Welcome to Gaia! ::

“The dream always begins the same. I’m a baby, placed in a ship by my two parents who stand over me. My mother is overwhelmed with tears while my father stands strong as the planet is falling apart around me. The weird thing is, my father’s face and clothing are all blurred, and no matter how hard I try to focus in on him, I’m stripped of the ability to see who he is. From there, they ready my ship, as my father places his hand gently on my head, giving me parting words that I know by heart to this day.”

“You will travel far, my little Kal Jor-El, but we will never leave you, even in the face of our deaths. You will make my strength your own. You will see my life through your eyes, as your life will be seen through mine. The son becomes the father. And the father, the son.”

“Afterwards a beam of a white holy light surrounds the ship as I can feel myself moving. The ship follows a narrow white path, until finally the white light dims down. I’d love to tell you the rest, but that’s where the dream ends. I wake up every single time at that exact moment. At first I never knew what it meant, but then, I started to do strange things. Things no man on this Earth can do. My ‘father’ always told me that I was just special, but as I continued to have the same dream once I hit my teenaged years, I knew there was a connection. Then again, I could just be losing my screws and my father could be right when he says I’m special. I’ll let you be the judge on if I’m man or superman.”

Ezra Field at Smallville Elementary School, The Past

The bases were loaded and it was the last inning of an already spectacular little league baseball game. The wind howled by as nine year old Kevin Masters stepped to the plate. He was a natural athlete even as a child, trying to run before he could even walk. The air was thick with the tension begging to be sliced. The black haired, blue eyed child gripped his bat tightly as he glanced over to his proud parents who were cheering him on loudly. Turning his attention back to the pitcher, Kevin prepared himself for the swing that would either win his team the game, or send them home empty handed. The pitcher launched the ball in a straightforward motion; Kevin brought the aluminum bat forward, closing his eyes and hoping for the best. After seconds of pure silence, Kevin knew something wasn’t right. He missed most likely, which was the number one thing settling in his head, but when he opened his eyes, he was proven wrong. Everyone at the field had their heads facing the sky as if they had just seen a ghost. With all the dropped jaws and pale shocked faces, Kevin could’ve sworn him hitting a home run was a good thing. What he didn’t know was that he did more than just hit a homerun. He blasted that ball straight into the atmosphere, something that wasn’t normal around Smallville parts. That day, his parents got their first look at Kevin’s powers. Instead of helping him keep those powers a secret, they abused them, making themselves wealthy off of Kevin’s talent. It became clear from that day on that Kevin was destined for great things and he would get his chance sooner than he thought.

Smallville High School, The Present

It was another peachy yet chaotic day at Smallville High. Hundreds of students lingering around the outside as the final bell had given them permission to have the time of their lives for the summer moments ago. That all stopped as the groupies and girls wishing they could touch the man of the hour flocked towards Smallville High’s most popular jock who was now a senior, Kevin Masters. Many things had changed since that day in the ball park. By now, Kevin was fully aware of all his special talents. There was his super strength, super speed, invulnerability, x-ray, heat, and microscopic vision. Along with those, he had super hearing, and a super breath that allowed him to freeze things simply by blowing on them. Of course he never told anyone about these powers, but he surely used them to his advantage while playing sports, making him a bigger star than he should’ve been. He had moved on from baseball and basketball, pursuing football instead. Kevin was the star wide receiver for the varsity team, scoring more touchdowns than anyone in Smallville history, surpassing the record of one Clark Kent. Senior year would bring about big changes, as Kevin decided to jump from wide receiver to quarterback, something most seniors had to work hard for.

