Daniel gasped as he stepped into the now famous Kewatche Caves, his eyes widening as he took in the pictographs, and strange hieroglyphs, of a time gone past. His heart raced as his guide, a large, twenty-something named Clark Kent, who discovered the hidden chamber through an act of intensely dumb luck, told him the story of Naaman and Seegeeth.
His heart raced in fear, as he told the story of a man who would come to earth with the strength of ten men, light fire with his eyes, and have a war with a friend turned enemy.
"Mr. Kent, do you have the name of the professor that told you the legend of Naaman and Segeeth?" the man asked, slightly anxious. The teen, he noticed, suddenly looked uncomfortable.
"Professor Willowbrook," Mr. Kent stated, "doesn't like the military, and since LuthorCorp acquired the rights to study the land and caves, he wouldn't be able to get in and explain since he and Lionel Luthor don't like each other."
"Are you talking about the Joseph Willowbrook? The curator of one of the largest American Indian museums in America? The professor of Archeology at the Kansas State University?" Daniel asked, for clarification.
Clark nodded. Daniel gasped. "He's one of the largest recluse in the nation, only less so than Virgil Swann before his unfortunate death a few years ago! I tried to meet Professor Willowbrook on several occassions to get his opinion on a number of heiroglyphics. How did you meet him?"
Clark, he decided, looked very uncomfortable. Daniel wondered if something was wrong, when Clark said, "his granddaughter and I dated for a few days, before she died. She was attacked by a wolf, and...".
Daniel nodded, "sorry about that, Mr. Kent. I didn't mean to drudge up painful memories. She must have been special, and I'm sorry that you had to be reminded of a particularly rough time. Still, I'd be very interested in meeting him."
"It's been a couple of years since I saw him, we decided that it would be best no one knew of our connection, Doctor Jackson. I'm not sure I could get you in to see him. I'll ask him, of course, if that's what you want."
Daniel laughed, and said, "alright, Mr. Kent. If it wouldn't be too much trouble, I'd like to be alone, I can more properly study the caves in a private setting. Can you find my colleagues and tell them I'll be back later?"
Clark nodded. "Will you remember the way to town, or should I come back for you?"
The man thought for a moment and said, "I can find my way, Mr. Kent. Thank you."
Clark nodded, his feet moving him away from the caves in a burst of speed unlike anything seen on earth previously.
When he reached town a few minutes later, Clark looked around the makeshift base. The aftermath of Dark Thursday had seriously damaged the small town, and the military had sent aid to help in the repairs. Since Smallville was also the center of all the so-called excitement of Dark Thursday, it only made since that they'd check for any remaining relics.
Clark was only happy that no one had made the connection between the caves and the former heart of the Brain Interactive Construct, or it could have easily led them to him.
As he walked toward his blue truck, in the parking lot outside of The Talon, Clark placed his hands in his pockets. He bowed his head, passing the gray haired man, the blond woman and the large, black male that sent his nerves on edge for some reason. They were chasing a large, snake-like creature that he was sure wasn't from anywhere around Kansas.
Suddenly, the snake looked up at him, and Clark frowned as he saw it's eyes glow a sharp yellow. It hissed suddenly, and the gray haired man, the blond woman and the large man all stared at him in confusion for a moment.
Out of nowhere, the snake lunged at him, and Clark cursed as he heard a low, cursed voice say, "Kryptonian!"
As the snake collided with his impenetrable chest, Clark watched as the snake collapsed in on itself, and fell to the ground, a lump of gray matter.
"Are you alright, son?" the gray haired man asked him. Clark looked up, his eyes widening in alarm. In an instant, Clark heard a sharp screech, higher than that humans could hear, and covered his ears. The snake-thing was making that awful noise.
Clark bent down, flicking the thing in the side of the head, and sighed as it stopped screeching. Then, he looked up, his eyes cursing the awkward position the almost alien looking snake put him in.
Nodding his head to the unanswered question, Clark waited for the slight movement of guns he was sure were coming. Sure enough, the rustling of clothing and grunting of several armed men put him at attention.
"Glad you're alright then. Now, care to tell me just how in the hell you stopped that thing?"
Just great, he thought, if it isn't one thing, it's another.
End