The Day After

Chapter V

"Very well."

A part of Lois wanted to spare Superman of this interview that would surely be painful, but the rest of her wanted him to go through with it. Lex Luthor had to pay and Superman was the only witness to the man's crimes. So, despite the personal anguish, she had to be a good reporter and get the story. "Okay, what happened on New Krypton?"

"New Krypton?" he asked, happy that they could delay the interview for a few more minutes. "It has a name?"

"Oh... that's right," she said, palming her forehead, "You don't know. That's what we named that thing you threw into space. It's all over the papers."

He looked at her, and couldn't help but smile. He knew the name was her idea, just like the 'Superman' name. She had a knack for that. "How did you know it was Krypton?"

"Lex Luthor told me when he held us prisoner. His exact words about the landmass were, 'An extinct world reborn on our own'."

His smile faded and his expression darkened. "It must've been his idea of a sick joke."

"Yeah, well, he's a sick man... and you're changing the subject!"

He took a deep breath and let it out. "Well, I suspected that the blackouts were caused by Kryptonian technology, so I went to the Fortress of Solitude to investigate. But my father's crystals..." He had to stop for a moment to regain his composure, "...were gone." Without the crystals, he would never be able to talk to his father again. He felt rage at the thought of his father being taken from him by that madman, and he grew stronger to tell the rest of his tale. "The only person who knew of the Fortress besides you and the Kryptonian outlaws was Lex Luthor. And I was angry... angrier than I've ever been. He took my father from me, Lois."

She had no idea just how much Lex Luthor had hurt him until now. "Oh my god," she said, looking at him with wide eyes, "Those crystals he showed me... They were your father's?"

"Yes, not only were they my only means of communicating with him, but they also stored the knowledge of dozens of worlds. And now they're beyond my reach."

"Didn't you go to Krypton on a spaceship? Can't you just build another one?"

"I can't build another spaceship without the crystals," he said, and then he saw the look on her face and added, "And no, I can't fly there. I can't hold my breath that long and then there's the kryptonite..."

"Don't give up!" she told him sternly, "We'll think of something. We'll get those crystals back somehow. Now, please continue."

"Well, after flying around Metropolis averting all sorts of disasters caused by the E.M.P. and saving you and your family from drowning, I went to confront Lex Luthor on New Krypton. That woman I saved when her brakes stopped working was there. She must've been a decoy while Lex Luthor stole the kryptonite from the museum."

"I knew it," she said, angry and strangely satisfied at the same time, "I just knew it. I knew that hooker was up to something."

"Yes, I remember you calling her that at the office." He gave her a brief smile. "Can you believe that she jumped into my arms, invited me for coffee and a drink, and even tried to stop me from flying away?"

"Oh, that... that..." She refrained from blurting out the first word that came to her mind. "Even so, she was partially responsible for New Krypton, so, she's going to pay, too."

He looked at her gravely. "I would appreciate if you left her out of this," he said, knowing that it would surprise Lois. He had heard her sobs while he was being beaten to a pulp on New Krypton, and he also heard her trying to get Lex Luthor to call the whole thing off, only to be brushed away. She was so much like Miss Teschmacher... just another ignorant girl, enamored by fortune and expensive gifts, who didn't realize what she was doing until millions of lives were threatened. His parents had always taught him to see the best in everyone, and he felt that Katherine deserved another chance.