I was having a conversation in Mirc with Laura and Peggy and Chris which inspired this. Let me know what you think!

I like it. The show version always annoyed me on this. Clark fought for years to control his powers and the Kryptonians waltz in and have everything immediately under control.

Very true - Clark had a lifetime to grow into his powers, Nor and co. took about five minutes. Of course Ultra-Woman, Resplendent Man, and that kid who got a weak dose of Clark's power did so too, so at least they're being consistently stupid.

If you want an even sillier example, the whole thing with Zod and co in Superman II should never have happened. They exited the Phantom Zone in deep space, with no opportunity to charge their powers first, and should have died a few seconds later.

I love it!

Joy,
Lynn

yes - this makes so much more sense. Nicely done, Shayne.

carol

So very awesome. The irony of their dense molecular structure sending them into orbit with a casual step is so very satisfying, as was seeing Nor and his men brought to their knees by super hearing. The only thing that would have been funnier would have been if Nor couldn't utter a word without the fear of freezing everything around him.

Too bad about Smallville and the heat vision devastation. Maybe Superman will help them rebuild.

It's really nice to see another story from you, Shayne. Thank you for the NK arc untwist.

BJ

I liked it! I like the irony in having their very "super abilities" be what did them in. And I like the poetic justice in having a group of people so sure of their superiority fail in such an undignified and humiliating way.

Clever, and very satisfying.

Tank (who is consistently amazed at the original twists and premises that Shayne comes up with)

Hate to repeat what others have said, but that was very clever! I like your explanation as to why Zara and Ching appeared to have no issues.

Joan

I second what everyone else said!

And loved the ending:
Clark's restrained strength is one of the many things that make him so sexy!

BTW, I've read Veritas twice -- fantastic tale! Definitely one of my favorites on the archive!

How it should have been! LOL, this is much more logical than the storyline on the show. Great job, Shayne. Very clever! (And the final line was the perfect ending. )

Kathy

LOL. If a Kryptonian goes out of control in the Canadian wilds, will anyone notice? (No offense to our Canadian friends is intended, I just found this amusing.)
Very cute and very reasonable, Shayne!

Artemis

at the image of the guy spinning and burning stuff

Very interesting! I liked it!

Very satisfying indeed. Wouldn't that have been a great twist.

That was lovely. And welcome back, Shayne.

Ann

That was a great untwist. And the others are right. The last paragraph offers perfect symmetry

Michael

My, this is one of the best short tales of the last few months. *laughs again*
*wipes tears from eyes*

Priceless!

And I loved the last line!

Best alternate end for Nor I've ever read! And ditto many others regarding a wonderful final line in this!! Thank you

This is one of those things where, when you write about it, I slap myself on the head and say, "Of course! Why didn't I think of that?!?!"

Great premise. And well delivered, in a concise-but-complete vignette.

Great ficlet, Shayne, and a real forehead slapper. So obvious now that you point it out. Well executed, too, with delightful visual images.

Excellent observation, Shayne. I'll admit, I wondered about that in the show, and you handled it very well.

Nan

I'm just repeating what everyone else said, but this was great. Somehow it never occurred to me that while the show mentions Clark learning to control his powers, no one else ever seems to need to - except that toddler whose name I forget.

I loved seeing this version of Lord Nor and it brings into focus yet another reason why Clark is Superman - which is not just because he has powers, but because he also knows how to use them appropriately. That is often overlooked, but if Clark behaved even like the clone - who seemed to be able to control his powers, but didn't seem inclined to do it as much as Clark, he wouldn't be as effective.

This was fantastic.

Now, I will say that I have thought of this issue before. I am always amazed that writers on the LnC TV show and other places give ordinary people Superman's powers and the people just know how to use them.

How do you know how much strength to use?
How do you turn on and off X-Ray vision?
--You covered this wonderfully when you described what Lisa went through in "Family Hour"
And finally, how exactly do you fly? Do you will yourself up? Sideways? How do you stop?
--I touched on this one ever so briefly in my own "First Flights"

I've never had as much fun reading about the struggles likely to plague a group of people that suddenly acquires super powers.

Very, very well done!
Bob

Lovely as usual, Shayne. The last line was the perfect ending touch.