A.N: The story is almost completely written. As soon as it is, I will be starting a new project that I want to complete before the Summer ends and school starts again... once it does I think I'm going to take a break from writing....
Chapter 7
Now she was scared. She was downright terrified. She was watching Zod as the portal was opening. Last time he'd taken her to Smallville, he didn't need to this time apparently, because he was ready to this right here and right now.
She tried to untie her hands from behind her back because she knew she couldn't let him complete the ritual. She watched the two goons who worked for him staring at the bright light that was opening the portal to the Phantom Zone. She scooted backwards trying to take cover and then she saw it.
The blur zipped through the room. It was so fast that no one noticed it, but somehow she did.
She looked around frantically. And it wasn't until Zod was knocked against the wall that she saw him again. She looked up at him in shock and confusion. He couldn't be standing right in front of her. The dead can't push psycho aliens against a wall, though, and this man now in front of her had undoubtedly had.
The two goons now charged toward him in a moot effort to knock him down. He picked them up by their necks and flung them across the room.
In that instant she'd finally cut herself free from the tape and she placed her palms next to her to help herself stand. She stared at him open mouthed.
"Clark?"
"It's me, Lois, I'm back."
That's all he said before he was pinned by Zod from behind. Zod choked him roughly causing Clark's face to become red with strain. Lois looked around for something to help. She found the gun on the buckle of one of the men Clark had flung across the room and pointed it at the two gods.
"Let him go", she stressed with her finger on the trigger.
Zod laughed tightening his hold on Clark.
"Stupid Earth woman", he sneered, "Bullets can't hurt me."
"No", she nodded and pointed the gun on herself against her temple, "But they can hurt me and you need this body for your whore, don't you?"
"You wouldn't", Zod loosened his grip on Clark, "You'd risk your life for this… alien…?"
"The only alien I see here is you, Zod", she said removing the safety, "Let… him… go…"
"Lois", Clark panted, "What are you doing?"
"What you'd do for me", she said flicking her eyes back to his, "The world needs its hero."
"Lois", Clark said struggling against Zod's tight hold, "No… just get out of here… I'll get out of this…"
"Clark, I can't watch you die", she said crying softly, "again…"
He caught a glimpse of Bart in the shadows and bore his eyes into hers. He nodded affirmative and smirked. She twitched her lips and understood.
"What's it going to be Miss Lane", Zod asked oblivious to the exchange, "You going to drop the gun so I can drop your boyfriend."
She pulled the gun away from her and placed it gently on the floor.
"Now you have to keep up your end", she said.
"Wrong", Zod glared, "I think I'll kill Kal-El now…."
"Now Bart!"
Bart lifted up a piece of green kryptonite and Zod stumbled back.
"What is this", he asked in pain.
Clark laid on the ground in front of him in the fetal position and he looked up to see Lois holding the gun again and pointing it at Zod.
The portal opened up in that moment and started to suck in everything around them.
Lois threw the gun crawled toward Clark and pushed his hair back, lifting his head on her lap.
"Bart", she called out above the roar, "Get us out of here…!"
Bart dropped the rock and super sped to them. He helped Lois to lift up Clark. He held Clark on one side and Lois on the other and super sped them across the room behind a heavy lead crate.
Clark breathed deeply and looked at Lois and Bart watching him intently.
"I'm okay", he said.
"You sure", she screamed over the roaring wind.
He nodded.
Lois looked over his shoulder and saw the two men who had abducted her be sucked into the portal.
"It's a worm hole", she screamed, "We need to hold on to something steady."
They felt the crate begin to be moved forward. Lois and Bart helped Clark up again and walked over to a steel pipe. She pulled off Clark's belt and tied him to the pipe with it. Bart followed her example and both he and Lois were tied down quickly.
"Hold on", Bart yelled.
Lois looked up and saw Zod stand up. She saw how he was pulled back by the sheer force of the portal and shield her eyes against the wind.
"I will return", he said.
And the phantom pushed himself out of Lex's body, causing Lex to collapse unconscious on the ground. The phantom was pulled back into the portal and Lois saw Lex beginning to be pulled back as well.
