Chapter One
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June 17th 2059
Something was shooting through the skies of Germany at an incredible speed. It shot across the city of Munich, and landed with a subdued boom in a walled off military zone just outside of the city.
The sound of cannons and gunfire shot out in the distance, adding a sense of danger to the surroundings and masking the sound of the landing.
A few hours later a journalist that had snuck into the area found what had crash landed. A man in a gray suit lay in a crater unmoving, and bruised. His wounds were healing slowly as the sunlight washed over him.
The journalist walked up to the edge of the crater, and slowly approached the unconscious man. He reached down and gently shook the man, worried he was dead.
"Hey, are you okay there man?" He asked, hoping that the man was alive. Coming across a dead body could implicate him, or worse.
The mixture of someone shaking him and the explosions around him woke Clark up from his blissful unconsciousness as he lay in a small impact crater. A trail of torn up ground extended a dozen meters beyond his feet. Grass and dirt thrown up from his landing formed clumps all around him.
Opening his eyes, Clark was greeted by gray smoggy skies and unclean air. The ground was shaking from explosions nearby, and the sound of gunfire rang out in the distance. The slight feeling of radiation tingling his body was uncomfortable.
The person who was calling his name and shaking him was a young Italian man. He was thin and tall, looking barely out of college. His face was full of worry, giving him a certain degree of gauntness.
"Thank God you're okay. I was scared you'd died on me. Come on, let's get out of here before we get caught up in this fight" The strange young man said, taking Clark's hand and trying to pull him up.
(However)
"What the?" He let out a confused question as he realized that Clark was much heavier than a man his size should have been and he couldn't pick him up on his own.
The young fellow wasn't the only person who realized that something was wrong. Clark immediately remembered what had happened to him and it brought the emotions to the forfront of his mind.
"Imperiex!" Clark growled as he got up quickly, almost mistaking the young man for an Imperiex probe. That crazy planet sized villain had sent him here, wherever here was when he exploded, destroying the universe. The two had gotten into the fight of both of their lives before Clark woke up here.
Well, no. It wasn't really a fight so to say, as Clark didn't actually have a way to put down the giant conqueror before he self destructed in spite of Clark's best efforts. It was as if to let him know that his efforts were meaningless. So now here he was. Wherever here was.
The young man looked at him oddly for a moment, unsure as to if this man was safe to be around. After all, he had just broken into the area and found the guy in a crater.
"Imperiex? Who's that?" He asked, having to look up to Clark who had appeared to be a good five more inches taller than he thought he would be.
Clark looked at the fellow for a few seconds before it hit him. He was not in his universe anymore.
"Alternate universe. Got it" He said looking around the area before turning to to the young journalist if the camera and press badge was anything to go by.
"What year is this and where are we?" He asked, a serious look on his face, as if the explosions and gunfire nearby was inconsequential to the question.
The journalist, Vincent Perelli as it said on his press card was now worried that this man he found had gotten brain damage from hitting his head and was weirded out by his near hulking muscles. Something just wasn't adding up.
"It's 2059 and we're in Germany. I'm here to get the scoop on the new russian armored weapon models. What are you doing here?" Vincent responded after a moment of hesitation.
Looking seriously at Vincent with a frown, Clark requested something from him. This was a dangerous area and the young man could get seriously hurt.
"Listen to me for a moment" Clark said, putting his hand on Vincent's right shoulder and getting his attention.
Vincent nodded, he was creeped out by this odd bulky man and was just wanting to get out of this war zone. The gunfire rang out closer and closer, making him even more jumpy.
"Get out of here, and if you see me do anything abnormal, just keep it to yourself. Now GO!" Clark finished with a shout, turning Vincent around with a strength no man should humanly have.
Vincent didn't question it and ran. Too many odd things were happening and he was in danger. If this strange man wanted to stay in harm's way, that was his decision.
Seeing Vincent run off, Clark waited to see him pass a nearby building and listened to his heartbeat as it went further and further away.
Turning around back to the approaching gunfire and explosions, Clark tore off his jacket and shirt only to realize that he was not wearing his Superman costume.
"Oh thats not good" Clark exclaimed with an embarrassed laugh before looking down at his torn jacket and clothes. All he was left with was his pants, underwear, socks, and shoes.
Thankfully some things stayed the same while others did not. He hoped that Doomsday wasn't running rampant, nor Metallo, or Braniac.
Crouching down for a second then exploding upward like a rocket, Clark shot into the air with a sonic boom. Shooting up and up, far through the clouds and into the stratosphere, he stopped and hovered. He had to do something and do it as soon as he could. He had to know just what was going on on Earth, and the solar system.
Utilizing his X-ray vision, he looked down at the planet. What he saw was not what he hoped to see. The Earth was not in good condition. Radiation of some unknown variation covered various parts of the planet. Even his hometown of Smallville Kansas was not spared. However, it was abandoned and there was a massive wall separating the western and eastern united states.
What happened to the planet? Where was the Justice League? Where was the council of Mages? Where were the Green Lanterns?
Metropolis didn't exist here, nor did many other cities and landmarks that he was used to. It was a worrying situation. He was presented with a new world completely different from what he was used to.
He closed his eyes and listened for the one heartbeat he knew better than any other.
His wife's soft heartbeat that brought him comfort no matter where on Earth he was..
The reality of the situation suddenly hit him, and rocked him like a right hook from Zod.
Lois Lane did not exist here in this world.
