Chapter 18 - Teammates and a Drive

(Gold Galore Comic Book Store - Haitian Kings Clarkson Avenue Drug Den - 2nd February 2020)

"What did the Colonel say?" MM asked. Butcher's only response was to throw a file at him before starting to pack up a bag.

"The fuck is this?"

"A lead the Colonel gave me. Raynor was havin' a gander at this old supe, Liberty, before she ….died, she thinks it's worth a trip." Butcher responded while stuffing his clothes into the bag on top of the guns and ammo he had already stored before letting out a sigh. "She also found Becca for me, I'm going to get her to safety and then….. I'm out."

"Whoa, wait, hold up. I mean, I'm happy you know where she is, but what do you mean you're out?" MM moved forward, grabbed Butcher, and swung the man around to face him. "Shit, even if you do get her, and that's a big fuckin if, Vought's not just going to let you guys go. We need to finish this."

"Look, you're right, Vought isn't going to let us settle down in Orlando, so when we get gone we have to stay gone." His friend shot back as he moved back to put the last of his things away and get ready to leave. "You'll all be fine without me, Lois and you will take over, get this sorted and everyone'll be fine."

"Motherfucker, I don't want to be in charge, and neither does Lois. We can't do this shit without you." MM responded with a glare. Butcher paid him no mind and slung a full backpack over his shoulder.

"What's happening here?" Lois appeared to have heard the very much not quite conversation and eyed Butcher's packed bags. "Where the hell are you going?"

"The Colonel gave him Becca and he says he's out…" MM responded moving to stand next to Lois so that the two of them presented a united front. "And that you and I are now in charge of this shitshow."

"Butcher we ne-" Lois grimaced as she moved forward only to be cut off by the sound of their drug den hideout exploding into activity as their hosts rushed towards the stairs brandishing weapons.

"MOVE IT! MOVE IT! GRAB THAT PIECE!" The Haitian King leader screamed at his men as he pumped his shotgun and moved towards the staircase that led down from their comic book store front.

The three of them all looked at each other before moving as well fearing the worse that their recent activities had somehow blown their cover. Butcher grabbed a rifle and took position up against a pillar, he looked to his left and saw Frenchie had appeared clearly just haven been woken by the noise. The shirtless Frenchman rubbed his eyes before grabbing his handgun and flipping over a table for cover he was blinking hard trying to regain focus. Kimiko appeared as well striding forward to stand in front of the armed gang members her bloodlust was up since losing her brother and she was ready to tear someone anyone apart. Hughie scrambled out of his room with the rifle that MM had given him for protection it still looked so awkward in his hands despite the training he was getting.

Lois moved as well only to find MM shoving her behind him as he took up a position in front of her but well behind everyone else. The former marine just gave her a look when she made to protest glancing down to her stomach and then to her eyes. The subtle hint was enough to stop any further protest as she hefted her own weapon and allowed herself for once to be placed far from the action. The entire room went quiet as heavy footsteps rang out as someone descended the stairs.

"Gentlemen, please lower your firearms, we don't mean any harm"

The clear calm voice caused Lois and the rest of the Boy's eyes to widen as Clark appeared wearing civilian clothes holding the Haitian King's doorman off the ground by his shirt. Not a single one of the gangbangers obeyed the order just tensing up as they froze looking at the tall man who was holding one of their own like a rag doll. Annie also appeared freezing on the steps as she saw the scene that awaited her below, for his part Clark just stayed calm but now looked awkward as he glanced at all the guns.

"Okay….. I'm just going to put your friend down and then we are going to talk about this like calm people alright?" He took the lack of response as a yes and slowly lowered the doorman to the floor. "There we go. Now as you can see I'm not here to hurt anyone. We can be reasonable about this."

Again no one responded, Lois tried to move forward and de-escalate the situation but found herself held in place by MM's arm. The large man just shook his head not wanting to risk her or her baby as their hosts were clearly agitated more so than when Butcher had shown up, likely because of that event and everything that had happened in the last few days. MM looked over to Butcher to say something to their drug-dealing host, but the man just shrugged clearly indifferent when MM just glared at him Butcher sighed and tried to move forward.

"Gents, stand do-" Butcher was cut off by the sound of a gunshot as one of the gang members fired his weapon.

BANG!

The noise and flash were followed by silence. Everyone stared. Clark was motionless for a second, then under a room full of eyes he slowly lifted his hand up to his face and removed his glasses. The left lens was gone and a black mark covered his forehead. Hesighed as if he had been hit by a thrown cup of water and not a hail of shotgun pellets. With his free hand he wiped his face, clearing away the scorch mark that had resulted from the close-range blast, before looking at the gangster responsible.

"Please don't do that," Clark stated his voice still calm but sent a chill up the spine as it was done with a sternness that just radiated authority. "Now that you can see shooting me doesn't work, would you kindly lower your guns?"