Unfortunately for Kevin, his parents never revealed the truth to him about his true origins, leading him on to believe he was simply blessed with those gifts, and persuading him to use them for his own good. Well, when they meant his own good, they meant their own. Kevin’s parents had made themselves filthy rich off of Kevin, buying lots of open and non open land in Smallville. Sadly, he never noticed that he was being used by them. But let's get back to the man of the hour as people called him on the football field. He was six foot and four inches tall, weighing about 230 pounds. His hair was black, being fully buzzed, courtesy of his favorite barber. He had a body that was so delicately detailed, with chiseled muscular features stemming form his six pack abs, his pectorals, two powerful legs that could help him move faster than a speeding bullet, and his bulging biceps. The ladies loved Kevin as he was probably the most handsome guy in school. Women had fantasies and dreams about Kevin, but sadly, he belonged to one girl, or so he thought. Kevin carefully walked down the steps, those ocean blue eyes and beaming white teeth hid the true melancholy under it all. His girlfriend of the past three years has just broken to him that she had cheated on him, blaming it on the fact that she believed he cared more about his self than her. If it was one thing that Kevin wasn’t impervious to, it was love. She stripped him of his pride and his feeling that he was invincible, which tormented him inside.

“What’s got you looking like someone just stepped on your ego?” The feminine voice came from Kevin’s best friend, Sarah Bush. The two had been friends since childhood, so they were practically brother and sister by now. She was the one girl Kevin trusted with everything, but she didn’t know about his powers, the one thing he kept from her purposely because he was afraid it would cost them their friendship. Sarah was a firecracker some would say. She was a voice that stood out amongst a crowd, intelligent, stunning, and had a fiery temper to match. Kevin took notice to her golden blonde hair that ran slightly past her shoulders, the tiny freckles that barely stood out on her cream complexion. She had a fit frame, due partly to her kickboxing history, which made it even more evident that she wasn’t a pushover. But she wasn’t without flaws. She was also bipolar and found it very hard to trust people, which is why she didn’t have many friends, honestly, Kevin was one of the only friends she had. She found other girls to be too fake, ready to stab you in the back at any moment, so she strayed away from cliques, but was still popular in her own right, perhaps because of Kevin’s status. Her icy blue eyes realized the cold truth when Kevin frowned-a look she wasn’t used to.

“Victoria dumped me…”

“Wait…are you serious?”

Kevin nodded with grief, “She told me I wasn’t paying enough attention to her. She said she just stopped missing me. I mean, what the hell do you say to that? And that’s exactly what happened. I didn’t say a word. For someone who writes and reads so much, you would think there would be something, anything I could say, and instead, it was just total silence as I watched her walk away.”

Sarah wrapped her arm around his waist as he wrapped his around her neck. “Well, I for one think you’re better off anyway. I hate to break it to ya Kevin, but she wasn’t with her for your brains, if ya know what I mean? That relationship was purely built on physical attraction and popularity that it wasn’t even funny. You two were like Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston.”

“Yeah, but Brad went on to nab Angelina Jolie.” Kevin replied.

“Yeah and she’s going on to nab the whole football team!” Kevin stopped, sighing as he took the low blow. “Ooooo…too soon?”

“Yeah…”

“Well cheer up, cause the girl you’ve been drooling over since we were kids is coming our way.”

If there was one thing that could turn this day from horrible to blissful, that would be Kevin and Sarah’s other childhood friend, and his secret crush, Loren Lianos. Even with his ex, he thought that Loren was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, like an angel walking this earth. She had a sea of black hair that flowed past her shoulders. Her eyes were a bright green, combined with a smile, and glossy pink lips that could take your breath away. Her frame was curvaceous, shaped like a glass bottle, thanks much in part to her Latina background. Loren’s soft peach skin, those busty, but not ridiculously large supple breasts, and hips that hypnotized Kevin as they swayed side to side were all just whipping on the cake, the cherry of course was her buttocks. Kevin thanked her mother everyday for blessing her with what was a perfectly round mound of behind. As much as Kevin longed to be with her, it wasn’t meant to be, at least in his mind. She was so wholesome, the opposite of the girls he went after. She walked over to them, giving him that same innocent smile that he always enjoyed seeing. “You know, we’re free for summer, so why are you looking so gloomy?” She wondered.

