Description: What’s going on in Metropolis? Four Supermen? Three Lois Lanes? Add in a few Jimmys and a couple of Perrys and things are bound to get interesting. Written in response to a challenge fic.
Supermen United
By MetroRhodes <metrorhodes@yahoo.com>
Rated: PG
Submitted: September, 2006
All characters and settings are the property of someone else, definitely not me, and whoever else can legally lay claim to them. No copyright infringement is intended. This story was written purely for fun, not for profit.
A thank you to the writers of Lois & Clark, without them we wouldn't have this wonderful world to play in. A thank you as well to the writers of the original Superman movies as well as Superman Returns.
Thanks for going on this ride with me Sue and James. I wasn’t really sure what I was doing at first. And thank you for your help Nancy with my medical questions.
And also a thank you to all of you who made suggestions for the story on the message boards.
Okay, this story requires a little introduction (okay a lot of introduction, sorry). If you take the time to read this it might make your read of the story more enjoyable. This fic was written in response to a challenge that ClarkKentWannaBe posted on the message boards. He wanted to see several different Superman come together in one story. He was specific on which Supermen could be used, what point in time they were to be used at, how many universes could be involved (okay I bent this rule a little, he requested a limit of three, but I had to stretch it to four) and that multiple Lois Lanes, Jimmys, and Perrys were optional.
The four Supermen I have gone with for this story (based on CCWB’s criteria) are Christopher Reeve’s after Superman IV*, Brandon Routh’s at the end of Superman Returns**, and two of Dean Cain’s – both our Clark after the episode “Voice From The Past” and Alt-Clark after the episode “Lois and Clarks”. I have also used all of the Lois Lanes available and threw in a few Jimmys and Perrys for good measure too. With all those different portrayals of the same characters, it’s bound to get confusing. To try and alleviate some of that confusion, I never write in the same universe twice in a row – at least until they all end up in the same universe <grin>. I’ve separated each section with a line of asterisks and that is your cue to know that we are moving on to a different scene and a different universe. So maybe that will help and hopefully I’ve written the characters and scenes well enough that it won’t take you too long to figure out what universe you’re in.
(*Since I am using Christopher Reeve’s version after Superman IV - CCWB’s request – we will be going with the idea that there were two, yes count them, two amnesia kisses with Lois. One in II and one again in IV – if you don’t believe me, re-watch IV sometime... wait, no, nevermind, don’t do that.)
(**I am going with the premise that Bryan Singer intended for Superman Returns to be a follow-up to Superman I & II and therefore is continuing the story line started by those two movies – instead of being something totally new and of it’s own. I had heard a rumor that this was the case and so I’m going with that as a basis for that part of this story...)
Oh and anytime you see these: < > that denotes that the characters are remembering something that was said in the past.
That’s it. I’ve read scripts and re-watched scenes, and did the best that I could to remain faithful to all the movies and our beloved show. I hope you enjoy.
Now, without further adieu...
With hope all things are possible. But at what cost does that hope come? How can one person’s life so greatly affect the lives of so many others? ***********
Clark glanced over at the sleeping form of his wife and snuggled up a little closer to her, sharing his warmth with her. He had almost lost her, again. Lex Luthor may have died down in that tunnel but his ideas had lived on through his son. Lex Luthor Junior had been as bent on possessing Lois as his father had.
<
You’ll do anything I ask because you’re cursed with a flaw I don’t have. You can love. And you love her... >
He did love her. So much.
Clark reached out to brush a piece of hair away from her eyes. It would be time to get up soon, but for now he was just content to lie here next to her and watch her sleep. She looked so beautiful in the light of the morning sun.
He was still astounded at all the things they’d had to overcome together. She had come so close to...
<
I think you know what I’m about to do... You won't feel a thing... >
Oh, god, Lois. What if he couldn’t have saved her? Brought her back? He closed his eyes against the thought. Too close. It was the second time he had frozen her like that. So many things could go wrong.
But it had worked and she was safe... until the next time.
Lois shifted against his hand that was now gently caressing her face. She rolled over and looked up at him. Her eyes were soft and new, still full of sleep.
