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A Future Reborn - (Lois' Story III) - A 'Futures' Story
by Tank Wilson


Lois brushed an errant strand of hair out of her eyes. She dropped the file she'd been reading onto the coffee table in front of her and picked up another one. She glanced briefly over her shoulder. "Clark, how long does it take to warm up that pizza?"

The young man looked over and grinned at her. "It will be ready when it's ready. Patience is not your strong suit, is it, Lois."

Lois waved her hand in the air. "I don't have time for patience."

She snuck another glance at her junior partner. They'd been paired up for nearly three months now and as a reporter he was rounding into shape quite nicely. His natural instincts were coming to the fore, and his writing was improving with each story they worked on. He exhibited the same strength for the 'touchy - feely' type story that all Clark Kents seemed to possess. As in her own world, their contrasts worked to the advantage of their partnership.

She had to smile as she couldn't help but notice that he was looking better than ever also. He'd lost the blonde surfer look, and instead now looked like the young professional he was supposed to be. Lois had hinted that if he wanted people to take him seriously, that he'd have to look the part. Not only had he tamed his wild locks, but he dressed much better also. She felt he looked even better than before, but then he looked more like her own Clark, so perhaps she was prejudiced. Though Jenny didn't seem to mind the new look Clark.

The object of her attention strolled over and set the reheated remains of their earlier pizza order in front of her. He then set two glasses of cream soda on the table next to the pizza. "Okay, supper's on. Good thing we ordered an extra large. We got two meals out of it."

Lois took a bite, then a sip of her soda. "Yeah, well it pays to be prepared."

It was obvious to her that Clark had used a little heat vision to rewarm the pizza. She hadn't caught him doing it. He was very good at not letting anyone see him using his special abilities, but having lived with Clark as long as she had, she could tell. Clark's supervision must have some sort of microwave-like component to it because whenever he heated stuff up with his heat vision it reminded her of microwaved food. She grinned to herself. One day, she was going to catch him using his powers.

Which brought up another question which she didn't want to think about yet. What about Superman? She knew one of the reasons Wells dumped her into this world was the fact that this Clark needed a push to become Superman. He must have had it drilled into him from an early age that he must hide himself. She remembered her Clark telling her that his father used to warn him that, if he was ever found out he'd be locked away in a lab and dissected like a frog. It was a ridiculous notion, but one that could have a lasting effect on an impressionable young boy. Lois shook her head, to clear it of those thoughts. Superman was for another day. She still had Clark Kent, the reporter, to hone into shape.

She gave the now seated Clark a sidelong look. "Is this really okay with you? Working on the weekend, on your day off?"

Clark shrugged. "Hey, I knew that investigative reporting wasn't a normal nine to five when I started, though I'm only just beginning to realize how much of a commitment it really can be."

"Just if you want to be the best." Lois took another bite of pizza. "What about Jenny?" she asked between bites.

"What about her?"

It was Lois' turn to shrug. "Doesn't she mind that you are spending your day off working... with me?"

Clark grinned. "She probably would, except that she's not home. She's in Florida visiting her mother."

"So, she doesn't know that you're spending so much time alone with your sexy partner?"

Both Lois and Clark turned at the sound of the voice behind them. A large grin was on the face of Cat Grant as she entered the room. She flung her rap on a nearby chair, walked over and grabbed a piece of the pizza, and took a quick sip out of Lois' glass.

"No, that's okay," Lois said, grinning. "I was done with it anyway."

Cat slapped Clark on the back. "Hey, stud, how's it going?"

Clark blushed but quickly regained his composure. "Great. Lois and I are really making progress on this McReedy Plastics thing. We're pretty sure they're illegally dumping their waste products. We have a lot of circumstantial stuff. We just need to get something hard either in a picture or on tape. We're trying to decide who might be most likely to roll over on the company." His voice had gradually gained in animation as he spoke.

Cat laughed. "Really?" She laughed again at the befuddled look on Clark's face. "You know, if you keep spending so much time together you might damage Lois' reputation?"

"Caaat," Lois admonished. The note of warning in her voice was completely ignored by Cat.

"Well, you know what all those rumor mongers are saying." She strolled over and ran her finger along Lois' cheek. "That Lois and I are hot and heavy gay lovers."

"Catherine!"

Cat laughed harder at Lois' indignation. Clark frowned. "I know what those sleezeballs say, but I know it's not true." He looked hard at both Lois and Cat. "Is it?"

Lois swatted Cat's hand. She'd been playing with Lois' hair. "No, but what if it were?" Lois gave Clark a searching look. "Would it bother you?"

"I, I, no, I guess not," Clark finally managed to stammer. "I just think that Lois is, well, both of you, are beautiful women. Very feminine. I can't believe that some guy hasn't snapped the two of you up already."

