Chapter 32: The Dust Settling

Lois followed the trail of destruction and the sounds of terrified screams. It led her to Metropolis National Park, where a major part of the battle appeared to take place. She should have guessed sooner that this was where Superman would have taken Brainiac; it was the best place in Metropolis to fight a blood-thirsty robot from hell without endangering people. She found a group of police officers surrounding the remains of the android, but Superman was nowhere to be seen. Based on testimonies of frightened onlookers, she learned that Superman was fighting the other Kryptonian until a bright light flashed and they both disappeared.

She had no idea what to make of the description of events; it could've been tainted by fear. Being afraid had a tendency to make one see strange things, but then again, these were aliens, she was talking about. Who knew what Superman was trying to do, or did do, for that matter. Her heart had already imagined the worst case scenario. What if he sacrificed himself to stop this rogue alien?

Before that though could start festering and playing havoc on her emotions, she saw Lieutenant Inspector Dan Turpin and Captain Maggie Sawyer inspecting the scene. When Dan saw her, he made his way towards her; Maggie followed close behind. "Any word on what happened to Big Blue?"

"I've been trying to find out, myself," she admitted. "All I'm getting are conflicting reports."

"Lois?" General Lane called out, marching towards Lois. She could swear, sometimes, that he had some kind of homing beacon implanted inside of her; he could find her in baseball stadium during a game of the World Series.

At that moment, he was the last person she wanted to see. "What did you do, father?"

He was not expecting to be snapped at by his eldest daughter. All he was wanting was to find out if she and Lucy were alright; not to be interrogated like a prisoner of war. "What?"

"You tried to pollute the planet with Kryptonite dust? Have you gone insane? Because of you, General Zod became much more of a threat to this city than he should have been. Your actions put an entire city in serious jeopardy. He took your self-righteous plan, and turned to his advantage, and for all we know, may have cost this world a true hero!"

The general let out a disgruntled grunt. He had not wanted to talk to his daughter about Operation Dust Cloud. He had tried his best to hide it from his daughter's prying eyes. As much as he hated the fact that she was working for the media, she continued to prove that she was very good at what she did. There was only one way she could have found out. "You know about that, huh? Miss Lang and I are gonna have some words about this."

"Good luck with that, Dad!" Lois snapped, letting her life-long grudge, that she had with her father, to come out in an explosion that had been a long time coming. She was one of the casualties in this mess of yours."

His mood immediately became somber. After having that news thrown in his face, he did not want to be accused of being insensitive. "Lois, I don't know to make you understand. I'm not out to get rid of Superman, as you are willing to believe. It's my job to keep American's safe, not Superman's."

Lois shook her head in disgust. "Why don't you stow your pride, for once, and how about you work with him for a change?"

"What do you think I've been trying to do?" her father replied. "What do you think the Vigilante Act is all about?"

Hearing those two words 'Vigilante Act' brought a sour taste to her mouth. This man even had himself deceived by this lie. "Let me tell you what you can do to with your stupid Vigilante act..."

"Well, I'll be damned! Look!" Dan Turpin, was relieved over a distraction from this awkward moment.

Everyone look up to the sky to see Superman flying towards the park. He was holding General Zod by the collar of his shirt. The general was waving franticly in clear opposition of being manhandled. Lois felt her anxious heart be overcome with relief upon seeing him still alive. Her imagination was starting to get the best of her. Boy, never in her life was she glad that her instincts were wrong.

Superman came in for a soft landing, after which, he shoved General Zod towards Dan Turpin. Dan had to fight the urge to stumble back away from him. Superman suppressed a laugh. "It is alright, Lieutenant Inspector; I stripped him of his powers. For all intent and purposes, he is completely human, now."

"Really?" Dan said, not in disbelief, but more with a mocking tone at the expense of the former Kryptonian general. He worked up the courage and gently shoved the General back a step.

"How dare you touch me, you pathetic little human!"

When no immediate physical assault came as a result of his mocking, all the confidence that his badge gave to him came back into full swing. "I'm gonna enjoy this. You, MR. Zod, are under arrest."

"How dare you treat me as such!" He growled as Dan commenced handcuffing him wrists behind his back. "There are no prisons that can hold Zod forever!"