The gang members just looked at each other clearly uncomfortable with their inability to do anything except acquiesce to the demand made of them. It was a little slower than Clark would have liked but the men did eventually lower their weapons. Clark gave them all a grateful nod as Butcher moved forward and exchanged a look with the Haitian Kings' leader Lois didn't move yet, focused as she was on steadying her breathing and heartbeat rate back to normal.

"How in the name of fuck did you find us?" Butcher asked bluntly. He scowled at Annie first, then zeroed in on the youngest member of the group, that clumsy nervous little….

"If you're thinking it was Hughie, you're mistaken, he was extremely careful not to leave any trace. No, I found you through your colleague Serge there," As Clark nodded to the clear hungover and slightly high Frenchman, everyone else turned around and the room stilled.

"Mais… quoi?? How, I covered my tracks perfectly, I used quatre identités," Frenchie slipped back into his native language as he looked back and forth frantically. "I could not have tri-"

"You brought a kilogram of cocaine from a Romanian drug dealer named Andrei two and a half blocks from here, about 18 hours ago. That's how I followed you here."

Clark sighed, then chose to continue in the hope of convincing everyone that Vought wouldn't knock down the door any second.

"I worked out you were operating from somewhere in Manhattan but couldn't narrow it from there. Again, really good job at hiding. Then I remembered something an old cop I used to work with told me 'Track the man's habits, not the man'. So I just shook down every drug dealer on the island until one gave you up. A whole bunch of them gave you up actually, Andrei was just the first to know where you were."

Every single one of the Boys looked back at Frenchie who, despite still being very hungover, was still able to look very sheepish. MM just sighed and shook his head, then walked over to tidy his "clinic" in the corner of the room. Butcher just rolled his eyes and moved back over to where he had dumped his bag before slinging it over his shoulder once again.

"Well, that was entertaining. I'm off. You wankers can sort this all out ourselves" Butcher just looked at everyone before giving MM a nod and moving towards the stairs.

He glanced at Clark as moved past the man, his eyes raking over the man clearly assessing him as a brief scowl appeared on his face. However, before he managed to reach the stairs and push past Annie who was still hesitantly standing on them, Clark's voice caused him to stop.

"If you are departing to find and or rescue your wife, Mr Butcher, Rebbeca is safe," Clark's words caused the room to freeze as Butcher quickly turned around to stare at the man wide-eyed. "She's currently living on my parents' farm in Kansas with her son." He looked down and decided to repeat himself.

"They are as safe as they can be. However, I must ask you not to go there at least not yet"

Butcher just dropped his and strode over to Clark who was a good few inches taller than him and clearly larger but that did not stop him from almost coming nose-to-nose with the man. The two didn't move as Butcher's hands turned into clenched fists and hatred burned in his eyes.

"And why. The fuck. Not?"

"Because currently, you are the most wanted man in America and you stick out like a sore thumb in Smallville. They are safe, currently, because nothing is drawing attention to them." Clark replied not moving an inch as he calmly responded to Butcher's threatening gaze. "Secondly and more importantly however I promised your wife I'd keep her and her son safe"

"What the fuck does that mean?" Butcher stood back his rage not abetting one bit as his scowl deepened.

"It means Mr Butcher with what I know about you, Ryan's origins and how you are reacting right now. I don't think the boy would be safe within a mile of you." Clark's assessment was given with cold honesty as he looked at the man who would likely have beaten him to death right now if he could.

"You fucking periwinkle bast-" Butcher moved forward again only to be cut off by MM who moved in front of the man pushing him back.

"Hey hey hey, let's just dial it back a bit," MM stood between the two men looking at Clark before glaring at Butcher, whose scowl stayed put but looked at least willing to listen before turning back to Clark. "You clearly came to talk, so talk, what do you want?"

It was Clark's turn to go tense as he looked at Annie who finally moved off of the stairs and gave him an encouraging nod. He let out a deep sigh as his body language shifted. He was no longer the beacon of calm in a sea of trouble, no he was agitated and it was clear to everyone that being here wasn't his first idea.

"We need….. I would like …Okay, firstly, I don't like anything this team does," Clark fixed the visible members of the Boys with a stare as he looked between them, his arms crossing his body. "However, that being said, you and us are currently the only people currently fighting Vought and neither of us is getting anywhere… well, anywhere productive. So we need to talk"

The room fell silent as the Boys looked at each other, MM gave Butcher a look raising his eyebrows indicating that he was in favour of hearing the Supe out. The action only received an audible scoff and shake of his head as he looked at the supposed man of steel, seeing only another obstacle in his way. Hughie moved forward to try and voice his support for the idea but wasn't able to say anything as Lois appeared from her spot behind everyone moving forward with an apprehensive look on her face.

