The hallways in the lab twisted and turned in on each other so frequently, that after a few minutes of frantic searching, Clark was helplessly lost. He thought he had studied the plans Lex had given him enough to get by, but without Tina’s gift for memory, he could be going in circles for all he knew. He and Joseph were running aimlessly now, searching for any sign of Dr. Hamilton. They’d wasted too much time in the lab arguing, Clark thought to himself. That and Hamilton was a lot faster than he’d planned on. All they had found so far were empty labs, dead-ends, and a few scattered groups of LuthorCorps soldiers. Thanks to Joseph though, they’d been able to get the drop on all of them so far. All of the walls in the lab seemed to have been built as to block his x-ray vision, but Joseph’s superior sense of hearing more than made up for that. How he could do it was a mystery to Clark; not only was it an ability he hadn’t manifested yet, which baffled him as to how Joseph could have, but with all the sirens going off, he could hardly hear himself think, let alone the heartbeat of a guard fifty feet away.
Joseph pulled the door to another lab off its hinges and stared inside. “Dammit!” he pulled his head back. “Just another tech, not him.” Clark glanced inside and saw the terrified man trying to hide himself in a locker. In rage, Joseph threw the door against the wall. “We’re never going to find him!”
“We’ll find him!” Clark promised, trying to keep his brother under control.
“We should be gone by now. If we stick around any longer-“
“If we leave, we’ll never be able to save her,” Clark yelled over him. “Never.”
“Last time I escaped, I stayed for a while to… to settle some scores,” Joseph said, avoiding Clark’s eyes for a moment. “It gave them time to get ready for me. If we do that now…”
“This isn’t like last time,” he told him, trying not to think about what he had meant by ‘settling scores’. “You’ve got me now.”
Joseph looked like he was going to say something, but bit it back. Instead, he stomped off and stared down the hall. “What about your friends?” he asked finally with a trace of bitterness.
“What about them?”
“Well for starters, where are they?” his brother snapped back at him. “So far all I’ve seen is a fat load of-“ he stopped suddenly and turned around. He stared off down the hallway intently.
“What?” Clark said, recognizing what that look meant. “You hear someone?”
“Just a rat,” Joseph grinned evilly. Clark blinked, more than a little puzzled, and then his brother was gone. He stared, now completely dumbfounded, and then he heard a scream of pain from down the hall.
“Dammit,” he yelled, running at top speed. I missed him taking off, he thought. I didn’t know he could move that fast. He’s might be even faster than I am.
It wasn’t that hard to find his brother, he just followed the screams. When he arrived he found Dr. Hamilton lying prone on the ground, holding his right knee and bellowing. The lower half of his leg was bent almost perpendicularly in the wrong direction. Joseph was standing over him, smiling slightly. “What the hell did you do?” Clark demanded, brushing past his brother to check on the doctor.
“I must have hit him too hard when I stopped him,” he said insincerely. “Whoops.”
“Geez,” Clark muttered, trying to figure out what to do. He wasn’t a doctor; he didn’t know what to do with this sort of thing. He tried to touch his leg as gently as possible, but all that did was set him screaming again. “Sorry,” he apologized lamely.
“Don’t kill me, please don’t kill me!” Hamilton clutched at him.
“We’re not,” Clark said, shuddering a little as the man touched him. He could only imagine what this man had done to his brother over the years, and so he couldn’t help feel a little disgusted, but seeing him like this… Was it so wrong to feel sorry for him too, Clark asked himself.
“He’s not,” Joseph corrected over Clark’s shoulder. “But if it was up to me…”
“We’re not going to kill you,” Clark repeated a little louder. Hamilton stared back at, gasping and trembling from the pain. “But we need something from you. I need you to take me to Martha Kent.”
Hamilton started to protest and shake his head, but Joseph leaned over him, smiling. “Oh, please. Please say no,” he urged him. The doctor took one look at his face, went a little paler, and gave a very tiny nod.
“Good,” Clark said, relieved. His brother look disappointed. “We need his help,” Clark told him as he pulled the doctor up, supporting him over his shoulder.
“What about after?” Joseph stared at the doctor almost hungrily. “Do we still need him then?” Clark glared at him and pulled the doctor up higher, making him cry out a bit.
