Beyond Smallville: Fan Fiction

Relative

Clark Kent hurriedly cleaned the house. Sometimes super speed had its advantages. He'd been on his own running the Kent Farm since his mother Martha had moved to Washington DC to assume her national Senatorial seat. He'd sent Kara upstairs to clean up and find some clothes. In Clark's mind, he'd suddenly been thrown into a big brotherly/concerned parent role. The young superhero had just completed his teens, as near as they could figure. Now he was unofficially the permanent guardian of another teen. The doorbell rang as Clark finished mopping the floor.

He answered. "Jimmy? What're you doing here?" The eighteen-year old photojournalist wanna bee glanced just beyond Clark's six foot four frame. "I've been trying to contact Chloe on her cell phone. I haven't gotten an answer. I figured maybe she'd turned it off or something." Clark felt really awkward.

Jimmy Olsen was going out with Chloe for a few months now, and he was well aware of her more than passing interest in Clark. Chloe and Clark had known each other for several years. "I hope you don't mind…" Jimmy continued into the uncomfortable silence. "I…uh…lifted your address and phone number from Chloe's PDA." Clark waved him off. "Sure. It's no big deal. Chloe's not here." Jimmy fidgeted in the doorway. Clark sighed. "Come on in."

"Aren't you supposed to be at Metropolis University?" He asked. "Yeah CK, but being a freshman at the U. sucks. I mean who wants to sit around and watch overgrown teenagers drink brews until they puke?" Clark grimaced. "I see your point. I spent a horrific semester there, a couple of years ago. Anyway, you could've simply called to see if she was here." Clark added as Jimmy followed him in. "I know, but I thought if you two…I mean you're always going off on these inexplicable adventures…" He stammered. "Jimmy, we discussed that already…"

Kara bounding down the stairs two and three at a time wearing nothing but a sky blue bath towel interrupted Clark. Her long wet blonde hair splattered water everywhere. Her superior hearing had picked up the conversation and curiosity had gotten the best of her. She used a fraction of her super speed to zip beside the boys.

Clark groaned. "Whoa CK!" Jimmy's eyes lit up. "You're the man! I'm sorry I …" Clark reddened. "Jimmy, this is my cousin Kara from…uh…California." He stuttered. "Cousin?" Jimmy grinned lustily. "Is that even legal in Kansas?" Clark frowned. "Jimmy!" The young photojournalist threw his hands up in resignation. "I know, I'm sorry! Poor choice of words! See what I mean, the guys at Met U are a bad influence on me." Kara cocked her head, dripping water onto the carpet.

Jimmy extended a hand. Kara mimicked the gesture, letting the towel fall towards the floor. Clark used his super speed to pick up the towel and hand it to Kara in the blink of an eye, and Jimmy was none the wiser. Kara smiled brightly. "Pleased to meet you." Jimmy flushed. "That's quite a grip you've got there." He remarked as his hand swelled up. He shook it loose from Kara's grasp.

"So, you're new in town?" Jimmy asked pleasantly. Clark hadn't fully explained to Kara that they were supposed to keep their identities a secret. "Yes, she just flew in this morning." Clark said, amusing himself with his witty remark. "Kara, you didn't find anything to wear upstairs?"

"No. Just your stuff." She replied. Jimmy raised one eyebrow. "They lost her luggage at the airport." Clark lied convincingly. He guided Jimmy over to the kitchen counter, where they sat on some stools. Kara was at their heel, visibly sniffing the air. Human boys smell different, she mused, like some kind of freshly cut flowers, it was kind of nice. Kara was uncomfortably close to Jimmy.

Clark sighed. In the nick of time, his super hearing picked up Lois's car skidding to a stop, scattering pebbles in every direction. Within seconds, Lois was out of the car and storming toward the yellow and brown Kent farmhouse. "Geez Lois, wait up!" Chloe complained, still a bit dizzy from her ordeal. "I haven't seen you move that fast, since they had a two for one cocktail hour at Murphy's Pub across the street from the Daily Planet."