"Yeah, Clark we do" Lois moved forward placing her hands on her stomach as she gave him an awkward smile trying to fight the apprehension and fear spiking in her.

Annie's eyes widened as Clark just froze solid, his eyes going to Lois' stomach as he just seemed to freeze to the world. Especially as a red glow appeared briefly from Lois' stomach causing her to shift slightly in discomfort.

Then Clark did something Annie had never heard him do in the entire time she had ever known him, he swore. Almost.

"What the fu-... shi-, Lois, you're pregnant?"

(5 Minutes later - Lois' Room)

Lois was sitting awkwardly on her makeshift bed as Clark stood unmoving just looking at her, he seemed incapable of anything else at the moment. They had moved into Lois room both for privacy and as it was clear that until they had talked Clark wasn't much use to anyone else. Butcher had grumbled about it all being a waste of fucking time and that he didn't have time for the East Enders shit happening but MM had silenced him and let the two talk in private.

"So…" Lois took in a deep breath as she trailed off before deciding to just go for it and get it out of the way"Look Clark I'm sorry I didn't reach out sooner, I was just scared, okay, you were constantly overseas and when you weren't you were near impossible to pin down and I just didn't know wh-"

"You're pregnant?" Clark's hesitant question cut her off as the man suddenly blinked his brain seemingly caught up with or at least making sense of his new reality. "You're really pregnant? Wait that's a stupid question of course you are, but just…..how?"

"Well, Clark you were there when you know we…." Lois chuckled slightly finding Clark's typical male panic in the face of fatherhood helping to normalise the situation.

"No, that's not what I… Lois, you shouldn't be able to…..I can't have….. what I mean is the chances of this are astronomical." Clark started and stopped as his brain fired through every possibility before he stopped himself and took a deep breath to steady himself. "Lois, you and I shouldn't be able to make children I'm, I'm….. not human"

"I know Clark, you're a Supe, but lots of Supes have had childre-" Lois started looking at Clark who despite being super was clearly doing the ordinary male thing of panicking at the news he was to be a father.

"Lois, I'm an alien!" Clark blurted out his panic as his eyes went up from her small bump to her eyes, his mouth moving faster than his brain could process. "I'm from another planet called Krypton, my powers don't come from V, they're natural abilities, well at least when I'm under a yellow sun, and V is actually made from Kryptonian genetic material which is a whole other thing we need to talk about, but back to the point I was told that compatibility between humans and Krypotains so low it was basically impossible and, and, and….I really don't care, because none of that matters, and this is the best news I have ever heard. I'm going to be a father!"

Clark was panting with a stupidly wide grin on his face as he finished his 100-metre dash of explanation. Lois, however, was sitting there frozen as she looked at Clark processing everything he had just said and for the first time in her life didn't know how to follow up with a question. She was really regretting her reporting skills to pick up everything someone said and wished she could just focus on the sheer giddiness Clark was exhibiting at being a father rather than his first statement.

"Clark, sweetie, what was that you said about being an alien?" Lois finally managed to ask, suddenly very typical as she found her brain freezing at the news.

"Oh, heh, yeah, well… where to start, I'm from a planet called Krypton….."

Clark tried to become more serious again but found it difficult as the smile on his face wouldn't shift even as he started explaining everything to Lois. She sat there unmoving as she listened to the impossible story of a dying world, desperate parents, a last hope, a kindly couple, and the genesis of Superman. However, even as her brain told her that Clark had gone insane, her heart knew he was telling the truth.

"...My baby- our baby is a hybrid, an alien hybrid?" Lois asked her hands going to her stomach, looking at it before looking up at Clark's bright, warm blue eyes. "Because you're an alien?"

"Yes, I'm an alien" Clark summed up.

"Okay," Lois nodded looking away from Clark staring blankly at a wall for a few moments before a resolve appeared on her face and she stood up facing him. "So what happens next?"

"You're taking this really well, Annie freaked out when I told her" Clark just blink

"Oh, believe me, I am freaking out, I am just doing it internally," Lois gave Clark a very tight smile and he could see that underneath the surface she was managing only to keep herself calm "A few years of dealing with all of this has made me great at compartmentalising, so we will deal with this later, and focus on….. that"

"Well, I say fuck the wanker! And fuck all of them!" Butcher's voice cut clear into the room as Lois pointed to the makeshift door of her makeshift room.

Realising a sigh Clark stood up and followed Lois back into the main area where Butcher was sitting on a table with his legs on it, the rifle he had been wielding sat across his lap. He was staring potently at Annie as he spat his words out glancing at Clark and Lois as the two appeared from Lois' room. The scowl on his face deepened as he then smirked at the two shaking his head in disgust before turning back to his conversation.

"Butcher man come on," MM spoke up trying to move forward to stop the conversation only for Butcher's voice to stop him.