Clark looked back and saw the same thing and untied himself from the pipe.
"Clark", she called, "Don't."
"I have to", he said and crawled toward the man who was once his best friend, grabbing on to his coat with one hand and punching through the ground with the other. He grabbed on to a small steel pipe and held on tightly. He held Lex close and closed his eyes as they were both lifted into the air; the only thing holding them both from the dark hole, being a three inch pipe.
Just as the portal closed, they both collapsed on the ground again. Clark looked up and saw Lois and Bart looking around them at the mess made in the warehouse. He heard a groan and looked down at Lex's eyes fluttering.
Lex looked up at him and widened his eyes.
"Cla-Clark?"
Clark let him go and stood up. He walked toward Lois and Bart.
"Are you okay", he asked them and they nodded.
"What happened?"
Clark looked at Bart.
"It closed", he turned back toward the wall that had produced the black hole in the first place, "It got what it wanted."
"Clark", Lois gasped looking at his bruised hand and lifting it up for inspection, "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine", he smiled softly, "I guess I'm back to square one with my powers…"
Bart looked over his shoulder at Lex trying to sit up.
"What about him?"
"Maybe Bruce can find a nice place for him to stay for the next twenty years to forever", Lois sneered.
"Maybe", Clark nodded.
"Clark", Lois asked, "How is this possible?"
"It's a long story, Lois", he lowered his eyes.
"I've got time", she smiled sadly.
"Good", Clark smiled, "Cause we're going to need lots of it."
Bart tapped his ear.
"Impulse to Arrow", he said, "Rendezvous at warehouse 59 by the docks. We're going to need police escort too."
I'll call Detective Jones, Oliver's voice came over the speaker.
"Can we wait for them outside", Lois asked.
Clark nodded and led her out of the warehouse, leaving Bart inside to watch over Lex.
~*~
"So", she said smiling.
"So", he mimicked sitting on the dock with his legs hanging.
"Got something you want to tell me?"
"Not really", he smiled.
"Clark", she smirked, "Tell me…"
"I guess when I fought Doomsday, I used up all my powers", he started, "And with no solar energy, since it was at night, it's a like a battery dying out and needing to be recharged."
"So you're a battery", she asked.
"I'm a Kryptonian", he said, "We need the Sun to get our strength."
She nodded.
"So you weren't dead", she stated, "Did we bury an empty casket?"
He nodded sadly.
"Jor-El had already somehow removed my body", he said softly, "I'm sorry Lois…"
"Sorry", she asked, "For what?"
"For putting you through that", he said, "I didn't want you to know about that part of my life."
"I don't know if you've noticed Clark", she said leaning her head to the side staring at him, "But there's something between us and if we're going to want to make it work… you've got to let me in. All the way in…"
He nodded.
"I know", he said, "I promise to try…"
"That's all I want", she said softly, "For you to try…"
He nodded. "Okay."
"I missed you, Smallville", she said.
"Oh you did; huh", he smirked.
"Of course", she smirked, "I had no one to steal coffee from the last month…"
He laughed out loud and realized that now, here with her on this dock, he was finally home.
~*~
He shuffled down the hallway of Metropolis General Hospital toward the nurse's station and smiled kindly at the young woman answering phones.
"Can I help you", she smiled warmly.
"I'm Professor Vale", the older man stated holding out his identification, "I'm here for that body that died a couple of hours ago."
She nodded.
"Gosh, Professor, that sounds so morbid", she said looking through files.
"I'm sorry", he nodded, "It seems that the young man in question was an organ donor. His body has been donated to the University's Pathology department."
"When you put it that way", she shrugged pulling out a thin folder, "Ah. Here it is. The John Doe turned John Corben. Mugging victim, beaten to death, organs are still intact, there no entrance wounds or exit wounds, brain is still in good condition, lungs are still pink so he wasn't a smoker, kidneys are healthy… oh the only thing we couldn't keep was his heart. That has already been donated to another patient… I hope that's okay."
Professor Vale smiled.
"That's perfect."