“Where is she?”
Hamilton moaned and pointed down the hallway in the way they’d come. “Lab 2,” he croaked out. “We go down that hall.”
“And after that?” Joseph asked a little too quickly.
Hamilton stared at him, frightened. “I’ll tell you when we get there,” he stammered.
Clark set off with Joseph following after. He would have run if he could have, but there was no way he could move fast without injuring Dr. Hamilton any further. He was going in and out of consciousness from the pain as it was.
“Come’on,” he urged him to stay awake, “where now?”
Hamilton muttered something intelligibly and Joseph growled darkly, “Give him to me, I’ll get what we need.”
Clark shook his head and asked the doctor again, “Where now? Come’on, wake up!”
“Down… down there,” Hamilton came back finally. He pointed unsteadily down another hall. “There’s a turn at the end. Go… right.” He started off again, but Joseph suddenly spoke up.
“Wait! A group, not far down that hallway,” he nodded in the direction they’d just come from. He frowned, listening intently. “Five, no six. They don’t sound like soldiers.”
“Are you sure?” Clark asked, hefting Hamilton’s body nervously. He’d passed out again and was lolling against Clark’s shoulder.
“They’re not saying who they are,” his brother remarked sarcastically. He flexed his fingers and glanced back at Clark. “You can’t fight with him hanging off you,” he pointed out.
“I can’t leave him here, someone might find him. Maybe it would be better if we run.”
“You don’t have to go. There’s only six of them, I could…”
“No!” Clark said a little more vehemently than he’d wanted to. He saw his brother’s face darken, but there was no way he was taking any chances with him yet. “We’ll run,” he decided. “They can’t be following us, we’ll lose them.”
Joseph grunted and turned around. “Too late for that. They’ll be around the corner in a few seconds.”
“Joeseph!” Clark hissed at him, but his brother didn’t move. He stayed where he was, waiting for the group to come around the corner and show themselves. Clark turned back, and looked down the hallway. It was straight line for two hundred yards, no where to hide if they were LuthorCorps. If he was alone, it would have been nothing, but there was no way he could clear the distance carrying Hamilton with him. He put the doctor down on the ground as gently as he could and stood with his brother. Joseph glanced at him and gave him a tight, almost anxious, grin. He didn’t return it.
Now even Clark could hear the people running down the hallway. He ducked down, ready to spring at them in an instant if need be. He saw their shadows race along the wall and then they turned the corner, running at top speed.
Clark almost started running even as he saw who it was. Joseph did start, but Clark shot a hand out and grabbed his wrist –
Do you like that you freak! It’s what you get for killing my parents… Clark, if you just told me whatever you’ve kept inside-
and they both went sprawling. Hs head was swimming from the force of the memories. Pete and the others, just having turned around the corner gave a start and started running to them. Clark tried to climb to his feet, but suddenly his left leg gave out and he fell back to his knees. My knee, he thought suddenly. That’s where Lana kept shocking me that time. Wait, he thought. When did that happen?
“Who was that…” he heard Joseph mutter. He pulled himself up and stared at Clark, looking sick, but from what, he couldn’t tell. “That girl… what?”
It’s getting worse, Clark realized. We’re sharing too much every time we touch each other.
“Holy-!” Pete exclaimed as ran up to them, a group of his men following after. Joseph tried to stand up quickly, murder in his eye, but he lost his balance and fell back. Pete’s men reacted instinctually and raised their guns as Joseph tried to stand again.
“It’s okay,” Clark said quickly, literally throwing himself in between them. He swayed dangerously on his feet, but he kept standing, staring his brother down. “These are my friends. They’re the ones who are helping me.”
Slowly, his brother came back to himself. He stared at Clark and then past him at Pete. “Your friends?”
“Yes,” he nodded. Clark turned around, taking in Pete. He looked tired, but able. There was rough bandage around one of his arms and he was holding his shotgun in one hand. “You don’t know how good you look right now,” he said, smiling.
“You don’t want to know what you look like,” Pete gave him a friendly glance.
“Blame LuthorCorp,” Clark shrugged. Pete smiled tightly and looked past him at Joseph. He saw Pete staring and shifted uncomfortably, turning his face so that his ruined eye was hidden. “Wow, well,” Pete said, getting a good look at him. “Not exactly identical, huh?” he remarked.
