Aurora Borealis – The Complete Story 6/11
By Ken Janney
This story is rated PG-13.
Comments are always welcomed at ken.janney@kjanney.com
Disclaimers: The characters in this story are property of DC, December 3rd productions and Warner Bros. No Copyright infringement is intended. I have just borrowed the characters for a short time.
This story originated with a single scene that I had written as a suggested plot device for another author. It was rejected in favor of another one. I still liked the idea so I wrote a story around it. This is only loosely related to my Matchmaker series.
I wish to thank Artemis and Morgana for the beta on this.
< > denotes thoughts
* * denotes emphasis
Previously
As Clark Kent he threw himself into his job to take his mind off of his missing Lois. He refused, adamantly, to admit that she could be dead. Occasionally he still heard echoes of her heartbeat, mostly in the middle of the night. It would wake him out of a sound sleep and be gone before he could even begin to move anything other than his eyelids.
Occasionally he spent a sleepless night keeping a fruitless vigil in the bathroom just in case she would reappear.
Several times he was actually awake when he heard it and quickly focused his x-ray vision on the bathroom. All he caught was a shimmer as if something insubstantial had appeared momentarily.
Sometimes he was tempted to doubt his sanity. How could he be hearing Lois’ heartbeat or voice? Yet, all of these … manifestations, served to keep him hoping that someday … someday she would in fact return to him.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
As the decades passed he continued his search, never giving up hope.
The next blow that fell was when Perry White passed. He had only been retired for five short years. It seemed like when he left the Planet he didn’t have any reason to continue living and he simply wasted away. Alice was really broken up when she lost him.
One of the hardest things he had ever done was prepare the obituary for Perry. He wouldn’t allow anyone else to handle it. It was a work of love and respect for his boss and mentor.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
The next year Jonathan Kent had a heart attack and was hospitalized for an extended period.
By this time Clark had managed to purchase his entire apartment building so he had his father transferred to MetGen. Then, after closing up the farm house, he moved his mother to the apartment next to his so that they could be together while Jonathan was in the hospital and he would have them both nearby after Jonathan was released.
After quadruple bypass surgery Jonathan began a long convalescence and was happy to have all of his family nearby.
The family grew closer together, closer than they had been before he had left on his world travels.
That was why it was such a blow when his mother unexpectedly collapsed one afternoon from a major stroke. She remained unconscious for two days before she finally passed. Her husband followed her in fairly short order, literally within weeks of Martha’s funeral. Who would argue that it was from a broken heart at the loss of his wife and partner of almost sixty years? The funerals had been held in Smallville with interment in the old family plot in one corner of the farm.
Now, he was truly alone. He went to work and did his job. He did what he had to do as Superman, but his heart really wasn’t in it. Without his family, without his Lois, why should he go on? If not for his invulnerability he might consider suicide, but between that and the fact that he was still needed as Superman he might have done it.
And now:
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Chapter 6
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Since Lois had disappeared ninety years had passed and Clark had never found Lois even though he had scoured the globe for decades. The years hadn’t been kind to Clark. As a result of Veda Doodsen’s machine and the transfer of a portion of his life force to Jimmy he had aged, perhaps not as rapidly as an Earth human but his age was very apparent. His hair was gray and he was balding and his head seemed to be slightly cocked to one side as if he was always listening for his Lois. His posture was somewhat stooped and his face etched with lines from years of worry and sorrow and his physique had suffered the ravages of time. He wasn’t as robust as he had been formerly. He wasn’t quite as fast as he had been and his legendary strength had started to wane.
As Clark Kent, he had retired from the Daily Planet a number of years ago and had lived as a recluse ever since. All of his close friends as well as his parents had passed away a number of years ago. Now completely alone and bereft, with the loss of his soul mate he had been unable to bring himself to form any close relationships and especially hadn’t ever considered any intimate relationships. When he died there would be no super children to take his place. The world would lose its lone superhero.
It was, to him, rather ironic that his long life had enabled him to become rich. Careful investing even for normal people could be beneficial in retirement, but to someone with his lifespan it was more than beneficial. Clark still lived in the same apartment. Years ago he had purchased the entire building so that he could prevent it from being demolished. His mother and father had come to live in the next apartment, but they has passed long ago. Now he was in an empty building. It was the last place he had seen Lois and he was loathe to give it up in case she would reappear as suddenly as she had disappeared. That hope was the one thing that had kept him going all of these years.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Tonight was a special night. Every year on this date, their anniversary, he would make a dinner and after eating he’d simply sit on the bed and reminisce about that night. He would go over it again and again in his mind and wonder what he had missed and if he could have done anything differently.