“Good morning.” He kissed her cheek softly.
She smiled at him. “Mmm. Good morning. What are you doing awake already?” She laid her arm on top of his and began lightly caressing it with her fingertips. Her touch sent vibrations up his arm and down his back, causing goosebumps to light up his skin. “Don’t get me wrong, this is a pretty nice way to wake up, but Perry gave us the day off today. I was kind of hoping to stay in bed a little longer.”
“I was just watching you sleep and thinking...”
“About what?” Her fingers left his arm and she moved her hand up to rest against the side of his face, rubbing her thumb across his cheek.
“About everything we’ve gone through, and that I could have lost you so easily... Thinking again about whether or not things would settle down now for a while and just be normal.” He brushed one hand lightly across her chest and down her abdomen, letting it come to rest against her stomach.
“Hah! Define normal.” She took his hand and brought it up to her mouth, kissing the back of it softly. “We have been through a lot, haven’t we? I can’t imagine what could possibly happen now.”
She grinned at him, letting go of his hand. She brought her hand up between them, her fingers closed in a fist. “Let’s see, Lex Luthor is dead... we think,” she said, holding up one finger to keep count. “His heirs have all been dealt with... at least the ones that we know of.” A second and third finger went up. “Tempus is behind bars... for now.” The final finger came up.
Clark held up his thumb next to her fingers. “And you’re not behind bars,” Clark added, the relief evident in his voice. He grabbed the hand she’d been counting with and began applying kisses to each one of her fingers and then he kissed her palm.
“Mmm, for now.” She snuggled a little closer to him.
“For now? You’re not thinking of getting into more trouble again already are you?”
“Define trouble. The kind of trouble I had in mind would be pretty fun,” she said as she slipped her hands under the sheet.
Clark’s eyebrows went up in surprise. He could handle that kind of trouble. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tightly against him. At least for now, for this moment, he had her in his arms, and she was safe.
**********
“Goodnight!” Jason yelled out his window to Superman.
Clark smiled at him, hovering just a few feet away.
A startled gasp came from the lips of Lois Lane who hadn’t realized until just then that he was there. Clark looked down at her. She looked so beautiful, wrapped in a delicate robe and bathed in the light of the moon. He wanted nothing more right now than to scoop her up and fly her off over the city with him... if things were only different.
“I love you...” Her voice had started out strong but then faded away into a whisper. If it hadn’t been for his super-hearing he wouldn’t have heard her.
But he did hear her.
She did love him. His heart swelled at her words, her admission. She had lied to Richard when he had asked her if she had been in love with Superman. Clark had known she was lying, he could tell by her body language what her true feelings were, even if her heart wasn’t ready to admit them yet. It had felt so right the night he had taken her in his arms and flown her over the city. She felt so right in his arms.
He thought back to *that* night. The one glorious night they had shared before he had left. He remembered how she had felt in his arms that night. How soft her skin had been beneath his fingers.
That night... The night their love had created Jason.
Clark had missed her so much while he was gone. He had thought about that night a thousand times and had died a thousand deaths at having taken that knowledge from her. Why had he made her forget? Why had he ever left?
<
Richard’s a good man and you’ve been gone a long time... >
She was right. He had been gone a long time. And she had moved on... with Richard.
Richard.
How did he feel about him? Richard had saved his life. He was grateful to him for that and for the fact that he had been there as a role model and father figure for Jason while Clark had been away. She was right, Richard was a good man. He had been there for them when Clark hadn’t. He had been there for the birth of his son, had helped raise him, provide for him.
Clark knew that DNA wasn’t what made someone a parent. He knew that better than probably anyone did. His parents had been Jonathan and Martha Kent. They had raised him, provided for him and he loved them deeply. But he also loved Jor-El and Lara. Clark had always wished that he could have known his biological father; that Jor-El could have been a part of his life, besides just through the crystals he’d left for him.
