"Kaius, watch out!"
Clark reacted instantly. With a burst of superhuman speed, he shoved Kaius out of harm's way just as the speeding Porsche barreled into him.
Boom!
The bridge's iron railing crumpled like paper, and the Porsche slammed into Clark, sending both the car and him hurtling into the river below.
Kaius wasn't worried about Clark's safety. After all, Little Superman's body was tougher than steel. A car crash was hardly a threat to him—he could probably shrug off a mountain falling on him. The driver of the Porsche, however, wasn't so lucky.
Without hesitation, Kaius leapt into the river. He grabbed hold of the Porsche's door and, with minimal effort, ripped it off as though it were made of cardboard.
Clark swam over and pulled the unconscious driver from the car. Together, the two dragged him to the shore.
"A bald guy?"
Kaius finally got a clear look at the driver. He was a young bald man in a sharp suit, looking no older than Kaius or Clark. But driving a limited-edition Porsche like that? This guy was obviously filthy rich.
"Wait... bald, and the license plate says 'LEX'? No way... this can't be the Lex Luthor!"
While Kaius was still processing his discovery, Clark had already started performing CPR. With a mix of chest compressions and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, he worked to revive the unconscious man.
Watching this scene, Kaius felt a strange mix of emotions. Clark and Lex Luthor had been friends in their early days. But over time, their ideals had diverged, their relationship had soured, and they eventually became bitter enemies.
"If I kill this guy now, it might save me a ton of trouble in the future," Kaius thought to himself.
But the idea was fleeting. He couldn't just kill someone in cold blood—especially in front of Clark. That would instantly destroy their friendship.
"Forget it," Kaius sighed inwardly. "I'll just let him live. Who knows, maybe I can even get a character card from him. Does extreme wealth count as a superpower?"
"Ahem..."
Lex suddenly coughed, spitting out water as he regained consciousness. His eyes fluttered open, locking onto Clark's face. For a moment, there was only confusion and disbelief.
"You saved me... But I hit you with my car," Lex murmured, his voice shaky.
"If you'd hit anyone else, they'd be dead," Clark replied calmly. "But yeah, you're fine now. Let's call the police."
In the U.S., it was standard procedure to call the police for any accident, big or small. Lex nodded in agreement. He'd need a crane to haul his Porsche out of the river anyway. As for the cost? Lex Luthor didn't even blink at the idea of paying the bill.
"Kaius, you shouldn't be here," Clark whispered. "Go! If anyone sees you, they'll wonder why you're not in the hospital."
Kaius gave a quick thumbs-up and took off. Once out of sight, he used his super speed to bypass any onlookers and darted back home.
As soon as he walked through the door, he nearly collided with his uncle, James.
"Kaius?! You little brat!" James exploded. "You're supposed to be in the hospital! Do you know how worried I was? I almost thought you'd been kidnapped!"
Kaius winced. Before he could even respond, James grabbed his arm.
"Wait a second," James said, his tone shifting. "What about your injury? How's your arm?"
"If I told you I wasn't really injured and the doctors just misdiagnosed me... would you believe me?" Kaius asked hesitantly.
James stared at him in silence for a long moment, his stern expression unyielding. "Impossible. I saw the X-rays myself. If this is a misdiagnosis, I'll make sure those doctors never work again."
"Uh... give me a second, I'll think of another excuse," Kaius muttered, slumping into a chair.
James softened a bit, sighing. "Listen, kid. I'm just glad you're okay. This town has seen a lot of strange things over the years. Honestly, I've learned to stop being surprised."
Kaius raised an eyebrow. "Strange things? Like what?"
"Lightning strikes that don't make sense. People setting things on fire with their bare hands..." James trailed off, shaking his head. "Anyway, I'm just worried about you, Kaius. I don't mean to scare you."
The mention of strange occurrences intrigued Kaius. Ever since the meteor shower ten years ago, Smallville had been crawling with bizarre phenomena—most of them caused by Kryptonite radiation. To ordinary people, these events were just accidents or natural disasters.
"You never told me any of this," Kaius said, genuinely surprised.
"You were just a kid," James replied. "What would you have done with that information? Anyway, about your miraculous recovery... I don't know what's going on, but you're staying home for now. In a few days, I'm taking you to the Metropolis General Hospital for a full-body checkup."
Kaius was completely justified in staying cautious. After all, as long as he removed the Superman card from the main card slot, he'd go back to being a 24-karat pure Earthman.
"No problem. I've never been to Metropolis before, anyway," Kaius said, agreeing to James' suggestion.
Hearing this, Sheriff James let out a long sigh of relief. "Alright then. I've got to clean up the mess you left behind. First stop: the hospital, to explain that you've been sent home to recover. And don't worry, I'll also call back the officers who were out looking for you."
"Sorry for causing you so much trouble," Kaius muttered, a bit ashamed. After all, James was one of the few people in the world who truly cared about him.
James, however, was unfazed. He smiled and shrugged. "Trouble? Has there ever been a time when you didn't cause trouble, kid?"
Over the next few days, Kaius stayed home as instructed. He noticed that Lana didn't visit him at all during this time—perhaps the Whitney charm bonus had finally worn off. Their friendship, however, remained steady in the "friendly" zone.
So, this is the legendary "friend-zoned." The heartbreak of unrequited love!
Clark, on the other hand, proved to be a loyal friend and visited Kaius frequently.
At noon one day, Kaius lay lazily by the window, using his X-ray vision to maintain "law and order" on the street. Of course, he totally wasn't using it to check out the attractive passersby. His motives were noble. (Bro💀)
After all, as the ancients taught, the more beautiful a woman, the more dangerous she might be—a femme fatale!
"Kaius, the back-to-school dance is coming up soon. Are you going to attend?"
Clark's voice suddenly appeared behind him, startling Kaius.
"Geez, knock next time, will you?!" Kaius exclaimed, turning around.
"I didn't need to. Your door wasn't even closed," Clark said, pulling up a chair. He glanced out the window with curiosity. "What are you looking at? Scoping out the potential dance partners?"
The back-to-school dance was a long-standing American tradition, held in late September each year to invite alumni back to the school. For students, it was all about finding the perfect dance partner—a matter of utmost importance, especially to the boys.
Clark, of course, was no exception. He wanted to ask his dream girl, Lana, to be his partner. But being new to the game of love, he didn't know how to approach her. So, he turned to one of his few close friends, Kaius, for advice.
Kaius, however, was in a dilemma. If he told Clark that he wanted to ask Lana, their budding friendship might sink faster than the Titanic.
As he wrestled with his thoughts, a loud siren blared outside the window.
Kaius and Clark both froze, listening carefully. Over time, Kaius had become more skilled at controlling his super-hearing and other abilities.
Through the chaos of overlapping noises, they honed in on the information they needed.
"A gang is robbing the bank."
"There are five robbers, all armed, and they've taken hostages."
Clark's conflicted expression spoke volumes. He clearly wanted to help, but the fear of exposing his powers—and the consequences it might bring to his family—held him back.
"Clark," Kaius said, breaking the silence, "do you remember what I told you? The greater the ability, the greater the responsibility. It's time to step up and maintain peace in this town. But first, you'll need a disguise."
With that, Kaius grabbed an oily yellow paper bag containing his half-eaten burger and latte, holding it out with a smirk. "You can start with this!"