Lois vaulted up the antique wraparound porch leading to the Kent front door. Clark had already opened it, as Lois slipped across the threshold. "Jimmy?" Chloe was surprised as she followed her elder cousin in. "Hi sweetie." He said innocently.

Lois was stopped dead in her tracks. Kara glanced at her blankly. "Uh…Kara…didn't you bring any clothes?" The alien teen shrugged. "You know what that means, don't you, Smallville?" Lois asked. "We have to take her shopping!" Clark put his hand on his forehead. "Swell."

Chloe laughed heartily. "I better call your Aunt Martha." Clark directed his comment at Kara. She beamed. I have a family again, albeit a smaller one, Kara thought. "For now, you'll have to make due with Clark's…ahem…wardrobe." Lois smirked. "Come on!" Lois grabbed Kara by the hand and attempted to take her back upstairs. Naturally the alien girl was too dense and heavy to be moved. Clark gestured for her to go with Lois. The teen grinned at Jimmy one more time and left.

Chloe let out a breath. "I guess you'd better make that call." She urged. Translation: Jimmy and I need to talk. Clark nodded and flipped open his cell phone, as he casually walked into the den. Jimmy shifted uneasily. "What's up?" He carefully prodded. "I tried calling you, but you didn't answer." Chloe realized that in all the commotion, what with dying and all, that she'd lost it.

Clark sat on the arm of the couch. "Senator Kent please…this is her son, Clark…I'll hold." Meanwhile, Lois, always looking for an angle to a story, took the opportunity to grill Kara. She dug into Clark's closet, and pulled out a white tee shirt, blue sweat pants, and white socks for the young alien, handing them to her. "I guess you'll have to go sans underwear for now." Kara dressed in the blink of an eye, amazing Lois. "Wow! I wish I could do that! I'd never be late for work."

Kara enjoyed the attention that Lois was giving her. She'd been alone for sixteen years, though she hadn't realized it. Lois rummaged around in her purse for a hairbrush, and began combing the tangles out of Kara's long blonde locks. The alien sat on the edge of the bed.

 Lois wouldn't admit it, but she missed her younger sister, Lucy, who was away in Europe, presumably in a great German school. "Kara, why are you here?" She pried. "Well, my father Zor El and mother, Kala, sent me here from Krypton to save me, and to watch over Kal." The alien replied, using Clark's real name. "Kal?" Lois repeated. "He calls himself Clark. I still don't understand why." Kara continued.

"Is he ashamed of me? Of all of us?" Lois shook her head. "No, I don't think that's it. He's got some kind of secrecy issues. It probably led to his breakup with Lana." Kara was puzzled. "Lana?" "Yes. Lana was Clark…uh…Kal's girlfriend. It's all rather confusing." Lois brushed the tangles a bit more, and Kara's unruly hair snapped the brush in half.

"Uh…okay…I guess that will have to do for now." Lois tossed the broken pieces into her purse. "I just can't imagine what he must've been going through." Lois added. "To be so different…to hide his true identity…to lie to everyone he cared about. I don't know whether to be pissed at him or feel sorry for him."

Clark was still on the phone with Senator Kent. "Mom? I can't say much, but we have a houseguest." Martha Kent was silent. "It's my cousin Kara." He informed her. "Not again!" Martha snapped. "No Mom, this time she's the real deal. There's a lot more…" He added. "There always is." Martha said with a sigh. "I'll catch the next plane back, Clark…" Jimmy and Chloe had quieted behind him. "No hurry I guess. I have Lois and Chloe to help look after her."

"Lois? Are you sure about that, Clark?" Martha questioned. "That's part of the problem…Lois saw me…uh…being different." Clark hesitated to add any more information. "Oh no! How did she take it?" Martha's voice rose. "Not too bad so far. I'll have to keep an eye on her." Clark's super hearing picked up Lois and Kara leaving the bedroom.

