Superman in Action FanFic #8

Cries of the Innocent

It's been a few hours since I talked with Luthor. That man is filth! Pa was right; the apple didn't fall far from the tree. I can't go back to the Daily Planet right now. I need to think about all this. Luthor claims he wanted me on his payroll because he knew I'd lead a new age of the…what did he call it…superhuman? I know there's more reasons than that, but the lengths this man has already gone to in getting my attention. What am I supposed to think about this? It's despicable to say the least. Worse, all the evidence that points to him doing things has been destroyed. He's toying with me like a child torturing a kitten. I believe that's how he looks at me.

I'm waiting for 11:30. Maggie Sawyer and I can sit and have our talk about what's going on. It bugs me a bit, because she's trusting me as an outside source trying to help. I think she's hoping that I'll stumble on it just enough to wreck it, even if it's not completely legal. She might not be able to make the busts, but in future they can keep eyes out and arrest them the next time. Is that what you are, Clark? Are you a pawn in everyone's game of chess? Lex definitely sees himself as a king. I can't look at it that way, if I do then this means nothing. This power has to come to good! That's one of the things that mother and father insisted on is that I not waste the potential. Ma and Pa said the same thing. They just put a finer point on it by saying, 'find an outlet.'

One of the first times I went to the Fortress, father had me show him what I had learned I was capable of. The first thing I showed him was my Heat Vision. The cold didn't bother me, but because of the way I was raised it seemed the obvious choice when in the midst of a snow-laden continent.

"Very good Kal-El. Give me one moment, I am instructing a construct to be built in which you can unleash the fullness of your beams."

"I've never been able to do that before. What purpose will it serve?"

"Several, actually. It will allow you to know just how much damage you can inflict with it. It will also help you to fine-tune it to any of your needs. Most importantly, we will be converting the energy you expend into further construction on the Fortress."

"You can do that?"

"There's a great deal that we Kryptonians learned to do, my son. The Eradicator was a good example of such technology at work."

"Kem-L's tool of destruction. What happened to it after the wars?"

"The Kryptonian council sent it out towards the stars. At first they found it best to use it to explore other worlds and let Brainiac sort out the data. For countless centuries it sent data until eventually we had off-worlders come. We estimate that the Eradicator had started to malfunction. It told them of Rao and where to find the planet of his chosen people."

"So they came to the planet expecting to find entire religious orders of Rao all over the place."

"Precisely. Of course we had nothing to do with it any more. Such things were past Krypton centuries ago. It took some convincing to get them to leave. Luckily General Zod was more than willing to dispatch them. After the Kryptonian military showed up, they finally realized that they were unaccepted. Why they didn't leave when the Council's dignitaries asked, I'll never understand."

"I suppose they felt that Rao would watch over them."

Father laughed a little. "I suppose so."

"So did you pick up any signs of the Eradicator after that incident?"

"No, my son. It still floats out there and possibly sends people to its homeworld. They likely go there only to see the debris of the once great planet Krypton. Likely they'll find the black hole that was once Rao."

"People are marching possibly to their deaths out there?"

"Another of Krypton's follies, Kal-El. There were many, but somehow they managed through to glorious ages. Unfortunately, one last folly kept it from completely surviving."

"I never asked this father, but why? What happened that brought the on the fate of Krypton?"

"Start running, Kal-El. Wear this in your ear and I will tell you of the fate of Krypton while you push your speeds." I did what my father asked me and I started to run. The vortex of the wind I thought would hamper my hearing, but somehow even the meekest whisper could be heard through this piece of technology. It would make Lex jealous as to how well it worked. Actually…there's a thought for the next time I go to meet Lex face to face, I wonder if his devices could stop Kryptonian technology?

