So...I meant to have this completed and posted a while ago. Life apparently had other plans.
~.~.~
Much later...
Superman didn't know how long he'd been sitting there, eyes closed in meditation, with his back against the massive crystalline structure. It might have been hours, or even weeks for that matter. He no more felt the passage of time than he felt the coldness of the snow upon which he sat, or the sting of the glacial winds on his face.
Though his abilities had suffered from repeated exposure to red Kryptonite, his invulnerability had remained intact. So while sitting here would have been a form of self-flagellation for any normal human, for Superman, it was just where he sat these days, having nowhere else to go.
The Arctic was the last place he'd imagined he might end up. He'd been offered the use of a bunker of sorts, but the idea of being trapped underground for who knew how long, made him uneasy. He didn't wish to be imprisoned; didn't think he deserved to be, either. So he'd set up camp here instead, in one of the most punishing climates imaginable. But just like anywhere else he might have been, Superman felt nothing at all, only the pain of regrets.
Slowly he rose and dusted layers of fluffy snow from his hair and shoulders, then he narrowed his eyes and attempted to hit one of the targets he'd set up a few miles in the distance, with his heat-vision. He struck it easily, his accuracy unaffected, but the satisfaction he felt lasted only a moment as the target started to melt, and yet the realization that he was obliterating it had no effect on his being able to stop the blast. Even after all this time, all these exercises, all these attempts to "center" himself, he still hadn't regained full control of his abilities.
With a sigh of dejection, he turned and walked into his icy fortress. He should have a look at the latest news, he thought; it had been some time since he'd bothered to check on the rest of mankind. He walked over to a small pedestal housing an array of crystal rods. Together they served as an information device; a computer of sorts, its technology courtesy of a now-dead planet. Gingerly, Superman rearranged some of the crystals and waited for the holographic images to come to life.
There were three new archives for him to peruse, he noticed. It had been over three weeks since he'd last checked, then. He wondered how much longer it would take before he regained full control of his abilities. What if the effects of the red Kryptonite never went away? What if he was never able to train himself to use his powers properly again? He shook his head, banishing the negative thoughts from his mind, and concentrated on the flow of information being displayed for his benefit.
As always, he was relieved to see that the world seemed to be faring just fine without him, and especially relieved to find that Lois hadn't found herself on the wrong side of a story. Every single day, he felt guilty for leaving her, and worried that she'd find herself in a situation where she'd need his help — and that he wouldn't get there in time. He couldn't hear her from here; he couldn't hear anyone. Luckily, Lois was safe for now. Safer than she'd be around him and his malfunctioning powers, at any rate, which was the best he could hope for.
Following a cursory inspection of the inside of the fortress, Superman walked outside and sat in the snow again, closing his eyes and turning his focus inward once more.
~.~.~
Metropolis; later still...
"Hey, Lois," Jimmy called, as he ran over to her, a look of excitement on his face. "I think I've found a lead!"
"For which story?" she asked, frowning as she tried to remember what she might have asked him to look into, but coming up empty.
Jimmy shook his head. "No, no… I think I know what might have information that could help us locate Clark."
"Oh." Lois closed her eyes. How was she going to keep him from looking any deeper, this time?
When Clark had first left Metropolis, and she expected him to be gone for just a matter of days, perhaps a week, finding an excuse for his disappearance hadn't been that complicated. But when it had become clear that Clark wouldn't be able to come back any time soon, she knew she'd had to come up with a different story; a different lie.
As she'd watched news reports of the tsunami in the Pacific, Lois had just instinctively known what science couldn't explain. She'd ended up telling Perry that the duo had been headed there, the last time she'd spoken to Clark — it was true, too — and the editor had naturally assumed that she meant she hadn't heard from him since, and that he was therefore a potential victim.
She was still living the lie now, keeping up appearances to protect her husband's secret as best she could. What else could she do? Tell everyone the truth? That Clark was hiding somewhere in the Arctic, as far away from civilization as possible, because, oh, by the way, Clark is Superman?
No. This was the only way to ensure he might one day be able to come back to his normal life. One day, she hoped, which wouldn't be so far away now… So, Lois kept up this story that she hadn't quite made up, trying her best not to feel so wrong about it. And while she hated fact that she'd become guilty of the exact same thing she'd so despised Clark for in the past — telling people certain facts to keep them from finding out about certain other facts — she hated the circumstances more, for forcing them both into it.
"Look, I know last time turned into a bit of a wild goose chase," Jimmy explained with a small chuckle, "but I really think that this time I have solid intel, and —"
"Now, son," Perry interrupted. He seemed to have a knack lately for being there exactly when Lois needed him. "Didn't we have a conversation about this already? You do your job, and trust that local authorities are doing theirs."