Dan shoved him abrasively onward. "Yeah, you keep referring to yourself in the third person, and someone in prison might just make you their bride. Move it!"

Dan and Maggie escorted their new prisoner away, and that gave General Lane the opportunity to speak to Superman without the Lieutenant of the MSCU. He was not fond of that officer and how he so willingly accepted Superman in his role of protector of Metropolis. "I have to admit, I didn't expect you to hand him over to the court of law so freely."

Superman's looked at him with firm, uncompromising eyes. He was not surprised to hear such a comment from the General Lane. "General, you are mistaken about my intentions. I'm not here to replace you or what you fine, heroic warriors do. My ultimate interest is in saving lives and keeping Earth safe from other evil species that roam the galaxy. When this planet is not in jeopardy, I volunteer to help local fire and police departments by doing things that could be dangerous for them. All I seek is to save lives whenever possible. I will not get involved in wars between nations; I am strictly prohibited from getting involved in your politics. If I register with the government, as your Vigilante Bill proposes, all I end up doing is handing my life over to the politicians, as some sort of super weapon to be used to settle their political disputes with other nations. Even you must know that not every politician has the best interest of their constituent at heart."

He was right, there were a growing number of politicians that he absolutely hated, and seemed hell bent on tying his hands behind his back, crippling his ability to keep American's safe. They got their thumbs up their rear ends as they talk about world peace, and everyone getting along. The problem was... not every nation wanted peace. There were those who were hell bent on killing the innocent. His greatest fear was that another event like 9-11 would happen. If these stupid politicians did stop impeding his ability to do his job, another tragedy like the World Trade Center was inevitable. He often thought about retiring before that could ever happen. He knew that if it happened on his watch, he would be one of those that would find a Neuse around their neck. "You're right. I wouldn't trust many politicians these days."

"I want what every reasonable man wants; peace between all the nations, but I chose to work towards that by living in such a manner that when people see the way I live, they will want to drop their weapons. I promise to do my best to work in the confines of local law, if you will give me the courtesy of not trying to enlist me."

General Lane shook his head in approval; he could live with that arrangement. "I suppose I can back down on from that bill." Before going back to his chopper, there was one little thing that Superman had said that unnerved him. "So, you say there are other hostile aliens out there?"

"Yes, that's why I was sent here. There's one particular war lord that would make Earth's Hitler look like a day in the park." All three of them looked around at the devastation that surrounded them. "Well, at least an average day in the park."

"Well, I hope you're wrong about that," the general replied before turning around and making his way back to the military helicopter at the far end of the park.

Now alone, Lois and Superman found themselves staring into each other's eyes, not quite sure what to say. "Would you mind flying me back to my apartment?"

She knew that under these circumstances, her request seemed... inopportune. After fighting for his life and overcoming great odds, her question could seem very selfish, especially in the eyes of everyone else. That's why she gave him a look to tell him that this was her way of telling him that she needs to talk to him in a more private surrounding.

It took him a few seconds, but he could read her eyes and take a hint. "It would be my pleasure, Miss Lane."

He gently scooped her up in his arms and leaped up into the sky. It was a very short trip to the balcony porch to Lois' condominium, and it was very quiet as well. Superman had half expected the conversation to start in mid-flight, but she was too busy figuring out how to say what she wanted to say. This was a topic she had no experience in at all, and she was afraid that she was going to sound corny.

By the time they landed on the stone patio, she figured that she was going to rip the band-aid off quickly, and go for broke. "I have something for you."

She ran for the sliding glass door that led to the inside of her apartment. She slid the door open and reached for her purse on the night stand next to the brown, leather couch. She didn't have to do much digging to find what she was looking for; she always kept the inside of her purse neatly organized. After finding what she was looking for, she ran back to him, as if she was afraid that he would fly off.

She politely reached towards his face, and placed a pair of black, plastic-framed, fake-glasses over his eyes. "You're super handsome as it is, but there's just something about this look that I love."

"Wait, these aren't my..." It took him a second, but he then realized what was happening. It wasn't the fact that these glasses were not his; it was her seeing him with the glasses on while still in his suit. She could see the Clark Kent side of him. Somehow, she discovered his secret identity. "H—how did you know?"