"No, no you see my plan is golden, and we all get to go back to normal lives by lunch."

Butcher grinned as he stood up placing the rifle on the table and then moving into the middle of the group like a ringmaster, his smile turned playful as he gestured at Clark with sadistic glee.

"We get the All-American Farmboy over there to fly over to Superwanker, punch the knob into sticky pudding, and then smash Wanker Tower into pieces. Then whilst the rest of us sit on the beach sipping Mai Tais, or you Yanks kickin' back on yer old porch sippin' lemonade, spandex-boy punches what's left of Vought into dust. We all retire and live happily ever after, I get my wife back, and everyone goes on with their lives."

Butcher grinned or more accurately smirked as he looked at Clark, his exterior barely containing the seething rage emanating from him as he looked at the new Supe keeping him from his wife. The Boys glanced at each other, no one saying either because they didn't want to be the one to spark something off or in a few cases because they didn't disagree with what Butcher had said. Clark however glanced at Lois who just gave a weak apologetic smile and shrugged her shoulders at Butcher being Butcher.

"Extreme indiscriminate violence will not solve the issues we face, Mr Butcher." Clark moved forward into the area that Butcher had taken over.

"Please, enough of the Mr. wanker shit, call me Billy, and I think…. Yes, Extreme indiscriminate violence will solve each and every one of the issues we are facing." Butcher smiled as he gestured to his team for support and although no one replied it was clear his view was not unsupported. "Especially if it's against fucking Homelander, I think it will be very effective"

"It's not that simple. We are dealing with more than just Homelander and Vought, things are escalating to a cri-" Clark grimaced at the attack Butcher was launching at him, although he knew this was coming up it didn't make it any more pleasant.

"OH FUCK YOU!" Butcher cut the man off, throwing his hands up in disbelief before a snarl appeared on his face. "Of course, it's as simply dealing with Homelander and Vought, one's making supe cunts with V and the other is handing it like fucking candy. We take out them, we go home, your spandex pussy ass just doesn't want to fuck with your cash co-"

"Butcher shut the hell up" MM stepped in his strong calm voice causing Butcher to stop his tirade and just roll his eyes and head back to his seat as MM looked at Clark. "What the fuck do you mean shit is escalating?"

"I've been studying patterns, looking at everything that has been happening in recent years, gathering every piece of data I could and it all points to one singular outcome." Clark moved forward his sheer gravitas commanding the room as he moved forward a sense of foreboding hanging over everything.

"What outcome?" Hughie asked looking at Annie who shifted uncomfortably, Clark had told her all this already it filled her with dread.

"The Superhuman Apocalypse" Clark responded causing everyone in the room apart from Annie to look at each other, the act caused Clark to take a deep breath and elaborate. "Super-abilities by their very nature cause escalation and division. They divide both metaphorically and literally between people, those with power and without. And Supes are just people which means-"

"Scoff" Butcher's reaction to Clark's statement caused the Man of Steel to glance at him and repress a sigh before continuing on.

"Supes are just people, people with powers, and power escalates everything. Small actions become major events, stupid decisions become horrendous disasters, and poor lifestyles become toxic environments poisoning everything" Clark's face fell into his own scowl as he recalled the destruction and abuse he had seen in the Superhuman community. "Coupled this with the prevailing morality that most Supes hold, especially the leadership in their community and eventually it's going to ignite into a fight. That fight will be a superhuman one and the level of power that will be brought to bear to win it will devastate the planet."

The room fell silent until Hughie cleared his throat and lifted his hand to get attention like he was in school again, causing everyone to look at him.

"Come on I mean I know things aren't great and a lot of Supes are bad but isn't that a little extreme?"

"Do you know how many Super powered individuals there are currently in the US alone?" Clark asked, fixing his gaze on Hughie who just shook his head.

"There are about 200, 250 active Supes in the country," MM spoke up saving Hughie from trying to think of a response.

"That number only represents the ones Vought has advertised as superheroes and are actively in the public eye." Clark replied his arms crossing over his arms as his answer caused everyone to look at each other. "Vought has been exposing infants to V since the early 50's, the superabled community is much larger than people think."

"How many are talking?" Butcher surprised everyone his voice was level and he no longer appeared to be scowling just deadly focused

"I honestly don't know, Vought has sealed those records somewhere that I can't currently find. I suspect the number is in the low thousands by simple math, a few hundred children every few years for 70-plus years equals a large group of people." Clark's grimace became more pronounced as he relayed his less-than-ideal findings.

"If there were that many supes in the country, more people would be aware, no?" Frenchie asked his eyes darting to Kimiko before he gave Clark a curious look

"The vast majority likely don't possess powers on the level of active superheroes, so go unnoticed. We are talking about minor abilities at best, like fast reflexes or being really healthy. I originally thought it was just to increase the chances of a major Supe but now….."

