From Part 32 ...
With a wide grin, Lois scouted beyond him.
Then she gasped. “Is Tek coming?” Kal asked.
Lois shook her head. “No. But I found something else.”
“What?”
“It’s round and silvery.”
“What is it?”
She shuffled along the tunnel, moving her head up and down as if trying to get a better view of something. “My vision is blotchy – there are patches I can’t see.”
“What can you see?”
“A vehicle of some sort. Maybe a boat.”
“A boat?”
She moved again and her mouth gaped. “It’s not a boat,” she said quietly.
“Then what is it?”
“A spaceship.”
Part 33
“A spaceship?” Kal asked.
Lois sidestepped along the tunnel, trying to work around the gaps in her vision. It reminded her of looking into the ground when she been at the top of the cliff searching for Tek.
“What can you see?” Kal said.
Lois turned to him. “It’s hard to work out what I’m seeing because sometimes I’m not sure of the depth of things and how far I’ve already looked through.”
It wasn’t a great explanation, but Kal seemed to understand. He nodded. “But there’s definitely a spaceship?”
“Yes. It’s in a cave.”
“We need to tell Tek,” Kal said.
“Don’t you think he’d already know?”
Kal considered. “I don’t know.”
“If he does know about it, why hasn’t he already told us?”
“I trust Tek,” Kal said. “I think we should tell him what you’ve found.”
“We’d have to tell him more than what I found,” Lois said. “We’d have to tell him how I found it.”
Kal brushed back her hair and when his hand came to rest, his fingers and thumb gently kneaded reassurance into the tightness across her shoulders. “I trust Tek totally,” he said quietly.
Lois realised she did too, but she delayed her response and allowed Kal's touch to unwind her tension. “I do too,” she said. "Let's go." With a quick smile of appreciation, she turned and headed back to the cave.
As they rounded the rock, Tek stood. “Are you both all right?” he asked.
“Yes,” Kal said. He looked expectantly at Lois.
“I found a spaceship,” she announced.
The colour drained from Tek’s face. “You found *what*?”
“I found a spaceship,” Lois said.
Tek stared at Lois, his mouth hanging. “You ... found ... a spaceship?”
Lois nodded. “Yes.” She pointed behind her. “That way.”
Tek lightly touched her arm to regain her attention. “Did you find your life pod?” he asked. “The one that brought you here?”
Lois considered for a moment. “No,” she said. “No. It’s different to mine.”
“Are you sure?” Tek asked.
“Completely sure.”
Tek looked as if he didn’t dare believe what she had said. He took a staggering step away from her. “I didn’t think he did it,” he murmured. “All these years, I didn’t think he did it.”
“Didn’t do what, Tek?” Kal asked quietly.
Tek turned back to them, his face grey with shock. “I found complete plans for the construction of a spacecraft; a personal spacecraft - smaller and significantly more advanced than the ones we used in coming to New Krypton.”
“Your father’s plans?” Kal guessed.
“Yes. But I could find no evidence he’d ever gone beyond the planning stage.” Tek looked around the cave as if he half expected the spaceship to appear. “I wanted to build it – the plans include every possible detail - but I just didn’t have the materials.”
“Didn’t your father tell you about it?” Lois asked.
“No,” Tek said, still dazed.
“Is it possible someone else built it?”
When Tek didn’t answer, Kal said, “It is unlikely. The most brilliant of our scientists did not have the abilities of Kip-Or.”
Lois faced Tek. “If you couldn’t build it because you didn’t have the materials, how could your father have built it?”
“He would have brought the materials from Krypton. Advancements such as this were possible there.” His gaze centred on Lois. “I took your life pod and brought it here, hoping I could adapt it, or use some parts –.“
“You have my space pod?” Lois exclaimed.
“Yes.”
Lois felt the tiny burst of possibility. “Could it get us back to Earth?” she asked. “Could it? Could it get Kal and me to Earth?”
“No,” Tek said.
“Why not?”
“Because it’s completely unsuitable,” Tek said. “And we have no means to launch it or navigate it. And it is too -.”
“Can’t you *build* something to launch it?”
“And it is too small for two of you,” Tek said. “It is a life pod, not a spacecraft.”
The fragile glimmer of Lois’s hope spluttered and died. Kal put his arm around her and drew her into the comfort of his warmth.
