Clark and Lois – Two Universes - Matchmaker Chronicle Volume 7 13/32
By Ken Janney
Rating PG-13
Disclaimers: The characters in this story are property of DC, December 3rd productions and Warner Bros. No Copyright infringement is intended. I have just borrowed the characters for a short time.
This particular story takes place after Lois and Clarks.
* * denotes emphasis
< > denotes thoughts
(#) footnotes
/ “denotes telepathic communication”/
[ playback of a recording or TV Commentary]For reference purposes the following will hold true throughout.
Universal Locator Designation
Alpha 023 x Gamma 004 x Tau -120 – Canon Lois and Clark universe also called – Prime
Alpha 023 x Gamma 025 x Tau 036 – Canon Alt Clark universe also called – Alt 1
Alpha -120 x Gamma 255 x Tau -190 – Common name – Alt 2
As always comments are welcome. (ken.janney@kjanney.com)
Previously:
They hadn’t planned on how to proceed with this. Clark had decided that he would have to wing it. “You are correct Sam. It is something that happened later. We had decided to keep it a secret, sort of a surprise to spring at the proper time. This wasn’t supposed to happen.” Turning to Pete he said, “That box, how old is it?”
“That tackle box? It’s ancient. It belongs to Wayne Irig."
“It must be painted with lead based paint. That’s why it didn’t affect me. The lid was between me and the Kryptonite. Lois was in direct line of exposure. That’s what knocked her out. She is fully Kryptonian which means she has all of my powers, but she also has my weakness. Kryptonite can kill us, both of us.”
In the silence which followed this statement, you could hear the click as Pete finally threw the latch on the tackle box. Feeling remorse at his unintentional injury of Lois, Pete stammered, “I didn’t know.” It suddenly hit him, “If I had shown that rock to you … that could have been you there! This is just great! What a mess. What can we do?”
“In the barn you’ll find some bailing wire. Use some of it to wind around the tackle box so that it won’t open accidentally and then bring it back.”
Pete went off on his errand returning shortly with the box wrapped like a mummy in the bailing wire. Pete was not one to go by half measures. He said, “Here you go. What do you plan to do with it?”
Putting out his hand, Clark said, “If I may?”
After Pete handed the wrapped box to him, Clark took two paces away and hurled the box up and out of the atmosphere into space, never to return.
A few minutes later Lois stirred on the lounge. As she opened her eyes she said, “I’m sorry. It must have been too much sun.”
Clark was kneeling at her side with her hand in his. He said, “It’s okay, Honey, they know.”
With a questioning look she asked, “They know? What do they know?”
“They know that I’ve made you a Kryptonian so that we could be together.”
Realizing that this was the story that he had invented to cover what had happened and still conceal the truth she went along with it. “Oh darn. You mean that we’ve spoiled the surprise?”
He said, “I think we can trust them to keep the secret. After all, this is all family.”
Everyone expressed their agreement with this so Lois nodded and said, “Yeah, I guess you’re right. If we can’t trust them, who can we trust?”
“How are you feeling?”
“Still a little rocky. It never gets any easier, does it?”
“No, and from what Pete said it was a large piece of crystalline green Kryptonite, the worst kind. Why don’t you stay here on the lounge, we can bring over some more chairs and we can all sit around and talk.”
With a look of appreciation she said, “That would be nice. We need to decide if Lana is going to make it a triple wedding.”
Jack and Denny had been far enough away that they were entirely unaware of what had happened to Lois and the decision to keep them in the dark was a natural one.
The rest of the day was spent in the sun so that Lois could recover, eating Bar-B-Q and talking. Jack and Denny joined in the eating, but headed out on their own when the grown-ups started talking. No one was surprised when Clark waited on Lois, bringing her whatever she asked for. Since her exposure had been brief, Lois recovered quickly, but Clark was still worried about her reaction to the rock. Somehow it just didn’t seem right. She shouldn’t have reacted that severely to that brief an exposure. He decided that they would have to talk it over later. This was a mystery and a concern which had him worried.