"Yes, but chief...," Jimmy insisted.
"No buts, Jimmy," said Perry firmly. "If you go on neglecting all your duties, I'm going to be forced to do something I'd really rather not. No go find me that file I asked you about an hour ago, you hear?"
Jimmy hung his head. "Yes, chief," he said, then he sighed and left.
"I'm sorry, honey," Perry told Lois, patting her gently on the arm. "He means well… Are you all right?"
"I'm fine," she replied, grateful. It wasn't true, not by a long-shot but what was one more white lie at this point?
"Right…" said Perry, with that same look of fatherly concern he seemed to wear around her all the time now. "Anyway, I need you to run to the Solar Tower. There's a lunatic wreaking havoc over there." He handed her a newswire printout.
"Energy blasts…" Lois muttered to herself as she quickly read through the information, "…cars and telephone poles… threatening explosion… if Superman…" Her head snapped up. "But, Superman is gone!" she exclaimed, "How are we supposed to stop this guy without him?"
"Stop him?" Perry laughed. "I'm not asking you to stop him, Lois. Just report the news."
"Right. Of course." Lois grabbed a notepad from her desk, stuck it into her handbag and started towards the elevators.
"You be careful now, you hear?" he called after her.
"I will," she replied, raising a hand in the air. Well, she'd make an extra effort at it, anyway.
~.~.~
Meanwhile, in the Arctic…
Superman strode into his fortress, a warm feeling of pride bubbling up inside. He'd successfully landed on the ground without boring a 50-feet deep hole under his feet. He'd successfully landed without causing any sort of damage to his surrounding ten times in a row. Granted, he'd landed several yards away from where he'd meant to, but he'd landed safely, and that was something.
"One down," he whispered to himself. He still couldn't use his heat-vision without disintegrating his targets, or his strength without obliterating the things he held, but now he could land without destroying everything around him. It meant that there was still hope.
All of a sudden, he noticed a pulsating light coming from one of the crystals on his computational device. He blinked, taken by surprise. This could only mean one thing — there was an emergency. He knew he wasn't going to like whatever this was, he just hoped with all his heart that nothing had happened to Lois; he knew he'd never be able to forgive himself if that was the case.
Shuffling a few of the crystals around, Superman braced himself for the bad news. As the holographic device slowly flickered to life, an audio message came on. "Thought you should know," the voice said. It was immediately replaced by images from a news report.
"In local news," a female anchor was saying, "an unidentified man has been terrorizing citizens in downtown Metropolis, launching energy blasts at cars and telephone poles. His motives are still unclear, however, police sources say that he has been calling for Superman to come out and be a man."
Superman shook his head. "Not now..." he whispered to himself.
For a moment he debated whether or not he should fly over and take care of things. Perhaps if he didn't, this lunatic would go away on his own? Chances were he wouldn't, though, and he'd hurt innocents instead.
So, taking a deep breath, Superman flew out of his fortress and in the direction of Metropolis, hoping he'd be able to control his powers enough and wouldn't end up harming the very people he meant to protect.
~.~.~
Metropolis...
Flying over downtown Metropolis, Superman easily spotted the area where most of the destruction was concentrated. He flew in closer, trying to identify the man who'd been causing it. Before he caught sight of him, however, he noticed that people had gathered there — lots of people — putting their lives in danger just to catch a glimpse of the madman who'd been blowing up vehicles.
"Get away from here!" Superman shouted at them, urging them to get out of harm's way. He heard gasps, as people looked up to the sky. "Get to safety!" he told them, "Now!" But still, the crowd didn't disperse.
An energy blast shot in his direction seemed to bring some of the onlookers to their senses and, screaming, they started running away. He hoped the others would follow suit before any of them got hurt. It was bad enough there was a psychopath zapping at cars, but in his current condition, Superman himself could endanger people. As it was, he'd need all his concentration just to make sure he didn't accidentally kill his opponent; minding other people was a luxury he couldn't really afford right now.
Knowing he was likely to overshoot his landing, Superman searched the area for a safe place where he'd be hidden from view. It was bad enough that people knew he'd been affected by some mysterious illness, he didn't need them to see just how badly that was; especially someone he meant to subdue.
Heading towards a small alley, he noticed a sharpshooter posting himself on the roof of a building, carefully taking aim at the criminal below. There were likely to be more. Superman hovered near the man for a quick second. "Tell your people to hold their fire," he ordered, hoping they'd listen. Then he landed down below with a tumble and a roll.
