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It felt as if the world had suddenly frozen around her.
She’d known that tensions were rising, and that Luthor had undoubtedly continued his relentless scheming.
But she still hadn’t expected this…
Not now.
Not here.
They were in the school gymnasium. A regular, mundane setting that they’d been in countless times before over the last three years.
Lana was hosting a town hall meeting that evening, to discuss a proposal to evict Lex Luthor from the formerly abandoned Smallville Hotel. As Lois had uncovered, his hasty purchase had broken some disclosure clauses, and the town was within its rights to overturn it. She’d been glad that Lana was willing to propose it to the town council, despite the risks to herself. Of course Lois and Clark had come along to show their support, and the boys had decided to come out too.
She honestly hadn’t thought much of it when they’d all left the house together. Sure, they’d been looking over their shoulders for the past couple of months, but this didn’t seem much riskier than anything else.
But, as she took in the scene that was now unfolding around her, Lois was furious at herself for underestimating the man again.
It was her stubborn refusal to give into the worry and fear that had led them here.
To a moment that would probably change everything.
A green glow had suddenly enveloped the room. It had happened in an instant.
One second, Lana had been standing at the front of the crowd, reading out a legal document. Then, the gymnasium lights had flickered— shifting their colour and blanketing the space in a unique form of radiation that few could feel.
Before she’d even had time to register the change, her family had crumpled around her, releasing matching gasps of pain. And the horrible reality began to sink in.
In clear view of half the town.
To make a terrible situation even worse, they’d been late and had found spots to stand off to the side. Near the front of the room.
That meant that everyone present could see exactly what was going on.
Lois was aware of all of the eyes that had turned to them, and that Lana had stopped her speech, but her priorities lay elsewhere first.
“Clark! Boys!”
Her husband was clutching the cinder block wall for support, his face scrunched in agony as he fought against the glow of his greatest weakness.
Her sons, meanwhile, seemed to be hit even harder. Jordan had instantly doubled over, clutching his side as he gasped for air. And Jon, encountering this substance for the first time, had already collapsed onto the hard floor.
Lois flung herself to her knees, placing on hand on Jon’s arm while reaching up to grasp Jordan’s hand with the other.
“Mom, it hurts,” Jonathan moaned as Jordan struggled to stay upright at her side. She could feel both of their bodies shaking with a heartbreaking with pain.
“Kryptonite,” her husband hissed out from behind, voice low so that only she could hear. Even though it probably didn’t matter at this point.
Lois felt helpless. Like any loving wife and mother, all she wanted to do was stop their suffering. But the now-green lights were several yards out of reach. And when her head snapped to the side of the room, she could see that Kyle Cushing was already frantically flicking the gymnasium light switch, which seemed to have no effect on the relentless green light.
“It’ll be okay,” she promised, wishing she felt more certain of her own words.
She’d have to drag every family member to safety, one by one. It was the only choice.
Lois fought back the sting of tears in her eyes as she tried to wedge both arms under Jon’s increasingly limp frame.
“Sweetie, we have to get out of here,” she urged, hoping he could somehow summon the strength to get back onto to feet.
Instead, he simply released a hiss of pain. Then, much to her dismay, a second form crumpled to her left.
“Jordan, no.” The tears burned in her eyes and she turned towards her other little boy.
She couldn’t protect either of them.
Not from this.
“Lois, let me help you.”
She hadn’t heard Lana run to her side amidst her panic, but she nodded thankfully. As she briefly moved her eyes from her sons, she realized that a small crowd had gathered around.
Watching.
Probably figuring things out.
But she couldn’t even begin to care about that right now.
“Kent, lean on me. Lois and Lana will get the boys.”
Kyle was there too now, and Lois turned back to Jon while Lana grasped Jordan’s arms and began to pull.
She felt the first small surge of hope, and the first glimmer that it might be okay.
They just had to get them to the hallway…
But that solution was abruptly shattered by the sound of a slamming door and the echo of a chilling, familiar, laugh.
“Well, would you look at this,” a deep voice said, laced with a sickening glee.
Lois’ head snapped up just in time to see Luthor’s familiar lackey bolt the gymnasium door shut with some sort of metal device.
A hum of surprised conversation began to fill the room as Lois stumbled back to her feet. Everything was still bathed in green, and she knew that time would eventually run out.
But she wouldn’t give up, and she’d face anyone down for the sake of her family.
“You seem distressed, Ms. Lane,” Lex Luthor drawled, slowly walking closer to where her family lay suffering on the ground.
