8

Clark's POV

My journey from Smallville back to Metropolis was a conflicted one. A part of me couldn't explain my desire to return to her. After J'onzz told me she was looking for me, I knew in that instant where I needed to be. Soaring through the skies, I didn't notice when I landed on the balcony of my penthouse. My mind was fixated on the raven-haired woman who tried to kill me. How sick was I? This unbreakable woman tried to murder me twice and I still felt more connected with her in our battle than I'd felt with anyone in my whole life. Not even the hate I felt for Lois, which was boundless, matched what I felt near the Amazon. Before I knew it, I was standing in front of my bedroom door. From the outside looking in, I placed my hand on the door.

Thump…. Thump…

The vibrations of her heartbeat were the sweetest sound I'd ever heard. It soothed me. Lost in the beating of her heart, I closed my eyes and gave myself to the calm sensation pulsating though my hand.

"Ultraman…. Ultraman… Damnit… Kal…."

The name Kal rang in my ears. It echoed alongside her beating heart until only my name remained.

No, no, no…

I pressed my hand harder against the glass door, trying to feel her heartbeat once more, but I couldn't. My rage drowned out the calm she had created.

"I told you never to use that name," I sighed.

I felt J'onzz presence behind me.

"Well, I called you every other name under the sun and you didn't reply so…."

"That's not an excuse,"

He knew how I felt about my name, my true name. The one given to me by my birth parents. It reminded me of a life lost. One with love. Slowly, I lifted my hand away from the glass. Fractured… I truly broke everything I touched.

With the gentlest of touches, J'onzz reached for my shoulder, but I met his kindness with my flame-filled eyes. He stopped mid-action. The scent of her was all over him.

"Leave me," I ordered him.

J'onzz immediately took two steps back.

"And I know where your head is at," he said. "Do you think me to be as treacherous as Bruce?"

I growled as I heard Bruce's name. He was a two-faced piece of shit. If I'd left him in charge of the Amazon's care, I wouldn't have come back to the sound of her beating heart. I would have returned to her corpse.

Any Wayne was not to be trusted, but they served a purpose. He came from money and power. Having him on our side opened doors that would have taken years to acquire, the downside of that meant we had to deal with his demented state. One that was sated by piles of dead bodies and my wife.

"… She is beautiful," I replied coldly. "You never know what might push you over the edge into Bruce territory…"

Bruce territory, stealing another man's woman. However, this time the person that could possibly be stolen; I wanted her.

"… But I saw you with her," J'onzz replied.

Again, he reached for my shoulder, but this time I let him touch me. Forcing me to face him he looked me in my eyes and said.

"In all the years I've known you, I've never seen you like this," he continued. "You're calm, content even. Why would I take that away from you, old friend?"

I didn't know how to reply. This feeling, this calm was new to me. I wasn't strung out on Kryptonite; my head was clear. Looking over my shoulder I saw her. She was fast asleep in my bed.

"I only want what's best for you," he said.

Out of everyone who worked under me, I knew he meant every word.

"... She will be good for you," he continued. "You need someone to…"

I lowered my gaze from the door as my whole body let out a sigh.

"She's afraid of me J'onzz," I said. "Just like…"

I stopped myself from saying her name, Lana. The only person on this planet that cared

about me, or so I thought. All that changed once my 'mother' told me the truth. She was just like everyone else. Out for herself.

"She isn't like, 'her'," he replied. "In time you might realize she's a lot like you."

J'onzz paused for a moment. I knew that silence all to well. He had discovered

Something that was going to piss me off.

"I searched her mind…"

My body tensed at the thought of him playing around in her mind. Noticing my

discomfort, J'onzz lifted up his hands.

"I needed to be sure she meant you no harm," J'onzz added quickly. "All of this was her

Mother's doing…"

"I figured as much," I grunted.

She was a trained fighter. Hell, if she hadn't been accidently drugged by Barry, she might

have finished the job. It was her eyes that gave her away. No matter what her actions said, her eyes told me that she didn't want to hurt me.