“Hey Loren. Alright, so I’m gonna jet, I gotta get my things together since you know, I am leaving for Gotham tonight.”

“Oh yeah! That’s right. Hey look, I’ll come by your house before you leave to say goodbye. And you better not leave without it girl!” Sarah and Kevin hugged before she was on her way. He looked back at Loren who was still smiling as she waved to Sarah.

“I guess I can’t hide anything from you or Sarah.” Kevin hesitated to continue, but thought to himself that he needed to open up to someone other than his partner in crime. “It’s kind of hard to be happy when you’ve just learned that your girlfriend of three years cheated on you.” Loren could see how it pained Kevin to even talk about it, something she too wasn’t use to, since he was always so headstrong.

“I’m sorry to hear that, but then again, and this is just my opinion, she never really seemed like she was there. She appeared like someone who was just with you because of your popularity.” Lately it felt like everyone was only with Kevin because of his popularity.

“Haha, Sarah said the same thing. I just don’t understand. I mean, I’m Kevin Masters. What does that guy have on me?” He snapped.

“Maybe he isn’t so full of himself?” She responded jokingly, only receiving a glare from Kevin. “I was only joking Kevin.”

“Nah, don’t worry about it. You’re probably right. There are times when I feel like I’m on top of the world, like I’m untouchable. I wonder why I have to abide by the standards that everyone else sometimes, but then I have myself some humble pie, talk to you, and come back down to earth.”

“Of course, I seem to have that effect on people. You’re better off without her you know.”

The flirting was always there between Loren and Kevin, but it was Kevin who always took a step back. “How do you know that?” He asked.

“Just a hunch. There are plenty more fish in the sea, some just waiting to be caught.” Loren stopped, looking up at Kevin with those dreamy eyes. He wanted to believe she was throwing herself out there, but the notion was quickly dismissed.

“Hey, do you need a ride? I don’t mind really.” Loren nodded, the two entering Kevin’s red pickup truck. The ride back home was full of lively conversation, giving Kevin the idea that he could use this chance to learn about Loren’s past relationship. “So, what happened with you and that one guy you were dating freshman year?”

“Derrick? That was something I jumped into without really thinking. A part of me was waiting for someone to come along, but they seemed like they wanted to just stay friends, so he was there to comfort me. I was young, so I thought he was the right guy.” After Loren explained, it all seemed so clear to Kevin. He felt like a fool for being so blind, but his stubbornness wouldn’t allow himself to get close to her.

“You’re gonna think this is funny, but the only reason why I got with Victoria, was because you were with Derrick. To be completely honest, I’ve had a crush on you since we were little. I was so caught up in myself and sports that I thought a girl like you would never go for a hotshot like me.” An uncomfortable silence washed over, Kevin coming to a stop in Lana’s driveway. “…Look, just forget I ever said that and let’s just be-” He was cut off by the sensation of Loren’s lips pressing up against his own. He was too captured in the moment to stop or think about what was exactly going on. They locked lips playfully one last time before Loren exited the truck, slowly closing his door.

“I’ll see you around, right?”

“Uh..yeah…I mean no. Or sorta. I’m staying in Metropolis for the summer in my own apartment so I can get used to living on my own before I go off for college after senior year, but you can definitely visit me if you want.” He suggested, stuttering from the sheer surprise of what just happened.

“Okay, I just might do that. Call me, when you get a chance.” She walked away, concealing her giddy smile until she was sure Kevin couldn’t see her. Kevin glowed with excitement, shouting loud and proud as he drove back to his farm. Little did he know that his breakup and his kiss with Loren wouldn’t be the only surprise of the day. This would be the day that would change Kevin’s life forever.