“No one said we were,” Joseph said.
“Well, I guess introductions are in order,” Clark said nervously. “Pete, this is Joseph, my brother. Joseph, Pete Ross.” Joseph grunted, disinterested, but Pete was more direct.
“Is any of that yours?” he asked, pointing at Joseph’s shirt. The off-white hospital shirt and pants that he’d been wearing were now a dark, smudged gray, where they weren’t torn or stained with blood. It was the sleeves that were the worst; they were ripped and almost red, especially at the ends of the sleeve. It was the blood stains that Pete was pointing at.
Joseph glanced down at his shirt and shrugged. “No, not mine.” Pete kept staring at his shirt, his brows knotted, like he was thinking very carefully. Joseph saw him staring and rolled his eyes. He casually tore off the sleeves and wiped his hands on them before throwing them away, looking at Pete expectantly. “Satisfied?” he asked. Clark couldn’t help but notice that his hands were now cleaner, but had been left a bright pink.
“It’ll have to do,” Pete said finally. He glanced at Clark, but he refused to look back at him. Pete nodded to himself again and muttered, “I was afraid of this.”
“Yeah, me too,” Clark said, under his breath. Then he heard Joseph grunt in derision and remembered how well he could hear. A little chagrined, Clark focused back on Pete. “So how are we? Where’s Lex?”
“Should be in the main control center now, but we’ve got bigger problems,” Pete said grimly. “Someone’s attacking the south entrance and we’re not going to be able to hold them back.”
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“What? Who are they?”
“Lex? Lex Luthor?” Joseph yelled at the same instant.
“Yes,” Clark told him distracted, trying to turn back to Pete.
“You never told me he was in on this,” his brother spat at him. “He’s one of them. What are you doing trusting him?”
“He’s not!” Clark swore, but his brother shook his head defiantly.
“He’s that monster’s son! He’s just like his father!”
“Lex is the one who got me in here! How do you think I got put in your cell? How do you think the cuffs were turned off? It was him, he arranged all this!”
“Can we do this later?” Pete yelled, cutting both of them off. “Look, right now, we don’t have time to argue. A group of soldiers just hit the outer base hard. I don’t who they are or where they came from, but they’re making mincemeat of us out there. We can’t hold them off,” he stated firmly.
“I told you this would happen!” Joseph shouted. He spun and kicked his foot into the wall, smashing through it. “I knew it!”
“We’re not dead yet!” Pete yelled at him. “You want to roll over and wait for them to put you back in that cell, fine by me, but the rest of us are going to try and live a little longer.”
“He’s right,” Clark shouted. “We have to keep going.” He turned to Pete. “Can we get to the control center from here?”
“Should be able to,” he said, pulling out a small, folded map of the lab. He traced out a path on it. “Here we are and there it is; should be a clear run. What about your mom, found her yet?”
“Yeah, we were going there…” Clark glanced down at Hamilton. He was conscious again, but he didn’t seem very aware of what was going on.
“What happened to him?” Pete asked, noticing him for the first time. “Get his leg stuck in a machine or something?”
“Something like that,” Clark muttered.
Pete caught the tone in his voice and glanced back at Joseph. “Right…” He glanced down the hallway and put away the map. “Shit,” he muttered, thinking to himself. Then he waved Clark over to him and whispered, “There’s no way you’re going to trust him with your mother, are you?” Clark shook his head tightly. He couldn’t see if Joseph was watching them, but he hoped he wasn’t.
“I don’t blame you. Alright, here’s what we’re going to do,” Pete said finally. “I’ll take your brother and we’ll try and hold these new guys off as long as we can. You go for your mom, get her out of here.”
“That’s not the plan,” Clark protested.
“The plan was scrapped the second these guys showed up. Lex didn’t count on them. My guys were supposed to hold the outside so we could get out of here, but if they take over the perimeter we’re not going anywhere.”
“But let me go with you! I can help!”
“I know you could, but there isn’t time.”
“I’m not gonna run off and leave you here!”
