Superman Movieverse Forum

2017
Charlie gave Wonder Woman a hard look. “I thought the League agreed to be more circumspect than this.”

Diana shrugged, an elegant move that made Laura glower. Charlie pulled his wife close to his side and placed a protective arm around her shoulders.

“The dead man’s DNA is being checked as we speak,” Diana said, indicating a tiny ear bud that Laura hadn’t noticed before.

“The initial analysis confirms it is Luthor’s genetic material, but the Batman and the Martian Manhunter have further tests to rule out clones or simulacrums,” Diana continued.

“And if it turns out to be a clone or simulacrum?” Laura asked.

“Then nothing will have changed,” Diana said.

Charlie shook his head. “It will mean that Luthor escaped and is no doubt currently planning something heinous.”

“We would see signs of that,” the Amazon pointed out.

“You missed the signs when Luthor was planning to level the East Coast,” Laura said.

“There was no League then, and the signs were there. It was simply that there was no one in a position to recognize them at the time, not even Superman,” Diana explained softly. “Now we know what to look for and we have the means to look.”

Charlie seemed to accept that.

Diana’s expression became distracted and she held up on finger as she listened to distant voices. Charlie’s expression was thoughtful and Laura knew he was listening in.

“It’s confirmed,” Diana announced. “It was Luthor. The preliminary autopsy report indicates he died of advanced lymphoma, most likely due to long term kryptonite exposure. It appears that he ingested it at some point and the mineral lodged in his bones, including his skull. There were also signs of cerebral atrophy similar to Alzheimer’s disease.”

“You mean the brain of the greatest criminal mind on Earth was turning to mush?” Laura asked. It was too much to believe. Luthor was not only dead, but he had been suffering from dementia.

“So it would seem,” Diana said. “It will, of course, take several days, possibly weeks, for the various pathology studies to be done. And there will be those who will not believe it and may still try to claim the price he put on the heads of Lane and Kent and their son.”

“Do you think we can get an expert to testify that this cerebral atrophy was making Luthor delusional as long ago as when he shot Kent?” Charlie asked.

Diana smiled. “I’m sure we can.”



The rest of the day was a daze. Bruce finally called to confirm what Diana had already told them – Luthor really was dead and the authorities in Metropolis were taking extraordinary measures to make sure the body wasn't stolen before it was cremated.

“So, what are we going to do?” Laura asked her husband as they were getting ready for bed. She still didn’t quite believe it had finally happened.

“We don’t have to do anything really,” Charlie said thoughtfully. “We don’t have to watch ourselves quite as closely. We can print and hang some older family pictures, admit we lived in Metropolis when Superman was there. Some people may have some issues with the fact that we had deep secrets, but with any luck that’ll blow over quickly.”

“Diana wanted to know what our plans were,” she told him.

“The League wants Superman to come back,” he said.

“Is Superman ready to come back?”

He shook his head. “Superman is dead. Granted, it’s not easy being dead, but I think that it’s better this way. Pax isn’t Superman, but he does his part.”

She smiled. “Then Superman can stay dead. But we can visit Metropolis, can’t we?”

“I’ll make the arrangements in the morning. How does spring break sound?”



Metropolis, the Big Apricot, City of Tomorrow.

They’d been gone for ten long years. Laura didn’t remember the city being so crowded, so busy, so smelly. She was sure it hadn’t changed that much – Metropolis had earned its name – but she’d been hoping she hadn’t changed that much.

Although the city boasted of many new buildings, the Daily Planet Building hadn’t changed. The great globe still rotated on the roof and the lobby still displayed framed copies of famous frontpages – the sinking of the Titanic, the destruction of the Hindenberg, the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Apollo landing, Kennedy’s assassination, the fall of the Berlin Wall, Superman’s first appearance, Superman saving the city and world, Superman’s death.

Near the elevators was a newer display, a polished black slab with Our Honored Dead inscribed across the top. Below the inscription were listed the names, dates of birth, hiring date, date of death, and journalistic awards of those who died in the line of duty while working for the Daily Planet. There were also inscribed photos of most of listed dead.

Laura was surprised to see how many names there were. Lois Lane and Clark Kent were listed near the bottom of the second column. It was eerie seeing their faces among the dead.

“Is there something I can help you with?” a man asked. Laura turned to see a blue uniformed security guard standing there, a concerned look on his face.

“No,” Laura answered too quickly.

“The display just kind of…” Charlie began.

The guard nodded. “It gets to a lot of people. You wouldn’t think that being a writer could be so dangerous.” He frowned at Laura as though trying to place her face.

“We were working here at the time Luthor killed Mister Kent and Ms. Lane,” Charlie said.