Clark pulled Pete aside and asked, “Pete, I’ve been thinking. If this piece of Kryptonite has shown up there is probably more around. I’m going to need some help in finding and disposing of any more that might be lying around. Growing up I was only on the farm for the first ten years. After I went into the foster care system I was on the other side of town most of the time. If there is more around, on this side of town I might not have known about it. Now that you know what it looks like, maybe you could get some of the other guys, like Billy Eck and Rachel’s brother, Charlie, to help look for more and dispose of it. By the way, how are Rachel and Billy? I haven’t seen Rachel since I took her to the prom.”
“Well, you do know that Rachel was elected sheriff when her dad retired. She got her degree in criminology about the same time you graduated from Journalism school. She married Billy a couple of years ago. They seem to be happy together. He runs the feed store in town now, took over the management when his father retired. I’ll contact them on Monday and see what we can do.”
The possibility existed that with each exposure she was becoming more sensitive, though that had not been the case with him. If anything he had been able to handle that exposure to crystalline Kryptonite during that fake mugging better than he had that time when Tempus had exposed him to that large piece of non-crystalline Kryptonite. As he was thinking about it he started getting even more concerned. Even when he was exposed to that large chunk by Tempus it hadn’t knocked him out the way it had Lois. Maybe there was something to the old saying, ‘The Weaker Sex’, but no, Lois was every bit as fast as he was and short of pressing neutronium barbells there was no way to determine if there was a significant difference in their strength. This was going to require more thought. In the mean time he was going to take as good care of her as was possible.
And Now:
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Chapter 11 – The Kryptonite Detector
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Universal Locator Designation
Alpha 023 x Gamma 025 x Tau 036 - Local designation – Alt 1
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
After a while they decided to split up, so while the girls talked about the plans for the triple wedding, Pete, Sam, James and Clark all piled into Pete’s car and headed over to the Irig farm. When they drove up Wayne came out to greet them. Recognizing Pete and Clark as they stepped out of the car he started to smile. He said, “Hi Pete, hey Clark. I haven’t seen you since you first got back with your new wife. How is she?”
“Hi Wayne, she’s fine. We left her with her sister and Lana discussing wedding plans.”
“Wedding plans. Who’s getting married?”
Clark, James and Pete all started to laugh. Seeing Wayne’s puzzled expression, Clark finally said, “That’s a long story. Let me introduce Sam Lane, my father-in-law and James Olsen, my future brother-in-law. James just got engaged to Lois’ sister Lucy.” Turning to Pete he asked, “Do you want to do the honors?”
Pete was still laughing so he said, “Nah, you go ahead. You’re doing a good job.”
“Okay, well, Wayne, Pete and Lana Lang are now engaged.”
Wayne started to smile and turning to Pete said, “Well, congratulations. I always thought that you and Lana made a better couple than Lana and Clark, but I never woulda said anything.”
Pete said, “Thanks Wayne.”
Clark continued, “Lois decided that she wanted a church wedding so we were planning a double wedding, but now it’s going to be a triple. I think we are going to have it here in Smallville and you’re invited, but that’s not why we came over.”
“Oh, what brings you over this way?”
“That rock you gave Pete. Where did you find it and is there any more?”
“Oh, that thing!” He pointed to a side yard and a tree that was lying on its side, partially cut up, with a ball of dirt still attached to the roots. “You see that tree? That tree was planted in 1966. After all these years it suddenly decided that it was tired of standing up. I found that rock in the hole that tree left when it fell over. I sent a chunk to Wichita to see if they could tell me what it was and if it is valuable. I haven’t heard back from them yet.”
“Wayne, it is very important for you to tell me if there is any more.”
“Nah, except for the chunk I sent off to the lab, what I gave Pete was the whole thing.” Wayne got a hopeful look as he asked, “Why, is it valuable?”
Clark thought, <I got rid of this sample, but there was the piece that Wayne had sent to the lab in Wichita? I’ll have to see about recovering that.> Clark in a very serious tone replied, “No, Wayne, it isn’t valuable, to anyone other than criminal elements, but it *is* dangerous … dangerous to me. It is a remnant of my home planet and it can kill me.”
