Okay, so know I promised some more B plot coming, and it IS coming, honest! But right now the A plot is clicking along very nicely and there are some more things that have to happen very soon so this part is once again mostly A plot. Don't worry though, there is some B plot coming very very soon
PART NINE
“No Comment! Can’t you people understand that!” Lois squirmed her way through the mob of reporters that were still gathered by the Daily Planet. Although Clark had said that press gatherings around his apartment had decreased since his public appeal for privacy, the media had not given up hope that one of his more loose lipped colleagues would spill some juicy details. Finally, Lois was able to reach the doors of the building and worm her way inside as the Planet’s newly beefed up security held the mob back. Wasting no time, she walked across the lobby and jabbed the call button for the elevator. Impatiently, she tapped her foot while waiting for the elevator car to come.
Yesterday’s failed bombing attempt had given them no new clues to finding the Guardians. They had taken the remains to Dr Hamilton, but he had not been able to tell them anything useful. The bomb design, he had said, was commonplace, used by terrorist groups and radicals. Although Lois did not understand the mechanics behind the explosive, Dr Hamilton had told her and Clark that anyone with a basic understanding could manufacture one like this. The materials were not difficult to get, and the setup was actually rather simplistic. Another dead end, she sighed. It seemed as if this group had made secrecy its ultimate goal. The failure to turn up any clues had only resulted in more stress for Clark. He remained by her side the entire afternoon while they went to Dr Hamilton, and insisted on checking through her apartment thoroughly when he brought her home. She smiled as she stepped into the elevator, and pushed the button for her floor.
Although she would never tell him, she found his concern over her safety rather…sweet. Even though she was accustomed to dealing with criminal threats, that videotape yesterday had put her on edge. Having Clark concerned gave her a sense of security, even if he couldn’t be with her the whole time. Although he wanted to stay with her all last night, the reality was that the Daily Planet was the official target. That included Lois; but also included Perry, Franklin Stern, and the building itself. He had to ensure that they were safe as well. Lois insisted that he go and check on everyone else who needed him. Reluctantly, he agreed. After he had tucked her safely in her apartment he left, leaving explicit instructions for her not to go out, to leave the door locked and the window latched, and to call if she even suspected something might be going on. Don’t do anything tonight, he had told her, I’ll come and pick you up in the morning. Except he hadn’t.
On very rare occasions, Lois actually did what she was told. She had gone to bed almost immediately, and hadn’t stirred until she woke up this morning. This time, it was Clark that didn’t hold up his end of the bargain. After waiting as long as she felt she could, Lois left a note for him, and made her way to the Planet solo. She had a lot of work to do today. Clark was probably stopping floods in Mongolia or something, and would come back later. She wasn’t about to bother him with her need to get to work.
In retrospect, it might have been easier to call for him. Battling the reporters outside her building had been bad enough, but she couldn’t even get close enough to get a decent parking spot in front of the Planet. It was here that she learned that the Guardians had also sent a tape to the mayor’s office and LNN so now all of Metropolis knew about the threat to the Daily Planet. This of course meant that the news networks could sic as many reporters on the Daily Planet without violating Clark’s privacy request. Because the Guardians had publicly announced their vendetta against Superman and not Clark, the whole scenario could be considered public domain. But Lois wasn’t about to let a bunch of reporters hinder her doing her job. This just meant they had to solve the puzzle sooner, she decided. The elevator dinged, and Lois stepped into the newsroom. The atmosphere was dismal to say the least. Many employees had decided to take sudden ‘vacations’ and a couple had even handed in their notice. The remaining loyal employees were justifiably terrified of the consequences of their choice.
Looking around, she found her absentee partner dozing with his head cradled in his arms. The tension that she didn’t even know existed left her body. He was safe. She briskly walked over to his desk and shook him awake.
“Clark!” There was a groggy grunt in response.
“Lois…? Is that you?” Slowly, his head came up. He blearily blinked the sleep from his eyes. Then suddenly realizing where he was, Clark gave a groan. “I didn’t fall asleep did I?” A look of panic flashed over his face. “Is everyone alright? Did anything happen? I can’t believe I fell asleep like that…” He looked around the newsroom and absorbed the staring faces. “Lois, why is everyone staring?”
“Well, the fact that you’re hovering a foot in the air might have something to do with it,” she said with some amusement. With a thud, Clark returned to his chair looking much more alert, and even a little embarrassed. He looked terrible, Lois observed. There was a rough growth of stubble over his face, and shadows under his eyes.
