Extra special thanks go out to Kaylle for this section. She helped me in November [yes, this part was written that long ago
], helping to make sure that the right people made it through this section.
Thanks also go to Alisha, Beth, Nancy and CarolynK.
Look for 52 Wednesday and Lucy's Story either Friday or Monday. Am hoping to finish Martha's Letters as well.
DS is still sick
. May end up at the doc's office etc later so am posting now.
Carol
*****
Chapter 51
*****
Late October 1990
*****
The Corn Festival was once again in full swing.
Life was returning to normal, though Lois and Clark stayed in Smallville during her maternity leave. They wrote columns for the Sunday travel section about places they’d been that hadn’t made the paper before. They even wrote a couple of 'Top Ten Places to Avoid' columns. The hotel in Italy ranked number one, though they didn’t mention that they’d slept floating that night. They also worked on their first book and it was nearing completion as Jon acclimated to his new surroundings. The plan was to return to Metropolis after the Corn Festival, keeping a close eye on Jon and another on Luthor.
Clark had flown the rest of the family out for the weekend and they were staying on the Kent farm for a few days. Perry had grumbled about leaving no one to mind the store – or the paper as it were – but the reality was the night editor was more than up for the task and he was only a phone call away if anything were to happen.
The six adults had spent the Friday night at the dance competition. This time Lois and Clark sat out – she simply didn’t have the energy after being up several times a night with Jon – but Perry and Alice ended up in second place.
Saturday was spent watching the contests and eating carnival food. Lois and Lucy giggled as their husbands tried to ring the bell at the strength challenge. The giggles turned to full-blown laughter when Alice pointed out that Superman now graced the top. They were so distracting that neither was actually able to reach the top.
They went to the dance that night and Lois and Lucy managed a couple of dances with their husbands – and Perry – while Laura Lang watched the babies.
But by Sunday, something odd was happening in Smallville.
"Clark!" Rachel called, stopping her old friend in his tracks.
"Hey, Sheriff. What’s up?"
"Have you seen Wayne?"
Clark shook his head. "Not since Monday, I think. He stopped by and said that the storm last week blew over his oak tree and that he wanted to talk to me about something but..." He shrugged. "I haven’t seen him since. Why?"
"Dad said that Lewis saw a bunch of Army trucks and tents and stuff on his property yesterday afternoon."
"That's weird. I wonder why they're there."
"Dad went out there this morning and talked to someone named Carol Sherman from the EPA. Said they were testing for contamination of the ground water from pesticide use in the sixties."
Clark frowned. "The Irigs never used the kinds of pesticides that would contaminate the ground water."
"That's what I thought, but you know Wayne better than just about anyone so I wanted to check with you."
Rachel's radio squawked. "Sheriff?"
"Go ahead," she said into it after she pulled it off her belt.
"We're out at the Irig place checking it out," came the voice. "There's no one here except someone named Sherman and Wayne. He's roughed up but okay. Sherman said that everyone high tailed it out of here about half an hour ago - something about the Kent place."
Clark gasped and his wide eyes met Rachel's. "Lois and Jon are there. And Perry and the others are on their way." He headed towards a nearby alley.
Rachel spoke into her radio again. "10-4. Get over there. I'm on my way, too." She clicked off and put her radio back on her belt. "Want a lift, Clark?"
He shook his head - he could make it faster if he flew but he couldn’t tell her that. "My car's right around the corner - yours is across the square. Just don't stop me for speeding," he called over his shoulder as he continued towards a nearby alley. Seconds later, he was high over his family farm.
*****
"Who are you people?" Lois stood in the living room of the farmhouse, holding her tiny son protectively.
"My name is Jason Trask. I work for Bureau 39 and we have come to eliminate the alien."
Eliminate the alien? That could mean only one thing, Lois knew. He thought he had a way to kill Superman.