Even Clark had fallen now, his body giving way in Kyle’s grasp as the Kryptonite overwhelmed.
“You have no right to do this,” Lois shot back scathingly, “this is assault. And you won’t get away with it.”
She knew that Luthor would never be intimidated by mere words, but she still had to try.
The fury welled within her as she glared at the man who had already taken so much from her— and refused to stop.
“Assault?” Luthor laughed without stopping his menacingly slow trek towards them. “It isn’t illegal to experiment with new and innovative lighting methods,” he said, gesturing towards the sickeningly green ceiling. “Kryptonite is actually a wonderful energy source. LuthorCorp has been experimenting with environmentally friendly technology— that isn’t a crime.”
“You know exactly what you’re doing.” Lois scoffed in response. There wasn’t time for his lies.
Not while her family suffered.
“It’s perfectly harmless,” Lex continued, ignoring her. He finally stopped walking, only a few feet from where Lois stood.
He paused, looking down at her husband and sons before adding.
“Well, perfectly harmless to humans, anyway.”
Lois felt the bile rose in her throat. She knew it was already too late, but hearing him flippantly label her family in the crowded gym still filled her with anger and fear.
They’d spent decades protecting the secret. Keeping it safe was the only way they’d managed to build a semi-normal life.
She’d known that he’d use this information against them sooner or later, but it was still difficult to face.
They would escape. She refused to entertain another option.
But this would still be the beginning of the end. She’d have to spend the rest of her life defending her family’s place on this planet.
She wouldn’t be able to protect her sons in the ways she always wanted.
The world was going to know who they all were. Maybe in a matter of hours. Perhaps she should have been bracing for it ever since Luthor discovered the truth, but she’d been too terrified to truly face it.
Now, she had to.
“You have no idea what you’re talking about,” she tried, in a last ditch effort to cling to what they’d once had.
Luthor, of course, would not relent. He was enjoying this, and he’d clearly planned this exposure in the most painful and memorable way possible.
He ignored her, turning towards the gathered crowd instead. A triumphant grin on his face.
“You understand what is happening here, don’t you?” He asked, voice booming across the crowded gym. “I’m sure some of you have been wondering about Martha and Jonathan Kent’s mysterious son for decades. Well, they lied to you about who he is and where he came from. And he’s been lying to you for even longer.”
Lex cocked his head, shooting Clark a scathing glare before continuing with his rant.
“He has never been one of you,” the man sneered, “he’s not even from this planet. There has been an alien living in your midst for years. And now he has brought his alien children to pollute your town too. They don’t belong here. They’ll never belong.”
Lois felt her hands clench at her sides, but she refused to let the full extent of her emotions show.
Luthor was scum. But even though she knew that, it was hard to hear her family disparaged in such a way.
Clark loved this town, and he’d only ever wanted to fit in. And their boys deserved to live a peaceful life, no matter how many of their father’s traits they happened to inherit.
None of them had asked to be different, and Lois felt a searing failure at the realization that she hadn’t protected them in the way that a mother should.
“You all know what Kryptonians are capable of. You saw it first hand when Morgan Edge nearly destroyed Smallville. No matter what he calls himself, that’s what this man truly is,” Luthor carried on, “it’s time we dealt with this so-called Superman and his sons.”
“No!” A voice echoed out from the middle of the crowd.
Several people turned, and Lois was surprised to see that Chuck Hastings— a man she’d only ever exchanged a few polite words with— was shaking his head resolutely as he stared back at Luthor.
“We don’t need to deal with them,” the man continued, arms folded across his chest. “We need to deal with you.”
Luthor tried to mask his surprise, but Lois knew him well enough to recognize that he didn’t have a comeback prepared.
Clearly, he hadn’t expected pushback from anyone but her.
And he’d probably expected an angry mob to drive ‘the aliens’ out of town.
Instead, a mummer of dissent seemed to be growing within the crowd.
“Yeah,” Aidy Manning called out in agreement next, “Martha and Jonathan were just protecting an innocent child. Like the wonderful people that they were.”
Several heads nodded at that, and Lois watched, hope suddenly rising as the tide began to turn.
“Clark has been my friend my entire life,” Lana added, taking a step forward to stand at Lois’ side. “He is who he is because he was raised by some of the finest citizens this town has ever had. He’s part of Smallville, just like the rest of us. And his family will always be welcomed here too.”
