Chapter 4: Banishment

Krypton-0 Orbital Cycles before extinction

When Jor-El had followed his heart and joined the science career track, he never imagined his life would become this chaotic. Zod had gone off the deep end, convinced that the council was bringing Krypton to its destruction. On two occasions, Jor-El had to save him from himself, which could have resulted in banishment into the Phantom Zone. He could only watch as his closest friend continued to hunger for more power, and find a way to militarize Krypton.

Things had drastically changed since then. Krypton was dying, and that had thrown everything out of whack. He had been threatened to be sent to the Phantom Zone if he tried either to leave the planet or to spread his "blasphemous propaganda". He was being closely watched by the council, as if they were hoping he would slip up. Everyone on this planet was going to die, and there was nothing he could do to stop it. The least he could do was save his son and hope that the child could have a good life on another world.

Jor-El was busy constructing the shuttle that would take his son to a primitive planet known as Earth. There, his son would have abilities beyond those of any of its human inhabitants. He would need that advantage if Darkseid ever decided to invade Earth. Whether the strength that Earth's yellow sun would provide for his son would be enough, he could not predict.

He had just finished the shuttle when General Zod entered his quarters; Zod immediately noticed it and how much it resembled a meteor.

"I see you are defying the will of the council yet again." Zod's voice was surprisingly calm.

"I told the council that neither my wife nor I would leave Krypton, and to that we are holding true. I made no promise for my son."

"You are a fool, Jor-El, for thinking that you will be able to get away with this." Zod's flare began to show at last. "They probably already know what you are doing here and preparing for your banishment as we speak."

"Whatever the consequences my wife and I must pay, it will be worth it if it saves the life of our son."

Another earthquake shook the planet. The intensity caused new cracks in the crystal walls and floor. After thirty seconds, the shaking ceased. The planet would not survive another day. By the frequency of these quakes, he estimated that today was the last.

Zod shook his head in disgust. "There is no more doubt that the council is leading us to our destruction. They are no longer fit to lead our people."

"Is this your hunger for power running rampant again?" Jor-El did not like the new course the conversation had taken.

"Listen to me Jor-El," Zod pleaded, "come with me right now, and let us save our people. Let's lead them to another planet to escape the pending doom."

"You are forgetting about one thing, my old friend: the council. Brainiac has them believing in an untruth. They have become so lazy and dependent on that android, that whatever Brainiac tells them, they believe."

Zod grinned at the irony. If he only knew the truth. Brainiac was the one pulling all the strings in the overthrow of the council. There was another surprise that Brainiac was responsible for. "Yes, Jor-El. The council has become irrelevant. Forget them; they will not present a problem anymore."

The red flag went off for Jor-El. He knew his friend had always loved power and sought to gain more of it, but until this very moment, he had never crossed any legal or ethical stance. "Zod, what have you done?"

"Let us just say the council is about to receive their rightful punishment for their crimes against the Kryptonian people."

Before Jor-El could answer, a gentle chime announced an incoming communication. General Zod stepped away from the center of the room as the holographic image of a member of the council appeared. "Jor-El, you have violated the will of the council, and have openly defied our ruling. By doing so, you have committed treason to the highest degree."

"I have done no such thing," Jor-El replied, hoping for some sort of miracle that would buy him enough time.

"I do not want to hear your excuses! You are to stay where you are. You are confined to your quarters until…"

A small explosion came from the background. The council member turned to the right and a look of sheer terror came across his face. A deafening roar could be heard in the background as the council member backed out of the view of the communicator. For a few seconds, he could not tell if the transmission was cut off or not, but that was quickly resolved as a towering figure stepped into view. It had sharp, jagged bones piercing the skin in various places of the head and body. He could hear all the members of the council scream in terror as the beast raised its massive fists. Thankfully, the connection was cut off, and the image of the monster disappeared.

General Zod grinned; the job was done. This massive monstrosity had been sent here to Krypton by Darkseid in the latest waves of attack. Brainiac had placed some kind of mind control device on the creature's head, allowing him to direct its destructive qualities towards the council. They had been very lucky that Brainiac discovered the beast before it made itself known to anyone. Zod could only imagine how much it would have bothered Darkseid if he discovered that they had found a way to take his weapon and use it for their own gain.

"You have finally done it, Zod. You have finally crossed the line!"