"But now what?" Lois jumped on Clark's trailing off her eyes narrowing at the man.

"I don't know really, it's just ... .a gut feeling. It's like someone beyond Vought, not Homelander but someone who has manipulated events over decades creating an environment that is purposefully volatile. Designed to increase the chances of Superhumans, disseminating V into a controlled population but also keeping them separate from people, with hedonistic lifestyles and poor choices."

"Why would anyone want to do that?" Hughie asked, his face one of confusion

"Honestly, I don't know, but it's a problem. A problem that Homelander's spreading of V has heightened to a global scale. More Superhumans on the planet is basically the random proliferation of walking nuclear weapons. Weapons that think for themselves, that eventually will lash out and most have been fed a hedonistic irresponsible lifestyle for years and that isn't even the major issue, the major issue is Ryan,"

"Why? What does the lad have to do with anything?" Butcher moved forward again his eyes narrowing his eyes

"He's a natural-born Supe," Clark replied releasing a sigh "That's something that Vought has been after for decades and the fact that it is possible has me deeply worried. As I think that is what all of this has been about."

"Homelander having a kid?" Hughie asked very confused about the conversation everyone was having.

"No….. Supes without V. A new world of superhumans" Lois whispered, earning a solemn nod from Clark.

"Well, fuck, that shit ain't going to play. And whilst we are going to have a long talk about my Misses, first let's get this fucking care circle over with"

Butcher scoffed with a mirthless smile on his face as he looked at Clark clearly wheels turning in his head about how to remove the Supe in front of him, clear hatred there. His mind just wanted Clark out of the way so he could get his wife back and fuck off from this shit show. He however also showed very reluctant acceptance that that desire had to be pushed back for the moment, as he picked up the document that displayed Liberty and Raynor's findings.

"So, spandex boy you want us to get all touchy and start sharing, then let's share" Butcher threw the file at Clark who caught it with ease and brought it up to read. "So then share, what do you know about a supe broad cunt called Liberty"

Clark looked at the file briefly flicking through the very thin file that the deceased deputy director of the CIA had put together. His eyes moved at alarming speeds as he seemed to blink for a moment the file going from being thrown into his hand to being fully opened on the last page. He was holding the Liberty advertisement for Budweiser in his hand looking at the cowled and hooded face on the cover.

"Liberty, Tier 1 Supe. Operated between 1951 to 79, mostly in the deep south, Georgia mainly. Basic powers for the time, limited flight, superstrength, vulnerability, heavily involved in Supe supremacist movements, Church of The Collective and the like." Clark moved over to stand next to Annie again placing the file on the table as he relayed what he knew about the woman. "Incredibly popular in the mid-50s, fell out of favour in the late 60s after complaints from civil rights groups became too much for Vought to cover up. Targeted a lot of African Americans for crimes and killed more than a few. No one has seen her since 79."

"Do you know what the address is? It belongs to a woman called Valerie Hunter. She's a 59 year old African American woman, two daughters, and a couple of grandchildren living in rural Georgia" MM asked, gesturing to the address that Raynor had scribbled on the Budweiser advert.

"I don't recognise the name or the address, most of my information about Supes like Liberty comes from my research into Vought records, my interest in them as a child and the limited access that the army has given me to their records." Clark replied, his face forming a frown as he failed to come up with anything useful until suddenly he let out a sigh and a strained look replaced his frown. "However, if you want information on an early Supe I know someone we can talk to that knows nearly everything."

"What's the catch?" Butcher asked, his mind already forming plans on how to get around Clark and get his wife regardless of what was being discussed here.

"Well the catch is we need to drive to Minneapolis, in Minnesota," Clark gave a rueful smile as he looked at the gathered room. "So who wants to take a road trip?"

(Route I-80 - Ohio turnpike - 3rd February 2020)

The car was more than a little cramped which Lois supposed was to expect as 5 fully grown adults were stuffed together into MM's minivan. Well, the van MM had stolen was more accurate, a fact that Clark was not happy with but was keeping his protest to himself. The van was occupied by Lois herself, MM, Annie, Hughie and Clark, the remaining members of the Boys had elected to stay behind and look into other avenues.

Lois shifted as she sat in the middle backseat separating Hughie and Annie whilst MM drove and Clark took the front passenger seat to give directions. The atmosphere was awkward at best as they travelled through the Midwest the car was silent the only sound was the hum of the engine and Clark occasionally giving directions. It had been hours since they had left New York, Clark had suggested he fly everyone there but that idea had been shot down by both MM and Butcher. The latter was no surprise, and the former still didn't trust a Supe enough to put his life in their hands.

"Would someone mind if we turned on the radio?" Annie finally asked from the backseat earning a shrug from MM who just gestured at the radio.

