Chapter 26
Kal-El and Kara had just returned from surveillance mission on Grand City. They super-sped into Kara's tent. "This is not going to be easy." Kara said as Kal-El splashed water in his face. They had been up for most of the night.
"It will take a foolproof plan to bring down this fortress or it all ends here." Kal-El said and dabbed the water off his face with a cloth.
"Since we have nothing but time, this now seems like the perfect moment to ask… what are your intentions with Lois Lane?" Kara asked.
"What?" Kal-El asked. He immediately stopped dabbing the water off his face. He was definitely caught off guard. He tossed the cloth down onto the table. "What are you talking about?"
"Do not lie to me, Kal-El. You know I can always tell when you are lying. And I saw you two together in Argos City." Kara said and Kal-El rubbed his temples. "Now, I want the truth, Kal-El, the plain truth." Kal-El sighed. "Is she your mistress?"
"What! Do not call her that! She means more to me than lowly, degraded title." Kal-El snapped defensively.
"But you have given yourselves to each other?" She asked. The way he raised his chin and his silence answered her question. "If she is not your mistress, then what is she to you, cousin?"
"Lois is… she is the woman I intend to marry." Kal-El answered and Kara was blank so he knew that she was now caught off guard.
"I do not believe I heard you correctly because I believe I just heard you say that you are intending to marry Lois Lane." Kal-El gave her a stern look. "The same Commander Lois Lane in this very camp?" Kara said.
"Yes... and by the way, she prefers Countess over Commander." Kal-El sighed and crossed his arms. "I am going to ask her once we have taken Metropolis. I love her, Kara, and she loves me. All we want is for us to be together and to no longer meet in secret." He replied.
"But what will the people say? The Council?" Kara asked.
"If necessary, I will make the marriage appear political. I was planning this union with Lionel Luthor before his untimely death." He said and turned to see Kara's jaw dropped. "Kara, I will marry Lois... with or without permission from you, the Council, or the people." He replied.
"You are playing a dangerous game here, Kal-El. The people will not accept this marriage and it may tear your kingdom apart." Kara said.
"There is also the possibility the people will not accept your impending marriage to Fine. After all, his father and his ancestors were loyal to the House of Zod. His family has done atrocities so lurid that they are not written down so they can soon be forgotten, that way our children do not hear of them." Kal-El snapped and Kara turned away from him.
Kal-El sighed again. "Forgive me. I speak out of turn." Kara refused to look at or acknowledge him. "Since Alicia's death, I have envied all my friends' happiness. How blissful they are with their wives. Even Diana is betrothed to the love of her life… and I have even envied you and Milton." Kara turned around to face him.
"Kal-El…" Kara said sympathetically. He ran his hand over his face.
"I thought I could be happy with Lana but something was always missing. Then I met Lois and… I cannot explain it but for once I knew what I wanted and that made me truly happy." He said softly.
Kara took a step towards her cousin. "I admit that Milton Fine was the last man I expected to fall in love with. I loathed him for the crimes his family committed against Krypton… but then he saved my life at Kryptonopolis. I had never needed saving until that day. We grew to respect one another, then the respect turned to trust, to like, and eventually into love." Kara said.
"That is all I want in this life… to have someone to love and share my life with. I now know that I have finally found my true soul mate and I never want to let her go. You once asked for my blessing, now all I ask is for yours." Kal-El said.
Kara placed a hand on his shoulder to comfort him. "If she makes you happy then who am I to stand in your way?" Kara replied and Kal-El grinned. "But if she does hurt you, she and I will cross swords." Kara said fiercely.
"You mean cross words?" He asked confused.
"No… I mean cross swords and I know you would do the same if Milton ever hurt me. Like you told me once, we look out for one another." Kara said. Kal-El smiled and then ruffled her hair. She smacked his arm. They left the tent.
Soldiers bowed as Kal-El and Kara walked passed them and they nodded in return. They soon reached Kal-El large tent, where everyone was waiting for them. Kal-El pulled back the flap and motioned for Kara to enter first. He followed in after her.
