Previously on Spark of Discovery:
For half an hour, the night sky erupted into thundering booms and artful fireworks. Dogs barked at every explosion. Children squealed with delight. The chosen music gave the affair an added depth of showmanship. Finally, the single - or at most, double - fireworks became many. It was time for the grand finale.
Clark enjoyed it as multiple rockets exploded into the night, first reds, then yellows, then blues, purples, and greens, then back to reds again to repeat the ever changing light show. Around him, people murmured to one another in obvious approval. He was about to bend his head to whisper in Lois' ear when the cycle came back around to green.
That's when everything went wrong.
A single rocket from that cluster faltered in the air as it raced upwards. As if it had a mind of its own, it fell back to Earth. And yet, it did not fall straight down into the small lake where the fireworks were being shot from an unmanned boat. Instead, it arced over the crowd, heading for the thick of the gathered families.
What had been shouts of delight and approval instantly turned to shrieks of panic and fear. Parents grabbed up their children and ran, holding them close to their chests. Couples broke their embraces and bolted for the park's exit. Even the dogs seemed to sense the impending disaster. Leashes strained as the animals tried to flee, barking in alarm.
"Lois! Run!" Clark instructed her, standing up on the blanket. "I'll be right behind you."
For once, Lois listened to him without comment. She broke into a run, her body merging with the mass of terrified citizens. Satisfied, Clark turned, headed towards the public restrooms, ducked behind the building, and spun into his Superman suit. In the next instant, he was flying towards the renegade rocket. He caught the firework in his arms like a football, just before it could impact the ground where an elderly man was attempting to make his slow escape. The man muttered his thanks to Clark, too in shock to speak clearly. Clark merely nodded and flew back over the lake, intending to let the explosive go off above the water, or at the least, to drop it beneath the waves so that it was no longer a threat.
Clark was just above the middle of the lake when the firework went off. Green sparks spewed forth from the rocket, a heartbeat after Clark let go of the object. The scorching sparks sprayed his entire body and Clark let out a cry of pain. Weakness enveloped his body. He faltered in his flight, coughing. Then he dropped like a stone, his powers utterly abandoning him.
He realized as he tried to fight gravity what had happened.
The firework had been laced with Kryptonite.
***
He didn't have much experience with the deadly rock, but the agony and weakness he was feeling was unmistakable. A hundred thousand pinpricks of the ground up and crushed stone clung to his skin and suit, burning him like fire and slowly killing him. He continued to freefall, then crashed into the once serene lake with a violent splash. He tried to swim for the closest bank, but he was too weak, too sick to make it. He managed to thread water for a couple of seconds, then sank, his dense molecular mass pulling him beneath the dark water swiftly as he blacked out.
Lois had turned back as soon as she thought herself to be out of harm's way. She was the only one to do so. The rest of the crowd stampeded around her. Her eyes darted from face to face, looking for Clark. If he was hurt, she would never forgive herself, she knew. And so it was, in looking for Clark, that she alone witnessed Superman fall from the sky. Concerned for the hero, she ran back towards the lake. After all, he was as much her friend as Clark was.
"Superman?" she called out, when the man disappeared from view and did not resurface. "Superman?"
She still got no response. Concern gave way to sheer terror. Without thinking, she dove into the water. The cold temperature was a shock to her body and she gasped against it. Then, steeling herself, she ducked beneath the surface, swimming to where she had last seen Superman. She broke the surface, took a deep breath, then dove again. Blindly, she reached out, hoping against hope to feel Superman's body. She couldn't see. It was too dark and the water was normally too murky anyway.
Her lungs aching, she swam up again. She allowed her head to poke above the water, sucked in another lungful of air, then continued her search. This time, as she neared the bottom, her fingertips brushed a floating piece of fabric. With a jolt, she realized it had to be his cape. Up she went again to get a fresh breath of air. Down again she went, searching for the Man of Steel. Her hand hit upon something soft - his hair. Downwards she felt, feeling his forehead, nose, chin, chest. Then sideways she groped, until at last she had her hands hooked under his armpits.