Clark turned the radio on and began fiddling with the buttons as it scanned for a station. It took a few seconds before the very loud and clear singing voice of Annie came through the radio, signing her new song Never Truly Vanish. The song played clearly for a few seconds before Annie's inevitable protest came out as she groaned at the tacky song Vought had made for her.

"Oh god! Please turn it to something else." Annie cried from the backseat earning her a chuckle from Lois, Clark and Hughie.

"You have a really good voice," Hughie leaned forward to grin at Annie who just looked more embarrassed than ever. "You can do that, like, the wavering thing they do on American Idol"

"Vibrato" MM answered finally saying his first word since they had started driving hours ago.

"Clark please change the channel," Annie demanded while feeling even more embarrassed.

"What it's not that bad, I think we should listen to it," Clark smirked, his joke earning him a kick in the back of the seat from Annie.

"Hey, change it or I will pull up the Superboy Album on my phone" Annie threatened her smirk going large as Clark's face fell and he turned to look at Annie

"You wouldn't dare" He mocked threatened her his eyes narrowing at her.

"Try me" Annie smirked back as she pulled out her phone menacingly.

Clark sighed in defeat before moving to the radio and tuned the radio to one of the few stations not playing Annie's song. The station in question was playing We Didn't Start the Fire by Billy Joel earning a nod and statement of approval from most of the car.

"Hold on, you have an Album?" Hughie asked with surprise in his voice as he leaned back in his seat and looked at Clark.

"It wasn't anything important." Clark tried to deflect earning a chuckle from Annie "It was like over a decade ago and it wasn't very good. My aunt made me do it for publicity. Singing Supes were big at the time."

"Why have I never heard about it?" Hughie pressed not wanting to let this piece of lost Supe trivia go; he might be less fanboy than before but he was still interested in Clark and Annie's super lives.

"Well…. Vought sort of suppressed it due to a small incident I had during the filming of the music video," Clark shifted in his seat as he could literally feel Annie's laughter desperately trying to escape.

"What incident?" Lois asked her eyebrow raised now as she could tell Clark was embarrassed.

"Ummmm well, see I was 15 and they had these backup dancers who were dressed…. er…" Clark gulped, really hating his decision to tease Annie as she knew too much about his past to work. "And I well it was, when, you see the thing is-"

"Clark got sued for looking at them naked!" Annie blurted out, finally unable to contain her laughter as she wiped a tear away from her eye.

"What?!" Both Lois and Hughie shouted out causing MM to wince and scowl at them but

"It's not like it sounds!" Clark went scarlet as he protested

"His, his, his powers came in, apparently all the skimpy costumes caused it and boom! Clark's in trouble" Annie clarified still putting herself together as she tried to breathe normally, before tapping the side of her right eye "You know, his X-Ray powers,"

"Huh?" Huhie just looked confused before putting two and two together, "OH!"

"Really Clark?" Lois asked teasingly, unimpressed, as he tried to stop being scarlet.

"Yeah, well I didn't think it was so funny." Clark chuckled defending himself remembering his less than grand moment. "I told my aunt and she just said 'Oh, just keep it quiet and don't say anything' and my parents weren't happy either, then it turned into a whole thing when I apologised."

"Well, that was good of you," Hughie spoke up trying to support Clark from the women ganging up on him.

"Yeah, and it was the right thing to do," Annie spoke up again, this time more calm and with a smile on her face as she looked at Clark. "But half of them wound up suing Clark. AND his Aunt was furious since no one would have known if he hadn't apologised on set in front of the cameras. It cost something like 3 million dollars in settlements"

"It was the right thing to do." Clark declared turning back in his seat to face the road and look at the map as they approached a junction indicating they needed to turn off. "Honestly, the hardest part of the whole thing was that it took me over a week to stop seeing through people's clothes"

"Yeah, well that all is very fascinating," MM's voice cut in as he glanced into the rearview mirror to give Lois a look before turning back to the road "It's getting late and unless we all want to be stuck in this car for another 10 hours straight we need to stop for the night,"

"Not to mention to get some food, I'm for one am starving," Lois agreed, her stomach grumbling to prove her point. "Well, that's two for getting some grub."

"A meal does sound good," Hughie agreed, his stomach also grumbling as he looked at the bag of peanuts that Butcher had thrown to him when he had asked about food.

"I could demolish doughnut" Annie agreed, her enthusiasm causing Hughie to smile and MM just to shake his head as he sighed.

"There should be a diner and a motel in about an hour," Clark looked at the map and then looked over to MM, "You want to take the 3rd exit on the right and then follow the signs for…. Cathay's Motel and Dinner"

(4 hours and a dinner meal later - Cathay's Motel - Near midnight, 3rd February 2020)

Clark stood unmoving his arms crossed behind his back as he tilted his head up towards the sky with his eyes closed. Lois stood apprehensive for a moment as she debated whether to go talk to Clark, a million thoughts and feelings went through her head as she looked at the man. However, before she could make a decision Clark broke the silence of the night as he tilted his head to the side and spoke.