"Kal, there's something else," J'onzz said.

His pale eyes darkened.

"… she wanted her dead…"

"Well, we have that in common," I snorted. "We both have horrible mothers…"

J'onzz's grip on my shoulder tightened.

"… It's more than that…"

Looking at my mentor, his face grew worried.

"Out with it," I ordered.

"... She was promised to a god…"

Before J'onzz could get that bastard's name out I knew.

"Darkseid," I mouthed.

J'onzz shook his head.

"No," J'onzz answered. "Darkseid might claim to be a god to the humans around him, but he is no god… What I meant was a god, god…"

"Gods aren't real J'onzz,"

"Oh, but they are…" J'onzz continued. "He of whom I speak is the true head of Darkseid's organization. At least financially."

As J'onzz spoke he pulled me into a vision. I was back on Diana's island. I saw the golden-haired Queen kneeling before a blackened figure with golden eyes. Raw power oozed off him, it was almost overwhelming.

"My father gave you something meant for me. Where is she Hippolyta, where is Diana!?"

"I know not of the place," the Queen screamed in pain.

The entity released her face and cursed.

"Pray you figure it out soon," he replied. "For I am not a patient man,"

I stumbled back, away from J'onzz as my eyes opened.

"What the hell was that thing?"

"The real question Kal, is 'who' was that,"

I stared at him with a blank stare.

"The Queen referred to him as Apollo,"

"You mean the sun god from Greek mythology?"

J'onzz nodded, "Kal, he's real, dangerous, and looking for her."

J'onzz pointed to the resting Amazonian woman.

"What does she know about this?"

"Nothing," J'onzz said. "From what I've gathered her 'mother' wanted to deny a god her only child, through her death by your hands..."

"Fuck..."

"Fuck indeed," J'onzz replied. "With Apollo's investments in the human realm, I would expect him to send someone to retrieve her..."

Double fuck. We weren't ready for that level of smoke. We'd barely gotten Metropolis under foot. Darkseid's criminal organization controlled most of the world and we were a footnote in a small city. If he was an underling of this Apollo figure and the Amazon was that valuable to him...

"He's going to send that grey ass after her,"

J'onzz nodded in agreement.

Apokolips, the largest pain in my ass since we stepped onto the national stage. Though he worked mostly in Eurasia and Africa, when we came on the scene he started taking interest in the affairs of our small city.

J'onzz pulled me by my shoulders and forced me to look at him.

"We might be able to use this to our advantage," he added. "You have something he

wants…"

J'onzz's eyes held firm on my own. This was a test. He wants me to answer this proposition one way. The monster the world knew me to be, would take this opportunity to expand my empire across the pond at any cost. The man he knew me to be, would walk away from this life, taking her with me. I let out a sigh. That was a fantasy that was beyond my reach.

"She isn't a pawn," I said.

J'onzz smiled, "I'm glad to hear it."

"But leaving Darkseid unchecked now would never allow me the peace I desire," I said. "We'd never be able to have a moments rest if I ran..."

J'onzz released me with a pat to my shoulders.

"See both of you in the morning…."

There was a glint in J'onzz's eyes as he spoke. He was proud of me. In this harsh world, I chose to do something right.

"I'll have some clothes ready for her in the morning," he added.

J'onzz gave me a nod before he disappeared into the shadows. Alone in front of my bedroom door once more, I fought the urge to walk away. From this door, from this life, and most importantly from her. I placed my hand on the fractured glass door.

Thump, thump

The sweet sound of relief greeted me. Pulling the doors open, there she was. In a sea of black sheets, she was curled up in my crimson tee. She looked beautiful. I walked towards her taking great care not to make a sound as watched her sleeping. Her full chest moved up and down as if she had no cares in this world. She was unlike anyone I'd met in this world. She was untouched by its darkness. I couldn't imagine her anywhere near this Apollo god-figure or Darkseid. They were monsters like me. Something as precious as her had no business being anywhere near creatures like us.

"I'll keep you safe from..." I muttered. "... the monsters... all of us."