By Cindy K. Green

THREE MONTHS LATER

At the Torch, someone is watching a video recording of Chloe (Allison Mack) that she made for Clark in the case of her death. She asks him to find out who did this to her. But it isn’t Clark watching the video; it is an unknown young woman (Erica Durance) with long brownish red hair who sits at a desk watching the computer screen with deep concern on her face.

That night in her SUV, the same young woman is driving in order to find the Kent farm; but she is lost. She is on her cell phone trying to get directions out to the farm. She appears annoyed and impatient with the operator. A storm is going on, lightning flashes and she looses her phone connection. Lightning strikes again, this time directly in front of her SUV which forces her off the road and into a corn field. When she finally stops, she sees in the sky above her three bolts of lightning, which merge into one, striking ahead of her in the corn field. The light from the strike turns into a great ball of energy moving close on her vehicle.  When the light dissolves, small fires are still burning around a circle of flattened corn stalks to reveal someone lying in the field. The young woman cautiously looks out over the dashboard. She gets out of the car realizing someone is lying amongst the battered field. The injured person gets up with his back to her, and she asks if he is ok. It’s Clark (Tom Welling), standing stark naked. She asks his name. He doesn’t know. He responds coldly and mechanically. He tells her he is fine. She thinks he needs to get to a hospital because he has been hit by lightning. He then faces her revealing himself and she reminds herself to look at his face. She then goes for a blanket in her car. Then he asks who she is. She tells him, “I’m Lois, Lois Lane.”

Darkness. Slowly light emerges from a small hole. A face. The face of a middle-aged Arab man. Then outside the hole, the man is seen inside an ancient Egyptian tomb. He calls to the other men working there to come over to the hole. Excitedly they follow. Working together they open the hole wider and pull out a statue of the god Ra. They begin to chant eagerly. Then from the entrance of the tomb jogging toward them comes Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum) dressed all in white and sweating. The men offer the statue to Lex kneeling to him as if in homage. Lex is pleased. He looks over the statue and turns it over to reveal Kryptonian symbols. He smiles.

Lois arrives at Smallville Medical Center with Clark wrapped in her red blanket. She takes him to the front desk and tries to leave, but the hospital won’t let her. She has to stay with him until he can be identified. Lois isn’t pleased but she stays. Then Clark’s blanket falls off revealing his chiseled body. An elderly female patient sees him and gasps appreciatively. Lois tells the orderly they might want to get him some clothes.

Lana (Kristin Kreuk) appears on a street in Paris with the Eiffel Tower nearby. She is wearing black not her usual pastel. She has a camera and is taking scenic photographs. In the background, posted on a bulletin is an enlarged copy of Forbes magazine with Lex Luthor’s face on the cover. He is dubbed a Savior.  As she continues down the street, some French boys whistle at her and she turns and smiles at them causing her to bump into someone in front of her. He is a young American. He asks her opinion for a gift for his girlfriend. He pulls out a bike helmet from his bag. “It doesn't really scream romance does it?” he says. Then he explains that they met on this same corner two months ago. He ran into her with his Vespa and she thought he was trying to steal her purse and she kicked him off his bike hurting an old football injury sending him to the hospital where she stayed with him for five hours. “Well, it sounds like love at first crash,” replies Lana. He then explains that the helmet is for a trip to Nice. Lana is impressed and says that “if a guy did something that romantic for me, I think I'd have to kiss him.” Then she kisses him and tells him, Jason (Jensen Ackles), that she would love to go. And he tells her happy anniversary.

Back at the hospital, Martha Kent (Annette O’Toole) sits with comatose Jonathan (John Schneider) reading him his favorite book, Huckleberry Finn. The doctor enters asking if Martha has decided to pull the plug on him after three months. Martha adamantly refuses. The doctor reminds her that Jonathan is brain dead and their insurance has capped out. Martha rejects the idea once again. “I will not give up on him.”

