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[sub][i][b]“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”[/b][/i]
E D M U N D  B U R K E[/sub][/center]
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[b]T H E  F O R T R E S S  O F  S O L I T U D E  -  T H E  A R C T I C[/b]
	[sub][b]JANUARY 12th[/b][/sub]

[INDENT]It had been a rough last few years for Clark Kent.

Following the Kryptonian invasion, Clark knew the consequences would be vicious and truthfully he didn’t blame the world for turning their back on their hope when they thought they had been betrayed by their hero. The fallout that had occurred following the attack was disheartening for Clark as many people who had called him a “savior” had done a complete 180; Superman was no longer their hero but now their enemy. The Man of Steel knew Luthor had been laughing all the way to the bank when it had happened— an alien starship sending soldiers exactly like his nemesis to destroy and conquer? It was too easy— there was no way Luthor would not have used all of his advantages to create the narrative he wanted to humiliate, discredit, and incriminate Superman. 

And that’s exactly what he did.

The formation of the Justice League of America, in another light would’ve been exactly the correct response to the threats present. But in this case it was entirely funded by corporate interests and Lex Luthor’s wallet, a fact that Clark felt everybody ignored. It was probably the most brilliant career move in Lex Luthor’s entire life. A brave new world and Luthor was picking up the pieces. However, it wasn’t a simple game of embarrassing the Man of Steel— though the American entrepreneur probably thought it had been a nice bonus victory. The fact was that Luthor didn’t do things half-heartedly and with him organizing a group of superheroes dedicated to social justice there had to be something much more to it. Superman had smelled something wrong about it the day Luthor announced it— all the fanfare in the world couldn’t hide it.

It sank Clark’s spirits when he had to deny an invitation to the league by his own personal hero, Captain America. But it was just another clever tactic Luthor employed to distract him. Clark couldn’t accept being in league with Luthor, especially not after everything he had experienced at Luthor’s hands. The JLA was Luthor building up to something and manipulating heroes for his own benefit. How could a man who willingly and deceptively armed supervillains, assassins, terrorists, and corrupt governments be the face of a new frontier of justice? 

Eventually there would be no legal loophole or way to weasel out of [i]his[/i] justice. But how? It had been two years since Luthor’s hero project had been founded and Clark hadn’t found enough evidence to justify his feelings. The possibility that Luthor had gone the route of Tony Stark was something that seemed so unreal to the kryptonian. His feelings aside, there were many people who felt the same way about Luthor that he had talked to in the past to make sure he wasn’t being blinded by his past experiences with Luthor. John, Bruce, Kara, Lois, Diana, and many others looked at Luthor in the same light. Bruce had told him he would look into it, but even the World’s Greatest Detective had a plethora of other priorities. 

“[color=0072bc]Let it go, Clark.[/color]” Clark muttered under his breath as he stood at the center of the Fortress of Solitude, trying to calm his nerves.

Clark knew thinking about the same thing for three years expecting a different conclusion was the definition of insanity but he felt like distracting himself completely would make it easier for Luthor to do something he would’ve otherwise noticed. It was a conundrum in itself, for sure. 

It was times like this that he wondered what Captain America or the Justice Society of America would’ve done in the same situation. Maybe it was a romanticization, but being a hero seemed so much easier back in the Golden Age of Superheroism; villains were simpler. 

“[color=0072bc]Kelex, I’m going back on patrol rounds. Update me if anything comes up.[/color]”

“Of course, Kal-El.”

Leaving the Fortress of Solitude, Clark slammed all of his anxiety into a physical outlet as he zipped from his base of operations as he made for the stratosphere like he always did when preparing for his patrol. Once within the stratosphere the kryptonian stopped on a dime as he looked down towards the surface with a wide smile as his cape flowed behind him. Despite all of the anxiety he had with Luthor every single time Clark pulled himself up here he felt a blissful energy overtake him. Who needed therapy when you could just experience this kind of euphoric peace? He remembered when Kara had started to get used to her powers and he took her up to the stratosphere for the first time as a sort of introduction to the kryptonian abilities she was inheriting. 

[i]“Shut your eyes. Focus past the noise and listen closely. This may seem like a burden but it isn’t— this is the heartbeat of the planet.”[/i]

It took awhile for Kara, but she understood it. He was so proud when she donned her cape to follow in his footsteps. He never really thought much of legacies until Kara had arrived on Earth, but it made him start considering a lot of things that had happened in the past as well as start looking to the future. What would’ve happened if he had the courage… that he had now. Clark looked downwards in the direction of Jump City on the western seaboard of North America— where Lana Lang, now an important scientist, was studying meta-biology. He hadn’t seen her in som—
[list][h2][i]AAAAAH![/i][/h2][/list]
The scream cut through Clark’s mind, interrupting his train of thought. There was no thinking to the scream of terror— he had already made a beeline for it. 

Touching down in southern Russia, somewhere near the Kazakhstan border, the first conflict of the day begins. Clark’s brows narrow as he sees what had caused the scream: a Frankenstein-like monster stitched throughout his whole body with a massive bulk to him. A woman in a white labcoat is trying to scramble back as fear completely overtakes her. A reasonable sense of fear. Clark throws his arm out and speaks his words carefully hoping that what was before him spoke Russian. 

[b]“[color=0072bc]Stop!, what are you doing?[/color]”[/b][sup]1[/sup]

The words crack forward like lightning and the creature (mutant?) turned its head at the figure that stood behind him that dared to grab him. There was a grumble from its lips. 

“Die.”[sup]1[/sup]

[center][img]http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/scale_super/11113/111138264/3491641-supermanbeaten203.jpg[/img][/center]
[b]“DIE! DIE! [i]DIE![/i]”[/b][sup]1[/sup]

The concrete cracked as the creature slammed Clark’s face repeatedly, with each motion exponentially stronger than the last. Clark felt like he should’ve been used to this sort of reaction given his experiences with the likes of Solomon Grundy; but he really wasn’t. There really wasn’t much getting used to with the equivalent of a real life ogre throwing you around like a ragdoll when you were as strong as Clark was. A heavy breath left him as he shifted his energy and despite being face-down flung himself upwards back-first as quickly as possible.

The movement caused the creature to stumble and lose hold of his head, which was good… because that was enough of that.

[b]“[color=0072bc]A bit of a temper, huh. That’s okay. I’ve got one too.[/color]”[/b][sup]1[/sup] Clark grinned as he cracked his knuckles.[/INDENT]

[color=aba000][i][sup]1[/sup][sub]: Russian[/sub][/i][/color]