Bracing her feet against the sandy bottom of the lake, she pushed up, heading for the surface. It was a struggle, every inch of progress a battle she did not intend to lose. Superman was of no help; a dead weight in her arms. For a split second, Lois panicked. She was quickly running out of air. Superman was so heavy as he hung there, suspended in the water, unmoving. He'd been underwater for a couple of minutes now. And although she felt that she knew more about him than anyone else, she suddenly realized that what she did know was practically nothing. How long could he survive without oxygen? She knew from when he'd gone to face the Nightfall asteroid that he could hold his breath for about twenty minutes. But he wasn't holding his breath now. His lungs were probably filled with water. Would his brain die as quickly as a human's could, if she didn't get him to the grassy bank right this instant?
As these bleak thoughts swirled in her head, she suddenly felt the night air in her hair again as she broke the surface. Gasping and choking as she finally took a clean breath of air, she opened her eyes. She was in the middle of the lake now. With a heaving effort, she dragged Superman's head above the water. He did not take a breath, worrying Lois even further. She took only the briefest of moments to shift his body in her arms, then she started to swim for shore.
As before, it was a struggle to gain every inch forward. But Lois was undaunted. The hardest part was over, in her mind. She'd managed to rescue her friend from a watery grave at the bottom of the lake. She swan on, slowly but surely getting closer to the green springy grass of the park. Precious seconds slipped away to minutes as she swam, and all the while she was conscious of Superman's limp, unresponsive form. But at last, she made it to her goal.
She pulled herself out of the cold water, then dragged Superman to shore. She laid him down on the ground, on his back, his boots still somewhat in the lake. A fast check for vital signs revealed nothing. Another bolt of terror sheared through Lois' mind and body. She shook him, seeing if he would respond.
"Superman?" she called out. "Can you hear me?"
There was no indication that he was going to wake up. His chest did not fill with breath. His pulse did not flutter back into existence. Lois did the only thing she could do. She tilted his head back, pinched his nose shut, and placed her lips over his mouth. Carefully, easily, she began to administer CPR to the lifeless superhero. More time slipped by as she worked, though she was only aware of it in the most abstract of ways.
After a few rounds of breathing and chest compressions, Superman finally vomited up more water than Lois had thought possible. He choked and wheezed as his airway became clear, and as he greedily inhaled as much oxygen as he could. Sirens began to wail in the distance. Police and firefighters were rushing to the scene, finally able to enter the area now that the danger was truly over.
"Lois?" Clark asked weakly, his head feeling like the entire weight of the planet was resting on his temples.
"Superman? Are you okay?"
"No," Clark said, shaking his head. "You have to get me out of here."
"What's wrong?"
"I'll explain later. Hurry, please. I can't let anyone see me this way."
"Okay. Can you stand?"
"I think so."
Lois helped him to stand. But he immediately crumpled to the ground again. Once more, Lois hooked him under the armpits and helped him to his feet. He leaned heavily on her in order to stay upright. But this time, he had more success. He did not go to his knees. Together, they stuck to the line of trees, out of the sight of the police. Every step of the way, Clark relied on Lois to help him. And every step of the way, the almost invisible grains of Kryptonite ate at his flesh like acid and sapped what remaining strength he had.
Finally they reached the edge of the park. The crowd had been dispersed by the police. Lois could see what looked like Bill Henderson, his back to them, speaking with a couple of other cops, as they looked into the distance where he was pointing. Silently, Lois and Clark edged around and made it to Lois' Jeep. Clark leaned against the vehicle, his every breath like flaming glass in his lungs. He didn't think he'd inhaled any of the radioactive stone. He'd been fortunate enough to have been exhaling when the firework had gone off. He'd held his breath during his fall, mindful of the presence of the Kryptonite from the first stab of pain through his body. He knew he'd blacked out shortly after hitting the lake, and only hoped he'd managed to avoid swallowing any water tainted with the glowing green grains. He didn't think he had. He probably would have been in greater pain, or dead.
