"Guardian, target spotted. Two targets confirmed. Requesting permission to attack!"
"Confirmed, Thunder 11. Begin the attack."
An A-10 attack aircraft screamed across the sky, its engines producing a sharp whistle as it descended toward the street where Fiora and General Zod stood.
The aircraft's 30mm cannon opened fire.
A storm of heavy rounds tore through the air, the bullets powerful enough to shred steel as they rained down toward the two Kryptonians.
The entire street was instantly engulfed in a hail of gunfire.
General Zod and Fiora reacted immediately. Both moved with superhuman speed, separating and dodging the incoming barrage from opposite directions.
Clark, caught between them, forced himself to stand. His chest burned with pain, but he still activated his super speed and dashed toward the nearby buildings to escape the line of fire.
"Target lost. No confirmed hit on the targets. Preparing second attack run!"
Thunder 11 reported through the radio.
"Abort attack! Thunder 11, turn heading two-one-one. Unknown object approaching your position. Eject immediately! Eject!"
Guardian One's urgent voice blasted through the pilot's headset.
But the warning came too late.
With a thunderous impact, Fiora leaped into the sky and landed directly on top of the A-10.
Her fist smashed through the cockpit canopy.
The pilot inside barely had time to react before she killed him instantly. Without hesitation, Fiora ripped apart the aircraft's control system with her bare hands.
The attack plane immediately lost control.
It spiraled downward toward the town.
Boom.
A massive explosion erupted as the aircraft crashed into the square near the center of Smallville.
Fire surged upward, and the explosion echoed throughout the town.
Inside a small shop along the street, Clark staggered forward.
"Ugh..."
He clutched his chest and coughed violently.
Each breath felt like knives scraping through his lungs.
Sweat dripped from his forehead as he struggled deeper into the store. His strength was almost gone, and he could not even use his super speed anymore.
"Hey, Clark!"
A familiar voice suddenly called out.
Clark looked up.
Bart Allen stood in front of him.
Bart wore a prototype red suit, clearly inspired by a speedster uniform. He glanced outside at General Zod approaching through the smoke and took a deep breath.
"I'll handle this."
Clark shook his head.
"Not you. All of us."
Another voice spoke.
Jenna stepped out from behind Bart. She wore dark leather clothing and a mask that partially covered her face.
"You guys?" Clark asked, surprised.
He had no idea why they had suddenly appeared here.
Before he could say more, a violent crash sounded behind him.
Clark turned.
General Zod stood near the entrance, but his entire body was suddenly covered in ice.
Cold air swirled around him.
A young man stood nearby with both hands extended, releasing waves of freezing air that rapidly encased Zod in a layer of ice.
"Haa!"
At the same moment, a young woman who looked almost identical to the young man jumped high into the air.
Sharp claws extended from her hands.
She sliced cleanly through the wooden support beams inside the shop.
The ceiling collapsed instantly.
With a loud crash, the roof and debris buried General Zod beneath a pile of rubble while he remained frozen in ice.
The young woman landed and quickly ran toward Clark.
"We need to get out of here!" she said urgently.
Clark stared at her.
"You... you're Jenna."
He could hardly believe the change in her appearance. It had only been half a year since he last saw her, yet she now moved like a trained fighter.
The young man releasing the freezing air hurried over as well.
"No good," he said nervously. "My ice couldn't penetrate his armor at all. Honestly, someone wearing that kind of armor might even be more dangerous than Brainiac."
Clark immediately recognized him.
This was the boy he had rescued from Brainiac before.
He was Jenna's twin brother.
Zan.
Zan scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"So... what do we do now?"
Jenna shot him an annoyed look.
"You are always hesitating, Zan. If I hadn't distracted him for you earlier, you probably would have ruined the whole thing."
"There isn't time to argue," she added quickly. "Those aliens will come after us soon. We need to leave."
Clark forced himself to stand straighter.
Some of his strength had returned, though the pain remained.
"You shouldn't be here," he told them seriously. "All of you need to leave Smallville right now."
"No," Jenna said firmly. "We came to help you."
Her words had barely finished when the rubble exploded.
Boom.
The debris scattered in all directions.
General Zod rose from the wreckage.
His expression was filled with fury.
The transparent protective mask covering his head had been damaged. The energy shield flickered violently, like a broken screen struggling to stay active.
Clark instinctively stepped forward, shielding the others behind him.
Zod stared at them through the failing visor.