"I'm a damn good reporter, that's how. Didn't I tell you that I was going to find out who you really are?" Lois said with a sadistic smile. "I can't tell you how happy I am, that Clark Kent and Superman are the same person. I thought I was losing my mind when I realized that I was falling in love with Clark Kent."

"You love Clark Kent?" He said softly in a playful manner.

"Him and all his gauchely idiosyncrasies."

Clark put his arms around her hips and drew her closer, feeling a great burden fall off his shoulders, now that he no longer had to hide the truth from her. It had been very difficult not to share it with her. His secret identity had to be guarded to the best of his ability, and at first, he thought that doing so meant a life-long journey alone. Perhaps, he didn't have to, after all.

Holding her in his arms, he knew that this was right. He could almost feel the approval of his Kryptonian father, as if he had somehow arranged this. Staring into each other eyes, their lips were drawn together like metal to magnets. Their bodies pressed together, and their arms wrapped around each other in deep embrace. The world around them faded into the far distance, as they established a connection between that would forever change their relationship.

What remained of the Intergang crime lords was present at the secondary hideout. All the young recruits that they had were gone, thanks to the bumbling idiocy of Bruno and his idea to revive Metallo. They've been brought to ruin, and now, they were lost as to how to salvage what they could and start again. The mood among many of them reflected a strong skepticism that the Intergang could be saved at all.

"We done for. There no way we can recover from this sort of catastrophe!" The female oriental crime lord said with a very thick Chinese accent. "There no way we can compete against Falcone's empire in Gotham!"

"Perhaps we can recruit some outside help?" Another crime lord suggested. "How 'bout the Joker? He's got no love for the Falcone family."

"Are you mental? Joker is too much of a freak! He's got no love for any crime family. You tell him what we're up to, and he'll be coming to Metropolis causing all kind of ruckus. There's no way we can control a man like that."

"How about Two-Face or even that cat girl person?" Another suggested.

"How about neither," a strange voice replied, instantly attracting the attention of the handful of crime lords. An elderly, heavy-set, woman stood there looking out-of-place.

"Yo, lady, I think you're lost; the nursing home is two blocks away."

The woman only smiled sweatly, but her voice showed much more strength than a simple grandmother. "Well, ain't you a dapper, young moron."

"Yo," the young, African-American crime lord pounded his fist on the table. "You betta beat it, grandma, or you might just end up makin' a trip to the morgue, instead." He didn't care how old she was, or the fact that she was a woman; if she continued to diss him, he was going to slit her throat.

The woman shook her head and smiled. She showed no real signs of dementia or being senile. She stood straight up on her own power, without your typical elderly hunch. For someone her age, she appeared to be very healthy as if she was thirty years younger. "You young whippersnappers are always hot-headed. The name is Granny Goodness, boys. Your little play group here has served its purpose. There will be no need to bring it back to life."

Was this lady serious? It was almost laughable to see this granny try to control the Intergang. She had to be mentally out there. Perhaps she escaped from the loony bin. She was to "sweet" looking to be taken seriously as a crime lord. "Lady, I think you forgot to take your meds. I don't think you know where you are."

A mental switch flipped within her psyche, and her sweet, but firm granny composure turned into a vile, grotesque villain. "I know exactly where I am. I'm at the very spot where I'll get to watch all of you die. Furies, kill them all!"

A bright white radiance ripped through the fabric of reality, forming what looked like a tunnel of white light. Stepping out of the 'tunnel', came a handful of young women, who's faces where hidden by the brightness of the light.

The only thing that identified them as women were their figures. The front woman was freakishly-tall and athletically-built. Even blinded by the light, they could see sparkles shimmering off her warrior-like armor. Her helmet only added to her threatening look. Behind her to the left was a short, but stocky woman who wore red and yellow leather. Her attire made her look more like a military pilot. Of the four women, she appeared to be the least intimidating. Beside her was an oddly shaped women. She figure resembled like some kind of woman-slash-beast hybrid. Her eyes were wild, showing a mentally instable personality. It was hard to see through the blinding light, but it appeared she had large, pointed teeth like that of a lioness. Her 'hands' were more like paws with large claws that would put Freddy Krueger to shame. Finally, there was a woman dressed almost like a dominatrix with her sexy, tight black leather short dress. She was drop dead gorgeous, which was almost a contradiction to the violence of her whip, which sparked with electricity coursing through it. These women were warriors in their own right, and their sights were set on the crime lords.