“Too bad, ‘cause that’s what I’m telling you to do!” he yelled. Then he hesitated, seeing the hurt look on Clark’s face, and he went on. “Clark, find her and get out of here,” Pete told him sadly. He got up and shifted his gun around so it was over his shoulder. “You did your job, you got us in, you got Lana out, same with your brother; now go find your mom. Neither of you belong here.”
Clark stared at him, dumbfounded, and then he ducked his head. “I’ll find her, but I’m coming back as soon as she’s safe,” he swore. Pete smiled and shook his head.
“Damn, they raise’em thick headed in Smallville, don’t they? At least that hasn’t changed.” He put his hand out and Clark took it gladly. “Go find her.” Clark smiled and nodded. Then he scooped up Hamilton and supporting him once more, started off down the hall.
Pete watched him go, only turning back when he’d rounded the corner out of sight. “Alright… well,” he said slowly, looking at Joseph. “You know what to do?”
“What makes you think I’m going to do it?” he said coolly. He leaned against the wall, folding his arms.
“You owe us,” Pete started.
“I owe Clark, I don’t owe you anything,” he corrected scornfully. “It might even be fun to watch you all slaughter each other.”
“You’re not terribly bright, are you?” Pete said bluntly. Joseph’s face flushed a deep red and he pushed himself off the wall, starting towards him. The others raised their guns frantically, but Pete didn’t react, seemingly unafraid. “When they’re done with us, who do you think they’re going to focus on?” he asked.
Joseph paused, thinking for a moment. “I can outrun them,” he said.
“Maybe you can, but I gotta warn you, they looked like they meant business. They’re doing everything they can to get in here, so I have to say they probably know all about you. I mean, I wouldn’t storm a building without knowing what was inside.” As he finished, he pulled a gun out from behind his back. It was a sleek, futuristic model with the name, ‘LuthorCorps’ printed on the side. Joseph stiffened as he recognized it.
“Lex had me make a detour on the way here,” Pete explained, pointing it at him. “Turns out Tina didn’t get every armory door sealed up before all this went down. She got two, I blew the hell out of the one I went to, but that still leaves one left; standing wide open and waiting for anyone to run inside and make like ‘Star Wars’. What do you think about that?”
Joseph was staring at the gun in his hand like it was a snake. “What are you going to do? Force me to help you?” he literally snarled at them.
“Thought crossed my mind,” Pete admitted. Then before Joseph could react, Pete reversed the gun, slapped it down in his hand, and stepped back. “But I’d rather give you a choice.”
All Joseph could do was stare at him and then down at the gun in his hand. He held it gingerly, his fingers almost trembling. “Why are you…”
“I’m taking a chance on you,” Pete told him. “Not because I trust you, or know you, but because I know Clark. And because it’s probably the first choice anyone’s ever given you.” He nodded down the hall Clark had run down. “Last I knew, they hadn’t surrounded us yet. You keep going that way and you should be able to find your own way out. Meanwhile, we’ll be going. If you want to come along or not, it’s up to you.” He motioned to his men and they started down the hall. Joseph stood there for a moment, holding the gun in his hand, and then he called out.
“Wait!” he said. He turned and hurled the gun with all his strength at the wall. It exploded in a tiny blast of green light and shards of metal. Then he ran up to them slowly, eyeing Pete carefully. “I’m not joining sides yet,” he said quietly.
“Give it time,” Pete smiled at him.
Lana had shoved Chloe into the passenger seat of the first car she could find in the base and had driven off without saying a word. It was a beat-up old van with a Farmer’s Market emblem on the side. Chloe had remained slumped against the side of the door, trying to think. She’d watched Lana kill Whitney, she’d watched him die. The thought kept rising up in her mind to swamp everything else. She’d watched him die.
The van lurched suddenly and she bumped her head against the side of the door. She cried out and Lana’s hand whipped around in an instant, the gun aimed straight at her. Chloe’s voice died out as she stared down the unsteady barrel. “I told you not to talk,” Lana warned her, trying to straighten the van out and watch her at the same time.
“I bumped my head,” Chloe said quietly, not wanting to her upset her. She could see how the too-bright light in Lana’s eyes, the sweat on her face, and how her hands were trembling; she was coming down hard off of all the medication. For a moment, Lana stared at her hard, and then she moved the gun back. She kept it gripped in her hand though, steering with it. Her fingers were gripping it so hard they were white.