“You look terrible,” she said. Clark gave a hollow grin.
“Gee thanks.”
“No really Clark, were you here all night?” Clark scrubbed his face with his hands in an attempt to wake himself up.
“Not the whole night,” he began. “I alternated my time between here, Perry’s place, Franklin Stern’s place, and your apartment. I figure that if they attack it’ll be one of those places.” He sighed. “Of course it could be some poor guy who drives the delivery truck for us or the janitor. There’s just too many people Lois, I can’t protect them all!” Lois put a calming hand on Clark’s arm.
“Clark, when was the last time you slept?” she asked. “I mean really slept, not just a nap at your desk.” Clark shrugged this question off.
“I don’t need as much sleep as you do.”
“Yes, but you still need some! Clark, you can’t keep going like this. You’re heading for a train wreck. Ever since Diana Stride aired her show you’ve been going nonstop trying to solve everything. Now you’re about to collapse from exhaustion! You need to take time for yourself Clark, time for your parents and-” She stopped abruptly, not wanting to finish her sentence. And time for me, she added silently. Furious with herself and with Clark, she plowed on. “Do you have any idea how worried I was when you didn’t show up this morning?” Repressed fears that she hadn’t acknowledged before were making their way to the surface. “You could’ve been lying in some alley sick with kryptonite poisoning or held captive by the Guardians for all I knew! There’s a bunch of psychos out there who are desperate to kill you, and you’re just making their job easier by wearing yourself out.”
“What am I supposed to do Lois?” The strain of the situation carved deep lines in his face. “I can’t just go home and pretend none of this is happening!”
“No you can’t. But Clark, sometimes even the star player needs to sit it out for a bit and get his strength back while the other players keep the game going.” Clark chuckled weakly.
“Lois Lane spouting sports metaphors? Now I know the world has come to an end.”
“Very funny Kent, but I’m serious.” Clark put on a sober face.
“Alright Lois, what do you suggest we do?” Happy that her partner was finally ready to see reason, Lois launched into her plan.
“You are going to go somewhere and get some sleep. I am going to get another look at the videotape the Guardians sent us. There may be some clues there that we missed before, what with that distraction in the basement.”
“Lois, don’t you think ‘distraction’ is a bit of an understatement?” Ignoring him, she continued.
“Then I’m going to call around and see if I can get a copy of the tapes sent to LNN and the mayor and see if they were sent the exact same ones we were sent or not.” Lois was about to grab Clark and push him towards the stairwell when Jimmy entered looking as if he had recently crawled out of a dumpster. He caught sight of the two of them, and his face lit up.
“Lois! CK!” He jogged across the room, and joined them by Clark’s desk, vibrating with excitement. “You’ll never guess what happened!”
“Jimmy, you look awful!” Lois exclaimed. Jimmy glanced down at his appearance and absentmindedly brushed off his sleeves.
“Yeah, I ran into a bit of trouble, but you guys have to hear what I found out!”
“Alright Jimmy,” Clark said. “What did you find out?”
“Well I went to that tattoo place I was telling you guys about. I hung around at the coffee shop across the street for a while checking who came in and who came out, and that’s when I heard about the Guardians and the bomb in the Planet. That really sucks, do you have anymore leads on these guys?”
“Yes Jimmy,” Lois interrupted impatiently, “you’re our lead.”
“Oh! Right! Well, I had been there for a while when I notice this girl who walks in and she’s got a hood over her head and she’s slumped over as if she doesn’t want to be recognized. I kinda meandered over to the tattoo place, and I see she’s arguing with the owner, something about price and a previous agreement. Anyway, it’s getting pretty heated when the girl pulls up her sleeve and shows the guy that G tattoo we saw before-”
“That’s great!” Clark exclaimed. “Can you give me a physical description of her? Maybe we can find out who she is and-”
“I followed her.”
“You followed her?” Clark shouted. “Jimmy, why would you do that? Don’t you know how dangerous that was? These people are willing to kill anyone in their path.”
“You and Lois do it all the time CK.”
“Yeah but I’m invulnerable, and Lois is…” Lois glared at him, daring him to continue. “Well, Lois is Lois.” Lois rolled her eyes.
“Don’t pay attention to Clark Jimmy, you did a good job. Where did the girl go?”
“She went all the way over to the South Side; you know the old LexChem plant? It seems like the Guardians have set up headquarters there. I snuck in after the girl and-”
“You snuck inside the secret headquarters of a terrorist group? Jimmy!”
