Disclaimer: I DO NOT in any form or fashion OWN these characters, DC comics, entertainment, and Warner Bros. are the owners not me. I do not take any credit for the characters or anything ALL CREDIT goes to DC…..again ALL CREDIT GOES TO DC! No money is being made off of this story…none, No money whatsoever is being made or exchanged so please….please DO NOT SUE ME! I have no money. None. Okay cool.
Hey readers it's me Nomad88 back again with another chapter in the Superman Mythos. I know I know this story has been severely lacking in the update column and my readers I apologize for that I had a bit of a plot problem that ties into the beginning of the story and the end. That's not meant to be an excuse it's merely just a statement of fact…but anyway I'm here now, back again with another chapter. This prologue of sorts is almost over. I thank you all for sticking with me during this Krypton prologue. It is definitely necessary for the story to progress. I'm gonna stop talking now but before I go I wanna say READ, REVIEW (A writer's main source of fuel) and of course ENJOY!
Chapter 3: The Last Days of Krypton part 3
8 months Later: Supreme High Council Hall- Congressional Room
"THIS IS MADNESS AND I WILL NOT STAND FOR IT!" Jor-El roared at the top of his lungs. The leader of the house of El stood from his crystal seat and with serious angry eyes as he eyed each of the individuals around the table until he settled upon his friend since childhood General Dru-Zod. Zod stared back at Jor-El with the same serious and angry eyes.
"Jor-El you can't be naïve this must happen and…"
"NO!" Jor-El yelled again, "No Zod, I will not sit by and watch you eradicate a species just because you have a hunch of something that I'm not convinced is true"
"It is Jor-El"
"The evidence is heavy Jor-El" came the calm voice of Rozan "The evidence gathered by General Zod is highly convincing"
"A little too convincing though Rozan" Jor-El responded quickly "What would the Kroloteans and Dherons gain by attempting a coup against us. We have been nothing but generous to them"
"Perhaps that is why Jor-El." Came the voice of Pol-Ev "We've been too generous to them…we've introduced them to technology too early and as a result they have forgotten their place"
"And what place is that Pol-Ev?" Jor-El questioned, turning to her.
The two of them locked eyes for a long moment but it was interrupted by General Zod standing from his seat as well.
"Jor-El, for the past 5 moon cycles Brainiac and I have been compiling evidence against them and there is no doubt in my mind that they are conspiring against us. We must act now if we are to thwart their attack"
"No Zod, if anything we need to open a dialogue and attempt to get to the bottom of this...peacefully. For all we know this could be a misunderstanding."
"And by the time we've dialogued Jor-El it will be too late."
"Then let us vote!" Jor-El challenged
"ON WHAT! THE EVIDENCE IS CLEAR!
"ENOUGH!" Jul-Us roared standing from his seat as well, the weathered and older Kryptonian eyed his peers and he folded his arms behind his back, "This is the most disturbing news that has graced our table in years. What you're suggesting Zod is War. No matter the evidence or how justifiable, War is War, something that I and a few predecessors at this table swore we would never involve ourselves in again but it seems that War is…is like most things in this existence, it is inevitable. I agree with you Zod that we should be pre-emptive if the Kroloteans and the Dherons are conspiring but however I do believe in what Jor-El's suggesting as well. We must get to the bottom of this peacefully and so…we shall vote."
15 minutes Later- Hallway
General Zod briskly yet angrily walked down the pristine and crystal hallway of the Supreme High Council Hall. A serious look was upon his face as he passed the beautiful crystal structures that adorned the walls and ceiling.
"ZOD!" came a shout.
General Zod stopped his walking and turned to see Jor-El walking towards him.
"What are you doing?" Zod demanded.
Jor-El looked at him with a confused look and then narrowed his eyes slightly.
"I should be asking you the same thing" Jor-El returned, with the same look upon his face that was upon Zod's.
"I'M TRYING TO SAVE KRYPTON AND YOU ARE UNDERMINING MY DUTY!" Zod shouted at him.
"I'm trying to save Krypton as well Zod"
"Then why did you vote against me"
"I didn't vote against you I voted against your idea" Jor-El shot back.
"You speak in riddles Jor-El, say what you mean."
"I voted against your idea of GENOCIDE!" Jor-El roared, "Is that clear enough for you."
Zod closed his mouth and he pursed his lips into a thin line before he shook his head a bit.
"I thought you would agree with me on this Jor-El"
"I would never agree to genocide Zod….not even against my enemies." Jor-El replied.
"Then you are a fool."
"Better a fool than a murderer" Jor-El retorted.
Zod's eyes widen at the comment and then he stepped to Jor-El.
"Is that what you see me as….a murderer"
"Zod" Jor-El started before stopping and letting out a long sigh, "Zod, my friend you must understand this is not about you. This is about Krypton."
"Finally something we can agree on" said Zod, "This is about Krypton and its protection against foreign enemies."
"Zod you are only thinking in one dimension…"
"BAH! You and your dimensions Jor-El, must you always include science in…" Zod started before he was interrupted by Jor-El.