"I also told Lana the truth, and now she's turned up missing." He quickly confided. "I hope she's all right .I guess things happen for a reason, Clark." Martha said tiredly. "Are you sure you don't want me to hurry home?"

"No, for the moment, Chloe and I have things under control." He affirmed. "I'll see you soon." Martha took a few minutes to digest this bizarre turn of events. "I can't wait to meet her Clark. I'll be home early next week. If there's an emergency, I can be in Kansas in no time. Take care."

"Will do, mom, see you." Clark flipped off the cell phone as Lois followed Kara downstairs. Jimmy and Chloe were busy in a heavy lip locking session, and Kara giggled. "I take it you two have things all worked out." Lois said sarcastically. Clark rolled his eyes.

"Yeah. Uh…Jimmy…can you give my cell phone company a call, and see if they can issue me a new one?" Chloe asked lamely. She couldn't think of any other way to get rid of him. "Sure thing, sweetie." Jimmy kissed Chloe on the forehead and made his way out the door. "CK, Kara, Lois…we'll see you."

"Okay everyone, spill it." Lois began with her hands on her hips. "What the hell's been going on around here?" Chloe and Clark exchanged glances. "Lois, it's a long story." Clark tried to get out of the explanation to no avail. Kara copied Lois's stance and gestures.

"Then you'd better get on with it, shouldn't you?" Lois insisted. Chloe and Clark did their best to recall the strange events of the last five years. Kara listened in amazement; silently studying the way Lois and Chloe expressed themselves. Lois shook her head. "Cuz, you weren't kidding when you said Smallville was weird."

"I guess I simply don't understand all of this secrecy, Clark." Lois criticized. "My dad, the General, has been privy to all kinds of government secrets, and it's done nothing but give him a major ulcer, well, that and the fact that he drinks like a fish."

Chloe tried to explain: "Lois, think about it. The Department of Children and Family Services could've taken Clark away from Mr. and Mrs. Kent before he turned eighteen. DCFS would've likely sent him to the military, where the shadow government would experiment on him like a lab rat. They probably could've killed him in the process. Kara faces that same nightmare scenario. Now do you understand the shroud of secrecy?"

Lois was unusually silent. "Got it, cuz. There goes my Pulitzer Prize winning story." Chloe sighed. "Lois, there are plenty of stories out there waiting for us." Clark couldn't have agreed more. "For now, the issue at hand is…shopping." Lois began playfully. Kara's big blue eyes lit up. "I'll take Kara into Metropolis and get her some clothes, purses, shoes, and unmentionables." She volunteered.

"No! No way!" Clark protested. "Didn't you hear what we just told you?" Lois's mood darkened. "Yes. You also told me that another reason you were so hyper about secrecy, was so you could attempt to live a normal life, Smallville. You owe that to Kara as well." The alien teen edged away from Clark towards Lois. Chloe whistled. "Okay, time out, everyone."

Clark was mad at Lois, but at the same time he admired her spirit, challenging him. She knew the truth about him and Kara, and it didn't faze her a bit. Maybe I was wrong not to trust her…he considered that. "Clark, the reality is that Kara needs all that Lois mentioned." Chloe tried to play referee. "Unless you really want to take your sixteen-year old cousin underwear shopping." Clark tried to remain stoic. Chloe made a good point. "Okay, but I don't have the money handy."

Lois waved him off. "Don't worry about it Clark. I just got my first real check from the Daily Planet. Your mom can reimburse me when she gets a chance. Besides, I need a whole new set of outfits. The Planet's editor, Perry White, insists on a dress code, though his ideas of fashion are a bit outdated." Kara's eyes pleaded with Clark to let her go. "Fine." He acquiesced. "You all can go tomorrow. Most of the stores are closed by now, anyway." Kara smiled brightly.

"You must be tired…" Clark began. Kara shook her head. "Not me, Kal. Don't forget I've been asleep for many years. I'm too excited anyway." Lois smirked. Just like my sister Lucy, she mused. Chloe sighed.