She remembered the group of men who had come to the newsroom the day after Clark rescued Lucy. They were looking for either Perry or the four employees who seemed to have had some contact with the alien. When they didn't find what they were looking for, they'd left. They'd tried to seize Lois and Clark's computers, but the editor on duty knew a fake warrant when he saw one and the legal department had backed him up.
"You will call for him or your newborn son will pay the price."
Lois clutched the still sleeping baby more tightly to her. "You will never get my son. Not even over my dead body."
"Oh, that can be arranged, my dear Mrs. Kent. That can most certainly be arranged."
Lois backed towards the corner of the room, willing herself to make it there and to the door to the porch. If she could just get out of the house, maybe Clark could scoop her up and they could be on their way.
"Oh, no my dear. I am afraid you will not be able to exit through this door."
Lois turned to see Lex Luthor and his assistant standing there with what she recognized as a 9 mm automatic in his hand.
"I believe you have something of mine, Ms. Lane."
"I have no idea what that might be, Luthor."
Lex made an almost clucking sound. "Tsk, tsk, Ms. Lane. You and I both know that child is my son."
"No, he's not. Clark is his father, not you."
"Ah, my dear. I am afraid you took some drugs that night. I am surprised you do not remember that part. While we were at the Embassy, you... made yourself available to me, shall we say. You told me that you had an open marriage with Mr. Kent and were free to sleep with whoever you chose and you chose me. I must say, I was quite flattered, my dear, and I am afraid your beauty must have overcome my sense of decorum."
"That's not how it happened, Luthor and you know it. You drugged me and raped me."
"That may be how you remember it, but my dear..."
"I am not your dear." Lois continued to hold her tiny son close to her body, wondering how on earth she was going to get out of this mess and where Clark was when she needed him. Superman needed to stay away for obvious reasons, but Clark – he could show up anytime to be her white knight.
"Regardless, we were together that night and I have been informed that you determined you were pregnant about two weeks later. Given your due date, that would be your date of conception."
Lois eyed him warily. "I have no idea how you know that much about my prenatal care and I don't really care, but Clark and I were together that night, more than once and this baby is his. For all you know, we could have been consummating like bunnies trying to get pregnant. This baby is his," she repeated emphatically. "Period. End of discussion."
Lex waved the gun in her general direction. "I am afraid a DNA test will have to confirm or deny that."
"Never." Even if Clark's alien DNA hadn't been in the picture, there was no way she would give him the satisfaction of knowing if this was actually his biological child or not.
*****
Clark stayed high in the clouds, surveying the ground below, not wanting to risk Lois and Jon's lives by acting before he knew everything there was to know.
Finally confident that he could go in and rescue them, he started to descend when he noticed a dark car coming up the drive. A glance through the roof showed Lex Luthor being driven by the man he now knew as Nigel St. John. They must have heard that Lois had given birth and were coming to claim the child Lex believed could be his. They had suspected St. John might have been meeting with members of Trask's group but this was the first thing resembling confirmation.
He slid back into the cloud cover and waited to see what would happen. As he listened in on the conversation below, he realized that it would be better for him to appear as Clark rather than Superman. He would fly into the barn and emerge from there. He was sure to be captured by the Bureau 39 minions and then he would take care of things from there with no one realizing he was actually the alien they were coming after.
Faster than the naked eye could see, he descended through the clouds and into the hayloft in the barn. He started to descend that ladder when he heard voices. Good. They would capture him according to plan.
"What is it, do you suppose?" he heard one voice say.
"I have no idea. Why don't you open it?" The second voice replied.
"Trask said to wait for the alien," the first one responded.
He could almost hear the second one shrug as a feeling of dread began to spread over him. "So? We'll just peek and then shut it again real quick like."
"Okay."
And then the pain hit. Blinding pain unlike anything he had ever felt before. He tried desperately to keep his grip on the ladder, but he felt it slipping away. He plunged into the blackness, the last thing he remembered being the floor coming up awfully fast and thinking that hitting it would hurt.