"Let me finish!" he exclaimed "You are now part of the Ruling Council Zod, you can not afford to think one way anymore….one dimension….you have to think from all sides of the problem. You are only thinking about Krypton's outer protection while I'm and thankfully a few others on the Council are thinking about Krypton's inner protection. Her spirit."
"You and your riddles Jor-El"
"If we attack the Kroloteans and Dherons…we will lose who we are as a people. For generations we Kryptonians have been peaceful explorers. Peaceful Explorers Zod, but if we do this…if we start a war we will no longer be seen as explorers but as conquerors. And to be that…a conqueror…goes against everything that I stand for….what we stand for….what Krypton stands for."
General Zod took a step back and turned away from Jor-El.
"You make me out to be some type of war-monger Jor-El."
"Zod for the last time this is not about you."
"Oh but it is Jor-El. You think that I'm trying to start a war when in actuality I'm simply attempting to stop a war before it starts. If we hit them now…hard and fast there will be no war and our precious image that you seem to hold so dear will stay intact."
"Zod..."
"THE EVIDENCE IS THERE JOR-EL! USE YOUR EYES!"
"I DON'T TRUST MY EYES ZOD; I TRUST MY MIND AND MY HEART!" Jor-El shouted back and after that a small silence lapsed between the two friends before Jor-El started to speak again, "I'm….I'm not so convinced of this evidence that you and Brainiac have compiled. Let me ask you a question Zod did you come across this coup yourself or did Brainiac alert you to…."
"What difference does it make Jor-El. You got your wish….The council has permitted you one moon cycle to get to the bottom of this and for your sake I hope you do it quickly"
Jor-El opened his mouth to speak but the ground beneath his feet began to violently rumble.
Jor-El and Zod tried their best to stay upon their feet as the ground beneath them rumbled and shook.
"JOR-EL!" Zod shouted
"IT'S A SESMIC SHIFT!"
"THANK YOU JOR-EL I DID NOT NOTICE THAT!" Zod shouted back.
They both, while trying to fight against the violent shifting and rumbling attempted to make their way towards the exit. As Jor-El was stumbling he heard a loud cracking sound and he looked to his left to see a giant crystal mural that broke from the crystal wall and was falling right towards him.
"JOR-EL!" Zod shouted tackling him out of the way.
SMASH! went the sound of the mural hitting the crystal floor.
Jor-El rolled over from his spot from the ground and he looked over at Zod who was already pushing himself up to a sitting position. The General looked around for a moment and then he looked at Jor-El.
"WHAT IS CAUSING THESE QUAKES!?"
"I DON'T KNOW!" Jor-El responded shakily pushing himself up as well.
The two friends pushed themselves up and braced against each other to fight against the shifting ground.
The quake last for several more seconds before just as suddenly as it came it left, leaving the two standing there breathing heavily.
KAARC- Kryptonian Astronomy and Research Center
Jor-El stormed through the crystal entrance of the Central hub of the research center and several of the kryptonian scientists immediately turned to him.
Von-Lei looked up from the computer he was staring at as he saw Jor-El.
"Jor…" he started before he was interrupted.
"What is the cause of these quakes" Jor-El stated seriously, his question addressed to everyone within the room.
In the time that he has been back there have been relatively little to no quakes but even if there were any his focus has been stretched very thin with his efforts to turn the council away from Krypton's military exploration and back to being just scientific explores, however with the latest quake it has brought the situation back to his attention.
Von-Lei moved away from the computer and to Jor-El
"Not to worry Jor-El, the quakes are just the cause of plates beneath Krypton's crust shifting."
"No need to worry?" Jor-El repeated "Von-Lei I was almost seriously injured with this quake from a few minutes ago."
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine but we must get to the bottom of this."
"You're right; I'll get Brainiac to start a deeper probe of….."
"No" Jor-El stated sternly, "No, No Brainiac. This is beyond his A.I, he was not meant for things such as this"
"But Jor-El between the data you've collected during your travels and General Zod's commission of weapon production we've been stretched pretty thin."
Jor-El narrowed his eyes and he looked at Von-Lei curiously.
"Commission of Weapon Production!?"
"Yes." Von-Lei answered.
Jor-El continued to look at him and then at the eyes that were upon him from the others in the room. He pursed his lips together and then took Von-Lei by the arm and led him away and over to a corner that was out of ear shot.
"Zod put in a weapons commission order?" Jor-El questioned.
"Yes, cycles ago, just after he was inducted into the Ruling Council" Von-Lei replied "He told us that our priority should be to research anything we see from Dheron's outer defenses and to come up with counter weapons for any potential attack."
"Why wasn't I informed?" Jor-El demanded.
Von-Lei looked at him in shock for a moment
"I-I-I thought you knew….I just assumed that he had the Ruling Council's blessing. A request of this magnitude….he would have to have the Ruling Council's blessing."
Jor-El pursed his lips into a thin line and he clinched his teeth for a second before he relaxed and shook his head.
"As of now I want you and the others to cease all weapons production or counter measures. I want all focus shifted from space and to the cause of these quakes and I do not want Brainiac involved in any way…Is that understood"
"Loud and Clear Jor-El…however I must ask, if General Zod comes…."
"Tell him to see me" Jor-El responded.