"Is our summit meeting concluded? By the way, what exactly do you plan to do with the ship and the phantom creature, Clark?" Kara paced across the dining room, occasionally leaving her feet and floating around. Lois gawked. "Um…Kara…you'll have to pay attention."

"Huh?" The alien had forgotten that she was defying gravity. "Oh, sorry." Kara landed lightly on the well-worn carpet. "How'd you like a tour of the farm, Kara?" Clark offered. "Ooh! There's a rockin' good time! Yee haw!" Lois teased, cracking Chloe up. Kara smirked. "I don't mind."

"Okay, Chloe and I will head back to civilization." Lois said, as she grabbed her purse. "Um…cuz…a word, please." Chloe gestured for Lois to come in closer. She whispered in Lois's ear. Clark could certainly hear what she said, but out of respect, he ignored them. Kara giggled. She could hear Chloe as well. "Okay, got ya." Lois snickered. "I believe Chloe and Jimmy want some alone time. You're stuck with me tonight, Smallville. Couch city, super hero." She teased.

Chloe left, taking Lois's ride. Before their night together, Jimmy and Chloe would have to go back to Reeves Dam and retrieve her car. "After your farm tour, I say we order some pizza, and expose Kara to the evils of junk food." Lois suggested. "Don't worry, Clarkie, it's on me." Kara stared at her blankly. "Clarkie?" She echoed. "Kara, don't start." Clark warned playfully.

"Don't you have some hogs to slap?" Lois taunted Clark. "The phrase is 'slop the hogs', and no we don't have any." Clark said sourly. It was early evening, when Clark and Kara started out. "Are you sure you don't want to come, Lois?" Clark returned her barb. "Nope, been there, done that."

Lois kicked back on the couch, content to sip her latte and digest all that had occurred today. Man, this is a freak show, she mentally grumbled. Lana had been right all the long, aliens from another world had come to Earth. Some were evil, and some were secretive, like Clark and Kara.

How many more were there? Was an invasion of Earth imminent? If so, were Clark and Kara powerful enough to stop them? Lois rubbed her throbbing temples. She toyed with the idea of taking a walk to the barn to investigate Kara's ship and the creepy Clark look-alike's body, but thought better of it.

She sighed, clicked the remote, and flipped on the TV. Lex Luthor will be arraigned tomorrow on charges that he killed his fiancée, Lana Lang… The anchorperson said. "He better not have offed her! I'll take him down, myself!" Lois muttered. There's my big story…Chloe warned me not to get involved…I'll be damned if I'll let Lex get away with any of this!

Clark and Kara slowed to a stop near the Kent Farm's corral. The horses whinnied at their sudden appearance, but Clark calmed the startled beasts by talking to them. "Wow! You live here?" Kara said excitedly. "I mean this is all yours?" Clark nodded. "It belongs to our family, yes. I wish you could've met my foster father, Jonathan. You would've liked him, and he'd like you. I'm sure of it. Dad used to try and look at the positive side of things. He died defending my secret."

"I'm sorry." Kara frowned. "Hey, this is all yours, too. You're part of our family." Clark tried to cheer his little cousin up. "I'm sure my mom will insist on it. You'll stay with us. She can't wait to meet you." Kara cuddled next to Clark as they watched the reddish gold hues of the sunset rimming the horizon. "I'm so glad I found you, Kal." Kara yawned as the colors dimmed and faded out.

"We'd better check on your ship." Clark guided Kara into the barn. There was a distinct greenish light protruding up from the cracks between the floorboards. The ship had activated! Clark hurriedly dug the spacecraft out…the body of the phantom creature was gone! Kara nervously glanced around the area, but saw no one. Clark listened intensely.

Even the slightest air movement should be heard when he focused his hearing. Nothing. Kara pressed a series of lighted symbols along the craft. It quickly shut down. "He didn't get inside! That's where all the important crystals are stored." She pointed out. "Where is he?" Clark vainly looked for footprints in the dust.

