Chapter 11 – Different Approach

(Charlie's Bar and Grill – New York – 21st September 2019)

"Massive revelations two weeks ago as Starlight of the Seven voiced doubts about her personal beliefs at the Believe Expo. This revelation was also made in concert with the shocking story that she had been the victim of sexual assault."

Lois gave the report with a fixed grin on her face as she expertly moved to look into another camera for a better angle, all while Starlight's image was placed on the screen behind her next to a stream of supporting tweets. Although she was sympathetic towards Annie and felt it was incredibly brave, she was hating the fact that her new show had the story sandwiched between Supes: Who Wears it Best? and Supes: Serving a Necessity. However, the show had become more tolerable after the producers that had once required her to wear, speak and act in a certain way had seemingly disappeared and the wardrobe had returned to sanity.

"While the identity of her assailant has yet to be publicly revealed, reporters are swarming around none other than the Deep. The Deep has been placed on indefinite leave after the events three ways ago where the aquatic member of the Seven attempted to steal a dolphin. The rumours were sparked after a leaked memo from inside Vought showed that the Deep had been fired from the Sevendue to mounting unpopularity and a history of complaints from women the hero has encountered."

"I can't believe it, everything I said up there and they only focus on that." Annie shook her head as she turned back to the table, where Hughie, Clark and Lois had gathered for trivia night.

"Lois, that memo from Vought... how exactly was that leaked?" The edge of the wording was belied by a smile as he looked at his girlfriend.

Lois just gave a sly nod and shrugged at Clark whilst taking a sip from her beer. Annie raised an eyebrow at the reporter, who just shot her a knowing wink causing Annie to grin at her. She was starting to really like Lois, the woman was everything she had imagined in Maeve as a child: No-nonsense, hard as nails and didn't take shit from anybody.

"Hey, everyone, eye of the tiger. We have a Panera gift card to win." Hughie chimed in with a smile at the gathered group, reminding them why he had invited them to trivia night in the first place. "No distractions. Come on. We've got this."

Annie smiled at Hughie's boyish charm, while Lois put on her game face as she picked up the team's pen to write down their answer. However, although he plastered a grin on his face Clark's mind was far afield as the past two weeks had not improved his mood at all. A recent Gallup Poll had revealed that 73% of Americans supported Supes in the military and that the reaction to Homelander's speech at the Believe Expo had been met with more support than people had initially expected. All of this translated into Clark's growing problem, and the question he was struggling with was whether the world was moving on to a place that he just couldn't go? Were its people going to a place he couldn't follow?

"Okay, trivia buffs. Here's the first question of the night, and it's a humdinger!" Charlie the elderly grey-haired ex-marine that ran the bar spoke up causing Clark to momentarily snap out of his thoughts. "Before joining the Seven, which hero led a search-and-rescue team after the 1995 Northridge earthquake?"

Hughie looked over to Annie who suddenly looked sheepish as she had no earthly idea for the answer, causing a look of dismay to appear on his face. "Oh my god. Isn't it your job to know this stuff?"

"Eh…..Lois?" Annie quickly turned to the reporter who had her face scrunched up as she tried to think of the answer, her competitive side refusing to admit defeat.

"I think it was Tek-Knight?" Lois responded with nothing close to certainty which caused Hughie's face to drop as he knew the answer.

"Lamplighter," Clark's strong voice sounded out, saving the day. "The answer is Lamplighter."

"Thank you, yes. See? Clark's here to win." Hughie smiled and smacked Clark on the shoulder with a grin, before shaking his hand in pain earning a laugh from the table. "Glad to see someone knows their superhero trivia."

"Well excuse mefor not having all the trading cards in mint condition like some people," Annie smirked back, smiling at Clark who shook his head at the betrayal.

"Wait, you collected all the trading cards?" Hughie looked at the tall musculature supe next to him and found it difficult to imagine the man having such a nerdy or human hobby.

"Yeah, I collected them up until I was 13, I think. My aunt used to give them to me after events as rewards. She worked for Vought, so she got first prints before they were released to the public." Clark revealed a small smile appeared on his face as he recalled one of the few highlights his aunt's job had when growing up. "I had them including…...doubles of Homelander."

The mention of Homelander caused the proud smile to drop from his face for a moment earning a worried glance from Lois and Annie. However, before either of them could say anything Charlie spoke up again, his booming voice forcing focus from everyone.

"Question 2: Which superhero dated former Miss USA and current Miss Universe Lana Lang, and for an extra point in what year did the couple break up?"

"Anyone got any ideas? I don't think I know this one." Hughie's brow furrowed as he tried to find the information in his vast pop culture knowledge of superheroes but up blank.

Annie shifted uncomfortably at the question, which didn't escape Lois' attention. Clark then let out an enormous sigh running a hand through his hair as his perfect recall caused him to wince at the memory being summoned.

"July 28th, 2013," Clark answered the second part of the question, and Hughie perked up at the chance that they would answer probably the hardest question of the night.

"Great, and who was the Supe…?" Hughie trailed off as he saw Annie not so subtly trying to signal him to stop talking.

"It's all right, Annie." Clark glanced at Annie who just stopped her hand signals mid-motion and looked a little sheepish at his awkward smile. "…. The one in question was…...me."

"Oh…." Hughie went wide-eyed at the revelation, pausing again before he looked up at the tall supe with a sly grin on his face. "Sooooo, Lana Lang, eh?"

