Clark turned toward the Kryptonian ship when the sound echoed across the farm.
A figure slowly stepped out of the open hatch.
General Zod emerged first, dressed in a dark Kryptonian combat uniform and armored plating, a protective mask covering his head. Though the healing pod had not fully restored him, he clearly had no patience left to remain inside it.
Behind him stood Fiora, her body still recovering but steady enough to stand at attention.
"Kal-El, we have searched for you for a long time," General Zod said.
Clark's eyes narrowed.
"Ever since the Phantom Zone," Zod continued, "I have been looking for you."
"Why?" Clark asked coldly. "Why are you looking for me?"
"Because you are our hope for rebuilding Krypton. Kal-El, you are a son of Krypton. Your father, Jor-El, must have told you that. We share the same blood. We breathed the same air once. If even a fragment of your heart still remembers our home, then stand with us. Join us."
Clark did not soften.
"I don't belong to you," he replied. "I don't serve anyone. This is my home."
His gaze hardened.
"The United States government handed Adrian over to you. Where is he?"
Zod's eyes flashed with a cold light.
"He has been exiled."
Clark's expression changed instantly.
"Exiled?"
"Yes," Zod said, his tone ruthless. "Because he rejected who he truly is. He chose to become our enemy."
Clark's fists tightened.
"But you do not have to follow his mistake, Kal-El," Zod continued. "I intend to rebuild Krypton. It is the promise I made to my people. Join us. Give us the Codex that your father entrusted to you, the genetic archive of our entire civilization. With it, Krypton can rise again."
Clark barely heard the last words.
His thoughts were fixed on one thing.
Adrian.
"Where is Adrian now?" Clark demanded.
"I don't know," Zod replied calmly. "Perhaps you will never see him again, Kal."
Zod studied him carefully.
"It seems your concern for him outweighs your concern for your own people."
Clark took a slow breath.
"My home is here. Kent Farm. My people are my parents, and my brother."
He stepped forward.
But Fiora moved instantly.
She placed a hand against Clark's chest and stopped him.
"You should not take another step."
Clark looked directly into her cold eyes.
"What if I do?"
"Then prepare for destruction, Kal-El."
Clark ignored the warning.
He shifted his body, slipping past her hand and stepping forward again.
The next second Fiora struck.
Boom.
Her palm slammed into Clark's chest and blasted him backward. His body tore through the roof of the farmhouse and crashed into the living room.
Wood splintered everywhere.
"Retrieve the ship's secrets," Zod ordered calmly. "Once you locate the Codex, kill him."
Fiora nodded and walked toward the house.
Before she reached the door, it exploded outward.
Clark shot out like a missile.
He slammed directly into Fiora.
The impact sent both of them crashing across the ground. Dirt and grass exploded beneath them as they tore through the field.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
The ground ruptured under the force of their momentum.
They bounced upward again due to the impact.
Clark grabbed Fiora's armor and dragged her across the cornfield. The crops flattened instantly as a shockwave rolled through the rows like a tidal wave of green.
Clark drove a punch into her face.
"How dare you hurt my brother!"
His fist hammered against her armored mask.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Each strike produced a heavy metallic groan as her armor absorbed the impact.
Fiora grunted, enduring the blows. Suddenly she reached back and grabbed Clark's cape.
With a powerful twist she flipped their positions, forcing Clark beneath her.
Her elbow crashed into his neck.
They smashed through the treeline seconds later.
A massive tree split apart as their bodies slammed into it.
Both of them tumbled violently across the ground.
Fiora recovered first.
She seized Clark and hurled him forward like a thrown baseball.
Boom.
Clark struck the earth hard enough to shatter the ground beneath him.
Fiora leapt dozens of meters into the air and came crashing down nearby. The impact fractured the ground like shattered stone.
Clark tried to stand.
Her fist hit him again.
He flew backward once more.
Clark twisted his body in midair to stabilize himself, but Fiora closed the distance instantly.
She grabbed his arm and drove him backward through a line of trees.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Trees snapped apart under the impacts.
A windmill tower collapsed as Clark smashed through it.
Moments later they burst through a wall and crashed into the Talon.
The famous Smallville coffee shop exploded inward from the impact.
They blasted through another wall and tore back out onto the street.
The Talon was left half destroyed.
