LUTHOR RETURNS
Clark, now wearing his street clothes, walked up the steps of Midvale Girls' School. His mind was still reeling from the revelation that Kara was here, on Earth. How did she get here, and what the hell happened to her on the way? With his x-ray vision and super hearing, he watched Linda enter the building from the schoolyard and run down one of the hallways, passing Fred. She was out of breath and her heart was racing - like an Earthling. Clark's brow knitted in bewilderment as he tried to make sense of the situation.
"You're late," Fred called to Linda as she rushed past him.
"Sorry." Linda stopped in her tracks and turned to face Fred, expecting a reprimand.
He smiled at her with just a hint of disapproval. "Just go to class," he told her gently.
Linda pivoted and resumed her sprint down one of the hallways. "And no running in the halls…" Fred's admonition trailed after her.
Nasthalthia rounded a corner from a different hallway, striding confidently past Fred. She displayed no concern about potential reprimands. Fred glared after her, releasing a frustrated huff.
A good guy, Clark surmised. Maybe he would help.
The resource officer at the entrance asked Clark if he had an appointment. Clark flashed her his press credentials.
"Someone from your paper was here this morning," remarked the officer.
"Yeah, uh, we're working on the same story."
"Oh, OK," she shrugged and starting passing her security wand up and down close to Clark's body. He wasn't actually made of steel, but his super dense molecular structure would have made the wand go haywire if he hadn't used one of his auxiliary powers to interfere with its proper functioning. She let him pass.
Fred spotted Clark and walked toward him, holding out his hand. "Hi, Fred Danvers. I'm the principal here. Can I help you with something?"
They shook hands.
"He's from The Planet," offered the resource officer helpfully.
"The Luthor's left a couple of hours ago, I think."
"I was hoping maybe you could help me with something else."
"Yes?"
"Uh…." Clark hadn't really formulated a plan, so he decided to try to buy some time. "Can we talk in your office?"
"Sure." Fred gestured toward his office and they started walking that way together.
KABOOM!
A thunderous explosion reverberated through the school, jolting both Clark and Fred into immediate alertness. Their heads turned instinctively toward the source of the blast. Clark's enhanced vision honed in on the aftermath—a small, smoking crater marred the front yard of the school, positioned roughly 20 feet from the entrance. The remnants of the explosion lingered in the air, casting an eerie haze over the scene.
"What the hell…!" Fred exclaimed as he walked to the entrance and through it to the outside. He, too, saw the crater.
KABOOM!
A second explosion, farther away but no less menacing, added to the cacophony. The blast originated under the sidewalk across the street, ripping through the asphalt and hurling an elderly couple to the ground. The man bore the brunt of the blast, wounded by jagged fragments of shrapnel.
"Wally!" the elderly lady's cry pierced the air, her eyes widening at the sight of her husband's blood. Despite the pain shooting through her, she reached out for him, only to recoil in agony. "Aaaahhh!"
Superman descended swiftly, landing with a controlled grace near the injured couple. Assessing the situation, he determined that the man's injuries were not severe, and the woman had suffered a broken hip. Both were in a state of shock, but they could wait for an ambulance.
A commotion across the street caught Superman's attention. Dozens of schoolgirls, including Linda, were rushing past the overwhelmed resource officer and congregating on the school's broad steps. Fred was trying unsuccessfully to shoo them back into the building.
"You have not been dismissed! Everyone go back inside!"
"What's going on?"
"Were those bombs?"
"There's Superman!"
The girls ignored Fred and watched the scene unfold.
In the midst of the chaos, Superman's gaze locked onto Linda's. A nagging thought began to crystallize in his mind when...
Click - KABOOM!
The third bomb detonated with a deafening blast in front of the coffee shop adjacent to the school, blowing to bits several outdoor diners that had made the fateful decision to stay and watch the scene unfold rather than run away as had most of their fellow patrons. The shockwave reverberated through the air, shaking nearby windows. The schoolgirls on the steps had a front-row seat to the horror. Some of them fled inside the building, screaming hysterically, seeking refuge from the chaos. The girls that remained on the steps were frozen with terror and panic, their squeals and cries blending with the shrill call of sirens in the background. They hugged and gripped each other with all their might as Fred tried as best he could to push them into the building.