Hughie's question was accompanied by a brazen lifting of his eyebrows, causing a moment of shock before Clark started chuckling. The awkward tension evaporated from the table, replaced by an outbreak of laughter, which only doubled when Annie's playful shove caused Hughie to fall on his ass. The rest of trivia night flew by as the group shared plates of greasy foods, pitchers of beer and swapped stories the whole night.

It was near the end of the night when Hughie was suddenly spotted by a friend from highschool, forcing the young man to reluctantly excuse himself and head to the bar with his friend. As Hughie settled by the bar to catch up with his friend and explain his recent disappearance, Clark decided it was time to unload what was on his mind.

"I've been offered a place in the Seven," He blurted out, then fell quiet as he stared down at the drink in his hand, wishing for once that alcohol would numb him as it did for others but knowing that was impossible. "I'm to replace The Deep."

"Wow…..." was Annie's only response, as she didn't know how to feel about the offer. Her face stayed neutral, she wasn't sure if she was meant to smile or frown.

"So? Are you going to take it?" Lois asked the question Annie had been too afraid to ask, the reporter's eyes not looking for a story but concerned about her boyfriend.

"I don't know. It's a lot to think about. I need to talk to a few people about this before I decide anything," Clark replied, not putting words to all the eventualities his mind had been racing through, or how he was not enjoying the most likely ones. "I'm going to try to see Homelander later to follow up on recent findings, anyway. So, I'll see how that goes."

"That might be difficult"

Annie tried to be diplomatic, hating being the bearer of bad news, but didn't want Clark wasting his time. "They've got him and the rest of the Seven doing this biographical piece, called Super in America. It's about our childhoods and stuff, so he might not be available for a few days."

"Great, just great" Clark's face flashed with anger as he gripped the mug full of beer in his hand too tight causing the glass to explode, "Oh sh... Dammit, sorry, sorry."

Clark apologised and was quick to pick up napkins as he tried to clean up the mess he had made, scowling at his own carelessness. As Lois and Annie tried to help, the former spotted the barmaid that had been eyeing Clark come out from behind the bar with a first aid kit and a towel. Lois tried to move to wave off the woman but was too late as she suddenly appeared pressing up next to Clark.

"Oh dear me, too much to drink, honey. Here let me check you ou-" The barmaid cut herself off as she took his hand before Clark could protest, and her eyes widened when she saw that it was absolutely fine. Clark might have been able to talk himself out of the situation had it not been for the beer soaking into his shirt enough to show the imprint of the S crest from his super suit underneath.

"OH MY GOD. YOU'RE SUPERMAN!"

The woman's declaration caused the entire bar to fall silent as she stepped back from Clark as if touching him had burned her, causing her to stumble. On instinct Clark reacted with superhuman speed, catching her before she could fall and causing the bar to go even quieter. His eyes widened as he looked around the room hoping that for once his presence wouldn'tcause a stampede.

No such luck. Before he even released the woman, the crowd exploded into cheers and claps as people flooded towards him. Clark plastered a smile on his face as he expertly manoeuvred away from his friends while keeping the focus on him as he moved slowly to the backdoor. Without even needing to say or do anything, Annie was already up and moving, taking Lois' hand as they moved in the opposite direction. They picked up Hughie as they went who was trying to pay for their drinks, but the bar owner just waved him off giving an apologetic smile as his regulars ruined their night out, so free drinks were the least he could do. As they moved fully outside, Hughie could still hear the commotion in the bar as Annie took out her phone and immediately pulled up a ride-sharing app.

"Shouldn't we wait for Clark?" Hughie asked, turning back towards the bar.

"No," Annie sighed with regret and a dour smile. "This happens sometimes, unless he needs to shoot off to save people, he'll be stuck glad-handing and taking selfies for about an hour."

"This stuff happen a lot?" Hughie asked, hoping this wasn't part of his girlfriend's normal routine.

"A little. It really comes with the territory. For me, it's mostly 'oh hey look, it's Starlight' or 'Starlight can we have a picture', nothing too major even after I joined the Seven." Annie shrugged although she found it annoying as Clark did, but she was used to it. "But he's on a whole other level. When he gets spotted or recognised it's basically a small riot."

"That sucks," Hughie glanced back at the bar, again seeing the downside of the Supe life where the more he got to know the less he found appealing.

"Yeah, it does," Annie agreed and put her phone back into her pocket before turning to Lois who was putting on her coat as the cold September air got to her. "Do you want a lift? Things in there'll be a while"

"Thanks, but I'm going to wait for Clark." Lois smiled at Annie's kind offer before catching Hughie's eye. "You two go on, I'll catch you up later."

(Former CIA Safehouse – Downtown, New York – 22nd September 2019)

As Hughie quickly glanced at their new hideout, which was located in an old semi-underground storage area that had been modified into living quarters, he wasn't sure if it was good or bad that he was getting used to the filth. Whilst the area was cleaner than the last few places, he was starting to realise the running theme with all of Butcher's hideouts was grime and disrepair. This was evidenced by the fact that the only truly clean area was the desk and board that MM had constructed and wiped off so he could present the team's findings.