He shivered a dark shiver, and he frowned. It was not just Lois, but Lana, Jimmy, and Kara too.
There were no superheroes. Not only that, there was no magic or supervillains. Not even the fortress of solitude.
This world was alone. He was alone.
Turning his vision outward to the depths of space, there was something odd that botheredhim. When he looked at Mars and the Moon, various bases and buildings of unknown alien origin dotted the landscape.
Taking a deep breath, he shot off into space with a sonic boom. Within seconds, he arrived at his destination.
Stopping first on the moon, there where various empty alien bases full of the same radiation that corrupted the world. Thankfully, it seemed his Kryptonian physiology left him unaffected by the strange radiation, but he didn't want to risk it.
Speeding through the facilities, he found various terminals in an unknown language that he couldn't decipher in this brief amount of time reading it. Various dangerous bombs that vibrated with obscured alien energy far beyond that of nuclear weapons lay scattered around the base.
In his calculations, if even one of them exploded, the moon would be completely annihilated. Deciding it best to not allow them to exist so close to Earth, he took all of them that he could find and threw them deep out in space and melted them with his heat vision two galaxies away.
The Earth did not need such dangerous things on its doorstep. Next was Mars, which strangely had traces of human presence. However, they were from likely hundreds of years if not millennia prior.
There were clothing articles from various time periods as if the aliens had been interfering with the Earth for quite a while. It was a worrying situation that he would have to look into later. Who where these aliens, and where did they go?
Deciding that there were more pressing problems on Earth, Clark made his way back to Germany where he had left Vincent. In the minutes he had taken in space, the fighting had made its way to where he had left Vincent. However, he could hear him driving a car out of the area, miles away. Thankfully, the young fellow had escaped safely.
It was now time to investigate this fighting that he had left earlier.
Flying directly into the fray, Clark found himself in the middle of a firefight between women and robots that zipped around with dozens of legs that fired machine guns. Upon second look, these women were also robotic, as he saw one woman's arm get blown off, revealing sparking wires and machinery underneath.
So it was a battle of robots? Not the first time he saw that, and it was certainly not the last either. It was just that the robots he fought did considerably more damage. Still, weapons of war were weapons of war.
According to his super hearing, there were no civilians that needed to be evacuated, leaving only him and the robots. The radiation here was very faint and didn't seem to have hurt Vincent, so it looked to be okay to let him be.
Just what was that Vincent fellow doing here? This was a dangerous area and he could easily have gotten killed. Then he remembered how daring the young man was. However, journalists always managed to get into dangerous situations weekly, if not daily so it wasn't that strange.
Some bullets bounced off of his head bringing him back to reality. Seeing what hit him, Clark let out a slightly annoyed scoff. It was an average sized woman that had long black hair, a large pink visor across her face, and an armored black bodysuit. In her hands were two submachine guns that were constantly firing.
It seemed the woman robot had confused him for an enemy robot before realizing that he wasn't. If he wasn't a Kryptonian he could have been dead right then. His face turned into a frown.
This entire situation was no good. He didn't like getting involved in conflicts between nations or organizations unless it was a direct threat to the world, but he needed answers.
Flying across the area at speeds far beyond light, he crushed the guns of the fighting machines and grabbed the now disarmed robot lady that shot at him.
It struggled to break free from his grip, but otherwise made no sound. On it's right arm was a logo and a name. Sangvis Ferri. That must be the manufacturer of the machine. He tried to ask it a question, but it was silent.
Crushing it's legs, he dropped it to the ground and went over to one of the disabled machines that the robot women fought. It had a Russian manufacturer, but other than that, there was no definite information.
What was Russia and this Sangvis Ferri company robots doing here in an abandoned area of Germany? If it even was Russia using those robots. Was this some sort of military test? If so, that would explain why Vincent was there. A secret military test would be a big scoop that even he would want to get in on when he was a journalist.
It was too early to come to conclusions, but if he really had just interfered with a military test, he had messed up big time. It was yet another reason why he shouldn't and didn't usually get involved with disputes between countries, companies, states, and continents.
Minutes later, a convoy of APCs housing multiple people in each drove towards the area alongside quite a few of the earlier robots, and from the voices inside, they were Russian.
His heart began to beat slightly faster. Should he fly away, or should he explain to the Russians that he had just destroyed their military technology for no actual reason?
Him and vincent were in the wrong technically by barging into a military test, and there was no excuse he could think of. The Russians wouldn't believe that he just woke up there after fighting a planet sized villain that suicidally self destructed, taking the universe with him without proof he didn't have on him.
Letting out a soft exhale, he calmed himself down. The only thing that actually saw him was the robotic woman's camera, and Vincent which was bad. However, he wasn't a supervillain like Lex or Sinestro. He didn't run away from his mistakes unless he had no other choice.
The decision was made. He would try to talk it out of he could. Though that was a bit optimistic when dealing with the Russian military. They were the type to jail you for decades just for touching secrets of the government.
Okay, a bit too optimistic. More than too optimistic,it was hopeful and completely naive.
The APCs had arrived and men with Guns alongside more robots surrounded him. One of them shouted at him to lie down with his hands on his head in Russian.
Clark did just that. He would try to talk this out if he could. If worst came to worse, he would escape in the situation if he faced execution or a prison sentence.
Three of the men came over to him, and tied his hands with zip ties and spoke to somebody on a radio in Russian.
"It's an American snake. Your orders?" He asked the man on the other side of the radio.
"Shit. Bring him to base for interrogation" the man on the other end of the radio said angrily.
