Red Sun. Lara bursts into tears, thinking that Jor-El is gone forever, but just then, a figure appears out of no-where.
"Jor-El!" screams Lara, jumping into her husband's arms, "you made it! You're home!"
"Yes, I am, but it's only a matter of time before our world dies Lara, how is the ship coming?"
"Kelex and I finished it; we just need to pick a destination."
"We only have a few hours Lara, let's get to the lab."
Jor-El and Lara rush to the lab and rush through worlds.
"We could send him to Daxam! He'd feel right at home." Suggested Lara.
"No Lara, Daxam separated from Krypton long ago, they want nothing to do with us now."
Thanagar, no. Raan, no. Culu, no. Oa, certainly not. Korugar, no chance. Xanshi, no. Mars, not with a civil war going on there. Earth…
"Jor-El, you can't be serious, Earth? They're hundreds of years behind us Jor, they're… Savages!"
"The same could be said for us Lara. They're already better than the Thanagarians or Raanians. The Guardian's would kick him off of Oa, and he wouldn't fit in to any other planet. On Earth, he would look just like one of them."
"But he's not one of them Jor, he's one of us."
"Maybe Lara, but he's also our son, he won't die here." Responded Jor-El, "I am going to try and contact someone on Earth, when I find out what kind of people they are, I will decide."
Jor-El put his hand on his scanner and projected himself all the way to Earth. It, of course, was only a hard-light construct of himself, but it would suffice.
Arriving in a barren waste-land Jor-El searched the planet for someone, anyone. Just then, someone yelled, "Hey, hey mister, are you lost, you hurt?"
Jor-El turned around, he was shocked that Earth people spoke Basic, the galaxies most common language, it was a second language to him and he responded, "No sir, I am looking for some advice."
"Well, then you've come to the right place, my names Jonathan. Jonathan Kent." He said, holding out his hand.
"Jor, Jor-El." Jor-El said as he took Jonathan's hand to shake it.
"Jore Elle? Huh, odd name, you from the city?"
"Something like that."
"Well, what can I do you for then, Mr. Elle?"
"Well, if I knew that, and this is hypothetical, if my wife and I were to die in a… Terrible accident, would you take care of my son?"
Jonathan paused. This was an odd question to ask, but what else could he say?
"Yes Mr. Elle, I would personally see to it that I raised your boy right, just as I would my own."
Jor-El smiled, that's all he needed to hear. "Good. Good."
"Mr. Elle, forgive me for asking, but why would you ask such an odd question like that?"
"Just looking for the best and brightest of planet Earth, Mr. Kent. That's all."
"Don't work about it Mr. Elle, it's what us humans do! My wife, Martha, and I have been praying to the Lord for a sweet baby boy with big blue eyes for the past two years. Sadly Mr. Elle, Martha can't have children. We were looking to adopt, but haven't had any luck yet."
"Mr. Kent," Jor-El said as he put his hand on Jonathan's shoulder, "I'm sure your prayers will be answered sooner than you think."
"Thank you Mr. Elle, now if you'll excuse me…" Jonathan started to say as he turned around, "I've got to get back to…" Jonathan just stared at nothing. "Work."
Jor-El awoke out of the projection and immediately set the course on the ship to Earth, destination Smallville, Kansas.
"Jor, you can't be serious" Lara said, turning back to him.
"I am serious Lara. You see, I just met a man who said he would raise our boy as his own, I could see it in his eyes Lara, he meant it."
"But Jor, think about what you're doing, Kal will never be an Earthling!"
"Human. They're called humans, and he doesn't have to be one of them, just look like them. I've heard rumors that, because the Daxamites live under a Yellow Sun instead of Red, that their biology is changed so that all of their senses are increased by a million, and they are given extraordinary powers! On Earth, Kal would have these abilities too!"
"He'll be alone." Lara whimpered.
"He will never be alone Lara. Not when he has us."
Just then, an alarm sounded which caught Jor-El's eye. Brainiac had just launched a missile into the sun!
"Krypto, come here boy!" shouted Jor-El as his dog came rushing to his side.
"Why call your dog at a time like this Jor-El?" asked Lara.