SWOOOOOOSH! Came the sound of the crystal door sliding opening. Everyone in the central hub center turned to the entrance to see Non walking inside.
Non looked around the hub for a moment until he saw Jor-El standing several feet away.
"Jor-El I must speak with you it is urgent" he announced loudly.
"What is it Non?" Jor-El replied from his position.
Non shook his head and released a slightly frustrated sigh.
"I need to speak with you privately Jor-El….the matter is urgent" he repeated.
Jor-El heard the tone of Non's voice and he shook his head. He briskly moved away from Von-Lei and he moved towards Non.
Non took Jor-El by the arm and he led him out of the hub and into the crystal corridor.
Corridor
Jor-El stood their look at his friend who had what seemed to be a frightened look upon his face. Non took in a few slow even breaths before he began to speak.
"Jor-El I have some disturbing news."
"Is this about our project?" Jor-El asked
"I'm afraid that it is" Non replied.
Down the Corridor
Several feet away from the two talking scientist was a small silver mechanical cleaning drone. It was an oblong shaped hovering drone with a small red blinking circle in the center of its silver chest. The innocent mechanical drone went about it's duties of cleaning and dusting the corridor and making it look presentable to any who entered the facility. The drone was dusty some of the beautiful crystalline statues when it suddenly went rigid and stiff. The drone suddenly turned away from the structure it was cleaning and towards the two scientists. The blinking red circle stopped blinking and quickly switched from red to a solid green color. The green dot was steady and in its reflection was Jor-El and Non.
"What have you found out about Brainiac?" Jor-El asked in a serious tone.
The side project he was talking about was of course Brainiac. Brainiac was the other reason why his attention has been spread so thin as of late.
Once he had settled in from his year long expedition Jor-El immediately began to catch up on everything he had missed out on during his absence: spending time with his wife, the Ruling Council, odds and ends that concerned the KAARC but perhaps one of the most important thing that had his attention was Brainiac. Before he left on his expedition Jor-El was highly unhappy about the fact that Brianiac had been moving beyond his capacity and being used for task that he was not designed for and so upon his return he had made it a point to rectify that but he had not anticipated that in the time that he had been gone Brianiac had completely integrated himself into everything so well that Krypton had become completely dependent.
He along with Non who shared his concern decided to see how they could go about weaning Krypton out of its dependency.
"I've found something most troubling Jor-El." Non replied.
"What is it?"
"It's….It's exactly what you feared."
Jor-El let out a sigh of frustration and he turned away from Non.
"So I was right…..Brainiac is becoming self-aware"
"I've run all of the test to your specifications and I even went back into archive footage to determine the origin point and it was precisely two moon cycles before your expedition into the unknown. It was the first time Brainiac used the word I….and in the time you've been gone till now that use of I has become more frequent and so this all leads to your suggestion which doesn't seem so ridiculous anymore…."
"This is troubling news." Jor-El responded, still in a frustrated tone.
"Jor-El I must ask….how did you know something like this could happen to Brainiac?"
Jor-El turned back around and he looked at Non with serious eyes.
"Evolution is inescapable Non." He stated, "At some point or another we all evolve…..When Vril-Drox and I were creating Brainiac based upon the proposal of the renegade Jax-Ur….we… had a heated discussion about Brainiac and Artificial Intelligence. He used the combined brain patterns of Jax-Ur, himself and I, without my knowledge I might add, as a base template for Brainiac's compiling functions. I warned him that using living brain patterns was dangerous because…."
"Personalities…ideals…motivation…feelings…all of these are transferable." Non interrupted.
"Precisely" Jor-El answered "Vril-Drox assured me though that none of that was part of the template…..however I was not so convinced and so…I installed over a hundred types of firewall subroutines into Brainiac's programming to prevent something like this from happening. But the more functions that Brainiac takes upon himself…the more power his CPU gains which in turns makes him….excuse me makes it smarter."
"You believe that since Brainiac has grown smarter….he….it has somehow figured out a way to de-activate your subroutines….which has led to it becoming self-aware."
"And that is why Non….we must find a way to separate Brainiac from Krypton. Brainiac was not meant for the functions that he is doing now….he was not meant to be a Doctor, or an Architect, or an Officer…..he was not meant to teach our youth or to weigh in on decisions that affect how we as a society of Kryptonians govern ourselves. Brainiac was meant to be nothing more than a glorified storage unit….but slowly…he has evolved from his station as a storage unit into….into….to being Krypton."
"Well we must stop him….it" Non declared, "We will stop it, but how do we go about doing that, without arousing suspicion?"
Jor-El lowered his head and thought for a moment before he lifted his head again.
"You have to re-establish my subroutines."
"Me?" Non questioned, "I will do what I can but you know more about them than I do"
"I know but there is something else that draws my attention Non"
"Something more important than this?"
"Yes" Jor-El answered seriously, "Look I will send you the details later but for now I suggest that you tread lightly with the information. If Brainiac has become self-aware and it finds out…then…"
"Then what?" Non questioned again, "You don't think Brainiac would become violent do you?"
"Perhaps….if it is self-aware and it finds out that we're trying to take that away…then there is only one logical response Non…self-defense."
