This is an idea I have had rolling around in my head for a couple weeks now. I finally decided to write out a ROUGH draft and submit it to see if anyone thought it was worth continuing.
This story is an alternate ending and extension of TEHI (The Eyes Have It) where the infrared light doesn't work in fixing Superman's eye sight.
Any feedback is welcome, just please keep in mind this is a
ROUGH draft that has not been beta-read by a "Lois and Clark" expert.
And now... ZENITH
by Zebraclrgard
“The antidote is infrared light.” Lois could hear herself saying when Dr. Leit had her as his prisoner. In her mind, that simple phrase repeated itself over and over again. There was only one problem with that statement: it wasn’t true. She learned that tonight when she had used Dr. Leit’s device on Superman’s eyes. It had cleared his vision long enough to allow him to capture Dr. Leit and his assistant, Munch, but the effect turned out to be temporary. Lois tried several more times at shining the infrared light into Superman’s eyes, but to no avail.
The trip to her apartment with Superman was made in complete silence. She couldn’t think of anything to say that would make it better for him. He was suffering, and she knew it. Even the air in the car had felt devoid of energy and life. Her own guilt began to eat away at her. This had started when Superman blocked the bullet in the park. It was then that Dr. Leit had used his device to blind Superman with ultraviolet light, an act that proved to be disastrous for the man of steel.
Once at her apartment, Superman dejectedly flopped down onto the couch, the Kents on either side of him. It was then that Lois realized the trust he placed in this couple. He allowed them to see him at his worst, without restraint or camouflage. After a few minutes of sitting in silence, he made his way over to the window. Lois approached him.
“Superman, where are you going?”
He turned to where he faced away from Lois. “I don’t know. Just away. There is nothing for me to do here now. No one needs a blind superhero.” He turned back towards her, and her breath caught as she saw his eyes searching, desperately trying to focus on something to look at other than blackness. “Thank you for your hospitality. I don’t know what I would have done without you, honestly.”
“You don’t have to leave. You shouldn’t be alone right now.”
He sighed. “I need some time to myself, to figure out what I am going to do now.” He did nothing to hide the pain in his voice. He held his hand out, searching for her face. She grabbed it and brought it up to her cheek. He gently cupped it within his palm, then gingerly kissed her. “Please, stay out of trouble. I can’t save you now.” Then he was gone.
Lois turned around to address Martha and Jonathan, only to find out they had discretely left while she was talking to Superman.
~-~-~-~-~
Flying high above the city, Clark listened for the sounds of Christmas carols, sports radio, and John Philips Sousa. Considering the time of year and the odd combination, he figured that he would be able to find his apartment without too much trouble. Deciding what to do once he got there would be a whole other matter. Who needs a blind superhero? Not only that, but who needs a blind reporter? He never realized how important his eyesight was until it was taken from him. Now, he was at a complete loss as to what he should do. Finally, the clashing sounds that he had been waiting for reached his ears. He honed in on the source and slowly began his flight home.
The landing was far from perfect as he touched down on the balcony. As soon as he was safely in the apartment, his parents turned off the noise and helped him find the way to his bedroom.
Jonathan helped him over to the bed. “Do you want any help changing clothes, Son.”
He shook his head. “No, Dad, I think I can manage.” He took a deep breath and released it slowly. “I do need your help getting some clothes I can change into though.” His voice was totally devoid of feeling, as if he were on auto-pilot. Jonathan glanced over at his wife on his way to Clark’s dresser. She looked as though she were on the verge of tears, and desperately trying not to make a sound that would let her son know it.
“What do you want, Clark?”
“I don’t care, whatever you can find will work.”
“Here you go, Son.” He put the clothes into Clark’s hand. “It’s a pair of sweat pants, a sweat shirt, and some clean underwear. Are you sure you can manage okay?”
“Yeah,” Clark answered, half-heartedly, “surely I can put on a sweat shirt and pants. Don’t worry, I’ll yell if I need help.”
“Okay, your mom and I will be in the living room then.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
Clark listened for the sounds of his parents retreating footsteps, then he began the task of changing out of the suit. Who knew that such a simple task could suddenly seem so daunting? He took a deep breath. First things first: the cape. Groping around at the back of his suit, he found the snaps that held the cape into place. He slowly undid them, taking care to not let the cape fall off without him having a hand on it. Finding it later would be more difficult than just keeping a good handle on it to start with. He placed the cape carefully on the bed, then began working on the rest of the suit. Once he had all of the pieces and made sure that each part was stacked together on the bed, he focused on getting dressed. Finding the tag so that he could put each part on the correct way proved to be a challenge, but once that was done, the rest of it was simple. Next task: getting to the living room.
