A/N: This next chapter starts Act II: Lost. Lois and Clark cling to hope and renewal in the face of utter chaos, Lana and Richard show their faith and love for each other, and the Justice League shows the world just how strong they really are. I wanted to take a moment to thank my readers here at my journal and also over at FFN who've stuck with me so far. I really do appreciate it. Act II starts now. Read on! :D

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Act II: Lost

Chapter 9: Stronger Together

Previously:

"Neither did I, but I took a home pregnancy test twice. It's a miracle, Clark. We're going to have another baby," she smiled as the tears welled up again.

"You're the miracle, Lois. I love you so much," Clark sighed holding her face between his palms as he leaned down and kissed her tasting her tears, as a few seeped through his lids as well.

"I love you too," Lois said between kisses and thinking about the past and how much they had missed, but not this time. This time they would have it all.

End of Act I: Devotion

~o~o~

It was a beautiful night, calm and clear, the kind of night Clark would have taken Lois for a late night flight, but they didn't have time for that now. They had Jason to take care of, not that he minded. I know Lois misses our flights together. We'll make the time somehow and hopefully before the baby comes. The baby; I'm still in shock. It truly is a miracle.

Clark's thoughts and feelings suddenly overwhelmed him. He had to finish what he had started. As he made his way to south Florida and later that evening to the west coast to help his friends in the final stages of the narcotics sting on Edge's shipments, he was more determined than ever to stop Edge, shut down the syndicate, and intercept Darkseid before he arrived here to wreck havoc on all of their lives.

His thoughts suddenly went back to a few hours ago, when he had told Lois about Darkseid. Her reaction had been no less than what he had expected.

~o~o~

Earlier that evening at Riverside Drive:

Lois and Clark had arrived home from the office, both exhausted but excited and determined about the progress they had made in their investigation into Edge's actions since the news conference. There was a connection between him and the District Attorney. And Lane and Kent would find it. There was no doubt in their minds about that.

As Lois waited for her husband to join her, Clark came into the bedroom dressed in the suit and she could she he had something on his mind.

"You're leaving? Where are you going?" Clark looked at his boots and didn't answer her. She knew her husband well enough to know whenever he got all quiet and couldn't look her in the eye it had to be bad news. "I can see you want to talk about something."

"Come and sit down, honey," Clark said holding out his hand for her to sit with him. Lois took his hand, sat down and waited for him to speak. "I went to the Fortress this morning."

"Oh and how is my father-in-law, the AI?" Lois asked sarcastically.

Clark couldn't help but grin at that. He thought about how to answer her. "He's different from before. I can't explain it."

"What do you mean different?"

Clark thought about it for a moment trying to understand Jor-El's questions, and then he remembered what he said to him. "Something just occurred to me, honey. This change in his demeanor and his acceptance of us and our life together may be connected to the loss of the crystals."

"Wait a minute, back-up. Jor-El has accepted our life together?" Lois couldn't believe it, especially not after all these years, and not after all they'd been through to be together.

"Yes, Lois, it's true," Clark smiled and squeezed her hand. "He said he wouldn't stand in our way. Those were his exact words. He wanted to tell you himself in person, but I couldn't keep it from you." He shook his head. "It's just all so strange."

"Are you sure it was Jor-El and not some temporary AI. Maybe he's recharging or something? Don't look at me like that. Jor-El hates me. Why would he accept me now? It makes no sense."

"Jor-El doesn't hate you. I know it's hard to believe and understand. I'm just as surprised as you are. I just know that he was different, in the way he spoke to me and the way he talked about meeting Jason."

"You told him about Jason? What did he say?"

"It was not so much what he said but the way he said it. He sounded proud that I was a father and that Jason would get to know me. It's really hard to explain. I want you and Jason to come with me to the Fortress soon and we can tell him about the baby. We could test him with that information and see how he reacts. What do you think?"

Lois could see how excited he was about this 'new' Jor-El and a part of her was happy for him, but she was concerned about Jason and about herself. Stress is the last thing I need right now. "I don't know Clark. I'll have to think about it."

Clark was crestfallen but he hid it well. "Alright, that's fine, honey. Take your time. There's no rush, but have you given any thought about when we should tell Jason about the baby?"