Granny smiled as her warriors positioned themselves for the kill. She could not have been more proud of her girls. "Hail, Darkseid!"

For all the guns that they had on them, none of them made any difference at all. For the next thirty minutes, the abandoned warehouse had to keep in all the blood-curdling screams and sounds of torturous forms of death that no man should ever have to endure. The Intergang was no more.

The Funeral for Lana Lang came to an end. Clark was joined by his mother, who wanted to pay her respect. She had always liked that young girl, and if life had turned out differently for Clark, she was convinced that Lana would have been her daughter-in-law. Life ended up steering them in two separate directions, and she understood the sacrifice that Clark had endured to become the man who he was destined to be.

"Are you sure, you're okay?" she asked him, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. They were walking away from the casket as the groundskeepers, along with all the other people who attended the funeral. The groundskeepers were already starting to lower the casket down into the ground.

"I'm fine, Mom. I wish things could have ended differently for her, but I'm okay." He assured her, and as strange as it was, he was telling the truth. He would always remember the times that they had together in high school, but his heart had moved on. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to come back and visit you at the hospital."

"Oh, don't worry about that," She said, waving a hand as to sweep that negative feeling aside. "You had your hands full in Metropolis."

"Speaking of which, I promise to come by soon and repair the damage to the farm. You don't have to hire any carpenters."

"Wasn't planning to," She smiled. "You maybe Superman, but I'm still your mother. I can still tell you what to do, young man."

Clark chuckled as he looked out towards the street that paralleled the graveyard. A cab was parked among the several black limousines. Lois and Lucy were in the middle of a farewell hug, which meant that Lucy was about to leave for college. "I'll see you later, Mom. There's something I need to do."

"You go ahead," she assured him. She never had to worry about him ever missing his ride; he was his own transportation.

He left his mother's side and made his way to Lois and Lucy. Jimmy was also there to see Lucy off, but he had the appearance of a child who was losing his best friend. He knew that Jimmy had grown quite fond of Lucy, and he hoped that they could still make their relationship work long distance. He placed a hand on Lois's shoulder. "So, you're off to college?"

"Yeah, I've delayed it as long as I can, but if I don't go now, I'll miss registration." She replied, with a tinge of regret behind her voice. After her experience here in Metropolis, she was not looking forward to the tedious and boring life of college. "I'm happy to see you two going steady. I was afraid that Lois' crush on Superman was blinding her to reality. I was afraid she would never settle down."

"Oh, shush up, kid!" Lois said, playfully shoving her little sister.

Clark laughed, as he rubbed her back with his hand. Just like all new couples, there was seldom a time where they weren't touching each other. Often in the form of caressing during intimate times or relaxing messages, it was quickly clear to everyone how much they were in love.

Lucy said her farewell to Jimmy, which ended in a passionate hug and kiss. Neither of them was really anxious to let go, but the impatient cab driver honking the horn proved to be enough to separate them. Lucy bade everyone one final farewell before climbing in the backseat of the taxi, and taking off to start her journey to the airport.

When the cab was out of sight, Clark could see a dark cloud of depression rise from Jimmy. "You alright, Jimmy?"

"Yeah, sure," he said, less than convincingly. "I'm gonna go for a walk." With his eyes focused downward onto his feet, he followed the sidewalk, not knowing or caring where it was leading.

"Boy, everything's a crisis at that age," Lois said. She looked over at him and noticed that his eyes were all over the place. He was pointing his ears in all directions, trying to locate the source of commotion. "What do you hear?"

"Sounds like a Bank Robbery."

So it begins. Entering a relationship with him, she knew she was going to have to share him with the rest of the world. There was going to be times that he would have to run off without any notice. She knew that it was not going to be an easy life, but she never sought after anything that was easy. If it was too easy, then she wasn't interested. Whatever sacrifices there needed to be, she was willing to pay it. She was too much in love not to. "So what are you waiting for?"

Showing a smile to recognize how lucky he was to have a woman like her at his side. He turned towards a direction away from everyone and ran. As he ran down the sidewalk, he grabbed at his button down shirt underneath his tux jacket. He ripped the shirt open, revealing the red S-symbol.