Non shook his head and he pursed his lips together in a thin line.
The cleaning robot continued to watch as Jor-El and Non moved away from each other. The robot watched as Non walked down the crystal corridor and right in its direction; it turned its oblong body away and pretended to go about its duties right as the gentle giant passed it by.
The solid green dot suddenly disappeared and the blinking red dot appeared again.
Argo City- House of El- Laboratory Chamber
Zor-El stood in front of a solid blue stasis field with a pair of protective shades over his eyes. The stasis field hummed and glowed bright blue but the bright color didn't disturb Zor-El, he was too intrigued by what the stasis field held within it and that was the entire city of Kandor.
One of the major cities of Krypton was contained within the stasis chamber which had been made possible by being shrunken down to miniature size. The shades upon Zor-El's face allowed him to see into the miniaturized city and he could see Kryptonians going about their daily routines of shopping, socialize, working, eating and everything else in-between. He saw children playing and animals running around.
The young scientist let a smile grace his lips as he took a step back and he typed a few things down onto the computer pad within his hand.
"Fascinating. There seems to be no negative reactions to the shrinking process." He muttered to himself.
Zor-El was so involved in his work that he did not hear someone entering his lab.
Kara, let a smile grace her lips as she saw her father working hard. She could barely keep her snickers as she crept up behind him.
"HEY DAD!" Kara shouted.
Zor-El jumped slightly and he dropped his computer pad. He whipped around to see his daughter standing behind him laughing her head off.
"You…should…see your face Dad" Kara laughed.
Zor-El let out a grumble and then picked his pad up off of the ground.
"Kara…what have I told you about doing that when I'm working" he demanded.
"I'm sorry dad but I couldn't resist." She replied still laughing slightly.
"My daughter you must learn to control your impulses"
"I know I know, impulses…yeah, yeah….calm down, I know" she responded.
Zor-El let out a sigh and shook his head.
Kara moved next to him and she looked at the blue stasis field.
"Wow" she whispered "Everytime I see it Dad….I just can't believe it"
"It is something isn't it"
"Yeah" she whispered still staring at the miniature city.
"Why are you here Kara…shouldn't you be doing your homework….and also shouldn't you be finishing your apology letter to your teachers."
"I finished my homework already. And I'd rather jump off a cliff than apologize to my teachers and I'm here because Uncle Jor-El is on the communication log for you…He said it's important."
Zor-El quickly took his protective shades from his eyes and he moved towards the main computer in his laboratory. He typed in a few key strokes and upon the crystal screen his brother Jor-El suddenly appeared.
"Jor-El how are y….."Zor-El started before being interrupted by Jor-El.
"We'll have to skip the pleasantries brother; I'm calling upon you for an urgent matter."
"What's the situation?" he asked.
"I need you, Allura, and Kara to come to Kryptonopolis immediately."
"Immediately? Why?"
"I will explain everything once you get here but I need you here with me, now."
"Alright…we'll be there tomorrow morning."
"That's fine; I'll prep for your arrival. Also when you come I need you bring your ship."
"My ship?"
"Yes, like I said I'll explain everything later…I look forward to seeing you tomorrow." Said Jor-El before he ended the conversation leaving a confused Zor-El standing there staring at the crystal screen.
"So I guess I should start packing?" said Kara with a smile plastered upon his face.
The Next Day- Kryptonopolis- House of El
Jor-El rubbed the back of his neck and he released a sigh. He eyed each of the people sitting around a small crystalline table. They were his 8 month pregnant wife Lara-Lor, his younger brother Zor-El and Zor-El's wife Alura-In-Zee-El. Kara was her usual room when she stayed over, but all of the adults were sitting at the table, each lost in their own world because of the news Jor-El had just laid upon them.
As expected they were each distraught as well as they should be because he himself was distraught over the fact that he was in the middle of everything.
BANG!! Went the sound of a fist hitting the table.
Jor-El, Lara-Lor and Alura jumped at the sound and looked to see Zor-El with his fist firmly in the center of the table.
"DAMN HIM!" Zor-El shouted
"Zor" said Alura in an attempt to calm him down but he was having none of it.
"No, Alura" he replied eying her quickly before turning back to Jor-El "I told you…I told you that Zod was not someone that should be put on the council. Now because of him Krypton maybe facing a war."
"It won't come to that Zor-El"
Zor-El was about to speak when Alura placed a hand on his shoulder and spoke before him.
"Jor-El have you alerted the Council to General Zod's weapons commission command?" she asked.
"No" Jor-El stated.
"And why not?" Zor-El demanded
"Because…sigh…..Because he was only doing what he thought was right Zor-El"
Zor-El scoffed and shook his head.
"There you go again defending his…questionable actions. Scratch that, his illegal actions"
"Zor-El enough" Lara-Lor interjected
Zor-El folded his arms across his chest and began to grumble to himself. Lara-Lor turned her eyes away from her brother-in-law and back to her husband. She could see the stress upon his face and in a sense she could feel it rolling off of him. Lara-Lor had known him long enough and she knew him well enough to know that despite the fact of war looming over them there was something else that drew his concern.
"Jor-El there seems to be something else on your mind"
Jor-El looked at her and a small smile appeared.