Yes, Richard was a good man but that didn’t mean Clark wasn’t going to fight for what was his. Jason was his son too. He didn’t want his son to look back years later when he knew the truth and wonder why Clark hadn’t been there for him. Surely his son would want him to be a part of his life if he knew the truth. And Lois...
“Will we see you... around?” she asked, giving him a small smile. She was looking up at him with what he wanted to believe was hope in her eyes.
I love you, Lois, more than you’ll ever know. He wanted to say it, but he didn’t. She had to know, didn’t she? How hard the decision to leave her had been for him? How sorry he was...
She would have to make her own decision and he didn’t want to make it any harder on her. But when she had come to him at the hospital and revealed to him that Jason was his son, she had to have known that he would want to be a part of his life... Their life.
Please don’t shut me out, Lois.
“I’m always around.” He smiled at her as he lifted up into the night sky. Even as high and as fast as he could fly, he didn’t think he could match the feeling in his heart at this particular moment.
He turned and headed towards a familiar destination. He hadn’t found an apartment yet in Metropolis, and the commute back and forth to Kansas was getting a little old. But tonight he would have flown back home anyway.
He needed to see his mom. He needed to tell her that she was right. That he wasn’t alone. Not anymore. Not ever again.
He had a son.
**********
Clark flew through the night sky looking down on the city below him. It was amazing how peaceful the city looked from this high up. But maybe that peace would become a reality.
<
I made a vow never to interfere in the destiny of this planet... >
But he had broken that vow. He had tried to the best of his ability to end the nuclear threat, to do away with the weapons of mass destruction. But in the end he had realized one very important thing.
No matter how much he wanted to bring peace to this planet, it wasn’t his to give.
The people had to want it. They had to demand it with such resolute determination that the governments of the world would have no choice but to grant it to them. And when that happened he would be there, guiding them and helping them in whatever way he could.
<
You are not one of them... >
No, he wasn’t one of them, could never be. But this planet was now his home and the majority of the people he shared his home with wanted the same thing he did. A peaceful society...
Yet there would always be a few like Lex Luthor who were selfish, always in opposition to the efforts to make this world better for the good of everyone.
<
They can be a great people Kal-El, they wish to be... >
One day.
One day he would help lead this people, this planet, towards a Utopian society, free from wars and violence. A world at peace. It was something he wanted as much as they did. In fact, there was really only one other thing he wanted in his life. But she was something he couldn’t have.
He flew down, headed towards Lois Lane’s apartment.
He had tried to make it work. When she had found out he was Superman, he’d gone as far as to give up his Kryptonian heritage to live his life with her as a human, to forsake his life as Superman and devote himself to her.
He thought about the night they had shared, in one another’s arms. The way she had let her guard down with him and given herself over to him fully. It was a night that haunted his dreams and shadowed the moments he spent with her, even now.
It had been wonderful being with her, truly and wholly himself, but it hadn’t lasted.
The world had needed Superman. He’d had to return, to fight General Zod and the other criminals from Krypton. He had wanted so badly, once the war was over, for Lois to stay his friend, lover, hopefully so much more... She was the one person who understood him, who truly knew him for who he really was.
But it had been too hard for her.
<
Don’t you know this is killing me? To have you come in here every day, and not be able to talk normally to you, or show you how I feel about you, or speak to anybody else about you... >
He’d done the only thing he knew to do. He had used his Kryptonian powers to take those memories away from her in one last parting kiss. He didn’t want her to have to carry the weight of his secret. It should be his burden alone to bear.
After that kiss, she had come back to him as the Lois that he knew and had fallen in love with. He had been so... relieved. Pleased to have her if nothing else, as his friend... Glad for her happiness even if it cost him his own.
Content.
Content to love her in the only way he could, by protecting her. He had once moved heaven and Earth in order to save her life, to bring her back to him. And he knew he would do it again if it meant that he could spend even one more day, one more hour... one more moment with her.
**********
“Thank you for your help, Clark. For leaving your world to come with me,” Wells said as they stepped down from the time machine. “We defeated Tempus and saved the Superman of my world. I couldn’t have done it without you, my boy.” He squeezed Clark’s shoulder lightly.