"So, here's what we've got. Samaritan's Embrace, run by Ezekiel but financed by Vought through an offshore charity in the Philippines routed through a company in Panama, has been shipping Compound V to a select 53 hospitals across the country since 1971." MM gestured to the map of the US he had made that displayed the location of all the hospitals and shipping routes Vought was using. "Lois has uncovered that all these hospitals have associated fertility clinics that are also bankrolled by Vought. They have been disguising the V as a Polio vaccine to get past FDA checks."

"The basic formula is…." Lois started to speak but trailed off as she watched Kimiko, the now named Female, suddenly walk in and grab a handful of pens from MM's desk before disappearing into an adjoining room. "…is that these Vought fertility clinics have extensive hidden physiological and background checks hidden in their forms and applications. When they get the right mix of mentality and financial status, they swoop in with the deal of a lifetime."

"More like a fuckin' handshake with the devil." Butcher spat out shaking his head at the Vought's corruption.

"Yeah. As far as I can tell, Vought's worked out a nearly perfect method of selection." Lois responded, sighing as she gestured to the mountain of documents and files she and MM had uncovered. "When they do get it wrong…well, to keep everyone's lunches down let's say they don't leave evidence of any kind. It also seems most of the Supes aren't aware of V as far as I can tell. Part of the control, I think."

"So, all of them are just kids dosed with this blue shit?" Hughie was still struggling to wrap his head around the size of the problem they were dealing with.

"What about Homelander?" Butcher cut in; he brought his hand up to stroke his chin as he assessed all the evidence in front of him.

"Homelander's a black hole. Never had a public record, never will." MM responded quickly before the small sigh Lois let out could turn into a fight over the man's obsession. "However, every other Supe is a juiced-up lab rat."

"This is the shit that Raynor and her fellow cunts are going to eat up with a spoon." Butcher just grinned wolfishly as he picked up the sample of V they had procured "We got Vought on child endangerment, drug trafficking, money laundering and possibly the largest fraud in American fucking history."

"You better hope she does, because we have really stretched ourselves here. Frenchie is burned, we've offed a supe, raided one of their drug labs and my sister is running out of safehouses where she can stas us." Lois chimed in giving Butcher a pointed look as her eyes followed Hughie who was engaging with Kimiko's endless drawings. "If we don't get some clout or protection, we are fucked. There is also that mess to deal with as well."

Lois pointed over to Kimiko who had almost taken off Hughie's hand as he took one of her scrambled drawings, causing the young man to stumble back and scramble up the stairs back to everyone else. Kimiko gave Hughie and then Lois a quick glance before returning to her drawings, uncaring about what was being discussed.

"Magnifique beauté is right, non? We should try to figure out our petite Lazarus. This is all fantastique, but she is no infant. She was also injected in a basement, not a hospital." Frenchie was so quick to come to the Female's defence that Lois had to resist rolling her eyes, the man was always the champion of lost and broken things. "And there is the small matter that she rose from the dead when Noir tried to décapite moi."

"Well, your feral pixie dream girl ain't exactly dictating her fucking memoirs, Frenchie." Butcher shot back taking a more negative view of the protectiveness than Lois had.

"Oui, but me and MM have a plan in the works. Just give us a day or two to see what we can find." Frenchie pushed, leaving out that his idea involved using the Supe telepath Mesmer to read her mind.

"Okay, let me talk to Raynor first, but you're fuckin burned so any leg work MM is doing it, or it doesn't get done. You, keep your arse parked here with wonder child until I say otherwise, got it?" Butcher glared at Frenchie as he thumbed at the Supe who was now drawing on the walls, earning him a curt nod from Frenchie. "Good then, I'm off."

Butcher's announcement signalled the end of their little get-together causing everyone to start grabbing their stuff. Hughie let out a breath and thanked god quietly that he wasn't being assigned another stupidly dangerous and deadly mission.

"I'll just keep on Starlight then, right?" He asked as he grabbed his coat, his smile ending as he caught Butcher's eye.

"Her phone's been tits-up for nearly two weeks now. You wouldn't know anything about that would you?" Butcher asked his question as he just maintained an unbroken stare at Hughie that caused the man to move.

"No. But I can, uh…..I can check." Voice stayed level that time, great job!

The room went silent as Butcher just stared at Hughie for a few moments before shaking his head. The taller man just grabbed his coat and glanced at Lois who met Butcher's eye before glancing away, not wanting to get involved this time. Lois grabbed her bag and gave MM a nod before heading out of the hideout and back to her cover as an ace reporter working for Vought. She knew what Butcher was going to show Hughie, what he was going to reveal, and although she didn't like the man Hughie deserved to know why Butcher was so committed. She also hoped it might make the kid wise to what he had and that he needed to focus a little more on building a life outside of the Boys.

"All right. You're coming with me." Butcher huffed as he picked up his coat and gun, "We need to take a little detour to get your head screwed on straight."

Hughie wasn't able to say anything as Butcher moved past him giving him a look that told him this wasn't up for discussion. As he grabbed his own stuff he caught MM's eye. MM gave Hughie a small smile and a firm nod that did a lot to settle his nerves.

(8 hours later)

"And we thank you for your service," Lois forced out a fake smile as she chuckled slightly at her guest's joke, hating every second of the interview. "That was Nubia, folks, with her new book, Representation: A Heroine's Journey. I'm Lois Lane and this has been Hosting Heroes, up next my…good friend Cameron Coleman has a sneak peek of the VCU's newest movie, Black Noir: Insurrection. So stay tuned."