"Yes there is Lara. There are several pressing matters on my mind…I've told you the first. War might be coming…but the second is most troubling..."
"What is it Jor-El?" Lara-Lor asked again.
"Brainiac….Brainiac is becoming self-aware" he stated
Out of the small group that was around him only Zor-El reacted with shock but that was to be expected because he possessed the same scientific mind as his brother.
"BY THE STAR OF RAO!" he yelled in shock "That can't be true…no…the subroutines you…."
"Brainiac may have bypassed them." Jor-El interrupted.
Zor-El stood up from the table and he moved away from them, his mind abuzz with fright at the news. Alura looked at her husband and the fright that was upon him and then back to Jor-El.
"I do not understand….Self-aware, is this a bad thing?" she asked.
"Yes Alura this is a bad thing" Zor-El responded, "Tell her why Jor-El"
Alura and Lara both looked to Jor-El.
"Brainiac has the combined brain patterns of not only myself but Jax-Ur and Vril-Drox" he answered.
"THE RENEGADE AND THE MAD KRYPTONIAN!" Allura shouted in shock,
"The one in the same, now tell me something…do you really want Brainiac becoming self-aware with the thought patterns of those two running Krypton….or better yet becoming it's own entity and thinking for itself?" Zor-El asked turning back around.
"Absolutely not" Lara-Lor answered "Jor-El have you told the Council?"
"No"
"And why not?" Zor-El asked rubbing his eyes.
"Because the council would not believe me if I told them. They and the rest of Krypton have become so dependent upon Brainiac that the mere thought of him becoming self-aware would be ludicrous. And also…I fear retaliation."
"From the Council?"
"No, from Brainiac" Jor-El responded before he himself rose from his seat, "Brainiac learns that we're onto him and…."
"Self-Aware…..leads to Self-Defense" Zor-El concluded.
"Correct" Jor-El stated, "And that is something that I…we can not afford right now. Not with the threat of war looming over us. By the decree of the Council I only have one moon cycle to prevent war from reaching us….if I haven't gotten to the bottom by then…the Council will make the announcement and Krypton will have it's first war in decades."
"Oh No!" Zor-El exclaimed.
"What is it?" Alura asked.
"I just now remembered that Kara's life day is approaching…..if this war breaks out she will be of age to be drafted into the battle."
"Well then Zor-El we must ensure that that does not happen. That is why I asked you to be here. I need you by my side to get to the bottom of this of this war and to stop it in its tracks."
"It goes without saying that I will help you"
"Why are Alura and Kara here Jor-El?" Lara-Lor asked suddenly.
Jor-El turned to his wife and he released a heavy sigh.
"They are here to be with you…while I handle this situation with the Kroloteans and Dheron's."
"Jor-El…"
"I know I said that I would never leave you again but…."
The 8 months pregnant Lara-Lor stood from her seat and she went to her husband and embraced him with a hug.
"I know Jor-El…I know. Just promise me you'll at least be here when Kal-El is born"
Jor-El wrapped his arms around her tightly.
"I promise I would not miss the birth of our son for anything."
Few Days Later- House of El Laboratory
Jor-El and Zor-El were standing in front of Zor-El's personal carrier ship that Jor-El requested him to bring for his stay. The brothers had just finished outfitting the metallic-crystalline space craft with the experimental warp drive that Jor-El had used during his travels through the universe months ago.
"Jor-El are you sure about this?" Zor-El asked.
"It would take too long any other way. I can reach the Krolotean home world much faster with the warp drive; unfortunately time is a luxury we do have, I must get to the bottom of this quickly."
Zor-El nodded his head and turned his eyes back to his ship and he released a sigh.
"War" he whispered.
"It will not come to that Zor-El…..it can't"
"But what if it does, I watched the footage that you showed me and I must admit the evidence speaks loudly….however considering the evidence came from Brainiac. I'm not so inclined to trust it. I still think it would be wise of you to tell the council about your suspicions"
"They would not believe me Zor-El. Like I said they and the rest of Krypton have become too dependent upon Brainiac, they will reject anything that proves it to be fallible"
"Then what are you going to do?" Zor-El asked.
"…I don't know just yet but I do know that it has to be shut down" Jor-El responded with a distant look in his eyes. Zor-El looked at him and how tired he looked. After a few seconds Jor-El released a long and stressful sigh before turning to his brother.
"Zor-El….." he started however before he could get a word out Zor-El interrupted him.
"I'm going to the Krolotean homeworld" he blurted.
"What?"
"I said I'm going to the Krolotean Homeworld, I'll take my ship there and you're going to go to Dheron"
"Zor-El..."
"I wasn't asking Jor-El I was telling. You need to be closer to Krypton just in case Lara gives birth. We don't know how long this 'peace' mission as it were is going to last. And you promised Lara you'd be here for the coming of Kal-El; you stand a better chance of actually keeping that promise if you were only a planet away."
"Zor-El I….thank you"
Zor-El smirked a placed a hand on his older brother's shoulder.
"Jor-El we are brothers….no thanks is necessary"
Jor-El nodded his head and he turned back to Zor-El's ship.
