Chapter Eighteen

Clark turned his head, and opened his eyes. Lana was sitting next to his hospital bed. Clark could feel his gunshot wound in his side. Lana smiled at him.

I'll see you soon, Clark thought as he smiled. He could hear the heart monitor flat line and he drifted off.

Lana looked up in horror at the heart monitor to confirm her worst fears. The doctor and nurses rushed into the room.

"You're not supposed to be in here," the doctor told Lana as a nurse escorted her to the door.

"Please, you need to clear the room," the nurse told her. Meanwhile, the nurses rushed around, gathering equipment. They got two pads out and laid them in two places on Clark's chest. The beeping heart monitor was turned off as they got the defibrillator out.

The doctor placed the panels above Clark's chest and yelled, "Clear!"

Electricity shot through Clark, causing his body to jump off the bed.

A very gray pair of eyes returned to their natural color.

The doctor turned a knob on the defibrillator.

"Charging 200," she said. "Clear!"

They shocked him again, but there was still no reaction. The nurses pumped air into Clark's lungs as Lana watched, terrified and helpless.

Lionel sat up in his padded cell.

"Charging 300…Clear!"

They shocked Clark again and his body jumped off the bed. Lana looked down at the floor, shocked.

"Charging 350…Clear!"

The nurses shocked Clark again. Lana watched helplessly as the nurses made a last ditch-effort to save Clark's life. After several more attempts, they finally stopped.

Lionel stood up and walked over to the window of his cell. He punched through the glass window of his cell, shattering it completely. He stepped out of the cell and supersped off.

The nurse took the oxygen mask off of Clark and his head dropped to the side.

"We're calling it," said the doctor. "Time of death…7:18 A.M."

Lana burst into sobs when she heard this. She ran into the room, holding Clark's face close to hers. She broke down into tears as the nurses ushered her out of the room. A nurse pulled the white sheet over Clark's head as everyone left the room.

Jonathan and Martha were in the waiting room, holding hands. Martha looked up to see Lana walking down the hall in tears. They stood up.

"Oh, no!" Martha said.

The doctor walked up to them. "Mr. and Mrs. Kent, we did everything we could."

"No!" Martha sobbed.

"But, we lost him," the doctor said.

Martha broke down into sobs as Jonathan held her, shocked. A nurse came up behind the doctor.

"Doctor," the nurse said, "we got a problem with the Kent boy."

The doctor followed the nurse back to Clark's room. Martha, Jonathan and Lana followed, frantic. When they reached the doorway, they froze; Clark's bed was empty.

"Two minutes till launch," the computer intoned.

Chloe saw the guard's dead body on the ground. She managed to untie herself, and took the guard's gun. Gabriel pressed some buttons on the computer, and some alarms went off. Gabriel jumped up, and was hit over the head by Chloe. She rushed to the computer console and started typing.

"Access denied."

She tried again.

"Access denied."

She looked up at the window, and ran over to it. The cover of the silo opened to let daylight stream in.

"Oh, gosh," said Chloe. Gabriel came to and pointed a gun at her. She turned around, hit him, and they began to struggle over the gun.

"Why couldn't you understand?" Gabriel shouted. "This is the only way!"

They struggled a little more, and the gun went off, splattering blood onto the window. They stared into each other's eyes, stunned. Gabriel then fell to the floor, dead. Chloe stared at him until the shield on the window closed. She looked up at the screen for the missile silo.

"Five…" the computer intoned. "Four…three…two…one…ignition."

The blast of the rocket taking off engulfed the screen.

Clark came to in a bluish light, lying on a crystal bed. He opened his eyes and stood up, confused. He looked around at the Fortress of Solitude, and came around a corner. Lionel stood in the distance.

"Hello, Kal-El," Lionel said to Clark.

"How do you know to call me that?" Clark demanded.

"You're my son," Lionel said simply.

Clark took a few timid steps forward. "Jor-El?"

"I hoped the time has come when you would call me father."

"I was—I was just at the hospital. How did, how did you get me here?"

"The portal in the cave," Jor-El answered through Lionel. He took a few steps forward. "When this body was activated by the crystal, it became an oracle of Kryptonian knowledge; a vessel to inhabit if ever you should need me. That time is now."

"Am I dead?"

"Your mortal journey is over, yes, but your eminent destiny is too important to sacrifice. You will return with all your natural gifts." Lionel walked a few more steps. "Unfortunately, this rectification does not come without a price. The life of someone close to you will be exchanged for yours."

"I know…" Clark muttered. "Lara. Look, just bring our daughter back instead of me."

"It's too late," Lionel answered. "For everything in nature, there is a balance. The life force that has been returned to you has been taken from…from someone you love. You're about to face your darkest hour, my son." Lionel came and placed his hands on Clark's shoulders. "But, remember: the lessons that we learn from pain are the ones that make us the strongest." He embraced Clark and an energy emitted from his hands. The energy glowed from Clark as Lionel let him go. "Always know that I love you."

Clark suddenly appeared on Route 87 where he had been shot. He looked into the distance and saw the missile launching into the air. He supersped in its direction, and jumped up to meet it in the air. He grabbed a hold of it and soared upward into space. Clark climbed up the side of the missile, punching handholds and footholds into the metal. He climbed onto the middle piece just as the bottom separated from it. His legs hung in the air and the secondary rockets fired. He continued to climb as the rocket leveled out. He was on the top section just as the middle one separated. He reached a compartment in the missile, and ripped off the hatch. He grabbed the nuclear component inside and hurled it into space as it exploded. The remaining missile shell fell towards the atmosphere as Clark went with it.

Chloe felt a shudder in the earth around her, and started crying. She then looked at the computer screen which read "missile malfunction."