Hours Later…

“You will travel far, my little Kal Jor-El, but we will never leave you-even in the face of our deaths. You will make my strength your own. You will see my life through your eyes, as your life will be seen through mine. The son becomes the father. And the father, the son.” The words spoken from the projected hologram made goosebumps spread throughout the young man’s body. Every hair on his arm stood fully erect as he looked straight into the eyes of the man who claimed to be his father. The resemblance was uncanny, as he had every feature of this god like man. From the jet black hair, to his strong chin, and even his statue like figure. Kevin sat in a leaky, darkness consumed basement, stuck in a trance that the spaceship he had found while cleaning out the cellar pulled him in. It was the same message he had always heard in his dreams, but for the first time ever, he caught a glimpse of what this man looked like. This had to be some kind of sick prank played on him by his parents.

After years of believing he was normal, a human among other humans, on this day, the idea of him being an alien had never crossed his mind. He stormed the barn, demanding answers. It was too late to lie anymore, his parents knew that Kevin wouldn’t be fooled so easily like he was as a child. They revealed to him that after years of presents, family get-togethers, Merry Christmases, and those cold winter nights of bedtime stories, that Kevin wasn’t their child. That he wasn’t even a human. They brought Kevin back to the basement, and into the cellar room where he was never allowed to go since he was a child. They directed him back to the ship, the very ship that he landed on Earth in. Kevin still didn’t want to believe it at first, he thought it was simply a hoax. He even laughed at his parents, telling them, “haha, you got me.” But their stern expressions hadn’t changed. He watched as his mother shed a tear, only to quickly wipe it away. It was then that the truth hit him, and it hit him hard.

His parents weren’t lying. His father told him to watch the video on the ship, as it was instructed for him to do so when the time was right. He was told he would soon know all the answers to his questions. His father didn’t want him to learn of his origins simply because he earned his fortune off of Kevin. He went from son, to their circus animal. “You listen here Kevin, forget about all this. Nothing has changed. You’re still special, you still can be a superstar.” His father explained.

“Be a superstar? Is that what I am to you? Some show attraction? Is this why you always told me it was fine to use my powers in sports? Why did you lie to me? You should’ve told me the truth. GET OUT! I want to be alone. NOW!” His parents immediately ran off, knowing full well what Kevin could do. He glanced back over to the small space ship. When he originally touched the glowing green button that was flashing inside the ship, he didn’t know what to expect. A shimmering light beamed in and out to life, projecting a hologram of his true father. He was wearing what seemed to be a costume of some sort, with a red and yellow “S” shield on his chest. Kevin stood in awe, as he remembered the very “S” shield on the monument in Metropolis that was bared by a man everyone knew as Superman. After taking in all this fresh information, Kevin swallowed it down hard, looking back up at the hologram. “Surprised, huh?” The hologram asked, as if he knew Kevin was having trouble knowing truly who he actually was.

“Not everyone can say their father is Superman.” Superman. The S word. Kevin shook his head in disbelief, thinking this was all but a mere dream. There was no way in the world that the greatest superhero to live was his father. “Listen carefully, my little Kal Jor-El. Well, by now, you aren’t so little. You are not from this time period. You come from the future. Now, I know that is a lot to take in, but sadly, that isn’t the bulk of it my son, so please, bear with me. I came from a planet called Krypton. It was originally destroyed thousands of years ago. I was the only one left. I traveled to Earth, just as you did. I grew up thinking I was normal, when truly I wasn’t. My parents revealed to me, just as yours did to you, that I wasn’t human. That I was from a different planet, making me an alien all along. I know how you feel son.”

“You feel anger, betrayal, but you must learn to rid yourself of these feelings. You’re parents kept this secret to protect you from harm, I hope. If people knew you were Kryptonian, or the son of Superman, they would put you on a pedestal, and you would immediately be carried into a life that I didn’t want you to live…yet. You see my son, in the future, a terrible threat known as Doomsday, who I thought was dead, caused the destruction of Planet Earth. It was a surprise attack, Earth’s forces weren’t even prepared for it. I wasn’t as strong as I use to be, and the new heroes of Earth were no match for him. There was only one way to stop him, so me and your mother decided the only choice to save Earth was to send you into the past. There wasn’t enough power in the ship to go back to the past to the time where the Justice League thought we destroyed Doomsday. You don’t know who he is, but you will soon find out about him. The Justice League thought we had stopped Doomsday, but we were dead wrong.