"Mmmmm," Cat purred. "One guy, two women, kinda kinky." She gave Clark a crooked smile. "You volunteering?"

Clark blushed furiously. "No! I mean, I just... you know what I mean." He paused to take a breath. "It's just that the two of you don't look... ah, gay."

Lois had to hide the smirk that wanted to show on her face. "So, gay women have to be - what; big, hulking gals who wear flannel shirts, no make-up, and combat boots? That a woman can't be a complete person without some man by her side?"

Clark pursed his lips into a tight line. "That's not what I meant, but since you asked; I believe that all of us, be they man or woman, are meant to have a life partner. The one person, who does complete them. A person with whom they can become greater than the sum of the individual parts."

Cat snorted in a very unladylike manner. "Nice sentiment, but do you really believe that there exists someone for everyone. That we all have our individual 'soul mates'."

"I do." Lois' voice was barely a whisper, but Cat heard her and shot her a calculating look.

"I do too," Clark responded. He'd heard Lois' comment but not being privy to the things that Cat was, he didn't give it a second thought. "Besides." Clark gave Lois a stern look. "Didn't I hear some rumors about you and Perry being quite an item before you disappeared?"

Cat allowed her lips to curve into a big smile. She flopped down in a nearby chair and placed her chin in her hand. "Yes, Lois," she said, coyly. "What about that?"

"I think..." Lois sighed in exasperation. "That this topic has been exhausted. What was in the past, is past. Perry is my boss. I don't sleep with the boss." Lois stared daggers at Cat, almost daring her to say something else.

Cat chuckled and grabbed another piece of pizza. "Well, I guess I'd best leave you two hard working reporters to your story. I've got a date to get ready for."

Lois noticed the inquisitive look on Clark's face. "Don't even ask," she warned him. Clark snapped his attention back to Lois. "Let's get back to work."

*******************

Lois sat at her desk still shuffling through her and Clark's notes on McReedy Plastics. She had come in early this Monday morning, but slowly the newsroom had come to life, to the point where now it was the typical barely contained chaos that it usually was. She couldn't keep the smile off her face. She'd really missed this.

She glanced over at Clark's desk and frowned. He wasn't in yet. It was well past nine, yet the young man hadn't made his appearance yet. She was wondering what could be keeping him when a newstory on the bullpen's television caught her eye. She got up and walked over to the set. Reaching up, she turned up the volume so she could hear what the TV Barbie had to say.

"... and so, to recap. A certain disaster was averted today at the West Central Subway Station. A speeding train, whose brakes had apparently failed, blew past the station toward an imminent collision with another train which had pulled out just minutes before." The blonde blow dry indicated the station platform behind her with a negligent wave of her hand. "But miraculously, the out of control train came to a screeching halt just inches away from the other. How it stopped in time, the conductor had no idea. I guess somebody on that train had a powerful good luck charm working for them. Back to you, Myron."

"More likely, a do-gooder alien," Lois muttered under her breath as she turned the sound back down. At least she now knew why Clark was late.

Just then Perry leaned out of his office. "Lois, where's Clark?"

"Ah, he's out checking on a source for our latest story. He should be back anytime now." She lied, but then she'd had plenty of practice in the old days.

Perry frowned briefly, then nodded. "Okay. Well, as soon as he gets back I want you two to head over to EPRAD. There's supposed to be some big news conference in about an hour."

Lois waved at her boss. "We're on it, Chief."

She went back to her desk. She wondered what the EPRAD news conference was going to be about. She quickly punched up the Daily Planet database and keyworded 'Nightfall'. There was no mention of the rogue asteroid in any of the past Daily Planets. That meant that it was never a story on this world, or... it just hadn't happened yet. Could that be what this conference was going to be about? Had the potential planet-killing rock finally showed up?

The sound of a throat clearing caught Lois' attention. "Ah, Ms. Lane, if I may have a word?"

Lois looked up. "Nigel?" she said, surprised to see the elder aide-de-camp standing next to her desk. He hadn't changed much. He looked older, but then so did she. A bit thinner perhaps, but for the most part, nearly the same.

He gave her a puzzled look in return. "I don't remember it, but have we met previously, Ms. Lane?"

Oops, Lois thought. Got to be careful. Obviously the Lois Lane of this world has never met the ubiquitous Mr. St. John. "Ah, no... no, we haven't. I think I saw you and your name mentioned in an article about Lex Luthor recently." Lois gave him a weak smile. "You do work for Lex Luthor, don't you."

Nigel St. John didn't look convinced, but let it slide. "Yes, I do. Mr. Luthor would like the pleasure of your company for an early brunch, at his penthouse. He feels there are matters of mutual interest that need discussing."

