Clark walked into the Los Angeles airport and glanced around the waiting area, quickly spotting that familiar face.
"Diana, Diana, over here!" he waved and shouted.
Diana, carrying a suitcase, approached and embraced him briefly. The specialist and several of his assistants followed behind.
"I heard you made quite a splash," Diana said, "but fame came just in time. We finally don't have to stay in that godforsaken place at the North Pole for research anymore."
Clark smiled and said, "That really makes me feel my efforts were worthwhile."
He walked over to shake hands with the specialist and then said, "Don't worry, PhD. I've negotiated with the military. They won't control you anymore or force you to dissect aliens. You can study whatever you want. The laboratory in Los Angeles has the most professional equipment, which should aid your research."
"You've been a huge help, Mr. Kent. Honestly, I didn't expect you'd be willing to step forward."
Clark sighed inwardly; it wasn't entirely his willingness to step forward, wasn't it just a matter of being forced?
Nevertheless, the return of the specialist and Diana did indeed lift his spirits. He finally accomplished something through his own efforts.
After becoming a trusted middleman among various parties, Clark decided to do something. After contemplating, he realized there were not many things he wanted or could accomplish. Ultimately, he decided to talk to the military, to persuade them not to focus solely on dissecting aliens. The subjects being researched by the specialist are so useful, yet they were forced to escape to the North Pole; is that suitable?
Clark knew from his previous visit to the scientific research station that the place had harsh natural conditions and lacked specialized equipment. Placing the specialist there was a waste of talent. Now that he had some influence, he naturally had to hurry to bring the person back, which was beneficial for the whole human race.
The military initially opposed the idea. Fortunately, the mysterious Black officer appeared again, and after a round of competition and tug-of-war, the military finally compromised. The Black officer also helped Clark find a professional laboratory located in Los Angeles so the specialist's research team could settle down.
In fact, the specialist himself was a top figure in the field and did not lack laboratories or research resources. However, the current subject was somewhat sensitive, as the aliens were still overhead. Even for confidentiality reasons, they could only go to a secret laboratory. Nonetheless, Los Angeles was far better than the North Pole.
Just as he stepped out of the airport door, Clark saw the Black officer. He approached and shook hands with him, and the officer smiled and patted his shoulder.
Diana stared at the Black officer for a while, seemingly noticing something, but wisely chose to say nothing.
The three of them took a car, while the specialist and research team took the official car behind them. The Black officer drove, and Clark couldn't wait to share his recent experiences with him.
He talked about himself for quite a while, suddenly realizing, somewhat awkwardly, that he didn't know the officer's name, so he asked, "Sorry, sir, what's your name?"
"John Jones. You can call me Colonel Jones."
"Okay, Colonel. You... um, I mean, why was it that when I mentioned you at the military base that day, they all said... said they hadn't seen you?"
Clark had been holding this question within him for a long time. He did not suspect the officer of being an impostor because he moved freely between military bases and spoke with authority. However, those few people earlier didn't seem to be acting; they genuinely appeared to have never met a Black officer.
"Then I have a question for you: why do you fly?"
"Because I have superpowers." Clark answered this way. He had agreed with the Federal Government and the military not to disclose his identity as an alien, just saying he was a superpower user.
"I am the same." The Black officer replied with a smile.
"You have superpowers too? Wow, are there too many superpower users?" Clark said with some amazement, "I have them, you have them, Diana also has them..."
"Far more than you imagine," Diana said, "Have you heard of Atlantis?"
"You mean that mysterious underwater city?"
"That's right, it actually exists. The Sea Clan lives there. If you have time, you can fly over the sea to have a look; you might even meet them."
"It really exists?" Clark said in surprise, "They really live underwater?"
"That's right. They can also manipulate seawater, very powerful," Diana thought for a moment and said, "And, I have also seen other demigods on land..."
"Other demigods? I'm sorry, let me interrupt, what are demigods?"
"Children born from the union of humans and gods. I am a demigod."
"Gods? You mean God?"
"No, it's Zeus. My father is Zeus."
Clark's jaw nearly dropped as he said, "Zeus?! You mean the Zeus from mythology? The one who goes around wielding lightning bolts???"
"Indeed, it's the Zeus from mythology, but he doesn't go around wielding lightning. Wait, I thought you'd mention his chaotic personal life..."
"That's a bit rude," Clark cautiously said, "I prefer to call it having a vigorous reproductive drive."