"Well?" Carter asked pacing with his arms crossed.
"Good morning, Carter. I trust you slept well whilst Kara and I rose before the dawn to scout Grand City." Kal-El said. Kara grinned and Carter rolled his eyes.
"Good morning… now what have you found out?" Carter replied. Kal-El and Kara's faces became serious.
"I have never seen a fortress such as this. Every man is kept on guard for attack. No wine or mead of any kind is allowed to corrupt the men. Regiments patrol the city walls until dusk and then more regiments take their place so those men can eat and sleep. The same occurs at dawn." Kal-El explained.
"If we are to lead the attack, Kal-El, then we must attack at dawn. The powers of the stones are strongest during the day." Kara said and Kal-El nodded.
"Is that the small advantage you have over Alexander?" Lois asked.
"Yes. When a person not of Kryptonian blood possesses one of the stones, the powers are useless at night. My great-grandfather was no fool. The last thing he wanted was for history to repeat itself. At night, Kara and I will still have our powers but they will be weaker." Kal-El said.
"So what is our plan?" Oliver asked twirling an arrow between his fingers.
"If anyone is interested, I have already thought of one." Bruce said from the background. Everyone turned to look at him. Bruce stepped up and they all took a step back to let him through. "First, we need to make contact with the Resistance fighters inside the city."
Bruce looked at Lois. "It will be difficult but I can contact them." She said.
Bruce nodded. "Good. Tell them to get out of the city at dawn and not to seal the escape tunnel. I believe we can use Wilson's defenses against him." Bruce said and Fine walked up beside him.
"How so?" Carter asked, now interested.
"Wilson keeps the barrels of black powder for the cannons here, here, and here. If you and Kara can get into the city and move these barrels here, here, and here… Then we can create an explosion that will cause the walls to collapse onto the city, killing all inside without actually attacking the city." Bruce said.
Milton Fine walked up beside Bruce and went over his plan. After a few moments of silence, he spoke. "This could actually work." Fine said.
"What about the explosion? That may cause unwanted attention." Shiera said and Bruce gave her a stern look. "But you already thought of that." She commented.
"As we heard this morning, Wilson tests the cannons every morning to make sure they do not fail in an actual battle. No one will investigate the sounds of explosions in the morning." Bruce said.
"We will of course search the ruins for survivors." Carter said.
"Of course but survivors will be highly unlikely." Bruce said. Diana sighed. "Yes, Diana?"
"I was looking forward to this battle." Diana said. "However, it is a good plan."
Kal-El stroked his coarse stubble on his chin as he went over the plan in his head. Everyone else had already agreed to Bruce's plan except Kal-El. Everyone was looking at him waiting for his decision. Lois got close to him and whispered in his ear. "Clark… we could take this city without even drawing our swords. It could save a lot of soldiers' lives." Kal-El sighed and nodded.
"It is settled then." Carter said and stood. "You and Kara will leave just before dawn."
Clark sat over the edge of his cot. Lois slept peacefully next to him. Instead of making love, they slept in each others' arms. Despite the comfort of her arms, he could not sleep. He listened to the quiet before the storm like he did before every battle.
He felt Lois stirred behind him and Lois could feel his side bare. She opened her eyes and saw his back to her so she sat up. She wore only his shirt and he was only wearing pants. She wrapped her arms around his waist. He smiled at the warmth of her touch.
Lois kissed his shoulder and the back of his neck. She felt his shoulders relax and she heard him sigh. "What is bothering you?" Lois whispered in his ear.
"Nothing. Go back to bed." He said softly and lay back down with her. She laid her head down on his chest and listened to his quickening heartbeat. He began stroking her hair.
"You should know by now that you do not have to lie to me. What is bothering you?" Lois asked. He sighed and was silent for a few moments.
"To be truthful, I do not know. I am happy that this invasion is going ahead of schedule but… but I am afraid. Why am I afraid?" He asked.