"You should be sleeping," Clark's voice was calm and smooth as he stood like some key piece of nature, the heavens rotating above you.

"I know, but I um…sort of gave up my room to Annie," Lois moved forward as Clark's head returned to its tilted position, his eyes still closed, they had divided the rooms, the men taking one and the women the other. "She and Hughie are…"

"I know," Clark replied, opening his eyes as he turned to look at the woman carrying his child, his face forming a small smile. "I heard Hughie sneak out of the room and the two of them talking, mostly about candy bars. It was very adorable"

"And you're okay with it? With them?" Lois asked tentatively looking at the man that caused her heart to jump every time, something her rational brain hated.

Clark's smile faltered for a second but his face didn't fall, it just became more tentative and strained. He just looked at Lois for a moment, his impossibly blue eyes connecting with hers, and for a moment nothing else existed for her but those soulful eyes. It caused her to gulp a little when he broke off the gaze and looked back to the sky, an act that she knew he pretended not to notice.

"I'm not one to judge anyone in that regard," Clark sighed as his eyes tracked the heavens above them causing Lois to look up briefly at the stars "Besides he makes her happy and she him, in the end that is all that matters."

"...And what about us?" Lois finally asked after a long period of silence, her eyes trying to see what Clark was looking for in the sky, but whatever truth he saw was beyond her. "I know I hurt y-"

"I love you Lois, I think about you all the time" Clark's reply cut her off as he turned fully to her his eyes looking into her raw emotion present. "Don't ask me why. It's not logical and I know I should hate you, you lied to me, you used me, hurt my friend, abused my trust and you've committed acts I can't condone…. And yet…and yet I love you. So much for being the Man of Steel, "

"Being tough is overrated...I love you too Clark. I won't apologize for what I am, who I am but…..but I am sorry for what I did, and for what little it's worth I do hate that all of this was the only thing I could do" Lois replied suddenly feeling very small as she looked at the man, her hands wringing in front of her. "You know I often wonder what the world would have been like if things were just a little different, with Vought with Supes."

"With a world without them?" Clark asked his eyes darting to her hands before looking at her small bump, his own emotions causing them to shift.

"Sometimes, but that's more Butcher's dream." Lois scoffed at her comment causing her to smile and ease the tension in the air. "No, I often think about a world without Vought, with Supes being ... .well people rather than icons or corporate gimmicks. You know with real lives when they went home and real people around them."

"With secret identities?" Clark smiled at the thought he himself had sometimes his own mind conjuring up such a world "Balancing 9 to 5 jobs whilst saving the world, keeping the world safe without revealing themselves, saving the world without lawyers and PR men telling them when and how?"

"Yeah," Lois smiled at Clark, her hands unconsciously going to her stomach. "What do you think Clark Kent of that world would be like?"

"Ha, ha. A lot more mild manner for one, less preachy maybe, certainly no logos or merchandise for one" Clark chuckled at the idea of him having a secret identity, a world were Clark Kent might have been real person not just a facet of Superman, the thought caused his smile to drop a little "...I think I would be more real"

"You're the most real man I have ever met Clark," Lois defended Clark to himself, her hand moving to take his without thinking, giving it a gentle squeeze. "You're honest, brave, true and have the biggest heart of anyone ever."

"I often find myself disconnected Lois. Like I'm watching the world rather than being in it." Clark sighed, his face falling as his eyes looked to the floor and then to her hand in his. "I'm not human and I'm not a Supe. I'm rich, well connected, and powerful beyond measure. I live in a bubble Lois and I save people whose lives I really don't know anything about…..I just…..I just don't feel like I belong."

Lois just looked at Clark and found herself looking at not a scion of justice, not a superhero lamenting the wait he carried nor even an alien separated from humanity. No here was a person trying to find a place in the madhouse they called the world, a place that was his that he had chosen and earned not given to him. She suddenly found herself moving back towards the motel pulling a surprised Clark by his hand.

"You belong with us," Lois whispered, placing a hand gently on her stomach as she smiled at Clark leading him with their intertwined hands. "Now, come on you need to get to bed,"

"Lois, you know I don't sleep," Clark chuckled as he allowed her to pull him towards the motel, a smile on his face.

"Oh I know," Lois smile turned teasing as started to move quicker "Who said anything about sleep,"

(Edina, Minnesota - Super Duper House - Early Morning 4th February 2020)

"AUNTIE! AUNTIE! AUNTIE! AUNTIE!"