"No good" Clark thought before snapping his cuffs and running away faster than any of the Russians could even comprehend, let alone see. He made his escape away from the area.
He clearly was too optimistic thinking he could talk his way out of it.
An American civilian spying on Russian military drills would disappear forever.
When he was further away, Clark saw a large concrete wall with barbed wire and security cameras every few blocks between him and the rest of the area. Armored trucks drove back and forth around the area.
Of course there was. This was a cordoned off military training zone. Flying high into the sky, he made his way back to America in less than two minutes.
Stopping in New York, he decided to figure out just what life was like on this earth. Luckily he still had his wallet. Hopefully his cash worked here.
Checking out his money, it seemed that he had a fair enough sum. 485.52$.
Coming across a department store after getting weird looks from several passers-by, he bought a casual outfit after kindly explaining to the shop employee that he had gotten into an accident and needed new clothes, and that he was not infact a creep trying to strip in the store.
Now 160$ and ten minutes later he sported a casual jacket, a white dress shirt, Tie, and undershirt the same color as his gray slacks. All in all, he was looking like a normal person again instead of a streaker.
Deciding to go to the place that would have the answers to most of his mundane questions, the library, he made his way towards where he remembered it was on his Earth.
Thankfully, while slightly different than the New York he knew, the major locations were similar to the one he knew. When he entered the library, all the library goers felt was a soft breeze as Clark read every single history book in the library in a matter of seconds. Next, finding a free computer, Clark spent the next hour scanning websites at super speed.
Everything he could access he accessed. Even a strange imageboard he found called GriffChan where he was greeted by various unflattering comments about all sorts of things. Best to leave that place alone.
The situation was grim to say the least. World War three had ended a mere decade ago, and the world was still piecing things together. Various zones across the world were given colors depending on the intensity of radiation. White was harmless, Green was very slight. Yellow was potentially harmful, and Red was no go for humans. A brief read on what he could find about Sangvis Ferri returned the information that it was an arms manufacturer and contractor.
He frowned at that. He had interfered with Russia and a multinational contractor. It would not be easy to get away from that. Russia would surely want to find him if their actions were secret.
This put a wrench in his plans. He'd likely be targeted if he was found. It wasn't like he was going to run away, but he would need to listen for any would-be assassination attempts or kidnapping.
The Russians were a ruthless bunch, even more so than the CIA. He knew this having dealt briefly with both on different occasions. He also had stopped a few CIA operations that he personally objected to in his time as Superman.
Needless to say, they weren't buddy buddy. Still, he truly believed in the American spirit, and let many things happen. After all, it wasn't his right to challenge nations. He protected the Earth, and otherwise let war happen.
He wasn't God. He knew this more than anyone else, and he had to hold himself back all the time. If he wanted to, he could stop all wars instantaneously, but that was not his place. It was not his right as an alien himself.
If he saw injustice happening in front of him, he would stop it. If he saw a person being hurt, mugged, or attacked, he would stop that too. However, he had no right to interfere with the political powers on Earth.
He had more responsibility than any man or woman on earth due to his power. Responsibility to stop himself from getting too much ahead of himself. It was exactly because he was who he was that he held back his hand and did not interfere with the politics and wars. He was acutely aware that if he strictly supported a single side, that they would have an insurmountable advantage in any conflict. Especially in this world where beings like him were mere fiction.
Speaking of fiction, there was something that made him choke while on the computer. Here, on this Earth, he was a Comic book hero. It was absurd, and he was shocked by it, but he managed to supress his curiosity for the time being. Though his name in these comics wasn't Clark Kent. Instead, it was Clark Smith. Still, it was too close for comfort.
This brought him to a decision. Did he take up his role as Superman again here, or did he remain Clark Kent? Also, was there a way to one, get back to his universe? Two, bring it back from destruction?
He hung his head low as the memories flooded back. While sitting at the computer he grit his teeth. His wife was dead. His son was dead. His sister was dead. His friends were gone. Everyone he knew was gone. He wanted to cry. He wanted to scream.
However, he stayed quiet. He could bring them back. It wasn't over. He could do it. He just needed time. Luckily, he had all the time in the world, as under a yellow sun, Kryptonians were immortal.
Clenching his right fist and biting back his sorrow, he looked back up at the computer. However, it seemed he had drawn a crowd around him due to his inhuman typing speed. His hands were practically blurs as they raced across the keyboard.
"Hey man, are you alright?" A young man asked from the computer next to him on his left, seeing his sad demeanor.
"Yeah, I'll be alright, just thinking about something rough" Clark responded, looking at the twenty or so year old young man next to him.
He looked to be a college student given the gray NYU jacket he wore and his casual dress clothes. He was the very definition of mundane. Short brown hair, glasses, and a plain face. Just the type of fellow you'd expect to see in a library.
"Alright, I understand. A lot of us lost family to ELID and the war. We gotta keep our heads up you know?" the young man continued, seemingly misunderstanding him.
Clark nodded, not wanting to disclose his situation. Best he let the kid think what he wanted.
"But I got to say wow, I've never seen someone type as fast as you man. You gotta be going at tens of thousands of words a minute at least" the kid continued with a laugh, trying to cheer Clark up.
"I practice alot" Clark gave a poor excuse which the kid didn't even question.
"Damn, You must practice some special technique only super programmers use haha" he laughed before looking back to his computer and leaving Clark to his own.
After a few moments, Clark went back to his searches for information that he might need in the future. Information that might bring some form of normalcy.
