You asked for a sequel, so here you go. Don't blame me for the quality. The whole thing is kind of silly. I didn't plan on writing anything more than I had. All the mistakes are mine, I'm proud of them. wink

This won't make much sense without reading Seeing Microscopes first. Hope it'll be fun.


Scientific Nightmares

Three days! They were supposed to survive three days! Even human ones could do that. But as Dr. Klein looked into his microscope he only saw a sorry accumulation of dead cells. He sighed in frustration. It couldn’t be true. They had been Superman’s for Heaven’s sake. Why couldn’t they last a little longer? The light had certainly been hot, but weren’t they supposed to be invulnerable just like their donor? Obviously, they weren’t. There wasn’t the least bit of motion. Dr. Klein sighed unhappily. No Nobel Prize today.

“I should better take you to hospital,” a firm voice said from behind him. It reminded Dr. Klein that he still had a chance to get the tests done. He would have to repeat some of them, but maybe not all. The frustration subsided and he became excited. The scientist turned around to tell Superman that he didn’t have time to waste in an emergency room. He needed to ask Superman for another sample. The expression on Superman’s face stopped him. The hero was uncommonly pale. “I’m sorry, Dr. Klein. I… I didn’t hear your calls,” Superman apologized.

“Did you have an encounter with kryptonite?” Dr. Klein asked worriedly. Kryptonite would be bad. Maybe the sample wouldn't be worth anything, if he got it that was. Dr. Klein hoped it wasn’t kryptonite. To his relief the hero shook his head.

“No kryptonite, I was, um, distracted,” he muttered, his face slightly flushed. “The last two days have been rough... Dr. Klein, who…”

“Superman, I need new samples, so would you please…?” Dr. Klein interrupted him. He wanted to get directly to the point. He wasn’t patient enough to wait any longer.

“I’m not sure I should go,” the hero replied.

“You surely don’t want to… here…?” the scientist asked, shocked. “I don’t think that’s a good idea!” he was blushing as well. He was a physician. He had seen much during his internship, but not that much.

“You sure want me to leave?” Superman asked.

“Yes, please,” Dr. Klein said and sighed with relief as the hero shrugged and turned towards the exit. “Uhm, Superman. You, eh, forgot something.” Dr. Klein held out a small pot for the samples.

“What?” Superman asked, confused. He looked at the pot in Dr. Klein’s hand.

“I told you I need samples,” the scientist said impatiently. “And preferably today.”

The hero’s face conveyed a lack of comprehension. He still looked utterly confused, which Dr. Klein couldn't understand. They had been talking about this for quite some time now! What part in his request was so hard to comprehend? Suddenly Superman’s expression changed as if something had finally dawned on him.

“Why?” Superman asked. Surprise was written all over his face. Dr. Klein’s impatience was replaced by anger. The tests hadn’t been his idea. But now he desperately wanted to do them. Was Superman so dense or was he just a good actor? The scientist grumbled, annoyed. Even freshmen didn’t dare ask such stupid questions! Dr. Klein didn’t answer; he just shot the hero a disbelieving glance. Superman returned his look. “But you told me that I can’t have children. Why another test?”

“I told you that we had to wait for the results. I didn’t finish the last tests, yet,” Dr. Klein said as calmly as he possibly could. Why didn’t Superman just go over to that room with the magazines?

“But yesterday you told me…” Superman murmured.

Suddenly Dr. Klein had an idea as to what Superman was talking about. The nasty twin! Superman had talked to the other Dr. Klein. But he didn’t plan on discussing this right now.

“I didn’t tell you anything. I will explain everything to you later. So would you now please give me the samples,” Dr. Klein begged. He so much wanted to do these last tests. He had waited for hours, almost days. He shot Superman what he considered a pleading glance.

Superman harrumphed uneasily. His face was bright red.

“Dr. Klein, I’m not so sure this is still possible,” he muttered. “After the devastating news…”

“Don’t tell me you…”

“Repeatedly,” Superman replied hoarsely, embarrassed.

No! Dr. Klein wanted to scream in frustration. Couldn’t heroes find another way to ease their minds, Dr. Klein mused helplessly. This couldn’t be true! Not now! It was silent for a moment. Suddenly there was a slight noise. But Dr. Klein didn’t hear the proverbial pin drop. It was something far more disastrous. It was a soft cling and the already dim light in the room went even a little darker. Dr. Klein’s glance shot over to the microscope. The light bulb had burnt through.

This had to be a nightmare!


It's never too dark to be cool. cool