"Hang on," Lois said, fumbling with her keys and opening the door.
"No," Clark said, shaking his head meekly. "Can't sit in front. Too exposed."
"Okay," Lois said, biting her lower lip in anxiety.
She opened up the back door. Clark pushed himself off the rear quarter panel of the vehicle and crawled onto the bench seat. He curled up there, laying in a loose fetal position, his eyes closed, his breathing labored. He felt the vehicle rock as Lois slammed the door shut. A moment later, the driver's door opened and closed. Clark heard the click of her seatbelt as she jammed the metal tab home.
"Are you okay back there?"
"For now. Please," Clark begged. "Get me out of here."
Lois started the engine, checked for traffic, and pulled the vehicle onto the street. She drove the first few blocks in silence. Then, it seemed, her curiosity came bubbling to the surface.
"What can I do to help?" she asked.
"You're already doing it," Clark answered.
"What happened?"
Clark gritted his teeth against a fresh wave of pain. "The rocket. It was laced."
"Laced? With what?"
"Poison."
"Poison? But I thought nothing could hurt you."
"There is one thing," Clark answered cagily. He knew that, to Lois, Kryptonite was no more than a mere myth, cooked up by Jason Trask.
He groaned in agony. He had to get the almost microscopic grains of Kryptonite off his body somehow. A shower might help, he knew. And he had to get out of the tainted suit. But how? He couldn't ask Lois to drop him off at Clark Kent's apartment. She was sure to connect the dots then.
Clark Kent.
Clark's heart sank at the thought. Lois was so fixated on Superman that she hadn't realized Clark was missing. He'd gotten his hopes so high earlier in the night, when Lois had agreed to go out on a date with him. He'd thought she'd finally given up on her fantasy of dating the larger than life hero. But now, it seemed, he'd been wrong.
"I hope Clark's all right," Lois murmured, more to herself than to her passenger. Then, to Superman, she spoke louder. "He was with me in the park. I didn't see where he ran off to. I hope he doesn't think I abandoned him there."
"I'm sure he doesn't," Clark replied.
"Is there someplace I can take you?" Lois asked.
Clark's mind raced. What could he say?
Lois took his non-answer in stride. "My place, then."
"Lois...I can't."
"Nonsense. I'm not leaving you alone until you're well again. Now, what can I do, really? I'm here for you, whatever you need."
"I've got to get out of this suit," Clark said, before he could stop himself. He gritted his teeth against a fresh stab of pain. "A shower might help too, if it's not too much trouble."
"It's not," Lois said, shaking her head and speeding up to avoid getting stuck at a red light.
Before long, they were at her apartment building. The night was mercifully quiet. No one was meandering the streets, save for a couple walking their dog and a group of a dozen teenagers, talking and laughing amongst themselves. Lois waited until both sets of people had passed by the Jeep before getting out and opening Clark's door. As before, he leaned on her for support.
"Not feeling any better?" Lois whispered to him.
"No. A little worse, if anything. I'm running out of time."
"We'll be upstairs before you know it," she whispered back.
Clark couldn't muster words for her. The effort to remain standing was too much. Every step up into the building was an exercise in torture of the cruelest kind. He felt truly accomplished when he made it to the door without collapsing, though he knew that if it hadn't been for Lois, he never would have made it. Lois opened the door and helped him inside.
The elevator was empty when Lois pressed the button to call it, and for that, Clark was grateful. He was in bad shape, and getting worse by the minute. He wondered idly if he had burn marks on his skin where the Kryptonite was searing against his flesh. They rode up to Lois' floor in silence, then made their way to her apartment, with Clark half stumbling even with Lois' assistance.