“Looks like you learned from the best.” Lois patted Jimmy’s shoulder and gave Clark a cheeky grin. “C’mon Clark lighten up, it was you that told him to find out all this stuff in the first place.” Clark breathed in deeply, and exhaled slowly.
“Okay Jimmy, what happened next?”
“Well they had all kinds of anti-Superman posters and slogans plus some really scary stuff set up there. I tried to poke around a bit more, but then a bunch of people came in so I had to hide out in this big empty barrel. I was there for a really long time too. I could hear everything they were talking about, and who they all were. It was kinda like a cult commune or something. They kept talking about their Leader, and everyone was so serious about following his instructions. It was really creepy.” He shuddered. “Anyway, they finally left the room I was in and I was able to sneak out. I came straight here.”
“That’s great Jimmy,” Clark said, standing up and fiddling with his tie. “I’ll just go over there now and-”
“Wait! CK!” Jimmy interrupted.
“What?”
“Um, well I’ve never actually seen it before, but kryptonite is green, right?” He looked apprehensive.
“Yeah…”
“Well they had this big set-up with machinery and stuff, and a lot of glowing green. Except it wasn’t a rock, there were these dart things, and some kind of paste. They must’ve been experimenting with it.” Clark paused.
“I’ll have to risk it.” He said; determination set in his face. “Jimmy, I need you to go over to see Dr Hamilton and ask him if he knows anything about scientists experimenting with kryptonite.” Clark paused, taking in the appearance of his friend. “But you may want to get cleaned up first”
“Sure CK!” Jimmy beamed and wandered over to his desk. Lois, however, was not through dealing with her asinine partner.
“Clark are you insane? Don’t you remember the strength of the chunk that turned up in the newsroom yesterday? They must have more of the same strength and who know what they’ve done to it to make it stronger? And look at you! You’re already dead on your feet; you need to get some rest!” Clark shook his head impatiently.
“Lois, I can’t just let them continue their attacks. I’ll rest after I’ve taken care of all this. Sooner or later, they’re going to cause some serious damage.” Lois was growing tired of this display of male ego.
“No you can’t just let them continue Clark, but that doesn’t mean that you’re going alone.” She stepped in front of him. “Take me with you. I’ll deal with any kryptonite, and you can handle any of the bad guys who try to stop me. That is if I leave any of them left for you.” Clark hesitated.
“Lois you’ll be safer at the Planet with all the security guards and-” She rolled her eyes.
“Clark, so far our security guards have let in a nutcase with a gun, and a guy with a bomb. They’re not exactly the equivalent of the Secret Service. Either you take me with you or I follow you on foot, and don’t think I won’t do it.” She glared at him furiously. To her surprise, his face broadened into a grin.
“Alright, then. I’m assuming you want to leave via the roof?”
“That would be my suggestion.” So they did.
* * *
From above, the factory *looked* harmless. It was merely a large concrete toad squatting on the street. But there was a sinister air about the place. Maybe because its former owner and architect had left a trace of his aura that still oozed out of the cement. That same aura that she still felt whenever she remembered what she had almost done with him, how he had almost had her. Lois drew herself close to Clark for comfort.
“Darn,” he muttered to himself.
“What is it?” Lois asked.
“This place is like a fortress,” he explained, frustrated. “There’s lead in practically every wall, and I think they’re using some sort of sound proofing to keep me from finding anything out.”
“So you can’t see anything?”
“Well I can see a bit through the windows, but nothing too helpful.”
“Then I guess we have to do this the old fashioned way. Take us down Superman!” Clark obediently lowered them to ground level. Alighting from his arms, Lois charged towards the door of the chemical plant and started work on the lock.
“Lois, wait!” Clark called to her. She waited as Clark changed out of his suit and joined her by the door. “We don’t have a plan or anything. I have no idea of what’s inside there, it could be some sort of trap, or-”
“Clark, there probably is a trap.” She interrupted. “But you need to learn to live on the edge a bit. Take some chances! Go with the flow! You can’t plan for everything in life. Now are you going to let me sit here struggling with these lock picks or are you going to be the gallant gentleman and burst this door open for me?” Clark shook his head with a bemused expression. For a second, Lois thought he would refuse, but then he motioned her to the side, easily turned the knob and broke the lock. With all the panache of a gallant gentleman, he held the door open for her.
“After you my lady.” Lois smiled to herself as she passes through the door. What had gotten into that partner of hers?