Right. Normalcy. Things were far from normal. He was stranded in a different universe far from his own and likely was now being hunted by Russian intelligence. If worse came to worse, a multinational arms manufacturer as well.
Then, at that moment, a very familiar face popped up on screen. He almost did a double take at seeing who it was.
It was that of a round faced old man with large triangular puffs of white hair on each side of his head. He wore a purple bowler hat and had a grin on his amused face.
A text box appeared underneath the picture of his face.
"Found you. It took me a while, but I found you at last, after six thousand years of your three dimensional time. Before you say anything, yes it is me, the great Mr Mxyzptlk! And I come with a message directly from the fifth dimension. I can't directly interfere with the reality you find yourself in due to a limitation imposed by The Presence. You know, big G. God as you three dimensional beings call him. Father of the Archangels and such.
Anyways, I'm quite happy to have finally found you, and I look forward to talking with you later. I have to go now but I promise to stay in touch".
The text box then disappeared and the normal page came back. It looked like only he saw it and that was good. He didn't want to be revealed to the world just yet if he could help it.
Clark let out a sigh of relief. While it wasn't the person he would have wanted to talk to the most, it was the only being who could realistically give him answers.
Mr Mxyzptlk, a fifth dimensional imp that viewed time, space, concepts, and reality as a canvas to write on and play with to his heart's content. One of the few beings that could be considered as one of the strongest in existence and not be boasting shamelessly.
His command over reality was second only to Michael and Lucifer, yet he never really rubbed it in anyone's face except when he was playing pranks on Clark.
If he hadn't taken a role as a prankster, he likely would have been an unstoppable villain. Just the fact that he could still reach outside of the multiverse despite the restrictions by literal God spoke of his immense ability.
This was a heavy weight off Clark's shoulders as he now knew that he wasn't completely alone in this new reality. Getting up from the computer and logging off, Clark decided to take a walk and get something to eat.
Things were looking brighter for him, but he also was beginning to feel a sense of responsibility for this world. A sense of duty. He had been to the moon and to Mars and found worrisome things that threatened the safety of not just the moon, but humanity itself.
There likely were aliens interfering with humanity, and he would get to the bottom of it if he could. He couldn't just leave this world to it's fate, not after being here himself.
—-‐—-‐—-
Koblov Military Research Facility, Siberia.
"You come and tell me this American dog disappeared right out from under your nose?" A tall Russian bear of man with shaggy long blonde hair and a square jaw in a black uniform shouted at the man who had taken the American into custody but had somehow lost him seconds later.
"But" the man said, quite scared. However he was cut off.
" No buts you useless son of bitch. Find him and get rid of him. We don't know how much he had found, and the last thing I want to hear is that the Americans found out our newest weapons. Shit! I knew we shouldn't have tested it in Germany" the man growled as the other man saluted and bolted out of the room.
Then he turned to a computer a few feet to his left and sat down at the chair in front of it. On the screen was a repeating video feed from the body cam of one of the agents who tied up the man. One second he was tied up on the ground, then the next with a slight blur he was gone.
This son of bitch was not a civilian. This man had some form of technology and had to have been a spy.
" Fuck" he cursed, slamming his fist down on the table. Russia had held the upper hand for three decades, and the Kremlin did not want to lose it any time soon.
If these American dogs wanted to steal the Motherland's technology, then they had another thing coming.
Opening a new page, he reread a document that had him confused for a moment. It revealed that the only weapons interfered with were some unmanned robots that were fighting the Sangvis Rippers in practice warfare against dolls.
However, he didn't want to believe that the spy had only seen those. No, given the technology that teleported the spy away, he had to have seen the relic weapon they were testing nearby. The surrender was just a ruse, but to what end?
Was it a provocation? Was it America's way of saying ' We know you're developing more technology, but that's good. So are we'? If soon they had succeeded in their provocation. After his rage seemed to simmer down to a slight boiling, the man rubbed his temples with his hand.
He sighed and leaned back in his chair. These American dogs would not get away with this. They would find this spy bastard and put him and his handlers ten feet under the ground.
Taking his phone from his pocket, he made a call. Perhaps his contractor at Sangvis Ferri had information on the man.
—-‐—-‐—-
Clark made his way out of the library onto the streets of Manhattan. The sounds of cars, trucks, taxis and people shouting was still the same as New York on his earth. Even after World War Three, New Yorkers were just as tough and resilient as ever.
Walking a few blocks south, Clark stopped by a Pizza place he thought looked alright and ordered a slice with pepperoni. It was a tradition for him whenever he stopped by New York City to get a slice.
It wasn't as good as Beef Burgonione, but it was a good eat. Eating it slowly as to savor the taste, he drank his coke can with it. A treat he would allow himself. His body would burn it off in seconds, so there was no worry about his weight.
Just as he found himself relaxing, someone sat down at the table across from him. It was a woman in her early thirties with long black hair, light skin, and dull green eyes. She wore a simple business suit and took off her sunglasses, placing them on the table.
She didn't show any outward signs of affection to him, so she wasn't a prostitute, and he couldn't tell where she was from at a glance, but he did make out the recording wire under her shirt.
Likely FBI, maybe CIA or another alphabet agency he wasn't aware of. He had only been in New York for a little under two hours, but somebody in the government had already found him and mobilized agents.
Bruce dealt with all these agencies the most back on his earth along with Diana. While Clark had some experience with them, it wasn't enough to say that he was good at dealing with the feds.