I finally broke speeds I could hardly believe and father told me to keep going, he wished to test my endurance and recovery. Then as he gave me these instructions there was a sigh, "Six months before the destruction Kal-El, I had discovered that the planet was shifting it's orbit. Of course at first I found no cause for alarm until I checked my calculations. It showed that the planet was shifting orbit because the sun had become unstable. I don't know how many days I spent in my lab, unshaven and unbathed trying to find the most minute error in my math. In my sheer exhaustion I knew I would miss something, so I turned to Brainiac for help. I turned over my data to him and allowed him to check my variables once more."

Krypton

"Jor-El, I have studied your calculations. Conclusion: Your data is in error, the planet's shift in orbit is of no consequence."

"Are you positive Brainiac? I did not think myself to be so far off track."

"Scans show that you are past the point of exhaustion. Your calculations were fueled by lack of sleep and hunger. This causes the mind to become unfocused. Recommendation: Consumption of nourishment and at least 12 hours continuous sleep. You will feel…'refreshed' and will find my conclusions more logical than that of your own."

"Perhaps you are right Brainiac. Thank you."

"I, of course, followed his directions. The food was rather a welcomed treat. It was as if I'd never eaten before. I cleaned myself and removed the excess facial hair, which made me feel better. Sleep however, that was difficult. I had dreams of the planet spiraling out of control and ripping itself apart. I saw the faces twist in agony as the core of Krypton erupted and burned us alive. Finally the sun growing ever wider as it exploded forward in massive waves of red fire. I woke up covered in perspiration. Never had I been so frightened. The moment I awoke I barely talked to your mother as I rushed out the door."

"What is your hurry, Jor-El? You seem rather vexed."

"Lara, I feel that the fate of the planet is in question. I've rested enough! I have to know that my calculations are wrong!"

The Fortress

"Of course I went back to my lab and started to work again on my equations. Again, they pointed to cataclysm. I fed Brainiac the numbers and it kept coming back to the same conclusion that I had erred along the way. I went over each and every equation with it, asking to show me individual numbers in sequence. I read them out loud and tried to find where it had missed some of my work. Oddly it hadn't, but Brainiac still arrived at a different conclusion. I went over the calculations with it again and again. Before long I had come to the conclusion that my work was being tampered with. So I directly asked it if someone had to been monitoring my progress."

Krypton

"Yes Jor-El, the Krypton High Council has been checking your data since the first calculations were fed into my data banks."

"So they agree with your assessment of the situation?"

"That is correct, Jor-El. They are of the opinion that you have allowed your emotional state to effect your work. Radical conclusions based on numbers that do not support your theories."

"I am not known for such acts, Brainiac! Why would they believe that of me?!"

"Your emotional outburst in this matter only supports their concern, Jor-El. I was asked to monitor your sleep cycle. You did not get a restful sleep. Your mind plagued you while you slept, causing you to exert energy further exhausting you. Recommendation: Consultation on methods to induce a restful slumber."

The Fortress

"The second time Brainiac has made this suggestion within a week's period. I could have easily accepted that I was somehow deeply overemotional. Who wouldn't be? The idea that our home was to be destroyed and there were no starships built to allow us to escape this fate. I did not allow Brainiac's conclusions to sway my belief in my findings. However, I did stay my hand from walking into the High Council and announcing my theories. I would have my time to discuss the matter with them when I stood before the Council later that week. General Zod stood trial for his leadership in an overthrowing of the Council. At a later date, I will regale you with this tale. After the trial had ended, I spoke with the Council and several other scientists of great renown about my findings."

Krypton

"Jor-El, Brainiac and the Council have gone over your findings many times over! The orbit of the planet is merely shifting, it will cause a few unexpected storms, there will likely be some damage done. Still, no amount of data your equations have seem to result in the nova of our sun. I'm deeply sorry Jor-El. We all wish we could support you in this. It's because of this lack of support that we will ask you to refrain from any doom saying to the general populace. An act such as this would be looked at as sedition."

"You would accuse me of sedition?"

"I'm sorry old friend, but what choice do we have? Causing mass panic over a matter that is based on faulty mathematics? This could cause chaos within our society that has just dealt with one of our history's greatest General's betrayal."

