Lois & Clark Forums Forums Fan Fiction Lois & Clark Fanfic FDK: California Cousin 5/6 or Okay, that'll do...

Well, there's something you don't see every day -- a VampLex-Superman fight, with Kryptonite, in which Clark uses his head and his powers to beat the scumbag without the usual oh-I'm-helpless-because-he's-magical/has-Green-K stuff -- or, indeed, with Clark or Lois ending up at Luthor's mercy. Very refreshing, and doubly so to see Superman being properly super. The lead suit was a nice touch (and a tip of the hat to STAS?).

So now Lois and Clark are faced with a true dilemma: Superman doesn't kill, but how does that relate to the undead? One answer, that I understand to be Buffyverse canon, is that Luthor (or the clone, or whatever it is) is actually dead and has been possessed by a parasitic demon, in which case Clark shouldn't have a problem once it's explained to him. All dusting the vamp will do is put the body to rest (something Clark can verify by using his IR vision to check VampLex's body temperature); there's no soul there, since the original occupant has been pushed out of the body, and the demon doesn't have one. YMMV, though.

I shall be interested to see how you wrap this up, but kudos for having a sensible confrontation between Superman and ol' grenade fodder.

Phil, Official FoLC Luthor Barbeque Chef

STAS?

Superman The Animated Series -- the Dini/Timm cartoon. One of its better points, albeit one possibly inspired by potential toy sales, was having STAR Labs create a protective anti-Kryptonite (and anti-Parasite) suit, which naturally was made of lead or an alloy, and featured a lead-glass faceplate. They also made him a spacesuit as part of turning his spacecraft into a single-seat personal starship.

Alternatively, you could have been inspired by Wendy's classic For The Greater Good -- or simply come up with the idea independently. The description of Clark's impromptu tailoring just seemed similar to the STAS suit, but again, YMMV.

Actually I've never seen the animated series and I don't think I've read the story, though it's possible - I just wrote myself into a corner.

What happened was that I described the hotel before I realised that Lex was going to be there - DeMarco (who was a one-episode villain in Angel with a line in magical mind control) was originally going to be the main bad guy, not just a flunky, but it didn't work when I tried to write it. I needed a big bad: in the Buffyverse vampires are usually the big bad.

Once I'd realised that Lex was a logical choice to be the vampire, I knew that there would have to be kryptonite. And once I knew that, I needed a way to save Clark. And since I'd already described a hotel with lead-lined walls and radiation-proof windows it wasn't very difficult to come up with an answer...

Later edit - forgot to say that the special vampire-friendly Necro-Tempered glass is also from Angel; Lexcorp does seem a logical company to make it.

Another late edit - Back when I was ten or so and reading Superman comics in the early sixties I recall him having some Kryptonite-proof clothing he used in the laboratory in the Fortress of Solitude. I'd forgotten it when I wrote this chapter and wrote my earlier reply, but it was probably in the back of my mind.

I really enjoyed this bit. Lex as a vamp is handled well, and I always adored Andrew Good work!

YAY for the whole super story! Everything's going awesomely. I too agree that this section was especially well-written--less predictable than usual tv episodes or fanfics.

Also, I've decided that I really like that it's slightly more minor Buffyverse characters that are the most important to this fic. I mean we all love Buffy, but it's also very nice to *not* see her in this. (She's not showing up in the last part is she? I hope not--I like that this is a Xander story; Buffy always steals the thunder.)

Anyway, great job, eagerly awaiting the finale!

I can guarantee a Buffy-free ending.

Oh, if you'd read FTGG, you'd remember...

Well, you see, that's the thing: just because Luthor is there does not mean that there has to be Kryptonite, and it's a shame that so many people make this assumption. I would go so far as to say that even your story suffers for that automatic correlation: if VampLex has the K, why does he need Willow? He knows what Kryptonite does to Superman, so all he has to do is arrange an ambush, just as he did in S1, and then he only has a powerless Clark to deal with; and he'd love that! It's classic post-Crisis/L&C Luthor -- taunting a powerless foe, especially when said enemy is now much weaker and slower than his enhanced vampiric level instead of the other way around, which means that he can have the fun of beating him up and killing him personally, perhaps finishing the job by drinking from him.

Not only that, but a good argument can be made that VampLex shouldn't even be able to get any Kryptonite -- not in the L&C continuity. The only known pieces are those from Schuster's Field, and all that's left of that (most of it having been destroyed) is at STAR Labs (or is that fanon? Either way, the show had K as a very scarce commodity, to its benefit). If Luthor had to have a weapon, it would fit better if he'd had another quantum disruptor or disbander; again, he knows that they're effective against Superman, and he knows where they're stored or where to get the plans.

Oh, there's a long history of that in Superman media of all types; I remember an episode of the 1960s Superman cartoons in which he hid in a section of lead piping and then used it as impromptu armour against a Green K zap gun. Lead glass, lead-based paint -- you name it and it's been used over the years. Personally, my favourite twist that way is having Green K as the active ingredient in the drug that protects Daxamites from their hyper-sensitivity to lead

Phil

Cool!

One more part!!

Jose

I think that VampLex was just covering his bases with wanting Willow. How many times has Superman survived Kryptonite???

I loved that he was using his head with the lead foil!!!


One little nag and its one of those British/US American things.

Lois grabbed a handful of notes and threw them on the table...

That should be 'bills' not 'notes'. Knocked me right out of the story when I hit that line. If you want to avoid it completely, you could say that she grabbed a handful of money instead. Both sides of the pond would find that acceptable, I think.

I realise that your British and so is your spelling and most of us on this board can live with that. Honestly, I've not even noticed it on the two or three mega-stories of yours that I've read. I find your stories very entertaining and totally believable.

James

Thanks - easily changed.