"Not much better," Diana said, "You'd better remember, there's always someone stronger. Even though you're powerful, there's always a chance someone out there is stronger than you. It's best to keep a low profile.""
Clark listened intently, nodding thoughtfully. He realized that even on Earth, there are hidden strengths.
But on second thought, it makes sense. If Krypton, being so far from Earth, could send a spaceship with a baby here, then it's not unusual for nearby alien civilizations to send things over too, right? After all these years, there must be quite a collection. Considering how long he's lived on Earth, it's possible that even during the Dinosaur era, his predecessors were around.
Speaking of which, the stories of Ancient Egyptian Civilization battling aliens might not be far-fetched. It's possible that another alien civilization sent a spaceship during that time.
Thinking this way, Clark felt quite reassured. As an Earthling, he wasn't alone. He knew Bruce and got along well with Lois, so he wasn't without friends. As a superpower user, he knew Diana and this officer named Jones, so he wasn't unique. As an alien, although he hadn't met other aliens yet, he believed there were others on Earth. He would meet them eventually.
So, no matter which identity, he was never alone, never had been.
The car arrived at the base, and the Black officer showed them around. Clark contributed some of his hair and blood for the experts to study. Of course, he wore the green gemstone the entire time, which occasionally caused discomfort, but he was much better now.
Moreover, he discovered a benefit of the green gemstone: he no longer needed to control his strength. The thing nearly drained away his superpower, leaving his strength only slightly above that of an ordinary person, allowing him to live like a regular human without worrying about accidentally punching a building down.
In fact, controlling his superpower was instinctual, supported by his super brain's computation power, but this also consumed computational power. By weakening it using the green gemstone, this computational power could be freed, allowing his super brain to think about more things.
After wandering around with the gemstone all day, Clark found himself quite fond of the feeling. The dizziness from the gemstone became akin to the warm buzz after drinking, and the heaviness from weakened strength made him feel closer to reality, rather than always detached.
In the evening, Diana invited him out for a drink. They picked a beachside bar. Los Angeles wasn't too cold, so they sat outside, watching the sunset while drinking.
Clark marveled at the cocktail brought to them. It was a yellow-green fluid, reminiscent of spring grass, with a rich orange hue on top and an iridescent green at the bottom. Qingkui kumquats and lemon wedges adorned the rim, making it look beautiful.
"Didn't I order a Sunset Avenue?" Diana asked the bartender, "Is this what I ordered?"
"Yes. Our Sunset Avenue is an improved version. Don't you think it resembles a Los Angeles sunset?"
Looking at the visually striking cocktail, Diana nodded and said, "Indeed, it looks like an evening meadow. Not bad."
"Thank you, enjoy your drink."
Clark, however, was hesitant. He picked up the glass, took a sip, and pursed his lips.
He used to avoid alcohol because of the rapid alcohol metabolism, making it taste like bland water compared to flavorful drinks. Therefore, he'd rather drink something else.
Yet this time, after tasting that familiar alcoholic tang, he felt a warmth spreading. Another sip assured him it wasn't a misconception: from throat to chest was warm, eyes slightly swollen, a little dizzy, and his body tingled.
Diana immediately stopped him from drinking more, saying, "Oh my god, don't tell me this is your first time drinking."
"You said I was just a baby, what's strange about a first drink?"
"Alright, my mistake. I thought you couldn't get drunk," Diana sighed, "Normally, our metabolism is so fast the alcohol metabolizes before it takes effect."
"Well, that should be the case," Clark said woozily, "but with the gemstone, I seem to..."
Before finishing his sentence, he passed out on the table. When he woke up, it was the next day.
"Oh God, my head!" Clark cried out in agony. Wobbling up from bed, he clutched his throbbing head in a dizzying spin.
Just then, someone knocked on the door. Clark opened it to find Diana standing outside, handing him a glass of warm water, and said, "Drink some water. You were really drunk last night."
"Why do I feel so awful?" Clark reluctantly asked.
"It's called a hangover," Diana explained patiently, "The unprocessed alcoholic impurities linger in the body, causing a headache and other symptoms. It's quite unpleasant. You shouldn't have drunk so much."
"But... I only had three sips last night."
"For your first drink, three sips are quite a bit," Diana shook her head helplessly, "Drink the water and get some more sleep. We still have a blood test in the afternoon."