"Thank you, Rin-Vo. I will take your words under advisement."

The Fortress

"That closed the matter. To press further would've only ended in my arrest. The best course of action was to go back to my lab and create a rocket that would send you to the stars and find a home that you could grow and prosper. It was feverish work, indeed. The planet was spiraling towards it's destruction and I had no time to waste on any foolish work that the Council would have. Brainiac would come online and ask what that I was constructing. I merely told him that it was a new propulsion system to travel greater distances over Krypton faster."

Krypton

"Curious, Jor-El. This work has been authorized through the High Council, has it not?"

"It has. They have wanted to further explore the caves outside of the wastelands for new mineral deposits. There has been an increase in radiation there and they wish to collect samples and return quickly. It's of great importance."

"Do you have a message for the Council on your progress?"

"Steady and accelerating. My hope is to have it ready within a two week span."

"Very good, Jor-El. I will convey your message."

The Fortress

"It wasn't long after that when I finished the rocket's construction. I was unsatisfied that I could not properly test it without giving my intentions away. Though I had told Brainiac that I had plans to use it as a propulsion system, I felt that it would reveal my true intentions. The High-Council would have sent the military to escort me to the main chambers and there pass sentence and I would be a condemned man. For you, my son, I could not allow that to happen. I scouted the stars for planets we knew to have life sprouting on them. I was trying to match Krypton's atmosphere as much as possible. All candidates that were planetary matches for Krypton were still culturally non-existent. They hadn't evolved passed the Cro-Magnon stage. Obviously none of these would do, so onward the search went moving from the red sun unto a yellow one. I started to hypothesize would what happen to you under such a radically different sun. I surmised you would be nearly invulnerable and that you would have great speed and possibly even able to defy their gravity. It was mere conjecture, but I was certain the changes would be remarkable. Then my eyes turned towards Earth, a small isolated planet among a far away system. It was ideal, though at the time there wasn't a great deal of technology. It wasn't Krypton, more's the pity, but you would have a chance to survive. My one hope is that if you managed to get there someone with the capability to care for you would find you first. However, Lara was finding the entire prospect difficult to deal with."

Krypton

"Surely Jor-El, there is another way! I cannot believe we must condemn our son to mere chance and on a primitive backwater planet! They may mean well, but there must be a more suitable candidate for him to try!"

"Nowhere that the rocket will make it to, my wife. This tiny planet is our son's salvation, at least when he comes to understand his full potential he can help usher them into a far better age."

"My apologies, husband. A mother's concern for her son, you understand. It's all but lost here on Krypton, but it's still home! Jor-El, why did they not build ships again?! It was foolhardy to think that this planet would always be!"

"Pride in our knowledge and fear of relying on alien races. Our kind would never accept help from an outside source. We did once, and while it helped us to achieve a great deal of scientific breakthroughs it came at several terrible costs."

The Fortress

I stopped running dead in my tracks. "I thought you said that they were afraid of aliens. Why did they make the exception?"

"It was before the xenophobic hysteria had swept Krypton. These aliens were a group of scientists that came just shortly before the great Rao/Science debacle. There were still wild creatures that existed on the Kryptonian frontier. One very strange alien, whose race escapes me, asked permission from the Council to do research on cloning. They would further share information with our top scientists should we agree. Of course, the Council would not allow such an action without a Brainiac access port added to their dome, which would allow further scientific explorations. More or less it would allow our people to do things independently of these aliens. They came to an agreement, which was also a boon for Krypton as Brainiac was relatively new technology at that time."

"After everything you've told me, it all sounds a bit strange. What was the alien's name?"

"His name was Bertron. He was a brilliant mind and one of the most dangerous men that ever existed. It was because of him that things on Krypton's probe-travel developed the way it did. To speak frankly, the Council wished they could've destroyed the spacecraft we had already constructed after the debacle due to his experiments. They merely were kept for defense of Krypton should an outside force come to attack. It was highly thought among the most powerful of Krypton's scientists that the Daxamite destruction was a favor. It got rid of temptation by those who believed it would still benefit us to physically explore the stars. I think though, my son, this conversation is best left to another time. I do have a tale to finish. Suffice to say this about Bertron and his ilk until we come back to the story; the information was banned on Krypton after the incident, but higher-echelons scientists were allowed to know this for the purpose of avoiding further alien contact or making the same mistakes he and his colleagues made."