Clark tried to mentally visualize the layout of his apartment in relationship to where he was. Slowly and deliberately, he felt his way around the bed and to the doorway that separated his bedroom and living room. The darkness that surrounded him had an eerie presence to it. It was unnerving for him to feel so utterly helpless. “If this blindness turns out to be permanent,” he could hear himself telling Lois, “well, then I’ll have to figure out how to be the best blind person I can.” Now, though, those words seemed shallow and empty. Did he really expect that he would be able to accept this with no trouble? As he settled down on the couch in his living room, he couldn’t help but feel at least a minor sense of accomplishment.
“What are you going to do, Clark?” It was his Dad that spoke first.
He shook his head. “Honestly, I have no idea.” He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “Resign from the Planet, that’s all I know for certain.”
“Are you sure that is what you want to do?” His mother’s concerned voice vibrated in his ears.
“What choice do I have, Mom? It’s kind of hard to be a reporter if I can’t see what I am supposed to be reporting about or what I’m writing.”
“I just don’t want you to make a rash decision, that’s all.”
He nodded. “I know, but I have to figure out something before I am supposed to be at work tomorrow.”
“Why don’t you come home with us, Son? We can work out what to do after that. At least we’ll be able to help you until you get adjusted.”
“Okay, Dad. I’m going to need your help writing my letter of resignation and packing up a few things, then we can book a flight to Smallville.” He sighed. “I would fly us there, but…”
“It’s okay, Honey. We understand.” His mom said, trying to comfort him.
“Tell me what you want packed, and I’ll take care of it.”
“I’ll help you out, guys. I don’t want you to do it all by yourselves.”
~-~-~-~-~
“Here we go, Son.” Jonathan said as he led Clark into the house.
“Thanks, Dad. I’d like to sit down.”
Jonathan led him over to the sofa. “Here, Son. The couch is right behind you. There you go.” He said, as Clark sat down. “Are you alright?”
Clark nodded. “I’m okay, Dad.”
“I’m going to go help your mother carry the stuff in from the car. I’ll be back in a minute.”
“I’ll help.” Clark said, standing up.
“No, Son. Just sit there and relax. We’ll be finished in a minute.”
Clark sighed heavily as he rested his head in his hands. He realized that it would be far easier for his parents to carry the stuff in alone than it would for them to try to help him around and carry it in. He just felt so useless and needy. His independence disappeared in an instant, and what he wouldn’t give to have it back. He had always counted on his strength to protect him, but now all the strength in the world would not make a difference. Strength couldn’t make him see again. For all of his power, he was helpless. If anything, his abilities were detrimental more than helpful to him. If he made one wrong move, he could punch a hole through the wall or something worse. Freezing breath, super hearing, flying, invulnerability, heat vision, x-ray vision, all useless to him without his eyesight. Damn, Dr. Leit. Clark’s life was now in shambles thanks to him. What was it that Dr. Bannergy had said? Ultraviolet light can turn substances opaque that were otherwise transparent, or something like that. What did he mean by that? His corneas were fogged or scarred or something by the light? It didn’t make any sense. If there was just some way to remove the fog or whatever it was from his eyes, would he be able to see again?
“Clark,” His mother’s voice startled him out of his reverie, “do you want something to drink?”
“What? Oh, yeah.” He answered, standing. “I’ll be there in a second.”
“Hold on, Honey, I’ll help you.” Martha said, rushing out of the kitchen.
“No, Mom, it’s okay. I need to learn how to do this on my own. You two can’t spend your entire time leading me around like a baby. Just give me a minute.”
Martha watched as her son cautiously felt his way into the kitchen. “Here, let me get you a chair.”
“No.” He answered curtly. “I have to do this by myself.”
“Okay,” she said as he blindly groped around for the table or a chair. “Just tell me if you want my help.”
“I will.”
Finally, he settled himself into a chair at the table. Martha let out a breath she didn’t even realize she had been holding. “Here’s your water, Sweetie.” She said, placing in the glass in his hand.
“Thanks, Mom. I’m sorry you have to wait on me hand and foot.”
“Clark, I know this is difficult for you, but it won’t always be like this. You’ll adjust.”
He sighed. “I know, it’s just so frustrating. All of my abilities are useless now. Who cares if I can run faster than the speed of light, or fly, or heat things with my eyes, or see through things… Wait a second…”
“What?”
“I wonder if I could use my x-ray vision to see through whatever is affecting my eyesight.”
“There’s no harm in trying, Clark.” Martha answered her voice full of hope.
“Here goes nothing.”
After a pregnant pause, Martha couldn’t wait any longer. “Well?”
“I can make out shapes, but everything is out of focus and blurry.”
“Can’t you use your zooming abilities to clarify it?”
“No, I can only use one power with my eyes at a time. If I’m using my x-ray vision, then I can’t heat anything or zoom in on anything. I never have been able to, that’s nothing new.”
“At least it’s progress.”
Clark took a deep breath. “Yeah, I guess I should be happy about any successes, even small ones.”