"For so long, all we have known is this war. We have always dreamed of it ending but now that it is coming to an end… we do not know what will happen next so we are afraid. We all have the right to be afraid of what we do not know or understand." Lois said softly. She could hear his heartbeat slowing down. "Just know whatever happens, I will be right beside you."
His heartbeat slowed to a calming pace. She lifted her head to look up at him. He grinned at her and he leaned down to kiss her forehead. "Now you need to rest. Close your eyes." She whispered and he closed his eyes.
His breathing slowed down and she watched his chest rise and lower slowly. Lois kissed his forehead and fell back into a peaceful sleep in Clark's arms.
Kal-El could smell dawn approaching as he opened his eyes some hours later. He kissed Lois's forehead before gently moving her from his chest. She stirred but she didn't wake up. He put on one of the few shirts he had brought with him. He watched Lois sleep for a few minutes before leaving the tent to meet Kara.
She was waiting for him a small wooded area that was masking their camp. It was still dark but they knew their powers were growing stronger with the dawn approaching. Kara and he only wore their black clothing to blend in with the dark for as long as possible. "Ready?" He asked and she nodded. They both took a deep breath and then the super-sped towards Grand City.
The area surrounding the exit to the escape tunnel was deadly quiet. The Resistance fighters were supposed to meet them here just before dawn. "Something does not feel right." Kara said and Kal-El nodded in agreement. "Should we continue?" She asked.
Kal-El nodded. "We may not have another chance to accomplish this." He entered the tunnel by climbing down a wooden ladder. She climbed down behind him as he was using his heat vision to light a torch. They super sped through the tunnel and stopped before the entrance to Grand City seconds later. Kal-El nodded and Kara went up the wooden ladder first.
The entrance was in the corner of the stables. Kara opened the trap door and climbed up. She could see the sky growing lighter so they had to be fast. She then looked around and saw that the stables were empty and that the city was quiet. "Kal-El…"
Kal-El had left the torch in the tunnel and he too was surprised to see the stables empty. He held his finger up to his lips signaling her to be quiet. He then slowly walked out of the stables and she followed closely behind him.
The first of dawn lit up the half of the city. To their horror, the city was deserted. Kal-El and Kara looked at each other confused. "You are earlier than expected… good." A voice spoke out of the dead quiet.
Kal-El and Kara turned around to see John Corben sitting on the edge of the city's wall. He jumped down and began to descend the stairs. Kal-El and Kara took battle stances. The only weapons they were carrying were daggers concealed in their waistbands.
"I spotted your army yesterday and sent word to General Wilson, who left with his men just after dark. But I assumed that you would attack at dawn and here you are… all alone with no army to protect you. You cannot believe just how tempting it is." Corben said and rubbed his hands together.
"You just love hearing the sound of your own vile voice, don't you, Corben." Kara said and Corben smirked at her. Corben took a few steps closer to them and they took a few steps back. There was a small gap between them now.
Corben laughed. "That is not the only thing I love… I do love blades." He said and quickly threw two throwing daggers at them. Kal-El and Kara quickly dodged and removed their daggers from their waistbands. Corben removed two daggers concealed at his waist and took a battle stance.
Corben lunged at Kal-El first. Kal-El quickly took a step back and the blade of the dagger missed his throat by an inch or so. Corben's other hand jabbed at Kara and she dodged. Corben made quick slashing motions at both of them and they kept quickly dodging. Then Kal-El and Corben's blades locked. Both men were strong but Kal-El was stronger. He bumped Corben, who flew a few feet in the air and landed hard on the ground. Corben groaned but quickly got up.
Corben flipped the daggers in his hands and threw them at them. The daggers moved in slow motion to Kal-El and Kara so they easily deflected them with their daggers. Then Kal-El saw two more daggers flying at him. Kal-El dodged to the side and the blade tore fabric from his black shirt, and he deflected the other one with his dagger.