Wayne had a stricken look as he said, “I … I didn’t know. How could I?”
“No, Wayne, I’m not accusing you of anything. Please, don’t get upset. I just needed to know if you found any more.”
“No, I didn’t, but now I’ll be on the lookout for it. What should I do with it if I find any more?”
“Do you have a lead lined box or any lead based paint?”
“Sure, I’ve got buckets of lead based paint. I use it on all of my metal equipment, even that old tackle box I had the rock in. Keeps it from rusting.”
“Good, if you find any more, give it a couple of coats of lead based paint and bring it over and put it in my barn. I’ll have a box with a lid on it that you can put it in. Thanks Wayne, I really appreciate it.”
They took their leave of Wayne. As they headed for the car and before they got in Clark said, “Pete, let’s swing by Shuster’s field.”
“Why do you want to go over there, Buddy?”
“Before my folks died in that accident, Dad told me that they found me in Shuster’s field. It’s pretty close to Wayne’s place. If he found that meteor rock on his property and Mom and Dad found me at Shuster’s it would be logical to think there might be more in that area. I’d like to do a quick check.”
“Are you sure you want to do that Clark? After what happened to Lois, wouldn’t that be a risky move?”
“I just want to walk around a bit. I can feel the pain it causes before it becomes dangerous.”
“Okay, if you say so, but I don’t want to have to explain it if we have to carry you back to the farm, unconscious.”
Laughing, Clark replied, “Don’t worry Pete. I’ll take full responsibility.”
Sam asked, “Why don’t we see if we can borrow a can of lead based paint from Mr. Irig before we go?”
Pete said, “Now, why didn’t I think of that.”
Clark said, “Thanks Sam! That’s a good idea.” Raising his voice he called, “Wayne, can we borrow a can of you lead based paint? I have a hunch that it may come in handy.”
With a laugh Wayne asked, “Do you have a color preference?”
Clark replied “No, whatever you have the most of will be fine.”
“I can spare some red. Hold on, I’ll get it for you.”
Wayne retrieved a can of paint and handed it to Pete who put it into the trunk. He said, “Thanks, Wayne. We’ll return what we don’t use when we’re done.”
“Nah, don’t bother. I’ve got plenty. Keep a hold of it.”
Clark said, “Thanks Wayne, we’ll put it to good use, count on it.”
They all climbed into the car and Pete drove off. In short order they were at Shuster’s field. Pete parked and they climbed the fence to get into the field.
Clark pointed toward a stand of trees and said, “Dad said that they found my ship over in that copse. Let’s start the search over there.” Clark started off in that direction and the others followed.
Pete said, “Wait a minute. Let me get the paint.” Pete returned to the car and got the paint out of the trunk and looked around for a screwdriver. Since he couldn’t find one he finally used his lug wrench to remove the lid. Once this was done he rejoined the party.
Clark said, “This is really the first time I’ve been here. When I was growing up Old man Shuster kept his stud bull in this field. You remember, Pete! We were all afraid of that bull.”
Pete was nodding his head, “Yeah, he was a mean one, wasn’t he?””
As they were entering the copse Clark noticed a scar, like a gouge in the turf. It was over a dozen feet long and about four feet wide. He said, “This must be where the ship landed. I’m surprised that the marks are still here.”
Pete answered, “At that time of the year there wasn’t much rain. The grass probably grew and kept the dirt from being washed into the cleft before any heavy rains happened.”
“You could be right.” Clark started to wander around. He followed the trench to its end and then climbed out of it and started to circle. He was about fifteen feet away and to the right when he started to feel a tingle. He said, “I thought so.”
Pete picked up on that and asked, “Where?”
“Not sure yet. Let me see …” Clark lifted off and hovered at about fifty feet. He used his x-ray vision to scan the area. Spotting a chunk of meteor he switched to heat vision and applied just enough to wilt the foliage around the spot.