The guard’s expression cleared. Mystery solved. “Welcome back,” he said.

Charlie shook his head. “We’re just visiting.”

The elevator was nearly empty as it traveled to the thirtieth floor. But Laura found herself feeling positively dowdy in her conservative business suit and low pumps – at least as compared to the two expensively dressed women in the elevator with them. Lois Lane had worn Prada and Jimmy Cho. Laura Kendall wore Footprints and Dansko. Now even the thought of forcing her feet into high-fashion torture devices gave Laura foot cramps.

Laura caught Samantha studying the two women. “Mom, did you dress like that when you worked here?”

Charlie answered for her. “Yup. Your mom was one hot babe. Very high maintenance.”

“And Dad wore three piece suits,” Jay added. “Every day.”

Samantha’s eyes widened at that. Laura smiled. Samantha had never seen her father dressed more formally than chinos and a sports jacket. High school teachers didn’t usually need three piece suits.

“You worked here?” one of the women asked.

“It was a long time ago,” Laura said as the elevator doors opened onto the hallway on the thirtieth floor. She didn’t look back as she strode across the marble to the glass doors to the newsroom, her husband and children trailing behind her.

“Was I that bad?” Laura asked Charlie, her hand on the door handle.

“If you were, I didn’t notice,” Charlie said with a smile.

“The tall one was checking you out, Dad,” Jay said.

“Really? I didn’t notice that either,” Charlie said with a chuckle as he followed his family into the newsroom.

“Just remember you’re mine, Farm boy,” Laura called back. She started toward Perry White’s office. Like the city, the newsroom was familiar yet strange. The smells were the same - stale coffee, ozone, sweat and perfume. This place had been her home for nearly sixteen years. At the time she couldn’t imagine anything different. But there were so many new faces and only a few old. Lois Lane’s brother-in-law, Ron Troupe, had moved to NewsTime several years before. Polly and Gil were still there, but Ralph was gone.

“Whoa, be careful with that…” a familiar voice said. She looked back to see Charlie handing someone a sophisticated digital camera. Then she recognized the sandy haired man as his eyes widened at the sight of her and Charlie.

“Mister…” Jimmy Olsen began.

“Kendall,” Charlie said. “Charlie Kendall. And Laura, Jay, and Samantha.”

Jimmy was practically babbling. “You’re alive! I mean, you’re here! Ohmygod. Chief! Look who’s here!”

“Hello, Chief,” Charlie called out.

Perry glowered in their direction, then his expression cleared and Laura knew he was fighting down a smile. It would never do to be seen smiling in the newsroom over anything other than a great story. It might damage his crusty reputation. And Perry did so value that.

They followed his gestured instructions and went to wait in his office.

“It’s so weird being back here,” Jay commented, looking back at the newsroom.

Laura gave a sad chuckle. “I was a little older than Samantha the first time I walked into the newsroom. It was some sort of field trip, but I remember promising myself it wouldn’t be the last time I’d walk through those doors.” She smiled at the long ago memory. “Perry was an investigative reporter and he was having it out with his editor over something or other.”

“Sounds familiar,” Charlie said. “The first day I met you, you were arguing with Perry over something or other.”

“And the first time I actually met her, she tried to convince me she was nearly twenty, instead of nearly sixteen,” Perry said, walking into his office. He stopped and studied them. “Jason? I can’t believe how much you’ve grown. You’re nearly as tall as your dad here. I hear you’re a soccer player and you’re a musician.”

“And a straight A student,” Laura added proudly. “He’ll be taking community college classes next year.”

“Mom…” Jay protested. Laura ruffled his hair.

“And this young lady must be Samantha,” Perry said.

Samantha nodded, for once speechless.

“She looks like you,” Perry said, leaning against his desk.

“She takes after her mom in more ways than one,” Charlie said with a grin.

“I can imagine,” Perry said.

Laura studied the older man for a long moment. He hadn’t been a young man when their lives were torn apart and the ensuing years hadn’t been easy for him either. She knew from Bruce that Perry had ‘respectfully’ declined to retire, even though he was several years past eligibility. He’d had a bout of lung cancer and had, so far, beaten the disease. But Perry White had never been one to take it easy. Most likely he would die in this office.

“You’re lookin’ good, Perry,” Laura said aloud.

“I look like a worn out old man,” Perry corrected her. “I’ve missed you. Both of you. And my offer still stands. There’s still a place for you here if you want it.”

“We don’t have exactly Daily Planet grade resumes any more,” Charlie said.

