2Title: A Chance Encounter?
Summary: Follows MOS movie. Clark responds to a call for distress only to end up facing a new threat that could end his stay at the Planet and in Lois's life before it really starts. Can Lois get to him in time?
Disclaimer: I own nothing that already belongs to DC, just my muse and her ideas. Any names of OCs that resemble anyone reading this is pure coincidence.
A/N: So I never really need to be in any kind of mood to watch anything Henry Cavill or Man of Steel and just thought I'd whip up a little piece. Always nervous to write in a new fandom but hope anyone reading this likes it a little.
"Can't…breathe…"
Waves of pain started to grip his body and Clark knew that something was very wrong. He frantically looked around the narrow alley, his eyes trying to scan for the object that now held him in some kind of painful vise-like grip that refused to be loosened.
"Where…" he tried once more as his heart started to thud painfully in his chest and soon it felt like he had an entire planet resting on his lungs and each breath was labored.
His vision started to blur as he started to slowly sag to his knees; his right hand reaching up and grasping part of a rusted fire escape stair but it only served to twist his body around.
'Get out of here!' his brain commanded as he started to walk toward the end of the alleyway. But the waves started to intensify and he found himself falling to his knees as his lungs continued to gasp for air.
"Lois…" Clark managed as he felt himself getting weaker and weaker.
The boy? The boy holdling small box. It glowed…green. Green? What's…going on…laughter? At me?...his brain started to swirl with unanswerable questions, as pain continued to wrack his body. His lips called out for Lois, but no words escaped his lips – only painful gasps that seemed to shallow as each second took an eternity to pass.
"So long…Superman!"
Clark's mind dove into darkness as his body collapsed to the ground, eyes closed and heart rate about to slow…for good.
SSSSSSSS
1 hour earlier
"What kind of diet do you think he's on?"
Lois arched her strawberry blond brows up at Steve Lombard, before she followed his gaze over toward Clark. Despite the fact that knowing who he really was and having seen him in action in his "suit", the mild-mannered reporter persona still made her heart flutter and her face warm. Luckily she was able to keep her emotions in check, for the most part, around her colleagues.
"Clark? Why?" She countered with some annoyance as she looked back down at the story she was researching.
"All he eats are twinkies and…chips. Keto? Or some out of this world new diet?"
"Gluten-free," Lois tossed in sarcasm as Lombard's lips huffed and he shook his head. "Don't you have an ambulance to chase."
"Ouch," Lombard shot back as he slowly pulled away from Lois's desk and headed over toward Clark by the printer stand. "Never figured you for a dieter, Kent."
Clark's dark brows knitted as he watched Lombard pass and then turned and glanced at Lois who shrugged and looked back down at her work. "What was that all about?" Clark inquired as he took the desk opposite her.
"He's jealous of your diet."
"I don't diet. I…oh…right," Clark lightly groaned. "Still working on your sarcasm," he added as she tossed him an endearing smile. "Anything more on that Russian Terrorist who simply vanished?"
"Nothing. No one…from Earth, can just disappear from the face of the Earth. Any more…visitors we should be aware of?"
"Not that I know of," Clark replied with a small frown. "Although, I don't have an alien radar detector," he smiled. "I could ask Superman to scan for him," he suggested in a low tone.
Even though she knew what he was capable of, she had also seen him hurt and in pain and that bothered her more than she wanted to admit. He seemed…invulnerable to her and she needed that strength. It gave her strength. But she also knew that if there was one of him out there, there could be more. And as much as she wanted that next hot lead, she just couldn't send him off on some mission, not knowing what he might face.
"It might come to that," she replied as she leaned back in her chair and looked at him with a small look of concern.
"What? You found something else didn't you?"
"This guy was last seen in the area where…the scout ship went down in the Indian Ocean."
"You think he's going after the ship?"
"I…I don't know," Lois replied in truth. "That was a few weeks ago. He hasn't been heard from or seen since. No chatter…nothing on any web I can find."
"Superman isn't bound by…"
"I don't want to draw attention to something that might…get Superman on someone's radar."