Seeing him tense up, the woman spoke to him.
"Easy there. I'm just here to talk. No need to fly away" The woman said in her best attemptto sound non confrontational. However, it confirmed that his flight was picked up on by likely a US satellite.
"I hate satellites" Clark mumbled before putting his hands on the table as to not startle her.
Unlike with the Russians, Clark hadn't committed any crimes that he knew of just yet. Except maybe flying over secret military airspace if he had to guess. So he wasn't as worried as he was in Germany.
"Do you know how scared you made the folks upstate? They thought you were a nuclear warhead headed right for New York City" She began, cutting right to the chase.
This statement meant multiple things. One, it was a test of where he stood in terms of affiliation. Secondly, It meant he was being watched, and it was an obvious "Don't do that again" warning from what appeared to be the US government.
Silently apologizing to the lady, he used his X-ray vision and looked through her wallet. Sure enough, FBI.
"Right. Sorry about that, just hear me out for a second" Clark responded.
"I'm listening" the lady responded, letting Clark talk.
He made a quick decision and decided to spill the beans to an extent. Better to have the US government positive or at least neutral with him than have both the Russians and the US after him. Sure, in a fight, he could defeat every force on earth before a nanosecond passed, but he wasn't a villain, and had no reason to do so.
"You probably won't believe me, but I'm Superman" Clark said, letting out the information to the FBI agent.
"Uhuh, tell me more" The agent said, keeping a straight face. It seemed that she was trained well. Besides, he had shown some proof earlier.
"I'm not exactly the one from the comics on this planet, but I came from a different universe that was destroyed by a powerful enemy. I suppose it's best to let you ask any questions and I'll answer them to my best ability. I just got here today, and I don't want to get on the wrong side of two countries in one day" Clark answered truthfully. If the FBI had already found him, there was no way that they would let him be.
"Let's say for a moment that I believe you, which I do. Thank you for your honesty. It saves both of us so much extra work. Can you show me proof of your claim, say with another ability?"
"That sounds reasonable" Clark responded before picking up the empty coke can and blowing gently on it. Instantaneously it froze solid and a sheet of ice completely surrounded it. Three of the people at nearby tables got up and reached for their weapons, but the woman shook her head, and they sat back down.
Then, Clark's eyes lit up red, and the ice melted before the can was mostly melted, then the melted metal reformed itself into the name on her ID card.
Jessica Johnson.
"That should be good enough, right?" Clark asked, before sliding it across the metal table over to her. She picked it up gingerly and looked at it.
Despite her training, seeing such abilities in person was a new experience, and she was interested. This very well might be Superman from another dimension, or at least someone with the powers of him pretending to be him.
The latter would be a scary prospect. A very worrisome prospect in deed.
She couldn't help but begin to feel small in front of him. This was a man that could kill them all and be in the next galaxy before their neurons could fire, yet he was sitting here calmly talking to her like an acquaintance.
Of course if this was actually Superman, she didn't have much to worry about. He was on the side of America in the comics, right?
Shit. Was he? She never really read comics, that was what her little brother did. After this talk, Her agency would be scanning through every Superman comic that they could find like their lives depended on it.
This was a world changing event, and she was there to witness it. Then she took a deep breath to calm herself, and asked a question she was dreading since she heard him say it.
"You said that you didn't want to provoke two countries earlier. Who was it that you provoked earlier today, if you don't mind me asking?" She asked, praying that it wasn't China. China was one of the only untouched countries that had maintained it's global presence and threat.
"I woke up in the middle of what I assume was a secret Russian weapons test zone in Germany. They were testing robotic war machines against some androids from a company called Sangvis Ferri" he recalled his earlier attempted capture.
Jessica sighed. It wasn't the absolute worst case scenario that could happen, but it was not good either. Russia was a powerful enemy that would be quite hard to both predict and deal with. Even more so with it's miraculous technological advances due to relics.
"Oh lord, this is going to be a lot of work" She said, slumping down in her chair. Catching herself in her unprofessional behavior, she frowned and silently chastised herself.
Quickly straightening up, she made her offer to him. Now was better than later, and who knew how long it would be before things went wrong.
" Would you mind going uptown with me to our Manhattan office and having a talk there. This place is a bit loud and busy. Unless you have somewhere to be right now?" She asked. So far things were going great. He didn't run or fly away, and nobody was hurt that she knew of.
"I don't mind" Clark replied, getting up from the table briskly.
" Alright, that sounds like a plan" She answered and got up and turned away.
" Alright, let's go" Clark said. It was best that he get this over with now rather than later.
The woman left with him and they walked over to a black BMW, and got in the passenger seats.
"This went much smoother than I was expecting" She said to Clark, who just nodded and looked out the window at the cars and buildings that passed by before turning to her.
"I don't know what you've heard, but I'm not a bad guy. You don't have to be on edge like that" Clark gave a smile at the relieved agent who just nodded and let the rest of the drive pass quietly.
After about twenty minutes of starting and stopping with the traffic, they pulled into a large parking lot in front of a three story concrete office building with black tinted windows.
Getting out of the car, the driver, Jessica, and Clark made their way in the front door of the officebuilding.
Greeting the receptionist and passing through security, Clark was ushered into a room that looked like an interrogation room. All there was was a table, two chairs, a large fluorescent ceiling strip light, and a large one way glass window in the white room.
It was likely an intimidating room to a civilian, but unless the FBI had a magician or Kryptonite from his destroyed universe, he was completely safe.