“Don’t do it again,” she warned her. She shivered violently suddenly and pounded on the dashboard with the gun. “Isn’t there any heat yet?” She pressed the button in harder with the barrel of the gun.
“What are you going to do with me?” Chloe asked.
“How do you know him?” she asked, ignoring the question.
“Who, Clark?”
“Is that what you named him?”
“That’s his name,” she told her. “No one gave it to him, aside from his parents.”
“Where are his parents?” she asked, her head whipping around quickly. Chloe shut her mouth and smiled spitefully. In an instant, the gun was back in her face. “Where are they?” Lana asked again slowly, staring at her, both of them forgetting about the road.
“Didn’t he tell you?” she asked.
“You mean that story,” Lana laughed. She moved the gun back and kept driving. “I’m not an idiot. The Oracle can do a lot, but she can’t reach into another world.”
“How do you know? Anyone ever ask her?”
Lana frowned, but didn’t turn back. “We would have known,” she insisted sullenly. “And even if it’s all true, that doesn’t change anything. He’s still an alien.”
“So he still has to die?”
“Yes,” she hissed.
“Even after he wanted to save you?”
The car lurched a little as Lana fixed her with a warning look. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Like I don’t? He saved me from your goon squad back in town. They opened fire on a crowd, they would have killed me if it wasn’t for him.”
“We fired because he was a threat!”
“We… you were there?” Chloe asked. Lana didn’t say anything, just stared forward. “Of course you were there. Why aren’t I surprised?”
“He was a threat,” Lana insisted.
“Yeah, well you ended up saving all of those people didn’t you?”
“Shut up!” she exploded. “Just shut up!” She waved the gun at her wildly, the car lurching dangerously. “He took everything away from me! He doesn’t deserve to live!”
Chloe watched her rave, the fear draining away from her slowly, being replaced by anger. “That’s all you can say, isn’t it? All you can think, I guess. They reprogrammed you good, didn’t they?” Lana shoved the gun back in her face, but Chloe was through being scared. Maybe she was too mentally exhausted to care anymore, or maybe she’d just grown sick of Lana’s ravings, but she wasn’t frightened. “Do you actually believe in all that shit they fed you, or are you just too scared to see what’s real for yourself?”
“I know what’s real. I’ve seen the bodies left behind by the alien. Your father’s. I know what he’s capable of.”
“Clark hasn’t killed anyone,” Chloe snapped at her.
“Then the other one,” Lana wasn’t willing to give in.
“What about you?”
Lana flinched, but it could have been just another shiver. She shook it off and gave Chloe a shrug. “He got in my way, that’s all. I didn’t want to kill him.”
“Do you expect me to believe that?”
“I could have killed you both in that cell right away,” Lana pointed out. “I didn’t. Your friend did something stupid that’s all.”
“God, I hope you can sleep at night,” Chloe said with as much venom as she could muster.
“He doesn’t have to be the only one tonight,” Lana warned her. “Probably too late for that anyways. You don’t know what you’re letting loose here. Lex knows though, and he’s still going through with it. What did he tell you?” she asked, turning to her. “Did he say the alien would greet you with open arms, maybe recite some poetry, say ‘ET phone home’ and all that shit? He’s a killer, why can’t you understand that? I’ve seen him break people in half with him bare hands and laugh about it.”
“Maybe cause you made him that way. I’ve heard what you’ve been doing to him!”
“The scientists did that,” Lana told her shortly.
“Did you try and stop them?”
“No,” she said coldly. “I didn’t.”
Chloe stared at her from across the cab. “If we’d done something to you, Clark would have stopped us.”
“Shut up,” Lana hissed at her, not taking her eyes off the road.
“You know,” she told her slowly, “when everyone finds out what you did; Clark’s going to be you’re only hope. The rest of them will kill you. Pete; Lex; Tina,” she breathed out, “When Tina finds out you better hope she only kills you. Who knows what else she could do.”
“You’re not helping yourself,” Lana warned her.
“I’m just trying to give you a head’s up,” she said innocently. “Just wanted to warn you that if you do come out of this alive, which would be a miracle by the way, you’re going to end up owing Clark your life.”