"I can take care of myself Lois, but thank you for the concern," he answered with a small smile; quickly followed by a small frown.
"Clark?"
"If anyone did find that ship…what could they use it for?"
"I don't want to even think of an idea or have one suggested to anyone that could make it happen," she pondered as she looked at him in concern. "There are men of means out there and your fight with Zod was…well it wasn't just a fist fight in a dark alley between two guys with no one watching. The whole world saw it. Good and bad."
"You worry too much Lois," Clark told her with a kind smile.
"I have reason," she countered warmly. "It's not like you destroyed your only enemy."
"If someone wants to come and pick a fight with Superman, I'm sure he'll be ready."
"I don't think he should be worried the enemies he can see coming. It's the ones hiding in the dark alley that he doesn't see that pose the biggest threat," she uttered fatefully.
"Fortunately Superman can scan the alley before the fight."
Lois could only offer him a weak smile at his quiet confidence, but something inside her, nagged and nagged and just wouldn't let go until she was distracted by a phone call and had to turn away. As she listened to the call and jotted down a few notes, she glanced up at Clark and couldn't help but feel a sense of comfort and belonging wash over her. She studied his firm jaw that relaxed with a friendly smile; the way his dress shirt hugged his perfect frame and how differently he carried himself from his alter-ego. Superman exuded confidence but Clark held that back, and really played up the farm boy from Kansas. It was amazing at times; but inside she was falling in love with both.
"Okay that was…" she started as she hung up and then turned to Clark, who looked at her intently. But just before she could start into her findings, his head gently cocked to the side and she knew something else had gotten his attention – something only he could hear.
"What is it?" She pressed.
"A child…is in trouble…about to fall…somewhere," Clark stated as he strained to listen and then looked at her in concern. "I…have to go."
"Go. I'll say…you had a hot lead."
"Okay."
"Where is it?"
"Dark alley," he winked as she pursed her lips and watched him leave.
"What fire is Clark chasing?" Lombard asked as Clark rushed past him toward the stairwell.
"Guess you'll have to read the front page tomorrow," she tossed back at Lombard who simply rolled his eyes and carried on.
Lois turned and looked at the stairwell and frowned before she looked down at her watch. It was more curiosity on her part to see how long it would take him to get there, save the child and get back. She guessed only a few minutes but would also have to make sure he took enough time to make it seem like the lead was credible. 'Dark alley…' she offered him an inward curse at his choice of words; the words that played upon her fears and forced herself to get back to her article.
"He'll be fine…" she scolded herself. "He's not the one that needs rescuing!"
SSSSSSSS
After changing into his Superman outfit in the stairwell, Clark emerged at the top of the Daily Planet and took off into the air; his ears picking up the cries from the child as he quickly zoomed to the left and hurried in that direction. He scanned the area below him before he landed near a rather seedy part of town and landed with a soft thud.
Clark's vision started to scan the area around and before him before he looked up and saw not a little child a young boy, maybe an early teen, standing at the mouth of a dark alley and shook his head. "Lois will never let me live this down," he uttered with a sarcastic groan as he slowly started toward the boy.
"Help me," the boy said in a placid tone as he remained in place. But just before Clark could reach the halfway point toward the alley, the boy turned and ran into the alley and didn't look back.
"Hey! Wait!" Clark called as he started to hurry after the boy; wanting to know if it was him who was in trouble, or someone else, and if it was him, why didn't he appear hurt. He quickly scanned the area for any signs of danger or a physical threat, but saw nothing. The area was virtually desolate. It didn't add up and deep inside, something was telling him that not all was what it seemed to be.
He made it half way down the alley when the boy stopped and turned around to face him. A few seconds of silence passed before Clark spoke up.
"Are you okay? Is someone hurt? Is someone in danger?"
"Yes. You."
The answer stunned him for a few seconds as he had just scanned the area and there was nothing around but the two of them. But before he could qualify that question, the boy before him, who had his hands behind his back, took a step forward and Clark was instantly hit with a wave of pain he never felt before.