"Clark…" Chloe said as she smiled.

"The hospital lost our son!" Jonathan yelled into the phone. He was in the kitchen with Martha, talking with the cops. "Look, if I had any idea what happened, I wouldn't have had to call the police, now, would I? Listen, what I want you to do is get a hold of Sheriff Adams and send—"

Jonathan was cut off when Martha frantically grabbed at him. He looked over at the opening screen door to see his son walking through. He was battered and dirty, but very much alive.

"I'll have to call you back," said Jonathan, shocked.

"Oh, Clark!" Martha said and she came and hugged him.

"Son," said Jonathan as Clark let Martha go, "they told us you were dead."

Clark started mumbling as Jonathan hugged him. "I was."

"Jor-El," supplied Jonathan.

"He returned your powers, didn't he?" asked Martha.

"I'm not human anymore," Clark said regretfully. "It's the only way I could come back."

"We heard about a missile malfunction," said Jonathan. "You stopped it, didn't you? It's not easy to sacrifice the things you want the most to save other people. We're so proud of you, Clark."

Clark walked away so that they couldn't see his face. "The real sacrifice would've been not coming back at all."

"Son, after all those threats, Jor-El decided to offer to give your powers back?" Jonathan asked as Clark turned around. "He didn't ask for anything in return?"

Clark hesitated before he shook his head. "No."

They all heard a knock on the front door, and Clark turned his head to see who it was. He couldn't see who came in, but he heard Lana say, "Mr. and Mrs. Kent?"

Clark looked back at his parents, and they nodded. He rounded the corner, and stared at Lana. She stared right back, shocked to see him.

"Clark…" she said as she ran towards him. She jumped into his arms as Clark embraced her. They hugged for a while as Clark closed his eyes.

Lex sat in his study, and Lana entered.

"Lana, I heard about Clark's resurrection," Lex told her. "You know, I've never really believed in miracles, but I've certainly done my share of asking for them today."

"Me, too, but I think that we have different reasons," Lana said bitterly. She opened her purse and pulled out a blue folder. She handed it to him. "Clark's medical file."

"That's confidential," Lex told her.

"I heard you asked for it at the hospital. All of his test results came back normal." Lex looked up at Lana. "When are you going to realize, Lex, that he's just like the rest of us?"

"Do you really believe that, or is that what you have to tell yourself to stay in a relationship with him? You've had your doubts about him, too. You can't deny it."

"I was wrong. Believe me, there is nothing unusual about Clark…except his ability to see the good in people who don't deserve it."

"I think you're forgetting something, Lana. Whatever new lie he told you, however he swept it under the rug…a normal person doesn't rise from the dead."

Lana sneered at him, and walked out. Lex got up, but heard someone coming down the stairs. He turned to see his father walking into the study.

"Aren't you going to give your old dad a hug?" asked Lionel.

"I was told you were missing from Belle Reive," Lex said. "Man, I don't understand; you've been nearly catatonic for weeks."

"Didn't I just overhear you say you've been looking for miracles all day? Looks like I'm it."

"So maybe you can tell me why you've been wandering around, mumbling things like Krypton and Kal-El."

"Krypton…Kal-El. I don't—the last thing I remember is standing here, arguing with you."

"That was weeks ago," Lex told him. He went over and lifted up the rug, revealing a Kryptonian symbol underneath. "Okay, you don't recognize these?"

"Looks like something from the cave," Lionel said, coming over for a look. "What is it?"

"I found you carving them with a cork screw."

"Wasn't I creative?" laughed Lionel. Lex flung the rug down, frustrated. "I wish that I could unlock the labyrinth of my subconscious, but I'm sorry to disappoint you, son."

"I have my father back. What's to disappoint? If anything, I say this is cause for celebration."

Clark sat on the stairs in the loft. Chloe walked up to him slowly.

"When Kansas didn't merge with Oklahoma today, I kinda guessed you were involved," Chloe said.

"Looks like you're okay," Clark told her.

"You don't look too bad yourself…for a dead guy," Chloe said as she sat down next to him. "I heard what happened at the hospital. You went and got your powers back, didn't you?"

"I didn't have a choice," Clark muttered.

"I know how much you've dreamt of having a bland, generic, mundane life. Being normal is highly overrated. And besides, it makes my whole sidekick role easier if you can bring super duper strength to the table. I mean, not that we didn't make a great team out there today…minus the whole part where I was kidnapped and you were shot." Chloe and Clark laughed a little. "So, are you healing or how does that work exactly?" Clark lifted up the side of his shirt, and peeled a thick bandage away from his side. Underneath, his skin was perfectly healed. "Wow." She reached tenderly towards his side, and brushed her fingers against his skin. "Unscathed on the surface." Clark put the bandage back in place and put his shirt down. He got up and walked away from Chloe. "That's not what's going on underneath, is it, Clark?"

"I guess I never will be able to escape who I really am," Clark said somberly. "Back to the lies…and hoping no one will ever ask to see the scar."

"Namely Lana."

"We've never talked about Lana—"

"That's because we don't have to, Clark. I'm a big girl now. I do have one confession: I really liked being the only one who knew about, you know…you. For lack of a cheesier word, it just made it special…but if you honestly believe you can stay with Lana and not tell her, I think you're seriously kidding yourself."

"I don't have a choice. I can't expect her to react like you did."

"But don't you think you owe her the choice?"

"I can't take that risk. I've risked too much already and now someone has paid for it."

"Clark, is everything okay?" Chloe asked as she came up to him. "What's going on?"

"I never should have given up my powers," Clark said. He spun his head around to look at her. "Why didn't I listen to him?" Chloe looked at him as he turned to face her. "Chloe, I think I've made a terrible mistake."