Ever since Lois had disappeared Clark had occasionally heard echoes of Lois’ heartbeat and voice, always emanating from the bathroom. He knew that somehow Tempus had to be involved, but in the last ninety years he hadn’t seen hide nor hair of him or Herb and he had no idea as to how to contact Herb to enlist his aid.
Clark ate his solitary dinner and then because that was what he had been wearing when she had disappeared, he put on the Suit and went into the bedroom to sit on the bed.
He was weary and finally after musing for a while he lay down to rest.
Suddenly his superhearing caught a sound he had never given up hope of hearing again. Over the years he had heard the ghost of her voice or her heartbeat periodically, but this was different. It was strong and regular and it didn’t disappear again. He was instantly alert as he sat up on the bed and then slowly, forcing his weary bones and muscles to comply with his wishes, he stood.
A few seconds later a barefoot Lois came stumbling into the room. There was a cut on her forehead that hadn’t been there when she had been kidnapped. She was still dressed in the burnt orange dress she had been wearing when she had gone into the bathroom to change all those years ago. She was shaking her head as if she was dazed and he shouted, “Lois!” It came out as a wheezing croak.
She looked up and seeing the Suit she shouted, “Clark!” and launched herself in his direction. When she hit him he wasn’t able to continue standing. Between his surprise and his age he was weak and she bowled him over.
In her exuberance she started kissing him. Suddenly she realized that he was moving more slowly that she expected and she pulled back to take a good look. When she did she asked, “Clark, what ... what has happened? Why do you look so … old? While I was in the bathroom were you exposed to some red Kryptonite that did this to you?”
In reply Clark asked, “Lois, what happened to you? Where have you been all these years?”
“Huh? What do you mean ‘All these years’, I was only gone a couple of minutes!”
‘No Lois, you disappeared ninety years ago today.”
Stunned by his statement, Lois replied, “Ninety years ago?!?! It was Tempus! He dragged me into a time window held me for a couple of minutes and then shoved me out again.”
“You went to change and that was the last I saw of you.” He reached up and gently touched her forehead where she was cut as he asked, “How did you cut your forehead?”
Waving her hand in the air as if to dismiss his concerns she said, “When he let me go I hit my head on the corner of the sink. I thought I was only gone a minute or two and couldn’t figure out why Tempus would do anything that silly. Now I see what he was up to. How can I get back?” she wailed.
“I don’t see how you can. This timeline is already fixed. You were missing from it for ninety years, there’s no going back.”
Frantically searching for a way to correct the situation she asked, "What about Herb? Maybe he could take me back and we could fix this timeline.”
“I don’t see how. I haven’t heard from Herb in almost a century.”
With a note of despair in her voice she said, “Well, this is a fine fix. It’s still my wedding night.” She had a questioning look as she added, “It is, isn’t it?”
“Well, it is our anniversary.”
“Okay, so it’s my wedding night, ninety years removed. Do you think we could still …”
“I don’t know if that would be possible. It’s been years …”
“Great, it’s my wedding night and my husband is too old for us to consummate our wedding.” At this point Lois broke down and started crying.
Clark put his arm around her shoulders and tried to console her.
There was just a touch of fear as to what his answers would be to her next questions, but she had to ask them. She looked at him and blurted out, “What did you do when I disappeared? Did you get married? How many kids do you have? How old are you? What gives?”
“Whoa, one thing at a time; what did I do when you disappeared? I searched for you. I scoured the globe, east, west, north and south, for decades I searched for you. I never gave up. I kept hearing your heartbeat and voice in my dreams. At times I started to question my sanity. I always heard you here in the apartment. That’s why I never gave it up. I heard you but you were never there. Sometimes I thought it was just my imagination or someone playing a trick on me.”
“I may have an answer for you. I remember, as I struggled with Tempus something in front of me, it must have been the portal, kept flickering. It was like an old nickelodeon machine only the picture didn’t change. It was always the bathroom.
“He must have done that to torture me. I could hear your voice or a part of a heartbeat and then it would be gone. Ah, well,” he sighed, “You asked if I got married. Yes, I got married, once, to you. You were missing but, you were my wife. The only woman I would ever marry and because I kept hearing you, I knew you would return, someday. I guess that answers your question about children. How old am I? Remember Veda Doodsen and her machine?”
He paused for her answer.
She asked, “Veeda … Doodsen? Who’s Veeda Doodsen?”
