Nearly a full twelve hours had passed since Clark boarded the ship that would take him to New Krypton. So much had happened in those short hours. Ching and Zara had continually been at his side, prompting him in the proper protocol and traditions in his dealings with the Council of Elders. He'd been caught in the flow of things, still trying to get his bearings, when he found himself at the Ceremony of Union, the rite of passage that made it legal for him to consummate his marriage to Zara. The whole affair left him feeling slimy. Not that he and Zara had done anything or planned to - they'd both agreed to be partners in battle and not partners in bed. Zara respected his devotion to Lois and he respected that she was in love with Ching. But for the sake of maintaining good political images and for the sake of holding onto the power that they wielded, they had to maintain their farce of a marriage. Still, even that made Clark uneasy, made him feel like he was cheating on Lois.
Then there had been endless meetings. Everyone wanted to know what Clark intended to do once they landed on New Krypton. Everyone wanted to know what strategy he intended to employ to settle the upheaval. Clark hadn't known what to tell them. They expected miracles of him when he knew nothing of the situation he was walking into. He'd stalled as best as he could, begged them to let him get to the planet and see for himself what was happening.
Now, at last, he was alone. He stood at a window in the bridal chamber, staring as the distant stars sped by. This far from Earth, his powers were weakening. It felt odd, the loss of his powers, without the accompanying pain of Kryptonite. He'd barely even noticed the loss of most of his powers this time. Only when he went to instinctively reach for one of them - his speed or to fly - was he forcibly reminded of the abilities he'd willingly left behind. He wondered briefly if he'd be strong enough to fight once they arrived. All of his life, he'd never needed to worry about his ability to be ready for anything. The thought made him uneasy.
He fingered the ring on the slender chain around his neck. He knew Lois was thinking of him. His heart ached as he wished to be able to hold her, to kiss her, to see her face, to hear her voice. He fought back his tears and sent out his thoughts to her. What he wouldn't have given for some...device...some way...of being able to talk to her, even if he couldn't see her. He was acutely aware of how dependant he'd become on having Lois there to talk to, to air his hopes and fears to. Silently, he cursed himself for agreeing to go on this mission.
Is this really my fight? he asked himself, echoing the question his father had posed to him. Do I really owe New Krypton anything? Aside from my...bloodline...is there anything to bind me to these people? I'm getting their hopes up. What will they do when I leave? Will they ever let me leave? The thought sent a shock of panic through him. He hadn't considered that they might deny him a way to leave the planet once the threat of war was quelled. I'll make them let me leave if I have to. Surely Zara will help me. She's as anxious to be able to pursue a life with Ching as I am to get back to Lois.
The door to the bed chamber slid open and Zara walked in to stand beside him. She said nothing, only blankly watched the stars zoom by. Clark placed Lois' ring back inside the fabric of his black suit, wishing it was Lois that was pressed to his chest inside of just a symbol of her.
"How long until we arrive?" he asked.
"Another twelve hours," she replied.
"I don't know if I can do this," Clark confided in her after a glance over his shoulder to assure him that they were alone.
Zara turned to him. "Of course you can. It's in your nature."
"Is it?" he mused cynically. "Zara, look at me. I'm not Kryptonian. My DNA might be from Krypton, but my nature is that of a human. For a long time, I didn't understand that. For a long time, I couldn't believe that I could possibly be a human being - an Earthling. Ever since I discovered my roots in that globe a few years ago, I've viewed myself as an alien - as a Kryptonian. But now I know, I'm more human than anything else. My upbringing and my ideals make me who and what I am. Not my bloodline."
Zara squeezed his shoulder sympathetically. "I know. But you have to try to be Kryptonian now. Trust in the blood that runs in your veins. You are more Kryptonian than you give yourself credit for."
"How am I supposed to lead these people?" he asked. "I don't even know if saying 'hello' is insulting to the Council. Zara, they want to know what my plan of attack is. What am I supposed to tell them? I don't even know what New Krypton looks like, let alone what political course of action will work with these people."
"You are overwhelmed," Zara observed.
Clark laughed bitterly. "Understatement of my life."
"You forget, Kal-El, that Ching and I are here to help you as you learn our ways."
"I don't want to learn how to be Kryptonian," he snapped. Then, softer, he added, "I should never have agreed to this. I have a people. On Earth."
"We are your people, too," Zara said gently. "And we need you."
Clark sighed heavily. "I know. I just feel so...alien here."
"I know," she replied. "Come. Ching and I can continue your...education before you arrive. You need all the information you can get."
"Okay," he relented with a sigh.
True to Zara's word, twelve hours later, New Krypton was in sight. Clark watched with a heavy heart as they grew closer. He could see the docking on a video screen. It seemed so...final, to be docking on this strange new planet. He fingered Lois' ring as he tried to quiet the butterflies in his stomach. He'd always approached peace negotiations with a small amount of nervousness. It never failed to frighten him, at least a little, when he knew that so many lives rested on his words and actions. At least he'd managed to rest for a few hours, choosing to sleep on the floor of the bridal chamber while Zara slept in the bed. She'd offered to share as a platonic friend, but Clark couldn't force himself to do so. It would be a betrayal of Lois. He missed her terribly.
The ship moved into position, lining up with the docking station. Clark felt the light bumping and jostling as the ship maneuvered against the gangways. He drew a deep breath, like a diver about to make the plunge. He was frustrated. The video screens did not show much beyond the gangways. He could see nothing of the planet he was on.
