Chapter 5 – Potential Threats

It was beautiful. Even as the countdown hit zero, the Doctor felt a strange calm descend upon him. He watched the roiling sea of plasma beyond the window as it thrashed and churned. It was as if he were in an underwater vessel watching a volcanic eruption from inside of the volcano. As the plasma thrashed back and forth churning in a relentless dance the Doctor could see that he was indeed on a vessel; and a rather large one at that. He pressed his hands up against the thick glass of the window to see if he could see more of his current temporary home.

From his vantage point the Doctor could make out several wings of the complex, each one comprised of several levels. Though the swirling plasma made visibility difficult he was able to make out large clusters of pylons at the end of each wing. He felt a strong thrumming surge through the metallic plates of the hull. Something was happening. He stood there glued to the window, watching the fiery dance play itself out. As the swirling and churning of the exterior plasma hastened, so too did the thrumming in the station.

As it grew to an excessive amount, a brilliant green flash was emitted from the pylon at the end of the closest wing. For a moment it infected the surrounding plasma. It turned from a brilliant golden red to a subtle jade green. The swirling and churning began to slow before it stopped all together. The Doctor shook his head in amazement. It was fascinating what was going on here. He crossed his arms, leaned back and chuckled. Sometimes it was just the little things that would catch him off guard, remind him how precious life was and how much each individual valued it.

A loud crack snapped him out of his silent admiration of the preciousness of life; more importantly the jeopardy of his own. The loud crack came from the window he had been looking out of. The green hue of the plasma had diminished and the golden amber glow had returned. However the quick swirling had slowed vastly. On the window a thin fracture had formed. It spread slowly across the length of the glass before stopping.

"Well that can't be good." He muttered softly as he leaned in close to look at the crack. Gently he stroked his chin as he eyed the new deformity.

"Put your hands up and back away from the view port!" came a voice. The Doctor spun to see a small group of people looking at him. Three of which were armed with some kind of plasma pistol. The fourth person carried some kind of electronic scanning device. They were all dressed in a drab grey and olive military garb, though the three armed gentleman were geared more for combat and defense. The last, if the Doctor had to guess, was an engineer.

"Ah, natives. Hello there." He said with a slight grin. He took a step forward with an outstretched hand.

"I said step away from the view port." The central man barked. He stood about the same height as the other two armed personnel. The only difference was that he wore a blue cap with the brim turned toward the rear. He thrust his pistol toward the Doctor once more. The Doctor sheepishly complied taking a step back. The man's eyes narrowed. "Travis, get on that blast shield!" He ordered.

The engineer nodded and ran over to the panel beside the cracked window. He hooked a chord from his electronic scanner into the wall mount the Doctor had previously 'persuaded' to open. He began tapping furiously on his panel.

"You know Travis I would be happy to help you with that." The Doctor said pointing to the panel with the hand that was still over his head.

"Step back traitor!" the blue cap barked. "We don't take too kindly to saboteurs around here. Travis, close that blast shield, now!"

"I'm trying sir. It's not responding properly." Travis responded hastily. He slid his fingers over the device several more times; however the crack in the window began to spread. "I almost have it."

"If you just let me…" said the Doctor taking a step forward.

"Take another step and you'll be breathing through your forehead. Travis we're running out of time!" he shouted. The crack began to spider web across the glass.

"I got it!" the engineer shouted as a buzz rang out from his handheld device. The thick metal plating slid back down over the view port. The men breathed a collective sigh of relief. Then, they all focused their attentions back on the Doctor. He flashed them a slight grin.

"Hello." He said softly. "I'm the Doctor."

"How did you get here? What is your purpose here besides trying to destroy us all? Or is that your purpose here? Are you an extremist?" The man in the blue cap rapidly fired questions at the still slightly confused Doctor.

"Extremist? No! I'm the Doctor. I'm here to help."

"Help? You're here to relieve us?" Travis asked out of turn. The man in the blue cap shook his head slightly.

"Those blast shields are to remain closed during a solar eruption. Anyone capable of running this place would know that. So you'll forgive me if I don't completely swallow your story. Now tell us what you're really doing here!"

"Actually, I'm looking for someone. I think they are lost. I just need to find them so that I can help them find the person that they lost and take them both back home so that I can go back home and complete the rescuing of other people before even more people go missing. Understand?" The Doctor said nonchalantly. The three armed men looked at each other and shrugged.