“I searched,” Tek said. “After my father’s death ... after I’d found his plans, I searched everywhere under here. I went along every tunnel; I went places we had never explored before. I discovered new caves, new tunnels ... but I never found the spacecraft – nor anything to suggest its existence.” He looked to Lois. “Will you take me to it?” he asked.
Lois glanced to Kal. Silently, they agreed - they had to trust Tek. “Tek?” she said.
“Yes.”
“I can see ... well, I don’t really know how to tell you this and I don’t know why or how it happens, but sometimes I can see things other people can’t see and that is how I found your father’s spaceship.”
A film of confusion settled over Tek’s shock.
“Lois can see through solid objects,” Kal explained calmly.
“Solid?” Tek said slowly. “Like rock?”
Kal nodded. “Yes. Lois saw the spaceship. We know where it is, but we’re still going to have to work out how to access it.”
“She saw it *through* the rock?” Tek said.
“Yes.”
There was silence as Tek let that sink in. Kal tightened his hold on Lois.
Tek scrutinised Lois. “Is that why the bullet didn’t kill you?”
“Maybe. Probably,” Lois said. “I was never like this on Earth - only since I’ve been here.”
Tek picked up a small stone and handed it to Lois. “Can you draw what you saw?” he asked.
Lois knelt on the sand. She had drawn only a few lines when she heard Tek gasp. “That’s it!” he said.
“It is?” Lois stared dubiously at the result of her efforts.
“Yes,” Tek said. Again, he looked around the cave. “Where is it?”
“Follow me.” Lois stood and led them into the inland tunnel. Two minutes later, she stopped and pointed to her left. “It’s in there,” she said.
They all stared at the rock wall.
“It’s behind the lab,” Tek said.
He brushed past Lois and advanced further into the tunnel. Kal and Lois followed.
When the tunnel veered right Tek leant his shoulder into the wall to the left. It gave easily – swinging open on slick hinges. He went in and reached automatically for a lamp.
The cave filled with bright light.
There were three long benches – sheets of thick metal on squat pillars of rock. Various tools and equipment – most of it unfamiliar to Lois – were strewn on the benches and around the cave.
Tek darted to a large chest, his limp barely noticeable in his haste. He opened it and withdrew a large roll of multiple sheets of paper. He cleared a portion of the closest bench and spread the papers before him.
“That’s it!” Lois said as the top sheet unfurled. “That’s what I saw.”
Tek anchored both edges of the scroll with nearby objects. He stared for a long moment, absently rubbing his chin. “He did it,” he muttered. “He didn’t just plan it, he built it.”
“Your father was an amazing man,” Lois said with sincere respect.
Tek continued to survey the plans.
Kal edged closer to Lois. “Can you still see it?” he asked quietly.
Lois nodded and pointed to the back wall of the cave. “It’s behind there,” she said. “I can’t see it totally; there are still gaps in my vision, but from different places, I’ve seen enough to know it is the spaceship from those plans.”
“Can you look around that cave for another entrance?”
“There’s sand and rock and water,” Lois said. “It gets jumbled together because I’m still learning how to interpret the depth of things.”
Kal looked down at her with an encouraging smile. “You did a great job just finding it,” he said.
“Do you think it could possibly mean anything for us?” she asked in a quiet voice.
Kal hesitated before answering. Lois knew he was trying to be honest without ruthlessly destroying her hope. “I don’t know,” he said.
Tek looked up from the plans. “Where is it?” he said.
“Behind that wall,” Lois replied.
Tek went along the wall, periodically pushing at it. Kal moved closer to Lois. “Can you see anything in the wall?” he asked. “Anything that could be a hidden doorway?”
Lois scanned the length of the wall. “No,” she said. “Nothing.”
Tek got to the end of the wall and turned.
“How do you think your father got it in there?” Lois asked.
Tek took a map and unfolded it on top of the plan. “It must have been at a super low tide.” He pointed to a place on the map. “This is a shelf of rock; the cavern below it is flooded except when the water is extremely low.”
“But the cavern rises into the cliff, so the end of it stays dry?” Kal said.
“It’s possible,” Tek said. “This is the room we’re in now.” He indicated another place on the map. “The other side of that wall could be the far end of the chamber that opens under the shelf.”
