Chapter Forty Five Part One

Clark lowered to get a better view of the miniature church while Lois added little stick figures on opposite sides, "Do you think it's a good idea inviting the league?" he asks while moving to pick up one of the mini pieces only to have Lois smack his hand, "Your father has been very open about his stance on the vigilante issue and right now I'm already on his list"

"Everyone I've ever dated is on that list." She responds while checking something off her list before adding another mini-figure on Clark's side of the aisle, "Assert your dominance and he'll back off"

"You've been watching National Geographic again"

Lois places the clipboard on the side and looks up at him, "We're getting married and I'd like to know that my father and future husband are at least pleasant to one another" her phone beeps and she looks at it, "Damn." She looks up at him apologetically "I'm late for a meeting" she rushes over to grab her coat and purse, "Can you swing down to the bakery and get an update on the cake? I swear they keep prolonging it just to spite me"

"Well you did threaten the owner"

"I did no such thing" he gives her a look, "Okay maybe I did mention the fact that I had friends in the health department but he started it by overcharging me" she looks down at her watch, "Now I'm really late" she goes to give him a quick kiss on his cheek and quickly ran out brushing past a hasty photographer, "What's the rush Olsen?"

Jimmy looked from Lois to Clark then back to Lois before responding, "There was an explosion at one of LuthorCorp's subsidiaries. The whole place is being torched as we speak"

"Damn it Bruce" Lois heard Clark mutter to himself while he grabbed his coat, "How bad is it?" he asks Jimmy

"Wont know until I get there. The chief wanted me to get down there before the piranhas descend upon it"

"I'll go with you" he insisted leaving Jimmy bewildered as he gave Lois a quick peck then headed towards the elevators.

"What's gotten into him?"

Lois just shook her head while following the path Clark had taken, "Beats me" she responded with a shrug then gave the bow tied reporter a pat on the arm, "You better catch up with him before the chief sees that you haven't left yet. You know how he gets" she trekked forward headed towards the same elevator Clark had disappeared through with Jimmy right at her side, "Oh I almost forgot" she turned around to face the anxious young man, "Clark and I were wondering if you would be interested in taking photos for a our wedding"

"M-Me?"

"Yes you" the doors slid open and they stepped through, "You have an eye for detail no one else has and…my cousin will be there"

"Oh I don't know Miss Lane. Chloe and I-"

"I wont take no as an answer"

They stood there for a few minutes in silence but from the look that crossed Jimmy's face at the mention of her cousin she knew the answer, "Great" she stated just as the doors opened and she stepped out, "We look forward to seeing you there"

For the second time today Jimmy Olsen was left bewildered and just as the doors closed on him he stated, "What just happened?" "You just got Lois'd" the little voice inside his head answered.

The doors to the main lobby opened once again snapping the confused photographer, "Shoot!" he exclaimed and gathered up his gear then raced through the lobby hoping to catch Clark just in time.

Lex walked through the charred remains of the laboratory, "Everyone was evacuated before they torched it and they made sure to wipe the entire system so there wasn't any trace of their involvement but this was found in the rubble" he snatches the slightly charred note from Tess.

"What about the prototype?"

"Destroyed along with all the kryptonite"

He crumbles up the piece of paper and throws it to the ground, "I want the prototype rebuilt under the strictest protection and secrecy."

"But all the files were destroyed. There's nothing to rebuild"

"JUST DO IT!" he exclaims then brushes past her leaving the crumbling ruins when he spotted Clark standing behind the yellow tape with the rest of the press and they just gave each other a look, "This isn't over"

Clark watched Lex speed off in his Porsche looking clearly displeased and for some reason it caused the curious kryptonian to scan the area using a blend of x-ray and micro-vision until finally something odd stood out amongst the rubble.

"Hey Jimmy" the bow tied reporter looked up from the camera, "Why don't you go over there to get a better angle of the scene. I'm sure the chief would appreciate it" Jimmy nodded and walked off near the fire trucks allowing Clark the perfect opportunity to disappear through the crowd and speed into the charred facility.

"Do you-" Jimmy looked back and stopped mid question to find that Clark was gone, "CK?" the photographer peered around the crowd but still couldn't catch sight of him, "Maybe he went to interview one of the officers" Jimmy stated with a shrug before turning back to look for the perfect spot.

Meanwhile Clark was digging through the rubble and smirked when something metallic brushed against his fingertips, "Gotcha!" he exclaimed and pulled out the out of place piece and began examining it carefully.

Whatever it was Clark felt like he had seen it before but couldn't quite place where exactly until finally it clicked. There had been a similar device to this one sitting in Bruce's worktable in the cave and if he wasn't mistaken there were a few lying around Watchtower as well.

TBC

Short I know but I wanted to have something lead into the next chapter and also I wanted to include a little more wedding stuff.

Also I was watching Crusade again and it gave me the perfect inspiration for Lex's storyline with Clark and you'll see some references to past episodes in the second part of the story but you'll see Lex become more desperate to take down Superman.

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