"I think we should wait until after my appointment with Dr. Hamilton. We can tell him when the baby is due, which reminds me, I need to call him tomorrow for an appointment. I know you're busy Clark, but I'd like you to be there for my appointments."

"You know I'll try and make arrangements for the League to cover for me, I promise." He squeezed her hand again and touched her cheek, dreading his next words. "There's another reason why I went to the Fortress and … Jor-El confirmed what we suspected."

"So, it's true? Darkseid is coming?" Lois asked as she could feel her heart rate climbing, but she tried to stay calm for Clark.

"Yes, Lois, very soon now, in a few days maybe, I'm not sure." Clark could see she wanted to be strong for him. He knew his wife. He pulled her into his arms holding her tight. "We'll get through this, honey, just like we always have … together."

She pulled back to look at him, taking a deep breath, she said, "I know we will, and I've been thinking, we should run with the article on Edge and the DA as soon as possible."

"I definitely agree. I may be a little late getting back to the office tomorrow. I have to go to Florida and California, but when you get into the office in the morning, convince Perry to run with everything we found today. Once Perry realizes the seriousness of the situation, and you can tell him about Darkseid too, I know he'll want to help, and he'll know what to print."

"Do you think we have enough to implicate the DA? I would love to bring him down."

"I think Perry should make that decision. He doesn't want a lawsuit on his hands."

"What about my father? Should we alert him about Darkseid? He'll want to know."

"That may not be a bad idea. Let me think about that tonight and I'll let you know once I speak with the League. Darkseid may be coming alone or with an army. As soon as we know for sure, we can get the military involved."

"Alright, I know Daddy would love another crack at that monster. As soon as I get the word from you, I'll contact him."

"Thank you, Lois," Clark said as he stood up to leave.

Lois stood up and put her arms around his waist. "What are you thanking me for? You know I want to help you anyway I can."

He grinned. "Jor-El said the same thing. He's never said that to me before."

Lois looked at him, surprised even shocked by that news. "Really, he said that?"

He nodded. "Yes, he did."

Lois didn't need to think about it anymore. "Clark, I'll go with you to the Fortress and I know Jason would love it too."

Clark pulled her tight against him kissing her hair. "I love you so very, very much," he said so touched he could barely speak.

"I know you do. Go on now, I'll see you later."

"Good night, honey." He kissed her softly, holding her close, and stroking her back.

"Humm, good night," Lois said smiling.

Clark returned her smile, then turned and went to the window, lifting slowly off the floor, he smiled again, and then he was gone. She rang to the window, but she couldn't see him. She heard a sonic boom a few moments later.

~o~o~

Gotham City, earlier that evening:

Lana and Richard were still in a romantic daze after their quick trip to Florida. As they rode the elevator heading to her office at Wayne Towers, they couldn't keep their hands off each other. As they entered her office laughing and smiling, Lana could smell the roses as soon as she opened the door. There were three dozen roses of various colors in different locations around her office.

Richard froze, not believing his eyes. He knew immediately who they were from. He stared at Lana, and she was just as shocked as he was. "Read the card," he got out barely able to speak, he was so furious. Wayne is making a move on my girlfriend. He couldn't believe it.

Lana finally found the card. She read it out loud. "I'm sorry you had to come into work today. Enjoy the roses. Let me make it up to you, say lunch on Monday? Bruce."

"Richard, I swear, I never encouraged him, not for a moment. You do believe me, don't you?"

"Get your things and we'll leave," he said staring at the flowers. He couldn't look at her.

"Richard, please look at me," Lana pleaded with him afraid he wouldn't believe her.

Richard finally looked at her and he could see tears in her eyes. I put that hurt in her eyes, not Bruce Wayne. He went to her then and pulled her into his arms, holding her tight. This wasn't her fault and he didn't want to spoil their beautiful weekend. "Everything's fine. I believe you." He pulled back after a moment and took her face between his palms. "Did you hear me? I believe you."

Lana threw her arms around his neck. "I love you, Richard."