Lois followed Tek’s hand on the map. “So that cave is inaccessible most of the time?”
“Yes. Unless it’s a super low tide.”
“When will that happen next?” Kal asked.
“First light tomorrow,” Tek said, his eyes skimming the map.
Lois faced Tek across the bench. “If your father got the spaceship in, we can get it out.”
Tek looked up then. “We probably can get it out,” he agreed. “But then what? If we leave it on the beach, the salt water will rise and flood into it. If we managed to haul it to higher ground, I would have to guard it at all times to stop people damaging it. It would also bring a lot of attention to this end of the continent – which increases the chance of someone finding you.”
Lois’s disappointment clunked inside her. “So it can’t help us at all?” she asked dejectedly.
“The next super low tide will last a little over an hour,” Tek said. “I will go in and examine the spacecraft. I can try to determine if it is finished and if there is any possibility of it functioning.” He looked at Kal. “But Sir, you should realise this is a great find for me – to find evidence of my father’s achievement is just amazing - but it probably doesn’t mean anything for you and your situation.”
“When’s the next super low tide?” Lois asked. “After the one tomorrow?”
“Six weeks.”
“*Six* weeks?” Lois said.
“This planet has four moons, irregularly set,” Tek said. “When they align in a particular way, we get a super low tide. Sometimes the length of time between nadirs is weeks, sometimes months, depending on the orbits of the moons.”
“You’ll only have an hour with it?” Lois said. “And then you’ll have to leave it for six weeks?”
“Yes.” Tek glanced at his watch. “I have to go now.”
“The tide is rising?” Kal guessed.
“No,” Tek said. “I have been summoned to appear before Lord Ching and Lady Za.”
Lois felt her heart sink. “They want to question you regarding our whereabouts?”
“Probably.”
“What will you tell them?” Lois asked.
“I’ll lie,” Tek said. “But I doubt they’ll believe me.”
“Don’t put yourself or your family in danger for us,” Kal said.
Without answering, Tek turned and walked from the cave.
As the echoes of his footsteps died away, Lois slowly scoured the wall.
“What can you see?” Kal asked.
She took three steps backwards and pointed ahead. “That bit looks a little thinner than the rest.”
Before Kal could respond, Lois sprang forward and crashed into the wall. She felt the rock give way and stumbled as the dust rose around her. She felt Kal’s hands on her shoulders and back. “Lois?” he said frantically.
She put her hand in his. “We’re through,” she said triumphantly.
Kal heaved her to her feet and looked down at her, full of concern. “Are you hurt?” he asked.
She grinned up at him. “Not at all.”
He brushed the dust from her hair and swept her nose and cheeks. “Any chance you could warn me next time?” he asked. “*Before* you ram yourself into rock walls?”
Her grin widened. “Only if you promise not to try to stop me.”
+-+-+-+
Lois and Kal cleared away the rock debris and crawled through the hole into the adjoining cave.
The spaceship was about the size of a family car, cylindrical in shape, with two short stubby wings and a tapered nose. Together they circled it.
“Kip made this,” Kal said with hushed reverence.
“But why keep it a secret?” Lois said. “A secret even from Tek?”
“Maybe it was his means of escape if Ked or Nor ever took over New Krypton,” Kal suggested.
Lois leaned forward and peered in. “No,” she said. “It has only two seats. Kip wouldn’t plan to leave behind Ard or Tek.”
“Unless he planned to send them and stay here himself.”
“Send them where?” Lois asked in a hushed voice.
She saw Kal comprehend the question within her question. He took her hand. “I ... Lois ...”
“I know,” she said. “It’s at least ten years old, it is possibly unfinished, it’s probably never been tested, we don’t know how to operate it and even if we did, the chances of finding a habitable planet are a billion to one.”
“That’s a lot of odds stacked against us.”
“No more than when you stood against that wall,” she reminded him. The image of it invaded her mind and Lois wished she hadn’t said it. She turned away from the spaceship, wanting to dispel her thoughts.
The cave was low and long and shaped like an enclosed horseshoe. Across the narrow end, the wall changed in both colour and texture. “I don’t think that’s rock,” she said as she approached it.
Kal grasped her arm. “No charging it,” he said firmly, although she could hear the smile in his tone.