"Yes, father. So what do you need me to test now? Fly my son; see how fast you can fly to the moon and back, see if you can hold your breath for that long. The earpiece will allow me to finish the story of your escape."

I leapt skyward and took off like a speeding bullet towards the atmosphere. I'm very glad that father had thought to design a suit for me. It's a silver flight-suit for all intents and purposes, made me feel slightly like a potato that's about to be baked.

"After finding your new home, it was a matter of attaching your birth-matrix to it and sending it off. I didn't have much time left as the quakes were becoming more fierce with every passing hour. Several died due to falling shards of crystal. The radiation that was spread through the wastelands had reached the capital city of Krypton, which added more to the death toll. We were dying by the millions! It was a horror only your adopted planet's combat veterans could truly understand, or more to the point; their enemies. In those final hours the High-Council had called all of their scientist to order to help to quickly devise a way to stop the tragedy in progress. What their solution was I could not say, but one scientist was missing from their esteemed group. At that point, I had just finished downloading the last bit of knowledge from Krypton into the crystal matrix. It just needed to have my engrams programmed onto it to make sure you would have someone to guide you when the time came. I waited until last because I felt your mother's influence and the knowledge would truly be more important. A child should have its mother, for comfort purposes. It was a foreign concept on Krypton at times, but there was no doubt that the sentiment was shared. In my haste to finish, I ignored the summons. Brainiac came online to find out what my delay was."

Krypton

"Jor-El, your presence is requested at the High Council."

"It is too late, Brainiac. The planet is being laid to waste."

"Your propulsion system; it is being fastened to your son's birth-matrix?"

"My apologies to the Council, but this takes precedence. At least one from Krypton should survive!"

The Fortress

"Brainiac activated an alert to the military. They were sending their troops to arrest me immediately for my crimes. From here my son, the only memory I have before I took off the band around my head was your mother and I saying goodbye to you and that we loved you with all of our hearts. The rest is conjecture, but as I imagine the ship took off and the planet exploded as you left for your new home."

I cried as I soared out into space. There was no other reaction to the tale, Ma and Pa said as much too when I told them this tale later. I was so choked up that I turned back towards the Fortress. As I entered the atmosphere father was confused as to why I returned so quickly. "I think I've had enough tests for today, I just need some quiet time."

My thought turn away from that day with a tear in my eye. The sacrifice my parents made was a harsh one indeed. I don't think of that everyday, even though I feel I should. Though, this story does bring itself back to memory more often than maybe I want. It's not that I want to forget what they did for me. It just reminds me that however real the holographic image of my father may seem, he's not the real Jor-El.

The time flew! It's actually coming on towards 11:29, I need to get down to the Ace o' Clubs for this meeting. I look around and there's Capt. Sawyer standing out front of the building. I can't just go in there; however I can take her up on the roof. I doubt anyone's going to spot us up there. I rush down and land to her amazement. The wind picks up and dies down after my feet hit the ground. She looks at me with her now wind-blown hair, the look says that she's glad to see me and couldn't I use a bus once in awhile. "Sorry, Captain. I was doing a patrol over the city. I was almost late."

"Patrol over the city. Two days being a hero and you're doing a patrol. I'm too young to feel this old, Superman. How about we go in?"

"Actually I was thinking of heading up to the roof, it might attract less attention there."

"Fine, we'll do it you way if that's what you want, you go on up there and I'll meet you in a minute." She wanders into the place and goes up to the bar. She talks to a guy that looks like a cross between a professional boxer and Popeye. The thought almost makes me laugh. I don't pry on the conversation. I just follow her orders and fly upwards. It doesn't take long for her to come up and have the big man in tow. As I stand there the guy looks me over as he puts down a table and chair. His one eye squinted, the other one firmly scanning over every little detail of who and what I am.

