> "Homelander… what is this place?"
Clark Kent's voice trembled between awe and curiosity as he took in the crystalline vastness around him.
Every wall shimmered with alien light, refracting through pillars of frozen brilliance.
Alex smiled faintly.
> "The Fortress of Solitude," he said simply.
"And if I'm right—it was left here by your father."
That name hit Clark like thunder.
> "My… father?" he echoed, eyes widening. "You mean—Jor-El?"
> "Exactly," Alex replied, his gaze sweeping across the chamber until it stopped at a raised platform ahead.
"Over there. Try it."
Following Alex's line of sight, Clark saw what looked like a console, and on its surface—a familiar slot.
His key.
The same key that had unlocked the cube earlier now sat perfectly atop the console's groove, waiting to be pressed in.
Heart pounding, Clark stepped forward.
He hesitated only a moment—then pushed it all the way down.
Hum—!
A surge of light swept through the fortress,
and before them, a holographic figure slowly took form.
A tall, middle-aged man with a regal bearing and eyes full of quiet strength.
His presence carried both authority and gentleness—a warmth that stirred something deep in Clark's chest.
> "Kal-El," the man said softly.
"To think I would one day see you grown… I only wish Lara were here to witness it."
Clark stared, speechless.
Every instinct screamed at him that this was real.
> "You're… Jor-El?" he asked, voice trembling.
The hologram gave a small, almost amused smile.
> "This is your first time activating me, and yet you already know who I am.
I must admit—that surprises me, my son."
He looked genuinely curious.
After all, he hadn't even introduced himself.
So how had Kal-El known?
> "So… you really are my father?"
But before Clark could say more, Jor-El turned his gaze elsewhere—
his expression shifting slightly.
> "Kal, not now," he said firmly. "I sense someone here who should not exist."
His eyes fell on Alex.
Clark quickly stepped forward, raising a hand.
> "Wait—he's not an intruder. He's the one who found this place.
He brought me here."
> "Then speak with him properly," Jor-El said.
"This fortress belongs to you, Kal-El. Treat it as such."
> "That's… what I'm trying to figure out," Clark muttered, rubbing his temples.
Truth be told, his head was spinning.
Before they opened the fortress, he and Alex had made a clear deal—
the artifact belonged to Alex.
Clark had only agreed to help unlock it.
But now?
Now that he knew this was his father's creation—
that it was literally his home—
how could he possibly hand it over?
Yet Alex wasn't the kind of man one could simply say "no" to.
Clark turned to face him.
> "Homelander," he said seriously, "what do I have to give you for this fortress?"
Alex's smile returned—sharp, knowing.
He'd already made up his mind about this long before.
> "Just remember this, Clark," he said evenly.
"You owe me one."
And with that, he vanished—
a single sonic boom echoing through the fortress as he disappeared into the sky.
It was a fair trade.
Returning something that was already Superman's in exchange for Superman's personal favor—
Alex counted that as a win.
Considering how terrifyingly powerful Clark would one day become,
it was, in his eyes, an investment.
---
Inside the fortress, Jor-El's projection turned to his son.
> "Clark… who was that?"
He had seen the blur of motion, the speed, the power—
and even for him, it was astonishing.
By his records, Kal-El should have been the only Kryptonian sent to Earth.
So how could there be another superhuman here?
> "I'm not entirely sure," Clark admitted. "But… he claimed he was Kryptonian."
> "No," Jor-El said immediately, his voice firm. "He is not.
He has no Kryptonian blood."
That made Clark pause.
> "So that means… I really am Kryptonian?"
> "Yes, Kal," Jor-El replied gently. "You are the last son of Krypton.
And I… am your father—or rather, the consciousness he left behind.
The real me died long ago."
Clark swallowed hard.
> "Then… you sent me to Earth because Krypton was destroyed?"
He repeated everything Alex had told him,
each word making Jor-El's holographic brows furrow deeper.
> "How do you know all this?" Jor-El asked, astonished.
"This is information only I could have given you…"
Clark blinked, equally confused.
> "It was Homelander. He told me everything.
So it's true, isn't it? All of it?"
> "That man?" Jor-El's expression darkened in disbelief.
"But that's impossible. He's not one of us."
---
And so, father and son sat within the gleaming fortress,
talking for hours.
Clark asked every question he had ever carried in silence—
and Jor-El answered them all.
For the first time in his life, Clark Kent finally understood who he was,
where he came from,
and what his destiny might be.
But when the conversation returned to Alex—
Even Jor-El could only frown in confusion.
A being with Kryptonian powers,
but no Kryptonian DNA?
That defied every law of Krypton's science.
If not for the fortress's scanners,
Jor-El would have sworn that man was Kryptonian himself.
> "Who is he… really?" Jor-El murmured, his tone a mixture of awe and unease.
"A being who wields our power… without our blood?"
Father and son exchanged a glance—
each realizing the same thing.
Homelander was a mystery even Krypton couldn't explain.
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