Then he ripped the entire helmet off.
The moment his face was exposed to Earth's atmosphere, his expression twisted.
A wave of dizziness struck him instantly.
Countless sounds, smells, and sensory signals flooded his mind all at once.
He staggered forward and grabbed his head.
"What... what did you do to me?"
Clark shook his head slowly.
He understood exactly what was happening.
Under Earth's yellow sun, Kryptonians gain incredible power. Their senses expand far beyond normal limits.
But without training, those heightened senses become unbearable.
Every sound, every movement, every tiny vibration of the world crashes into their mind at once.
"My parents once told me something," Clark said calmly. "There are too many things in the world that you don't need to hear. If your senses are stronger than everyone else's but you don't know how to control them, that power becomes a curse."
Zod dropped to one knee.
The overwhelming sensory input felt like torture.
"Without your helmet," Clark continued, breathing heavily, "you can perceive everything around you. It's painful, isn't it?"
Clark began walking toward him.
But his eyes suddenly shifted.
A strange black spacecraft hovered outside the shop.
Its shape resembled a mechanical beetle.
The weapon mounted beneath it finished charging.
A bright silver beam fired instantly.
Boom.
The energy blast struck Clark directly.
He slammed into the ground and shattered the floor beneath him.
Clark groaned and clutched his chest as he looked up.
The Kryptonian craft was already charging another shot.
Clark reacted immediately.
He launched himself toward Bart and the others and shielded them with his body.
A powerful shockwave swept through the building.
Then suddenly, the spacecraft stopped firing.
Several Kryptonian soldiers descended from the craft.
They restrained the disoriented General Zod, ignoring his furious resistance, and dragged him back toward the ship.
Zod glared at Clark the entire time.
His teeth clenched with rage.
Clark met his gaze without flinching.
Neither of them spoke.
But the hatred in their eyes was unmistakable.
The engines of the craft ignited.
With a thunderous roar, the beetle-shaped ship shot upward and disappeared into the sky.
Far away in Metropolis, Chloe Sullivan and Lois Lane walked toward an apartment building.
They had followed the address provided by Lois's father, General Sam Lane.
"This should be housing for Kansas state government staff, right?" Chloe asked as she looked around the neighborhood.
Lois nodded.
"According to the address my father gave me, yes."
Chloe raised an eyebrow.
"I didn't think your father had any connection to the Kansas state government. Unless he plans to join them after retirement. Maybe run for state office like Jonathan Kent."
Lois laughed softly.
"I doubt it. He complains about politicians constantly. According to him, most of them are arrogant idiots."
They climbed the stairs to the third floor.
Lois stopped in front of apartment 304 and knocked on the door.
A young woman opened it a moment later.
She looked confused when she saw them.
"Can I help you?"
"Hello," Lois said politely. "I'm Lois Lane. My father is General Sam Lane."
"And I'm Chloe Sullivan."
When the woman heard Sam Lane's name, her expression immediately changed.
Her name was Meli.
She had been one of the few survivors during the vampire incident, the attack where Adrian unleashed his Heat Vision on the military command center.
At the time she had been working as an administrative secretary for the governor's office.
The memory still haunted her.
She stepped aside and invited them in.
After pouring them water, she listened quietly as Lois explained why they had come.
"You mean something General Lane left with me?" Meli asked.
Lois nodded.
Meli hesitated for a moment, then walked into another room.
She returned carrying a sealed document bag taken from a safe.
Inside were photographs and several files.
Chloe looked at Lois.
"So... are we supposed to open it?"
"My father told me not to," Lois said thoughtfully.
"But I think I can decide for myself now."
She opened the file bag.
Chloe leaned closer.
Several photographs fell out.
They were blurry, but the scene was unmistakable.
In the images, Adrian stood facing a group of American soldiers.
His eyes glowed with crimson light.
A beam of Heat Vision sliced through the soldiers.
The armored vehicles around them were covered in blood and debris.
The scene looked horrifying.
Chloe stared in disbelief.
"This... this shows Adrian attacking U.S. soldiers?"
Lois nodded slowly.
"I once participated in a military operation led by my father. The mission target was Adrian Kent."
She paused.
"And the result was the complete destruction of the military force sent to stop him."
Chloe shook her head.
"No... that can't be right."
She stared at the photographs again.
"Adrian might be cold sometimes," she murmured quietly, "but he's not someone who would do something like this."
===
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