There were more nods, and more murmurs of affirmation. If it hadn’t been for the green glow that continued to put her family in peril, Lois might have smiled.
“They’re freaks!” Luthor finally managed to reply, eyes flashing with an increasingly unhinged rage.
His plan was starting to fail, and it was apparent that he couldn’t handle it.
“Clark Kent has been hiding his true identity for years. He’s a liar! And he somehow managed to produce biological children that pose just as big of a threat as he does!”
“They’re not a threat,” Denise Olowe called out, her parents standing supportively at her side.
“And most of us older folks already knew the truth anyway,” Cobb Braedon spoke next. “I figured it out years ago, back when I lived next door to the Kents. But I figured it wasn’t any of my business. And I was proud to see a hometown boy doing so much good in the world.”
The older man, who Lois had come across several times, had never given any indication that he knew about her family.
It was her turn to blink in shock, and she briefly wondered just how widespread this information really was.
As she looked at the crowd— at the people who had become familiar faces in her new home— she realized that she didn’t see many expressions of surprise.
Instead, she saw sympathy. And more than a few glares directed squarely at Lex Luthor.
“We protect our own,” Kyle said firmly, gesturing towards a few of the other fire crew members that were present.
A cheer of affirmation rose within the gym.
Lois saw Luthor take a shaky step back before the room around them suddenly went dark.
It was disorienting to suddenly lose the ability to see what was going on, but she was incredibly relieved that the terrible green had finally disappeared.
A few moments later, the dim yellow emergency lights flickered on and she heard Coach Gains release a whoop of victory from his spot beside an electrical panel on the wall.
“Once a Crow, always a Crow,” the coach declared, lowering the screwdriver he’d apparently been using to override whatever Luthor had done to the school’s wiring.
Lois would thank him later. But, now that she could see again, she turned back to what was most important.
Clark was slowly pushing himself back into a sitting position with a soft groan, and Lois flung herself back down next to her boys to see if they were okay.
“Jordan, Jonathan,” she started, the coil of fear slowly unwinding within her as she watched their breathing begin to return to normal. “It’s over. It’s stopped.”
Two sets of eyes fluttered opened within seconds of each other and, unable to wait a second longer, she gathered both of her sons towards her for a tight hug. As the pain began to fade and the Kryptonite haze cleared, she felt their arms return the gesture. Then, she felt another warm figure envelope her gently from behind, reminding her that everything really was going to be okay.
No matter what.
The family embrace couldn’t last long, however.
There was still a lot to deal with, and Lois suddenly realized that a scuffle was ensuring on their left.
“Mom, what’s going on?” Jon asked hazily, rubbing his head as he fully came to.
“Luthor managed to put Kryptonite in the lights,” she explained softly, trying her best to comfort her boys. “But they’re off now. You’ll be okay.”
Jordan, meanwhile, was looking at the crowd that remained huddled around them with wide, fearful eyes. Probably wondering why she was saying something like that so openly. After all, everyone knew that there was only one species effected by Kryptonite, and that wasn’t usually something they’d acknowledge in front of others.
Clark stumbled back to his feet, somehow mustering the strength to stand behind his family protectively.
Lois wasn’t sure how much they’d seen and heard while grappling with the Kryptonite, but her husband was probably piecing it together.
“Lois, you need to get the boys somewhere safe,” he said, his voice low and laced with worry.
He’d obviously figured out that they’d been exposed, but he probably hadn’t heard the aftermath.
Lois made sure that both of the boys were sitting comfortably before she pulled herself back to her feet.
Kyle and his crew had managed to restrain Luthor now, and she surveyed the gym to affirm that there were no other signs of aggression or hate.
All she could see was the opposite.
“Clark, it’s okay,” she said, lacing a hand in his as they both faced their fellow Smallvillians.
All eyes were on them, but none were narrowed in anger or distrust as Luthor had hoped.
“They know,” Lois told him, eliciting a look of surprise from her husband. Several people nodded at her words before she continued. “They know who you are. Some of them have known for a long time. But they’re on our side.”
“Of course we are,” Chuck piped in again, sending Lois and Clark a reassuring smile, “you may not have been born here, Clark, but you were raised here. You’ve always been one of us.”
“Martha and Jonathan did so much for this town,” Aidy added, “we’d never betray their son. Or their grandsons,” she finished, smiling towards the stunned looking boys.
“I…I don’t know what to say…”
Clark stumbled over his words, as he often did when he was taken aback. It was all part of his small town charm and Lois gave his hand a supportive squeeze.