“How could I have refused? The Clark of your world is a good man.” And he’s married to a good woman. Clark felt the familiar dull ache in his heart as he thought of Lois. No, how could he have refused to go there and help her, to see her one last time? Even if it meant he would have to leave her again, that she would have to break his heart all over again.
“Yes, he certainly is. The two of you have a lot in common.”
Clark sighed quietly. They may have a few things in common, but not *everything*. Certainly not what he wished he had. “Mr. Wells, do you really think there’s a chance that we could find my Lois? You said you feel like nothing is ever impossible, but I’ve lost track of the hours I’ve spent flying and looking for her, hoping to find some shred of evidence that she’s still alive... Trying to find that one clue that will tell me where I can find her. I’d finally given up hope.”
“Never give up hope, my boy, with hope all things are possible. In a universe full of absolutes, hope is the one thing withstanding. If she’s out there, we will find her.”
“But what if she doesn’t want to be found? What if she’s happy where she is now?” The thought made Clark ache inside. “What if she’s started a new life and there’s a reason why she never came back? She’s never known me. Do I have the right to do this, to find her?”
Wells regarded him with a troubled expression. “You’re the only one who can make that decision, Clark. I can’t make it for you. You must do what you feel is right, in your heart. But I will say this, knowing Lois as I do; if there were a reason that she didn’t come back, don’t you think she would have a least told someone? Rather than let everyone think she was dead? Her family, her friends at the Daily Planet?”
Clark nodded his head. What Wells said made sense but he still felt so conflicted. Conflicted? Or maybe it was fear?
He had wanted so badly to find her, had wished that there were some way. But now, now that the answer was staring him in the face, he was afraid. Did he have the right to change her life?
But Wells could be his last opportunity to find her. If he let him leave now, he might never get another chance. “Could you maybe give me a few days to think about it? Come back and check on me?”
“Yes, I think that is an excellent idea. I need to be getting back to my own universe to check on Tempus and make sure he is staying out of trouble. Once that is done, I can come back here to check on you, see if you’ve come to a decision.”
Clark nodded at him, relief flooding through him. Yes, he still had hope. “Thank you.”
Wells smiled at him. “I’ll see you in a couple of days, Clark.”
**********
TEMPUS AKA JOHN DOE ESCAPES FROM PRISON – POLICE BAFFLED BY DISAPPEARANCE
By Lois Lane and Clark Kent.
Lois set the paper down on her desk and sighed heavily.
Normal.
Clark was right. Why couldn’t things just be normal, for a little while?
Preoccupied with her thoughts, she didn’t hear Clark come walking up behind her until she felt his hands on her shoulders.
“Hi, honey,” he said, kissing her lightly on the cheek. He’d been gone a lot the past couple of days and it was so good to feel him standing there behind her, to feel his lips press against her.
She turned around and gave him a curious glance. “Who are you?” Off of his worried look she continued, “Oh yeah, my husband, my hero. I’ve missed you.”
He smiled at her. “Me too.” Then his smile faded. “Superman still hasn’t found anything yet.”
“Nothing?” she asked, not being able to keep the disappointment out of her voice.
“Not even a hint of anything.” He sounded frustrated.
They hadn’t seen much of each other lately, since the news hit that Tempus had escaped. At first, Clark hadn’t wanted to search for him, he’d been afraid to leave her alone for even a short length of time. But she had finally talked some sense into him, made him go – yeah like anyone could make Superman do anything, but she could.
They both knew that Tempus had to be found. They wouldn’t be able to rest easy until he was. Clark had taken the cell phone in case she needed to contact him in an emergency and had checked in on her a few times in person. But it wasn’t the same. Not the same as having him there with her.
And it seemed to be a wasted effort. It was very disturbing that Tempus had disappeared without a trace and even Superman couldn’t find any indication of where he’d gone.
“I don’t like this, Clark. Something’s not right. Where could he be?” She knitted her eyebrows together, trying to resist the urge to pace.
“Who knows, maybe Mr. Wells came and took him... back to Utopia or something.” He was grasping at straws.