"AND CLEAR!" Perry's voice sounded as he slumped in his chair sighing at the crock of shit they were now serving to the public.

"Hey, Lois I was wondering if you could introduce me to Superman." Nubia casually removed the mic from her costume and gave Lois a fake smile as she leaned in close like they were old friends. "I've been an admirer for years; I would just love to meet him…. I also don't mind sharing."

"I'll mention it to him." Lois forced the smile on her face to stay there even as her skin crawled.

Her apparent acceptance caused Nubia's fake sincerity to turn flirtatious, and even made the heroine bold enough to give Lois' thigh a squeeze as she stood up and a wink. Lois just kept her smile on her face until the Supe disappeared offset, and released a deep hot breath she'd been holding in. Perry chuckled as he came over, setting down a cup of coffee in front of the woman. The elder reporter lifted a flask in an offer, which Lois just shook her head at. Although she felt she needed a drink she needed to keep a clear head these days.

Perry then started their usual post-show discussion, which was mostly him discussing how the ratings were faring, who was the next guest and what Vought wanted in the next segment. In short, it was everything he hated about his new job, and try as he might, Lois could see the disgust in his eyes when he gave her the company's talking points. They were just about to wrap up when she heard her phone vibrate in the bag that she kept beneath her desk, a fact that forced her to prevent a frown from appearing, as the one going off was her burner.

"Sorry Perry, I've got to take this," Lois gave her boss a nod as she picked up her phone and swiftly moved away from the cameras and recording devices littered around the studio, "This isn't a good time, what is it?"

"Need you to come to a house, just texted you the address." Butcher spoke in his usual flippant manner and tone but Lois had known the man long enough to hear more underneath.

"What's happened?" Lois whispered, moving the phone closer to her mouth and moving swiftly to her private dressing room.

"Frenchie and MM happened. Tweedledee and Tweedledum brought in that cunt Mesmer to have a look at the Female," Butcher grunted out before pausing, taking a deep breath as he hated the next part of what he needed to say. "….I need you here, I need…a level head to look at this."

Most would assume that the declaration would have caused Lois to smile in triumph but all it caused was a chill to go down the back of her spine, when Butcher admitted he needed her it usually meant shit was about to go down.

"I'll be there in 20, that's as fast as I can go," Lois responded quickly, ending the call before looking at the text Butcher had just sent, memorising it before taking the phone apart and smashing the SIM card.

By the time Lois had arrived the sinking feeling in her stomach was growing, as she arrived at the unassuming house in the suburbs that she now knew as belonging to the Supe called Mesmer. As she got out of the car she slipped on a pair of gloves from her purse and then made sure that her security policy was securely tucked inside. Lois' hand stilled as she was about to knock on the door, the doorbell casing on the side caught her eye, and what she saw caused a grimace to appear on her face. She rapped her knuckles hard on the wooden door as she took in a deep breath to settle her nerves about what she now needed to do.

It was MM that opened the door and his smile at seeing Lois disappeared when he saw her face causing him to move out of the way. Lois wasted no time in pushing through into the living room just in time to see Mesmer holding Kimiko's hand as Frenchie steadied her. She took a step towards Mesmer only for Butcher's arm to stop her, the taller man narrowing his eyes at Lois, the two then exchanged a look.

"I'm seeing a jungle, she's a soldier…." Mesmer's voice sounded out as he twisted his head trying to peer deeper into Kimiko's memories. "There's a-... a flag? Or like a banner? It has a two-headed snake on it."

"A two-headed snake, like this? With red rays behind it?" Butcher crossed his arms and pointed his hands in the opposite direction together.

Mesmer just nodded in confirmation, causing MM, Lois and Butcher to look at each other in alarm.

"Why, what does that mean?" Hughie asked, tensing as he saw Butcher's hand subconsciously go to his side and drift closer to his firearm.

"It's the emblem of the Shining Light Liberation Army, Hughie," Lois revealed, her eyes not leaving Kimiko now that she knew what the woman was. "The most violent and deadly of the insurgent terrorist groups in Southeast Asia. They do everything from kidnapping and child soldiers to opium smuggling and live decapitations. Fuck me, Frenchie, you know how to pick them."

Frenchie just looked at Kimiko. He was about to ask the question when he saw the answer in her eyes before she turned away from him. It took him a few moments to cool off from the shock before he was ready to address the massive issue that was in the room. During which time, Lois had gotten Mesmer a couple of beers from his fridge to help the Supe stay calm, sitting him on his sofa whilst Hughie gave Kimiko a few pens and paper to draw with.

Frenchie's hand scratched the back of his head in frustration. "There must be more to all this! She can't be a terrorist."

"Yeah, well, you just keep her under fucking control." Butcher shot back, his blood was up and he was resisting every instinct in his body to off the Supe broad right then and there.

"Okay, so they smuggle in a top-shelf extremist recruit and then pump her full of compound V" MM started to put the pieces together in his head shaking his head at the diabolical plan. Lois picked up on where he was going.

"Then they unleash her to wreak havoc." She finished the thought. Quite the ingenious plan that someone in Vought had cooked up.

"Wait. Why would Vought give Compound V to terrorists?" Hughie, with his limited experience in the world of espionage and fucked up shit, failed to connect the dots.

"Because it's not about the havoc. It's about who stops it." Lois explained, her face becoming a grimace again, as she felt bile in her throat at Vought's plan. "Vought needs Supes in the military to run the table. Despite recent success, they're still not there, Homelander's scaring the shit out of people and there are enough sane people in the military to push back. So, what do they need?"

