Superman: Soldier [DC Antiverse]

Treatment

The squad and I arrive at a camp site.

"We are here!" a soldier announces.

I look around as soldiers are being tended to. I watch as the soldiers escort General Lane to a tent.

"Make sure everyone gets medical treatment," I say.

I enter the tent where they are treating Lane. I hear him scream in pain as they cauterize his injury.

"He's a tough bastard. He will make it through," a female voice says.

I turn around and see a woman standing at the entrance of the tent. She has black hair and the most beautiful face I have ever seen.

"What? You've never seen a girl soldier before?"

"No, it's just that you are quite beautiful."

"Compliments like that don't make it here, soldier. You must be Superman?"

I shake her hand.

"Indeed. And you are?"

"Sergeant Lois Lane."

"Lane? You mean-"

"His daughter. Yes sir."

She walks past me and watches her father getting treated.

"He tried to keep me from this life but he eventually realized how stubborn I am so he eventually relented. I graduated from training at an early age."

"He must be proud."

"He doesn't show it a lot. I feel like sometimes that he never wanted a daughter. I feel like I am a disappointment to him."

I place my hand on her shoulder.

"Then prove him wrong."

She shrugs her shoulder and turns towards me.

"So what's your story besides the whole superpowers thing?"

"I am an alien from the planet Krypton which exploded."

"That's quite a story. Why come to Earth though? They could have sent you to any planet."

"I don't know for sure. I know they studied Earth. Maybe they discovered that the yellow Sun gives Kryptonians powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men."

"Perhaps."

I walk over to General Lane's bedside and sit. I cuff my hands together and put my head down.

"I never knew you were a religious man."

"I am praying to my Kryptonian god, Rao. On my world he is the Sun God of Krypton.

"Reminds me of the Egyptian god."

I hear grunting coming from General Lane. I notice him slowly moving. His eyes start opening.

"I see you and meet my daughter, Superman," Lane says, sitting up from his bed.

I help him sit up and get comfortable.

"We have become acquainted, sir."

"How is your squad?" He asks.

"They're holding up. It's you that I am worried about right now."

"No need to worry about me. You have done a fine job, Clark."

"So that's your real name? Clark?" Lois asks.

I turn towards her.

"That's right."

I stare at her eyes. She is so gorgeous.

"Ahem," I hear.

I turn and see General Lane giving me a glare.

"Shouldn't you be tending to other people, Sergeant?"

"Right. See you around, Clark," she says as she walks out of the tent.

"Yeah, sure," I say.

I turn back to the General.

"She is one of hell of a soldier, eh?"

"She is something. I will give you that."

"Status report?" General Lane asks.

"Me and the other soldiers fought off the ambush. Oh and there is one more thing you should probably see."

"And what would that be?" He asks.

I slowly lift myself off the ground, floating mid-air.

"Well, that just happened. How long have you known?"

"Since we were attacked."

"Well this should give us an advantage in our battle."

"Yeah, I have been meaning to ask you something. What is our official mission? To remove the terrorists?"

"You're thinking too small, Clark. We're not to remove the terrorists. More will just take their place. We are here to-"

He stops suddenly.

"Here to what?"

He glances around to make sure know one is hearing.

"What I am about to tell you is highly classified and only known by certain government and military officials," he whispers.

"Okay."

"5 months ago, STAR Labs was developing a weapon that could help the military. It was a cannon harnessing energy from a meteor fragment that we found near the city. There have been tons of sightings of these meteor rocks since your arrival on Earth. Well someone broke into STAR Labs and stole this weapon. Now for whatever reason, the terrorists have access to this weapon.

"How powerful is this weapon?"

"Have you ever heard of the atomic bomb?"

"Yeah I studied it in my training. It was used to end the Great War in the 1940s."

"Think like that but a hundred times greater."

"How could you leave a weapon like that to be so easily stolen?"

"It was a mistake and one that should not be made again. You must find the weapon, Clark. For the sake of the world."

"I will try."

"There is no trying with you! There's only doing! You're Superman for crying out loud!"

I hear another helicopter. I run out of the tent and look up to see what it is. This one slowly lands and doesn't attack. The door of the copter opens and a bald man in a black suit walks out of the copter.

"Who is that?" I ask myself.

"That is one of the most powerful men in the world: Lex Luthor," General Lane replies, walking next to me.