The sound of pounding feet rushing up the stairs woke her up before the shouting did, but the loud childlike enthused voice certainly made sure she wasn't going back to sleep. She released a sigh as she rolled over her hand going to the empty space beside her causing her heart to ache for a moment. However, the moment quickly ended when the door to her bedroom flung open and the large round figure of her charge and team mate Bobby Badoing appeared.

"AUNTIE! AUNTIE! AUNTIE! AUNTIE! YOU'LL NEVER GUESS WHO'S HERE!" Bobby was almost bouncing with joy as he stood at the foot of her bed, his large frame shaking with excitement.

"Bobby," She sighed as he sat up in bed bringing the sheets up to cover her body as she glanced at the alarm clock and saw it was only 7AM, before returning to Bobby and giving him a wry smile. "We've talked about this, what does a closed door mean?"

"OH SORRY! SO SORRY! I FORGOT!" Bobby's eyes widened as he went red with embarrassment, but before she could calm him he turned around and closed the door, a loud knocking occurring after it was shut. "Auntie, can I come in!"

"It's okay Bobby!" She chuckled a smile on her face, others might find Bobby too much but to her he was just innocent and sweet. "Tell you what, I'll be ready in 5 minutes, why don't you wait in the kitchen and I'll make pancakes."

"YAY! PANCAKES! I'LL TELL EVERYONE!" The enthused shout shook the door slightly as did the pounding of feet as Bobby rushed away forgetting whatever he had woken her up to tell her.

She sat there for a few moments banishing the last vestiges of sleep before finally slipping out of bed and doing her morning stretches. As she rolled her shoulders banishing the last remains of tension and ache from her body, she moved into her private bathroom and started to get ready for the morning. It didn't take her long before she was dressed in the awful orange and yellow costume Vought had forced on her. She looked at herself in the mirror briefly, the act caused her to lament the lack of her old uniform with its brilliant hues of red, blue and gold.

"Orange was never my color, was it flyboy," She smiled at the faded picture of the love of her life that sat on the bedside table, the faded image caused her heart to ache again "I'll be back soon, love, stay out of trouble."

She blew the faded image a kiss as she tied her hair back, electing not to put on her red wig just yet, it was still early and the team wasn't scheduled to do anything today anyway. As she left her room, she immediately noticed that the rest of the house was already awake, noise sounded throughout their fairly large suburban home. A flash of shadow appeared just behind her coming through the wall of the room adjacent to hers and before she could stop she felt the unpleasant chill and tingle as another one of her charges passed straight through her.

"Rachel," Her voice snapped slightly more sternly than she meant to, causing the dark cloaked woman to stop dead. "What have I said about going intangible through people?"

Rachel or Shadow Stool as she was known to the wider world turned slowly looking sheepish as she did so. The young woman's face, which had a small bruise over her left eye and a recently applied bandage to her nose, looked genuinely apologetic as she stood at the top of the stairs. The sound of conversations and laughter emanated from downstairs causing her to look from her charge to the stairs.

"Sorry Auntie I got…..I got…..um, um,...uh excited, Bobby told me he's brought friends!" Shadow Stool made her statement quickly before grinning and then bounding down the stairs before she could be questioned.

"Wait! What?" She called after her teammate to no avail, finding herself very confused as quickly followed Rachel down the stairs and tracking the sound of loud conversation to the kitchen and dining room.

"COME ON! DO IT AGAIN! DO IT AGAIN!" Bobby's voice rang out as she could hear the floor buckling under his weight as he bounced.

"Bobby calm down, I'll do it later okay?" The familiar powerful friendly voice caused her to both smile and freeze, surprised that he had dropped by without calling first.

However, as she walked down the corridor and turned into the kitchen her smile dropped and she froze again as not only did she see Clark with the rest of her charges but four other people with him. Her eyes quickly flashed to the two women both she recognised but never met, one was that reporter for the Vought New channel Lois Lane, and the second was clearly Starlight, in civilian clothes. It was the two men that had caused her to freeze, she watched the news nightly and knew both as those wanted men whose faces for months had been plastered everywhere.

"Hi Diana, sorry to just drop in" Clark's voice caused her to look at the young man, his face was a smile but his eyes told a different story. "But we need to talk, about a lot of things, including a Supe called Liberty"

Diana stood there for a moment, her eyes just wide, her mind racing, the silence causing her charges in her superhero team to just look at each other nervously. None of them had ever seen Auntie act like this in the years they had known her, she was alway confident, smiling and certain of herself, what made it stranger was she was freezing because Clark. They all knew Clark, they all loved Clark, he was nice and fun, whenever he visited they had a great time, and he always brought p-

"FUCK" Diana loud swear caused all of Superduper to jump in shock and just stare their leader in shock, Diana herself just looked at Clark before moving forward to slump herself into a seat before whispering. "...Fuck,"