Lois' apartment had always been a comforting place for Clark. But this night, it felt like a veritable safe haven. He breathed a small sigh of relief as Lois closed the door behind them, setting the locks hastily. Then she helped him down to her bathroom. Clark slid out of her arms to sit on the closed toilet lid. Lois swiftly got a fresh towel for him and laid it on the countertop, alongside the sink.
"Here," she said, patting the towel. "Sorry it's so pink."
"It's fine."
"Drop your suit outside the door. I can run it through the washing machine. Maybe I can help get some of...whatever is hurting you...off."
"Thanks," Clark said, giving her a grateful smile.
That brought up another problem. He had absolutely nothing else to wear once he emerged from the shower. But right now, he was more concerned with getting the Kryptonite off his aching body. He would have to deal with the problem of finding clothes later.
Lois left him alone, and Clark shut the door. As quickly as he could, he peeled off the still wet suit, boots, socks, even his boxers. It was embarrassing knowing that Lois was going to be handling his underwear, but he had no choice. Everything he had on was soaking wet, and he couldn't take the chance that some grain of the deadly meteorite had worked through the suit onto his underwear.
Immediately, he felt a small tendril of relief work through his body as the material left his body. He felt even better after dropping the items outside the door and having an actual barrier between his body and the tiny grains of green stone. Then he turned on the shower and stepped beneath the spray, sinking to his hands and knees on the rubberized mat.
As the water coursed down his body in rivulets, it washed away the microscope pieces of Kryptonite. Slowly, he began to feel better. But he still did not move, did not attempt to get to his feet. He simply enjoyed the relief the water was affording him. But after a time, he tried standing, and found it within his realm of abilities. Taking up a washcloth, he soaped and scrubbed his body, over and over until he was certain that all traces of the poisonous rock were gone. He shampooed and rinsed his hair as well, making extra certain that nothing remained on his body, buried deep in his thick locks. And as the water swirled down the drain, it carried the toxic stone far, far away from him.
Finally, after what seemed like ages, he was certain that he was fully decontaminated. He shut off the water and leaned against the wall for a moment. He still felt weak, that was true. But he no longer hurt. He no longer felt the sharp sting of the miniscule grains of stone. He attempted to levitate, and found the ability gone. Clark sighed. He didn't have much experience with exposure to Kryptonite, but he knew his powers would return in time. It was just a matter of being patient and waiting it out. And with it being so late, there was no way for him to recharge in the sunlight, to give his body a jump-start on repairing itself. He would have to wait for morning. By then, his powers might or might not return on their own. And if they didn't, he was certain that the sun would help.
But first, he had to deal with the fact that he had nothing at all to wear.
He dried off slowly, the fluffy pink bath towel soft against his skin. It was a nice change from the earlier agony he'd felt. He inhaled the lingering scent of the laundry detergent deeply. It had a distinct smell of lavender to it. He'd never paid attention to that before, always being too captivated by the scent of Lois' perfume. He realized that even though he was getting to know her on a very close, very personal level as her friend, there was still a lot to learn about her.
There was still so much to discover about the woman he secretly loved.
With a sigh, he wrapped the towel around his waist. Then he did the bravest thing he'd done all night since he'd asked Lois out on a date. He opened the door and stepped out into the hallway.
He padded lightly down the hallway, towards the living room. He could see Lois sitting on the couch, her back to him. He could see even from that angle that she'd changed into dry clothes and pulled her wet hair back into a clip. The phone was pressed to her head. He could hear the fingers of her free hand drumming restlessly on the arm of the couch.
"Come on, come on. Pick up, Clark. Pick up. Where are you?"
Clark stopped short as the worry in Lois' voice registered in his brain. She sounded on the verge of tears. His answering machine must have picked up then, and Lois addressed it.
"Clark. It's me. Where are you? Are you all right? Listen...call me when you get this message. I don't care what time it is. Okay?"
Lois hung up the phone with a sigh.
"Lois?" Clark asked, hesitantly.
"Oh, Superman," Lois said, a little startled. "Are you feeling better?"
"Yes, a bit," Clark answered.