"A fuckin bogeyman, to scare the little cunts into running to daddy," Butcher answered with a scoff as he did so, he would be impressed if he didn't hate Vought so much. "Then it's next stop Sergeant fucking Homelander. Got to let the cunts in the army now. Those fuckers are creating Supervillains. God knows how many of them there are."

"Holy shit," Hughie swore as he felt his world shift again, corrupt Supes were enough but a world with actual supervillains wasn't one he wanted to live in.

"No, listen to me, okay? Maybe that's what they want her to be." Frenchie spoke up, moving over to Kimko and gesturing to the woman. "But that's not who she is. That's not what she wants. And you know this."

"Right, 'cause she bends your fucking ear off?" Butcher shot back dismissively, glaring at Frenchie.

"She saved my life! She's not bad. She just wants to go home." Frenchie moved forward putting himself between Butcher and Kimiko as the tension went up in the room.

"She's a fucking Supe, just like the rest!" Butcher threw up his hands in disbelief that he was getting pushback on trying to end a Supe terrorist. "How many times do I have to fucking say it, eh?"

Frenchie's argument died in his throat as he knew he had no way to push back against his boss's argument. Before Butcher could register his triumph Frenchie had turned back round and taken Kimiko's hand in his.

"Mon coeur, I know you understand me." Frenchie looked into her eyes pleading for her to give him a sign that he was right. "Please. Please. Tell them who you are. Tell them what I see!"

Kimiko looked into Frenchie's eyes for a few moments before standing up, causing Butcher's hand to reflexively go to his gun. The petite Asian woman walked up to Butcher who just stared down at her his hand tensing on the trigger. However, instead of attacking Butcher she suddenly pushed past him and knelt in front of Mesmer again, forcing her hand into his. Mesmer paused for a few seconds before he winced as Kimiko's memories and thoughts flooded his head.

"The drawings are, uh, palm trees in front of the moon. It's where she grew up. They killed her parents. They kidnapped her and her brother. Forced them to be soldiers." Mesmer's voice went soft as he felt the pain and anguish of the woman's life searing through him, forcing him to let go of her hand. "She just wants to go back and get her brother out of there."

The room fell silent as everyone processed what had just happened but also waited for Butcher to speak up again. The tall Englishman looked at MM and then at Lois both of whom gave him a small nod, causing him to sigh.

"All right, she can stay." Butcher finally declared his voice clearly showing that he was not happy about it. "Take her back to the safe house. We've got enough to get the feds on board so I'll go see Raynor"

"Great, however, before we go" Lois spoke up a sudden broad smile on her face as she turned and moved over to Mesmer causing Kimiko to move out of the way. "I just wanted to say I'm a huge fan, Mesmer, and I really want to thank you for all your help."

Lois' declaration caught the Supe off-guard as did her overly friendly tone, warm eyes and the outstretched gloved hand she was offering while the other one slipped into her purse on her shoulder. His brain stopped working for a moment as he could swear she was even swaying her hip suggestively at him as she came over. He swallowed deeply and quickly stood up to take her offered hand, cursing slightly that the light leather winter glove prevented him from reading her.

"Oh! Uh, that's great, you're very welco-" BANG! Mesmer's last thoughts were alarm as he felt something cold pressed against the fat folds underneath his chin, and then a moment of pain before it went black.

Hughie flinched as the sound and the muzzle flash went off in front of him. It took a second to realise what had happened as Mesmer stood swaying for a moment before stumbling backward and collapsing to the ground. The Supe's brains were splattered all across his closed curtains, creating a grisly mess as more blood poured out of the gaping hole in the top of his head. Lois merely stood in place for a second before exhaling. She then calmly stepped around the dead man, taking the gun from her hand and then pressing Mesmer's around the handle and trigger to make sure it had his prints before dropping it unceremoniously onto the floor.

"Shit! Lois, what the hell?!" MM shouted rushing over to the scene but pausing knowing there was nothing he could do. "We had a deal with the guy! He would have kept quiet! He was just a father wanting to see his ki-"

"There's a camera in the fucking doorbell, Milk." Lois cut off the man as she stood up and started to assess the tableau to make sure it looked right for a suicide "The bastard had all of our faces and was going to go to Vought."

"You don't know that." MM shot back, some of the anger leaving him as he heard Lois' explanation.

"Yes, I do actually. Unless you're forgetting that it's my job; to get intel and know how Supes will act." Lois stood back satisfied with her work before moving over to Mesmer's phone, taking it in hand and then using the dead man's fingerprint to gain access. "And if you had called me, I would have told you that Mesmer here is, or should I say was, a self-centred deadbeat asshole. He never fought for custody of his kid, the only thing he had done in the last 10 years was to lobby Vought to get back on the payroll, meaning he only cared about the limelight. It's why we never went to him in the old days, too high a risk."

"Lane, you've got this?" Butcher's firm voice cut off MM who had opened his mouth to continue the argument, but a firm look from Butcher stopped him.

"Yeah, I'm just posting a suicide note on his Twitter account and then I'll remove the door cam and footage of us," Lois replied, her cold detached attitude making Hughie's spine shiver as he watched her work. "Combine it with the fact that he was a known recluse and the beers I had him drinking, the cops will chalk this up to suicide in 5 minutes flat. The gun's unregistered but I'll give my sis a call and she'll create a paper trail leading back to him. So we're golden, but next time however if you're going to use a Supe then please fucking call me, okay?"