“On the contrary, I’ve read your recent work. You’re a pretty regular contributor to the education journals,” Perry said to Charlie then turned to Laura, “and Alice has every one of Laura Kendall’s thrillers and I’m surprised some business rag hasn’t approached you to come on board.”

“I’ve had offers,” Laura admitted. “But none of them are the Daily Planet.”

“You’ll consider coming back?”

Charlie responded. “We came to visit to see if it made any sense to come back.”

“And?” Perry prompted.

Laura looked over at Charlie. They had discussed several possibilities concerning coming back to Metropolis. Where they were was a good place to raise kids, but Metropolis was where the Daily Planet was.

“With today’s communications, we don’t have to live in Metropolis to write columns, do we?” she asked.

“No, I don’t expect you do,” Perry agreed with a chuckle. “Who should I tell personnel I’m sending down?”

“The Kendalls,” Charlie said. “Lane and Kent are dead.”

“And Superman?” Perry asked.

If Charlie was surprised by the question, he didn’t show it. Perry White hadn’t gotten to be editor in chief of one of the world’s top newspapers by being unobservant.

“Superman was a name, a title, given to Kal-El of Krypton by Lois Lane,” Charlie said. “Kal-El will never wear that uniform again.”

“But?” Perry prompted.

“But,” Charlie went on, “it’s just possible he wasn't alone on Earth. It’s just possible someone will take up his mantle, eventually.”

“Chances are I won’t be around to see it,” Perry said.

Laura opened her mouth to protest but Perry put his hand up. “I’m not getting any younger, Lois. I know what shape I’m in. I can guess what shape I’ll be in, in ten years time.”

“Nonsense,” Laura protested. Yes, he was heavier than she remembered, heavier and more care-worn, but she couldn’t imagine a time when he wouldn’t be manning the helm of the Daily Planet. She couldn’t imagine him gone.

He smiled uncharacteristically and shook his head. “Get down to personnel and get your paperwork filled out so I can pay you. I figure twelve column inches from each of you for Sunday’s edition?”

Charlie reached into his inside jacket pocket and pulled out a mini-card. He handed it to Perry. “Our columns for this Sunday.”

“You were planning this, weren’t you?”

“Just following your motto, be prepared,” Charlie told him with a grin.

“Welcome back,” Perry said, shaking Charlie’s hand.

Charlie began to usher Jay and Samantha out of the office.

“Have you heard from Richard at all?” Laura asked Perry.

Perry shook his head. “He walked out right after we heard about that explosion in Minneapolis. That was, what, nine years ago? The last I heard, he got married while he was in Tokyo and he had a little boy. I guess the kid would be about five now.”

“I’m glad he found somebody,” Laura said. “I never meant to hurt him, you know.”

“I know that, Lois,” Perry said. “But I’m not sure he ever figured that out.”



“I can’t believe how generous the pay package is,” Laura commented as they headed for Centennial Park and Superman’s memorial. It hadn’t taken very long to fill out the necessary paperwork for Charles and Laura Kendall to become employees of the Daily Planet. “We could almost live on it.”

“Are you thinking we should move back?” Charlie asked.

“I don’t know. It’s certainly tempting,” Laura admitted. The strangeness was wearing off and the familiarity of the city was seeping in. It felt ‘right’.

Samantha had run ahead to the playground adjacent to the memorial and was playing on the swings. Jay was keeping a watchful eye on her. Samantha’s powers weren’t showing any signs of coming in yet, but Jay’s strength had manifested for the first time when he was only five.

Laura and Charlie stopped in front of the tomb – a small white building with Superman’s symbol inscribed on the brass doors. In front of the doors an eternal flame burned. A brass plaque gave his name as Kal-El of Krypton and listed the date of his arrival in Metropolis and the date of his death. Beneath the dates was the simple inscription ‘He was our friend.’

“That’s a good epitaph for anyone,” Charlie said quietly.

A low wrought iron fence surrounded the building and there were roses around the sides of the building. Bouquets were placed against the fence. After all this time, people were still placing placards and flowers at Superman’s tomb.

“It was a beautiful funeral,” Laura said. “He saved so many people. He was loved by so many.”

“And all it took was one mad man to bring him down,” Charlie said.

“That’s all it ever takes.”

Charlie put his arms around her from behind, resting his chin on the top of her head. “I don’t regret having to lose him,” he said softly. “I don’t regret it because it meant that I could be a father to Jason and a husband to you without you having to share with the world, at least for a little while.”

He pulled away and she knew he had heard something outside of her range of hearing.

“What is it?”

“A ship in trouble,” he said.

“Go,” she ordered.

He took off at a lope then disappeared around the back of the building.