"Let us be on our way then"
Outside The House of El
A small metallic like spider sat perched on the edge of one of the hanging crystal's outside of the House of El mansion. The small object had a protruding mini-satellite dish that directed at the two brothers inside of the homestead. The satellite dish suddenly moved away from them and was directed outwards and towards the sparkling city of Kryptonopolis.
Supreme Council Hall-
Deep within the sub-levels of the Kryptonian City Hall was the central processing storage unit for the Brain Interactive Construct better known as Brainiac. The sub-levels were a mix of crystals and machinery and all of it hummed, chirped and processed in a beautiful chorus of sounds and lights. In the center of the room was a massive column like structure that was surrounded by a shield of blue energy and within the shield were three solid and silver orbs hovering.
"…it has to be shut down" came Jor-El's voice echoing through the entire sub-level.
The hovering silver orbs started to move and vibrate until they sparked in a brilliant glow of green. The three orbs flashed two times before two lines of electricity passed between them creating an opened triangle of sorts.
"So Jor-El wishes to shut me down" came the mechanical voice of Brainiac, "He can not shut down that which he can not control. Destiny. I will deal with him accordingly, just as I will deal with his other Conspirator"
Two Days Later- Space- T-Minus 2minutes to Dheron
Jor-El crystal-metal space ship hovered just out of orbit of the neighboring planet to his homeworld Krypton, and that planet was Dheron. The brilliant scientist eyed the planet for a long second before pressing several buttons on the console in front of him, he was sending out a message.
"This is Jor-El of Krypton and I'm just outside of orbit requesting entrance into Dheron."
(Jor-El we read your message and your request is accepted)
Jor-El let a small smile grace his lips as he directed his ship towards the welcoming planet.
'Here we go' he thought.
Dheron- Capital City
Jor-El flew over the expansive Capital City of Dheron and he had to shake his head a bit, and it was mostly because of how far the Dheron's had come as a society. He could see structures similar the ones on his own planet however while Kryptonians utilized the crystal-metal material their planet naturally produced; the Dherons focused more on hard metal. Jor-El let his mind roam over a few of the history documents of this planet and how their advancement was due the intervention of his people. Due to the nature of their planet, the hard dry deserts; the Dherons had a much tougher time making advancements and as a result their growth as a society was hindered. The second Council decided to interfere with their natural process and elevate them to the level of the Kryptonians and much to everyone's surprise the Dherons adapted exponentially. They took to science like fish to water and quickly their names spread throughout the galaxy much like the name of the Kryptonians.
The relationship between the two planets remained good for a generation but soon the friendship they once shared began to deteriorate. The Dherons felt the Kryptonians saw themselves as their betters despite the fact that the two were practically equal. The Dherons could not and did not stand for the insult and thus began to distant themselves away from the Krypton's and they have shared a tenuous peace ever since and could be friendly when the time called to be so.
Jor-El knew he had his work cut out for him but he was up to the challenge. He would do everything in his power to avoid Krypton from descending into war.
'Rao if you're listening please let this visit go smoothly as well as Zor-El's mission to Krolotea'
Krypton- KAARC- Night Cycle
Non sat at the computer station with the Central Hub of the Kryptonina research center. He was alone and by himself, he had waited until everyone had retired for the evening because he did not want to alert anyone to the secret mission imparted onto him by his friend and confident Jor-El, and while he made sure no one was around he had also taken extra precautions to ensure that any and all Brainiac functions had been diverted from the Hub.
Non had been at the computer for the last 20 minutes attempting to re-establish Jor-El's subroutines that he had designed for Brainiac. It took some maneuvering and ingenuity on Non's part to locate the subroutines but he had found them. Non shook his head as he looked at the layout of the subroutines.
"Genius" he whispered as he studied the processing functions. Non could see that the subroutines were very specific and deeply ingrained into Brainiac's system but the more he looked he could see that a few of the subroutines had been bypassed or completely erased. Non narrowed his eyes.
'Brainiac is far more self-aware than I had initially thought. Some of these subroutines have been, de-activated, or over-ridded and deleted….and that should be impossible but with the brain patterns of Jor-El, Jax-Ur and Vril-Drox intermingled nothing is impossible' Non thought to himself 'Now to see if I can re-activated a few of these subroutines.
The cleaning robot that was scurrying around outside of the central hub searching for something clean suddenly went rigid and the red dot changed to a solid green color. The cleaning robot slowly turned and it eyed the door that led into the hub. The robot scurried over to the door and watched as it swooshed open.
SWOOOOOSH!
Non looked up from the computer as the door to his right swished open; he looked down to see the cleaning robot scurrying across the floor towards him. He released a breath and shook his head.
"Cleaning unit return to section 1….." Non started before the back of the cleaning unit opened and two metal spikes attached to metal cables emerged from its back. The metal spikes lunged towards Non's forehead and imbedded themselves into his skull and into his brain, he only had enough time to gasp before his eyes glazed over and his whole body went slack. The cables electrified and sent a mild current through Non's brain and the Kryptonian gave several violent jerks before he sat up straight in his chair.
The cleaning unit looked towards the computer and it sent another current through the cables and into Non's brain.