“No, he wouldn’t have done that, not without telling us something. What bothers me almost as much, though, is where is Mr. Wells? Surely in his travels he would see that something’s amiss. Why hasn’t he tried to contact us?”
“I don’t know. I guess until he does, we’re just going to have to keep our eyes open and stay alert to anything that doesn’t feel right.”
She wrapped her arms around him tightly and held him for a moment. “How about this, does this feel right?”
His arms came around her in response, giving her a gentle squeeze. He slid his hands up her back until they came to rest on her shoulders and his thumbs and fingers massaged her tenderly, melting her tension away.
She sighed, content for the moment - nothing could have felt more right.
**********
He knew something was wrong when he saw Richard come into the newsroom and go running by his desk, headed towards his uncle’s office. Clark looked over at the empty chair where Lois usually sat. She hadn’t come in yet this morning.
He looked back at Perry White’s office and could see Richard gesturing wildly. He was about to *listen* in on the conversation when a small hand placed itself on his arm.
Clark looked down into the face of his son.
Wait.
Richard and Jason were both here and Lois wasn’t? Something was definitely wrong.
“Hi,” Clark said casually. “Where’s your mom?”
“I don’t know.”
He didn’t know? Clark wasn’t very experienced with children. He wasn’t sure exactly what questions to ask to find out what he needed to know.
“You don’t know?”
“No. When I woke up she was gone.” Jason reached up and rubbed his little nose. He looked like he might have been crying. Clark put one arm around him and patted him softly. “I called Daddy...” He paused looking intently at Clark, making him a little nervous. Did he know? He had looked at him like that before, when he’d seen Superman on TV. Could he sense the bond between them, feel the connection they shared? “...and he came and got me.”
“Richard picked you up? He didn’t sleep at the house last night?” Jason shook his head.
Really...
Clark couldn’t help but feel a little relief at that news. But it was small respite considering the circumstances. In this one instance it would have been better if he *had* been there.
So between the time Clark had left their house last night and Jason had woken up this morning, she had disappeared. He didn’t like this at all. Lois might run off without telling anyone where she was going but she wouldn’t leave Jason like that at home by himself. Something was wrong.
“Did you see or hear anything last night?”
“No,” his little voice said quietly.
“Don’t worry, Jason. I’m sure she’s fine. We’ll all help look for her, okay?”
“Even Superman?” His little eyes lit up and his face was so hopeful. Clark resisted the impulse to pick him up in his arms and hug him. Yes especially Superman, my son.
“I’m sure he will. Why don’t you go wait in Rich... your dad’s office,” he said, catching his slip. Everyone else at the Planet called it his daddy’s office, so therefore Clark should too; but that didn’t mean that he had to like doing it. He knew by right that Richard was Jason’s dad, but Jason was also his son and it really pained him to have to call Richard his daddy. But he would do it, for Jason he would do it. “I’ll go see if I can find Superman, okay?”
Jason nodded his head and gave him a small smile.
Clark got up from his desk and headed off to go find a place to change. He looked back to see his son walking obediently off to Richard’s office. When he turned back around he ran right into to Jimmy Olsen.
“Oh, Mr. Kent, Clark, I’m sorry,” Jimmy said, looking a little sheepish. “I was actually coming to find you.”
“I’m really busy at the moment, Jimmy. Can it wait?” Clark said, looking past him towards the elevator.
“Uh, yeah, sure...”
Clark started to move off when Jimmy interrupted him.
“Actually, no, um sorry, it probably can’t,” he said, holding out an envelope for Clark. “This came for you with a note saying that it be delivered to you immediately.”
“Okay, thanks,” Clark said, grabbing the letter and heading off again.
“Yeah, sure... Wait! The note said it had something to do with Lois Lane.”
**********
To Be Continued - Posting schedule (not sure) hopefully every 2 to 3 days. It will depend on how fast I get the parts back from my betas. But don't be concerned about an "unfinished story" - the story is finished, but I've just begun sending parts to my betas... so I have to give them time. Thank you in advance for any feedback.