Blessedly, he was unconscious before that happened.
*****
"He's so heavy." One hissed.
"We have to get him inside. Trask will want him," Two hissed back.
Clark was in and out of consciousness, mostly aware of what was going on around him but unable to do anything about it.
"How did you not know he was in the hay loft?"
"He must have been hiding."
Clark was grateful that he had thought to not only change out of the suit, but to take it off entirely, leaving it well hidden in the hay in the hay loft.
"Grab his legs and let's go."
Clark did nothing to help the men he guessed were Bureau 39 agents. If anything, he tried to press down towards the ground to make things a bit harder for them.
He was dragged into the kitchen of the farmhouse and then on into the living room.
Clark felt his feet drop and they continued to drag him until he was dropped completely on to the floor in the living room.
"Clark!" he heard Lois gasp. He could only imagine the thoughts going through her head. He was sure her first thought was that he was acting and oh, how he wished that was true!
Sadly, however, it was not. He tried to stretch out his hearing only to discover he could hear less now than he could have when he was only eight. He tried to see through his eyelids, but to no avail. What had happened to him? Trying to think about it only made the pounding in his head that much worse.
Whatever the two people in the barn had been talking about – that meteorite Wayne Irig had mentioned – maybe it was from his home planet or something and that was why it affected him. Jor-El had mentioned that was a possibility.
It was the only logical explanation – once you took a flying alien who looked human into account as logical that was.
"*No!*" He heard Lois scream. "*Don't* *take* *my* *baby!*"
"*No!*" he gasped with all the strength he could muster but it came out barely more than a whisper. He managed to open his eyes just a slit to see Nigel St. John grasp her from behind by the arms and Lex Luthor grab the tiny Jon from her arms. Lois struggled to keep her grip on the baby, he could see, to the point where he was worried the little guy would bruise, but bruises were the least of their worries at this point. If Lex Luthor managed to leave with Jon, they would likely never see him again – if they managed to survive this day at all.
Lex snatched the baby from her arms. Lois continued to struggle against Nigel St. John.
"Bring him." He saw a man he identified as Jason Trask from his peeks inside the house earlier waving his direction. Sunlight. If only they could get him into the sunlight and away from that blasted rock they had, in whatever case they had it in.
Perry! Alice! Jimmy! Lucy! They were on their way. So were Rachel and her deputies. Maybe they would make it back in time.
"Sir?" Another voice entered the conversation.
"What?"
"The car with the Whites and Olsens just pulled into the yard. All five of them have been taken to the barn."
"Very well." He gestured again to Clark and then to Lois. "Out to the barnyard."
Clark felt rough hands grab his hands and feet once more and he was dragged outside. He could hear Lois struggling against her captors but couldn't see her anymore.
He heard Jimmy and Perry yelling at whoever had them and then felt the warmth of the sun on his face. He thanked whatever deity was out there for the quick removal of the clouds he had been so grateful for not so much earlier.
He kept his eyes closed and soaked in the sun, grateful now that his shirt had been practically ripped off as he had been dragged across the yard earlier.
He could feel his strength returning. Now, if he could just manage to get them all out of this mess.
"Where is Superman?" he heard Trask ask. "Tell me or I kill your wife and friends and your son. One by one. While you watch."
"You wouldn't," Clark whispered.
Trask grabbed his hair and pulled so that Clark was looking at him. "Yes, I would. Where's the alien?"
Convinced by the evil and insanity in Trask's eyes, he resigned himself to what was now inevitable. "I'm right here," he groaned.
Trask laughed. "You? You're Superman? You can't even hold your head up.
Clark used all the strength he could muster and looked Trask in the eye. "I *am* Superman."
Trask laughed again. "Go get the box. If Clark Kent really is the alien, it should affect him."
Maybe he should have kept his big mouth shut.
He saw one of Trask's minions appear from the barn with a silver case. "Here it is, sir."