Pete was first on the scene and he scuffed around with the toe of his boot until he uncovered the rock. He dropped it into the lead paint and Clark landed again.
Pete said, “That worked out pretty well. I think all we would need would be some hand towels or small shovels. I have some small tools back at the house. Why don’t we do it this way; you do your spotting from overhead and mark the spots the same way. I don’t think that we should devote too much time to this today. If you mark the spots, I can get the gang together and we can come out and collect them, later.”
Clark started flying around again. Following this same procedure they found five more pieces of various sizes. The paint bucket which had been half full was now threatening to spill over so they decided to call it a day.
On the way back to the car, Pete said, “All in all, I’d say this was a good day’s work. That’s six less pieces of poison to bother you in the world.”
“Yeah, but just how many more are there out there that we didn’t find?”
Sam said, “We covered the area around your landing site pretty thoroughly. How much more could there be?”
Clark ran his fingers through his hair as he replied, “We really don’t know. This is just one area. That other piece came from Wayne’s side yard. There could be pieces of that rock scattered all over between here and there.”
Pete put his hand on Clark’s shoulder and said, “Don’t worry. You have a lot of friends here in Smallville. I’ll get everyone I can to help look for this stuff. Now that I know what to look for, we’ll gather up as much as we can. We’ll start on Monday.”
“You guys head on back. I’ll mark as many as I can and meet you back at the farm.”
They climbed back into the car and returned to the Kent Farm where the girls had the wedding all planned. They had even called the pastor of the local church and scheduled his services for the following month.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
The day was spent and evening was coming on. The boys were called in and encouraged to spend some time studying. This time James took a part with Lucy overseeing their homework.
One of the subjects that Jack was taking was a basic computer science class. While Lucy worked with Denny, James and Jack moved into another room so that they wouldn’t be disturbing them. James started asking questions to find out just how much Jack was learning. Once he was sure he had a handle on it he started giving Jack the benefit of his knowledge and experience taking him beyond what he had been taught. James borrowed Lois’ laptop to teach Jack some things which he picked up rapidly, demonstrating an aptitude for working on computers. After a couple of hours Jack had grasped a number of advanced concepts.
As they were finishing up James asked, “Jack, how would you like to spend an hour or so each day with me going over computer technology? I think that within a short time I could have you ready to pass any computer test your school could put in front of you. You do that and I will move you up from gofer to research assistant. Would you like a promotion?”
Jack was stunned, “Gee, would I! You mean it? Sure, I mean yes, I’d really appreciate it.”
“We can start right away. Tell you what, bring a lunch and join me in my office each day at Noon. We’ll go from Noon to 1 P.M.”
Jack said, “I don’t know how to thank you.”
Smiling James said, “You can thank me by learning and doing a good job for me.”
“You can count on me Mr. Olsen.”
“I know I can Jack. I like your attitude. You’re a good kid. I’m glad Clark brought you in.”
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Later that evening alone in their bedroom Clark and Lois were cuddling on their bed. Clark said, “I’m surprised that that brief exposure, even to crystalline green Kryptonite hit you so hard. There has to have been something else. We both know it wasn’t the sun.”
Lois snuggled deeper into his arms and said, “I think it happened in Hawaii that time after the safe incident.”
“What, what happened? I don’t remember anything. Did something happen while I was asleep?”
“No, remember what we did after you woke up?”
“Yeah, we had pizza.”
“And?”
“And … we made … love.” Suddenly he pulled back so that he could look her straight in the face as he asked, “You mean?”
She nodded in mute agreement as a smile slowly formed on her face.
“I’m speechless! How long have you known?”
“I couldn’t be sure. I tried one of those home test kits, but they are based on Earth human hormones. Every time I tried one it came back negative. All I know is that I’ve just missed my second period.”
“So, you think you are what ten or twelve weeks?”
Lois nodded, “Yes, between ten and twelve weeks now. That’s why I asked you to go a little easy on my breasts the last time. They’re kinda tender.”
“What are you going to do about an OB/GYN?”
“How can I go to a regular doctor? She would find out I’m super.”