The room they entered had once been the reception area for shipping and receiving. The plant had been closed shortly after Lex’s suicide, and the building was already showing its age and disuse. The floors were stripped bare, and the furniture that had been left behind was tattered and full of dust. The room had an overall smell of must and the lightless atmosphere was suffocating. None of these were what she noticed first though.
All over the walls, on the ceiling, and on every flat surface were plastered anti-Superman posters and slogans. They ranged from the typical ‘Superman Go Home’ to the grotesque and obscene. Lois tried not to gag.
“Clark…” she glanced over at him. There was a hard set to his jaw as he steadily took stock of room, looking over each poster carefully with a methodic manner she could never manage.
“There’s a door over there.” He motioned to a door that she had not seen before due to the amount of signage covering it. Together, they walked across the eerily quiet room. Not daring to break the foreboding silence, Lois reached out and grasped Clark’s hand, tacitly offering him support. The pain in his eyes seared her as he looked over to her. She squeezed his hand, as she followed Clark through the door.
They hadn’t taken two steps into the next room before Lois heard a whistle of air pass her and Clark dropped to the floor. Bright lights suddenly filled the space and Lois squinted to see their attacker holding a small dart shooter in his hand. Before she could move to get at him, hands grabbed her from behind and twisted her right arm painfully, bringing her to her knees. She struggled to free her other hand from Clark’s grasp, but his hand was frozen shut around hers and she couldn’t break free. Panting from the effort she exerted and with the throb coming from her twisted arm she faced the man with the shooter once again.
“What did you do to him?” She demanded. He stared at her coldly.
“It’s a fact acting paralytic designed to instantaneously target the spinal cord, severing all muscle control.” Cocking his head, he man stared dispassionately at Lois struggling to remove her hand from the grasp of her partner. “He must’ve tensed his hand at the moment of puncture, which is why it has remained closed around yours. It’s rather like a poetic version of a ball and chain, isn’t it?” This man frightened her in a way beyond the words he spoke. Although she had encountered many criminals before, this one was beyond the usual soullessness. Although he spoke intelligently, Lois could sense a deadness behind his eyes. Wildly searching for a way out, Lois struggled to keep him talking.
“How did you get it into his system? I thought only kryptonite could harm him.” His smile sent chills up Lois’ spine.
“We have been experimenting with kryptonite for quite some time now Miss Lane. We have found many uses for it. Most recently is this.” He walked over to a table, and picked up a jar of full of a green glowing paste. “This paste will dissolve into the skin easily enough for a normal person such as you or me, but if Superman comes into contact with someone who has used it, then it is as if there’s a chunk of that rock right in front of him. He can never see it coming, and so the next rescue he travels to could be his last.”
“You sick bastards-” Lois’ epithets were cut off by a blow delivered from her unseen captor. Her head hit the concrete as she fell, and the world swam around her.
“You idiot!” The man was yelling. “She is not to be harmed until we hear from the Leader. You know that as well as I.”
“I don’t like those smart remarks,” a voice grumbled from behind her.
“So? Let her talk all she wants, it won’t change her situation.” The man crouched down beside Lois. “You’ll be happy to know Miss Lane; that we won’t need to put this invention to use anymore as we now have Superman in the palm of our hand.” He looked upwards to her unseen menace. “Take them to the containment room. We’ll wait for instructions.” Now there were many hands grabbing her and lifting Clark’s limp form. Still woozy from the smack she had received, they were easily able fend off any of her weak attempts at defense. She had a vague sense of passages and doorways until finally she was dumped on the floor of what she assumed to be the containment room. The door was slammed shut leaving her and Clark alone.
The containment room was probably once a small research lab, or perhaps a large office. Stripped of its furniture, it was difficult to tell. Lois focused on her breathing while willing the room to come into focus and fighting the nausea that was welling up inside her. Finally she felt able to sit up, although her hand was still securely clamped inside Clark’s. It didn’t hurt; she just couldn’t break his grip. Looking around their prison, she took stock of the situation. They were in a room with no windows, and only one door which was probably locked or barricaded if not both. Clark was lying on the floor in a heap, and she had no idea if the paralytic would wear off on its own or if it required an antidote. Also, she didn’t know what condition Clark would be in of he did wake up on his own. The man said kryptonite was involved so who knows how sick he would be. In short, she was trapped in a room with the mother of all headaches and an unconscious and potentially ill superhero in a building full of fanatics whose only scruples were dependent on the commands of an unknown leader. The situation looked hopeless. Little did these fanatics know that hopeless conditions were what Lois Lane thrived on. At least that’s what she kept telling herself.