"I'll make sure they do." Butcher responded by putting on his coat as he glanced at the Boys. MM and Frenchie weren't meeting his eyes. "You cunts need to stay out of trouble whilst I go and convince the feds to find some balls. Think you can handle that?"

(Seven Tower - Crime Analytics Department – 22nd September 2019)

"This is everything you have?" Clark asked A-Train and Noir as he stood in a private room glancing over the files, photos and information that he had been given.

It mainly revolved around a man, seemingly of French nationality, who had a list of aliases, fake IDs and safehouses almost as long as Clark's cape. However, the image which captured his eye was one showing the heroine Popclaw being confronted by two individuals, one the Frenchman and the other with his back to the camera. Clark's eyes lingered mostly on the deceased body in the scene but also on the broad-shouldered man whose face was hidden, someone whose build Clark knew he had seen before. It also didn't take a genius to figure out what the scene was, Popclaw had accidentally killed someone and these people had shown up to blackmail her.

"Yeah, Homelander said we had to show you all this when you got in," A-Train replied, although his face was calm Clark could hear the man's irregular heartbeat pick up slightly showing he wasn't happy. "However, all we managed to get is that guy had 34 addresses, and nothing else but these aliases. I also saw a skinny pale dude and a black guy with a goatee going into Ch-... Popclaw's apartment as well."

"The forest for the trees," Clark sighed as he shook his head, even looking at the limited data the Seven had gathered he could already tell a major fact about this Frenchman they had missed.

"What the fuck does that mean?" A-Train shot Clark a bewildered look and then looked at Noir who just shrugged at the man's statement.

"It means you can't see the obvious thing in front of you." Clark sighed as he picked up a pad and started writing an algorithm, his hand becoming a blur as the screen on the wall became a stream of code.

"Which is?" A-Train spat back not hiding the grimace on his face as he glared through his sunglasses, hating that he had to deal with the pretentious prick.

"This man at some point worked for the government," Clark replied not looking at either of the Superheroes he was being forced to work with to track down a team involved in a murder and blackmail. "His aliases are too good, and several of them have complete records, you'd only get that from government assistance. Now, and I don't wish to be rude, but please leave."

"What? Why the hell should we?" A-Train's head shot to Clark a look of anger appearing on his face. "And who the fuck do you think you are, coming in here giving me orders. And what the fuck is that on the screen?"

"To answer your questions in order. I said please leave, you are wasting my time and I find your presence irritating, I am Superman, I can give you orders because Homelander put me in charge. And finally, that is an algorithm designed to search for this man and people connected to him using the parameters we have." Clark responded by typing faster as he started up the algorithm inside Vought's mainframe and branched it to every camera they had access to. "This will go through everything Vought is connected to and will provide us with the identities of the group we're dealing with."

A-Train made a move forward but was stopped by Noir who placed his hand on the speedster's shoulder and gave the second-fastest man alive a firm shake of his head. A-Train glared at Clark before turning on his heels and heading for the door, followed closely by Noir who just glanced around the room before turning to leave as well.

"A-Train, I will need to talk to Popclaw at some point as well" Clark's voice caused the speedster to pause and look at the red, blue and golden superhero, his teeth gritted as Clark turned his steely eyes at him. "Also, I would get that heart of yours checked out."

Clark didn't get a response as the speedster just scoffed at him and then disappeared in a blur earning him a sigh and shake of the head from both Noir and Clark. The silent ninja took one last look at the screen and then silently turned away leaving Clark by himself. Clark took little notice of their disappearance as in truth he had been trying his best to ignore the fact that he was in Vought working on this for the Seven. He was mostly focusing on the fact that there was a killer, or as it turned out killers, roaming free who had murdered one Supe and were likely aiming for others. Annie's image flashed in his head along with the few other heroes Clark had met whom he knew to be decent people, even though that list barely extended past Annie and Auntie Sis, along with her charges.

However, he was finding it difficult to focus solely on that fact due to the nature of the victim. Translucent had always had dark rumours swirling about him, more than the rest of the Seven due to many accusations of stalking and peeping tom charges. His recent conversations with Homelander were also playing in his head as well, which was causing him to consider whether or not he even wanted to be involved in finding Translucent's killer. His brow furrowed as he stared at the screen and wondered whether or not he should shut his program down, at least until he actually spoke with the leader of the Seven again.

"You looked pissed." Clark's head snapped to the door and was greeted by the sight of Maeve leaning on the doorframe with her arms crossed. "Want to share?"

"Hi Maeve. No, I'm not angry, more conflicted." Clark sighed as he set down the pad in his hands letting the algorithm he had created work its magic.

"Please, I think you and I know each other well enough now to drop the comic book bullshit, don't you Clark? Call me Maggie" Maeve gave Clark a smirk as she moved into the private analytics lab making sure the door shut behind her. "Noir told me you were helping out with the Translucent stuff. You find anything?"

"Noir told you?" Clark raised an eyebrow at the statement. He had surreptitiously scanned the black-clad Supe and doubted the man could legibly write with his cranial injuries, let alone speak.

"Figure of speech, he sort of drew a picture and…...well did that head tilt thing he does." Maeve tried to explain, finding it hard to explain Noir's unique communication skills. "But don't think I didn't notice; you didn't answer my question. Did you find anything?"