Sitting at the table facing the one way glass, he took some time to himself and listened to everything going on in the building. It was mostly mundane things and people speaking about various cases. One woman was talking with another about her next ski trip, while a man was talking about taking his son fishing this coming weekend.
It all droned on and on as he saw multiple people line up in front of the one way glass that he shouldn't be able to see. However, as a Kryptonian, he could see through the glass as easily as if it wasn't there in the first place. Giving a smile and a thumbs up, he spoke into what likely was multiple hidden microphones.
"Hi Kevin, I like the haircut you have going on" he said, looking directly through the glass at a slightly overweight American man who had short gray hair, a rotund face, and was wearing simple clothes.
The man was slightly startled, but to his credit recovered quickly, and spoke into a microphone on the desk in front of the glass.
His voice sounded slightly distorted as it came through a speaker on the ceiling in a grainy distorted buzz.
"Uh thanks? Someone will be coming in in a moment. Just stay put" He said, a slight waver in his voice relaying his apprehension.
"No problem, just breaking the ice. It's quiet in here" Clark said with a smile. It was best that he deal with this situation without violence or conflict. He remembered how the government deat with him when he first showed up on Earth, so he didn't take the situation to heart. It was best not to be a wanted criminal in every large nation, even if said crimes were accidents.
After what felt like a hundred years to Clark, given that his perception of time was drastically different than that of a normal human. Somebody walked in and closed the door behind them. Sitting down across from Clark, he introduced himself.
He was a good looking man. Short brown hair, sharp blue eyes, and flawless white skin. He was a man who likely could have gotten a job as a clothing model if not for his job here. His heartbeat was firm and steady and he walked steadily.
"Hello Superman. I'm David Mitchell, on site psychologist and wellness councilor. Could you give me a moment of your time?" The man asked, not too intrusive, but firm enough to get his question across.
"Of course, ask me anything you want, and I'll answer it to the best of my ability" Clark responded simply.
"Thank you. Before we start, would you mind giving me your name? Superman is quite grandiose, and calling you by your superhero name just doesn't do you justice. There's a man behind that name, and I'd like to meet him" David asked, looking at Clark with a simple smile.
"Clark Kent. Named after my ma and pa Martha and Jonathan Kent" Clark replied, giving his name freely.
"I see, thank you Mr Kent. You don't mind if I call you that do you?" David asked.
"Not at all, you dont mind if I call you David do you?" Clark asked, returningthecourtesy.
"Now, I hear today is your first day on this Earth. Has it been stressful?" David asked, curious as to the enigmatic man's experience.
"Well, it certainly was an experience. Waking up in the middle of a firefight and almost getting captured by Russians was an interesting welcome. At least I woke up on Earth, instead of one of the countless other planets in the universe" Clark finished with a laugh, lightly tapping the metal table with his hand.
Crunch.
The sound of metal being rent and a hand size indent sunk into the solid steel. Clark's eyes widened and he quickly apologized.
"I'm so sorry about that. Let me fix it" Clark apologized and moved his hand.
Within seconds the table was fixed. The hand print was no longer there, replaced by the flat surface it should have been.
David's eyes widened for just a moment before looking back at Clark.
"That's an interesting ability. How did you do that?" He asked, genuinely curious about how exactly it worked.
"Well, I vibrate my hand at the proper frequency to realign the molecular structure of the table at super speed, and the table is back to normal" Clark answered simply.
"Wow, that's handy" David chuckled then continued his earlier questions.
"Back to what we were saying earlier, what made you agree to come here?" He asked, wondering what was going through the head of the alien across from him.
"I don't want to make enemies with the United States if I don't have to. Besides, I'm planning on living here until I can find a way to bring back my Earth" Clark said, a look of sorrow flashing across his blue eyes.
"Right. I wanted to avoid that topic if we could, as I don't want to upset you" David answered, a look of concern crossing his face.
"It's alright. I won't get angry. It's not your world's worry. The being that destroyed my universe is gone. He self destructed, and now I'm here" Clark recounted his recent fight with a grimace.
"Imperiex was a being of unfathomable power. Countless heroes died to his army, and only I remain to speak about it. I am all that remains of my Earth" Clark continued, looking down at the table, his fist clenching.
"Deep breaths Clark. You'll make it through this" the psychologist reminded him.
Relaxing his hand and untensing his muscles, Clark did just that. He breathed in deeply. Then out. Then in. Then out again.
Sometimes little things like this helped ease the burden a little bit, and a bit was good enough.
The two sat silently for a few moments as Clark collected his thoughts. Underneath all the Super was a man, and on that man's back was the weight of the world. Many people forgot that and expected him to always be the Super. However, reality was not so.
"Tell me, what are you planning on doing from here on out? Do you want to travel the world? Maybe settle down somewhere?" David asked, and the agents behind the redundant glass were quite interested too.
"Well, I've got a few things on Mars I want to look at. When I came to this Earth, I stopped by the moon and Mars to investigate some strange things I found" Clark explained, drawing some shocked looks from the agents behind the glass.
To David's credit, he kept a straight face the entire time.
"Oh, what did you find, if you don't mind me asking?" David asked. This could be a matter of global security.
" You know the radiation that's all over this planet right now? Well, there were alien bases full of it on both Mars and The Moon. I'm guessing that it was from an alien civilization"
David's face became grim upon hearing his words.
"You are sure that you saw what you did?" David asked.