"He flew out of here." He concluded. Kara heard Lois screaming. "Get out you creep!" She yelled, followed by a loud clang. Clark used his super speed to zip back into the house. Kara was already inside. Flying is much faster, he observed. Lois was beating the creature with a frying pan.

Naturally, it had no effect on it. Kara had pinned one of the creature's arms against the wall, but she was losing the struggle. "Why don't you…just…die?" Lois yelled as she attempted to strangle the creature. "Not die." The Clark look-alike said hoarsely. The creature's face had deteriorated. It was silver colored, with jagged lines etched into where his cheekbones should have been.

It had yellow glowing eyes, a misshapen head, and an uneven mouth line. "Kara, save Lois!" Clark ordered as he set up his attack position. "Save Lois." The creature grumbled. Kara kicked Bizarro in the stomach, sending him through the kitchen wall and out into the front yard. Clark used his hyper speed to catch Bizarro by the throat and drive him down into the ground.

Kara flew at half speed encircling the melee. Clark and Bizarro were back on their feet in no time while Kara stopped in mid-flight and blasted Bizarro in the back with her heat vision. "Kara! No! We can't kill!" Clark yelled. Lois stared in shock as the three powerful entities struggled both morally and physically. "It tried to kill all of us." Kara argued. Bizarro slumped into Clark's arms.

Yes, but that's not the point." Clark countered. "If we kill him, then we're no better than the beings that our fathers locked up in the Phantom Zone. They didn't believe in taking a life, no matter how heinous. Do you understand?" Clark set Bizarro down. The creature shuddered. "Yes." Kara answered. "But what can we do with him?" Clark took a breath. "Still working on it." He said.

"Perhaps I can help." A large greenish black being said as it shimmered into view. "John?" Clark asked, shocked at the alien's appearance. Kara gawked as Lois strained her eyes to see the shadowy creature. "Yes Kal El, this is my true appearance. As you suspected, I am not human. I actually was born on Mars eons ago. Jor El hired me to help him with the Phantom Zone criminals, and instructed me to guide you whenever I can. Bizarro's mind is nearly a void. I can easily subdue him. The question is what can we do about it?"

Clark seemed to have only one option. "John, we'll have to take him up to the ice fortress. I still don't know how to keep him incarcerated and alive." Kara stared at the seven-foot plus green alien. "Leave that to me. I can entrap his mind to sleep." John Jones offered. Kara caught on. "Can't we use my ship to put him into cryo-sleep?" Clark nodded. "Can you reconfigure the ship's systems?"

"I can try. It's all very complicated." Kara zipped back into the barn and emerged with her ship. "Another Kryptonian?" John asked. "Yes." Clark answered. "My cousin, Kara." John's Martian face didn't allow him to smile, but he felt good about this new addition. "Where there is caring and understanding, there is hope." John remarked. Clark cast him a sidelong glance. Hope? What was his Martian Manhunter guardian trying to say? He'd have to question him about that later.

Clark and John set Bizarro into Kara's ship. He barely fit. She secured the creature, and then pulled out a dozen or so multicolored crystals. "He can't be allowed this information." She pointed out. "It's my collection of Kryptonian knowledge about the universe." John's big red eyes widened. "You were entrusted with the Kryptonian database?" He sounded skeptical.

"Yes. Zor El, my father, insisted I take it with me, and keep it safe." Kara replied. "Let's go." John urged. "What about Lois?" Clark asked as she darted down the steps and across the yard. "I can alter her mind if you wish." John offered. "I don't know, I don't like to mess with people's mental processes." Clark stated as Lois approached. "It is up to you, Kal El." John stood stoically.

"Can you put her to sleep for a few hours?" Clark suggested. "That, I can do." John mysteriously phased through the ground, instantly emerging behind Lois. "Clark! What the hell are you all doing out…" She yelled. John put one long arm around Lois, and she dropped like a rock. Clark used his super speed to catch her, carry her back into the house, and lay her on the couch.