"It sounds like there's an awful lot of missing people surrounding you." Replied the man in the blue cap. He narrowed his gaze studying the doctor. Almost as if he were trying to debate as to whether or not his story was true. He chewed on the inside of his cheek. "Tagart, search him!" He barked once more.

"Aye sir!" said one of the other armed men. He stepped forward patting the doctor down gently. He reached into his inner pocket and removed the Doctors sonic screwdriver as well as the leather fold containing the slip of psychic paper.

"Actually, I'll kind of be needing those." The Doctor protested mildly.

"You'll be needing to keep your mouth shut traitor. Now turn around and start walking." The man in the blue hat nodded toward the darkened corridor. The Doctor entertained the vague notion of protesting once more, however he truly felt it would do no good. In order to get some results he was going to need to find Superman and get out of here. Right now, that meant convincing the natives he wasn't a saboteur. He laced his fingers behind his head and started walking.

xXxXx

Superman gripped the side of the bed as he stood only half dressed. Shockwaves were being sent through the room causing everything to tremble immensely. Thevia had given him the courtesy of waiting for him outside so he could get dressed. She had warned him something was going to happen, she had however failed to mention that the very room would be assaulted. After the last of the shockwaves subsided Thevia poked her head in through the door to check on him.

"Is everything ok in here?" she quipped with a slight smirk upon her face. He looked at her a little shocked at the experience but none the less nodded. He had suffered through much worse many times over. It was the unexpectedness of it all that really caught him off guard. While he still wasn't solidly sure as to why his powers were gone, he ultimately knew they were. No super strength, resilience, or even x-ray vision. Immediately his thought went to the Doctor. He had done something to him and left him for dead. There was only one real way to find out.

"Let's get a move on; the Captain is getting anxious to see you." She said as he slipped on the last of his outfit. He nodded and followed her out the medical area and down the hallway.

"So what exactly was all that shaking back there? Does it happen often?" he asked solemnly.

"It's happening more often than we would like. The solar detonation… well…" She sighed heavily as she walked. "If you don't know what a solar detonation is, than it means you are obviously not here to relieve us."

"Relieve you?" he echoed even more confused.

"Look, you're on SS27. That stands for Solar Station number twenty-seven. Solar stations were designed to prevent suns from going nova. However they are still in the experimental stages. This is the first station that actually worked. Well… so far." She explained.

"Ok. So you can stop suns from going nova? With the technology here? How does that work?" Superman was a smart fellow, near genius levels. Back in the fortress of solitude he had his workshop areas where he would create gadgets and creations to help humanity. He could even make a serum that could replicate his own abilities, but never in his wildest imagination did he ever think to conceive of a way to stop a solar entity from exploding.

"Well, how they work is a little too technical for me, but how it was explained to me was that a solar station is affixed in the center of a solar entity. Whenever a solar eruption happens that threatens to send the sun into a volatile state, the station quickly counteracts the eruption with what is called a Solar Detonation. Now from my understanding, and let me remind you I'm a medical officer not an engineer, they take the volatile churning energies of the would be nova and transfuse them with an anti-plasma. The station then irradiates the anti-plasma using a series of Neutronic-transmitters. This causes a series of counter eruptions within the anti-plasma that cancel the nova before it reaches critical eruption." Superman nodded as he listened to Thevia explain about the station. In theory he supposed it would be possible.

"I can follow along with what you're saying. Was it the eruptions that were causing all the shaking? Like an earthquake?" He asked.

"On the contrary, it was the station itself that was causing all the shaking and rumbling. You see the way the station was designed, it has five different wings. One of which is the oh-so-glorious medical wing. At the end of each wing are the Neutronic-Transmitters. When they begin to irradiate the anti-plasma it simply causes the whole wing to shake. I say it's a design flaw. The engineers and architects beg to differ." She shrugged. Again Superman nodded.

"So where are we going now?" he asked as they turned yet another corner.

"Now, I'm taking you to central command to speak to Captain Eli He has asked to speak to you." They passed through a set of bulkhead doors and into a fairly large room with several banks of computers and monitors. Five large bay windows lined each of the walls. Superman assumed they looked out over each of the wings Thevia had described, however thick blast shields covered them at the moment. In the center of the room at a raised computer station sat a larger man. He was heavy set with thick salt and pepper hair. He wore the makings of a beard, as if his face hadn't seen a razor in a few days. He wore a drab olive green outfit with several small intricate metals on his breast pocket.