Superman felt a surge of regret and frustration. He had allowed himself to be momentarily distracted, and now the consequences were starkly evident. The weight of his failure pressed upon him, but he couldn't afford the luxury of grappling with it just yet. Nor could he rush to the aid of those that were even now bleeding out by the ill-fated coffee shop...
Click
His super hearing had already picked up the tell-tale click from the third bomb, and there it was again. Another click. In a split instant, Superman knew a fourth bomb was about to explode somewhere nearby. With super speed, he turned toward the source of the sound, his senses honing in on the threat. He spotted the bomb buried under the playground equipment in the park across the street. A playground! Sick! That reminded him of someone!
With lightening-fast speed, he flew to the playground, being careful not to let his movement and the disturbances in space and gravity he was creating to harm the children and adults who were screaming and running around aimlessly in the park.
Superman crashed into the ground and grabbed the exploding bomb and covered it completely to prevent any shrapnel from escaping.
KABOOM!
"Superman! Are you alright?"
"Oh my god, he's bleeding!"
"Help me pull him out of there."
"Is he still alive?"
Superman was vaguely aware he was being tugged and pushed. But he couldn't see. He couldn't breathe.
As the bomb erupted, Superman had sensed the first stinging shards of shrapnel tearing through his flesh. The shock, both physical and psychological, left him disoriented, unable to shield himself from the bomb's full impact. The explosive force had struck him mercilessly in the face, neck, and hands, while his chest and arms found some protection in the resilient material of his supersuit.
His rescuers managed to pull him out of the hollow the bomb had made in the ground. They laid him on his back.
"Superman! Hey buddy! Can you hear me? Answer me! You there? Don't leave us!"
The wail of sirens heralded the arrival of first responders.
"Flag down the ambulance!"
Click - KABOOM!
"Shit! What the fuck's going on!"
"Yeah, I feel like I'm back in 'Nam!'"
Superman, struggling against the haze of pain, attempted to move his hands to his neck, where a sizable piece of shrapnel was lodged in his windpipe. The metallic debris in his hands made the effort futile.
"He's moving!"
"Help me get this out of his neck!"
"Are you fuck'n nuts! He could bleed out!"
Click - KABOOM!
"Look at him! He's trying to pull it out!"
Superman felt a painful tugging at his neck. In his stupor, he tried to shoo it away and ended up throwing the man trying to help him 15 feet into the air and across the playground. Miraculously, the guy ended up in the sand pit and was only slightly injured, but the rest of the rescuers approached the powerful being more cautiously now.
Click – KABOOM!
"Superman, we're trying to help you, OK! Will you stay still? Stay still!"
He felt tugging at his neck again. The pain was excruciating, but he tried to stay still. Finally, the huge piece of metal was dislodged from his windpipe. The flesh and other tissues instantly healed and he was able to breathe. He took a deep breath and reached up to his eyes, but couldn't get a hold of anything with all the shrapnel in his hands. He started rubbing his hands together, attempting to dislodge the bits of metal. The endeavor proved more agonizing than productive, each movement causing fresh waves of pain. His rescuers got the message and started pulling the metal out of Superman's hands. Despite his determined efforts to remain still, his body, still reeling from the explosive trauma, jerked involuntarily, inadvertently propelling one of his would-be saviors into a nearby tree.
Click - KABOOM!
When he was finally able, Superman sat up and pulled out the remaining shrapnel from his hands. The scene turned even more gruesome as Superman, grunting and moaning in agony, yanked out the remaining shards embedded in his eyes, face, and neck. For a few moments, he sat there, in shock, feeling weak and impotent.
Click – KABOOM!
