The Chicken Thief
It jumped effortlessly over a large ditch at the forest's entrance.
Clark wasn't about to be outdone.
He rode his bike and jumped over the ditch as well, leaping across the moonlit sky with Soren in the bike basket.
Wait a minute!
Soren suddenly realized—the flying bike, the blanket in the basket, the alien in the basket…
Wow, this is just like the famous scene from E.T.!
Soren stared thoughtfully at the bright moon.
Clark Kent, why are you so good at this?
Have you been secretly watching E.T.?
After their bike flew over the ditch and landed smoothly, Clark seemed to notice his unusual flying ability.
He scratched his head in confusion but quickly shrugged it off and continued to chase the figure deeper into the forest.
The forest was dense and rarely visited, with no roads for bikes.
Clark's speed slowed as he was blocked by thick bushes.
Soren saw that the chicken thief's figure was almost disappearing into the woods and panicked.
He jumped off the bike and nimbly leaped through the undergrowth to catch up with the thief.
"Meow!" he yowled loudly, urging Clark to hurry up while closely following the thief.
Clark also got off the bike, carrying it as he ran, "Fuzzball!"
The forest was full of towering fir trees and dense bushes, making it hard for Clark to move forward.
He had to keep pushing aside vines and branches to get through.
In contrast, Soren's small size made it easier for him to navigate through the tangled vegetation.
Soren ignored Clark's calls and continued to chase the thief deep into the forest.
The thief seemed very familiar with the forest, skillfully leaping and darting around.
They soon reached a somewhat flat clearing.
The clearing was covered with fallen leaves and weeds.
In the center was a dilapidated wooden cabin, and next to it was an old, rusty car covered in moss.
Soren arrived at the edge of the clearing and saw the thief running into the cabin.
He immediately stopped, his cat eyes fixed on a row of rotting animal corpses hanging in the cabin's window.
These were likely animals the thief had either collected or hunted from the forest: a dead deer, a wild boar, sparrows… and a half-decayed wolf corpse.
The back of the wolf's corpse was glowing with an eerie green light.
Soren's senses sharpened as he took a closer look.
The green light was coming from a small, green mineral embedded in the decaying flesh.
The mineral was a bright green and emitted a sinister, yet strangely familiar aura.
— Kryptonite.
Soren's gaze became intense.
He was very familiar with this substance.
Any comic book fan would know that kryptonite is deadly to Superman.
Kryptonite comes from Krypton, Superman's home planet, but its radiation can be fatal to Kryptonians who have absorbed yellow sunlight.
He hadn't expected to see kryptonite here.
Kryptonite can not only harm Kryptonians, but prolonged exposure can also cause mutations in ordinary Earth creatures.
The creature in front of him had probably become a werewolf because it had eaten the decaying wolf meat struck by the kryptonite.
But what to do?
Clark would be arriving soon, and if he encounters the kryptonite, he could get hurt!
Even Superman, the future guardian of Earth, would be seriously harmed by a small piece of kryptonite.
What's more, Clark was still just a baby Kryptonian…
Soren's whole body tensed.
His keen hearing told him that Clark was only about ten meters away.
He didn't have time for further thought—
In a flash, the small cat shot forward like a white feathered ball, leaping onto the thief.
He grabbed the thief's leg with one paw and then sprang into the air, landing on the wolf corpse hanging from the roof.
Using all his strength, Soren bit down on the green-glowing spot on the wolf corpse, tearing off the piece of flesh and swallowing the green mineral.
"Argh—!" The mutated creature howled in pain, its eyes bloodshot as it lunged at Soren.
Its arms were unusually long, with sharp claws on each finger.
If it caught Soren, it could easily tear the small cat apart.
Soren dodged the monster's attack and ran a few steps forward.
He saw Clark running towards them and swinging his small fists.
Just before the monster could grab Soren, Clark slammed his bicycle into the monster's head.
With a loud "thud," the monster was knocked back, dazed and confused.
Clark quickly scooped Soren up into his arms, "Fuzzball! Oh my gosh, are you okay?"
Clark's soft and warm embrace was so tight that Soren could barely breathe.
The little cat struggled to free his limbs, poked his head out, and licked Clark's arm soothingly.
Looking at the healthy and complete Clark, Soren finally relaxed.
But he probably shouldn't stay so close to Clark, especially since he had just swallowed a piece of kryptonite.
"I'll get our chicken back!" Clark said, seeing that Soren was alright.
He went after the monster to reclaim the chicken it had stolen.
Without the kryptonite's threat, the mutated creature was no match for the five-year-old Clark.
The monster tried to attack Clark, but Clark hit it with two powerful punches.
The monster, clutching its head, fled with its tail between its legs.
Even though Clark's fists were small and chubby, they were enough to make the monster retreat.
Clark got the little hen back from the monster, but it was already cold, with blood staining its wings.
Clark was heartbroken.
His bicycle was ruined, and the little chicken couldn't be saved.
The monster who are beaten by Clark, curled up on the ground, whimpering, "Awooo... uuu..."
As it whimpered, its mutated features began to slowly fade away.
Its fur fell off, its claws retracted, and it gradually revealed a human shape.
But Clark didn't even look at it.
He held the dead chicken and began to cry.
He looked both foolish and sad.
Soren watched from the side, feeling heartbroken.