In another room of the hospital, Lois sits with Clark who is now attired in hospital scrubs. Clark is set on leaving. Lois leads him back to the examination table. She tries to explain that she came to Smallville to find out what happened to her cousin, Chloe Sullivan. Clark, of course, has no idea who she means. Lois continues to talk, ranting about her attempt to stop smoking and her new Nicorette gum addiction. Clark gets up to leave. Lois tries to bar his way through the doorway and he easily picks her up off the ground by her shoulders and sets her to the side. He then proceeds out the door. Lois looks surprised and a tad impressed at this bit of strength. As Lois follows Clark out of the room, Martha is down the hall from them getting coffee and notices Clark. She intercepts them and hugs Clark realizing it is indeed her son. Then she sees that he has lost his memory. Lois informs Martha of how she found Clark. Martha graciously thanks Lois who gratefully relinquishes her charge. Clark tells Martha in an emotionless tone that he is waiting for the sign. Martha knows she needs to get Clark out of the hospital. She works with Clark telling him she can help him find the sign. They leave together. Lois tells the orderly that she passed “amnesia boy off to his mother.” The orderly tells her that it is Martha Kent. Lois tries to overtaken them in the elevator but misses it.

Back in the Egyptian desert, Lex is traveling by car to an airport. He is apparently not doing well possibly from the heat. He pays off his Arab associates so that no one will know that he has been there. Lex is met inside the plane by a female doctor, Dr. Vaughn, who is on his case for being late. Apparently, he has been affected by the poison he received at the end of “Covenant”. They walk to the back of the plane where there is a reclining table with IV bags of blood set up around it. She reminds him on how the poisoning he received would have killed 99.9% of people and he has to have his blood purified every 72 hours or his internal organs will shut down. Lex lies down on the table. The IV is inserted and blood pours through the tubes. “You're living on borrowed time, Lex. Stop trying to borrow more,” she says.

At the Kent Farm, Martha takes Clark to the barn loft in order to help him regain his memory. Clark is dressed in a black shirt instead of his typical plaid. Clark asks, “What is this place?” Martha replies, “Well, your dad calls it your fortress of solitude.” Martha shows him some pictures. He recognizes the picture of Jonathan. Clark refuses to believe that he is his father and says, “Either way, he’s dead.” He drops the picture causing the glass to crash and brake on impact with the ground as he walks off.

Back on the LuthorCorp jet, Lex, still on the table, is holding the statue he had just procured. They experience turbulence and the statue falls from his grasp. The statue breaks upon hitting the ground. Inside is a clear crystal stone with a Kryptonian symbol on the front. The doctor picks it up and hands it back to him. The stone begins to glow and emit a ringing sound.

Clark walks out of the barn with Martha following. He suddenly hears a ringing sound in his head bringing him to his knees in pain. Then the ringing abruptly stops, and he knows who he is. He looks up at the sky dramatically. Looking at Martha he says, “I am Kal-El of Krypton. It is now time to fulfill my destiny.” Martha refuses to accept this. She tries to get through to him shouting, “I want my son back! Give me my son back!” as she pounds on his chest with her fists. Clark’s response is, “Clark Kent is dead.” Then he pushes Martha out of the way as we see in slow motion her falling and Clark bending his knees almost into a squat and then taking off from the ground like a rocket. Time returns to normal speed and Martha is seen on the ground marveling at Clark flying up into the blue sky full of puffy white clouds. Clark zooms across the sky above the clouds until he reaches outer space. Then he heads back towards earth with great purpose in his eyes.

Back in Paris, we see the outside of a large, old church on a beautiful sunny day with the sound of church music in the background. Inside, Lana walks through the darkened halls until she is accosted by her new boyfriend, Jason Teague. He pushes her up against a wall and begins kissing her. She ends up stopping him saying they are in a church and she has an art history project to do. He introduces her to her new project - Countess Margaret Isabelle Theroux. On the tomb, a woman is depicted with a sword in one hand a shield in the other. And on the shield is a Kryptonian symbol. He leaves her to work on her rubbing as he goes to prepare for her birthday celebration the next day. Lana gets out her charcoal and paper. She covers the tomb with the paper and begins the rubbing. She uncovers the face and continues with the shield and symbol. The symbol captivates her, and she reaches to touch it. Just before she does, the symbol lights up and as Lana touches it the symbol bursts with a bright blinding light causing her to fling her head back. The energy from the light is very powerful as she struggles to look down again and then she is forced to thrust back her head again.