"Open it."
"Yes, sir." The minion opened the box.
Almost before Clark saw the green glow, he felt the waves of pain and nausea sweep over him.
He struggled against his captors, trying desperately to retain his consciousness.
The last thing he remembered before blacking out again was hitting the dirt.
*****
"*Clark!*" Lois screamed across the barnyard. "*No!*"
Why had he admitted that he was Superman? If he hadn't, they might have left that case closed. What was it and how could it hurt him?
"I'm sure you're wondering what that is and why it affects that alien you keep protecting."
Lois nodded weakly. She was wondering.
"It is a piece of the planet he's from – a meteorite. Some have called it Kryptonite since it's from the planet Krypton. Our research shows it is likely to harm the alien and perhaps even kill it."
He snapped the lid of the box shut with one foot. Clark's breathing immediately eased; she could see that even from all the way across the farm yard.
She lunged for Trask and the box, but didn't reach him before she was suddenly tossed backwards. She landed in the pond and struggled to right herself. Nigel had grabbed her – but as she fought back she managed to grab hold of his arm and pull him in with her where he hit his head on an underwater rock. She had managed to escape unhurt but wet.
She watched as Trask kicked Clark in the gut, several times. She could see Perry and the vein on his head pulsing larger with each beat of his heart. Jimmy looked angry and stood between Lucy and baby Abbie and the drama that was playing out in front of them.
Lex held her son – and not the way one should hold a baby she thought and it was making her even more mad. If he believed Jon was his son, he should have at least learned how to hold him properly.
She made it to the pier where she clung desperately, watching helplessly as Lex held her now screaming son, taunting her and Clark. Jason Trask held that glowing green rock, the one that seemed to affect Clark so much, an evil glint in his eye.
Clark was groaning on the ground and the rest of her family still watched helplessly from near the barn, Lucy with her own child in her arms. What chances could they take with little Jon in danger? If only Clark had his powers... he could super speed Jon away from Lex, but he didn't. Ever since that sickening green rock had shown up...
That Lex and Trask knew was an entirely different matter. Even if the baby was Clark's, there was no way Lex would give him back now. Now he had in his hands either his own son or the son of Superman – no matter which, he was a winner in his own eyes.
The sound of sirens was getting closer. The cavalry was coming, but who would still be around by then? She was too far away to hear what was being said, but it seemed like Trask and Luthor were arguing. Fear gripped her heart as they waved weapons around – both in the direction of each other and at Clark and her friends.
Clark lay on the ground, breathing heavily as the two men argued .
"We cannot allow either of them to live," Trask told Luthor.
"Yes, we can," Luthor said back. "I will not allow you to kill the child that could be my son."
"We don't know if it is your son. If it is the offspring of the alien, it must be eliminated."
"No. If this is my child, I will not allow him to be raised by someone else and I will not allow you to kill him while paternity is in question. I've financed your operations for the last several months and you will do as I say."
Trask glared at him. "I do not answer to you. A DNA test will be done and if it's not your child, then it will be eliminated."
There was a glint in Luthor's eyes. "I will take the child with me until such tests can be completed."
"No. We will take it into custody."
"I do not trust you."
"I don't trust you."
"If this is the child of the alien, then we can raise him to be *our* Superman – one who answers to our commands and does what *we* want."
"No. A half-breed alien must be killed."
Clark struggled to get to his feet while the argument continued. Jimmy was working his way slowly towards Trask while his attention was focused on Luthor. Using subtle hand signals, he motioned to Clark to stay still, but Clark shook his head slightly. He was not going to sit idly by while his family was in danger.
Jimmy waited for just the right moment, when Trask seemed to be the most distracted, and lunged for the case containing the green rock. He knocked it away from Trask and shut the lid.
Lois could see that Clark instantly felt some relief, but could only watch, mouth agape, as he charged towards Trask. She saw the flash of the muzzle when Clark tackled the rogue federal agent. Her attention was focused on Clark, praying silently that he would be okay.