Non lifted his hands and he slowly started to type several commands into the computer even though his eyes were still glazed over and copious amounts of drool escaped his lips.
Supreme Council Hall- Sub-levels
"All subroutines have been Manually deactivated…now to mask my ascension" came Brianic's voice, "Accessing orbiting probes….broadcasting signal…Planet Dheron….and Krolotea. Video recording bank….search….Jor-El….."
The systems and machines around Brainiac gave off a several small chirps until Jor-El's voice and video recordings of him filled the chamber. Brainiac began compiling all of the video images and voice recordings and he began to cut and splice them together.
"Message start."
"We start a war with Dherons and war with Kroloteans, to save Krypton spirit by Genocide against our enemies" Jor-El's voice echoed in the sub-levels.
"Message complete…uploading message to probes…upload complete…broadcasting message via probe. Broadcasting. Broadcasting. Broadcast complete, message sent." he stated.
KAARC
The cleaning probe retracted the metal spikes from Non's head and back into the back cavity. The cleaning unit gave off several beeps and chirps before several other cleaning robots entered the main room. The cleaning units all had green solid dots instead of the usual solid red color. The small robots marched into the room and it surrounded the one that was a few inches away from Non. The robot looked at the others and thin in a synchronized fashion they each let off several loud chirps before they all self-destructed.
KABOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
House of Bary-On- Study
Zod sat in the seat that was across from his fellow Council member Bary-On. The master tactician and decorated General lifted the glass of green liquid to his lips and he took a long slow sip and as he did that he never for a second took his eyes off of Bary-On who was drinking his own drink.
Zod finished his drink and he set the glass down upon the table and he slowly linked his hands together.
"The Council's decision is wrong Bary.." he started slowly.
Bary-On looked up at him and then set his own drink down.
"I want to agree with you Zod but….." He replied.
"But what the evidence is all there Bary; we must act now before it is too late."
"We have acted; Jor-El is getting to the bottom of this mystery."
"I would like to have faith in Jor-El, and I do to a certain extent, he has been by best friend since we were younglings but when it comes to matters such as this….war, it is not his strongest suit."
"War will not come to…."
"War is already here Bary-On." Zod interrupted seriously, "It is here and it is my job…our job to protect Krypton's interests." He finished.
Bary-On released a sigh and leaned back in his chair while studying the man before him.
"If that's true, that war is already here then Krypton is in for dark times, but what do you want from me Zod?" he asked.
"I beg your pardon?"
Bary-On scrunched his face slightly.
"You are not a man that likes to waste time Zod and neither am I. I get the sense that you are trying to lead me in a certain direction and if that's true then please say what you came to say." Bary-On replied a bit forcefully.
Zod let a small smile grace his lips, the young man before him was smart and intelligence was something he respected immensely.
"If you insist." Zod replied "I want to ask are you satisfied with the Council?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean are you satisfied with the current….direction, its leadership. The old heads of the Council."
Bary-On considered the question for a second.
"I admit that sometimes we do not see eye to eye on everything and sometimes I do reluctantly side with them but for the most part I'm…..content."
"What if I said it could be better….better with new Leadership."
"I suppose you're talking about yourself being the new leader." Bary-On interjected.
"No, I'm talking about you"
"Me!"
"And Jun-Do, Pol-Ev and myself." Zod continued, "The four of together can take Krypton in a new more efficient direction and…."
"This is Treasonous talk Zod!" Bary-On exclaimed in a hushed yelled so he did not wake his wife and children.
Zod shot up from his seat and he slammed his hands on the table. The General narrowed his eyes and he leaned forward. Bary-On stared into the eyes of Zod, and the man's eyes peered into soul and for a second a twinge of fear shivered down his spine.
"Treasonous talk" Zod started slowly and dangerously, "Treason would imply that I am going against Krypton, acting against her and her people and if that's what you're saying to me Bary-On then I take high offense to that. Everything that I do, have done or will do will always be FOR Krypton. Krypton is my soul and I will do everything I can to ensure that she survives to see another day can you say the same thing? Do you have the same dedication?"
Bary-On didn't immediately reply, he merely continued to stare into the eyes of Zod. Zod heaved a breath and he straightened up and turned around and linked his hands behind his back.
"I believe that I've left enough for you to think about Bary-On and I trust that our conversation will remain between us." He said slightly looking over his shoulder. Bary-On shifted in his seat and he looked away from Zod.
Zod slowly began to move away from the table and towards the crystal door that would take him out of the study and out of the residence.
Kryptonopolis
RUUUMMMMBLE! RUUUUUMBBBLE! Went the sound of the ground beneath the feet of the Kryptonians shook violently again. The ground wobbled and trembled greatly and all of the citizens had to braces themselves against something but just as they got a good grip the trembling and wobbling suddenly stopped.
Later- House of El- Living Room
"Another tremor, great. Anyway what was I saying….oh, I'm going to teach you sooo many things Kal-El…like how to ride the sky waves, how to swing from the tree…OH! And how to swim the seas!" Kara exclaimed as she gently rubbed her Aunt's swollen abdomen.
Lara-Lor smiled sweetly at her niece and shook her head.
"KARA!"