"Captain, I have brought the patient as you requested. Kal-El this is Captain Eli. Captain, this is Kal-El." Eli stood up as Thevia gave the introductions. He huffed and crossed his arms over his thick barrel chest. He studied Superman with an icy glare.

"I'm glad to see you're on a first name basis with someone who's trying to destroy us all!"

"Destroy you all?!" Superman exclaimed with a shocked expression on his face. "I'm not here to destroy you. I barely even know where here is!"

"Eli! How can he be trying to destroy us? He's been unconscious for the last week!" Thevia protested.

"Have you ever heard of a sleeper agent Thevia?" The captain sneered. "You think it just so happens that he wakes up at the same time the other saboteur arrives? I'm sure that's purely coincidental right? My fat ass it is. He's one of them, I know it. I would be remiss as captain if I allowed him to stay on the station. I can't risk putting you or the rest of the crew in any more danger than they are already."

"Captain Sir, I'm not here to cause trouble. I pose no threat to you or the station. I appreciate you allowing Thevia to watch over me since I got here and will do whatever I can to repay that debt to you. However, I'm no saboteur. Where I come from I fight to protect people, to uphold the laws. I respect your authority here and you will get no resistance from me if you wish me to leave, though if you allow me to stay, to figure out how I got here and perhaps how I can get home, I will do everything within my power to help you and your crew." Superman said solemnly. He held up his empty hands as a gesture of good faith. The captain looked between him and Thevia, a thick hand running over his stubbly cheek. He silently weighed the words of the alien.

"I don't know what you are. I don't know what you're purpose here is. But I am intrigued to find out how you got here without setting off any sensors or alerting us in any way. What you say may be true, but if that be the case, you should understand that I will have to keep you locked up for now, for the safety of my crew and this station." Superman let out a soft sigh hearing the captain's decree. He gave a slight nod. The captain hit a button on the nearby console and soon several armed men in similar garb as the captain filed into the room.

"Take this man to holding until I figure out what to do with him." The men nodded and pushed Superman toward the entrance they had come through. Reluctantly but without defiance, Superman followed the guardsmen.

xXxXx

Luthor was awakened by the soft trill of his cell phone going off. He opened one eye and looked over to his night stand where the glare of his phone lit up the room. He reached over his companion and retrieved his watch tapping the button on the side. It was just after three AM. He scowled to himself. Grabbing his cell he tapped the screen lightly.

"Go." He said collapsing back into his pillow. Gently he ran his fingers across his brow, his head still a bit fuzzy from last night's wine. The two glasses and an empty bottle still sat on the table by the fireplace.

"Sir, its Pembroke sir." Came the soft nervous response of the scientist.

"Yes. I know who it is. And for your sake I hope you have a good reason for waking me. In fact there is only one response I want to hear from you right now." He growled softly into the phone.

"It's done sir." Was the only response Pembroke gave. It was indeed fortunate that that was the only thing Lex wanted to hear at this point. Lex took a deep breath and let it out slowly, a smile forming on his lips.

"I'll be there within the hour for inspection. You have one chance Pembroke. Impress me." Before the man could respond he had hung up the phone. It only took Lex thirty minutes to get rid of his bedfellow and hop on a copter to Luthorcorp towers. The whole time he ran through calculations in his mind. Writing code and programing on his data pad. If this machine worked as intended this could very well be the tide that swept the alien menace that was Superman off this planet. Should the Boy Scout ever return from where ever he was. But why stop there? His plans were greater than just Superman, far greater, but all in due time. The first hurdle was being approached at a rapid speed.

The elevator doors opened with the softest of whispers. Luthor stepped off the elevator his hands clasped behind his back in his usual fashion. Much to his surprise the two lab jockeys weren't there to meet him. Just as well. He strode down the corridor with a hastened step. He turned a corner and made his way to the assembly and diagnostic lab. It was there he found the two men. Grimes, the short balding one, was busily attaching a diagnostics cable to the fully assembled Cyberman. The other, Pembroke, was at a nearby computer clacking away furiously.

"Congratulations are in order gentlemen." He said as he came into the room. The two men looked up startled from what they were doing. "You have exceeded my expectations and then some. Of course, given the pair of you, my expectations were not that high to begin with. Report." He snapped.