"Yeah, I figured that I should let someone on Earth know. I don't think that I should be the one to tell them, being a Kryptonian from a different galaxy in a different universe" Clark dropped the metaphorical bomb on them.
This knowledge was immensely valuable and concerning. Clark had just given them priceless information on the relics, likely not even knowing the severity of that knowledge.
"Are there aliens on Mars and the Moon right now?" David had to ask, dropping his professionalism just for a moment.
"No. Those bases were completely empty, likely for hundreds of years at the very least. I don't know who or where they are, but I'm going to find out. I can'tlet Earth be in danger while I still stay here" Clark said with a determined tone. He wanted to get to the bottom of this situation.
Even if it wasn't his Earth, it was an Earth, likely clueless as to the aliens from a different galaxy.
"From Earth to Mars is quite a trip. How long did it take you?" David changed the subject.
"If I'm in a rush, I could probably cross the universe in less than a second. I can fly pretty fast" Clark smiled happily at that. His flight had been nonstop improving over the years. He left out the fact that if he flew fast enough, he could travel backwards and forwards through time.
"Jesus Christ, what have we welcomed in here?" One of the agents across the glass mumbled to themselves under their breath.
If Barry was anything to go by, time travel was a last resort. It always made results worse.
"Seeing as you are unharmed and not giving off any radiation, I take it that your race have some inborn resistance to radiations?" David asked.
"Yes, unless it's some real potent stuff, I don't get effected at all. I travel through space a lot and spend days on end in the center of the sun. Quite a few of my enemies use various radiations in fights. So far nothing has happened" Clark answered honestly.
"Thank you for your time Mr Kent. I'll get going now, and someone else will be here momentarily. If you want anything to eat or drink, let the folks on the other end of the Glass know" The psychologist got up and left. Likely to fill out a long and detailed report on the extraplanar visitor.
Moments later, Clark heard multiple phone calls being made to the Army, NASA, and other organizations, requesting their top brass immediately. Much shouting and debate was had in the nearby rooms, and footsteps running back and forth from rooms could be heard.
Clark passed the time by tapping his fingers on the table to an Alan Jackson tune his pops liked listening to when he drove the family's old red ford truck.
After deliberation on if Clark was some crazy psycho from a Russian super soldier program, that line of thought was shot down. With his speed and strength, he could have assassinated all the high priority targets for Russia and the US would be nine the wiser.
The consensus was that while some of his statements were unverifiable, this was an entirely new situation.
First contact protocols were already thrown to the wind, and the sound of comic books being opened was commonplace in almost every government agency worth its salt, and comic book nerds all across the eastern United States were getting enthusiastic knocks on their doors by the alphabet agencies paying huge sums of cash for their suddenly priceless information.
Needless to say, something big was happening, and for some odd reason, Superman comic books were in the middle of it.
Low rank spies from other nations were quite confused as to why they were ordered to read Superman comics, and it seemed that Detective Comics had risen from a large company to a multi multi billion dollar company overnight.
Many comic writers were gathered for any information that they could give, and given insane sums of money to keep quiet. It would be funny to anyone who was not directly involved with the first contact.
A real life comic book character appearing in reality was something so incomprehensible, that it never crossed the minds of even people paid to expect the unexpected.
Jessica Johnson was appointed to be Clark's personal agent later that day after an agreement with the Kryptonian.
Seventeen hours later, after various tests and promise of further talks, Clark was given a safe house in Manhattan that was guaranteed to not be bugged or spiced. There he found himself lying on a quite comfortable bed, as he looked out over the water towards long Island city.
A united States citizenship was issued quickly to him and he was given complete freedom to come and go as he pleased. He was given diplomatic immunity in every US allied nation, along with complete freedom to cross airspace, waters, and the contacts of important members of the CIA, FBI, Army, Navy, and various other organizations in the case that he found more information on the relics and alien civilization that created them.
It was a quick but serious decision made by the government after further demonstration of his abilities in the sky, seas, and ground. They wanted him to stay within America instead of another country and we're willing to do much to keep him there. He was that important.
Clark knew he was being used to an extent, but it was better than being an enemy of both Russia and America.
It wasn't like he had to be a government dog that barked on command. They weren't that stupid to try and leash their new greatest ally. Maybe the lobbyists, special interests, and foreign powers would try.
His responsibility was finding more out about the relics and the alien civilization in space, and in return, the US government would take care of everything he needed.
Not too different from how it was back on his old Earth. It was a pretty good start for now and he didn't mind that he had stirred the pot. It was better than being on the run.
So began the new steps of recovering the light of humanity from under the darkness in which it lay trapped.
—-‐—-‐—-
Berezovich Kryuger sat at a desk and looked over the papers in front of him. Then he looked over them again. Then again. Then one more time just to be sure. His sharp eyes were looking over every word in the hope he had missed something in the paper saying that this report was a joke. It should be a poorly timed and poorly thought out prank.
However his source in the US government never gave him false information, and he had confirmed it with multiple other sources. It's just the information was so absurd that he didn't want to believe it. There was just no way that it could be true.
In all his years in Russia and various other nations, he had never once been taken for an idiot.
In big bold letters, it said "SUPERMAN FOUND IN MANHATTAN" atop a long document of information about the new arrival.
Apparently it was not just a superhuman from some shady black site super soldier program. No, it supposedly was the alien right out of the comics. He grit his teeth before lightning a cigar.
