Superman: New Heights
Chapter Six
Clark hobbled into the Daily Planet's bullpen, trying to keep his eyes open despite the cacophony of voices in the office flooding his ears.
"Clark! There you are!" exclaimed Jimmy, rushing over to him.
"Hey, Jimmy. Is Lois around?" asked Clark, rubbing his eyes. Jimmy chuckled.
"You probably don't want to run into her right n-"
"Smallville!" shouted Lois from across the bullpen. Clark caught eyes with her, and saw a familiar face sitting next to her at her desk.
"Lana?" asked Clark, walking up to the two of them.
"Seems like I'm not the only girl you ditched yesterday," said Lois, condescendingly. Lana took a sip of her coffee and looked back at Clark, who still seemed to be in shock.
"I came to see if you were all right. We were supposed to meet yesterday," said Lana.
"I know, I'm so sorry. I got distracted with…work," replied Clark. "Can we talk…in private," he continued, bumbling as Lana got up from her seat and the two of them walked away from the desk.
"I'm so sorry, Lana. I really tried to make it," said Clark.
"I know, it's okay Clark. Besides, Lois has been good company, though she's super pissed at you," warned Lana.
"Yeah, mom needed me for farm help, so I had to take a quick train back to Smallville," explained Clark.
"I'm sure she'll understand, she knows you're not Superman," joked Lana. Clark chuckled nervously, finding himself making eye contact with Lana.
"Anyways, I'm going to head for work. I'll see you later, Clark," said Lana, slinging her purse around her shoulder and walking towards the exit.
"Lana, wait!" called Clark, as she stopped and turned around.
"I think I know how to make it up to Lois," said Clark.
"I'm listening," replied Lana.
"I think we should tell her that you're my source, for the Lexcorp explosion," explained Clark. Lana sighed, as she shifted from foot to foot.
"I don't know, Clark. I mean, you know what Lex Luthor is like. If he finds out I'm leaking classified information, it doesn't matter if I'm an intern, my life will more or less be ruined," reasoned Lana.
"Trust me, Lois does whatever she can to protect her sources," replied Clark.
Lana bit her lip and rubbed her arm. "Okay," she said. Clark smiled and walked back to Lois.
Before she could open her mouth, Clark cut her off.
"Lois, before you freak out, I want you to meet my source. Lana Lang," said Clark, as Lana stepped forward. Lois' eyes went wide and she chuckled.
"You're Clark's source?" she asked, looking dumbfounded.
"Yep," replied Lana, still seeming a little unsure. Lois quickly grabbed a pen and paper and sat Lana down.
"You mentioned Rudy Jones was a scientist? What exactly was he working on?" asked Lois.
"This is all anonymous, right? My name isn't going to be revealed or anything?" asked Lana.
"Nope. Trust me," assured Lois. Lana nodded and cleared her throat. "Lexcorp found an artifact at the bottom of the Smallville Canyon, and tried to use it to harness energy," replied Lana. "As far as I know, an explosion happened and the scientist died, but Lexcorp has covered it up,"
Clark walked to the window of the Daily Planet, looking out at the city of Metropolis. He took a deep breath and he pinched his eyebrows.
"First the Eradicator, and now Parasite. One thing at a time, Clark. Parasite is my top priority for now, I need to get through to Rudy," thought Clark.
"But then, where could the Eradicator be?"
A snowstorm had gripped the Arctic Circle, turning everything into a white-grey haze. From the sky landed a figure, its legs touching down on the soft snow.
Despite the storm, the Eradicator could clearly see the massive icicles of the Fortress of Solitude jutting into the sky, obscured by the heavy snowfall all around the place. He zoomed up to the door, and a scanner seemed to emerge from it.
"DNA…Kryptonian…" said an automated voice. The Eradicator took a deep breath and entered the Fortress, in awe of its massive structure and centuries of Kryptonian knowledge.
"Kal-El?" asked Jor, showing up from behind the massive statue in the centre, but freezing when he saw the Eradicator.
"All of this, was for me, wasn't it?" asked Eradicator, looking around.
"Yes. Unfortunately, Kal-El got here before you," said Jor, matter-of-factly, walking towards him.
"Then you know why I am here. Why I was sent here?" asked Eradicator.
"Unfortunately, in the time you were sent here and now, Krypton has changed drastically," replied Jor
"Kal-El told me. It was destroyed. It doesn't change my mission, Krypton's legacy will live on," stated Eradicator.