Lois still did not turn around. Her fingers still drummed on the couch. She was clearly agitated that Clark hadn't answered his phone.
"I, uh, threw your suit in the wash," Lois said.
"Thank you. I appreciate that."
"I wish I had something to offer you in the meantime," Lois said. "To wear, I mean. Is there anywhere I can go? Get you a fresh suit, perhaps?"
There was someplace she could go, but Clark couldn't tell her that.
"No," he said after a moment.
"Well, it shouldn't be too much longer. I'll put it in the dryer for you too."
"Thanks." Clark moved forward a step. "Lois? Are you all right? You sound...I don't know. Upset."
"No, I'm not all right," she said, shaking her head. "Clark was with me in the park tonight. I lost track of him when that firework went berserk and everyone starting running in every direction. I didn't see him at all when you and I were leaving the park. I thought for sure he'd be close by. He's not the type of guy to run off and leave his friends in harm's way. And now, I can't get him on the phone. He hasn't stopped by. I'm really worried about him."
"I'm sure he's okay," Clark tried to reassure her.
But Lois shook her head again. "I'm not so sure. He would have contacted me by now if he was okay. He might be hurt. Will you be okay here for a while without me? I want to run over to his place really fast to check on him."
"Lois, I'm not sure that's such a good idea," Clark said, shifting uncomfortably.
If she went to his place, she still wouldn't find him. And that would only upset her even further. He desperately didn't want her upset or worrying. But, the question was, how could he accomplish that? If she was truly that distressed about Clark, there was nothing he, as Superman, could say or do to allay her fears. Not until his powers came back and he could leave her apartment, only to return as Clark. And even if they came back, right that moment, he still couldn't leave until his suit was clean.
Lois finally turned to look at him. Her jaw hung open a moment as she took in the sight of him, only a fluffy, now damp, towel wrapped about him. Clark realized with a start that he'd neglected to slick down his hair after getting out of the shower. He'd been too preoccupied with his own thoughts. He desperately hoped she wouldn't notice.
"I, uh...wow," Lois breathed. "You look...I never imagined...I mean...you look really..." She babbled for a moment, as if unable to string together more than two or three words together coherently. "I mean, of course you are...but...and of course the suit comes off. But I never...wow."
"I'm sorry," Clark apologized, his face going crimson as he raked his hand through his hair. "I've made you uncomfortable."
"No, no," Lois quickly said. "It's just that...you look..."
Clark raised his eyebrows. "I think we've established that," he teased, unable to help himself. He gave her a lopsided smile, hoping to clear the air of some of the awkwardness that was threatening to settle like a thick blanket.
"...a lot like Clark," Lois finished, blinking as the realization hit. She looked as though the words had been a complete shock to her, as though she hadn't planned on saying that. "But that can't be. Unless..."
"Unless?" Clark asked, gulping hard and trying to hide it.
He crossed his arms before his bare chest, in an effort to cover up some of his exposed skin. Touching his hair had been a mistake, he belatedly realized. That had been a very un-Superman-like thing to do. In fact, it was all too familiar a habit for Clark Kent.
"Answer me something," Lois said, her eyes narrowing slightly. "And answer me truthfully."
Clark moved around the couch and sat in one of the armchairs. He leaned forward a bit, resting his elbows on his thighs. "Okay. You have my word."
"Why won't you let me go to Clark?"
"I...uh.." Clark stammered, racking his brain for a plausible excuse. He wasn't sure if she'd put the pieces together, and he wasn't in a rush to give her that final piece if he could avoid doing so.
"Is it because you know that I won't find him there?"
Clark nodded meekly, unable to find words. He barely felt himself make the movement. It was as if he were a puppet and some unseen person was pulling his strings, making him do things he wasn't even conscious of.
"And why is that?"
"Intuition?" he tried, in a feeble attempt to keep his secret intact and knowing that he was failing miserably.
"Or because maybe you are Clark?"
To Be Continued...