Cut back to Clark flying above the clouds again.

Back on the farm, Martha is on the phone trying to reach someone regarding Clark. She hangs up and Lois is standing in the open doorway. She’s there to see Clark. Martha dissuades her saying he is sleeping. So, Lois makes herself at home getting a cup of coffee. Lois opens up to Martha telling her she thinks Clark may know something about her cousin Chloe’s death. Martha is gracious with her about her loss. Lois questions Martha about Chloe and Clark’s relationship. Lois tells her that she would never fall for the farm boy type. “Give me a nerd with glasses any day of the week.” Then she returns to her reason for being there. She tells Martha that the explosion that killed Chloe has been deemed an accident and Lionel Luthor will go free without Chloe’s testimony. She feels that Chloe’s death will have been in vain if Lionel gets away with this. Martha promises to have Clark call. Before leaving, Lois mentions that she heard Martha had worked for Lionel in the past. She needs help getting in to see him. Martha kindly warns her to stay away.

Lex is sitting up on the table in his jet no longer hooked into the IV. He is holding the crystal examining it. The pilots up front are getting something on the radar moving rapidly. One of them questions, “Bird? Plane?” Then we see it is Clark moving toward them. He moves through the air easily and gracefully up to the door, ripping it off its hinges knocking everyone inside off their feet. Clarks gets inside the plane and puts his hand out calling the stone to him. Lex dropped the stone when he fell off the table. He sees it rise off the ground and fly into the air through the wall into the next compartment. Clark catches the stone and super-speeds back out of the plane just as Lex is able to get up and look through the gapping hole in the wall made by the stone.

Martha is now in the barn loft sweeping up the broken glass from the frame Clark broke of Jonathan. She is startled by someone behind her. It is Bridgette Crosby (Margot Kidder) from Dr. Swann’s foundation. She refers to Clark as Kal-El which upsets Martha because someone besides Dr. Swann knows Clark’s secret. Bridgette consoles her saying that Clark’s secret is safe within the confines of the foundation. When asked where Clark is Martha says she doesn’t know because he flew away. Bridgette surmises that Clark has embraced his Kryptonian destiny. When Martha asks what that destiny is Bridgette isn’t sure but she tells her that the symbol burned into their field three months ago was the symbol for Crusade. Bridgette has an answer for Martha’s bewilderment as to what to do to save Clark. “Martha, the only challenge to a father's will... is a mother's love.” She then holds up a metallic box which held inside it black kryptonite.

U.S. Penitentiary. As Lex enters the visiting area of his father’s cell, Lionel (John Glover) seeing him stops exercising and gets a magazine which he holds up to him. It is the Forbes magazine with Lex on the cover. “You know, they, uh, they dubbed Mussolini a savior. And look what happened to him.” Lionel hints that he knows that Lex has been traveling the world seeking something. Lex then accuses him of breaking into his jet at 20,000 feet. Lionel says he doesn’t know what he’s taking about. Lex refreshes his memory, “Three relics hidden around the world by scientifically advanced ancient cultures. Legend has it that when united, they point the way to a treasury of knowledge that puts the Library of Alexandria to shame.” Lionel laughs it off calling it a fairytale in which Lex replies that he, Lionel, funded expeditions for that same fairytale. Lex wants to know why his father is interested in those stones. He supposes he is looking for a cure for his terminal disease. Lionel again laughs him off and tells him he is too busy for this. “I'm about to stand trial for murder. And when I'm cleared, those responsible for putting me here will certainly feel my wrath.” Lex then accuses him of doing so to Chloe Sullivan and of poisoning him. He leaves saying, “You shouldn't wound what you can't kill, Dad.”

The Kawatche caves. The opening focuses on the cave painting of Naman and Segeeth. Clark enters the cave and walks straight over to the octagonal opening in the wall placing his hand over it. The symbols light up and begin revolving. He touches certain symbols turning them blue, red, and yellow as if undoing a combination lock. When the symbols align together an opening appears in one of the cave walls. From inside, a bright white light emanates. Clark walks over to the opening and steps into a hidden chamber. He walks over to an octagonal stone altar and places the stone which he obtained from Lex’s jet into the center of the altar where there seems to be an opening. The stone fits perfectly into one of the corners as it lights up.