A moment later, he emerged from the alley and, crossing his arms over his chest, he asked, "Who are you, and what do you want from me?"
The man laughed. "Come out from hiding, have we? Decided to be a real man?"
"I never said I wasn't."
Again, the man laughed. A crazy, maniacal type of laughter. "Be careful what you wish for," he said, then reached into a satchel that hung on his hip, and pulled out a glowing green rock, laughing even louder.
Superman's eyes went wide as he stumbled backwards. Kryptonite. And suddenly he understood. The man had never wanted to face him like a man... he'd wanted to turn him into one; a normal one, without any powers or abilities beyond those of ordinary humans.
As the man advanced toward him, the large chunk of Kryptonite held tightly in his hand, Superman felt his powers slowly leave him. He gritted his teeth in agony, raising his arms protectively in front of his face. It was useless he knew; his arms alone couldn't protect him from the radiation, but what else could he do? He didn't even have enough strength left to prevent the man from closing the distance between them, causing him more pain with every inch— rendering him helpless.
Shots rang suddenly. The sharpshooters. They'd held their fire as instructed until then. Someone had ordered them otherwise now.
Startled, the madman dropped the toxic piece of rock he'd been holding. It fell to the asphalt and slowly rolled down the sloped street, away from Superman who breathed a small sigh of relief. But the bullets did nothing to stop his opponent, who merely swatted at them as though they'd been just flies. His suit must have been made of protective material.
The pain from the Kryptonite radiation faded away as the rock kept rolling downhill. Out of the corner of his eye, Superman caught sight of a young man in a bright red shirt, running towards the deadly alien ore, picking it up and sprinting out of view. Superman closed his eyes, hoping he meant to help, and not join in the effort to hurt him. A moment passed. No further sign of the young man. Perhaps he was gone for good, after all.
Powerless, but determined to put an end to this fight once and for all, Superman got up to his feet, screaming as he charged his opponent, sending him crashing to the ground. He felt weak and wondered how he could possibly defeat someone who wore clothing that made him impervious to bullets, but he could not just sit back and do nothing. Abilities or not, he would never let a man get away with his crimes.
So, with every ounce of strength he could will into his blows, Superman hit the man repeatedly. He hit him as punishment for all the destruction he'd caused to the city. Hit him as sanction for all the innocent people he'd hurt today. Hit him in retribution of all the pain he'd caused him. Hit him again for for the blows the man had managed to land on him now, and he would have hit him some more, if not for someone yelling for him to stop.
"Stop! Superman, don't!"
Lois.
Superman blinked at her, dazed. He looked down at the man lying under him, his face now a bruised and bloody mess. Then he got up and slowly moved away.
"Are you okay?" Lois asked, eyes wide with concern, as she reached his side finally.
"I'm fine," he answered, wiping blood away from his nose. It hurt so badly, it was likely broken, he thought. "At least without my powers, I'm not a threat to anyone."
There was a small snort. "Try telling him that," said a policeman, pointing to the criminal he'd come to take into custody.
"I didn't mean—" Superman started, but the policeman and two others had already started dragging his adversary away, reading him his rights as they went.
"Are you sure you're all right?" Lois asked, running a gentle hand down the superhero's arm. The look in her eyes said all the things she couldn't, not while anyone could see or hear.
"I'll heal, I suppose," said Superman with a small shrug.
Onlookers at the scene started scattering. The streets around were a picture of total chaos, but it was nothing that couldn't get fixed in time. And so hopefully would Superman.
~.~.~
Two days later...
"So?" Lois asked eagerly, as Clark walked through the door of their home. He'd spent the morning with Dr. Klein, running tests on his newly returned abilities. Well… Superman had, anyway.
"Working within normal parameters," said Clark, his lips curling into a goofy smile.
"All your powers?"
Clark nodded. "I'm super again."
"Oh, thank goodness," said Lois, throwing herself into his open arms, hugging him as tightly as she could. "I can't imagine I'd ever have been glad for anyone using green Kryptonite against you, but I think this time I just might send this guy a thank you note."
"Speaking of… We need to find out whatever happened to that piece of green K he had."
Lois smiled up at him. "All taken care of. It's in a safe place, locked inside a lead-lined box, where no psychopath, and no evildoer can possibly get their dirty hands on it."
"But you know where it is…?"
"Yes," she admitted. "If… if it's ever needed to counteract the effects of the red kind, I know where to find it. And I know it'll hurt you, but you'd better believe I'll use it, because I am not letting you leave again."
"I don't plan on ever leaving again," he replied. He brushed a finger against her cheek, adding, "not without you," before sealing the promise with a kiss.
—End.