“Small?” Martha asked, shocked. “Clark, I think this is far from small. You have a way to at least navigate around the house.”
“That’s true.” He said, still not sounding convinced. “What time is it?”
“About 5:00, why?”
“Too late today.” He mumbled.
“Too late for what, Clark?” His mother’s confusion was obvious in her voice.
“I wanted to see if you or Dad could give me a ride to the medical supply store in Wichita.”
“What do you need from there?”
He shrugged, “I’m not really sure. I know that I’m going to need one of those red-tipped canes, and whatever else a blind person needs.”
“You really think that’s necessary? Don’t you want to give yourself more time to heal first?” She protested.
Clark ran a hand through his hair. “No, there’s no point.” He answered, dejectedly. “Lois already tried the antidote, several times, and it didn’t work.” He shook his head. “No, Mom. It’s time to face facts, I’m blind, probably forever. The sooner I accept that reality, the better. Same with you and Dad.”
“Can’t you use your x-ray vision though? I mean, why do you need to get that stuff if your x-ray vision works?”
“It doesn’t work very well, besides I can’t use it 24/7. I have to turn it off occasionally.” He sighed heavily. “Plus, to maintain the illusion that I’m an ordinary man, I have to have the whatever a typical blind man has. Even though I can’t be Superman anymore, I still have to keep my identity secret to protect you two.”
“I just can’t believe you’ve already lost hope in recovering. It’s not like you at all, Clark.”
“Can’t you understand,” he practically bellowed at his mother, “there’s no point in denying the obvious. There is no magical cure this time, there’s no way to fix it. I can’t go to a doctor with this. How would I ever explain that? Well, you see doctor, I flew down between a bad guy and his potential victim and he shined an ultraviolet light in my eyes and now I can’t see, well, unless, of course, I use my x-ray vision, then I can kind of see but not really. Yeah, that would work really well, wouldn’t it?” He stood up so quickly his chair almost flipped over. “I’m going to my room.”
“Clark.” His mother said to his retreating back, but he didn’t stop. After a few minutes, she heard his bedroom door slam shut and the photos on the wall shook in response.
~-~-~-~-~
Lois,” Perry bellowed from his office as she walked down the ramp into the newsroom, “can I see you for a minute?”
“Yeah, Perry, just a sec. I just need to call Clark to see where he is. I thought he would be here by now.” She replied as she sat her stuff down at her desk.
“Come in here first.”
“But, Perry…” She protested.
“Now, Lois.”
She sighed as she trudged her way into Perry’s office. “What is it, Perry?”
“Uh, shut the door.” He said as he settled into the chair behind his desk. “I received this certified letter in the mail this morning.”
“Perry, you called me in here to discuss your mail?”
He handed it over to her. “Read it.”
“What is it?” She asked, taking the paper from him. Scanning it quickly, she looked at Perry again. “What! Did he tell you he was doing this?”
Perry shook his head. “No, shocked me when I read it. I thought he might have mentioned it to you. I take it that he didn’t?”
“No.” She responded abruptly. “Why would he do this?”
“Uh, I don’t know. Have the two of you been having problems lately?”
Lois shook her head. “Not any more than usual. You know, we hardly agree on anything, but that’s nothing new.” She sighed as she headed toward the door. “I’ll talk to him when he gets here. See what’s going on.”
“Won’t happen, Lois.”
She spun to face him. “What? Why not?”
“His resignation is effective immediately. He won’t be coming in. I’ve already asked Jimmy to pack up his desk and ship the contents to his parents in Smallville, as he requested.” He stood and rounded his desk to approach her. “I’m sorry, Lois. I really thought he had discussed this with you.”
She shook her head. “No, he didn’t and I’m going to his apartment right now to find out why.” She responded as she stormed out of Perry’s office.
Fifteen minutes later, Lois arrived at 344 Clinton Street. She took the stairs two at a time, then rapped on the door repeatedly. Finally, she gave up on him being home, and turned to leave.
“May I help you? If you’re looking for a place to rent, this one just opened up. The previous tenet turned his keys in just yesterday.”
“Turned his keys in? He moved out?”
“You know the previous tenet?”
“We work at the Daily Planet together, he was my partner.”
“Nice young man. Too bad about his accident.”
“Accident?” Lois questioned.
The landlord nodded. “Yes, he had to move back in with his parents so they could take care of him. The movers came and picked everything up yesterday morning. His dad turned in the keys yesterday afternoon, just before they left for the airport.”
“Airport?” Lois asked, her head starting to spin.
“Yes, him and his parents were to fly out yesterday. He didn’t tell you about this?”
She sighed. “No,” she answered vehemently, “he didn’t. Thank you for your time.”
“No problem. By the way, I enjoy your work.”
Lois smiled. “Thanks.”
~-~-~-~-~
That's all I have so far... Should I continue? Please let me know what you think.