"Assembly was difficult but manageable. We took into consideration that you were in a rush and had no concern for aesthetics. We were able to assemble the main body and frame with very little altercation to the original material. We have achieved full movement of all limbs if manually stimulated. The head was…"

"The head is not functioning." Interrupted Grimes. He slid the diagnostic cable into the back of the Cyberman's skull. "Since you were going to provide your own coding we didn't feel it was necessary to make sure it was functional. Since the automation of the thing was still fully functional. We are actually…"

"We are getting ready to do a full cerebral diagnostic. It's truly fascinating Mr. Luthor. The brain of the robot is actually a brain, a human brain. There are other organic components throughout the system, sinew here, muscle there, mostly for the relaying of information, but nothing we couldn't replicate using technology. However, the brain, the entire central system, is like nothing we have ever seen before. Until we get a full diagnostic..."

"Which we're doing right now."

"Yes, until we get a full diagnostic on the brain, processor, thingy we won't have a complete analysis for you. Now seeing as how we don't know exactly what to expect in this diagnostic there is no real way to tell you how long it would take." Pembroke sat back in his chair watching Lex. He had hoped the fact that the skeletal structure being assembled, the structural integrity of the robot, and the physical schematics of the Cyberman would be enough to outweigh the bad news.

Luthor was quiet. A little too quiet for Pembroke's liking. Lex approached the scientist and looked down at him. A slight nod was given and Pembroke evacuated his seat. Lex took up the seat and turned his attentions to the monitor. He glanced over the data, mindlessly tabbing through the files. His eyes narrowed as he looked over the proposed schematics. He stroked his chin lightly before tapping away at the keypad. A new security screen popped up and he tapped in his passcode.

"Encryption process beginning." The computer chimed softly. He stood up and placed a hand on Pembroke's shoulder.

"It seems you two have not been a complete disappointment. In such you receive my gratitude. However I do believe that this is the end of our collaboration." Lex said softly. Pembroke looked to him a bit confused.

"But sir… the diagnostic… we're not finished." He muttered his eyes wide with disbelief.

"Oh don't mistake my words. Your work will continue. However you are no longer of use to Luthorcorp." Lex reached into his jacket and produced a pistol. Pembroke's eyes watered. Two shots rang out. Two bodies collapsed to the floor in a bloody heap. Lex let the pistol clatter to the floor. He removed his phone and dialed a number.

"I have a clean-up situation in the lab on level 37." He closed his phone and watched as the computer finished encrypting the file. He removed the jump drive from the computer and placed it in his inner pocket. It was nice when things were actually ahead of schedule. Tossing a final glance to the Cyberman standing amid a floor of blood and broken glass, he turned, stepped over the corpse of Pembroke and made his way back to the elevator. It seemed as if a trip were in order. The familiar soft hiss of the elevator doors was the last sound to be heard in the now dark and silent laboratory.

xXxXx

The thick blast bay door that lead to the holding cell raised with a metallic grind. The guardsman shoved the Doctor through the door into the small room beyond. He sighed heavily as he looked around the empty room. There was little more than a pair of cots and a device he assumed to be a toilet of some sort. A single light dimly lit the room. He went and sat upon one of the cots and leaned back, his head resting against the cold metal wall. The doctor closed his eyes, as he felt the soft thrum of machinery reverberating through the wall.

A moment later the door opened up once again and a second man was walked into the room, again the door shutting quickly after his entrance. The Doctor looked up and there was the very man that he had been looking for.

"You!" both the Doctor and Superman said at the same moment.

xXxXx

The laboratory was now dark and quiet. Like ninjas in the night, Lex's clean-up crew had come and taken away the two bodies of the scientists. They left no trace of their existence. The room was much like the vast reaches of space; cold, dark, and silent. It only took a moment for all that to change. In an instant the central monitor flashed to life. It's dimly glowing screen acting as the only light source in the dark room. The words 'Accessing Luthorcorp Mainframe' blinked softly at the top of the screen as if typed by an unseen hand. The machines in the room began to whir, click, beep and buzz as each one kicked on. The typing on the screen was soon replaced. Now the screen read 'Full Download Beginning'. A slowly climbing status bars sat ominously beneath the words. It took mere seconds for the bar to completely reach one hundred percent. The screen flashed green, then black, and then finally in red lettering the words 'Uploading Cyberman Protocols' were all that remained. Just as quickly as the Luthorcorp files had been downloaded, so to were the new protocols installed. Then, once more, the room became dark and silent.