"Are you ready, Kal-El?" Zara asked him softly.
"No. But I guess I don't really have a choice," he said, clenching his jaw tightly.
They made their way to the ship's exit. The Council of Elders walked before Clark, proclaiming his arrival. Zara walked two steps behind him. Ching followed, last in the procession. Clark's hands were bunched into tight fists in an effort to redirect his nervousness. He stepped foot off the ship, feeling as though he'd walked into some awful trap and imagining an impenetrable door snapping shut behind him, cutting him off completely from Earth. He was in a narrow hallway that he likened to the gangway between an airport and an airplane. At last, the hall ended and he found himself in a vast palace. White, shimmering stone made up the walls and floor. Clark glanced upwards as discreetly as he could. The same stone made up the ceilings as well. It was both beautiful and unwelcoming, impressive and cold. Sometimes, a pillar stood against a wall with a carved bust made of the same strange stone. Sometimes, a tapestry hung, wrought with Kryptonian letters, telling stories of the past kings and the deeds they had done. Clark couldn't read the unfamiliar language but he could guess the content well enough by the pictures that were woven on the tapestries. Sometimes, a door stood to either side or a new hallway branched off from the one he was being led down.
In another time and place, he would have marveled at the stark elegance of the palace. He would have stopped to admire the rich tapestries and asked Zara about the people portrayed. But as it was, he was only able to steal the occasional glance at his surroundings. He felt like a prisoner walking the last hallway on the way to his execution. He could feel Lois' ring against his chest and pictured her in his mind. Before he could do more than picture her smiling at him, the procession halted.
"The Council is to introduce you to the rest of the refugees," Ching whispered to him as he stealthily slid to Clark's side.
"The rest? All of them?"
Ching nodded.
"Oh boy," Clark muttered. "Any special...protocol...for this?"
Ching shook his head. "They'll introduce you and expect to you formally claim the throne before everyone. After that, you'll be shown around and you'll meet your military."
Clark frowned. He didn't want to claim the throne. He didn't want to lie to these people. Still, if he wanted to make an impact and to help, he needed to step up to the role he'd been raised to. He'd have to compromise his morals, it seemed.
No, not compromise. I will act as their king just long enough to stop this war. As much as I hate this, I need that power right now. I need the freedom to act as I need to.
Clark snapped his attention back to listen to what the Council of Elders was saying to the people. Trey was speaking. Clark wasn't sure if he liked the man or not. He supposed he was a good enough guy, but he was far too formal for Clark's liking. Still, the man seemed loyal and Clark needed as many supporters as he could get. Jen Mai was with Trey, standing at his side. There was something about Jen Mai that Clark definitely disliked, though he couldn't quite place his finger on what it was.
"And so, without further ado, I bid you welcome our Lord Kal-El, last of the House of El, son of Jor-El."
Ching gave Clark a nudge and Clark found himself walking forward, head held high, a new determination settling over his features and mind. Not even as Superman had he ever adopted such grim determination, such a dead calm within his mind. He walked over the thresh hold, leaving the hall behind and stepping onto a wide balcony. A white stone railing stood waist high. He walked to it and looked out. He'd been before crowds of people before as Superman. He'd held press conferences as Clark Kent, like when Diana Stride had tried to reveal his alter-ego. But nothing had quite prepared him for what he saw now. A thousand or so people stood in a vast courtyard. They all knelt as he came into their view.
"Do you, Kal-El, accept and claim the throne of New Krypton?" Trey asked.
Clark's jaw twitched infinitesimally. He made his voice ring out. "I do claim the throne and the right to rule."
A roar of applause rang out in the courtyard, intermingled with cries of happiness and shouts of "Long Live Lord Kal-El." Clark raised a hand for silence. Immediately, the gathered crowd grew still.
"Please, stand," he said to them.
There was a murmur of confusion and shuffling feet below as people rose once more.
"Tradition," Zara warned him in a whisper.
"Hang tradition," Clark replied levelly, loud enough for the crowd to hear him. "I will not stand for having people kneel to me. I am here to serve them. Not the other way around."
He turned back to the crowd once more. He eyed them for a long moment and smiled as warmly as he could. "I thank you all for your warm reception of me. I know I may seem a little...unconventional to you all. I grew up on a planet far from here, with no real knowledge of my roots or of Kryptonian customs. So I beg your forgiveness and patience as I settle into a society vastly different from the one that I come from. But I assure you that I am here to help you. And I promise, I will do whatever I can to help bring about peace to your...to New Krypton." He mentally kicked himself. He'd almost said 'your planet.'
Careful, Clark, he thought to himself. For as long as it takes, this is your planet too.
He turned from the crowd and disappeared from their sight as he reentered the palace.
That was risky, Zara chided him, her voice a whisper in his mind.
Clark shook his head. I promised to rule this planet and to bring about peace. I never promised to give up my personality to conform to ancient and outdated traditions.
"My Lord," Trey said as he left the balcony. "May I show you around your palace?"
"No," Clark said after a moment, shaking his head. "I want to go out. I want to see this planet. I want to see what sort of terrain my troops will be fighting on, if it comes to war. I want to see what resources we have - fields of crops, water sources, towns, everything."
Trey shifted uncomfortably under Clark's gaze. "As you wish."