‘Do I want to come back to this?’ Laura wondered as she sat on the bench and watched Samantha testing the playground equipment. It was hard enough raising two kids in a small town where everyone knew them, especially kids with ‘special’ skills and abilities. She knew it would be even harder in the city where so many people were looking for the fast buck. She also knew that Charlie was happy where they were but he would pack up and move the family across the country if she asked.

But that was something she had promised herself they wouldn’t do to Jay and Samantha. She wouldn’t uproot them the way her own father and mother had done to her and her sister.

“I thought I’d find you here,” Jimmy said from somewhere behind her. She looked up to find him standing beside her. “I used to spend a lot of time here by the tomb. Still do, I guess.”

“It’s been a long time,” Laura said, patting the seat beside her. Jimmy sat down.

“Sorry if I embarrassed you back there,” Jimmy said. “I mean, you guys were literally the last people on Earth I expected to see in the newsroom.” He looked over at Jay and Samantha. “I can’t believe it’s been so long. Jason…”

“Jay,” Laura corrected softly.

“… Jay’s in high school. I remember when he played robot monster with a trash can over his head. Cl… Charlie thought he might be a little ‘off’, you know.”

Laura chuckled as she remembered Jay’s games in the newsroom. One of his favorites was robot monster. Clark hadn’t been the only one to wonder about Jason White’s overactive imagination.

Over on the playground, Samantha was urging Jay to push her harder and higher.

“I missed you guys so much,” Jimmy continued. “I used to pray that I’d wake up and find it was all just a horrible nightmare and you two would be at your desks when I came in and it was all okay.”

“I’m sorry.”

Jimmy shook his head. “Don’t be. Perry told me what was going on after he came back from that conference in Gotham. I think we were both hoping it would all blow over and in a couple months, a couple years at the outside, you’d be back.”

“Instead, eight people died in one horrible night because somebody decided Lane and Kent were too dangerous to live. Another five families are dead because of idiots who wanted to claim Luthor’s bounty,” Laura said, keeping her voice low. “Eighteen more people, half of them little kids, dead because of Luthor’s insanity. If it had just been me, I would have said to hell with it and stayed. But it wasn't just me.”

“I understand,” Jimmy said. “I really do.” He pulled out his wallet and opened it to show her a photo of a blonde woman with a young child. “My wife Patricia and our little girl, Joanna. She’s three.”

“Congratulations,” Laura said. “She looks like a nice person.”

“She is,” he said. “We’ll be married five years next May.”

It was strangely humbling to realize the kid she’d taken under her wing so many years ago was not only married but had a child of his own. Metropolis had moved on without her. It had moved on without Lane or Kent or Superman. James Olsen was an award winning photojournalist. Lois Lane and Clark Kent were just memories.

“Will you be moving back to Metropolis?” Jimmy asked.

“Eventually,” Laura replied. She smiled at him, knowing she had made the right decision for her and her family. “Eventually.”

2027
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Charles Kendall asked his wife as they stopped in front of the doors of the historic Daily Planet Building.

Laura Kendall nodded. “I know it won’t be the same without Perry, but I think it’s time we finally came in out of the cold. Besides, we do have a Superman exclusive.”

Charlie chuckled. “And don’t forget Supergirl.”

Today had been the debut of the JLA’s two newest members – Ler-El, son of the original Superman who had chosen to take up both the uniform and working name of his father, and Lara Kal-El, Superman’s daughter.

The media, in fact the whole world, was agog with the news, and it was only a matter of time before face recognition protocols put the pieces together and revealed the new heroes’ civilian names. But Laura and Charlie had the first exclusive interviews with the two newcomers. The world didn’t need to know it had been over breakfast in their new Metropolis apartment.

The elevator doors opened on the floor that used to house the newsroom. Now it held the editorial and sales offices but no reporters. With all the advances in communications, nearly everyone else worked from home offices or wherever they were. Even the daily staff assignment meeting was held in cyberspace. But the Daily Planet was still considered the best of the best.

Bruce Wayne was waiting for them, all dapper in his tailored suit and custom tie. The years had been kind to him. He was nearly sixty but looked years younger, but then so did Laura and Charlie. There was something to be said for good genes and extra-terrestrial medicine.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Bruce called out. People started to come out behind cubicles to join Bruce, among them the Planet’s E-in-C, James B. Olsen. He was ginning at them. He’d come a long way from that shy kid Lois Lane had befriended so long ago.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Olsen said loudly. “I want everyone to meet our new City Editor and our new International Editor – Lois Lane and Clark Kent. Welcome back to the land of the living.”

“It’s good to be back,” Clark told everyone. “It’s not easy being dead, you know.”