Lois leaned back in her chair. She didn't know what this was all about. Unfortunately, that seemed to be a problem she was continually having ever since she was dumped into this world. She'd been confronted with one perplexing situation after another with no clue as to what her part was supposed to be in it. It was getting quite annoying. And now she was going to have to deal with this world's Lex Luthor. A prospect she wasn't looking forward to.

Did this world's Lois have any history with Lex Luthor? Had they dated, like she had before she had found out what kind of slug he was? Actually, she didn't even know if the Lex Luthor of this world was a criminal. But she'd bet that he was.

"Ah, when did Mr. Luthor want me?"

St. John gave her an indulgent smile. "Now would be good." He glanced up toward Perry's office. "I'm sure your editor wouldn't mind."

"What's up?" While her attention had been distracted by Nigel, Clark had come up and was standing on the other side of Lois' desk.

Lois looked at Clark, then at Nigel, then back to Clark. She bent over and scribbled something on a scrap of paper. "I've got to go out for a bit. I've an interview with Lex Luthor. If Perry's asks, that is where I'll be."

"Okay, but what do you want me to do?" Clark looked suspiciously at St. John.

She shoved the slip of paper into Clark's hand. "There's a news conference going to start soon at EPRAD. You have to go there and find out what's going on. We'll compare notes once I'm back."

Lois grabbed her coat from the back of her chair and turned back to St. John. "Shall we go?"

Clark watched her move up the ramp toward the elevator, accompanied by the old gent. Frowning, he unfolded the paper that Lois had given him. It had been scrawled quickly but was still readable. It said; 'Find Prof. Daitch get the REAL scoop'.

Clark looked back toward the elevator, but Lois and the other man were already gone. Shrugging, he reached down and grabbed his notebook and his recorder. Might as well head over to EPRAD now.

******************

Clark Kent sat, stunned, in his chair at the EPRAD news conference. While the other reporters were running for the phones, or taxis, Clark sat, unmoving in place. He couldn't believe what he'd heard. An asteroid was heading in the general direction of the earth. A large one. What had professor Daitch called it? Oh, yeah, Nightfall.

All the other reporters were hustling to get the story in to their respective papers or stations, but Clark just sat there. He remembered Lois' note. He should be trying to corner Daitch and find out the real scoop. What did she mean by that? Did Lois have some prior knowledge of this? How could she? Well, he wasn't going to find out anything by sitting here wondering. He stood up and, using a little 'special' help located the Professor in a room near the back of the complex.

As he got closer to the room in question, Clark 'overheard' Daitch talking to a couple of other men. The military man was a highly decorated general and the other civilian was addressed as Mr. Secretary. So Clark held back, knowing that a very important conversation was going on.

"No, General, there is no doubt in my mind," said a voice that obviously belonged to Daitch. "All my calculations point to a direct impact with earth. The results of such a collision would be catastrophic."

"What is the timetable, and how catastrophic are we talking here, Professor?" Clark had switched on his 'vision gizmo' as he sometimes called it, and was watching the three men as well as listening. It had been the Secretary who had spoken.

Professor Daitch looked grave. "Nightfall should enter our atmosphere in a little over six days. It's big enough such that it could mean the end of life as we know it on this planet, Mr. Secretary."

The Secretary turned to the short, robust military man. "What are our options, General?"

"As we speak, we are preparing our most powerful rocket. We will outfit it with a nuclear payload greater than any the world has yet seen. We are confident that, once Nightfall is close enough, we can launch the rocket and blow the giant rock out of the sky."

Clark couldn't help but notice the skepticism on Professor Daitch's face. The Secretary seemed caught up in his own thoughts for a few moments as he nodded. "And what about the danger of fallout?" The Secretary, again addressed the General. "I assume that there will be some?"

The General frowned. "Yes, I'm afraid there is a definite danger of a fair amount of fallout, but it's a risk we'll have to take. What choice do we have?"

The Secretary nodded again. "Okay, but we all agree that we must keep the calamitous nature of this coming collision a secret. We must publicly continue to minimize the severity of our dilemma, until the President can unveil the military's solution to the world." The Secretary paused, then placed his hand on the General's sleeve. "What if your rocket should miss? Do we have time to set up and launch another?"

The General's lips formed into a tight line. "Given how narrow the window of opportunity for this shot is, I'd have to say, no."

"Then we'd best get it right the first time."

Clark quickly backed around the corner as the three men exited the room. His mind was spinning from what's he'd heard. The press conference had been merely a smoke screen to explain to everyone the coming occasional solar eclipses, and the growing light that people were going to see in the night sky in the coming days. But nowhere in the conference had the Professor detailed the actual danger that the earth faced. He'd merely reassured everyone that the matter was under continual scrutiny, but that there was really no need for any concern at this time.