John slid next to Kara. She floated up to meet him face to face. "Thank you for your help." John nodded. "You are welcome." Clark locked up the house and returned. "Ready to go? I guess I can carry the ship." He offered. "I can be of some assistance there." John said. "Kal El, all you need do is think of the location of your ice fortress, take my hand, and we will transport to it."

Clark and Kara shared the weight of the ship, each placing a hand on John's shoulder. They shimmered out of sight, and reappeared a few seconds later outside the forty story ice fortress. The 'Fortress of Solitude' was located near the North Pole atop a barren glacier. Most humans couldn't survive for long in the area. The extreme cold didn't affect John, Clark, or Kara though.

Kara gasped. "This is just like Uncle Jor El's laboratory on Krypton! He'd spend hours there, contemplating the fate of our world. In the end, there was nothing that he or my father could do." Clark put the ship down and showed John the illuminated control panel. "Raya said that this was the main power supply for the fortress." Clark looked down. "She lost her life defending it."

"There is much tragedy between all our worlds, Kal El, but I fear the worst is yet to come." John remarked cryptically. "We can lock Bizarro up in the bottom of the glacier, but how do we know that he'll survive?" Clark asked as Kara explored the upper levels of the ice fortress. "I survived the trip from Argo, Kal." She added. "And all of the years since I landed on Earth."

Kara flew back down towards Clark and John. "Your biggest strength is also your biggest weakness, Kal El." John began. "You care deeply for the denizens of Earth and those beyond, as did Jor El. You don't know the scope of your power, presently or in the future. Nor do we know what influence young Kara can have on events. If Bizarro dies, it doesn't matter." He said coldly. "It matters to me." Clark responded.

"You do think like Jor El as well." John countered. "What did you say you did for my father?" Clark grilled. "I collected criminals throughout the known universe that threatened Krypton and its neighbors. I brought them before the Council of Elders for judgment. Jor El and the Council decided their fates. Most were sent into the multidimensional prison you refer to as the Phantom Zone." Clark nodded. "Like an intergalactic policeman."

Kara followed the conversation, but was far more interested in the ice fortress control panel. She closely examined the crystalline slots that the energy crystals fit into. Suddenly she identified three of them. "Kal, some of these slots correspond with my information crystals. I'm sure of it. I can match them up. The fortress is meant to be a type of database library. Here."

Kara slipped a pink crystal into a slot that matched it geometrically. The irony wasn't lost on Clark. The entire Kryptonian library of knowledge database, as well as important information regarding the future of Earth, indeed the future of the known universe, was locked within some crystals in his old blue sweat pants, on the person of his sixteen-year old cousin who'd only been awake on Earth for less than twenty-four hours.

He silently praised Jor El and Zor el's wisdom in creating a backup database to send with Kara and all of their hopes for the future across the galaxy to a far-flung planet, prehistoric by Kryptonian standards.

Kara stepped back as a two-story sized image of a beautiful young woman with jet-black hair and vivid bluish to violet colored eyes appeared. "@#&*%?" The image asked in their native Kryptonian tongue. "Aunt Lara!" Kara exclaimed. Clark's mouth dropped open. "Mother?" he choked out. Kara ordered the image array to freeze in Kryptonian. She reached into a pocket and pulled out a short green crystal. She placed it in the appropriate slot. "American English." Kara directed, and the array restarted.

"Kara, my angel, I hope the trip from Argo wasn't too traumatic." Lara Jor El began. "As you know by now, we have all perished. I implore you to locate baby Kal El if you can. Watch over him as if he were your very own sibling..." Kara felt her stomach turn over. "I know this is a tremendous burden to place on a young girl like yourself, but you and Kal El are the last of our race..." Kara sighed. "Hold." She ordered, and the image shimmered to a stop. Clark looked at it longingly, remembering all that he'd lost. "It's like an interactive hologram." He observed after getting over the initial shock.