"Krypton's legacy changed as well. We changed from war mongers to peacekeepers, relying on science than brute strength," said Jor. A befuddled look crossed the Eradicator's face.
A metal structure materialized itself in front of the Eradicator, showcasing Krypton as a planet of scientists.
"This isn't true. You're tricking me," said Eradicator, breathing heavily. Jor raised his eyebrow.
"You're different. You're showing…emotion…" remarked Jor-El.
"NO! THIS IS MY MISSION!" shouted Eradicator, lasering the metal structure with his heat vision, and then staring back at Jor.
"Kal was right. You have a choice," said Jor.
"No, I don't. I don't want one. My choice is to preserve Krypton's true legacy, I don't care what happened to it after," seethed Eradicator, aiming his heat vision to the roof of the Fortress and destroying the roof.
"Kal-El will stop you," said Jor. Eradicator tried punching him, but his hand simply went through him.
"I don't care who he is. He will not stop Krypton's wishes from coming to fruition," retorted Eradicator, zooming off into the atmosphere.
Clark sat at the coffee table, waiting for Lana to show up. When no one was looking, he used his heat vision to heat up the coffee on his table, since it had gone cold.
"I'm so sorry I'm late! I had to explain the whole story to Lois, like every detail I had!" exclaimed a voice from behind Clark. He turned around and saw Lana rushing up to him, finally taking the seat in front of him.
"It's fine, I think it's karma for me not being able to make it last time," joked Clark, sipping on his coffee. Lana took a small sip of hers.
"Nutella hot chocolate? How'd you know that was my favorite?" chuckled Lana.
"Well I remember in 9th grade, my mom would make it for the both of us when we studied together, so I figured," reasoned Clark. "So how are things with Whitney?" he asked.
"Fine, I guess? We haven't talked much since I moved here," replied Lana.
"It's only been a couple of weeks, maybe he's busy?" suggested Clark.
"Doing what, playing football? I don't mean to be rude, but it's not like he's so busy that he can't even shoot a text," groaned Lana, taking a large sip of her coffee.
"You're right, he should at least text," agreed Clark.
"Enough about me though, how's life in Metropolis for you so far?" asked Lana.
"Well, pretty eventful considering the story that Lois and I…and now you, have been working on. But other than that…relatively uninteresting," fibbed Clark, sheepishly looking down at the table.
"Really? Metropolis has Clark Kent disinterested?" asked Lana.
"What can I say, I'm a farm boy. Besides, I'd rather live somewhere without purple monsters attacking the place," reasoned Clark.
"I mean, where else is there? Feels like every single place these days has something going on with it. I mean, you've got Gotham with Batman, then Central City has got the fast guy," laughed Lana.
"I think that's the Dash?" asked Clark.
"And anyways, at least we've got Superman," said Lana. Clark almost choked on his coffee, but managed to swallow.
"Yeah…Superman," said Clark. Lana cocked her head to the side.
"You don't seem to enthused about him?" she remarked. Clark shook his head.
"I just…don't know if he's enough. Especially since that fight of his with the other version of him. He's strong, obviously. I just don't know if he's strong enough, if you get what I mean," articulated Clark.
"Clark he can fly, shoots lasers out of his eyes and from what I've heard, can shoot ice from his mouth. I think it's safe to say we're safe from anything that could be thrown at us," reassured Lana, putting her hand on his.
"And whatever happens, I know we'll be able to get through it," she said.
Clark found himself staring into her eyes, what looked to be an ocean of blue to him. Before he knew it, the ocean seemed to be getting closer and closer. Clark's eyes widened when he realized she was leaning in for a kiss.
Time seemed to stop around him as he began to hesitate. Her grip around his hand seemed to gently tighten. Clark gulped as he pulled away.
"Uh Lana, I… don't think we should do this," stammered Clark. Lana turned red as she leaned back in her seat.
"Yeah, of course…I'm so sorry," said Lana, clearing her throat.
"Look, it's nothing to do with you. It's just, Whitney…" started Clark.
"I know Clark, it's okay. It was…stupid on my part," said Lana, not making eye contact.
"IT'S SUPERMAN!" shouted a child on the streets. Clark froze for a good second, before turning to see the child. She was pointing to the sky, where sure enough, a man in a cape was floating in the sky.