Banging. Lana startles awake from restless sleep. Someone is at her door. She lifts her head. She is sweaty and her hair is a mess around her face. The banging continues. She slowly slides herself out of bed. She is naked and adjusts the sheet around herself. The rubbing she did in the church is seen hanging on her easel across the room. When Lana answers the door, Jason is standing there. He is concerned because she never showed up for their date. She answers him pulling her damp hair out of her face and shivering as she speaks. She tells him that she must have passed out the night before and that she will meet him downstairs.

Clark leaves the hidden chamber. It slams shut and Martha is there waiting for him. He warns her that she shouldn’t have come. Martha pulls out the glowing black kryptonite and places it at Clark’s chest. She speaks to Clark trying to reach her son deep inside of Kal-El. He looks at her surprised and in pain. He steps back as he is immersed in a purplish-blue light. Very soon, there is a strong burst of light. Clark’s shirt rips off revealing two Clarks. One has the Kryptonian symbol burned into his chest. They revolve around. Kal-El is refusing to give up and Clark calls out to his mom. They begin to fight for dominance. Martha throws Clark the stone and he thrusts it into Kal-El’s body. Another burst of light comes from them and Martha is thrown into a wall.

Cut to the hospital, Jonathan Kent’s room. He wakes up from his coma suddenly sitting up and taking a gasping breath.

Back in the cave, Clark is lying on the ground. Martha comes over to him and cradles his head in her lap. She tentatively asks, “Clark?” He wearily answers, “It’s me, mom. I’m back,” as he holds onto her hand.

In Jonathan Kent’s hospital room, Jonathan is kissing Martha when Clark walks in. Jonathan says that the doctors find his recovery a miracle and that is because of Clark. Clark responds that his mom is the real hero. “If it wasn't for her, I'd still be Kal-El.” Jonathan then asks about Clark flying. Clark responds that “Kal-El can fly. Clark Kent is still earthbound.” He is proud of his mom saying she is capable of anything because she had faith even with Clark gone and Jonathan in a comma. She said she knew if she found the strength to go on, they would be together again. Jonathan and Martha hug and Clark joins in with them.

Lana is in the shower with the steam billowing all around her. She seems to still be deeply affected by her unsettling sleep and loss of time. She gets out of the shower and begins to wrap a towel around herself when she sees in the mirror something on her lower back. It is the symbol that was on the shield of Countess Margaret Isabelle Theroux!

Back at the penitentiary, Lionel is awaiting a guest. But it isn’t Martha Kent as he thought; it’s Lois Lane. He doesn’t want to talk to her, but Lois is not put off. She tells him that she doesn’t think it was he who had Chloe killed. “A stunt like that is... thuggish and obvious. It smacks of desperation. All the things you aren't.” She had his attention now. She said that he may not be the one who killed her cousin, but that he is still the reason why she’s dead. Lionel says it isn’t his fault it was her own. He tells her to leave. Lois starts to leave but then turns back. She toys with the question of who did this for him and why. “Or are you being set up?” she asks. As she goes to leave, she gives him one more look, a playful smile.

In the graveyard, Lois kneels and places flowers by Chloe’s grave. She talks to Chloe telling her that she didn’t go to her funeral because it wasn’t right that Chloe’s life was taken so soon; it wasn’t a life well-lived. She cries and then laughs trying to stop the tears. She promises to find out who did this to her even if she has to do it alone. Clark then reveals his presence by saying, “You’re not alone.” Lois turns around and then gets up. She tries to make jokes. Clark says that he also misses Chloe, and that Lois can stay with his family while they work together to find out who was responsible. Lois walks off leaving Clark to mourn. Clark sighs as he looks at Chloe’s grave. He then decides to x-ray the grave and he sees that the coffin is empty. “Lois! Chloe's still alive.”

Written by Cindy G.