Kara slipped the pink crystal out of it's slot and the image of Clark's birth mother disappeared. She handed it to him, just as a new picture appeared. A gigantic image played across the upper levels of the ice fortress. It resembled a large green dragon-like creature with yellow feathered wings, bright red eyes, and two black talons. The expansive image covered the length of the fortress, and had the breadth of about a story and a half. In one talon the beast held a simple silvery boulder, in the other it held a nasty looking black fish. Kara shuddered. "What is that?" Clark continued to study it for a moment.

"It looks like a Quetzalcoatl, the symbol of ancient Native Americans which populated Mexico, and Central and South America, before the Spaniards conquered them." John Jones agreed. "It is actually the symbol for my people. Legend tells us that my species left Mars and visited Earth over three thousand of your years ago. The symbol represents our mastery of the elements, sky, soil, and water." Clark whistled. Kara cast him a sidelong glance. It was an odd sound to her. "One major element is missing." Clark pointed out. "Fire." John Jones was uncomfortably silent, as if considering an important point.

"The element of fire is not missing by accident...my people were deathly afraid of it. We chose never to master it." John admitted. The Quetzalcoatl image shimmered out. "Why would that symbol appear now?" Clark asked Kara. "It could have been a type of alarm. If the array is activated by Kryptonian DNA, like my ship, the fortress defense system could have initiated it."

John contemplated this. "I believe Kara is at least somewhat correct. Jor El was above all a scientist, he would've built in 'triggers' as he did with the prison construct, the Phantom Zone. He also predicted the failure of the Brain Interactive Construct, or BRAINIAC. Jor El correctly assessed that the system had become too powerful, and needed to be replaced." Clark shivered. "Jor El was right. Last year I was barely able to defeat BRAINIAC, and its mentor, General Zod."

"The fight I had, caused the release from the Phantom Zone, the seven deadly Phantom Creatures or 'Zoners' as Chloe labeled them. Zod was among them." He turned to Kara. "Many human lives were lost..." He glanced at his feet. Kara flew to him and held him close. "That was not your fault, Kal El." John said. "Yes it is, John." Clark insisted. "I failed to obey Jor El's commands time and time again." Kara cuddled with her older cousin. "Anyway, what do we do with this Bizarro creature?"

John floated upwards toward the fortress's middle levels. "Kal El, are you sure that you wish to save this being?" Clark nodded. "Very well, the path you have chosen will be much harder now." John added mysteriously. "We can construct an ice prison, guarded by some specific crystals, to keep Bizarro incarcerated. I will alter his mind to induce a coma." Clark didn't care for that option. He seemed to have no choice. Bizarro was immune to the green Kryptonite that would likely kill Clark. "Let's do it."

Kara and John released Bizarro, who was still unconscious, from Kara's ship. Clark hurriedly sculpted a room sized holding area in the mid levels of the fortress, fashioning it from the surrounding ice flow. It had only one opening. He added a bed made of ice, and a multiple paned transparent doorway. Kara and John carried Bizarro inside. In seconds, John shoved his hands through the creature's head.

Bizarro convulsed. "It is done, Kal El. Bizarro may sleep indefinitely, at least that is my hope."

Kara downloaded all of her crystals into the array. The ice fortress now held the most complete informational database of Krypton, and their known universe. The image array flashed a rainbow of colors across the white walls of the great room. This indicated that the array was active once more.

Multidimensional holographic images faded in and out. One caught Clark's attention. It was Jor El's deep voice that came through clearly. "There are over fifty-five thousand inhabited worlds that we know of, Kal El." Clark's eyes widened. "We were wrong, all wrong." He stated as Kara looked on from just below the intergalactic display.

"Humans. They're misinformed. They've been led to believe that they're the only ones that exist in the universe." Clark commented. "Part of that is our fault." John confided. "Meaning my people withheld that information from the humans. Our original mission was to study the humans, and assess how long it would take for them to evolve."