"What…what's going on…" he muttered in an almost choked tone as the boy took a step closer and the waves started to intensity. He scanned through the boy and saw that his hands held a dark, square object behind his back. But he was unable to see through the box and what it held inside.
"Why…can't I see…inside…" Clark's lips uttered as his lungs felt like they were on fire. "This…doesn't make…sense," he stammered as the boy neared. As he did, the waves started to intensify the pain that was attacking him and he didn't seem able to fly away or escape them.
"What…what's going on?" He tried as the boy merely held his ground, the box now coming around to the front of him. The lid of the box opened all the way and Clark's body instantly recoiled and crunched in pain.
"Can't…breathe…"
Waves of pain started to grip his body and Clark knew that something was very wrong. He frantically looked around the narrow alley, his eyes trying to scan for the object that now held him in some kind of painful vise-like grip that refused to be loosened.
"Where…" he tried once more as his heart started to thud painfully in his chest and soon it felt like he had an entire planet resting on his lungs and each breath was labored.
His vision started to blur as he started to slowly sag to his knees; his right hand reaching up and grasping part of a rusted fire escape stair but it only served to twist his body around.
'Get out of here!' his brain commanded as he started to walk toward the end of the alleyway. But the waves started to intensify and he found himself falling to his knees as his lungs continued to gasp for air.
"Lois…" Clark managed as he felt himself getting weaker and weaker.
The boy…the boy holding a small box. It glowed…green. Green? What's…going on…laughter? At me?...his brain started to swirl with unanswerable questions, as pain continued to wrack his body. His lips called out for Lois, but no words escaped his lips – only painful gasps that seemed to shallow as each second took an eternity to pass.
"So long…Superman!"
Clark's mind dove into darkness as his body collapsed to the ground, eyes closed and heart rate about to slow…for good. As he laid on the ground, Clark felt movement near him and forced his watery blue eyes to open and look upward.
"Why?" He managed with a labored breath.
"We don't want you here."
And with that the boy was gone. The box, however, wasn't closed right away as the boy lingered to see exactly what would happen to the man the world had labelled indestructible.
"Lois…help me…" Clark's lips whispered as his eyes closed once more and he lay on the ground in pain.
SSSSSSSS
Lois looked at the clock with a frown and pursed her lips as she thought about the fact that Clark was taking longer than she expected. It was a child. Even if it was a burning building, a drowning, a dog attack – it shouldn't take this long.
"Hey Lexie…any recent Superman citing's?"
"Missing the invincible man already?" Lombard teased as Lois paid him no heed.
"Just a few social media tags that saw him flying toward narrows."
"Nice area," she grimaced. "How long ago?"
"About an hour. There is a lot of crime down there."
"Yeah…there is," she pondered as she looked at Clark's desk; her frown growing deeper. But that didn't seem right. Even if it was full of gangs in the middle of a turf war, it would only take him minutes to clean it up. You are just paranoid because of your earlier conversation, her mind chided as she tried to turn back to her article. It didn't work. Something inside nagged at her to go and look for Clark.
"Something's wrong," Lois whispered as she grabbed her phone and keys and bolted for the stairwell. She basically flew down the stairs and into the parking lot and toward her car. She heard a screeching and quickly turned, thinking she'd see Superman standing there, stopping traffic but it was just a nervous cat that paused for a few seconds and then disappeared from view.
"Get a grip Lois," she scolded herself as she got into her car and then headed into traffic. "Come on Clark…pick up," she growled as his phone just rang and rang.
But on the fifth try…
"Lo…is…hel…p…"
"Clark? Where are you!" She asked in a panic as terror instantly gripped her. He can't be hurt…nothing hurts him…this is…isn't happening…
"Lo…is…pain…hu…rts…"
"What? Pain? Clark? Clark!"
Silence
"Clark! Where are you?"
"Nar…rows…8th…"
"8th. Okay I know where that is. I'll be right there. Clark…what happened…?"