“Oh, that’s right! That happened after Tempus kidnapped you. Jimmy and I were investigating a bank robbery and the death of a friend of his. Veeda Doodsen had invented a machine that transferred the life energy from one person to another. She had used it on Jimmy to make Conner Schenk young again. Jimmy led me to her. In order to save Jimmy, she had to transfer some of my life force to him. There was one good thing came of that incident. Before that procedure Dr. Klein told me that I would live many lifetimes. When I gave up some of my life force for Conner Schenk and Jimmy it shortened my life span. I aged, maybe not as fast as an Earth human, but I aged. I’m over a hundred and twenty years old.”
Her relief was palpable as she threw her arms around his neck and started to cry. She blubbered, “You waited for me. All these years, you waited for me. Clark, I love you, I really do. You’re so special.”
After a time she calmed down and asked, “What are we going to do now?”
“When you disappeared we were just getting ready to go on our honeymoon. Would you still like to go to Hawaii?”
With a smile she said, “I’ll go anywhere with you, any time you want.”
“You won’t mind being seen in the company of a man that looks like he could be your great grandfather? Everyone will think I’m rich and you’re after my money.”
“Let them think what they want, you’re my husband and I love you.”
For the first time in almost a century he was genuinely happy and the smile on his face proved it. Lois had returned to him *and* she still loved him! His joy was unbounded. Suddenly a disappointing thought came to mind. He had to address this with Lois so he said, “You know, I’m not as strong as I used to be. I don’t know if I could fly you that far or that fast now. I can still fly people short hops, like out of a burning building, but six thousand miles may be a bit much.”
With a mischievous look Lois asked, “Do they still use airplanes or are flying saucers in vogue nowadays?”
He started laughing and she got a look of consternation on her face as he replied, “The flying saucers are reserved for flights up to the space station, the Moon and Mars Base. We do use SSTs for long trips like this. One consolation, we can afford to fly first class.”
She was shocked! Had technology progressed that far? With a stunned expression she asked, “You mean that flying saucers are real???”
With a serious expression he replied, “Yep, for about ten years now.”
With a look of wonder on her face she said, “I was kidding, but you’re serious, aren’t you?”
Not able to maintain a straight face any longer he started laughing and replied, “No. I was pulling your leg.”
With a pained look and chagrined at having fallen for his story, she said, “Okay for you Mr. New Prankster. Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s get packed.”
Becoming a little more serious he said, “We will, but we have a few things to do first.” Saying this he pulled her into his arms and started a kiss. It started somewhat tentatively but built in intensity as all of the frustration of missing her for ninety years was released to be replaced by joy. When they broke from the kiss he put his forehead against hers and said, “I’ve waited ninety years for that.”
She captured his lips in another, this time, brief kiss before she said, “There’s plenty more where that came from. At least we can do that.”
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Before they went on their much delayed honeymoon, they jumped through all of the hoops needed to reestablish her identity which included providing DNA samples to STAR Labs so that a genetic match could be made.
As soon as they left the apartment the next day, one of Lois’ concerns about the ninety year lapse was relieved. Looking at the other women on the streets and noting what they were wearing, she could see a number of different styles being worn. Her dresses might look a little retro but they wouldn’t really be out of place.
When they arrived at STAR Labs they explained the situation and the sample was taken for the mapping. Over the years the process had been improved and the sample processing only took half an hour to complete. The comparison confirmed that this was in fact the real Lois Lane and she was provided certificates attesting to that fact.
Since Clark had never discarded any of her things it was easier than it would have been to reestablish her identity. That coupled with the fact that he had insisted that she never be declared legally dead, even though her father and sister had requested it, which also helped establish her bona fides. Between the DNA and all of her other documents it wasn’t long until she had a new driver’s license and other appropriate documents.
The rest of that summer they spent together on one long vacation getting to know each other all over again and the world that Lois had just stepped into.
Over the course of the vacation Lois caught up on what had happened over the last ninety years. Clark made sure she had the latest technology available for data-link access and she spent a lot of time on historical research. Slowly, with Clark’s assistance, she became re-acclimated to society. Things had changed and yet they had really stayed the same for the most part. Societal change, when it came, was a slow process unless there was a major influence exerted.
One significant item she noticed that had prevented societies descent into decay was Superman. He had remained a force for good throughout her time away.
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Clark came into the room from a shower one afternoon to find her crying. Lois had put off reading about her own disappearance and the effects it had produced until she felt that she would be able to handle it better. Finally, she had read about her disappearance and the things that had happened as a result.