“But, what if there are problems?”
“I’m going to trust you, my husband, to study up on how to deliver a baby.”
“I’ve been meaning to take an Emergency Medicine course. Because of all the injuries I have to deal with, I’d feel better if I knew how to handle injured people without aggravating their injuries. I think delivering babies is included in those courses.”
“I’d feel better if you could help in some real deliveries.”
“Pick an OB/GYN and I’ll approach them and make arrangements to do just that. I’ll just be honest. I want to learn so that if I’m on a rescue and need to do a delivery, I’ll know how to do it right.”
Lois smiled and cuddled back into his arms with one hand on his chest before she asked, “Did you ever think that one day you’d be a Papa?”
He replied with a question, “Remember the canoli? You told me then that you were willing, I just didn’t know it would happen this soon, if ever.” She couldn’t see his face because she had snuggled into his chest, but if she had been able to see his face she would have seen the biggest grin ever. He said, “This is incredible! I’m going to be a father. I’m going to have a family, not just a wife that I love.” He pushed her upright so that he could look into her eyes as he said, “You are incredible; stupendous … there aren’t enough superlatives. I can’t tell you how much I love you.” He had started weeping.
Lois cuddled back against him as she said, “You’re not so bad yourself, handsome. I love you.”
“You’re going to be one terrific mom, a super mom, in more ways than one.”
Lois murmured, “I hope so. I’ve never done this before, but, I have two good role models, my mom and yours. I couldn’t ask for better. I just hope I can be half as good.”
“Any idea how soon?”
“No, we’re in uncharted territory. We don’t know how long a Kryptonian woman carries a baby. It could be shorter or longer than an Earth mother. At this point I’d guess longer. I mean, look at me. I’m possibly twelve weeks and I’m not starting to show yet. We’ll just have to wait and see.”
“So, you think it was because of your condition that the Kryptonite is hitting you this way? Obviously the baby is drawing on your body’s resources as it grows. That must be why. This green K today was the crystalline form and it knocked you out immediately. How were you able to handle the Kryptonite at the house?”
“I don’t know. Somehow it didn’t affect me the way that crystalline form did. What is the difference?”
“Well, that piece started out as a different substrate. I remember that when Tempus used it on me, I was in a lot of pain, but it didn’t knock me out the way the crystalline form does. I guess it did hit you harder than it did me. When you were finished with it you were out. It *must* be related to your condition. It must make you more susceptible. We’re going to have to be more careful. Besides, we don’t know how it would affect the baby.”
“I don’t think we should tell anyone. There’s no need in worrying them unnecessarily.”
“Yeah, Pete feels bad enough as it is. We need to make a trip back to see my folks. We need to let them know. Mom is going to be thrilled.”
“I think Jonathan will be happy too.” As soon as she finished this statement she yawned.
Clark cradled Lois in his arms until she finally fell asleep. He continued to lie awake with thoughts of Lois and their future child. Since he had lost the Kents at age ten he had almost given up on the thought of family. Then he had started dating Lana. That was unsatisfying, but it still represented family and the fulfillment of his desires. Then Lois had entered his life. Her drive and energy and especially her acceptance of him and what he was, taught him what he really wanted and needed, but then she had left. He had searched for and finally with Herb’s help he had found his Lois only to have her die, almost literally, in his arms. Then Herb had proposed this mission, to find this Lois and he had finally found true fulfillment in her arms. When they had wed he was the happiest he had ever been and didn’t think it would be possible to be any happier, but now … now they were going to have a child! Not an adopted child, but flesh of his and Lois’ flesh and blood of his and Lois’ own blood. Now he knew the ultimate joy. He drifted off to sleep with that thought.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
The next day Clark ferried Sam home before picking up the luggage and taking it to the brownstone. He took Lucy first, then Jack and Denny. Before they had locked up the house Clark took James back. When he returned Lois flew under her own power. They flew high enough to be out of sight from the ground until they were near Metropolis and then Lois smoothly flew into his arms and he carried her, the rest of the way to a landing.
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