My son, you are humanities last hope. I hate to put all the pressure on you, but in a way, you are the next Superman. I can only hope you shape into the man that I wanted to see you turn into. There is a crystal in the ship son. Take it and it will lead you to a place of solitude, a place where all of your questions, will be answered. Live as one of them, Kal, to discover where your strength and your power are needed. Always hold in your heart the pride of your special heritage. They can be a great people, Kal, they wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way. For this reason above all, their capacity for good, I have sent them you... my only son.” As the hologram finished the last sentence, the projection slowly faded out, the face of his father, disappearing into the air.

Kevin stood tall, shouting, “What am I suppose to do, HUH? Am I suppose to throw on some tights and fly around saving the world now because that’s what I’m destined to do? I don’t think so. I control my destiny. And it’s not being a superhero, going around saving people. People don’t need to be saved, that’s what the cops are for. I don’t need this crap.” Kevin storms off, passing his frightened parents. “And I thought you were my parents. What a piece of bull.” And with those cold words, Kevin disappeared faster than a second, using his super speed to get away from everything. His parents took in his harsh words, feeling nothing but a numb feeling in their hearts. Kevin didn’t stop running, he ran for what seemed to be a few days, but were actually mere seconds. That day, Kevin had covered the world ten times until he stopped back in Metropolis.

He looked up to a distant Daily Planet, levitating slowly from the ground and hovering over the night lights of Metropolis, landing on the giant gold sphere of the Daily Planet. It was a great place to stare at the city lights of Metropolis. When Kevin first discovered his flying ability, he would always come up here, and watch the city, then stare up into the stars, always wondering why he had these powers. Maybe in the back of Kevin’s mind, he knew he was an alien all along, but just didn’t want to figure it out. He looked over to the right, where he saw the park in which the Superman monument stood. He flew down there, landing gently on the ground before the statue. It was a nice piece of work, with the great Superman standing proudly, hands on his hips, looking off into the sky with a great big smile on his face.

The granite imitation was as close as Kevin would ever get to his “true” father. He looked up at it, thousands of emotions swelling up deep inside. “WHY!? Why did I have to be the one sent here dammit! How do you think it makes me feel? That I am the guy who has to step into your shoes and live up to your name? I didn’t ask for any of this! I just want to live a normal life. That’s all. But you’ve taken that away from me. Screw being Superman, AND SCREW YOU!” Letting out the last of his anger, Kevin blasted off into the sky, creating a small sonic boom that crushed most of the trees in the area. Kevin didn’t look back, he just kept flying off into the sky, and before he knew it he had passed through the atmosphere and was into the dark abyss known as outer space.

2 Days Later…

Kevin had spent almost two days in outerspace, searching for the answers to the questions he already knew, but was still trying to forget. During this trip, he could hear everything from Earth, literally. It was on the second day that they voices became more disturbing. Usually he heard screams, but this time, it was coming from everywhere, and then, he heard the screams of Loren and Sarah. That was all it took for Kevin to turn back and rocket back to Earth. When he returned, he could see and hear thousands of soldiers marching in unison throughout Metropolis. The terror of civilian screams reign supreme throughout the area. Kevin flew back home, to an empty, desolate house. No one was there, his parents were gone. Kevin quickly turned on the TV and clicked to the news channel, where they were apparently broadcasting the chaos in all it’s glory. A somewhat scrawny man, maybe no older than 21 was standing behind the pandemonium of burning buildings, charred cars, screaming civilians and even rioting. He wasn’t your model reporter either, he was more of the average Joe. He ducked and jogged so as to keep up with all the carnage. He didn’t hide his fear well, as it was blatantly written all over his face. To Kevin, he seemed like a scared kid, pondering why all this was going on.