She turned to him with a matching smile. “Any objections to me *looking* through it?”
“None at all,” Kal said. He stepped up to it and ran his fingers along it. “It looks like packed sand on this side, but there could be rocks hidden in it.”
Lois looked through the sandy wall. “It is sand,” she confirmed. “It’s about a foot thick. On the other side, there’s what looks like a beach, with water in the distance.”
“Tek talked about a super low tide,” Kal said. “Perhaps a super high tide deposited this sand here. That would explain how Tek could come into the cavern and not realise there was anything behind the sand bank.”
“Which means Kip found the perfect hiding place for his spaceship.”
“So good, not even Tek could find it.”
“But why was it such a secret?” Lois said.
Kal raised his hands. “I don’t know.”
“What do you think Ching and Za want with Tek?” Lois asked.
Kal’s face sobered. “I don’t know that, either,” he said. “But it worries me.”
His uneasiness melted her heart. Her husband needed ... Lois had *exactly* what he needed. It wouldn’t fix their situation, but they couldn’t actually *do* anything about that now, so ... why not? Lois went to the broken wall and rolled a couple of rocks back into the hole.
Then, she turned to Kal, who had watched her without giving voice to the clear questions on his face. With no forewarning, Lois stripped the white dress from her body and jauntily flicked it to the ground, glad now that she hadn’t bothered with underwear when she’d hastily dressed earlier.
The questions on Kal’s face morphed into a lascivious grin. “I guess there are no rules about ‘where’ either,” he said.
+-+-+-+
The very pleasant aura of Kal’s afterglow was abruptly shattered when Lois lurched from him. “*That’s* where he hid you,” she exclaimed.
Kal opened his eyes, but his mind wasn’t so easily revived. “Huh?”
“Kip!” Lois said excitedly. “He *didn’t* hide you on *this* planet. He hid you somewhere else. That’s why no one could ever find you. And he used that ...” She pointed at the spaceship, “... to get you there and bring you back.”
Kal glanced languidly to the spaceship. “You think Kip took me somewhere and left me there?”
“Yes,” Lois insisted. “Somewhere out of Nor’s reach. Somewhere you’d be safe.”
“And then just came back fifteen years later and got me?” Kal said, not quite managing to cover his scepticism.
“Yes!”
Kal grinned – a lazy, supremely-satisfied grin. “Lois,” he said. “Maybe ... right now ... your wonderful, intelligent, very vigorous mind ... is just a little fuzzy. I know mine is.”
She sat up, slipped on her gown, retrieved Kal’s pants and tossed them to him. “If Kip *did* take you, there has to be some evidence. Something that says you were in this spaceship.”
Kal accepted his fate and pulled on his pants. “Like what?”
“A hair or something.” Lois slowly scanned the spaceship. “Anything that says you were in here.”
Kal surveyed the outside of the spaceship. Its side was a smooth silvery metal. The canopy was a clear, thick plastic material. Kal found the series of clips holding it down and began to unfasten them. Below the canopy, the smooth curved side was interrupted by an oval shaped concave section about ten inches across and six inches high. Kal placed his hand into the hollow, wondering if it had something to do with aerodynamics.
He freed the last clip and lifted the canopy. Inside the capsule were two seats, side-by-side. Kal heard Lois’s quick intake of breath and looked up at her. “What?” he said. “You’ve found a hair?”
“No,” she said excitedly. “But I did find your stolen globe.”
His globe? “*Kip* took it?” Kal said, shocked. “Kip wouldn’t have taken it.”
Lois reached into the spaceship, slid back a panel and emerged with a globe. She held it up for Kal to see.
Disappointment swirled through him. “That’s not it,” he said. “My globe was bigger than that.”
“Oh.” Lois rolled it carefully between her hands. “Is it anything like your globe?”
“It is very similar,” Kal said. “But it is not my globe.”
“What happened when your globe spoke to you?” Lois said. “Did you hold it? Did it make a sound? Like an alarm or something?”
“I picked it up and it began to glow ... and then I heard a voice ... a voice that identified itself as my father, Jor-El.”
Lois held the globe towards him. “Take it, Kal,” she said.
He hesitated, looking from her face to her hands and back again.
Then slowly, Kal reached for the globe.