"Eradicator…" thought Clark. His eyes locked with his, and a scowl etched itself across Eradicator's face.
"Uh Lana, I need to go…I just remembered Lois wants me to try and score an interview with Superman for her," said Clark, stuttering as he got up from the table and rushing out of the café, leaving a confused Lana.
"Superman! Superman!" exclaimed a young child, running up to Eradicator. He descended from the skies, revealing the faded costume on his body, and the skin on his face seemed cracked, almost as if scars were running all over it.
"You're not Superman…" said the girl, backing away a bit. Just then, Clark zoomed in from behind her and slammed himself directly into the Eradicator, sending him flying down the streets.
"Don't you dare hurt them," threatened Clark, clenching his fists. Eradicator stood up and cracked his neck.
"I met with Jor-El. I don't care if Krypton is gone, my mission still remains unfinished," said Eradicator.
"For god's sake, you don't have to finish your mission! You have the choice to walk away, leave Earth the way it is. You're not just an android, I know you-"
Before Superman could finish, Eradicator zoomed up to him and punched him across the jaw, knocking him into a bus stand. Superman quickly got to his feet and ripped out a slab of concrete from the ground, using it as a shield against Eradicator's next hit.
"E, just listen to me!" pleaded Superman as he started to fly up. However, Eradicator grabbed him by the cape and pulled him down, before lasering him into the ground using heat vision. "DON'T CALL ME THAT!" he shouted, as he continued blasting heat vision into Superman's chest.
Superman used his freeze breath to counter the heat vision for a few seconds, before quickly flying out from under the Eradicator. However, Eradicator grabbed him and threw him into a building.
Clark was thrown through one building and out the other side, completely destroying the floor.
"Too many people here…" thought Superman. Before Eradicator could fly in to hit him again, Superman flew above him and grabbed him from behind, before flying high into the sky.
Eradicator broke free and disappeared into the clouds, leaving Clark dazed.
"You're not getting in my way again!" shouted Eradicator, flying in from behind Clark and punching his back. Superman went flying forward almost 100 kilometres, before Eradicator flew in from under him and punched him in the chest.
Clark was knocked into the stratosphere but quickly managed to regain his balance. He closed his eyes and concentrated on his super hearing, waiting to hear the Eradicator.
That's when he heard a sonic boom to the right of him. In a fraction of a second, he held his palm out and caught Eradicator's fist before it could hit him. He slowly turned his head to Eradicator, eyes glowing red.
Superman lasered Eradicator away, before flying faster and grabbing both his hands, holding his hands behind him.
"LET ME GO!" shouted Eradicator, struggling to escape.
"E, just please listen to me. The fact that you can feel emotions like anger and sadness are proof that you're more than just an android. You can choose to be more than what you are, more than just a weapon," reasoned Superman, loosening his grip a little.
"I was created to be a weapon. Krypton's weapon!" yelled Eradicator, breaking free of Superman's grip and seizing his arm, twisting it behind his back.
"And you, Kal-El, are a desecration to its legacy!" he shouted, as he placed his foot on Superman's back and pulled his arm, twisting it in the process.
Clark heard something he had never heard before. He heard his radius and ulna snap, while his shoulder dislocated itself from its joint. Pain shot up through his arm and to his neck, as Superman clutched his broken arm.
Before he could even look up, Eradicator gripped him by the throat and began to zoom downward, breaking the sonic barrier as the two of them barely missed an airplane.
Superman tried to struggle out of the Eradicator's grip, but it was too strong. Eradicator punched him in the face and drew blood, aiming Clark's face to the ground as they finally crashed.
Clark tried crawling away as desert sand began to coat his throat, coughing while he pulled himself away from the massive crater in the ground.
He raised his face up, only to see a pair of red glowing eyes stare back at him. A blast of heat vision hit Superman, and he got sent further back. Eradicator caught him by the leg and began to fly forwards, dragging him through the sand as they approached the city of Dubai.
Eradicator threw him right into Downtown Dubai. Clark struggled to get up, his breath raggedy and the armour seemed to be deteriorating.
"The air here…I'm an android and I can hardly breathe. You're telling me these people deserve this planet?!" shouted Eradicator. Superman got to his feet, spitting out blood and looked back at the Eradicator.
"Did Krypton fare any better?"