She was quickly realizing that she’d been silly to ever doubt their neighbours.
Things hadn’t always been easy in Smallville, but these were good people. And this was the sort of place where everyone looked after each other. So much of who her husband was had started here, and the support and acceptance meant more than words could say.
There was only one person present who didn’t seem to understand.
“You people can’t be serious!” Luthor spat out, his arms now held firmly behind him by several sturdy looking firefighters. Many of whom had grown up with Clark, or worked with Jon.
“They are Kryptonians. The whole world knows what they’re capable of.”
“Yeah, and we know they’d never do anything to hurt anyone,” Denise said boldly, glaring at Luthor before turning towards the boys. “Unlike you.”
There were more mummers of agreement.
“We’re taking you down to the sheriff,” Kyle declared, nodding towards the crew holding Luthor, and the other group holding the henchman he’d brought to bolt the gym door.
“To charge me with what? Aliens aren’t protected by humans laws.”
“I don’t think the sheriff is going to see it that way,” Kyle scoffed. “We don’t let people get away with assault in this town.”
“This isn’t over!” Luthor called out, angling his head back towards Lois and her family as the firefighters hastily spun him around. “This is far from over!”
Unfortunately, she didn’t doubt that.
But she was relieved that the most recent crisis had passed.
Her family was okay. And they suddenly had far more people on their side than she’d ever expected.
As Luthor was dragged from the room, Timmy Ryan and Malcom Teague reached out to help the boys back to their feet.
They were both a little shaky, but Lois could tell that the effects of the Kryptonite were quickly wearing off.
“I’m glad you guys are okay,” Malcom offered warmly as Timmy nodded at his side.
“And I’m glad it’s all out in the open now,” Timmy added, clearly unsurprised as well. “All of that Smallville Samaritan stuff was totally badass. I can’t believe we go to school with actual superheroes.”
He seemed to be yet another person who had figured it out.
“Uh, okay,” Jordan blinked, trying to process it all. “It’s not…weird?”
“Nah,” the other boy shrugged. “It’s cool.”
Jordan seemed to relax a bit at that, though it was undoubtedly still uncomfortable to be the centre of attention like this.
Lois didn’t love it, and she was less implicated in the situation than her husband and sons were.
Most of the town knew that they weren’t like everyone else. That was a lot to process, even if the reception was overwhelming positive.
“We really appreciate all of you standing up for us like this,” her husband said, gathering himself enough to address the crowd. “We kept our secret so that our family would be safe. I never wanted to lie, and neither did my parents. But if the rest of the world found out, we were never sure what would happen. I’m sorry for keeping things for you for as long as I did.”
“It’s okay, Clark. Family comes first. We get that,” Emily Phan offered with a reassuring smile. “We’d all do whatever it takes to protect our kids.”
“Yeah, and we’ll make sure you all stay safe,” Principal Balcomb added from a few feet back.
“This secret will never leave this town,” Aidy declared firmly, eliciting more nods.
Cobb chimed in from beside her. “Some of us have been protecting the secret for years, and we’ll keep protecting it now.”
Lois looked up at her husband to see that his eyes were glossy as he surveyed the people around them.
The people who had their backs, and would do everything could to protect their own.
“Thank you,” Lois said softly, speaking on behalf of her family. “I can’t tell you how much that means to us.”
Clark nodded at her side.
“Even though I wasn’t born here, Smallville has shaped who I am. I’m proud to be one of you. And I’m so incredibly grateful and honoured to have a place here.”
“Always, Clark,” Lana replied, giving her old friend a reassuring pat on the arm.
“We have your back. And Luthor isn’t going to win.”
There were cheers of agreement at that, and Lana took her cue to move back towards the front of the gym.
Clark wrapped a firm arm around Lois as they watched Lana pick up the piece of paper she’d been reading before.
“Now,” their friend started again, switching back into her Mayoral mode. “What do you say we all vote on the motion to reject Lex Luthor’s purchase of the Smallville Hotel.”
There were more cheers, and Lois saw several supportive smiles thrown in their direction.
She placed a hand on Jordan’s shoulder, while Clark placed a hand on Jon’s.
That night had taken an unexpected turn, and life was far from settled.
But knowing that the town was fully on their side meant so much.
There was strength in numbers. And Lois felt a renewed sense of hope as she looked around the crowded room once more.
“All in favour say aye,” Lana said.
The word echoed around the room in unison, every voice joining as one.
United in their unwavering support.