Lana didn’t say anything. Chloe waited in vain and then looked out the window with a sigh. A sign rushed past them telling her they had one more mile before they reached the labs. She thought she could see smoke up ahead, but it was too dark to tell for certain. She wondered how things were going there, if everyone was still okay.
“Why?” Lana asked her abruptly, bringing her back. She was glancing at Chloe in a quick and furtive way. “What does he want with me?”
“I don’t know,” Chloe lied to her. Maybe he just sees something in you, she thought though, something from the girl, the ‘you’ he knew. Or maybe he’s just seeing things.
“None of it matters. Even if it’s true, it doesn’t change anything.”
“He is,” Chloe said quietly, almost to herself. “He’s changing things. I don’t even think he knows he’s doing it, but he is.” She glanced at Lana was surprised to see that now; she was the one who looked afraid.
“He can’t change everything,” Lana told her.
Chloe looked out the window and saw the lab come up over the horizon. “No, he can’t,” she said.
Part of the lab was indeed on fire, sending thick black clouds into the sky. The main gates were in ruin, the rows of wire fencing torn up by gunfire and explosions. The space between the gates and the main building was a battlefield. A row of jeeps and sleek black vans had encircled what was left of the main gates and soldiers in black gear were standing beside them for cover, firing into the building. Chloe could see scattered shots of resistance coming back from the lab windows, but it looked like the soldiers were gaining ground. As they got closer, she could see a squad of them storming the building. She could hear the gunfire intensify for a moment as they entered and then it died off quickly.
“Who the hell are they?” Lana snarled. Chloe glanced at her, surprised. She’d figured of all people, Lana would have known.
“I don’t know,” she said as Lana glared at her.
A jeep had broken off from the main line and was heading towards them. Lana stopped the van abruptly, and stared at it, holding her gun nervously. Finally, she grabbed Chloe’s wrist and pulled her out of the car. “Don’t try anything,” she warned her, pressing the gun against the back of her head. Chloe tried to say something, but Lana pulled her hair back until she winced. She nodded as well as she could, watching the jeep get closer to them.
It screeched to a halt when it was twenty feet from them and five soldiers leapt out, bringing their guns to bear on them. They were wearing black fatigues with matching body armor. There didn’t seem to be any kind of insignia or sign on any of them. It was the guns that they were pointing at them which caught Chloe’s eyes though. Each of the soldiers was holding the sleek, hi-tech meteor powered guns that she’d seen the Luthor Corps use. Judging from the sudden way Lana’s breath hissed out, she had noticed this as well.
“Drop your weapon!” one of the soldiers commanded as Lana started yelling at him, telling him to drop his.
“Who the hell are you? What’s your name and rank?” she demanded. “What unit are you with?”
“Drop your weapon!” the soldier shouted back.
“My name is Lana Lang, commander of Luthor Corps, vice president of Security Measures and Responses for Luthorcorp,” she snapped back at him. “That’s my base you’re blowing holes in and I demand to know what’s going on!”
“You don’t drop the gun, you’re not going to live long enough to find out anything, girlie,” the soldier told her.
“Do what he says,” Chloe hissed at Lana. She tried to glance back at her, but Lana had too good a grip on her, she couldn’t move her head. All she could do was stare up at the sky and listen to the hi-powered hum from the meteor guns.
“Where’s Mr. Luthor,” Lana asked, not giving up. “I have to speak to him now! Where is he?”
“I’m not going to warn you again,” the man warned her. He aimed at her and waited, the seconds ticking away. Chloe could feel the muzzle of the gun still pressed into the back of her neck as she stood there. Then finally Lana snarled and tossed the gun away. Two soldiers immediately broke rank and ran up to secure them while the rest waited, their guns still trained on them. Chloe was yanked out of Lana’s hands and handcuffed. Beside her, she could see Lana being restrained the same way. She wasn’t taking it very well.
“I’m a top executive of Luthorcorp,” Lana was screaming at them. “If you’re here to help, let me go! Who’s in command?!”
“I don’t care who you are,” he said in a matter of fact tone. “I don’t have to. I’ve been ordered to restrain anyone attempting to enter the base, no matter what they look like.”
“Who ordered you!?” Lana screamed.