She had just finished reading the obituary on her mother. Clark moved over and sat next to her and put an arm around her shoulder in support. With vehemence she said, “Damn that Tempus! My mother died because of what he did. Clark, I read some other things that I need you to explain. You were arrested?”
“Well, yeah. It was just a formality.”
“But, why? Why would they even think you could have had anything to do with my disappearance?”
“Do you really need to know?”
“Yes, Clark, I want to know everything. Good and bad”
“Okay, well, that was your mother’s doing. She really wasn’t responsible. She was angry and needed someone to take that anger out on and I was an available target.”
“But, for her to suspect you, of all people.”
“I didn’t hold it against her. I think it was the drink talking.”
In a tone of misery, Lois said, “Yeah, the drink. I should have known she’d fall off the wagon. Oh, Mom, I’m so sorry. Forgive me,” as she started to cry again.
After a time she got her emotions back under control and asked, “What happened to Daddy?”
In a sad tone he replied, “About ten years after your mother passed he followed her to the grave. He never did strike it rich. He went from one scheme to the next. He made a little money here and there, but nothing major.”
Lois then asked, “What happened to Lucy?”
He hesitated for a few beats before answering, “Lucy was around. About five years after you disappeared, she finally started dating again and three years later she married Jimmy Olsen.”
“So, Jimmy Olsen became my brother-in-law. I guess I have some nieces and nephews.”
With a laugh he said, “You have some great grand nieces and nephews. I’ve lost track of them all.”
“I’m glad she found someone she would be happy with.”
His reply tripped her reporter’s instinct as he said, “Yeah, so am I,” in a relieved tone.
She challenged, “There’s more to it than that, isn’t there?”
He stuttered, “Huh, uh, wha … what do you mean by that?”
His response confirmed her suspicion and she challenged, “I mean that there’s more to the story about Lucy than the fact that she married Jimmy. Come on, give.”
“Can’t we just leave it at that and go on?” Remembering just what had passed between him and Lucy he started to blush.
Lois noticed his blush and Mad Dog took over as she challenged, “No, we can’t just leave it at that.” Jumping up she started to pace and then stopped in front of him and as if suddenly coming to a conclusion demanded, “She made a play for you, didn’t she? *Didn't* she? Come on, tell me.”
Sheepishly, he answered, “Well, yes, kinda.”
With a note of triumph that she had been correct in her supposition she almost shouted, “I shoulda known. That little witch. As soon as my back was turned. What’d she do?”
Somewhat reluctantly and hoping that the answer would be no he asked, “You don’t really want details, do you?”
Half reluctantly, because of what she expected she would be hearing, she said, “Give me the whole gory mess. Don’t worry; she’s not here anymore so I can’t kill her.”
He gave her the details on how for five long years Lucy had pursued a relationship with him. He did edit the story somewhat not including all of the detail on the encounter after the funeral. Not so much to shield her from what her sister had done, but out of embarrassment at his failure to avoid the encounter.
When he had finished she said, “You know, it’s a good thing she isn’t here because I *would* disembowel her. Much as I loved her, she tried to poach *my* husband.”
“She tried to have you declared legally dead thinking that if that were done I’d move on and she’d be there for me. I filed a counter suit and prevented that from happening.”
She gave him a kiss on the cheek and said, “Thank you, my loyal husband and thank you for not giving in to her. She was a Lane woman and I know how persistent we can be.”
“Fifteen years after you disappeared, Perry retired, I was promoted into the editor’s office and Jimmy had the city desk. I retired twenty years later and Jimmy became Editor.”
“Thanks to investments I made early on, eventually I had accumulated enough finances to purchase my apartment building. I would have just moved but I had hopes that someday you would reappear. Push came to shove when they announced that they wanted to buy me out so that a new high rise could go up. I refused to sell and they delayed their plans. When we get back, maybe we should sell out and move. The latest offer was twenty times what the building is worth.”
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As they had planned while on their vacation, when they returned to Metropolis they accepted the offer to sell the apartment building and as soon as the contract was signed they looked for another place to live. They found a house out on Wisteria Lane for sale and made an offer which was accepted.
After they settled in Lois started getting anxious at all of the inactivity. She was happy to be spending time with the love of her life, but her constitution was not such that inactivity would satisfy her. She needed to be out there investigating, exposing the seedy underbelly of society and bringing corrupt officials to account. In a way she was gratified to see that society hadn’t changed all that much in the ninety years she had been away.
Knowing that he wouldn’t be able to be there for her all of the time, Clark reluctantly agreed to Lois going back to the Planet.
comments go here TBC in Chapter 7