He ambles up slowly and stands at arms length of me. "So youse the guy that thinks my place ain't good enough to step into?"

I turn from a smile to a widened look of concern. "No! Actually, I'd love to come in sometime! But I wanted to make sure that if someone saw me they didn't damage your fine establishment."

The anger in his face slowly turns to one of thought. "That's the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me, 'cept with the lotto guys gave me the check! Geez, someone that don't wanna wreck the place. I dunno what ta say about that?"

"I was always told to be considerate of others. But I promise I will come in one of these days when the matter we're discussing could prove less hazardous to your place."

"Well, thanks a lot Sooperman, I appreciate youse doin' me that favor. Now since we got that all cleared up, I guess it's time to make friends. Name's Bibbo Bibbowski, I'm da owner of da Ace o' Clubs! It's good to meetcha. I hope we can be pals. Why don't I get you and Maggie some grub? Two Slobberknockers comin' right up!"

I look at Capt. Sawyer and the try to ask Bibbo what it is he just offered me. She just puts her hand on my shoulder, "Don't ask. So Blue, let's talk. You've got some things on your mind and so do I."

"My main concern is that you're not getting the help getting the necessary equipment to deal with this onslaught."

"A lot of underhanded businesses have found their way into the police department. They're buying up as may crooked cops as they can. Some are getting triple the graft just because they have their hands in each pie."

"How many businesses are actually involved in this?"

"It's all speculation at this point, but the two main contenders are Edge Enterprises; they own WGBS. Then there's LexCorp. "

"Yeah, I'd believe Lex to be in on something like this."

"Problems with the Golden Child of Metropolis?"

"You could say that. Lex set up the attack outside of his building today."

"WHAT?! WHY DIDN'T YOU COME TO ME WITH THAT?!"

"Proof, Captain. Luthor used a signal device to call Mercy to him that day. I heard the signal again, recognizing it as the same signal Lex used. I went to confront him, and he told me it was all hearsay."

That look of frustration came again. She clenched her teeth and the anger just boiled over. "Damned if he isn't right. The building's huge, there's no way of telling where the signal came from. To make matters worse even if they could find it within LexCorp Towers, which one of the millions of employees working there could've done it? Lex himself is devious, but there's been more than a few disgruntled employees since as far back as LuthorCorp. Not to mention all the anti-LexCorp groups looking to ruin his reputation."

"So what's their angle for this? If anything Lex would be more beholden to have a better armed police force to protect his interests."

"Yes, but there's also the fact that he's been trying to sell us new equipment that Commissioner Casey disagrees with using. There's a lot of lethal armaments that Luthor wants to sell us. Prototype armors and such that bear his Double 'L' brand all over them. We were actually going through S.T.A.R. Labs for things and even WayneTech. The stun weaponry that they've come up with is much better suited for our purposes. Plus, they aren't looking to market stuff for military use after we've done a test run of the equipment. It's not secret that Lex is wanting to test the armor on a smaller scale and then make improvements for military consideration."

"Basically let you risk your lives with his equipment so his scientists can work out the flaws?"

"That's it in a nutshell. Morgan Edge however is a different ball of wax. His involvement with anything is suspected because there's a rumor he's a member of Intergang."

"Intergang? The Parasite mentioned them, but what exactly is it?"

"You really are green, aren't you? Intergang is one of the largest crime syndicates in the U.S. They've branched out worldwide, but they're mostly located on the eastern seaboard of our own country. It's been suspected for many years that their base of operations is here in Metropolis. But anyone that gets into custody long enough to tell us that much is automatically marked for death. We've never kept a witness alive to roll over on them."

"Well, Captain Sawyer, I'm certainly glad you've felt comfortable enough to trust me with this information."

