The two women had lost count of how many confused glances they'd exchanged since entering the house. Their eyes were filled with bewilderment and disbelief.
This kid who looked about ten years old was their son? Not adopted? Had Lois also secretly been some powerful reincarnated being whose child was ten years old at birth? This had to be a joke!
The boy bore a striking resemblance to Superman—father and son, no doubt about it. Thea even wondered if he'd fathered a child in some obscure corner of the world without knowing about it.
After all, Superman was in his mid-thirties now. After his adoptive father died, he'd spent years wandering Earth alone. Maybe there'd been some heat-of-the-moment thing after a heroic rescue, some woman he'd saved who'd gotten swept up and given him a child.
Just like Oliver's son William—that kid was about ten too, and his father still had no idea, completely in the dark.
This kid's story seemed eerily similar to Oliver's son. Maybe the biological mother had died, the son came looking for his father, the truth was revealed, and Lois miscarried in her anger... Thea's imagination spun a whole twenty-episode drama series.
Faced with the two women's skeptical stares, Superman scratched his head sheepishly. "This is my son. He's named after my father—Jonathan Kent."
Though Diana didn't have Thea's wild imagination, she'd watched soap operas on Earth for decades. She swore by her divine authority that she'd never heard of anyone giving birth to a ten-year-old. The warrior goddess looked at Superman like he was scum.
Unaware that he'd gone from Superman to Scumbag Man in Diana's mind, Clark looked at Thea with a pleading expression. "Jonathan really is mine and Lois's child. It's just that yesterday he was caught in this brilliant aurora, and when he came out, he looked like this. Oh, and Krypto came out with him. Krypto is—"
"Krypto is this dog, right?" Thea stroked the large dog's head. Thanks to her off-the-charts charisma, Krypto didn't reject her.
The dog resembled an Earth border collie with some subtle differences. Of course, appearance wasn't what mattered—what mattered was that this dog came from Krypton!
Super strength, super speed, super endurance, heat vision, solar absorption—and flight! This was a Kryptonian dog!
The dog looked kind of dopey, but its combat power could crush 99% of Earth's population. Seeing it created the illusion that being a Kryptonian dog was better than being a human.
Thea even had the malicious thought that if they threw this dog into the sun, maybe a century later it could beat up Darkseid. Imagining Highfather and Darkseid—two miserable brothers—getting pounded by a dog... that mental image was too good. Krypton was so unscientific and unreasonable that it was no wonder it got destroyed. Forget others—even Thea, who'd struggled to reach where she was today, wanted to destroy them!
She petted the big dog's head. Nice coat, but Thea preferred small animals. Small dogs were fine, but this one was too big—not her type.
Back to the problem. Thea thought for a moment. "An aurora? Then it swept baby Jonathan away, and when he reappeared he was this big? Is that right?"
"Yes, but not here. I was worried about complications with Lois giving birth, so I took her to the Fortress of Solitude. The technology there is more advanced."
The Fortress of Solitude was Superman's dad's legacy logistics base, like Batman's Batcave, filled with alien high-tech. Thea had never been inside.
Both women could hear Superman's unspoken meaning. As the first child of a Kryptonian and a human, Superman wasn't entirely certain the birth would go smoothly. Taking his wife to the Fortress meant that if things went wrong, he'd at least save the mother.
Diana's expression softened slightly. At least this proved Superman was a good husband.
"One day ago? What kind of light swept Jonathan away?" Thea had a suspicion forming. Had something major happened in the multiverse one day ago? Obviously yes—one day ago she and Darkseid were still playing tug-of-war...
Superman's next words confirmed her guess. "A flash of red and green. According to the Fortress computer, an energy force punched through the spatial barrier, then another force repaired the damage. For me it was just an instant, but for Jonathan, he'd lived ten years with Krypto in another space."
Superman felt guilty about not giving his son a happy childhood.
Thea felt a bit embarrassed. "Sorry, that might be related to me. Here's what happened..."
She recounted the entire Earth-2 story again. When she'd told Diana before, she'd focused on that world's Wonder Woman. Telling Superman naturally emphasized the Kryptonian parts.
"Lor-Zod? Zod's son, and an adopted son of the House of El!" Hearing such shocking news, even Superman paled. General Zod was the only enemy he'd ever killed—a permanent mark etched in his heart.
As someone who'd lived through the event, Lois also remembered. General Zod's arrival on Earth was where her love story with Clark Kent, that Kansas farm boy, had begun.
When Superman heard about the Evil Superman dying at Highfather's hands, his expression darkened.
Thea used her water mirror technique to show them the battle footage. "About this level. Many of the rule-based powers can't be simulated by magic, so this is maybe sixty or seventy percent accurate to what actually happened."
She showed Superman the footage of trading beam attacks with Darkseid.
Watching the somewhat familiar beam clash burning holes through space, Superman was candid. "You saved a world. You don't need to feel guilty. Jonathan's situation isn't your fault."
Seemingly not wanting to continue discussing his son, Superman changed the subject. "You said this Darkseid will invade our universe? How long does Earth have?"
"Six months to a year."
Superman lowered his head in brief contemplation. "We've known each other all these years and never really tested ourselves against each other. Thea, spar with me. I want to measure how strong this Darkseid is."
Oh? Facing Superman's battle-ready spirit, Thea was momentarily stunned. Was it hearing about his other self's tragic story that had sparked this rare fighting spirit?
Thea had no objections. Eight years ago, Superman had been an insurmountable mountain. Now she could meet him eye to eye, even look down on him. She also wanted to see the results of her years of effort.
"Alright, let's find an uninhabited planet for our match." Hearing about a fight, the battle-loving Amazon naturally wanted to watch. Lois didn't care for violence, but seeing her son seemed interested, she nodded in agreement.
Of course, they'd bring the dog named Krypto too. The creature had extremely high intelligence, could understand English, and could survive in space.
The group politely drank the coffee Martha had made, chatted courteously with the elderly lady, then took their leave together.
Batman's surveillance covered the solar system. Thea found a primitive planet with oxygen and Earth-like terrain far from the solar system and teleported everyone there.
Using magic against Superman would be pointless—she wanted close combat!
Without drawing her holy sword, just wearing her divine armor, Thea held her fists loosely. Massive soul force enhanced her body, dramatically increasing her strength, speed, and endurance.
"Watch out!" A gray-black figure flashed past. Thea charged straight at Superman.
"So fast!" The speed caught Superman off guard. He chose to sidestep while twisting at the waist to throw a punch.