Just when Corben was about to throw another dagger, suddenly two throwing daggers flew through the air towards Corben. Corben deflected the first dagger with his vambrace but the second dagger penetrated his left shoulder. Corben screamed in pain and fell down to the one knee dropping his daggers. Kal-El recognized the throwing daggers.
Bruce walked out of the darkness holding another throwing dagger. Corben pulled the dagger out his shoulder and quickly threw another dagger at Bruce, who dodged it by doing a back flip. He landed on the ground and threw another dagger at Corben.
Corben dodged again and removed a sword and a war hammer from his sword belt. He clanged the two weapons together, sword in right hand and hammer in left, and took a battle stance. Bruce drew his falchion and motioned with his head to Kal-El and Kara to take a step back. They kept their daggers ready and took a step back.
Corben lunged at Bruce. Their weapons collided with a loud clash that made Kal-El and Kara wince. Corben attacked aggressively but Bruce held his ground and blocked every bow with quick precision. Bruce then cut Corben's left forearm making him drop the hammer and yell out in pain. Corben stumbled back holding his arm.
Kal-El then lunged at Corben, who dropped his sword and grabbed hold of Kal-El's wrists. The tip of the dagger was inches from Corben's chest. Kal-El then punched Corben with his left fist. Corben stumbled back into a few barrels. He shook his head and then took another battle stance.
Bruce, Kal-El and Kara walked closer to Corben, who saw they he was outnumbered. Corben then removed a vial from his pouch and threw it down on the ground. A cloud of dark gray smoke blocked their view of Corben. The smoke dissipated a few moments later and Corben was gone. "By Rao!" Kara swore.
Kal-El lowered his dagger to his side and turned to Bruce. "Bruce, what are you doing here?" Kal-El asked.
"You two were late." Bruce said and sheathed his falchion.
"Not that late. You always did worry about me, old friend." Kal-El said and put his dagger back in his waistband. When he looked back up, he noticed Kara and Bruce were giving him strange looks. "What? What is it?" He asked.
"Kal-El…" Kara said softly and that is when he felt pain in his right arm. Blood ran down his arm and dripped off his fingers. He held up his arm and saw a cut from when the dagger tore through the fabric of his shirt.
Kal-El could not say anything. All his senses went numb and then he felt Bruce's hand on his shoulder. "It is going to be alright, Clark. We are just going to…." Bruce could not finish the sentence. He had not called him Clark in three years so he knew that Bruce was truly worried.
He flashed Bruce a nervous smile and Kara held her right hand over her mouth as if to prevent herself from screaming. She tried to take a step toward him but Bruce held his hand up. "Stay back. His blood is infected with the poison. He is not safe around any Kryptonian." Bruce said. Tears formed in Kara's eyes.
"How long, Bruce?" Clark asked but Bruce hesitated. "Just tell me how long before the poison reaches my heart." He said and gulped.
"With how shallow the wound is combined with the powers of the stone… a week, maybe less." Bruce said. Clark nodded and took a deep breath. "There is still time to save you, my friend but we must return to the camp and march onto Metropolis immediately. The crystal is now the only thing in the world that can save your life." Bruce said.
Clark nodded once more and took a deep breath to compose himself. "We will take my horse back. Using your powers could hasten the poison." Bruce said and Clark nodded again. All he could do was nod; Clark was at a loss for words. Bruce bandaged Clark's arm as Clark's mind raced with all kinds of thought.
"…a week, maybe less." I cannot die. I have not truly lived. I have not said good-bye to my mother, Henry, Christopher… my son. I have not seen the end of the war. I cannot leave Kara with the burden of the throne. I do not even know if she is ready for such a burden. And most of all, I have not even asked Lois for her hand. I have not fulfilled my heart's greatest desire.
Bruce walked fast back to the command tent not acknowledging his men bowing to him. He had no time to waste. He threw back the flaps to the tent and saw everyone was waiting. "We heard no explosion. What went wrong?" Carter asked.
"We have a seriously problem." Bruce said.