Clark rolled across the pavement.
Fiora landed lightly and stood immediately.
Clark had taken the worst of the damage.
Inside the Talon, Lana Lang's Aunt Nell stood frozen beside the register.
The fight had erupted only seconds earlier, and she had nearly been crushed.
She swallowed hard and looked outside.
The young man standing there with the red and yellow symbol on his chest looked familiar.
Outside, Fiora watched Clark rise slowly.
"Kal-El," she said coldly, "your strength is far below your brother's. You are too weak."
Clark clenched his fists and walked toward her.
The crowd on Main Street fled in panic.
Clark waited until the civilians had cleared the area before he moved again.
High above Smallville, the roar of military aircraft grew louder.
A formation of fighter jets and helicopters approached the town.
Inside one of the helicopters, a commander spoke through his headset.
"This is Guardian One. I have encountered this hostile alien before. All units are authorized to use lethal force."
"Understood. We are approaching the target area now."
Back on the street, Fiora ignored the approaching aircraft.
Her eyes remained fixed on Clark.
Clark suddenly moved.
He slammed his foot into the pavement and launched forward.
His fist shot toward Fiora's chest.
She twisted aside with superior agility.
Her leg swung like an axe and smashed into Clark's side.
Boom.
Clark was kicked across the street and crashed into a gas station.
A massive explosion erupted.
Flames engulfed the entire corner as thick smoke billowed into the sky.
Clark pushed himself up inside the burning wreckage.
A second later a figure dropped through the flames.
Fiora.
Her fist struck Clark's face and launched him backward again.
He blasted through the front of a small supermarket.
Shelves collapsed as Clark smashed into them. The marble floor cracked beneath him.
Several people hiding inside screamed.
A small girl stood frozen nearby with a half eaten cracker in her mouth.
Clark groaned and pushed himself up.
"Hey," he said gently, forcing a smile.
"It's dangerous here. Go find your mom."
A woman rushed forward instantly and grabbed the child.
As she carried her away, the girl raised a tiny thumbs up.
"Go, Uncle!"
Clark almost laughed.
Then Fiora landed inside the store.
By now the yellow sun had already begun strengthening her body. Her speed and power continued to rise.
But her greatest advantage was experience.
She was a trained Kryptonian commander.
Clark attacked first.
He accelerated with super speed and attempted to tackle her.
She dodged effortlessly.
Grabbing his cape, she hurled him across the store.
Clark crashed through multiple shelves and slammed into the wall.
"You are too weak, Son of El," Fiora said calmly.
"You lack confidence. You lack combat skill. You hesitate when you strike. Your brother does not hesitate. He is dangerous."
She looked down at him.
"But you are not yet a warrior."
Clark roared and charged.
Their fists collided repeatedly.
But Fiora stepped back, avoiding his attacks.
Her punch slammed into Clark's cheek.
Boom.
Clark crashed to the ground again.
The door frame of the supermarket twisted under the impact.
Metal supports snapped.
Heavy debris began collapsing toward the small girl who had cheered for him earlier.
Clark moved instantly.
He rushed forward, wrapped his arms around the child, and turned his back.
The metal structure crashed down on him.
Boom.
Clark groaned from the impact.
He gently set the girl down.
"Go."
Her mother ran forward, blood on her forehead, and carried the child away.
"Thank you! Thank you!"
Fiora watched this silently.
"These foolish morals inside you," she said, "we do not share them. History teaches a simple truth. Evolution always wins."
Clark was exhausted.
His body ached everywhere.
But his eyes burned with determination.
He roared and launched forward again.
This time he smashed Fiora straight through the supermarket wall.
Both of them slammed into a parked truck outside.
The metal container ripped open from the impact.
Fiora fell to the pavement, momentarily shaken.
Clark leapt into the air and stomped downward.
She slid aside and rolled back to her feet.
A sudden blur cut through the air.
General Zod.
He grabbed Clark's leg mid leap and slammed him into the ground.
Boom.
Clark's body struck the street with devastating force.
Pain shot through his entire spine.
Zod bent down, grabbed him again, and smashed him into the ground once more.
The pavement shattered.
Clark felt as if every bone in his back had broken.
Fiora alone had already pushed him to his limit.
Now General Zod had joined the battle.
Clark was completely outmatched.