"You and I both know that they have jeopardized the lives of every Kryptonian. At this point, it is impossible to save every last person on this planet, and the blood of those people will be on their hands." Zod replied. "Now join me, Jor-El. Let us save our people from destruction."

"I'm afraid you do not know me as well as you have thought. I love Krypton and everything about it. I will abide by my promise to the council despite their apparent demise."

Zod's nostrils flared. "You are a fool!"

"Jor-El?" Lara entered the quarters, holding Kal-El in her arms. Unaware of the situation, she went to respectfully walk past Zod to talk to her husband, when Zod's right hand shot up. He clamped down on Lara's throat giving her just enough air to breath. Kal-El bawled uncontrollably in her arms, sensing the tension of the situation.

"Seeing that I already have blood on my hands, perhaps I should take the life of your wife and son, since they are the ones causing you to turn your back on me. For too long I have sought to rid this planet of the council, so I may form a military government ruled by me. Too long have I allowed you to unknowingly stop me each and every time. You have no idea how many times your research interfered with my conquest."

"You are wrong," Jor-El replied. "I know exactly how many times you have tried to take power. All those interferences by me were very intentional."

"You knew? Your purposely opposed me?" Zod was livid. He was ready to explode in an uncontrollable rage.

"It was for the sake of our past friendship, that I have spared you the humiliation and banishment into the Phantom Zone. I now fear that it was an error of judgment on my part."

Zod's rage went through the roof. Lara grimaced as the very little air she was being allowed had been cut off. The ground once again began to shake. It was the miracle that Jor-El had been looking for. Zod had lost his footing, and as he did, lost his grip on Kara's throat. Jor-El had just enough footing to take advantage of the situation and lunged toward Zod. Lara stumbled backwards out of the way as Jor-El pushed Zod to the ground.

Zod hit the ground at just the right spot for this to work. Fighting against the quake, Jor-El stepped forward and grabbed his wife by the wrist. He pulled back towards the space shuttle and reached for a button next to the ship. Before Zod could return to his senses, a transparent crystal wall cut the room in the half, separating them from Zod.

As the quake ceased, Zod jumped to his feet and promptly went to pounding on the new wall. "Jor-El!" The scream was that of a mad man. "Jor-El!"

"I'm sorry, my friend; this has to be. At least you will be saved from death," Jor-El said, grabbing a red crystal from his station and sliding it into the only red slot among the many slots.

The room dimmed as Zod's half of the room began to fill with streaks of blue lightning. Zod's fists became flat as he slapped on the wall separating him from Jor-El. His pounding of anger had become slapping of desperation. "Jor-El, please; do not do this! I am sorry! We can still work together! We can save our people!"

Jor-El remained silent. It was hard enough to watch this as it was. Zod knew his silence was the answer to his desperate pleas. As a black hole began to appear in the room with Zod, Jor-El watched him change back to the man who he really was. "Mark my words, Jor-El; you can send me to the Phantom Zone now, but not even that will be able to keep me! I will be back, Jor-El," Zod spat. "You may save your son from destruction, but when I return, I will seek him out, and I will force him to kneel before me as you should have!"

Jor-El remained silent as the portal gained full strength. Zod resisted the vacuum for a few seconds before the strength of the opening became too much, and was sucked into the gateway to the Phantom Zone.

Brainiac was in a private shuttle, far enough away to witness the spectacular end of Krypton without being destroyed by the shockwave that would come. The planet was passing right in front of the red sun; he could see the radiation rays saturate the planet, causing the surface to crack. The part of Krypton that was closest to the sun started to glow green, whereas the furthest end became progressively darker.

Finally, the planet could not take anymore. The planet exploded in a multi-color spectacle which was followed by a powerful shockwave that rippled through space. By the time the shockwave reached Brainiac, the ship experienced nothing more than a slight jolt. Being pushed by the shockwave, a small shuttle, shaped like a meteor, shot past him in a mission oriented speed. There was no mistaking what was on that ship. "Jor-El," he said to himself.

The communication terminal in his shuttle activated and a miniature holographic image of Darkseid appeared before Brainiac. "A single Kryptonian has escaped the planet's destruction."

"I have seen the shuttle escape. Jor-El has managed to save his child."

"This is unacceptable. As long as one Kryptonian remains alive, my destiny of conquest will be threatened. You must find the son of Jor-El and eliminate him."

"I will do as you command, my lord."