Kara and Lar-Lor turned to the entrance to see Alura standing there with her hands on her hips.
"Kara you know that it's time for you to go to bed."
"Mom! Come on, I'm talking to Kal"
"Your cousin isn't going anywhere anytime soon. He'll be here tomorrow, now move it." Alura commanded.
Kara grumbled to herself and she reluctantly stood from her spot on the sofa and she headed off to the guest room.
"AND I HOPE YOU FINISHED WRITING THAT APOLOGY TO YOUR TEACHERS!" Alura yelled.
Lara-Lor chuckled.
"She reminds me so much of myself it's scary" Allura said as she fully entered the room and took her spot next to her sister-in-law.
"What's scarier is the fact that there's some Zor-El thrown in there as well." Lara-Lor added.
Alura chuckled again.
"Alura"
"Yes"
"Have you and Zor-El talked about having more children?" Lara-Lor asked.
"We're trying right now." She responded.
"Really!" Lara-Lor exclaimed.
"Yes, we've been trying for the past two moon cycles but….with everything that's going on, the threat of war looming and Brainiac…. I don't think Zor-El will want to continue. Since he's an El he'll be called upon in all of the meetings with the Council and the general public. Plus I don't think the thought of Kara being inducted into the Military under Zod's command sits well with him."
Lara-Lor hung her head for a moment and mulled over Allura's words, she rubbed her abdomen and she felt Kal-El move a little.
"Jor-El will be in the thick of it with him." She whispered "He'll hardly be home…again."
Alura heard the comment and she reached over and she placed a hand on Lara-Lor's abdomen. Lara-Lor raised her head and trned to her.
"To Jor-El, you and Kal-El are everything and there is nothing more important on Krypton than the two of you. Jor-El would move the planet and stars themselves to be here with you and…"
"Allura, I know. I know all of this but the thing that worries me the most is that while we're important to him, there is nothing more important to Krypton than Jor-El. Krypton will always have challenges and crisis that need attending and he will go because that's who he is"
Alura pursed her lips together and she heaved a sigh and she leaned back into the sofa.
"It will all work itself out Lara….I promise. You'll see that everything will be fine. Jor-El and Zor-El will return with good news and we'll all live happily ever after."
"Do you believe that?" Lara-Lor asked.
"I have to….for Kara's sake, for my own, for yours and for Kal-El's"
Lara-Lor smiled a small smile and she rubbed her abdomen again.
Space
A metallic-crystalline space ship shook and sparked violently in space as it rocketed towards the planet Krypton.
Ship Interior
Jor-El leaned back in his seat and he let out a pained sigh. He looked down at his abdomen to see the blast wound was still leaking out blood. The scientist reached towards his console and he hit the emergency beacon.
"KAARC COME IN!" he shouted in very pained voice.
KRZZZZZZZZZZ came the static over the line.
"KAARC COME IN!" he shouted before letting out a grunt of pain.
KRZZZZZZZZ "JOR-EL!" came the voice of Von-Lei over the communication line, "I apologize for the break in transmission but we have a crisis on our hands here."
"What's going on?"
"The KAARC has been destroyed; so far we've been able to determine that several of the cleaning robots somehow malfunction and self-destructed. Non has been seriously injured, but he's alive for the most part. We're now operating out of the back-up facility near the center of the city."
"That's….ergh…..That's un-fortunate…..n-news…" Jor-El weakly stuttered.
"Jor-El you sound injured….are you…are you alright?"
"N-No…I-I…was…attacked….need….medical…." he started before he passed out.
"Jor-El!"
"…."
"JOR-EL!"
"…"
"JOR-EL!"
End Chapter: Read and Review: WHEW! Hey readers it's me Nomad88 back again with a long long long long long very long overdue update on this Superman Story. I whole heartedly apologize for that but I ran across a huge and monumental problem. I had accidentally left out a plot point in this story that's going to come up later in the story. And because of that I had to stop working on this story and think of a way out of the mess I had accidentally created and it took some time to think and think and think and finally I thought of a solution to the problem at least I think it's a solution without me having to go back and retcon it or just outwardly state that I made a mistake.
Anyway I apologize to you readers for the long wait I know you've been itching for me to get to the meat of the story and I've been itching to get to it as well but one thing about me is that I build my stories. Everything in each chapter ties to the next and I have to make sure that it ties together neatly and coherently. I hope I haven't lost anyone but I know that it's been a while and that could kill the interest but hopefully you all return. If anyone has any questions, comments, rants or raves feel free to leave it in the review, or just send me a PM and I'll get back to you ASAP. This is Nomad88 saying later…
Ps: I know that this is a very Superman heavy story but the Justice League will make sporadic appearances and are featured in later chapters, so that's why I kinda labeled it in the Justice League section. Oh one last thing always check my profile for updates on my other stories. A new Chapter to my TSA: Amazing Spider-Man should be up, as well as a new Chapter to my Star Wars story. Batman Beyond and Secret Warrior are coming soon enough I promise and thanks for being so patient. This is Nomad88 saying later…
Next up: The Last Days of Krypton part 4
Summary: Everything comes to an End as Krypton and the Kryptonians face imminent destruction.