"See, that's another problem. Superman, in the couple of days you've been here you've already saved a ton of lives and done more for the police than our own elected officials have. The problem is that you're not a cop. Hell, you're not even human! This is a mess that even INS wouldn't be able to figure out! You've got powers that practically make you Big Brother! Unless you're a government agent, no one's going to allow anything you say into a court of law simply because without a warrant you got all your info illegally. I barely freakin' know you, for God sakes! But here I am talking to you like you're just another member of the force. Sure you got an honest face, but is that enough? Truth be told I'm afraid to go anywhere in this city and talk to my own partner, but here I am on a rooftop talking to a guy that has the power to take over this entire planet. Why is that? You using some superpower on me that I don't know about?"

"If I was, do you think you'd be doubting yourself?" I look at her with an innocent smile and chuckle. It's my way of trying to ease the tension. By her expression, it's obviously having the opposite effect. "I'm sorry captain, just a small joke. In all seriousness, I'm not using any power on you. It just seemed like you needed to talk to someone and hopefully one that can help. I'm really hoping that's me."

"I'd love your help, Superman. I truly would. It would be great if you could just make the problems in this city just disappear. The problem is becoming reliant on you to do everything. We can't do that. Still, I can't deny having you on our side would benefit us. You've already got Luthor in your sites and I can tell you, that's not something that often happens in this city. People love Lex, he's an institution."

"And yet with the use of my powers, unless I can provide some physical evidence to back it up, that wasn't obtained illegally or without an experienced officer to corroborate my story anything I turn in won't be accepted."

"That's essentially it. If you had showed up 20 years ago, your powers and such would've been looked at as something more spectacular as we view them now. You're amazing, don't let me tell you otherwise. A true angel sent from the heavens, but these days people question angels. Too many people have seen powerful people sweep in with a glad hand stuck out, and a knife hidden behind their backs. We're all suffering from it."

"What exactly do you mean then? Am I not going to be accepted? Was this the wrong way to go about things?"

"No, you're doing good. That's never wrong. What I mean is that because of how you presented yourself already, you are going to have to work especially hard for people to know you're intentions are good. You've already got a fan following on the force, and you've got a ton of Metropolitans that are backing you up 100. It's just not enough yet. The first step into that is showing them that your purist intentions are to obey the laws. You've been a good citizen so far by always asking if you could help vs. just barging in. It's just a matter now of how far are you willing to take that?"

"I would like to go to the Commissioner and ask for his approval on this matter."

"Jack Casey will fall over in his seat, seeing you walk in asking for deputizing. It's a good start though, especially if I make a case for you. Look, I'm putting my faith in you Superman, especially since you've saved my life more than once. Don't let me down. "

"I will do my best, Capt. Sawyer."

"It's Maggie."

"Thank you, Maggie."

The roof access door opens up and the smell of melted cheese and meat hit me like a ton of bricks. I look at the sandwich he puts in front of me and I look back at him. His smile is enough to show me that he really wants me to like this. He pulls a couple of sodas out of his apron and puts them down. "Thank you, Mr. Bibbowski. It looks delicious."

"Aw geez, Sooperman, You don't have ta call me Mr. Bibbowski! That's my Pa, what's I remember of 'em anyway. Youse can call me Bibbo. Now, before we gets into any udder conversation, take a bite of the sam'wich!"

As I go to pick up the sandwich, I notice that whatever else is on it is actually eating the bread away. I'm slightly afraid that even as invulnerable as my insides are, it still might not be enough to handle this. Bibbo looks at the sandwich then back at me and realizes something. He leaps into action and tucks a napkin down the front of my shirt. I look up at him with that note of thank you in my expression. "Don't wanna ruin your spiffy duds."

I take a bite and it's actually quite a delicious concoction. I nod my head in approval and look at Bibbo. He beams with excitement. It's a little embarrassing for me to see him look so eagerly for my 'thumbs up.' Maggie just laughs hysterically as she eats hers. She raises her bottle of Soder, "Welcome to Metropolis, Superman."