Clark stayed with Soren in the Watchtower for seven hours.
It wasn't until the Western Hemisphere of Earth was bathed in the light of the yellow sun that Clark finally left the Watchtower.
In truth, he was reluctant to let Soren out of his sight, but the seven hours of pressing matters on Earth forced him to return to the Justice League headquarters to handle them.
These seven hours were the only time in years that he had set aside the Justice League's affairs.
He left Soren alone in the Watchtower, telling him to use the Watchtower's communicator to contact him if anything happened—he could rush over at any moment.
Soren nodded and watched Clark leave.
But soon, he realized that aside from that communicator, there was no other way to connect with the outside world from the Watchtower.
The computer system had already been shut down, requiring fingerprint verification to activate.
There were no TVs, cell phones, or telephones—nothing resembling communication tools.
The only person he could contact was Clark.
There wasn't even a single clock.
He could only rely on watching Earth's rotation through the small window to gauge the passage of time.
As the terminator line gradually moved westward across the Pacific, he had already explored most of the Watchtower.
He only found two old comic books, likely left behind by Victor or Barry.
The comics were quite worn, as though they had been frequently read.
One was a modern adaptation of <
The pages were damaged, and there were chaotic scribbles all over them.
Soren quickly flipped through both of them, passing some time before continuing to search the Watchtower, but still, he found nothing.
The entire Watchtower felt like an isolated island in space, trapping him completely.
Soren began to feel restless.
He found the teleportation chamber inside the Watchtower, but it had long been deactivated, and there was no way for him to leave through it.
If he Digivolved into Magna Angemon and forcibly broke through the Watchtower's doors, the life-support systems would fail, triggering the Watchtower's self-destruct mechanism, causing it to disintegrate in space to prevent crashing into Earth.
The Watchtower was funded by Bruce Wayne, with Superman and Martian Manhunter contributing Kryptonian and Martian technologies respectively.
The Justice League had poured immense effort into the Watchtower, so unless absolutely necessary, Soren wouldn't consider such a drastic measure.
Soren waited until the terminator line moved across the Mediterranean before Clark finally returned.
Clark brought him a new soft armchair, food, DVDs, and a video game console.
He helped Soren set up the video game console, carefully adjusting the cables and even pre-installed several games for him in advance.
"Try it out, see if it works. I bought what they said was the best one," he said to Soren.
Soren held the controller Clark had handed him, but his interest was low, and he showed no desire to play.
Instead, he hesitantly called out, "Clark," and said, "I don't want to stay here, Clark. I want to go back to Earth... I want to see my mom and dad. Are they okay?"
Clark paused for a moment.
He turned around and asked, "Do you miss them?"
Soren replied, "Of course! Do you think I wouldn't? How are they? Did you tell them I'm back?"
Clark straightened up, his tall frame casting a shadow over Soren's head.
"I haven't told them yet… but they're doing fine, don't worry. They've moved back to New York now."
"I want to see them," Soren said.
Clark knelt down to comfort him, saying, "I've been a bit busy lately. How about in a few days? In a few days, I'll take you to see them. I'll let them know, and they'll be really happy too."
"I can go find them myself," Soren frowned, "I know where my home is. You just need to take me back, and I can go home on my own."
Clark let out a breath through his nose, "...It's a bit dangerous on Earth right now. Staying at the Watchtower is the safest for you."
"Then aren't my mom and dad in danger too? That's even more reason for me to go find them," Soren countered.
Clark hadn't expected Soren to push back like this.
He glanced at him, said nothing, and quietly began to pack away the game console and the DVDs he had brought, "I'll take you to see them."
Soren watched him and asked, "Do you want me to stay here forever, Clark?"
Clark averted his gaze, "Once I've taken care of a few things, I'll take you away. Be good and stay here for a while. It won't be long."
Soren looked at him in silence.
He curled up, pulling his legs onto the sofa and hugging himself, "...How long?"
"—I brought some cheese potato cakes. I'll go heat them up for you. If you walk straight out and turn left at the end, you'll find the kitchen. I've stocked the fridge with all your favorite foods. If you get hungry, just help yourself, okay?" Clark stiffly avoided answering his question.
Soren remained silent.
Seeing no response from him, Clark decided not to press further.
He left the room and went to prepare dinner for Soren.
After finishing the meal, Clark called for Soren to come out and eat, but Soren stayed in the room.
So, Clark brought the food inside, placing the plates and utensils in front of him, "Your favorite potato pancakes. Don't like them anymore?"
"…I don't have an appetite. I can't eat," Soren said, turning his head away.
"You should try to eat something," Clark urged, picking up a spoon, "You're too thin. Right now, you—"
He glanced at Soren's new face and body, carefully choosing his words, "How did you…?"
"It has nothing to do with Hydra," Soren replied.
Clark sat down in front of him, "Then let me feed you, okay? If you keep skipping meals, you'll starve."