"I love you too," he replied and kissed her showing her how much he cared. She kissed him back holding him close. They came up for air after a few moments. "Are you ready to go?" He asked smiling.

"Yes, I'm ready. Let me make a quick call to maintenance. They can deliver them to the children's ward at the hospital," Lana said pointing to the flowers. She made a quick call, got her papers together, and then they left heading for her apartment.

On the drive over to Lana's apartment, Richard was thinking about what he should say to Bruce Wayne to stop him from hitting on his girlfriend. "Lana, I know he's your boss, and I'd hate for you to loose your job or anything, but I can't sit by and let him do this. I need to confront him."

"I know you do, but I think we should confront him together. I'll call him and set up a meeting at his office tomorrow and we'll set him straight. How does that sound?"

Richard wanted to do this man-to-man, but she was hurt just as much as he was from Bruce's thoughtless actions. "Alright, that sounds fine. Let me know what time to be there tomorrow, alright? The sooner we get this over with the better."

"I agree. Do you want to come up for a little while, have a drink, it'll help you relax," she smiled at the look he gave her.

"I like the sound of that," he smiled and squeezed her hand.

~o~o~

Somewhere off the southern coast of Florida:

Superman arrived just as the ship full of contraband they were monitoring was nearing port. Aquaman resurfaced and immediately contacted Superman.

"Superman, can you hear me?" Arthur asked touching his earpiece as he looked to the sky. They had all decided to address each other by their superhero monikers just in case.

"I hear you Aquaman. What's our status?" Clark asked hovering high above the ship.

"My friends and I have been following this ship for a few miles now, and just when I thought they were pulling into port, they would go in a different direction. They may be on to me."

"You and your friends should stay put. I'm going to scan the inside of the ship and see if I can locate the contraband." Superman did just that. "I see about ten armed men. They're deep inside the vessel protecting their cargo, and there are maybe ten more throughout the ship, all loaded down with weapons. We have to be smart about this. Are you in touch with Wonder Woman and the Flash?"

"Yes, I spoke to them a little while ago. The police are ready, but we need to give them an exact location. I haven't been able to do that since they keep changing direction."

"They have to pull into port soon," Superman said. He scanned the vessel again for fuel amounts. "They'll be out of fuel very soon now. They'll have no choice but to dock."

"How much longer do you think it will be?"

"Soon now, I'd say in about an hour."

An hour went by and sure enough, the vessel pulled into a secluded area with a small pier. Superman followed the ship, contacting Wonder Woman and the Flash with the ship's location. Everyone was in place. We should be able to do this and no one will have to get hurt. Superman went to meet up with Wonder Woman and the Flash, speaking to them briefly. They knew what they had to do.

As soon as the men on the vessel began unloading their contraband, Superman could see they had no idea what lay ahead for them. The police were out of sight waiting for the right moment to make their move. Superman hovered over to the ship. "The party's over, gentlemen. Put down your weapons. You're surrounded."

The men immediately started shooting. Superman used his laser vision to neutralize their weapons. It was over in a matter of moments. Wonder Woman came forward just as another man came off the boat shooting in her direction. She raised her wrists blocking the bullets with no trouble. The Flash ran forward then and knocked the rest of the men into the ocean neutralizing them and their weapons.

Aquaman made his move by gathering up the men who had fallen into the sea. One of them couldn't swim, so he rescued him first. Superman scanned the vessel and there were no more men on board. "They're all yours," he told the police.

"Thank you, Superman," the policeman said truly grateful. The other superheroes came forward with all the men from the ship. "Thank you all for helping us tonight. If your sources are accurate, this will be one of the largest, if not the largest drug haul we have ever done in this state. It will definitely send a message to the drug lords and the syndicate that the Justice League of America is here to stay. Thank you, again," the policeman said shaking all of their hands.

"It was our pleasure," Superman said. He nodded to the other League members as they dispersed. "That felt good. Do you agree gang?"

"I agree, Superman. We can and will make a difference," Wonder Woman said.

"You said it, Wonder Woman. Where to now, Superman?" Bart asked.

"I'm headed to California to help Martian Manhunter and the Green Lantern. Why don't you all head back to the Watchtower and wait for us? I have a few things to update you on. It's pretty important. We won't be long."