"Don't…kno…w…hurry…"
It seemed like a small eternity as he lay there in agony. His mind flashed his father…his birth father and then his Earth father…his mother…the fight with Zod…and then Lois's beautiful face. He tried to remember the feeling of having her in his arms and how in that moment, he felt an even stronger man – one that was complete. But now he faced the fear of losing her…losing everything.
His ears picked up the faint screeching of tires and a few seconds later, the waves of pain started to ease somewhat. The boy was gone. The box was gone. The treat was gone – for now.
"Clark? Clark!" Lois shouted as she got out of her car and started to frantically scan the buildings and alley's around her in a mild panic.
"LO…IS…"
She quickly turned her head to the right and raced toward the alley that held her one person she knew she could never live without. Lois rounded the corner and saw him lying in the middle of the alley way. Time held her captive in place for a few seconds as she saw him unmoving on the ground and feared she was already too late. "No…" she whispered in misery until she saw him gently flinch.
"Cl…Superman!" She exclaimed, careful to help maintain his secret in case anyone was in the building listening. She quickly dropped to her knees and cradled his head and felt his temperature. "You're on fire."
"Feel…strange…weak…but it's getting…better," he stammered as his watery sapphire orbs finally focused on her and he felt his strength starting to return.
"Who did this?"
"A boy…I don't know."
"A boy did this to you? How? I don't see any….did he hurt you?"
"Yes. But…not sure how," Clark managed as she helped him finally sit upright. "Dizzy," he added as he looked at her in concern. "He had a box. I…I was unable to see through it."
"What was in it?"
"Glowed…green I think. I don't know but I…I think it would have killed me."
Killed? Those words instantly chilled her and made her breath catch for a few seconds. "We need to get you out of here. Can you get up?"
"I think so," he replied weakly as she helped him stand upright. But as soon as he started to falter, she quickly wrapped her arms around him and held him close to her; both of their hearts now racing in tandem. "Lois…"
"Nearly lost you…again," she whispered as she looked up in sorrow. "Clark…" she uttered as he looked at her in silent wonder. "I need a Superman tracker," she added to lighten the mood; but with a serious notion behind it.
"How did you find me?"
"Twitter," she lightly smirked.
His lips cracked a slight smirk but his frown remained. "My father…he never told me there was something that could kill me."
"Maybe he didn't know. But we need to find that child and that box. Something…that obviously doesn't hurt humans but hurts you; and someone now knows it."
"You can't print this…no one else can know," Clark told her in concern as he steadily felt his strength returning.
"How do you feel?"
"Weak, but…better. It didn't kill me right away."
"Prolonged exposure is deadly. I won't print this," she paused as they turned and slowly walked toward her waiting car, his arm draped around her shoulder; her arm wrapped around his waist. "You feel warmer. You were cold when I first found you."
"Never felt…that before. It was similar to when I was on Zod's ship but…but different. Never felt pain like that before."
"Well I don't think this was just a chance encounter," Lois told him as they reached her car. She turned and looked at him; his gaze now fixed on the building behind him; his eyes scanning the area with a bit more intensity. "Anything?"
"No. A few heat signatures, but they were there before. Homeless or gang members. Right now, they aren't the threat. That boy is and whatever is in that box."
"And whoever sent him here to test their weapon," she stated as he looked at her in anxious surprise. "Come on, let's get you home to rest."
"Lois…"
"Are you really going to argue with me?"
"No ma'am," he replied with a tender smile. "You saved my life. Can't argue with that."
"Not funny."
"I'm not laughing," Clark stated seriously as he held her in place before him. "You saved my life," he whispered as he leaned in closer.
"You are my life," she whispered as she leaned in closer and planted a soft kiss on his lips. "Come on…let's get going before someone sees us."
But someone did see; someone who watched from the shadows with a sly smile and sinister plan. Someone, he hoped they would never see coming – until it was too late.
THE END?
A/N: I hope this first attempt was somewhat entertaining and if you liked it a little please do review before you go b/c I wasn't sure to make this longer or end it here. Will depend on the feedback from you all and thanks in advance!