"Not really, just a little bit more detail on what your team already had." Clark sighed as he gestured to the table filled with papers and files that the Seven had found regarding the people apparently linked to Translucent's death. "I've just created an algorithm that will search through all connected databanks and cameras we have access to. It might take a day or two but we should get some names and faces."

"You can do stuff like that?" Maeve's eyes widened as she looked at the screen that was no longer filled with code but was showing multiple files and camera feeds being searched. "Just, crunch some numbers and find someone?"

"It's a little more complicated than that, as I need certain parameters, approximate size, weight, relative age, ethnicity and at least two locations I know they've been to create starting points. Also having their gait and voice can help." Clark tried to simplify the incredibly complicated program that he had just created but stopped as he saw that he had completely lost Maeve who was staring at him with wide eyes. "But in layman's terms…yes, I can get a computer to find someone. Everyone leaves a footprint or appears on camera, you just need to know what to look for."

Maeve was silent for a few moments as she looked at the screen and then back at Clark. Every time she looked at him she felt a spark, something that years of being in Vought had smothered but for some reason he and Starlight were causing to flare up. That was the main reason she had gone and talked to Elena again after years of avoiding her, she had thought herself crazy at the time and questioned why she was doing it, but standing with Clark, here, now she knew why. She wanted to be better, needed to be better, and her heart had sent her rushing like an idiot to Elena, trying to show the one person she gave a damn about that she was a good person.

"You know he doesn't really care," Maeve said the words out loud before her doubts and brain could shut her down, the spark in her chest demanding she said something before it was too late.

"Who?" Clark asked, turning to face Maeve head-on, then his stomach started sinking as he knew who she meant.

"You know who, Homelander. He doesn't give a shit that Translucent's dead, he just cares that it might affect the Seven and his image." Maeve stated firmly, taking in deep breaths as she pushed on. "He's a monster, Clark. All he is is self-centred egomaniac that destroys anything in his way. He's done…. things, terrible things….he's made me do some of them as well. He's killed, murdered and rap- forced himself on people"

There was a dead silence in the room for a few moments after Maeve revealed the weight that had been pressing down on her for years. She suddenly felt a cold spike through her heart, as it started to panic at what she just said. She just broke the silent rule of Vought, the one where breaking it caused you and those you love to end up dead: Don't talk about Homelander.

"How long?" Clark's calm voice immediately caused the spike in her heart to vanish as she looked into his clear comforting blue eyes. "How long has he been like that?"

"Ever since I've known him, at the start he wasn't too bad, he was rough and a little clumsy, but hopeful." Maeve couldn't help but soften when she remembered the young Homelander, the one that at times seemed to really want to change the world. "Then people started worshipping the ground he walked on, and anything good in him died . That's when…. the fucked up stuff started happening….. You can't tell him, Clark. If he knows you know, he'll lose it. He'll fucking kill everyone."

Maeve's panic was clear to see even without his senses, but with them, he could tell that the superhumanly strong and bulletproof woman was genuinely terrified. Her chest was pounding so fast that he was actually worried about a heart attack, and her amygdala, the section of the brain controlling fear, was lit up like a Christmas tree.

"I won't, I promise….." Clark responded letting out a deep sigh as he took in the news with eerie calm for Maeve which made her suspect that Clark had known or suspected more than he let on. "I've been offered a place in the Seven, Maggie."

"Are you going to take it?"

"That depends on the answer to this question." Clark looked Maeve right in the eye with such focus that the taller woman squirmed a little under the gaze. "If I joined, could I keep people safe?"

Maeve froze at the question as she knew what Clark was really asking. Could he control Homelander? Could he rehabilitate the man, or at least prevent him from killing everyone until he came up with a better idea?

"…..I don't know."

"Okay, okay." Clark sighed as he looked again at the screen that was searching for its targets. "We will find the people who got Translucent and then we will go from there. Where is he now?"

"He's finishing up this biographical shit with Stillwell down south somewhere." Maeve let out her own sigh as she tried to steady her breathing, as she realised what she might have set in motion.

(Same time - The Kent Farm)

Jonathan moved into the barn as dusk started to set in, just to check the old tractor's engine for the second time that week. He didn't need to do the job, as the farm ran itself these days, but he wanted to keep busy since he had too much free time on his hands. He let out a sigh as he knew Martha would be chastising him if she found out he was pushing himself again, his recent check-up hadn't gone great and that had her worried.

However, what she didn't know wasn't going to hurt her. He loved his wife dearly but she worried far too much. As he set his toolbox down on his workbench, he recalled his own father Harim had worked sun up till sun down for years while smoking like a chimney factory, eating bacon three times a day and drinking like a fish, and the man had lived into his 80s. A small noise from above him caused him to look up at the beams, above which was his son's old hideaway, he was about to dismiss it until he heard it again. Jonathan was quick to move, every now and again they had some idiot poking around the farm and more often than not it was some stupid fan or reporter looking at his son's things. Darn souvenir hunters.

As he reached the top of the ladder that reached the converted hayloft he stopped cold. Instead of a fan or a reporter, he was greeted by a tall blonde man wearing an American flag for a cape. The Homelander stood transfixed as he looked at Clark's old desk, his eyes devouring the happy photographs and the childhood mementos. A gloved hand then moved to pick up Clark's most treasured childhood memory: the baseball that he'd hit clear across town when he was 7, the one that Jonathan had spent three days looking for.