A look of never-before-seen anger burst onto Eradicator's face, as he kicked Superman straight into the Burj Khalifa. Superman shook his head and zoomed out of the building, gripping Eradicator's arm and flying high in the sky and west.
Eradicator broke free of his grip and fell to the ground, missing the pyramids by barely an inch. Superman dove down to catch him, but Eradicator managed to dodge, grab him by the cape and throw him directly through a pyramid.
Superman crashed through the limestone bricks, but managed to stop himself from hitting in the ground, and taking flight away from the Eradicator.
"Where are you going?!" shouted Eradicator. Superman flew north as fast as he could. However, the pain from his arm caused him to black out, as he crashed into a meadow of flowers in northern Europe.
Eradicator crashed into the meadow directly onto Superman, punching his face into the ground over and over. Clark covered his face and kicked Eradicator away, wiping blood from his cheek.
"Look around you. See any humans here?" asked Superman, gesturing around him. Eradicator looked around him and saw nothing but greenery. His mind suddenly flashed back to the ecological gardens on Krypton.
Eradicator spotted a settlement of people towards the bottom of a hill. There were children playing with what looked like a makeshift football, while a man carried water to a hut of his.
"These people all have lives too… don't take it from them…" coughed Superman, blood spattering from his throat. Eradicator turned back to him, the fury in his eyes seeming to subside.
Superman stood back up, his legs barely able to support his own weight. He tugged on Eradicator's arm, who barely resisted. He seemed to be lost in an old memory of Krypton.
Superman began to fly southeast from Europe, barely able to keep himself conscious as they flew to the Great Barrier Reef.
"You have a marine society?" asked Eradicator, once again reminded of Krypton's brilliant marine biologists as they researched various cures for ailments through the creatures of the deep.
Superman and Eradicator landed on the beach at the Great Barrier Reef. Eradicator walked forwards, feeling the individual grains of sand run through his palms, replaced with cold water washing away the blood from his knuckles.
He looked to his right and saw a family of four snorkeling in the water. He heard the wonder in their child's voice as he discovered such rich marine life for the first time.
"Earth is like Krypton, E. A world that was once…barbaric. But it retained its beauty even through scientific progress…"
Eradicator grabbed his head as he looked back at the ocean. All he could see was a wonderful blend of blue, with a variety of red and green coral in the water. He turned around and saw the large trees on the island, the green canopies reaching high into the sky.
"Please…" said Superman, before his eyes rolled in the back of his head and his eyelids got heavy.
Eradicator gritted his teeth as he lifted up Superman and flew from the scene, back towards Metropolis.
"The last time Superman and the mysterious individual were seen was in front of the café, "Metropolis Jitters". They were then witnessed skyrocketing into the sky and then disappearing," said the reporter on the television.
Martha sat anxiously in front of the television, hoping for some report on Clark's whereabouts. She had tried phoning him about five times but to no avail.
Just then, she heard a crash behind the farmhouse.
"Who's there?" she asked, jumping out of her seat and looking around. A small crater seemed to have formed at the back of the farmhouse.
Martha slowly walked to the kitchen and picked up a kitchen knife, walking out of the backdoor. When she saw what caused the noise, she dropped the knife on the floor.
In the middle of the crater lay Clark, bruised and bloody in a suit that looked as if someone had slashed across it with knives.
"CLARK!" she exclaimed, rushing to his aid, but Clark was unresponsive.
She looked up at the sky and saw a humanoid figure hovering above the house, his face obscured by the darkness of the light as he disappeared within the blink of an eye.
"You ready to wrap up?" asked the worker, grabbing his coat and walking out of the Metropolis Power Plant.
"Joey?" called out the worker, looking around. He switched on his flashlight and waved it around, but Joey was nowhere to be seen.
Just then, he heard something fall behind him. He jumped as he turned around, aiming the flashlight at the source of the sound.
"J-Joey?" asked the worker, trembling as he realized what had made the sound: A headless, shriveled-up torso that had been thrown his way. It seemed as if the torso had been stripped of any water and organic compounds, leaving just a husk.
The worker aimed his flashlight up, only to see a huge purple creature stare back at him. Before he could scream, Parasite grabbed him and ripped his head off of his body, absorbing all the energy from his body.
He dropped the worker's head and turned to the power plant, feeling all the electricity surging through the power lines.
"Energy…" he growled, walking entrancingly towards it.