They stared at each other wondering what that was about. "Alright, we'll see you back at Watchtower," Wonder Woman said unable to ignore the bad feeling in the pit of her stomach at Superman's words.

~o~o~

Somewhere near the southern border of New Mexico:

J'onn Jonz and Hal Jordan considered this type of work well suited for them, as being undercover and working with law enforcement officials and border guards would lead to a far better outcome than busting down doors and catching people with guns drawn. According to another invaluable tip, they were able to locate a shipment coming into the United States, a shipment so huge, that it would make history, they were convinced of it. It was just the kind of message the League was trying to send to the cartels in Mexico and Venezuela.

Superman scanned the area trying to locate his friends. He spotted them, but decided to wait for a while to consider what they had told him earlier in the day. Authorities in the area believed and their tipster had confirmed that metric-tons of marijuana and cocaine were about to enter the United States. Clark realized there was an ongoing war against drugs in this country and the Justice League was there to help in anyway that they could. Drugs spawned all manner of crime in this country, not the least of which was homicides, prostitution, death from overdoses, the list went on. The Justice League in this one way could ease some of that.

Clark scanned the truck more closely. Apparently, this flatbed truck was loaded down with drugs and was headed for the border, but the drugs were hidden inside a false floor of the truck. He could see them clearly now. A routine stop would find the drugs with the help of dogs but the right timing was crucial.

Superman then contacted Hal and J'onn. "Gentlemen, I have a visual," Superman said getting right to the point. "The drugs are there. What's your position?"

"Well, it's nice of you to join us, Superman. You know it's no fun without you," Hal said trying to make light of a serious situation.

"We're waiting at the mark, Superman," J'onn said shaking his head at his friend.

Clark chuckled. "It's good to be here. Is everyone ready? I can see the truck now. It will be at the checkpoint in about five minutes."

"We're ready, Superman," Hal said as he pointed to the ring and lifted up to the sky. He spotted Superman hovering just beyond some trees.

"I see the police are out of sight. That's good, Green Lantern. We don't want the driver to panic. I do see several weapons, but they're out of sight right now," Clark said.

"Yeah, it's best they not show themselves. We want the driver to think this is all just a routine stop for him."

"J'onn, he just pulled in. Get ready on my mark," Superman said, nodding to Hal.

Superman flew over to the truck and dropped down directly in front of the driver. "Good evening, would you mind stepping out of the vehicle, please?"

The driver's mouth dropped open. He immediately threw his hands up into the air, opened the door and fell to the ground. He was terrified. "Don't hurt me, please. I have a wife and child at home, please," the man begged.

Clark frowned at that reaction. He had never received that kind of reaction before. He didn't know what to make of it. The police immediately fell on the man, putting him in handcuffs and taking him away.

J'onn and Hal were both dumbfounded by the man's reaction to Superman. "Well, that was easy, I must say," Hal said dropping down beside Superman.

Superman hadn't heard him. "What did you say, Green Lantern?" Clark was still confused.

"Superman, are you thinking about what he said to you? Don't let it get to you. He's just terrified of going to jail. That's all. Come on, we need to get back to Watchtower. Wonder Woman called us and told us about the big meeting."

"Yes, let's check in with the police and then we'll head back."

"So, J'onn, how did we do? Was it a big haul, big enough to make Edge sit up and take notice of us?" Superman wanted to know.

"We have a record take here, guys. There must be enough drugs here to net millions on the streets. We did good, real good."

"Excellent." Superman turned to the police. "Gentlemen, thank you for your invaluable assistance tonight. Remember, we're here to help you in any way we can. You can contact us anytime. Good night to you all."

"Good night, Superman. And thanks again to the League. We just heard of the bust in Florida. Way to go, guys," the policeman said giving them two thumbs up.

"It was our pleasure," Superman said as they all lifted up into the sky and flew back east toward the Watchtower headquarters.

TBC!

A/N: That was a lot of fun to write! Superman and his band of superheroes have given Edge a lot to worry about! What did you think readers? I want to know! Commenting helps me improve. Please take a moment to let me know your thoughts. Reviews are love. And thanks for reading.