"So, Clark liked baseball growing up?" Homelander asked mildly, turning around to look at Jonathan as he put the ball back down and started floating in the air again.

Jonathan was forced to climb down from the ladder as Homelander drifted back to the barn floor, scanning over the area as he did so. An icy ball of fear started to grow in Jonathan's gut. Though he never told Clark, Mary had warned him years ago about this man.

"He still does, we watch the opening game of the Jayhawks every year," Jonathan replied, his eyes shifting from Homelander to the barn door that led to his house.

"That must have been nice. Taking your…son to see a baseball game. What does that feel like?" Homelander ground out, ignoring the quickening uneven heartbeat of the man behind him as he stared out at the farm. The scenery was like a Norman Rockwell painting, almost mocking him with how perfect it was.

"It's, well, it's indescribable." Jonathan's honest response caused Homelander to frown as the man failed to satisfy his desire for knowledge.

"Try" Homelander pressed, turning back around, his voice now threatening, but to his alarm, the man in front of him didn't cower.

"What do you want?" Jonathan asked, his voice also becoming forceful as he stared at the man his sister-in-law had told him for years might be a threat to his son.

"What do I want?" Homelander scoffed in disbelief, his rage from the day bubbling up inside of him, remembering the fake house, fake photos, fake memories, and the fucking blanket that had been shoved at him, the same meaningless shit for hours and hours like it'd never end. "I want to know why my son got this pathetic excuse of a childhood, in fuckin' Hicksville, instead of learning from me."

"Your son?" Jonathan was caught off-guard by Homelander's statement until he realised what the man was saying. "You mean Clark, my son?"

"Is that what you tell yourself?" Homelander looked at the feeble creature in front of him with disgust. How had this worm raised Superman? "I know the truth. Just look at you, either of you compared to him. There's nothing in common at all. How much did Vought pay you? What did they promise you? Fame, wealth, power?"

"I have no idea what you think you know, but Clark is my son and that's it." Jonathan stared at the Supe and shook his head, feeling far too old and tired to play this game. "I think it's time you left."

"I'm not leaving until you tell me who stole my son from me. Was it Stillwell? That old fuck Vogelbaum?" Homelander loomed forward and glared at Jonathan who, to his mounting fury, still didn't seem to feel threatened.

"I'm going to say this one last time. You need to lea-ACK!" Jonathan never finished his sentence as he suddenly found himself dangling off of the ground with Homelander's hands around his throat.

"YOU THINK YOU CAN GIVE ME ORDERS, YOU OLD SHIT?!" Homelander hissed as he lifted Jonathan off of the ground by the neck, never squeezing, as he wanted the wrinkly twerp to know who was in charge and finally show some panic. "I'm going to take back everything I deserve, everything Vought took from me starting with my son. I'm going to show him that we can do whatever the fuck. WE. WANT. You hear me?!"

Jonathan struggled for air for a moment and then suddenly convulsed in Homelander's hands before gripping his chest. The action came as a shock to the supe who dropped the old man, his hearing finally registering the issue. Jonathan's heart, which had already been elevated from work and the alarm at seeing Homelander, was beating erratically.

"I….need…. my…p-p-pi.." Jonathan stumbled as he tried to move, first towards his jacket hanging by the door and then tried to move to Homelander as he felt his heart slowly give out.

Homelander instead of catching the old man just stepped to the side causing the elderly farmer to collapse onto the floor coughing and gripping his chest. Homelander stared blankly, looking down his nose as Jonathan used all of his failing strength to try and crawl to his house to no avail. The pathetic flailing just made Homelander even more disgusted with the maggot at his feet, was this really the man Vought had chosen to be Clark's father? To raise one of the greatest beings in the world? A frail old farmer instead of him?"

"Jonathan?" Martha's voice caused Jonathan to stop his movements as panic spiked through him causing more agony in his chest.

Martha! What would Homelander do to Martha? He couldn't let him hurt his wife! With titanic effort, he managed to turn his head to look at where Homelander was, ready to beg with his last breath for his wife to be left alone. But as he turned upward, all he saw was an empty barn and no sign that Homelander was ever there. His energy spent, Jonathan collapsed feeling his heart finally stop.

As his world grew dark, his worry and panic seemed to melt away like snow meeting the first warm rays of spring. There was a light engulfing him, a warm nurturing glow, and he felt the strength of youth returning to his limbs. He could also hear something calling to him just off in the distance. It was a voice he hadn't heard since he was a little boy, a pair of voices in fact, calling him home.

"Jonathan, I swear if you're out here working on that tractor of yours I'm going to….." Martha waded out into the cold September air in her night dress ready to scold her husband for his foolishness, only to stop when she reached the barn doors. Her world fell apart as she did.

"JOHNATHAN?! OH MY GOD, JOHNATHAN!"

Martha rushed to her husband's side, hands hovering over his prone and unmoving figure. Reality soon came crashing back enough that she pushed him onto his back and cradled him as best she could in her arms. Her face went as pale as her husband's when she saw his chest completely stilled and his skin cold as ice.

"…..Jonathan?" She whispered the question softly as she shoved him slightly, trying to look into his eyes yet failing as his head just slumped away from her, causing the tears to start to flow. "….Jonathan."