Taking a pull, he slowly let the smooth flavor fill his mouth before releasing it in a long slow exhale. These bastards were messing with him. They had to be. The whole damned United States government had decided to team up and pull a fast one on him.
That was more believable than the report in front of him. If that damned alien had been sitting around on Earth twiddling his thumbs during world War three, hell, even world War two, he had a bone to pick with him, super powerful alien or not.
Judging by the strange movement in the United States, something big was certainly happening if the mobilization of various generals, agencies, and even the president was anything to go by.
If that goodie two shoes alien really somehow showed up, it might well cost his company lots of money, or make him tons of money. The outcome was uncertain. However, his list of clients might become much longer in response to this news.
If that alien really existed, he might have to read his dossier. Like hell he was going to pick up a Comic book before he saw the man in person. That just wasn't how he did things.
—-‐—-‐—-
Persicaria was of a different mindset. Intrigued by the news coming from her connections in the FBI and CIA, she had taken a more open ended approach. Apparently Superman had arrived on Earth, and she wanted to meet him. If only to figure out his mind and learn more about alien physiology. Perhaps he could even help her with his otherworldly knowledge of technology?
Her artificial ears flicked back and forth in anticipation, and her usually dark eyelids had grown a shade darker from exhaustion. She had pulled some strings with people in high places who owed her favors to be one of the people examining him in privacy.
There was no way she would let this opportunity slide. Information from a highly scientific advanced space-faring alien race was invaluable in her line of work, and if her research on the matter was to be believed, Clark had an intellect rivaling the best that Earth had to offer.
She sat in front of multiple computer screens filled with tabs of Superman comic books that she had been reading nonstop over the past few hours, letting her imagination run free and wild. Twirling around on her rolling chair, she was lost in thought at the many many possibilities in front of her.
This was enough to put her work with advancing T-Dolls on hold, and that was saying something, given her countless hours advancing and perfecting the technology. It was a momentous occasion, and the gravitas of it required her full attention.
Preparations had to be made, and she couldn't waste much time. The more time passed, the harder it would be to get her hands on him, and the harder the lobbyists and special interests would try to restrict his freedoms.
—-‐—-‐—-
Chen Xiaoling, a middle aged Chinese diplomat in America got off the phone with a contact he had in the American government. America had made first contact with a superhero alien from a Comic book, if the information was to be believed.
Perhaps China could show it's hospitality to this superhero and curry favors to be cashed out further down the line. Information about an alien planet, and the technology that came with it was an enticing prospect.
Over time, with the right amount of finesse and hospitality, perhaps they could even turn his loyalty to the Great land across the sea. Anything America could offer, they could too. After all, what was China if not hospitable and friendly?
A smile crossed his face as Mr Chen turned towards his assistant who was quietly waiting for him to speak.
"Come Ms Zhu. We have work to do" the man said, thinking about how this newcomer could benefit his glorious nation and people.
"Of course Mr Xiaoling" She bowed and left the office with the diplomat in tow close behind her.
China's work was never over. As long as the world turned, they would move ever forward.
—-
Over the next few days, most people and organizations in the know had made a multitude of mistakes, plans, and counterplans to each other. Some stayed silent, waiting to see if this whole situation was just one big hoax or a very juvenile false flag.
As the list of people who learned that America had actually found "Superman" grew and grew, more and more questions and requests for interview flooded the private channels.
Many people didn't believe such a claim, calling it a sensationalist campaign to try to revive the image of a dying nation. That it was a poor attempt at PR, or a brash attempt to drum up controversy.
The calls just didn't stop coming. Even though the information had been leaked, the government had attempted to put a gag order on everyone they could, but it was akin to shooting a rifle blind and hoping you hit your target, but it was all they could do.
The United States was no longer the colossus it once was, and that meant their reach was not what it used to be.
The next day, the press went wild. Headlines of all different directions pumped out across the world. Speculation on aliens, superheroes, super soldier programs, relics, and dozens of other takes blasted global news. There was no hiding it anymore.
The American people wanted answers. They wanted to know just what the hell was going on in their country. Had the rumors and leaks really been true?
Four days later, they would get what they wanted. The enigma was coming out to the public stage.
"Superman" had decided to have a live broadcast press conference at the United Nations headquarters and everyone wanted a seat there.
—-
Author Note: Feel free to ignore this if you dont care what I think. It's only some rambling about the story.
So we have a little over 9,700 words for the first chapter not including this author note. Not too bad. I hope I got the personalities and stuff down at least somewhat properly. I've not gotten too far in Girl's Frontline, but I'm really enjoying myself playing it. The inspiration for this story came from an image I came across from searching Girl's Frontline and Superman on google just to see if anything like this was done before.
The picture was of UMP9 and UMP45 playing a game in front of a poster of Superman flying. I figured that this crossover obviously hasn't been done yet, so I'll do a chapter and see if anyone likes it. Needless to say, I will be respecting each universe to the best of my ability, without making Clark overshadow the world around him.
Oh and for anyone more knowledgeable on Girl's Frontline please let me know of any mistakes I've made so far. I'd appreciate that a lot. I'm still pretty new to the game and had to ask around in the discord.
Expect a 9-12k word chapter once in a while or so. I have not really got a schedule but im thinking once every month, maybe more if I'm creative.
I was thinking about splitting the chapters into small 3-4k word chapters more commonly, but that's just not enough space to get my ideas out.
Also, if UMP9 and Superman ever come across each other, expect some wholesomeness in this dark world.
Anyways, till next time friends, guests, Griffin Commanders, and lurkers.