Screams finally penetrated through to her consciousness and she realized they were her own. A splash caught her ear and she looked frantically for Lex and Jon, who were nowhere to be seen. A splashing sound coming from near the large rock sent her swimming as fast as she could, stroke after stroke, towards the spot where her son had to be. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Clark dive into the water and they reached the spot at nearly the same moment.
She had always heard that small babies naturally floated and she had never been so grateful that a piece of trivia was actually true. She grabbed a hold of her small son, clutching him to her chest, willing him to breathe. His screams reassured her that he would, in fact, be just fine.
If they could find a way to get rid of Trask.
Clark wrapped an arm around her and pulled them behind him, putting himself between her and Jon and the angry xenophobe. Jimmy had taken the silver case and run with it, trying to get it as far away from Trask as he could. Perry and Lucy headed towards the downed man, but were stopped in their tracks when he stood, gun still in hand. Alice had the tiny baby girl tucked in her arms and was retreating into the relative safety of the barn.
Jon's screams pierced the air. Lois clung to him as she would a lifeline, because in many ways that was what he was. She wanted nothing more than to take Trask out herself, but she could not - *would* not - risk her son's life. She stayed behind Clark, though every fiber of her being revolted against the idea that she needed someone to protect her.
"Out of the pond." Trask pointed the gun their direction.
"No." Clark reached back and pulled Lois closer to him, pinning a still screaming Jon between their bodies, using his bulk to block Trask's view of his family.
The sound of tires crunching up the dirt road momentarily distracted Trask.
Jimmy, who had stashed the metal case in an undisclosed location, bolted towards the gun waving man. With a tackle that would have made most high school football coaches proud, his shoulder contacted Trask's back with a sickening thud.
A scuffle ensued, with Trask finally getting the upper hand over the younger man. He stood over him with the handgun pointed and ready to fire, when a shot rang out. Trask's body fell to the ground.
All eyes turned to the road where Sheriff Rachel Harris stood, the literal smoking gun in her hand.
Clark grasped at his arm and Lois realized that he had been shot - the whistling sound she'd barely registered must have been the bullet. Trask had managed to squeeze the trigger as he went down.
"*Clark!*" She grabbed at him as he started lean a bit. "Perry! Help! Clark's been shot!"
In an instant, the editor and the young photographer were in the pond, one on either side of their friend.
"Come on, Clark. You're going to be okay." Perry grumbled as they worked their way out of the pond.
Lucy wasn't far behind them and went straight to Lois' side, helping her work her way through the slush and mud to the other side of the pond.
More cars continued to pull into the yard and the county ambulance followed. Within minutes, the paramedics were at Clark's side.
"No. Check Jon first." He continued to clutch his arm but refused treatment until Pete had taken a look at Jon.
Pete quickly pronounced Jon fine and then turned his attention back to Clark.
Lois continued to clutch Jon close to her chest and watched as their friend worked on his arm. Her legs buckled beneath her and Lucy caught her and Jon and helped her to the edge of the ambulance. She sat, half in and half out, and allowed Lucy to take her son from her shaking arms.
The blood seemed to be everywhere, streaming out of Clark's left arm, soaking his already wet shirt.
Before long, Clark's arm was wrapped in a bright white bandage, the bleeding having come mostly to a stop.
He rose unsteadily to his feet and made his way to Lois' side. He sat next to her on the bumper of the ambulance and with his good arm, he pulled her close. "It's over."
The tears finally broke free and streamed down Lois' face. "Are you sure?"
Clark nodded against her hair. "They're both dead. So is Nigel."
"Are you really sure?"
"Yes. Luthor hasn't come out of the water yet..." As he spoke one of the deputies called out and Luthor's limp body was pulled from the pond. "...and Trask... Rachel got him right through the heart."
Lois felt what was left of her strength leave her body and everything went black.
*****
TBC
