If the devil himself appeared in front of her now and offered to let her trade her soul for Clark's life, she wouldn't hesitate.

A slow stream of smoke lazily drifted towards the ceiling. Kltpzyxm pulled briefly at the rim of his collar. Why did it always have to be kept so hot in here? Deodorant advertisers claiming such things as ‘strong enough for a man’ should get a load of this place. Any deodorant that could do its job in this environment would work anywhere, survive anything. If he himself survived this experience, Kltpzyxm would make it a point to suggest the new advertising strategy. It was a sure-fire winner.

“Don’t just stand there, lurking in the doorway,” said an ominous voice from inside. “Show yourself.”

Kltpzyxm swallowed nervously before taking a step through the door. The room, if it could be called that, was as dreary as it was hot. Rough cut stone walls reflected the glow of a multitude of fires that seemed to burn of their own volition around the room. The man in the room was bathed in dark shadows, hiding his perfectly chiselled features - making him a handsome man if one were to disregard the hard eyes and evidence of cruelty that radiated off his entire being. Kltpzyxm preferred the shadows. After all, looking into those eyes, he always felt as if he were falling into a bottomless pit - one from which his soul might never recover. It was better not to see them.

“You summoned, my liege?” Kltpzyxm asked. The high pitched tone in which the question emerged caused Kltpzyxm to clear his throat, hoping his lord hadn’t noticed. An answering amused chuckle told him he had not been so fortunate. Still, his lord declined to comment. Obviously, he realized that Kltpzyxm was nervous enough and didn’t require any additional sources of terror to ensure absolute allegiance.

“You failed,” the voice from the shadows said instead.

Kltpzyxm took an unconscious step back, his retreat halted by the door slamming shut of its own volition behind him.

“Well, speak up. What do you have to say for yourself?”

“I try...” Kltpzyxm’s voice seemed to shatter into a million pieces. He took a deep breath before speaking again. “I tried. I don’t know what happened. But when his woman managed to break the spell and remember...” His voice trailed off. Damn that woman, anyway. If she hadn’t been there, his plan would have worked perfectly. That over-developed boy-scout would never have been able to break the spell if it weren’t for her. Superman would have left the realm of the normals, ensuring no descendants and no utopia - and no summons of Klpzysm before his supreme-evilness where he would, no doubt, end as a pile of ashes on the floor.

“Excuses!” The figure in shadow, slowly rose to his feet, sending a chill through Klpzyxm in spite of the heat of the room. The figure finally stepped out of the shadows, piercing Klpzyxm with his gaze. “So... what are you going to do about it?”

Unable to look away from his lord’s gaze, it took Klpzyxm a moment to digest the question. Was he really being given a second chance? “Well...” he began slowly, trying desperately to formulate a new plan which might spare his life - such as it was. “...since his woman was the problem, if I were to take care of her before I were to make a move on him, he wouldn’t stand a chance.”

The figure before him smiled, although to call it a smile somewhat stretched the imagination. It was more of a bearing of the teeth, as if he were a tiger preparing to pounce on his unsuspecting victim. “Then do it,” the embodiment of wickedness commanded. “Only, remember the rule. We’ve been denied the power of death.”

Klpzyxm nodded and began to back out of the room. Throughout time, many traditions dictated backing out of the room of the nations’ lords as a sign of respect. But Klpzysm knew the truth. It was merely an act of self preservation, a fear of being attacked from behind if one were to turn his back.

Interesting addition about being denied the power of death. Like a big disclaimer how far you're willing to go. Little nitpick, though. In Mxymas, several people almost died, would have died if it hadn't been for Clark. So, was Clark intervening something Mxyzpltk counted on or did he break the rules? And will this have consequences?

“Only, remember the rule. We’ve been denied the power of life and death.”

Klpzyxm nodded. He knew the rule. If people wanted to kill themselves or each other, that was fine. After all, stirring up wars and rumors of wars was the bread and butter of his ilk. But to kill directly was the ultimate no-no. No, he’d have to be more creative than that.

Originally posted by MLT:
I was thinking more like 5 posts. On the other hand, I'm not sure I've ever been able to write a story that's only five posts long .

oh my G-d!!!!! ML is going to write?! me very happy, la la la. now back to work......

A slow stream of smoke lazily drifted towards the ceiling...

and

Rough cut stone walls reflected the glow of a multitude of fires that seemed to burn of their own volition around the room.

Deodorant advertisers claiming such things as ‘strong enough for a man’ should get a load of this place.