“My name is Marvin Prescot, your field reporter currently for the Daily Planet News. As you can see, there is just utter terror running rampant all across Metropolis and numerous other places around the globe. If you’re just tuning in, someone, whose identity has yet to be confirmed by police has siege Luther Corp. and has the CEO and Lex Luthor himself under hostage. He has deployed an army of soldiers that are using Luther Corp’s newest nanotechnology suits as you see behind me. Police have yet to find out why this is happening, but the culprit has apparently threatened to take control of the countries defense system and deploy nuclear weapons all over the world. There have been on attempts by any super heroes to stop this and we have to wonder if anyone will stand up. Look, please, this is off the record and probably will get me fired, but someone, anyone out there that can make a difference that could possibly save lives, reach down into your heart and do something. We need a hero…we need a savior, we need something to believe in aga-ksssssssssshhh….” The broadcast quickly switched to two men inside an elegant office. Kevin took note to the burly man dressed in a dirty brown jacket, towering over the frightened anchorman. In fact, the man's upper body couldn't even be seen on TV because of his large build. He held a different stuttering anchorman firmly in place with both his hands placed directly on his shoulders. Another man, carrying himself with a certain arrogant swagger, yet demanding your attention and respect walked onto the screen, his face wrapped heavily in black belts, his two emerald green eyes and mouth being the only things not hidden by the belts.

He took the odd liberty of wearing a suave all black business suit and even a black tie. He placed his sheathed katana on the desk, folding his arms prior to snapping his fingers. The anchorman, getting the signal by the giant via pain coursing through his shoulders from the man tightening his grip, began to tremble as he spoke. "People of the world this is a special announcement by brought to you by the great Triple L. As you can see, I’ve already begun to cause a stir in your oh so save haven. But thankfully I’m a negotiator and a business man, so I’ll give someone out there a chance to do what that other fool Prescot said, and that’s save everyone. I’m searching for an item known as The Cube. It’s the key to something far greater than any of you worthless ants and I must have it. I know someone on this filthy planet knows the location of it or has The Cube already in their possession. If so, then I oblige that you bring it to me immediately, or things are just going to get uglier from here. You have 24 hours. If The Cube is not in my hands by the time the timer in the lower right corner of your screen has run out, then I will drop the nuclear weapons under my command all over the world, sparing absolutely no one. Man, woman, and child will have no where to run, and nowhere to hide.” The broadcast picked up some static, but soon came back, the anchorman burying his head into his chest as the tears rolled down his cheek from the thoughts of his family. At that point in time, Kevin realized that Loren was in trouble. The anger swelled up deep inside him, only brooding for a few seconds before Kevin slammed his fist into the table, breaking it in half like a pretzel. The anchorman was forced to look back into the camera, asking the question, “Where is our Superman when we need him?”

"Sounds rough, eh?" Kevin snapped his head back to see a familiar face, that of one Terry McGinnis, the new CEO of Wayne Enterprises. Kevin was bewildered at the fact that one of the worlds most powerful men was standing a few feet away from him.

"How do you know where I live?" Kevin asked.

"I make it my business to know. You're probably wondering why the hell I'm in your house, talking to you. Well, we could sit here and chat about it, or I could take you to the place you need to go. Cause if I'm right, and I usually am, you're looking for this, aren't you?" Terry held out a thick glowing crystal, one that instantly drew Kevin's attention. "Shall we?" Kevin followed Terry outside, to his surprise the Bat Mobile was hovering over his driveway.

"You've got to be kidding me. Just where are we going?" Terry looked back, his famous smirk he received from his father showing off.

"The place your dad went for answers. The Fortress of Solitude..."