Superman staggered as he rose to his feet. He attempted to shake off the lingering stupor. The world around him seemed distorted—sounds muffled, images blurred. The acrid smell of burnt flesh assaulted his senses. There was carnage everywhere. Cars and buildings were burning. Alarms were blaring. People were screaming and running to and fro in confusion, not knowing where the next bomb would explode. He struggled to organize his thoughts, the only coherent one being the urgent need for a revitalizing sun bath. Every single cell in his entire body had been almost completely drained in the last few minutes, as all of his energy surged toward his injuries to keep him alive and heal him. If he overexerted himself in such a state, there was a danger of him lapsing into a coma as had happened after he threw New Krypton into space. Although it was a sunny mid afternoon, billowing smoke veiled much of the sunlight. Superman knew had to use the last bit of his strength to rise above the smoke and replenish his energy.
Click.
He turned toward the sound. It came from the direction of the girls' school. He spotted the bomb buried under the steps, where there were still about a dozen school girls. Fred was there as well, trying to coax them back inside. Superman barely registered that Linda was not among them. Somewhere in the recesses of his mind, the realization that these bombs were tied to Linda's presence at the school sparked a nagging fear that Linda was in danger. His discombobulated brain grappled with the dilemma of whether to expend his last ounces of energy to find and protect Linda or to save those on the steps.
If he chose the latter, would he fail anyway? Could he even summon enough strength to reach the bomb in time? Would his next conscious moment be waking up in the hospital in two or three days to the news that Fred and all of the girls had been blown to bits?
If he chose the former, would he be able to live with himself?
He had to at least try to save them!
Superman pulled off his cape, gathered all the remaining power he could muster, and barreled toward the steps. He caused his body to spin like a drill, with his cape held in his hands in front of him. He carved into the steps on one side of the building beneath the Fred and girls. He was barely conscious by the time he reached the bomb. Somehow he managed to wrap his cape around the rapidly expanding mass of metal and hold it tight. It finished exploding within the confines of the cape.
He must have lost consciousness. His internal clock registered it was several moments later when he finally had the where-with-all to back out of the hole, letting the bomb remnants drop from his cape as he draped it back over his shoulders. He surveyed the scene. The steps had collapsed. Fred and many of the girls had fallen, but none were hurt badly.
His whole body ached, and there was an incessant loud buzzing in his head that made it almost impossible to think. He tried his best to to focus his hearing again to listen for clicks. He wearily floated up to a better vantage point to sweep the area with his x-ray vision. Everything was blurry at first. He floated a bit higher where the smoke was thinner, letting out a relieved sigh as his energy started to replenish and his body healed a little bit. His vision cleared enough to do a cursory sweep of the immediate vicinity, revealing no more bombs. He floated up a bit further to do a wider, more methodical scan. There didn't seem to be any more bombs.
Normally, in the aftermath of a catastrophe like what had just occurred. he would be doing what he could to help the first responders. But his thoughts returned to Linda. He had to get her away from here to safety. Those bombs had been placed there because of her presence at the school. That he knew for sure. But he had been the target.
He descended to the top of the steps at the entrance of the school.
"Superman!" Fred tried to reach him, but stumbled on the broken steps. Superman helped him regain his footing. "What's going on?"
"There are no more bombs. You're safe now. But I need to get Linda away from here." Superman walked inside, much to the amazement of the hapless resource officer. He scanned the building, searching for Linda. He didn't see her.
Fred joined him. "Linda Lee?"
"Yes, do you know where she might have gone? She's not here. Where's her dorm room?"
"The dormitory is a couple blocks away. She's for sure still here."
The sickening feeling that had been growing in the pit of Superman's stomach suddenly intensified. "She's not. I scanned the building, and the yard."
"Then I don't know." Fred became concerned. "Why do you need her? Does this have something to do with Leonard Luthor?"
Superman didn't answer. He scanned the building again just to be sure. Then he walked outside and floated upwards, continuing and broadening his scan.
No sign of Linda.
He floated upwards still, further widening the area he was scanning.
Nothing.
Linda was gone.