It had been a lie. Clark's emotions warred with themselves. How could they keep this from the general public? Didn't they have a right to know? But, then, what would be served by telling the people that the world could be coming to an end? Would it just serve to fuel a panic that would be counter-productive to arriving at a solution to the problem?

Apparently the military did have a plan in progress to address the situation. Maybe the President was just waiting till that was fully ready before telling everyone. Then he could present the problem and the solution all in one fell swoop, and avoid any unnecessary panic.

Still, the solution that Clark overheard was a dicey one at best. It had sounded like they would have to let the asteroid get real close in order to have a good chance of shooting it down, if that even made any sense in this context. The General had made it very clear that they probably would only have one chance at destroying Nightfall. And even if they did succeed in blowing the rock to pieces, what about those pieces? Would they all be small enough to burn up in the atmosphere? Or would several of them be large enough to strike the ground, causing untold damage and suffering? And there still was the manner of the nuclear fallout. What about that? What effect would that have on the unsuspecting planet?

Clark was a jumble of confusion and fears as he slowly made his way out of the building and headed back toward the Daily Planet. This story was big! Maybe too big to keep to himself. It would definitely be the scoop of a lifetime, but there were other issues here. More important issues than just the public's right to know. This wasn't just about a great headline. This was about survival. The survival of the world as they knew it.

It didn't set well with him, but Clark decided, for the time being, that he'd have to go along with the President on this one. But what amazed him even more was... how had Lois known?

*******************

Lois glanced around the sumptuous penthouse anteroom nervously. She didn't like going into a situation without some idea of what it was about, and why she was here - she had no clue. A quick survey of the outer rooms confirmed they were quite similar to the penthouse that she'd been in on her own world. There were some slight differences. She wasn't sure, but she thought that the wallpaper was different; and the fireplace was on the opposite wall... or maybe it wasn't. It had been several years since she'd been in the LexTower penthouse.

"Lois, so good of you to come." Lex waltzed in and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. "And may I just say that I'm so glad that you have finally come back to us. All of Metropolis is overjoyed that you are back." Lex placed his arm around Lois and led her into the dining room. "We are all glad that the reports of your death were greatly exaggerated."

Lois peered up at the billionaire. There were some streaks of gray in the curly brown hair, and a few more crow's feet about the eyes, but he definitely looked like Lex Luthor.

As Lex pulled out a chair for her, Lois had to admit that he put on a nice spread. The table was laden with dish after dish of delightful-smelling fare. A suddenly growling stomach reminded her that she hadn't eaten any breakfast, and not much of a dinner the night before. Whatever Lex wanted, Lois was going to enjoy eating at his buffet.

Lois quickly sampled several of the offered culinary delights. She grinned at Lex's strange look. "Sorry, I guess I was more hungry than I thought."

Lex chuckled. "That's quite all right, Lois. But please, if you can between bites, tell me your incredible story. Whatever happened to you for ten years?"

Lois swallowed a bit of strawberry crepe. Well, she had known that this would be coming; time to go into her act again. So, between bites, as it were, she told Lex the story she had prepared for this world. It was essentially the same story that she told Perry, complete with her near death experience and the long ten year climb back from amnesia.

Lex ate very little. Instead he kept his attention riveted onto Lois. A tiny smile played at the corners of his mouth. Finally Lois had exhausted her story. She took a sip of water and was a bit uneasy at the look on Lex's face.

"A truly incredible story, Lois. The amnesia part is inspired," Lex began.

"Inspired? I'm not sure what you mean, Mr. Luthor." Lois was beginning to have a bad feeling.

"Mr. Luthor? My, how formal. Really, Lois, after our history together?"

Lois put down her glass. "Our history?" She gave Lex her best apologetic smile. "Look, Lex, I told you I had amnesia, and unfortunately, I still have many blanks in my memory."

Lex frowned. "Save the fairy tale for children and the naive." His voice, for the first time, betrayed more than a hint of anger. "You know why I asked you here. I would have thought that I'd have been one of your first contacts once you returned." Lex stood and paced on his side of the table. "Now, you feed me this cock and bull story about having amnesia and being cared for by some kindly nuns in a remote Congo mission."

Lois stood. She knew her only defense was to go on offense. "I don't care for your tone... *Mr. Luthor*, but I won't stay here another minute to be insulted by your accusations." She turned to stalk out of the room. She didn't turn around as she heard Luthor hurl more words after her.

"I don't know what you're playing at Ms. Lane, but be advised that Lex Luthor doesn't take kindly to being betrayed. We will settle accounts, believe it."