"I don't want him to suffer too Lara, not like us."
Jor-El opened his pocket dimension once again and Krypto lunged inside. He wanted to preserve Krypto, to show Kal, one day, that he wasn't completely alone.
"Why don't we go into your dimension Jor-El? Why not save us?"
"Because Lara, my pocket dimension puts anything in it in suspended animation, keeping it in a frozen state until released. We won't be alive."
"So you put your dog in there instead?"
"It's better than watching him suffer out here, besides Lara, I believe Kal will find him one day."
Lara ran upstairs to get Kal-El from his room, while Jor-El synced his last memories and will into his Sunstone Crystal, once again placing it in Kal's ship.
Just then, Kelex appeared, "Sir, what would you like me to do now? My sole purpose was to protect Kal-El and serve you and Mistress Lara's every need. I will no longer be needed soon, I fear."
"Kelex, you have been loyal to me since the day I created you. Thank you. And thank you for not becoming another Brainiac."
"You're welcome, sir."
Jor-El once again opened his pocket dimension once again with his House of El Crystal (given to him by his father). "Kelex, remain in here until you are called upon by Kal-El. He will be your new master. Watch over him as you do now."
"Yes Master Jor-El, I will." Kelex says as he enters the pocket universe.
Just then, Lara walks down the stairs with baby Kal-El. "Where's Kelex, Jor?"
"Gone Lara, he will serve and protect Kal when Kal calls upon him, just as he did us."
"Your brother, Zor, called, he believes your claims about Brainiac and Krypton's doom, he activated Argo City's force generator, which he says should protect them from the destruction. He said we could try and meet him there, but we don't have that much time, do we Jor?"
"No."
"I thought not, are we ready?"
"Yes"
Jor-El and Lara-El walk with their son Kal-El towards the ship. Lara places baby Kal in the ship and wraps him in his father's cape made of memory fabric.
"Remember when I designed this cape for you, my love? I designed is so that when you tore it or ripped it, that it would grow back. You went through so many capes, Jor." said Lara.
"Yes my dear, I did, but that time is past us now, we only have now."
"Ship: Video Record" said Jor-El to the ship, it did as he asked. Jor-El held his wife in his hands and started to speak.
"Kal-El, my son. You are not from Earth, you are from a distant planet called Krypton. Because of planetary changes, and the Brain Inter Active Construct's decision to turn against its creators, Krypton is no more."
Lara starts to cry, but Jor-El continues.
"Kal, you are the Last Son of Krypton. The last child, our last hope. I have chosen a kindly couple to raise you in your mother and I's absence. You are not alone Kal-El, my memory and will resides within the Sunstone Crystal that is in your ship. Through it, I will answer any and all questions that you have for me. Even though you've been raised as a human, you are not one of them. You must embrace your Kryptonian heritage and become who you are destined to be. You will be a champion of your world, a god among men."
"We love you Kal, we always have, and we always will, no matter what." said Lara to her son.
"I love you my son. My only wish is that I could be there with you, to watch you grow. I failed to save Krypton, but I will not fail to save you."
Jor-El and Lara look at the ship, then at each other, and then back.
"Ship: END TRANSMISSION"
"Jor-El…" Lara started just as a quake began.
"It's starting."
Just then, a solar flare scorched Kryptonopolis.
"Jor! Look, the city!" Lara shouted, pointing at the broken world upon them.
"There's nothing we can do now Lara!" Jor-El said as he ran to the controls and launched the ship.
Jor-El and Lara watched as their last hope flew away, and escaped Krypton's fate, and their own.
"Lara, I…"
"I know Jor, I love you too."
Jor-El and Lara-El, husband and wife, scientists, parents, and lovers kissed passionately in their final breaths as their home, their world, collapsed around them.
Brainiac's rocket had finally reached the Red Sun's core, making the sun explode like fireworks.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?"
"Yes Lara, yes it is."
"Do you think he made it?"
"I know he did, and he made us proud Lara, he had us very proud."
And in that moment, Krypton died, and the universe became a blacker place, but not without hope, as Kal-El's ship headed towards Earth. The Yellow Sun was rising, bringing hope for a new day to the child's eyes.