“Tina, those doors aren’t going to hold,” Lex shouted over the intercom. “Get inside here now!” She was braced against the main doors to the control center. The only thing keeping the doors from being wrenched apart by the men outside was her raw strength. They were hammering hard on it, the door shaking frantically underneath all the blows. Lex was inside the inner room, watching her nervously. Behind him, huddled up in the corner was Allen. As soon as he had finished entering the codes, Lex had shoved him there and warned him not to move or say a word. Allen had only whimpered in response and Lex had turned his back on him; he had more important things to worry about.
“I can give you a few more minutes,” Tina grunted out between her teeth. Just then the door rocked outward for a moment almost throwing her to the ground. She pressed herself back into it and set her feet. “They’re not getting through!”
Lex swore and stole a glance at the security monitor. He could count almost twelve soldiers outside the doors, pounding away with a battering ram. Then he forced himself to look away and he went back to his work. Keep going he told himself, sorting through files on the screens in front of him. He was working with nearly half-a-dozen systems, simultaneously coding two different programs; impossible for most people, even in the most optimal of situations.
Which this is definitely not, he cursed. Don’t focus on that, he told himself. Work the files, find what you need. You can do this. Tina’s strong, she can buy you more time. Let her. You’ll need every second.
He stole another glance at the monitor. With a start, he saw that they were bringing in a cutting torch. They’ll cut through with that, she won’t be able to stop them, he thought.
Don’t get sidetracked. If Tina dies, she dies, but this has to be done. You have to do this, you will do this. You’re a Luthor.
But I’m also human, he thought.
“Tina, get in here now!” he screamed into the intercom. He could see the red burn marks on the door as the soldiers were starting to slice through it. Tina stared at him for a second and then gave him a frantic nod. The door shook under one last blow and she waited, bracing herself. Then she dashed forwards, running flat out. The door held behind her for another few seconds, and then collapsed inward. Tina was sprinting up the steps to the inner room as the soldiers poured inside in a mass of black uniforms. Lex keyed the door open as she ran, his hand poised over the panic button. She threw herself inside as he smashed the button down. A hasty burst of gunfire ricocheted off the heavily reinforced security glass as the door sealed itself.
Tina lay on the floor for a moment, stunned, then she slowly picked herself up. She gave Lex a worried glance and then stared out through the clear walls. Lex watched as best he could, glancing up only now and then as he continued to work.
The soldiers stormed into the room, securing it in seconds. They were swift and professional; all the bodies were checked and moved outside quickly. He’d been wrong, Lex saw. There were nearly twice as more then he’d seen in the monitor. All fully armed and in full black combat gear. Three soldiers came forwards, but made no move to assault the door. Instead they studied it professionally, murmuring to each other. Lex was tempted to hit the intercom button so he could hear what they were saying, but decided against it. He couldn’t spare what little he might have left to listen in.
“Can they get in here?” Tina asked quietly.
“Of course they can,” Lex told her softly, still typing furiously.
“How much time do we have?” she asked, her head wiping around as she tried to watch them all.
“That depends on how badly they want us,” he said coolly, still typing. “If they could use C4 and kill us both in an instant, or they could take their time and cut through, which means we’d have a few hours.”
“How long,” she repeated, her voice strained.
“It doesn’t matter, Tina. This is out of your hands now. Just be quiet and trust me.” He stopped typing long enough to give her a reassuring look. She looked winded and scared, but she nodded finally. He turned back to the monitors and continued to type, forcing himself to focus on the screen. Still, he couldn’t help but notice the figure coming down the hallway in the monitor. Angrily, he shut it off with a jab of his hand and went back to work, not looking up. He knew who it was.
With his head down, he couldn’t see him he enter the room, but he knew he was there when he heard Tina’s breath hiss in. Even then, he refused to look up, still working furiously. There were several seconds of silence in the room, save only for the sound of his typing. Then the intercom clicked on with a rasp and a voice glided out of it.
“Lex. Lex, look at me. Don’t demean yourself now. Look at me.”
Lex paused in mid-line and let a breath out he hadn’t known he was holding. “Hello, father,” he said tonelessly as he raised his head.
Lionel stared back at him, his face unreadable. He was holding a communicator in one hand carelessly as he studied him through the glass. Then, his face not showing an inch of emotion, he began to clap, slowly and methodically. “Well done, Lex. Well done.”