Clark nodded as Kara studied the image array control panel further. "They're still not ready to accept this reality." John stated. "Now they're out of time." Clark grimaced. "Because you, Kara and I are here?" He guessed. "No. Not entirely. Earth is defenseless, as compared to the technologically advanced civilizations in the galaxy." John floated up through the three dimensional star map. "Hold." He ordered the machine in Kryptonian. "This spot here..." John pointed one long green finger at a cluster of stars in a faraway galaxy. "This area of beings represent the greatest threat to mankind."

Clark and Kara focused on the slowly revolving image. "Why?" Kara asked. "Because they are made up of groups of warrior creatures that exist solely to expand their planetary holdings. They thrive on conquest." John replied. "If they're so far away, of what possible use can Earth be to them?" Clark reasoned. "I can't say what is in their minds, yet." John responded.

 "They have attacked peaceful planets, pillaged their resources, enslaved its residents, and then left the planet devoid of enough food to sustain them. To keep conquered worlds under control, they send small amounts of food and supplies to create dependence." John recalled. "What are their names?" Clark questioned as Kara encircled him.

"The humans don't have a name for them, obviously because they don't know that the beings exist." John replied. "I have studied the human language and the closest name I could come up with, was 'Daemonstrata' or 'flying demon monsters'." Kara gulped. She had no idea what a demon or a monster was. All she knew was that it sounded bad. "Terrific." Clark grumbled. "When can I just sit down, watch a movie, eat popcorn, and lead a simple life?" He asked rhetorically.

"I don't believe that is to be your destiny, Kal El, nor Kara's" John answered. "Jor El and Zor El sent you here for a number of reasons. They knew that the Earth's light atmosphere, and yellow sun would strengthen you and sustain you. I believe that you are both here to protect Earth...from everything, including the Daemonstrata." Clark shook his head as Kara frowned. "I can't defeat an entire world of warriors, even with Kara's help." Clark protested. "Yes you can, Kal El. You both can."

"You have no idea how powerful you'll become. I will be here to help you...and there are others." John added hesitantly. "Others?" Clark and Kara chorused. "Yes you needn't carry the burden of Earth's safety alone. Some of the others you have already met" John said evasively. "Others sympathetic to your cause will join later." Clark saw a pattern to the extraordinary people he'd met. They chose to get involved and use their unusual abilities for good. "We are kindred spirits, Kara, you and I" John added.

"We do not belong to the human's world, yet we must band together to defend it. Everyone needs a purpose. Earth will become very important to the galaxy's future." Clark sighed. "Okay, a little cryptic, but I'll take it." Kara flew aimlessly around the fortress, examining the array's imagery. Clark had enough excitement for the day. "That pizza Lois ordered sounds really good right now." He remarked, and Kara was anxious to try all of Earth's delicacies. Kara floated down to his side.

"John, why don't you come back with us? Lois won't mind, I hope." Clark offered. "That is a very meaningful gesture, Kal El. I do appreciate it. However, now I must contact the others, and let them know that you are ready to step into a larger world. We have much to do." The Martian stated. Kara removed the sapphire blue crystal that was the 'start button' for the ice fortress image array. Immediately the console darkened, and the swirling multidimensional holograms ceased to exist, for now.

"We better not ever lose that crystal, Kara." Clark cautioned. "One more thing, John. How long until the Daemonstrata reach Earth?" He pressed. "Even I don't know that. It could be a year from now, or it could be a hundred years from now. Rest assured, they will come, and we must defeat them. Time isn't as linear as Humans think. The Daemonstrata could exist in the present, or the future, relative to Earth." John replied, which didn't help Clark at all. "How about the past?" Kara chimed in.

"Not likely, or we wouldn't be having this conversation." John responded. "Ready to return to Smallville?" The pleasant green alien offered. "Sure." Clark said as he held Kara's hand. John took one last glance around. "It was an honor to stand within one of Jor El and Zor El's creations, and I'm proud to know their offspring." He added as he held them and they shimmered out.

Sometime later, John was back in his Human disguise as Detective John Jones. Alone in a rundown hotel room, he spoke into a small cell phone. "I have found us some more help..."

link to chapter 3: Raising Kara